by Debra Kayn
Garrett cussed. “Not anymore. We’ve partnered on the agency end of business.”
That was news to her, although not surprising. Dad had given her a quarter share in Beaumont Body Shop years ago, but Garrett had taken the agency in a higher direction during her absence.
“Please, Garrett. I can’t stand to be in here.” She peered up at the corner of the room. “Will you let me out if I promise to hang with you? I won’t even talk or bother you.”
Several seconds passed. “We’ll let you out when Kage returns. It’s early. Why don’t you take a nap?”
She grabbed her purse and searched the contents. “This is exactly why I should have a gun. I’d shoot my way out, and then I’d hit each one of you pathetic excuses for a man over the head with it. How you guys can be so good looking and egotistically conceited is beyond me. If I ever get out of here and get my life back, I’m buying a billboard warning all women to stay away from the Beaumont Body Shop.”
Their laughter that had carried into the room quickly ended on her last threat. She threw her purse against the wall in frustration. There was nothing in it that she could use as a tool to pry open the door. The minute she got out of here, she was stealing one of their pistols, and a screwdriver.
“You all think this is funny, but Kage’s life could be in danger. Think about that as you’re getting your jollies off keeping me locked up. If anything happens to him, I’m holding the agency responsible. I’ll…I’ll perform a citizen’s arrest and have every one of you thrown in jail. Even you, Garrett. I don’t care if you’re my brother!” she shouted.
Out of breath, her toe killing her, she sat down on the bed. The silence was unbearable. She had no idea what was going on outside the room or how things were going at the meeting. Heaviness settled in her chest, and her vision blurred. She rubbed her eyes. She was not going to cry.
She had to think. There had to be some way for her to get out of the room.
Much later, she still hadn’t come up with a plan. She’d given the boys the silent treatment so they’d quit trying to initiate any kind of conversation with her. She lay back on the bed, hugging the pillow to her chest. Damn them.
The door clicked. Jane rolled over to see Charlene and Sabrina hurry into the room. She jumped up and lunged for the door, but Tony slammed it shut before she could manage an escape. She smacked her palm against the metal.
“Come here, honey.” Charlene grabbed Jane’s shoulders and gathered her in a hug. “Everything is going to be okay.”
“No, it’s not.” She laid her head on Charlene’s shoulder, exhausted. “I’m worried. Kage is all by himself.”
Sabrina threw her arms around them both and joined the group hug. “We’ve known Kage a long time. He’s more than capable of handling things.”
Jane lifted her head. “You don’t understand. He swore he’d never turn out like his family. He doesn’t even break the speed limit. People think the worst about him, and he walks away. He never confronts them or fights to prove he’s a good and decent person. I don’t want him doing something he’ll regret for the rest of his life because of me.”
Sabrina rubbed Jane’s back. “Try to think positively.”
“I know he’ll put himself in harm’s way to make this right.” Jane pulled away. “He said he’d do anything to keep me safe. Anything.”
“Lord save us,” Charlene whispered. “We need to figure out how to get out of here before that boy does something he’ll regret.” She paused. “Well, you can’t go alone. There’s safety in numbers.”
“So, you’ll help me?” Hope filled her, and she held out her arm.
Charlene clasped her hand. Then Sabrina laid her hand on top of theirs. Jane gave them a shaky smile. Together they might be able to overtake the guys and find Kage.
“This place is built better than a jail cell, and the boys are under strict orders from Kage not to let me out.” She leaned forward and lowered her voice. “We’ll have to figure out what will make them go against Kage’s wishes. It’ll have to be something big.”
“I could be claustrophobic.” Charlene peered around the room and fanned her face. “I might be, because it’s hotter than hell in here, isn’t it?”
Jane patted Charlene’s hand. “No, you’re probably having a hot flash.”
“Shut your mouth.” Charlene scoffed. “Only time a woman should get one of those is in bed with a hot-looking man, and it’s been a month since that’s happened to me.”
“Who?” Sabrina leaned back, eyeing Charlene. “I didn’t even know you dated.”
Charlene lowered her gaze and bristled. “Don’t have to date to have a good time, sugar.”
Jane glanced from Sabrina to Charlene. She shook her head, getting the image Charlene planted in her head out of the way to concentrate on more important things. “Come on, you two. We need a plan that won’t fail, because we only have one chance to trick them.”
“Well, Garrett ignores me half the time, so I’m no help.” Sabrina held her hand out, palm facing the door, and admired her nails. “I doubt if he’d even notice if I stripped down to the slinky black thong I bought yesterday.”
“Oh please, he’s a man. Of course he would.” Jane rolled her eyes. “We need something bigger and more dramatic…an emergency of some kind.”
“Do you still use one of those breather things?” Charlene looked at Sabrina and held her hand to her mouth, pinching her finger and thumb together.
Sabrina wrinkled her nose. “An inhaler? No, I grew out of my asthma phase ten years ago. The doctor said it wasn’t uncommon once you went through puberty. They believed the condition was hormonal or something like that.”
Jane whispered, “Does Garrett or the boys know you don’t use one anymore?”
Sabrina shrugged. “Did they even know I had one in the first place? I was pretty young. I don’t think they paid any attention to me when I was at your house.”
“Even better, because it’ll take them by surprise.” She stood. “You’re going to fake an asthma attack. Charlene and I will go hysterical, thinking you’re going to die. I’ll yell for Garrett. There’s no way he won’t come in if he thinks something is medically wrong with you. When he opens the door, act like you can’t breathe.”
“What do I do?” Charlene asked.
Jane smiled. “Hold on to me and don’t let me chicken out. We’ll act scared, and Garrett will rush to Sabrina, who’ll be lying on the floor. When he’s distracted, we’ll make a run for it.”
She grabbed Sabrina and led her over to the corner. “Lie down and pull up your skirt.
“Exactly what will that do?” Sabrina looked back at her.
“If Garrett doesn’t fall for the medical emergency, maybe he’ll fall for a slinky black thong.” She grinned. “Now hurry. I want to get out of here and find Kage. Once Garrett realizes what we’ve done, slip away, and drive your car around the block. I doubt if we can get far. You’ll need to pick us up. Once we’re together again, we’ll hunt down Kage.”
A shiver crawled up her spine. If anything went wrong or Scott spotted her, she was putting them all at risk. But she had to hope that he wouldn’t act if she was with other people.
She moved over to Charlene and squeezed her hand. With no more delay, she took a deep breath and screamed. She motioned for Sabrina to start her act. “Sabrina, oh my God. Sabrina!”
Loud wheezes and a fit of coughing came from her friend. Jane studied Sabrina’s face as it reddened at a rapid pace. For a second she wondered if anyone had pretended an asthma attack and forced a real one to come on. Sabrina was that good.
“Help,” she yelled, moving to the door. “Garrett, open the damn door. Sabrina can’t breathe. She needs her inhaler.” She pounded on the steel. “Charlene, help her. Garrett, get in here!”
The doorknob turned. Garrett filled the frame and took in Sabrina writhing on the floor, the hem of her skirt around her waist showing off a sexy pair of panties and a sound like a sea lion during mati
ng season emanating from her lips. Garrett’s hard face softened and he cussed under his breath, moving forward without giving Jane or Charlene a glance.
“You have to help her. She has asthma, and was complaining about how she couldn’t catch her breath.” Jane pushed Garrett faster, but he was already focused entirely on Sabrina.
The moment Garrett went down on one knee to come to Sabrina’s rescue, Jane grabbed Charlene’s hand and tugged her out the door.
“Come on, we’ll sneak out through the garage,” she whispered.
Hope fueled her forward. She had no idea how to find Kage, but Bay City wasn’t that large of a town, so she had to try.
Chapter Sixteen
Across town, in an abandoned airplane hangar, Kage stood in front of underground drug lord Darrell Archer. Three armed men stood several feet away, eyes averted, yet keyed in to his every move. Ten minutes after walking through the unlocked door, Darrell had yet to bring up Kage’s reasons for requesting the meeting.
Dressed in a gray suit, burgundy shirt, and black tie, Darrell rocked back on his heels and folded his arms, one hand going to his chin. Kage stood perfectly still, feet wide, shoulders relaxed, hands at his sides. His easy posture belied the tightness in his gut and the bitter taste of disgust on his tongue.
The years hadn’t changed his uncle. All the Archer men carried the strong square jaw line, steel eyes, and the ability to hide what they were thinking. Darrell exhibited a quiet power that most men wouldn’t trust. The resemblance between Darrell and Kage’s father unnerved Kage, and he knew others perceived him the same way because he carried the familiar facial features that marked them as family. He’d felt it his whole life.
“You’re a disappointment, Kage.” Darrell sighed heavily. “It’s been what…twelve, thirteen years since you’ve seen your dad?”
“Fifteen,” he said. “Since the day the cops pulled him out of the house.”
Darrell clicked his tongue. “What a shame. Your dad worked hard in the business to provide you a home, a future, security. He proved his loyalty when trouble came and he took the fall, so the underground could rebuild and prosper. He wasn’t only protecting what is rightfully ours, he’s doing time for you. He expected you to step into his role beside me. And this is how you choose to pay him back? By not even visiting him in the penitentiary? Refusing to acknowledge your family?”
Kage forced himself not to show any emotion. “While you might want to rehash the good intentions of our family to keep the West Coast in heroin, women, and crime, I’ve come here for a different purpose.”
Darrell studied him, and as if he found Kage’s declaration funny, he laughed. “You’ve been gone a long time. Have you forgotten so completely how things are done?”
Every time Kage closed his eyes, every detail of his life played over in his mind. No matter how much he wanted to forget where he came from, he couldn’t hide from the truth.
He disregarded the question. “I need to know where and how to contact a man.”
“Your ties to the police bureau can’t help you out?” Darrell asked. “That’s what you went to college for? Son, the education you could’ve received free, from me, would’ve allowed you to keep your self-respect, and you wouldn’t have had to crawl back to me now.”
“I know who I’m dealing with.” Kage stepped forward. “He runs with someone tied to the underground, and that’s information you can get me. Information you owe me.”
Darrell’s eyes turned hard. “Careful, Kage. I don’t let anyone threaten me, including my own blood.”
“You owe me,” he repeated, his voice deathly quiet. “I’m calling a marker on my mom’s death.”
Darrell narrowed his eyes, and Kage felt the anger rolling off his uncle. He’d saved his one get-out-of-jail-free card for almost twenty years.
The evidence concerning his mother’s death would mean nothing now, all these years later, but blood was blood. Calling his mark was the one thing he had on his uncle. At nine years old, he’d witnessed his mom’s death. He’d watched his uncle hand the heroin to his mom and stand over her as she shot the drug in her vein, instantly stopping her heart.
He’d kept Darrell’s secret from the police, from his dad, from everyone. All because he knew that, someday, he’d need it to keep himself out of the dirty business of his family. He’d selfishly protected himself instead of bringing his vendetta down in his mom’s name.
Darrell’s mouth tightened and he walked away. He stopped and pivoted back around without coming any closer. “Name?”
“Scott Carson,” he said.
At the mention of Scott, the already tense atmosphere seemed to spike a notch higher. Darrell’s eyes moved from one of his men to the ground and back to Kage. “You’re calling in the marker?”
He dipped his chin. “Yes.”
“And it’s only information you seek? You’re not asking for him to disappear?” Darrell asked.
Kage would like nothing more than to know Scott was dead to the world. “He hurt my woman. I want to take him down myself.”
Darrell smirked. “Finally, I see my blood runs in your veins when it comes to women. An Archer through and through.”
Kage refused to acknowledge he was out for murder, nor would he deny he and Darrell were related. His boot heavy with the pistol, he shifted his stance. Darrell’s men were aware he was carrying weapons. For reasons unknown to him, they had allowed him to keep them. His fingers itched. He’d love to put a bullet in Darrell’s forehead as well and pay him back for what he’d done to his mom.
An addict and dependent on anyone she could attach herself to, his mom would’ve probably ended up dead in a few more years, but she was his mother. At one time, she was his world, and along with all the bad, there were good times he remembered.
“I see.” Darrell inhaled deeply. “Well, then I can give you the information you’re seeking.”
“The name of his boss…” Kage’s skin tingled.
Darrell lifted his chin and studied Kage for several seconds. “He works for me.”
Uncontrolled anger seized him. The muscles in his face constricted and he turned, unable to look at this man. The man who’d played judge and jury to innocent people. Kage screamed inside for the pain he’d lived through, the horror of what he’d seen, the guilt laying on his shoulders from those affected. Nobody came away happy, healthy, whole.
He thought of Jane and how he’d pushed her away, only to have his past collide with hers anyway. He’d thought her safe in Pullman, but even there, his uncle was fucking with those he cared about, trying to rip everyone away from him. His mother put herself firmly in the hands of his uncle, relying on him for her next fix. His father, a man he had admired as a kid, had foolishly stood by his brother, disregarding the safety of his wife, his son, and his freedom.
Who was next: Garrett? Tony? Lance? Charlene? There was no stopping his uncle’s destruction. Darrell wouldn’t be satisfied until he had Kage under his control.
“I made you a promise all those years ago,” Darrell said. “There’s no escaping your heritage. You’re a part of me no matter how much you try and deny it.”
Kage whipped his gaze to his uncle. “I am nothing like you.”
Darrell’s swift inhale was the only sign that he heard, yet he continued. “No. You’re stronger, smarter, and loyal.”
Kage curled his fingers. There was no way this would end well. No matter what he decided, Jane would lose him. He had to make a choice. Walk away, always waiting for the next devastating blow, or take out the man responsible for the pain.
“I can see what you’re thinking, Kage. Make it simple. You know what you have to do.” Darrell stepped forward. “Your mother was too weak to survive. I told my brother, he should never have married her. That she was—”
Kage squatted, going for his pistol as three simultaneous clicks echoed in the hangar. His eyes flicked to Darrell’s men. They were all armed and pointing their weapons at him as he remained crouched,
holding the gun on Darrell.
No matter what kind of woman his mom was, she was still his mother. “Don’t ever speak about my mother again or I’ll kill you.”
“You’ve used your last marker, son. You have none left. My men will shoot on my command.” Darrell stepped forward. “The next time I see you, we’ll be on even ground. It’s not too late to come on board. We’re family. I can protect you.”
Kage straightened, lowering his arm but keeping his finger on the trigger. “Never.”
Then he turned around and walked out of the building. He had what he came for. Now he could move forward. Scott was a dead man walking.
The whole ride back to the garage, he pushed his family problems out of his mind. The significance of handing over the one thing that’d kept Darrell away from him paled in comparison to keeping Jane safe.
Today’s meeting proved he’d never be rid of the threat. He punched the steering wheel. He’d never join Darrell in business. Period.
If anyone else would’ve been running Scott, he could’ve planned, invaded, and taken them both out. But since it was his uncle, he’d have no help taking Carson down. The depth of power Darrell had behind him was too great. He’d have to trust his leverage—that his uncle would bring Scott to him without his having to join the family. He’d never take Jane or his friends down that road.
He pulled into the lot and summed up the scene in one glance. The Harley and the Camaro were parked in the same spots. He threw open the door. Sabrina and Charlene’s vehicles parked as well.
Jane alone was trouble. Those three women together meant total chaos.
Chapter Seventeen
The running air compressor in bay 2 muffled whatever Tony was yelling at the women. Jane held the hose with the grinder attached in front of her, her finger on the throttle, creating more noise and a wicked weapon if anyone came close.
“Get back!” She motioned her head for Sabrina to throw the next weapon.
A former pitcher for her college softball team, Sabrina held the wrench in front of her, wound up, and let it fly underhanded toward Tony. Jane rolled her eyes as Tony easily swept to the side and missed being hit. All the boys had been athletes in their own right. The girls would have to try something else.
