Possession: Steel Brothers Saga: Book Three

by Hardt, Helen;

  That motherfucker.

  I stripped off my pullover and underwear and got into the shower. The heat of the water soothed my aching muscles but did nothing to calm the images flowing through my mind like a theatrical trailer. I let out a sigh and leaned my head back into the water to wet my hair. Then I squeezed some shampoo into my palm, rubbed my hands together, and began to wash my hair.

  “Want some help with that?”

  I nearly jumped out of my skin. Talon stood in the bathroom, his image a blur through the glass shower door awash with rivulets of water.

  “You startled me,” I said.

  “I’m sorry.”

  I smiled. A little Talon therapy might help me right now. “What are you waiting for? You offered to help.”

  His feet were bare, but he was still wearing his jeans and shirt. He stripped them off quickly and came into the shower with me.

  “Have you been up all night?” I asked.

  He nodded, taking over my hair washing. His strong hands were heaven on my scalp, kneading away the tension in knots.

  “That feels good,” I said. “Did you find out anything? About Larry?”

  “A little. I managed to confirm that the bastard is my half uncle. Son of a bitch.”

  “Well, just because he’s your half uncle doesn’t mean anything really,” I said.

  “Shh. The last thing I want to think about is that asshole Wade when I’ve got a naked, beautiful, and wet woman sliding against me.”

  I let out a soft moan. I couldn’t agree more. He continued to massage my scalp, his able hands relaxing me, taking me away from the place I was stuck in. Yes, in a few minutes I’d be leaving for Grand Junction to talk to the cops about my mother’s possible attempted murder. But right now, Talon was my world.

  “Lean back, baby, and let me rinse you.”

  I did, and his strong hands pulled the lather through to my ends. I imagined it twirling in soapy bubbles down the drain. My eyes closed, I inhaled the comforting steam, the sweet scent of the coconut shampoo. I sighed again and then jumped as his lips clamped onto one of my nipples.

  I opened my eyes. He was leaning down, sucking my hard nub. I smoothed his tousled hair, now half-wet. “Let’s switch places, baby,” I said. “You can nibble on me while I wash your hair.”

  He groaned his agreement as we moved so the shower was pelting him, and his head was right at the level where I could shampoo him.

  “Are you sure you’re comfy?” I asked.

  He nodded against my breast. I shampooed his beautiful hair and then urged him upward so he could rinse it off, though I whimpered at the loss of his mouth on my nipple. We soaked each other and rubbed together to wash our bodies, and then he picked me up in his arms and set me down upon his beautiful hard cock.

  Our bodies slid together, wet and soapy. I leaned down and took his lips with mine. We devoured each other, kissing hungrily, softly moaning, as he lifted my ass slightly and then set me down upon his cock once again.

  It didn’t take long for my orgasm to build. Such sweet release, and oh, how I needed sweet release at that moment. We spiraled out of control, he and I together, as my orgasm pushed him over the edge.

  He broke the kiss with a loud smack, panting in my ear. “Yes, baby, I’m coming. I’m coming with you, baby.”

  Sated, I slid down his body. We rinsed each other off, and then I turned off the water.

  I handed him a towel, and as he stood drying his hair and then his body, I said, “That was wonderful, Talon. You have no idea how much I needed that.”

  “Baby, I always need you,” he said.

  “I always need you too. It’s just that I got a phone call from my dad this morning.”

  “Shit, I’m sorry, blue eyes. Is your mother okay?”

  “She’s fine. Don’t worry about that. It’s just…”

  “What?”

  “It’s about my mother’s boyfriend, Nico Kostas.”

  Talon visibly tensed before me, the striations in his muscles stark. “Yeah? What about him?”

  “It seems that my mother had taken out an insurance policy on her life right before the accident. A million-dollar policy, and Nico was the beneficiary.”

  He stood stock still, his eyes glazing over.

  “Talon?”

  “I’m telling you, blue eyes, that man is bad news. I mean it.”

  “I’m beginning to believe that as well. And Talon? I’m so sorry about the tattoo thing. I just really liked a particular image, but trust me, I’m not getting a phoenix on my body ever. It will always remind me of the man who may have tried to kill my mother.”

  “I’ll see that bastard in hell.” Talon threaded his fingers through his wet hair.

  He was outraged. I could see it in his demeanor, his eyes, the way he was holding himself. He was ready to strike. But why? He hadn’t even met my mother, and he knew she and I were not close.

  “Well, we don’t know for sure yet.”

  He hung his towel on the rack. “I do, blue eyes. I know for sure.”

  Chapter Twenty

  Talon

  I was nervous as hell driving Jade into Grand Junction to see her dad and talk to the cops. I was going to meet her father. The man who raised her. The man she loved more than anyone. Well, next to me, I hoped.

  Believe it or not, that was bothering me more than dealing with this Nico character. If he was who I thought he was, I had no doubt he had tampered with the passenger airbag and tried to kill Jade’s mother for the money. If he was who I thought he was… Well, there was no limit to what he would do for his own amusement, let alone financial gain.

  He was already guilty in my eyes—not only of abducting and raping me and killing Luke Walker and those other children, but also of attempting to kill Jade’s mother. All I needed to do was prove it. Of course, that was way easier said than done.

  What made people so evil?

  It was the first time I’d asked myself that question. I had really never before thought of those three men as human. Instead, they were the embodiment of evil. Now I might’ve identified two of them. They were men. Just men. Men I could pummel into next week, kill with my bare hands.

  Simply men.

  How did men turn into evil demons?

  Jade was quiet during the ride, and I didn’t engage her. She knew by now that I didn’t have the gift of gab, and I was just as happy to be left to my own thoughts during the drive. Thanks to Jade’s strong coffee, I was awake. Awake and alone with my thoughts.

  I dropped Jade off and then drove around a while, looking for a parking spot, finally deciding to use the valet service. It was Saturday, after all, and many people were here visiting, no doubt.

  I signed in as a visitor and made my way up to the waiting area outside the ICU.

  My nerves jumped when I walked into the area. Two cops were there, and Jade was already talking to them. Beside her stood a man about six feet tall with the same golden-brown hair I was used to seeing on the woman I loved. He was a nice-looking man, his skin tan, showing wrinkles around his eyes. Jade said he was in construction. He’d probably worked outside most of his life. He looked tired. And not just tired in that he had worked hard all his life. Tired and worried. Worried about someone he loved. Jade’s mother, I assumed.

  I was going to have to meet her father—the father of the woman I loved. Here I was, thirty-five years old, and I had never met a woman’s father before.

  Jade motioned me over, smiling. “There you are. Talon, this is my father, Brian Roberts. Dad, this is Talon Steel.”

  Jade’s dad stuck out his hand. “Good to meet you. I’ve heard a lot about you.”

  The back of my neck chilled. Jade had seen some of my darker moments, but surely she hadn’t shared those with her father. “Nice to meet you too, sir,” I said.

  Was that right? Did you call a woman’s father “sir”?

  “Please, call me Brian.”

  “All right.” I attempted a smile. “How’s your mo
m doing, Jade?”

  “She’s good. They’re finally moving her out of ICU today.”

  “That’s great, baby.” Then I snapped my head over to Brian. I had just called his daughter baby. But it didn’t seem to faze him. Thank God.

  “Oh, I’m sorry,” Jade said. “This is Officer Shapley and Officer Duke. Talon Steel, my boyfriend.”

  Boyfriend.

  Never had a word imbued me with such warmth. And still, it was woefully deficient. For if I was Jade’s boyfriend, that made her my girlfriend—and “girlfriend” was such an inadequate term for what Jade was to me.

  “Nice to meet you, sir,” the one called Shapley said.

  “I didn’t mean to interrupt. I can go sit down over there while the officers ask their questions,” I said to Jade.

  “No, I wish you’d stay. Is that all right with you two, and with you, Dad?”

  “It’s fine with me, sweetie,” Brian Roberts said. “I guess it’s really up to the officers here.”

  “It’s fine,” Shapley said. “This is just preliminary questioning anyway.”

  “So do you two think there’s enough to warrant an investigation here?” Brian asked.

  Shapley, obviously the mouthpiece of the two, replied, “Yes. We’re definitely going to take a look at the vehicle. See if we can determine whether the airbag was tampered with. The only problem is that the vehicle has already been repaired. But we’ll have our experts take a look.”

  Jade’s face fell. “Why was it repaired?”

  “Ms. Roberts,” Shapley said, “no one had any reason to think there was any foul play. Mr. Kostas had the vehicle towed from the scene and repaired.”

  “Mr. Kostas seems to be nowhere to be found.”

  Shapley nodded. “True enough, and that is also something of a concern.”

  “He’s a senator, for God’s sake,” Jade said. “He can’t just disappear.”

  “No,” I said, my voice low. “He’s not.”

  Jade turned to me, her steely eyes wide. “What?”

  “I’m sorry. I forgot to tell you. I did some research on him. I should have mentioned it.” I sighed. How could I tell her I’d been side-tracked because of what I’d become convinced he was? I couldn’t, at least not in front of all these people

  “He’s right, ma’am,” Shapely said. “He’s not a United States senator or an Iowa state senator.”

  “But why would my mother say…” Jade bit her lip. “I guess she never thought to question him.”

  “Brooke believes anything someone says if she’s getting attention and gifts,” Brian said.

  “It’s certainly easy enough to check out,” Jade said, “but that might not have occurred to my mother. She did tend to let men walk all over her.”

  “To be honest,” Shapley said, “Nico Kostas might not even be his real name. But we’re definitely going to look into this. That is, if we can find evidence that the airbag was tampered with.”

  “You’ve just got to find it, please,” Jade begged. “I mean, why would he have disappeared? He supposedly cared about my mother, and now he’s just gone. Sounds like someone on the run to me.”

  “Yes,” Shapley said, “it’s definitely suspicious. We’ll be in touch. Here’s my card.” Shapley handed one to each of us.

  “Thank you for your time, Officers,” Brian said.

  The two men nodded and walked away.

  “I can’t believe it,” Jade said.

  I put my arm around her. “What?”

  “The jerk is a liar, and he tried to kill my mother. He’s probably going to get away with it. Now that the car’s been repaired, there won’t be any evidence of his tampering.”

  “We don’t know if that’s what happened,” Brian said.

  I kept my lips closed. That was what had happened all right. Somehow, in the recesses of my bones, I knew. Just like I knew that Larry Wade, my esteemed half uncle, had raped me when I was a child. So had this Nico character. And now he had tried to kill Jade’s mother.

  Neither of them were going to get away with it.

  * * *

  Under the guise of needing to make a few business calls and run some errands, I left the waiting area. Jade was safe with her father, and she needed to be near her mother.

  I did make some phone calls, but they had nothing to do with my business. Within ten minutes, I had the name of the body shop where Nico Kostas had taken his vehicle.

  I drove over there and asked to speak to the person who handled the car. I was asked to sit until a man called Shem was available.

  I thumbed through a Popular Mechanics issue from three years ago.

  “Mr. Steel?”

  I looked up. A young man, tall and thin, grease under his fingernails, his blond hair pulled back in a ponytail, stood before me.

  “I’m Shem.”

  I stood and held out my hand.

  He shook his head. “Don’t want to get you greasy. What can I do for you?”

  “I’m interested in a car that was brought in about two weeks ago. The owner is Nico Kostas.”

  “Yes, sir, I remember. It was a wreck. He’s lucky he got out of it alive.”

  “Well, airbags are amazing things. Are you aware that he had a passenger?”

  “Oh, yeah. Her blood was everywhere. Airbag didn’t deploy, I heard.”

  “Yes, that’s what happened.” I looked around. “I understand you still have the car.”

  “Yeppers, got it done. It was damn near a total loss. The only thing that kept it from being totaled was that the car has so much value.”

  “I have reason to believe the airbag might have been tampered with, and that’s why it didn’t deploy. I’d like to take a look at the car, if you don’t mind.”

  “You a cop?”

  “No, just a friend of the family of the woman who was injured. She’s lucky to be alive.”

  Shem spit on the ground. “I’ll say. That car was sure wrecked. And no airbag?” He whistled. “She’s damned lucky for sure.”

  “About the car? May I see it?”

  “Sir, it’s not your car. I can’t release it to anyone but the owner.”

  “Has the owner been in to claim it?”

  “No, sir, he hasn’t. Damnedest thing. We’ve called him every day twice a day for the last week. No one can get hold of him.”

  Shocking. “Listen, I’d be happy to make it worth your while if you let me have a look at the vehicle. Even more if you let me bring an expert to look at it.”

  “Sorry, sir. Without a cop, without a warrant, I can’t do it.”

  I pulled two Benjis out of my wallet. “How about now?”

  He pocketed them. “Meet me here at seven. Sharp.”

  I nodded. “Thank you.” I left.

  I guessed we’d be staying in the city for the night. At least I would be.

  I picked up some takeout from a local place and drove back to the hospital. Jade and her dad were happy to have some decent food.

  “I’d like to take you to dinner,” Brian said. “Get to know you a little better.”

  My neck chilled. Get to know him a little better? Shit. Talk about a scary thing. So I made excuses. I hoped Jade would understand.

  “I’d appreciate that, but I can’t. While I was making my business calls, something came up at the orchard, and I need to get back. Baby, go ahead and stay here. Take a cab home if you want. Or spend the night here with your father, and you can see your mom in the morning.”

  It was a coward’s way out. But I couldn’t stomach the thought of sitting here in the hospital for the next six hours trying to make small talk with Jade’s father. I had to stay until seven, to meet Shem over at the body shop. What would I do in the meantime? I could go back to the ranch and then drive back this evening. Better yet? I’d find a so-called expert to take a look at the car and make it worth his while to come back with me at seven sharp.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Jade

  Getting my mother settled in
a normal hospital room was good for my spirits. I wished Talon could have stayed. I so wanted them to meet. But perhaps it was best that he hadn’t. I could tell being around my father made him nervous. I wasn’t sure why. My dad was the easiest person in the world to get along with. But like Talon had said, he’d never met a girlfriend’s father before.

  Girlfriend.

  The word sounded so juvenile, but it would have to do for now.

  My mom was more alert than I’d seen her in a while. The move out of ICU was definitely doing her good. I desperately wanted to ask some questions, but I didn’t want to upset her.

  “Is there anything I can get you, Mom?”

  “No, no. I’m just so glad to be out of that sterile environment.”

  I smiled. “You’re looking so much better. Your face is healing nicely.”

  “But there will be scars.”

  I wasn’t about to sugarcoat things anymore. She was out of danger. “Yes, there will be scars. But you know? Scars aren’t necessarily a bad thing. Scars show that you’ve been through life. That you went through hell and came back kicking. Scars are a good thing.”

  “I made my living on my beauty, Jade. I was still a bankable model. Sure, I wasn’t making the kind of money I did when I was young, but I was doing okay. I was living check to check, but I was at least making something.”

  “Who says it’s over?”

  “Darling, look at me.”

  “I am looking at you, Mom. I see a strong and beautiful woman whose life is not nearly over. So stop talking like it is.”

  “No. I’ve taken everything for granted. I took for granted that I would always be beautiful, and then I started to get older. I started to get laugh lines around my eyes, a few age spots here and there. Nothing good makeup couldn’t cover. But now? I have scars from all these lacerations on my face. I’m not sure my eye will ever look normal again.”