by L. E. Harner
Uriah slipped into the small pool of water, gasping at the cold against his overheated skin. He rubbed at the dried blood and gore. When it didn't wash off with a simple swipe of his hand, Uriah rubbed harder. Closing his eyes, he could still see the condors circling Joe’s body, knew that despite the steps he’d taken, the man he'd left behind was now carrion, and nature would have her way. In a moment of bizarre clarity, he worried whether Joe remembered not to use lead ammo, a definite hazard to the health of the endangered species of bird. When the reality of his thoughts spilled over, Uriah crawled swiftly to his knees and wretched until there was nothing left.
He knelt on the sand, back hunched, his forehead resting on his folded arms. He swallowed hard against the wave of emotion that threatened to pull him under.
Over the last couple of days they become so used to the sound of the Colorado River he almost didn't notice the other noise. The steady whooping wasn't the same as the rush of water, and as it got louder, he recognized the sound for what it was. A helicopter was making its way toward their clearing. From the corner of his eye he saw Gabe and Diane crawl out of their cave. He turned his head to meet their looks, and watched as Diane’s expression went from panic to fury as Gabe gripped her around the waist and prevented her from running to the clearing where the helicopter was landing. Gabe was talking, pointing to the helicopter, and he felt relief wash over him. Gabe wasn’t rejecting Uriah, he was keeping their woman safe.
Uriah made a move to head toward them when the door to the helicopter opened and four law enforcement rangers jumped out, armed with rifles, and all pointing in his direction.
Chapter Twelve
Uriah had spent his lifetime on the right side of the law, never even going on the outings to the jail when his dad dragged his brother along. Still, as an attorney’s kid and years of watching more than a few cop shows on TV, he knew he was in big trouble. He’d been photographed, fingerprinted, and read his Miranda rights before they locked him in a tiny cell that didn’t even have a toilet. He understood the implication. Obviously, prisoners would be transferred to another facility in Flagstaff shortly after their arrest. He wondered how long he had. Unless maybe Gabe and Diane…he let the useless thought fall away and instead shifted to planning his one phone call when he had the chance. Hello, Dad…
There was a commotion outside, car doors opened and closed, voices raised in greeting and farewell, and he figured the transportation for his trip to the county jail had arrived.
The door opened and Gabe’s friend Patti walked in and dismissed the other ranger with a nod of her head. Fifteen steps later, she’d crossed the length of the small room that served as main office, public area, and central booking. He warily eyed the redheaded ranger.
“Put your hands out,” she ordered, indicating the rectangular opening in the bars. She quickly refastened the cuffs, then led him to a World War II era steel gray table and ordered him to sit.
He winced as his hands bumped against the edge of the desk. Patti leaned back, and looked at him a long moment, as if she could sense his guilt or innocence by virtue of some kind of x-ray vision. Nervous laughter threatened to escape, so he cleared his throat instead. He held his cuffed wrists up. “Any chance we can take these off?”
“No.” She didn’t even crack a smile. After reading his rights a second time, verifying his name and address, she started right in with the questioning. As questions went, she handed him the whole length of rope. He knew she was going to let him tell it his way first so she could pick it apart any way she wanted. Well, he would give nothing but the truth. He had nothing to hide, but he didn’t have to like it.
“Diane and I hiked. We arrived. Someone shot at us. Not much more to say about that. Then Gabe found us and he taped up my head.”
All conversation stopped while Patti examined his injury and took pictures with the digital camera. When she sat again, he continued.
“We couldn’t stay tucked into the cave forever, one of us had to see if the gunman was still there. Gabe had looked around a bit the first day. We used his information and the topo hiking maps to determine the most likely place the gunmen had to be in order to shoot at us. You know the terrain. There's not very many places to hide. Everything to the west is flat and the gunman wouldn't have had the angle to take the first shot. That meant it had to be east, a high spot that was closer than a mile in order to have an accurate shot, with a large enough rock formation to hide behind. I knew right where we were looking.” He started to run his hand through his hair, but stopped at the jangle of cuffs. Blowing out a breath, he continued.
“I left before sunrise and circled back around in order to get to the section of cliff where we knew he would have been that first afternoon. I found him there. Joe Yazzi. I found him.”
“Are you saying Mr. Yazzi was dead when you found him?”
“God, no.” He looked toward the door as his throat tightened. Absently, he played with the chain on his handcuffs. He swallowed a deep breath and went on. “You already know we were here to spread my brother’s ashes. Joe thought I was my brother, he thought I was Pete.”
Patti didn't say anything, just sat there, cop-faced, listening.
“We talked. For little while. When I convinced him that I wasn't Pete, he moved the gun away from me and pointed it under his chin. I tried to stop him. We fought for the gun. It went off. There was nothing I could do. Nothing.” Uriah wanted to fall apart. The memory of the blood, of the run back to the site…
“Okay, he shot himself. Then what did you do?”
Her businesslike tone helped him hold it together. He swallowed hard, and continued. “Gabe made me bring my cell phone along, just in case we could find a signal anywhere along the trail. He said reception was unlikely as far as we were from the village, but sometimes you could find a spot. The roaming indicator was flashing, but the call kept timing out before it would go through. I sent the text instead, hoping it would get through, eventually. I took off my shirt and covered… Joe's—”
He shook his head as if he could erase the image seared into his brain. “I headed back to Diane. To let them know I was okay, and that it was over. That we could hike back.”
“But you didn't see them right away; instead you went to wash in the river.”
“What the hell do you think? I was covered in blood and brain and—Fuck—” His throat worked as he fought back another wave of nausea.
“Okay let’s go over this again…”
****
Gabe waited in line for his chance to check into the small bungalow his friend Nan had been able to arrange for him, despite the late notice. The lobby of the Bright Angel Lodge was crowded with tourists, and French, Japanese, and German mixed with English to create a symphony of excitement. Diane stood across the room, near the stunning fireplace designed by the famous Southwest architect Mary Coulter, but he knew the beauty of the piece was lost to her at the moment. With her arms wrapped tightly around her own waist, she chewed on her bottom lip and watched all the people as if she was looking for someone to help her. He just didn't have a lot to offer at the moment.
He was so fucking pissed at Patti that he couldn't see straight. It was painfully obvious that Uriah hadn't done anything, yet she wouldn't let them speak on Uriah's behalf. Instead, they'd been kept separated on the helicopter ride back to the rim and as soon as they landed, an official government vehicle had whisked the handcuffed Uriah away. And goddamn Patti had gone with them. She hadn't given Gabe a chance to explain anything. There were just only so many things that a man could take. He knew his friend Michael Enwright had the connections to find out exactly what was going on. Gabe would send Diane ahead to the room to wait for the rangers who would be returning soon to take their witness statement while he made a few phone calls.
He finished filling out the registration card and turned to find Diane and tell her the plan when the roller coaster day took another dip. Melody was standing there talking earnestly and from the look on Di
ane's face she didn't like what she was hearing. Mel must have seen them walk in together. He glanced over toward the open door of the lounge. Cocktail hour…of course Mel would have been here.
Moving swiftly across the lobby, he grabbed Melody by the forearm, her surprised expression quickly replaced by a narrow-eyed, falsely innocent smile. There were so many things he wanted to say but this was neither the time nor the place. He kept his message succinct. “Go away.”
“Gabe. I was just talking with your friend here. I guess this means you're not coming back to our house—” She broke off with a little squeak when he squeezed her arm.
“Gabe.” Diane said in a shocked voice. “Let go, you're going to hurt her.”
“Oh, that's nothing new, is it Gabe? It wouldn’t be the first time. He’s a mean drunk. Sometimes he didn’t even remember hitting me when he’d been drinking. But I thought it was going to get better, that he was really going to try this time…you promised, Gabe. ” Then the lying bitch squeezed out a tear and managed to make her lips tremble.
Diane’s shocked gasp made him turn his head, but it was the look on her face, the one that said I believe her, that had him letting go of Mel’s arm. Without a word to either woman, he handed Diane the room key and walked away.
****
“Should've known I'd find you in here,” Patti said. “Why aren’t you celebrating with Uriah and Diane?”
Gabe tossed back another shot of whisky, and followed it with a couple of swallows of beer. He was well on his way to being flat-out drunk and he didn't give a shit. After all, he had a designated driver. He looked down at his wrist only to discover he no longer wore his watch. Didn't matter. The guys would be here soon. Max and Marcus never let him down. Patti’s words sank in.
“I thought Uriah was with you. Or…I guess it would have been the county jail, by now.”
“No. His story checked out. We had to do our jobs, Gabe. We had a dead body. We had evidence that at least one other person had been at the scene of the death. We had to investigate. Because you and I are friends, I kept it by the book. And yeah…I know you’re going to be fucking pissed at me tomorrow.
“You didn’t answer my question though. Why are you sitting in here drinking instead of backing your room celebrating with the lovely Diane and Uriah?”
“That's not gonna happen. You were right. Hooking up with those two was a bad idea all around.”
“Is that what you really think, Gabe? That making love with us was a bad idea?” Diane asked. Her voice was tight, full of hurt. Once again, she’d managed to come up behind him without him noticing. Gabe briefly closed his eyes and prayed for the strength to do the right thing. Then he met Diane’s gaze in the mirror mounted behind the bar and the moment stretched like a tightrope.
“Uriah needs you,” she whispered, unshed tears threatening to fall.
Gabe broke away before he said something they would all regret and begged for her forgiveness. He knew that she couldn’t understand right now, but someday she would. The time at the bottom of the canyon had been magic for the three of them, but it had been a fantasy. Diane and Uriah were made for each other and they needed to move on with their lives. Without him. He tossed back the next shot of whisky and said the words that would close the door forever.
“I got exactly what I wanted from Uriah. Now go away.”
He signaled to the bartender to bring another shot, and tried not to watch in the mirror as Diane made a hasty retreat.
After a minute, Patti leaned on his shoulder and wrapped a strong arm around his waist. He was grateful that words between friends weren’t always necessary. When he could speak around the lump in his throat, he kissed the top of Patti’s head. “I'm heading back to Phoenix tonight, Red.”
“Not likely, Doc. There's no way I'm letting you get behind the wheel of a car, tonight. You need to come home with me.”
Gabe’s laugh was bitter. “Patti, sweetheart…I guess you haven't heard. According to what Mel told Diane this afternoon, I hit women when I'm drunk. You sure as hell don't want be alone with me tonight because I'm not half as drunk as I'm gonna be. You don't have to worry your pretty little red head about me driving. Max and Marcus are on their way to come pick me up. Those two are experts at pouring me into a bed. Now go away and leave me alone.”
“Hey, Gabe, baby. What’s going on?” Max’s warm voice washed over him, and a comforting arm wrapped around his shoulders.
“Hi Patti,” Marcus said. “We've got him from here. Thanks for looking out for him. Come on, Gabe, we’ll take you home.” Marcus slapped a bill on the counter to cover Gabe’s tab. Then the two men surrounded him and they all began walking toward the door.
“I was so fucking close to having it all,” Gabe said to no one in particular, as he staggered sideways into Max’s arms.
Chapter Thirteen
Six months later
“Gabe, you need to quit this moping around,” Max said.
Gabe looked up from his e-reader, surprised at Max’s words. He hadn’t been moping. Not exactly. “What do you mean, Max? And I’m not moping.” There wasn’t much he could do about the defensive tone of his voice.
Max laughed, drawing Marcus’s gaze from across the room. “Okay. When was the last time you went on a date?”
“Just because I haven’t dated doesn’t mean I’m moping, Max. I’ve had a lot on my mind the last few months.”
“I call bullshit—“
“He’s got a point, Gabe,” Jolynn interrupted Max.
Gabe sighed. It looked like these two planned a lecture for the morning. It was really hard to argue with them since they’d been kind enough to invite him for a lazy brunch at their house at Lake Pleasant. But damned if he felt like having yet another discussion about his lack of a love life, lack of direction, lack of motivation.
“Look…just because you found your happy-ever-after doesn’t mean everyone gets the same chance. I did try—it didn’t work out. Besides, it’s not like I’m hiding away. I’m at the club most nights.
Shaking his head before Jo could argue, he said, “I've stayed with the program. I’m clean and sober. I’m still taking things one day at a time. Don’t ask me for more than that right now. Maybe someday, but not right now.”
“But that’s the point, isn’t it, Gabe?” Jolynn persisted. “You never gave them a chance—”
“Jolynn.” Marcus’s voice was a velvet whip, commanding immediate obedience. “You and Max go finish packing. Now. I’m going to speak with Gabe, and I want everything in the car by the time I’m finished. Do I make myself clear?”
Jo’s brows came together in a little frown, and Gabe could see her practically vibrating with the need to argue. “Yes.” She bit off her reply before she added the customary Sir expected from a sub responding to an order. Her back was stiff as she left the room with Max.
Gabe waited a beat before he said anything. “She’s pissed. What’s up with that? You don’t usually treat her like a sub publicly.”
“This isn’t public, it’s our home. There are some things going on at work that have Jo feeling a little out of control. It’s my job to help her regain her equilibrium. She and Max are fussing at you because they’re both a little unsettled. I’ll take care of it.
“That still doesn’t answer the question about what to do with you, Gabe. You know the three of us are exclusive, but if you think—”
Gabe barked out a laugh. “Marcus, you know I love you, and I know you mean well, but I’ll be goddamned if you’re ever going to put one of your damn paddles on me. Just because I like watching doesn’t mean I want to play.”
Marcus grinned back. “I just thought I’d offer. You’re toppy enough that I think I might enjoy the challenge. All right, since you won’t let me help you, how about you help me?”
“Anytime, you know that. You don’t even have to ask. I owe you my life.”
“Don’t be a drama queen, Gabe. I helped you get into the rehab program, but you’re the one
who stuck it out. How long’s it been since your last drink?”
Gabe frowned then studied his watch as if thinking about his answer. He knew how long it had been…they both knew. “Five months, twenty-nine days, and about six hours. But who’s counting?” They shared a warm smile. Then Gabe remembered that Marcus had asked for a favor. “So what is it I can do for you, my friend?”
“Actually, I need you to stay here at the lake house this weekend to watch Lucky.”
The golden retriever that Marcus had rescued lifted her head at the sound of her name and gazed adoringly at her master.
“Can’t she come with me back to my place?” Gabe asked.
“Really? Your dinky apartment? Come on, Gabe. You haven’t taken any time for yourself since the summer. I’m only talking a long weekend. You told me when you agreed to brunch that you didn’t have any major plans. Hell, you know you were going to be here most of the weekend anyway. We’re just heading over to Las Vegas so Max can check out the new club that’s opening and I can help Jo get her head on straight.
“Sure. It’s not like I have a life,” Gabe grumbled, not upset in the least about spending the weekend out at the lake.
“Oh, hell. Get over yourself, will you?” Marcus laughed. “It’s dog sitting for Christ’s sake. You need to go somewhere, take Lucky with you. She loves the jeep. The fridge is stocked, the boat is gassed. You’d think I was asking you to muck out stables.”
Gabe grinned back. “Yeah, trust me, it’s a real hardship.” His face sobered. He knew they were all worried about him, but some things couldn’t be helped. “I do miss them, Marcus.“
“I know. Have you ever thought—”
“No, they’re much better off together. Better without a third.” He raised a hand to forestall Marcus’s objection. “I know, I know. The three of you have made it work. But shit, Marcus, you and Max were always just a matter of time. I always knew that, even if you two stubborn assholes didn’t. And Jo? She fits you. You and Max have the club. You and Jo have the security business…everything just fits together.”
