Colorado Fire - Colorado Heart 2

by Sara York

  After they climbed out of bed, Zander followed Marshal into the shower where he pushed Marshal against the hard tile and stroked him off before soaping him up. They were drying off when Zander leaned against the countertop, watching Marshal dry. His lover glanced up and stalled.

  "So you sucking my dick doesn't bother you—you know, you've only done girls before and you don't hesitate to lick me or suck me. You do whatever feels good and I love it, but you don't mind, do you?"

  Marshal tossed his towel over the shower rod and stepped close but didn't touch Zander. He wanted to close the distance, but Zander needed to let Marshal be in control.

  "All of those years with girls were confusing. I mean I still think they're pretty, but no better looking than a cute young guy packed with muscles. But the confusing part was I didn't really know what to do. I mean I could fuck them, but it was never obvious how to get them to orgasm."

  "So I'm an easy fuck and that's why you like me?" Zander lifted one brow as he teased Marshal.

  "No, well you are, but no. This seems natural to me. Like I know what to do with your body. I know how to manipulate you. I know what I'm doing when I touch your dick and when I suck you off. I'm not grasping for straws, trying to figure out what the hell is going on. And it feels right, like this is what I'm supposed to do."

  "Well I'm glad this feels natural to you. I like how you suck me and touch me."

  "Good, because we're going to be together for a long time. Like forever. You know, we're good together."

  "We are."

  Marshal placed his hand on Zander's chest. "I feel good again. Like I can stay here and work. You're a big part of that. You accept me for who I am and you've never once held it over me that I was in love with Grant. You could have used that information against me, being mean when you wanted to get your way, but you never have. You've been great and I need to thank you."

  "Babe, I love you too much to do something like that."

  "Exactly, that's why I appreciate you. You never would have treated me like shit for your own end. You are too nice and way too sweet."

  Zander's heart ached for Marshal. He wrapped his arms around his lover and held him close. "Sweetie, I always want to treat you good. And if I mess up, please tell me."

  The phone rang and they separated. "I guess I'm needed." Zander scooped up his phone and answered after checking the caller ID. "Yo, Mike, what's up?"

  "We're going over some new information."

  "Give me ten minutes and I'll be there."

  Zander hung up and noticed the wistful look on Marshal's face. "Hey babe, I know you want to help, but really, you're still on rest. Just take it easy for a few more weeks. Seriously, you'll be glad you did."

  "I know. But it's hard not being in the middle of the action."

  He stroked Marshal's face and kissed his cheek. "You deserve the break. Take the time to not worry about the mission, the people, or all the other crap. We're the best and will take care of it. Trust me."

  "I do trust you."

  Zander pulled on his jeans and watched Marshal dress. It was almost as erotic as watching him get naked because Zander knew what was stored inside those jeans and under that shirt. He kissed Marshal good-bye before heading to the kitchen for breakfast. He grabbed a burrito that one of the guys had prepared and left in the refrigerator. Once he'd heated his food, he swiped a mug off the counter and made his way into the control room.

  Duff, Grant, Mike, and Tucker were at one table, totally focused. Their voices rose and fell as they passed papers around. James and Billy were watching a video, fast-forwarding and rewinding over and over again. To the uninitiated, what they were doing might look like chaos, but Zander felt calmed by the situation. He poured some coffee from the pot and moved to stand behind James and Billy.

  After watching almost a minute of the guys rewinding the video and watching a few seconds he had to know what was going on. "What's up?"

  "Mike hacked into the police database in Paris. They were able to view a few videos that weren't available to us before. We found a shot of what we think is Craig. We're all debating the image and trying to place a paper trail we think belongs to Craig."

  "When was the video taken?" Marshal took a sip of his coffee as he mulled over what Billy had said.

  "Three weeks ago. It's the only thing we've got. If it's him, we might be able to connect the dots and find the guy, if not, then what's the point in trying?"

  "Let me see the video."

  James stood up and stretched. "Take my seat and eat your food."

  Zander slid into the warm seat and settled before clicking play. The video segment was fifteen seconds long, of which the guy they thought was Craig was only visible for two seconds. He watched the video again, picking up his burrito and taking a bite.

  "I don't know. It could be him but I'm not sure. You know it's not very clear."

  "Yeah, that's my issue." Billy said.

  "So why do we think this is Criag?" Zander asked.

  "Look at how he's walking." James said.

  "Let me play it on a loop while I eat." Zander set up the video so he could view it over and over again.

  Billy grabbed his coffee cup. "Your cup is half empty. You want black with two sugars?"

  "Thanks." Zander nodded as he stared at the screen. "Oh, could you add in a splash of milk?" he added as an afterthought.

  "Sure." Billy took off to the other side of the room.

  Zander stared at the video screen as he chewed on his food. At first, the guy didn't look like Craig at all, then he did. Billy placed Zander's cup of coffee beside him and he took a sip, still watching the video. The more he watched, the more he wondered about the man on the screen.

  "All right, saying this was Craig, do we have access to another video stream?" Zander was very unsure now. If this was Craig, they knew what his current disguise looked like. They could follow him and see where he went. Of course following someone on video was harder than it looked in the movies. If they actually had legitimate access to the information they might have an easier time, but they were the outsiders, the ones the governments didn't want in their space. It was tough working the way they did. They couldn’t even tell the local government about their existence. There were too many people involved once you got past the upper federal level. The wrong person knowing what they really did could put them all at risk.

  "Mike is working on it. The rest of the system got shut down after he accessed this one video," James said.

  "Great, so can they track back?" Zander took a sip of his coffee, trying to hide his nervousness. Having their hacking traced back to them would be devastating.

  "No," Mike spoke from the other side of the room. "I used safety measures. We're good. I just can't get in there to find more videos. They're watching their system."

  Zander stood and walked around the room, stopping by one of the tables that was empty to perch on the edge. "I'm torn. This might or might not be Craig. It was twenty-one days ago if the timestamp is correct. Craig could be anywhere. We don't know."

  "No, we don't know. But I think we assume he is Craig, figure out if we can hack back into the system and find where he went." Duff sat back in his seat and glanced around the room. "Any other ideas?"

  "I got nothing," Grant said.

  "Roger will be in London tomorrow evening. He can question Craig's new man." James' face turned red then he glanced at Grant before focusing on the ground.

  Grant blew out a breath and shrugged. "Okay, yeah, I'm pissed that he had a new boyfriend before we broke up. But I can't do anything about that. He dumped me and we all know it. Don't pussyfoot around about the issue. I won't get mad at you for speaking about Craig's new man. He was fucking me over. Hell, he was fucking us all over. He'd turned years ago and used me, actually he used all of us."

  "I still don't get it," James said.

  "Neither do I." Grant spoke as he walked out the door.

  No one said a word so Zander went back to staring
at the video before heading over to help Mike hack into the system for more videos. They made a little progress by lunch but not enough. When they broke to grab food, Zander wondered if they would ever get back into the video files and find Craig.

  Chapter Twelve

  Grant headed to the barn, disgusted with himself for not seeing how far gone Craig was. He should have known. A part of him wanted to throw a fit and be a total baby, but he couldn't afford to lose it. He needed to keep his head on straight or the horses would get upset. If he acted like an idiot, he'd be an idiot.

  He wasn't paying attention as he stepped into the barn and ran right into Marshal.

  "Oh shit," Marshal yelled.

  "Crap, you okay." Grant scrubbed his hand over his face before steadying his friend.

  "Oh God, you just scared me. Shit, I wasn't expecting anyone out here." Marshal laughed then squeezed Grant's arm.

  "Sorry." Grant's heart raced and he blew out a breath. "Dang, I so wasn't expecting that." They met each other's gaze and laughed. "I really didn't mean to scare you."

  "I'm good. Just tired." Marshal patted him on the back then stepped away. "I think I'm going to go for a ride." Marshal turned back to face Grant, cocking his head to the side. "Hey, Grant, are you okay?"

  Emotions swirled through him. Craig had been his life. Had he not been so wrapped up, maybe he could have seen the issues before they became international terrorist problems. "Yeah, just upset."

  Marshal stepped close again, squeezing Grant's shoulder. "Craig did a number on you."

  "He did. It's crazy. You know, I thought I knew him. We were close."

  "Obviously, he played you."

  Grant grunted. That was a major understatement. Played, fucked over, it was all the same. "How? How the fuck did he play all of us?"

  "I don't know. I'm not sure if we'll ever have the answers. You know, the process for getting on the ranch is different than it was before."

  "Yeah, we had it easy. Maybe nothing showed in what Craig said or did. Maybe they knew but didn't think he really would ever act on his anger, turning against the very government he vowed to protect."

  Marshal let out a slow breath, shaking his head. "It makes you doubt everything."

  Grant had been surprised when Craig had left the ranch. When he found out he'd been duped, that Craig had had another lover for years, he'd been devastated. How could he be with Roger already? And yet, he wanted the man. He was playing a dangerous game. Grant shook his head and shrugged. "Yeah, but I don't doubt you guys."

  "What about Roger? I don't know him well enough."

  Grant plopped down on a bench. "I don't know. I really hope I can trust him. He's important to me." The doubts twisted through him. He was crazy for being involved again this soon. But something about Roger made him want more.

  Marshal moved to sit beside him. "None of the other guys know, right?"

  "No one but you and Zander."

  Grant had no idea if being with Roger would come back to bite him in the ass. He hadn't meant to be involved yet. Now Roger was half a world away and he was stuck here in Colorado. Could he trust the man, or would he find someone else to shack up with now that he wasn't physically with Grant?

  *~*~*

  The horse he'd saddled huffed out a breath then pawed at the ground. Marshal turned toward Grant, unsure if he should stay with him or leave. Grant seemed like he needed time to be alone so Marshal stood and swiped at the seat of his pants. "Well, my ride is getting antsy. I'll be back before too long. I might take a nap, but I'll see you at dinner."

  "Okay. See you later." Grant waved and turned around, stepping into the tack room.

  Marshal led his horse out of the barn. He glanced at the mountain, wondering if he should stay and just be with Grant. But his friend was a big boy and could handle his shit. Later, he'd catch up with Grant, checking to make sure he was okay. He mounted Dusty and turned the horse around to face the barn door. Grant stood in the shadows, his shoulders slumped.

  "You okay?" he called out.

  "Yeah, just thinking." Grant shielded his eyes, hiding his expression.

  "I'll stop by later. You look like you need someone to talk to."

  "Bring Zander."

  "Will do." Marshal was glad he and Zander were getting along so well. They were perfect together. He loved the man with all of his heart. Zander was the reason he felt like he could get back in the game.

  Dusty shook his head and Marshal laughed. The horse was impatient so Marshal stopped his musings and took off up the road, allowing the horse to run a bit before slowing him. He opened the first gate easily without having to dismount, but the second gate was more difficult to operate without dismounting. After climbing back up on his horse, he kicked Dusty into a trot before allowing the horse to slow once they were about a quarter mile from the gate. He angled Dusty off the road and up a path toward the mountain. He needed to check the fence first then he'd check the animals if it wasn't too late.

  As he rode, he glanced up to the deep-blue sky. The day was near perfect. Warmth from the sun cut through the chilly wind, allowing him to wear only a sweatshirt over his T-shirt. His jeans were warm to the touch, but he actually kind of liked the heat. Movement up ahead caught his attention and he pulled back on the reigns, slowing Dusty. A deer burst out of the forest, spooking a flock of birds.

  Marshal pulled harder on the reigns, bringing Dusty to a stop. "Whoa boy. That was odd. Why would a deer run out of the forest like that with us right here?"

  He didn't move for a full minute and the world around him settled. The birds went back to roosting in the trees and no more animals came running at him. He wished Zander were with him. Not because he was afraid, but they'd both get a laugh out of his nervousness.

  The fence still needed to be checked so he pushed on, moving closer to the tree line. His training had him categorizing the strange feelings running rampant through him. He'd been on missions where spooky sensations were just the lighting or the environment playing tricks on him. Other times, he relied on that sixth sense to get him out of trouble when danger really was close at hand. Here at home on the ranch, he wasn't sure if he was spooked because of Grant bursting in at the barn, his lack of sleep, or a real threat of danger. Being at home felt different than when he was in the field.

  Relaxing was part of life at the ranch along with their duties, but being too relaxed could get him killed in the field. That's why he didn't trust his gut right now. He wasn't in the field. He probably was just making up stuff because he hadn't prepped for anything to be out of the ordinary. Deer ran these fields all the time. Everything was normal and he was exaggerating the weirdness.

  The eerie feeling continued as he passed by a few trees, entering what most of the guys considered to be the tree line. When they all got together, they debated the issue. Really, it was silly. Trees dotted the pastures, but here, there were more trees.

  After he'd ridden a few more minutes, still unable to shake the weird feeling, he contemplated stopping and turning back to the ranch, but the sun would be setting in a few hours. He wanted to be warm inside the house when night fell. If he made it home early enough, he could cuddle up beside Zander, sipping a cup of hot cocoa as they watched a movie.

  Marshal shook off the strange feelings and continued on, allowing Dusty to move at a quick pace though not a trot. It probably had been a bear moving through the forest. He was getting higher into the trees and they did occasionally have bears. The fence line was immediately behind a thick swath of forest. He'd heard a tale that the original designers of Wild Bluff had debated where to put the fence and finally decided that the trees would allow them to conceal the video equipment and motion detection devices. Plus their property ran up into the trees.

  He enjoyed the ride, even if the trees were exceedingly thick at times. None of the barbwire was broken to the north and the posts looked good. He rode in the gap they'd created between the trees and the fence, checking for damage. At the corner of their p
roperty, he turned Dusty and tracked south. Nothing seemed amiss and the earlier freak-out from the dear was history. He had about three more hours of sun left so he didn't force Dusty to move too fast.

  After about ten minutes or so of riding the fence, he noticed a spot in the dirt that seemed trampled. Marshal dismounted and tied Dusty to a tree. He pulled out his phone to take a photo to send to Duff and the guys. It looked like someone had tromped through the area, disturbing the grass and breaking branches as they went.

  Before he could hit send, he heard the crunch of leaves behind him. Marshal turned to see a man standing in the shadows, a branch raised over his head. The man moved and Marshal squinted. It took him a short moment to realize that the stranger in the shadows was Craig. But it was too late to do anything. Craig swung the branch, hitting Marshal square on the side of his face. He went down to one knee before passing out, his last thoughts were on Zander as his eyes closed.

  Chapter Thirteen

  The flight to Cape Town was long and he hadn't slept well. Roger dialed Duff the minute he had privacy. He didn't have anything to report other than the fact that he was on the ground. Duff gave him the same instructions he had before about obtaining the paperwork. It didn't hurt to go over the plan, making sure he knew what he was doing.

  Though he'd slept on the plane, he was exhausted. He needed to get his supplies and his new identity. He caught a taxi and that drove him a few blocks over to a very seedy area. The cabbie didn't seem to want to leave him, but he told the guy he'd be fine. A car with keys in the ignition was waiting for him exactly where Duff said it would be.

  Roger drove ten minutes, finding the address Duff had given him. He picked up a package from a guy outside an electronics store. After stopping by an office supply store, picking up paper and pens sold in South Africa, he headed to a lot on the other side of the airport and dropped the car in the place where Duff had told him to leave it. All in all, it took him two hours to complete his task. He still had six hours to eat and rest.