by Eileen Green
“Thank you, Frank,” John Drake said as he stood. “Although Perez isn’t dead yet, I’m sure that there is chaos within the ranks, especially if his daughter is trying to push him out of the way. I know a lot of you here can be sneaky, and work outside the boundaries of the law sometimes. Anyone have any ideas?”
Everyone looked around the room at each other. It was as if no one had anything to input, and Tanner feared they were going to lose Blair when they had just found her again.
Silence ruled the meeting, the grandfather clock in the dining room ticking the only sound. Finally, he spoke up.
“What if we kill her before anyone else can?”
If the situation hadn’t been so serious, Tanner would have laughed at the expressions on everyone’s face. The shock and surprise were comical, but there was one face that hurt to look at. Blair’s. She looked as if she were going to cry.
Before he could speak, she jumped to her feet. Looking down at him as tears spilled, she shouted, “You hate me so much you would rather me be dead?”
Tanner tried to reach out for her to explain his comment, but she had skirted around the men in the room and their long legs that were between her and the door and was out said door in a flash.
Brock was already rushing after her by the time Tanner was on his feet. Bolting after the two, Tanner moved as fast as he could.
He didn’t know who was behind him, but he heard feet pounding on the porch as he reached the lawn. Brock was rounding the side of the house and down the gravel lane that led to the barns and outer buildings. Blair was booking it, blindly running toward what, Tanner didn’t know.
Picking up speed, Tanner caught up to Brock. They were about twenty feet behind Blair, who was running in a pair of sneakers. Boots in gravel were slowing them down. When she turned and darted over to the barn and then disappeared through the massive sliding doors, Tanner cut across diagonally and was close on her heels.
The barn was large with a wide middle aisle. On the end they had just entered was open with bales of hay piled up on both sides. About three quarters of the barn was made up of stalls for animals. They mostly kept calves here whose mothers weren’t able to feed them or had died, but they were standing empty at the moment.
Horses were kept in a separate barn as were the few goats they raised. Other buildings nearby held sacks of feed for the goats and chickens and farm vehicles and equipment.
On the other side of the main barn were the stalls for some of the cattle. If Blair ran out there and didn’t know what she was facing, she could blindly run into the wooden rails and hurt herself.
Tanner pumped his legs as fast as they could, his muscles already becoming sore after running in the gravel. Trying to ignore the strain, he lunged for Blair. He wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her down with him. Not wanting to hurt her, he twisted so that he hit the ground first, pulling her down on top of him.
They were both out of breath, but that didn’t stop Blair from trying to get away from him.
“Damn it! What is wrong with you? Are you so insistent on hurting me that you have to chase me down?” she shouted.
Holding tight, he wasn’t going to let her get away from him. “Be still, Martha!” he said through gritted teeth. “Stop struggling so we can talk to you.”
As if hearing her former name, Blair stopped moving. With her lying prone on top of Tanner, it brought back many memories of times long past. However, his body remembered her as if it were yesterday.
Please, don’t get hard! Please, oh, please, oh please! He tried his best not to scare her with his body, but it wasn’t listening.
She shifted, almost as if she was trying to get away from the steel rod that developed in his jeans. Damn!
Brock was beside them now. Anger dominated his features, but Tanner wasn’t sure who he was mad at. Him, or Blair.
“You can’t keep running away, sweetness,” Brock chastised as he sat down beside Tanner. “And Tanner, you can’t keep manhandling Blair.”
“How else did you expect us to stop her from getting hurt?” Tanner asked as he tried to sit up while still holding Blair within his arms. “If she ran out through that back door, she would have gotten hurt on the rails of the stalls because she wouldn’t have seen them in time!”
His anger toward Brock surprised Tanner as much as it had Brock by the look on his brother’s face. Blair was struggling to get loose, but Tanner wasn’t going to have it.
“And, you, Blair, you really need to stop this. I don’t like to do this anymore than you like having it done.” Tanner was trying hard to keep his voice calm.
“Right!” Blair said sarcastically. “That’s why you’ve got a hard-on. Tell me, do you have the stiff dick because of me, or from trying to control me?”
* * * *
The second the words were out of her mouth, she knew she had gone too far. Tanner released her, and she rolled off him onto the dirty floor of the barn.
Brock helped her to sit up, but she could tell he was angry also. It seemed since these two men had come back into her life she was only making them mad.
She didn’t blame them. They had been hurt by the lies that had been manufactured to keep her safe, but if she had loved them enough, wouldn’t she have insisted they be allowed to come with her? There were people out there who fell in love when in the witness protection program, and they got to move on with their lives as a family.
Oh, God! Why didn’t I insist? What have I done?
“I’m sorry,” she murmured as she ran her hand through her hair. Strands of it had come loose while she had been running.
“I am, too,” Tanner said as he looked down at his boots. “I really didn’t want you getting hurt. Those bars that make up the stalls are a bitch when you bump into them with a little force. I didn’t want you running into them.”
“Can we please try to at least be friends?” Brock asked out of nowhere.
Looking over at him, she could see the earnestness in his eyes. With a glance over at Tanner, he was nodding in agreement.
Emotions ran through Blair. She was angry because they had run her to the ground again. Tanner apparently wanted to kill her off to get Perez off her back, but the words coming out of his mouth had sounded as if he wanted that finality. The thought of leaving the home that she had come to love in the past year and a half hurt so much, because she really loved it in Polson. And being in such proximity to the Tillman brothers had her girly parts standing up and taking notice.
A lot of water had gone under that bridge of love that they had built so many years ago. However, her body knew who it belonged to.
Clearing her throat, she agreed with Brock. “I’d like to be friends, yes.”
Footsteps came rushing up to them, the rest of the group finding them. Lyndee knelt next to Blair, concern written on her beautiful features.
Blair had always admired Lyndee. She walked with a confidence that eluded Blair because of her background. Plus, the petite blonde had a past to be proud of. Blair could only attest to being on the run, plus working as a cocktail waitress, a librarian, and a short order cook.
“Are you all right?” Lyndee inquired.
Embarrassed of her actions, Blair lowered her head and nodded.
“Sweetie, I’m sure we were all thinking the same thing that Tanner expressed. It’s a wonderful idea, but trying to pull it off is going to be a feat. But we have to try something off-the-wall to get these guys off your back.” Lyndee reached out and smoothed back some of Blair’s brown-and-gray tresses as she spoke. “You’re family, and I’m sure we can pull this off, but you have to trust all of us.”
Blair watched as Lyndee sat down next to her. She looked at Brock and Tanner, and asked, “Can we get some privacy for a few minutes, please? We’ll be right in.”
Brock stood. “Sure,” he agreed. He slowly walked the distance toward the doors of the barn they had entered through, his head hanging low.
Watching Tanner stand awkwardly was
amusing. He twisted his body and headed out the doors closest to them, away from the crowd. Blair knew why he was doing it. It was hard to miss that hard-on poking in her back, and she was certain he didn’t want anyone to see it.
The crowd dissipated, heading out of the barn and in the direction of the house. They would be going back there to discuss her fate.
Once everyone had cleared the area, Lyndee spoke. “I don’t know what it is about this town, but it attracts a lot of different people and throws them together. I came here because I had been kidnapped. When I got away from him, Storm, Austin, and Trey took me in. A total stranger. I fell in love with them, and they with me.
“All the women in poly relationships can tell you how much their men love them and protect them. We come to each other’s aid when it’s needed, even if we don’t know the person.”
“Why?” Blair asked, confused. “I mean, I will be putting you all at risk.”
A chuckle emanated from Lyndee. “I brought the Russian mob here. Twice. Siobhan brought the Irish mob here. Do you see these people turning you away?”
Shaking her head, Blair verbalized a very weak, “No.”
“You have people who care about you. Everyone who goes into the diner loves you. Glen praises your cooking all the time.” Lyndee reached her hand out and touched Blair’s. She glanced around like she was looking for someone before she whispered, “He’s even said some of your food is better than his.”
That brought a laugh from Blair. She couldn’t imagine Glen giving her too much credit.
“Also,” Lyndee continued. “By the looks and actions of Tanner and Brock, they are still carrying a torch for you.”
“I let the Marshals fake my death and hurt the only men I have ever loved. I don’t want to hurt them again.”
“Let me ask you this. Do you still have feelings for them?” Lyndee asked, looking at Blair as if she were studying her.
Under the woman’s scrutiny, Blair felt like there was no way she could lie to her. “Yes. My love for them never died, even though I did. But how are they ever going to trust me again?”
“First off, you all need to sit down and talk. And I mean really talk. Tell them your feelings, your fears. Lay it all out on the line, and see what their feelings are.”
Blair shrugged. “I guess I could try it.” She felt her face heat up as she thought about Tanner’s hard-on a few minutes ago. “I do know that they are still attracted to me.”
“Well, there you go. That’s already a bonus. Now, let’s get back to the meeting, so we can figure out how we’re going to kill you off, again.”
Chapter Five
“You are a woman! What do you know about my business?” Perez shouted before wincing in pain. “My people won’t deal with the likes of you!”
Glaring down at her father, Catalina could see that he was close to death. His skin was sallow and hanging off his body. He had lost so much weight from the cancer that he was nearly unrecognizable. Juan Perez was no longer the handsome man that her mother had slept with thirty-five years ago.
With all his power and money, women wanted to be Juan Perez’s. They thought it would give them prestige and power. Unfortunately, her father was a sexist, chauvinistic pig. When her mother didn’t provide a boy, Juan Perez turned his back on her. He had paid her a paltry sum, leaving her to raise Catalina on her own.
Her mother still lived in the village where Catalina had been raised. The house was paid for, but it was a small two-bedroom with a tiny yard that butted up to the forest. What Perez had given her was only a drop in the bucket compared to what he should have paid her mother.
This wasn’t the first time that Catalina had come to her father looking for what was hers. The first time she had met the man was when she was thirteen. She and her mother were in trouble, and Catalina thought he would help them. She had thought wrong. Then about eight years ago she went to visit, having figured that twenty-five years was enough time to deal with the fact that she was his daughter.
Now, the man was dying. By the looks of him, he wasn’t too far away from the end. Catalina had heard the rumors on the street about him being sick and that his lieutenants were fighting for his favor to take over for him. She wasn’t going to let that happen.
Taking a step toward the chair he was sitting in, she leaned over and placed both her hands on the arms of his chair. She was looming over his diminutive frame, and she could see the fear in his eyes.
“There have been women leaders in your business, Father,” she said, her words dripping with sarcasm. “I have a business major from university where I paid my own way. I know it’s not a given for your type of work, but it’ll help. You have to train someone before you die, so you might as well train me. I am your flesh and blood. You owe me.”
“I am not going to hand my business over to you!” he shouted hoarsely. “You are a puta, just like your mother!”
Shock streaked through her body at his words. It was understandable that he didn’t respect her, but he had spent two years with her mother. There had to have been some feelings between the two of them.
Her hand was around his throat before she realized she had moved it. Lowering her face until she was nose to nose with him, she bit out her words. “You will respect my mother, for she is a saint to have ever let you put your hands on her. She was someone you didn’t deserve. Now you’re shirking me? It’s not going to happen, old man. I will take over, with or without your help. The Perez Cartel is mine.”
Anger flashed in his pale, jaundiced eyes. Both his hands were around the wrist of the hand that held his life at the moment, trying to pull it away.
“You won’t get my business, puta, at least not without working for it. I have a proposition for you,” he said, his words choppy as they came out of his mouth.
Catalina released him and stood up. Could she trust him to follow through with his word if she decided to take his proposal, whatever it was?
Crossing her arms across her chest, she glared down at him. “What kind of proposition?”
“That little cunt who testified against me all those years ago is still alive. I don’t know where she is, but I want her found and taken care of before I die. I must know that part of my life can be closed. Find her, and kill her, and you can have the business.”
What the man was asking was unthinkable, even though the woman had managed to elude him for all these years. Catalina didn’t know why it mattered so much for him to make sure she was dead before he was. It wasn’t like she could hurt him anymore. And when Catalina took over, the men who were loyal to Perez would slowly disappear. She would fill their positions with people she could trust.
Pondering, she let her gaze settle on the view outside his third-story bedroom window. He had a compound, one with high walls around the perimeter. The house was a virtual mansion. He could entertain with ease and keep prisoners if need be in the dungeons under the house. Once she took over, she would move her mother here, for she deserved a mansion to live in.
“You’ve got a deal, old man. I will find her and kill her myself. However, I want a contract stating what we are agreeing to. Once all this takes place, you’ll know I’m serious. Now, do you have any idea where this woman could be?” Catalina asked with disdain.
* * * *
Connor’s living room was buzzing with conversations between groups of the attendees. Brock had a name for the meeting. “The Saving of Blair Anderson.”
He had stopped by the bunkhouse to change into a pair of running shoes, just in case Blair decided to take off again. He had no idea where Tanner was since his brother walked out the back of the barn and disappeared.
The living room went quiet as he walked through to the dining room. He grabbed a couple bottles of water and went to sit where Blair had vacated before she bolted.
“Is Blair all right?” Connor asked from his recliner where Lyndee had been sitting.
Nodding, he took a long draw on the water before he looked over at his boss.
“Yeah. She and Lyndee are talking. I think Blair really needed some female companionship.”
“I know some people flourish in the program,” John Drake offered. “However, some don’t. Blair was so young when she went in, she has most likely been looking over her shoulder since her parents were killed.
“The day her attorney called the Marshals about Blair was the day she was testifying against Perez. She had been on the stand for several hours, and she needed a break. She was so upset she went into the restroom to freshen up. A woman walked in, one who Blair had seen in the courtroom from the first day. Not thinking much about it, Blair was splashing water on her face when the woman came up behind her and slammed Blair’s head onto the counter. She held Blair’s head down while she whispered in Blair’s ear. She told her—”
“She told me that I wasn’t going to leave the courthouse alive if I continued to testify, that I needed to change my story,” Blair explained, interrupting Drake. “I was terrified. Even when the woman’s hand left my head, I was afraid to move. When I didn’t come back to the courtroom, my attorney came looking for me.
“I told him I couldn’t go through with it. He apparently realized something had happened to me while I was in the bathroom. That was when he called the Marshals. I never went back to the courtroom. I was in custody within an hour and in New Orleans a couple of days later. I finished my testimony by video, that didn’t help getting Perez put away.”
Tears were falling as Blair shook, standing at the front door. Rising, Brock moved over to his former girlfriend and wrapped one arm around her shoulders. He led her back to his seat and sat down, pulling her down onto his lap.
Blair didn’t struggle, which surprised him. He pressed her head against his shoulder, hoping she would accept his comfort.
Lyndee had been standing right behind Blair when Brock had taken Blair to the chair. The former FBI agent stood next to John Drake. She was a good half foot shorter than the man.
