by Dale Mayer
BRANDON’S BLISS
Heroes for Hire, Book 13
Dale Mayer
Table of Contents
Cover
Title Page
About This Book
Complimentary Download
Prologue
Chapter 1
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Epilogue
About Liam’s Lily
Author’s Note
Complimentary Download
About the Author
Copyright Page
About This Book
Brandon, the newest member of Levi’s team at Legendary Securities, heads to Africa. Bullard purchased a new holding there, but, shortly after arriving, went missing.
Kasha has worked for Bullard for five years. She’s familiar with most of those who work for Legendary as well. Brandon proves his worth almost immediately, planning her boss’s rescue and staying right by her side in the days that follow while they determine what imbroglio Bullard’s stepped into. Accident or a deal gone horribly wrong, it seems Bullard was running guns and now his newest holding is under attack.
Their emotions, heightened by danger, run hot as Brandon positions himself instinctively at Kasha’s side—which is exactly where he hopes to be permanently if they can just find a way out of this rapidly escalating mess.
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KILL OR BE KILLED
Part of an elite SEAL team, Mason takes on the dangerous jobs no one else wants to do – or can do. When he’s on a mission, he’s focused and dedicated. When he’s not, he plays as hard as he fights.
Until he meets a woman he can’t have but can’t forget. Software developer, Tesla lost her brother in combat and has no intention of getting close to someone else in the military. Determined to save other US soldiers from a similar fate, she’s created a program that could save lives. But other countries know about the program, and they won’t stop until they get it – and get her.
Time is running out … For her … For him … For them …
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Prologue
Brandon Horton wasn’t sure what to make of Legendary Security. He’d been here two whole days already, and so many people had been coming and going, it was hard to keep track of who was who. And then there were the puppies. Six of them—although several were going to individual apartments on the property when they were old enough. But all the homes were connected to the men who worked around here.
Brandon only really felt comfortable in a chair propped against the back wall of the huge dining room, out of the way—yet close by when meals were served. The trouble was, nobody let him stay here alone. His buddies from his former SEALs unit, Rory—sporting a new cowboy hat—and Michael, had stuck close so Brandon wouldn’t feel isolated.
Also Ice had come over several times to get him to fill out paperwork. He’d done that and had passed it back and then continued to stay quietly in the background. He was getting paid, but he sure as hell didn’t know why or what for. He’d expected to be shipped out on a job immediately, but so far that hadn’t happened.
This was early into Day 3 for him, trying to figure out how things worked at the compound. Breakfast had been devoured and cleaned up over an hour ago. He doubted that this bunch took weekends off, so just because it was a Saturday in early December per the calendar didn’t mean he had the day off.
The phone rang. He wasn’t even sure who was supposed to answer it. He knew it wasn’t him. He barely knew what was going on from day to day.
When Ice walked into the kitchen adjoining the dining area, her tone clipped and urgent, the atmosphere shifted. Something was up. She turned on the big screen in the kitchen and hit an alarm on the side of the door. People poured into the room. He pulled farther back from everyone, watching curiously.
An image filled the screen. Ice keyed in something on the laptop nearby and a news ticker appeared at the bottom. The scrolling text confirmed the facial ID of the woman on the screen as Kasha Lowry, gave the GPS coordinates for her exact location in Africa—dubbed Bullard’s Home Base—even compared the date and time here in Texas, within our Central Time Zone, currently 10:27 a.m., to the time some seven hours ahead in the West Africa Time Zone, so 5:27 p.m. over there.
Ice was known for her IT magic, so she had her own particular set of toys.
Brandon could see some of the room behind the woman. It looked like the command center of a big military operation. He’d never seen anything like it in a personal residence.
“Kasha, you’re up. Go ahead.”
“Ice, Bullard has gone missing,” said the tall, lean young woman with long black hair, worry creasing her face and fatigue pulling on her features. “Six days ago, five of us traveled to his newest property on the Benin border in West Africa. He said he wanted to stay for another day alone. Get a feel for it. So he sent us away. We expected him back the next day, but, when the pilot landed to pick him up, there was no sign of him. He hasn’t answered his comm. Our men are out on multiple missions, so we’re shorthanded here.”
“We’ll send four men. Two from here and Merk and Stone who are already nearby in Europe. They’ll arrive within a few hours of each other.”
Brandon watched the relief light up Kasha’s eyes. With her long dark hair and slightly honey-toned skin, she was a knockout. But the way she wore her tight black jeans, tight black T-shirt and matching black gun belt strapped to her right leg launched her from his fantasy woman to a real-life contender. He had to meet this woman face-to-face.
“How long?” Kasha asked in clipped tones.
Ice looked at her watch as if mentally calculating and said, “Twelve hours for the first pair. Faster if I can swing it.”
Brandon noticed that he, and all the other people in the room, pulled up the dual time function on their watches to add the WAT option. Whether here at the compound or in Africa, it was countdown time when it came to a missing person, especially one known by all.
Kasha looked like she wanted to argue, then conceded quietly.
“In the meantime,” Ice said, “gather as much information as you can. Who saw him last? Where? Did he have plans to go anywhere? What is his weapons situation like? Pass it all to Stone and Merk. Understand?”
“Understood.” Kasha clicked something in front of her, and the screen went dark.
Levi stepped up beside Ice, their two heads bent in conversation.
Brandon watched the others explain about Bullard to those who weren’t in the know. Brandon knew of Bullard but had yet to meet him. And he’d never met Kasha. He’d remember her.
Ice walked out of the room, Levi behind her. Brandon grabbed another cup of coffee and watched to see what, if anything, would come of this. After another hour, he headed to his room.
Levi caught up with him in the hall. “Brandon, in three hours, you’re leaving for the airport.”
“Where am I going?” he asked, interested to see what his future with the company would hold. He’d been afraid he’d be stuck babysitting stars in California.
“Africa. To find Bullard. And the time frame is yesterday.”
And just like that, Levi was gone.
Chapter 1
On Sunday at 5:30 a.m. CST but 12:30 p.m. per WAT, Brandon cleared security and walked across the tarmac toward the next, much smaller plane. Harrison was at his side. Neither had
said a word since arriving in Africa. Brandon had slept on the plane. If he could sleep on those US military cargo carriers, he could sleep anywhere. He presumed Harrison caught some Zs as well. Both knew what needed to be done, and they realized how important the job was. It was even worse that Bullard was the one in trouble. It was always harder when a friend or family member went missing.
With Merk and Stone already over here, Brandon and Harrison knew they’d be met and debriefed as soon as they landed. But, in the meantime, traveling was a bitch.
Before boarding the transatlantic flight, Harrison had brought out his laptop and said, “We’ll need to download some information first.” He quickly copied files onto a USB key and handed it to Brandon. “Just a little light reading. Make sure you’ve got it all down before we land.”
Once the pilot finally gave the go-ahead to move about the cabin and to use the tray tables, Brandon pulled out his laptop, popped in the USB and opened the files. It was intense reading—a full character workup of all of Bullard’s men and Kasha. He learned a lot of the history about Bullard’s group. He read Kasha’s background info with interest. She’d been with Bullard for five years and had started in an administrative capacity that had quickly morphed to being Bullard’s right-hand man—or woman in this case. Her hobbies were listed as swimming and guns acquisition. As a former SEAL, Brandon had to smile. Yet more they had in common.
At the end was a brief on the issues they currently faced. Brandon had been a part of the initial conference call, so he knew the basics. Outside of some minor details, not much was new. “Bullard had been at the new holding for five days, so are we thinking it’s most likely a local job?” Brandon asked.
Harrison shook his head. “It’s hard to say. Bullard has connections in the military too, both US and African, so it could be someone who wanted retaliation because Bullard helped take them down or could be some freelancer looking for an opportunity to get control of this area, seeing Bullard as an up-and-coming threat. Also remember Kasha’s comment that Bullard had put out the call for new hires at the holding. That was tantamount to broadcasting where he was at that moment to any local mercs.”
“Great. He could be in big trouble and with way too many factions possibly looking to take him out.”
“Exactly. This trip is all about helping Bullard. He’s assisted Ice and Levi many times. He’s also the one who helped set up security on the compound. He and Ice go way back. If either puts out a call for help, the other comes running.”
“But nobody’s heard from Bullard or Kasha since the first transmission?”
“Correct. However, Merk already checked in at both holdings with the help of a helicopter pilot who Ice knew was temporarily in the area. Still no sign of Bullard.”
A fact Merk confirmed when Harrison and Brandon arrived at the local airport. Merk talked and walked outside, nodding to the two of them to toss their gear in the back of the jeep before they all climbed in. He didn’t say much else, just, “It’s about a twenty-five-minute drive. Sit tight. I want to make it in fifteen.”
He took off like a race car on a practice run. There was a careless skill in the way he handled the jeep. The roads were rough once they got past the town limits. Then Merk really put his foot to the gas pedal and let the engine rip. He was just past his ETA when they pulled into an estate. It was bigger than Levi’s and fancier. Like some ornate European mansion had been transported deep within Africa.
Brandon gave a silent whistle as he hopped out. “Wow, this is something.”
Merk nodded. “Bullard has offered to do the same at our place. He says the compound is too ugly for his taste.”
Brandon was starting to like Bullard even more. They walked in to find Dave, Bullard’s manservant, with his hands clenched tightly together.
Again Merk asked, “No sign of him?”
Dave shook his head.
Merk made the introductions. “Nothing new at all?”
“He was setting up another headquarters,” Dave said. “It should have been a simple trip. The property is on the Benin border.”
“Are we flying or driving?”
“Flying,” Dave said firmly. “No expense will be spared to make sure we find Bullard as expediently as possible.”
Just then a woman’s voice called out, “Dave, who’s here?”
Merk stepped up so the woman could see him. “Hello, Kasha. These are two more of my men. Now we can go.”
*
Kasha Lowry studied the two new arrivals. She recognized both from the conference call the day before, but neither were men she knew personally. That bothered her. She understood that Levi had thoroughly vetted these men, but had Bullard? Her responsibility was to her missing employer. After working for him for five years, she also considered him a good friend. Her gaze went from Merk to Brandon. At the sight of Brandon, she frowned. “You’re late.”
Brandon held out his hand. “I’m Brandon. We came as soon as we could. I’m sure we’ll find Bullard.”
She shook his hand, fear gnawing at her insides. She’d been waiting for these men to show up, Merk and Stone having arrived five hours earlier. “I hope so. It’s very unlike Bullard to be silent. We don’t have any time to spare.” Without waiting for a response, she spun on her heels and walked down a hallway.
Just then Stone called from the other end of it. “Down here, guys.”
Kasha led the way to the huge office that was the central hub of Bullard’s operation. The medical clinic was attached on the left with its own entrance.
Inside the room Stone greeted the men at Kasha’s side while working at the electronics table, building a camera system for the newest holding Bullard had purchased.
“This is Bullard’s main office,” Kasha explained as she walked over to a computer screen and clicked on several keys, and a big monitor popped to life on the wall. A map filled the screen with a red circle in the center. “This is his last known location.”
“Does he have a tracker on?” Brandon asked.
She nodded. “He does. However, it is no longer responding.”
“Is it subcutaneous?”
“No, it’s hidden in his belt.”
The men exchanged glances. Stone’s face locked down. “It could be worse. There are many reasons for it to have stopped working.”
After that the questions came fast and furious. She answered what she could, but there was damn little anybody on Bullard’s team knew. His men, who had accompanied Bullard there, had all gone to look at his new acquisition. They’d been there for five days, making extensive notes of what Bullard wanted done. They had two vehicles delivered and a mess of other deliveries, including food and electronics. Bullard had been busy making plans to develop the property in terms of security. He’d chosen the spot because it was private, and he could build more of the fortress he wanted with less government interference. The property was already halfway there, making it perfect for his needs.
“He wanted a second headquarters, as big as this one,” Kasha said. “This will always be his home base because a full medical clinic’s here. But he wanted to move some of his military operations away from home into a new location and run the business aspect from over there.”
“That’s understandable. I’d do the same,” Brandon said. “Although I’m not sure I’d want one so far away.”
“But the farther away from home meant added safety for those here.”
“Makes sense.”
Kasha looked around the room. “We have water and a small meal for you to shift gears. We’ll be leaving soon, so help yourself.”
The others cheered as Dave walked in, pushing a big rolling triple-tiered metal tray full of wraps, sandwiches and what looked like hand-size meat pies.
Brandon asked, “Bathroom?”
She pointed to a small door off to the side. “Down there.”
He headed for it as she watched with her peripheral vision until he closed the door. Then she turned to Merk who was eyeing the meat
pies. “Help yourself. We’ll be flying out in twenty minutes.”
“Everything packed and ready?”
She nodded. “We’ve just been waiting for your team’s arrival.”
He couldn’t seem to decide what to choose and ended up taking two meat pies. The first one went down in just a couple bites. The second he savored, even as he picked up a third.
She laughed. “Good, aren’t they?”
“Delicious,” he muttered with a full mouth.
Stone had no trouble picking and choosing, taking his plate back to the work bench.
“Where is the airport?” Harrison asked from behind her.
She turned slightly to speak to both men, pointing to another monitor trained on this holding.
Brandon stepped out of the bathroom in time to catch her response. He snagged a meat pie as he listened.
“I have a helicopter warming up. There’s no time to waste. We’d have used the helicopter to bring you back to the house, but your arrival times differed every time I checked the airport’s ETAs.”
Brandon looked at her in surprise and then whispered to Merk, “Too bad Ice isn’t here.”
“Or the guy who heloed me about earlier before he had to leave. It took longer but got the job done,” Merk added. “Bullard is a hell of a pilot himself.” Merk shook his head. “Bullard always had more money than we did. Knowing him, this helo will be one of the latest and the best. Ice would love to be flying one of those.”
“So true,” Kasha said with a wry smile. “I love that about her. Ice was always the first to jump in and fly to the rescue.” She’d heard lots of stories from Bullard about Ice. Plus she and Levi had been to Africa both to visit and for business meetings several times, so Kasha had met them personally. Bullard called them family. Kasha wasn’t as close to them as he was, but it was a nice concept.
They needed to get moving. She had everyone outside and loaded up within minutes. With everyone in place, they lifted off. She loved to fly in the helicopter. Bullard spared no expense in his working life.
