“Are you saying he didn’t know how to talk to people? He was a loner?”
“Yes, he was definitely a loner. He never had anyone visit him at his townhouse. He went to work five days a week, came home alone, and stayed inside the whole time. He’s a young man; he should’ve been out having fun, meeting people, forming relationships. But he sat at home all alone instead.”
“Talk to me about the day of the attack. What events led up to it?” Julia asked.
“He surprised me by coming over to see me all of a sudden. I’d always asked him, and sometimes he’d come in for tea—he always loved my tea—but I could tell he didn’t really want to be there. But the day he tried to kill me—and failed,” she stressed, “he actually did want to be there.
“He helped me unload mulch from the trunk of my car and then helped me spread it in all of my beautiful flower beds. Now I know that he was just trying to make sure there was nothing out of place in my yard. My neighbors would’ve known that I wouldn’t leave bags of mulch on my lawn, killing the grass.
“Anyway, when I invited him in for tea and croissants, he quickly agreed to it. But first, he went to his house and brought back this awful, bitter-tasting honey that he’d been bragging on. I didn’t have the heart to tell him at the time that, even though honey isn’t supposed to ever go bad, his must have been the exception. It had a very bitter taste, and we all know that real honey is sweet.”
The more she talked, the more Turan’s hands curled into tight fists. Every word out of her mouth was an insult, a dishonor, and an outrage. It was clear that they weren’t lying—Liz really did survive. The next words caught his attention.
“Liz, it is very serious business to have active terrorists on American soil. Here, in our country, threatening our citizens. How much of a threat do you believe Ali Babek Turan really is?”
“Julia, I can only go by what I’ve personally experienced. He is a bumbling, inept, thug-wannabe. Really, if he can’t kill a little, old, weak lady like myself, how much of a threat can he be to a real man? Of course, it’s scary to think that his friends could be better at this terrorist business than he is. Maybe he’s a trainee or something. I’d feel sorry for him, you know, if he hadn’t tried to kill me.”
“Liz, you must have a heart of gold and the patience of a saint. If I were in your shoes, I can say I wouldn’t stop until he’d been punished to the fullest extent of the law,” Julia replied, her admiration of Liz clear.
“Oh, Julia, don’t get me wrong. If I see him coming, he’ll definitely feel the wrath of Liz Stanton. The odds of that actually happening are small, though, because that would require him to leave the safety of his four walls. He’d have to actually face another person who knows what kind of sniveling weasel he really is,” Liz clarified. “He’d be too scared to face me now. I can’t imagine what a disappointment he must be to his family.”
“I hope you’re right, Liz.” Julia started her response, but Turan wasn’t listening. His mind was still reeling from Liz’s last statements about him. Did she know that his father never approved of him? That he never met his expectations and his father died before he could prove that he was capable of being brave? Did she know that he was always a disappointment to his father, a regret in his eyes?
13
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
“I’m really sorry, baby,” Bull tried to soothe Chaise. “I know how disappointed you are.”
“How is he staying a step ahead of us? I just don’t get it. We have super-techy guys working this case, too.”
“Nothing against Brad, but this Turan guy is a genius when it comes to programming, and apparently at hacking, too,” he explained. “We know where he is, we’ve just been—”
“Waiting.” She finished his sentence for him. “I understand not wanting to show your hand, but at some point, enough has to be enough, Colton. The man tried to kill Liz, we know he killed other people. There’s enough evidence to hold him.”
“Actually, we wouldn’t even need that evidence with the laws on terrorism,” he admitted.
“That really doesn’t help right now,” she replied through gritted teeth. “We know he’s a terrorist. Go. Get. Him.”
“We’re going to his house tonight,” Bull replied. “Late. We’ll get him.”
“Okay, as much as I want you to get him, I’m a little worried about pushing you to go to his house now. What if something happens to you?”
“Won’t happen, babe. I’m too stubborn to get hurt. I’m too mean to be killed. And I’m too good at my job to be caught.” He grinned at her.
“There’s the cocky, confident Bull I love.” She smiled back. “Please be careful tonight.”
“I will, babe. I really am sorry about the flowers,” he said again. “I’ll kick his ass for you when I get to him if you want.”
“Yes, please do. He deserves it. There’s no way to get my flowers now. They’d have to be planted, grown, and harvested since he canceled my order and the ones I need were given to someone else. They were going to be perfect, too.” Chaise scowled.
“We can choose another type of flower,” Bull offered.
“I’ll think about it. I’m just really so disappointed and disgusted right now, I can’t even think straight.”
“Well, it’s a good thing I know what’ll make you feel better, help you forget that disappointment, and have you singing from the rooftops.”
“Colton, take me away,” she agreed. “Shouting your name from the rooftops may be exactly what I need.”
“Hell yeah.” He pressed the gas pedal harder. “I’m taking you up on that—no take-backs.”
“No take-backs,” she agreed. “I’m all yours. I need the energy release and the whole body relaxation I get when you’re finished working me over.”
“You know it turns me on when you talk like that.”
“I do know,” she confirmed. “I’m counting on it, my lover.”
“That’s my girl.”
When they walked inside the house, Bull leaned his back against the closed door, set the alarm system, and let his eyes rake over Chaise’s body.
“You just going to stand there looking at me?” she asked coyly
“No.” Bull shook his head. “I’m going to do a lot more than look at you. First, I’m going to strip every article of clothing from that gorgeous body of yours. Then I’m going to massage every inch of your body, loosen up those tight muscles, and work some of your stress out. When you’re relaxed and limber, I’m going to make you mine in every known position, and maybe a few we make up on our own.”
Chaise’s shock was evident on her face—and in her physical reaction—as she let go of her purse at the same time her bottom jaw dropped open. Her chest rose and fell in rapid succession as her breathing became shallow. Her face flushed as desire burned through her veins like liquid fire. “You’re the only one who knows how to make me forget everything else that’s going on in the world.”
Bull nodded slowly. “Tonight, there is nothing else, and no one else. Only you and me.”
“Yes,” she said breathily. “You’re all I need.”
He pushed off the door and walked directly to Chaise, his eyes never leaving hers as he advanced on her. “Come with me.”
Bull led her into their bedroom and stopped her at the foot of the bed. As he unbuttoned her shirt, his fingers lightly brushed against her and sent chills rippling across her skin. As he pushed her skirt over her hips and down her legs, he left openmouthed kisses in his wake. He lazily traced her sensitive flesh through her silky panties with his finger. “It feels hot in here,” he said as his hand reached between her legs. “Is it wet, too?”
“You can touch it and see for yourself,” she offered.
“It’s mine, isn’t it?” he asked rhetorically. “I’ll do a lot more than touch it. But I want you to tell me. So, is it wet?”
“Yes, it’s very wet,” she panted.
“I bet we can make it wetter,” he ventured. “We
haven’t even started yet.”
He slowly removed her panties and stood to remove her bra just as painfully slowly. His every touch branded Chaise, made her want him more, and made the wait even more excruciating. She knew if she tried to make him hurry, he would purposely make her wait even longer. His plans for her had been made known, and all she had to do was relax and let heaven come to her. Exhaling slowly, she allowed her muscles to relax and let all the stress begin to fade to black.
Bull moved her to the bed and motioned for her to lie on her stomach. When she was in place, his strong hands began massaging her neck and shoulders. Soothing scents filled the air when he removed the oil from the nightstand and poured it into his hands and rubbed them together. The friction warmed the oil enough that Chaise felt the heat seep through her skin when he began rubbing her shoulders again.
He moved down her back, running his finger along the hollow of her spine to the top of her ass. “I love this.” He covered both of her cheeks with his hands and sensually squeezed. “I could feast on this all day.”
While he kneaded the backs of her thighs with his strong hands, he imagined their lives together after everything settled down. He hadn’t had much downtime between cases, Noah and Brianna’s wedding, and planning his own wedding. The moments like this had become his refuge, his solace in the world of madness. He never imagined his life would take this turn and give him someone he couldn’t imagine living without. There wasn’t anything about her that he didn’t love, even the things she did that drove him nuts.
“Just looking at you makes me crazy,” he muttered. “You’re so beautiful. And sexy. You make it impossible not to want you wherever we are. Sometimes I have to remind myself that I don’t want any other man to see you naked just so I don’t strip you bare when we’re out somewhere.”
She sighed heavily and melted even more into the bed. “If we could get away with it, would you want to have sex in a public place?”
“I think it could be fun,” he replied. “But I don’t think we could be quiet enough.”
“You’re probably right,” she giggled. “It’s hard to be discreet with you.”
The growing bulge that strained against his zipper became painful, especially when he thought about the sounds she made and the way she looked when they made love. “This is what you do to me,” he said as he slid his erection across her ass, grinding his hips against her as he moved.
She moaned appreciatively and pulled her legs up until her knees were underneath her to better accept him. When he made a second pass, his movements mimicked the act of taking her from behind. Her fingers curled into the comforter and gripped it in a vise-lock. “Colton,” she begged.
The sound of his zipper and the shuffling of denim were all she needed to hear to know that he’d also reached his limit of waiting. With his clothes shed, she felt him move behind her on the bed as his legs framed hers. With one sudden thrust, he entered her soft, wet channel and dug his fingertips into her hip bones.
“Fuck, baby, you feel so good,” he said. He repeatedly pulled back and pushed forward into her, drawing her moans and screams to a pinnacle. He felt her inner muscles squeeze him as if they were trying to hold him in place. “You’re close,” he boasted, felt the rush of warmth from her release, and then joined her in his own.
He rolled her over and she curled into him with her arm across his chest. “That was incredible. Every bit of it,” she exhaled.
Bull kissed the top of her head. “You’re always incredible, my love.”
“Are you still going tonight?” she asked tentatively.
“Yeah, it’ll be late, but I’d feel better if you wait at Reaper’s while I’m gone.”
“Okay. Brianna and Liz will keep me company until you get back,” she agreed. “Just don’t stay out past your curfew. You know I don’t like to wait.”
He chuckled, knowing she was joking with him. “Yes, ma’am. I’d hate to keep you waiting and get in trouble when I get home.”
“You’ll be in more trouble if you don’t kick his ass for all the trouble he’s caused us with our wedding. I want to go with you just to be the one to make him pay for it,” she replied.
“If I could take you with me, just for that reason, I definitely would. You’re scary when you get mad.”
She playfully swatted his chest. “You’d better remember that yourself.”
Bull lovingly stroked her back with his fingertips, back and forth until she was lulled into a restful sleep. He remained awake and mentally recounted the preplanned sequence of the night’s events. Turan’s car hadn’t moved in a week, but like clockwork every night, he had food delivered to his house. Joe and Bill were being kept updated on the intercepted messages as the analysts dissected any information that was remotely close to their case. Nothing indicated that tonight would be any different than last night. No intelligence pointed to a sudden change of plans.
The plan was that the four-man team would approach the residence from different directions, each covering a specific side of the house. House blueprints, undercover pictures, and the information obtained from the wiretap were all memorized. Every step had been planned well ahead of time to avoid as many problems as possible. Best laid plans, was on repeat in Bull’s mind.
He’d never had jittery nerves before an operation before now. Skirmishes in a foreign desert or reconnaissance work in an opulent mansion, the job had always felt like second nature to him. Get in, get what was needed, and get out. Move silently, take no prisoners, and take no shit. Stay cool, keep calm, and follow the plan—that was always how the operation went. Chaise moved in her sleep and drew his attention away from his thoughts. The change in his demeanor suddenly made sense to him.
“It’s because now I have something to lose,” he murmured aloud. “Something I know I never want to be without. Someone I want to make it back home to.”
He let her sleep in his arms for as long as he could before he had to meet the others. He gently shook her shoulder to wake her. “Chaise, baby, we have to leave in a few minutes.”
“I haven’t slept that well since this whole thing started,” she said sleepily. “Please be extra careful tonight. I expect you to come home to me, safe and sound and in one piece.”
“Try to get rid of me,” he chuckled. “Even a restraining order won’t keep me from you.”
Chaise and Bull got dressed and left so he could drop her off at Noah’s and get to his rendezvous point well ahead of time. She held his hand with both of hers during the entire drive, gently stroked her fingers along his, and glanced nervously at him a few times.
“Here we are,” Bull announced as they pulled into Noah’s driveway. “Stay here with Brianna and Liz until we get back. There are security men in the yard and along the perimeter. You’ll be safe.”
“You need to be safe, Colton. Call or text me as soon as you can to let me know you’re okay.”
He smiled. He’d never had to check in with anyone before now. “I will, babe. It’ll be fine—you’ll see.”
After a long kiss— “until later, not goodbye” —Chaise got out of the truck. Brianna met her at the door.
“Come on in.” Brianna smiled. “We’ll have a slumber party—you, Liz, and me.”
“I’m not playing poker with her,” Chaise stated.
“Chaise! We’re playing Twister! I have everything ready,” Liz yelled from the den.
“Sadly, I’m in no condition to play Twister.” Brianna patted her stomach. “So, it’ll be you, Liz, and the poor, unsuspecting security guy twisting,” Brianna replied.
Bull waved to them both and pulled out of the drive. When he hit the road, his cell started ringing. “Hey, Reap, what’s up?”
“Just making sure you remembered we have a date tonight.”
“Have I ever stood you up before?” Bull asked.
“There’s always a first time for everything,” Reaper joked.
“Not for that,” Bull replied. “Brothers don’t stand eac
h other up.”
“Let’s take this shithead out tonight and be done with him.”
“That’s what I’m talking about,” Bull replied.
He pulled onto the side street that gave him the best vantage point of Turan’s yard. The house was completely dark except for a small glow in the living room. The team’s cell phones were turned off and their secure wireless communicators were on.
“The car hasn’t moved, but either the house is empty or our boy is sound asleep. There’s no movement, small glow in the front of the house, but nothing moving around on this side,” Bull reported.
“Same here,” Shadow replied. “That glow is from a laptop, but he’s not in the living room.”
“I’m below his bedroom window,” Rebel whispered. “I hear snoring. Let’s get this guy.”
“Copy that,” Reaper replied. “Everyone move into your positions. We’re doing this by the book.”
Bull glanced down at his watch just as he moved into his position at the back door. Two minutes until midnight. In two minutes, everything could change. This case could be closed, the bad guy could be apprehended or killed, and they could be going home to their families. Or, in two minutes, life as they knew it could all change. In the blink of an eye, everything could go wrong because they rushed into a trap set by an extremist bent on killing as many people as possible.
Bull pulled his gun close to his chest. It was locked and loaded, ready to fire. The single-word command from Reaper came across the airwaves. “Go.”
Without hesitation, Bull placed a strategically swift kick to the back door and sent it flying open. He immediately stepped to the side for cover and extended his arm to aim. Quickly stepping into the room, he thoroughly searched the room before moving on to the next one. Just as he rounded the corner, he saw a door in the hallway move slightly. “Got movement,” he whispered into his comm. “Door in the hallway. Going in.”
Wicked Nights Page 13
