by Rhonda Lott
But, with Pope after him, that fantasy was at the present foggy and unattainable. The Freedom Guardians were a fanatical collection of killers. Their agenda for America would roll back hundreds of years of democracy. Freedom for them meant no justice for people of color, women, and people with varied sexual preference. His dad taught him and his brothers that this country was home for all that, regardless of race, sex, or religious belief. Eli joined the service for that reason.
The bathroom door opened. Eli turned with every intention of rushing in behind her to hit the shower, but when he looked up his feet refused to move. Erin stood in the doorway with the light behind her. She wore a pair of white cotton short shorts that contrasted beautifully against her brown skin and hugged her womanly figure to perfection. Her plump breast sat up high beneath a strappy shirt. Erin's sweet floral scent swept through the room and he found his eyes sliding closed, head lifting, taking a full deep breath. His eyes wouldn't stay closed, they snapped open finding her face. Pretty brown eyes and a small smile greeted him. Tonight her bangs were swept to the side. For the life of him, he couldn't pull his eyes away. The simple sleeping outfit shouldn't make paralyzed, but on Erin, it did.
"The food smells delicious." Her soft voice floated across the space.
He shook himself out of his tranced state, wiped his face, checking for drool. Damn, he was a mess when it came to her.
"You get started while I grab a quick shower." Eli scoped up a change of clothing and quickly hit the shower.
He turned on the cold water, stepped in and forced himself to calm down. The team would need him in the game and not mooning over Erin. Putting her in the back of his mind was a hard task with her alluring presence, taking up every nook and cranny of his mind.
Clean, Eli threw on a pair of jeans. He found Erin in the little eating area off the kitchenette, placing paper plates and the food on the table. The delicious aroma of lemon chicken had his stomach rumbling.
"Better feed that beast, I can hear him growling from way over here." Her eyes roamed his naked chest for a second before fluttering away to the table. Eli took the seat across from her.
They ate in silence. This was the first real alone time he had with Erin. In the past, they were at the diner surrounded by other people. She was on the move the entire time and for once he had the chance to really get to know the woman that fascinated him from the first moment he'd met her.
"Why did you come with me Erin?" He asked. Erin's head snapped up. "You're a strong willed person and I didn't have to do a lot of convincing to get you to come with me, why?"
Oh, that got her. Erin's whole face changed. The air in the room suddenly crackled with tension. The question had lingered on his mind from the second they left Wayland. Eli knew that Pope was sick, completely obsessed with gaining revenge on his team. He knew that the man would stop at nothing to get his payback. In truth Pope should be behind bars, but someone let him off scot free. Eli was well aware of the lengths Pope would go to, but she wasn't.
"You’re the one that told me I was unsafe without you and had to come with you. Crazy cop in my house, dead man at my dinner and being almost blown up were more than enough reasons for me." Erin dropped her shoulders, but wouldn't meet his eyes.
"There's more to it. From what I've come to know about you, Erin Talley's a strong woman, fearless even."
Erin stood, gave him a hooded look and walked to the window.
"You might not understand, but I believed that my life was a good as it was going to get. Nothing new happening to me. No chance to see new things or experience life. The very idea of leaving Wayland scared me. I told myself that I loved my home and didn't want to leave. It was the worst lie. When you told me about Pope and that you wanted me to come with you, it felt like a shot. Crazy, cause I might die, but I want to experience something beyond my city limits." Erin spun back to him. "Don't you dare laugh at me Huge Pain. Run into danger for excitement, nuts, I know. But don't you laugh."
Eli went to her. She looked so small and lost in that moment. What he'd done was put her in harm's way when she wanted adventure, he'd given her something far more damaging than she knew. He tugged her hand and led her to the bed.
She put her hand on his chest. "Hey, when I said I wanted a new experience, I didn't mean." She pointed to the bed a little smirk on her face.
Eli grinned. "Just sit down smart mouth. I'm tired and so are you. We're going to sleep." He stretched out next to her and pulled her stiff body into his side. "Erin relax. You trusted me enough to leave Wayland, trust that I'm not going to take advantage of you in your sleep."
Her body slowly melted against him. "Your turn. Why did you insist I come with you? We don't really know each other well. You could have left me behind."
Could he have left her behind? That was his plan, but somewhere along the way it changed. He changed.
. "I could tell you that I grew up in an insanely big family with three brothers and two sisters. That our father taught us to protect our women. Or I could tell you that I wanted to keep you with me because Pope is too unpredictable to be trusted to not try and harm you."
"What is it then?"
"Truth. There's something about you that I can't shake. I don't know what it is, but it felt wrong to walk away from you. You feel like your mine. Mine to protect, to be by my side, even in this shit storm, mine to keep." Eli placed a kiss over her bangs then turned off the light. "Now go to sleep love."
Erin pulled the blanket over them both. "You feel like mine too, Huge Pain."
Warmth filled his chest at her words and he smiled into the darkness. Huge Pain was he? Well, Erin Talley had just sealed her fate, she would be dealing with this particular pain for a lot longer than three days.
CHAPTER SIX
Taking the subway and then walking to their destination seemed like a fantastic idea. Now, Eli wanted to put tape over Erin's mouth and a bag over her head. She didn't get the incognito aspect of their journey to meet up with the crew. Every sight brought out a gasp of excitement. She habitually greeted anyone that looked in their direction, with that lyrical southern drawl of hers. Her sweet voice was vastly different from her fellow passengers, harsh eastern dialects. New York subway riders weren't big on pleasant conversation. Erin stood out like a baby in a bordello.
Only two more blocks until they would be at the location. Waking up with Erin's warm, soft body snuggled up next to him was the best part of a day that was slipping into destruction. Eli, had a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. Every nerve ending was telling him to turn around.
Jayce Romero, his undercover specialist sent a text that the timetable for their meeting had been pushed up to this afternoon. In the Bronx of all places. Eli came to a full stop. Erin was too engrossed in the shops and people to notice him stopping. He had to grab her elbow. Eli had to check his phone, because this couldn't be the right place. There, towering between the squat storefronts was a castle, an actual castle with torrents and a bell tower. He studied the structure. The building was an old church that was condemned and yet to be torn down. Jayce had a flare for the dramatic. The man liked to keep things dark and sinister. Standing before the old building with boarded up windows and faded odd mix of yellow brick and red stone.
"Is this where we're supposed to be?" Erin frowned, shading her eyes and leaning her head back to look up at the crumbling bell tower. "This place is amazing, and completely out of place here."
"Right, looks like it should be in the English country side not sandwiched between a bodega and a dry cleaner." Eli agreed. "Romero, has a way of finding the most derelict but interesting places in every city. That's kind of his spy thing."
Eli surveyed the street before he let them inside the building. The interior was gutted on the ground floor. Twin staircases that had seen better days lead up to a second and third floor. Eli took Erin's hand and they carefully moved up the unstable set of stairs. On the landing there were old boxes and crates covered with a thick layer of grim
e. Doors ran down the length of the hallway to the second set of stair. The waist high wooden railing was peeling, but had a beautiful design that depicted angels with interlocking wings. The church would have been quite spectacular in its day.
He heard low voices coming from the first room to his right. Eli entered with his one hand on his gun and the other wrapped around Erin's waist. Jayce was sitting with Kennedy Maxwell, the team's medic and science specialist at a small card table, cluttered with papers, in the center of the room. Brennan Marshal was posted at the window as usual, there sharp shooter was stone faced and only took his eyes off the scene outside to grunt a greeting. Blake Jackson, the tech specialist of the team, had a laptop open on one of the old crates concentrating on the screen.
Jayce stood. "There you are Eli." His sharp dark eyes settled on Erin and widened. "And with company."
Eli nodded and surveyed the room. His gaze locked with each man for a second before moving on. The bond that was formed between them hadn't weakened in the least. Years of working side by side, sharing the wins and losses of life as a unit built a trust and loyalty that was hard to leave behind and that was what he had done. He had his reasons, of course. Starting over with a fresh slate. Unhappy with the course of his life, always believing in his country only to have his country turn its back on him and his team for doing exactly what they were supposed to do. His government had let him down and in return he'd let his brothers down. Not anymore. Pope killed two of his family when he turned a blind eye, but never again. He would keep what was left of his team and Erin alive at all cost.
"Who the hell is that?" Brennan demanded from his post.
"Stand down, Brennan." Eli keeps his response steady and calm. Brennan Marshal was the volatile type, easy to blow. "This is Erin Talley and she is in as much danger from Pope and his henchmen as we are."
There were some grunts and groans from the men. Eli turned to Erin, for her credit, she didn't look intimidated by the group of hardcore men. He couldn't make up his mind if he liked that look on her face as she sized up the muscled bodies in the room. Nope, defiantly didn't like it. Eli pulled her in close to his side.
"Erin this group of mutts is Alpha Team Six. At the table you have Jayce our counterintelligence specialist and Kennedy, our science, bio terrorist, and resident genius. The hot head at the window is Jayce our weapons know it all and that little guy on the computer is Blake, tech specialist." Eli received a one finger salute from the behemoth at the laptop. Blake was by far the largest geek Eli had ever run across.
"Hi everyone." Erin said.
As a unit they all greeted Erin with nods and a "hi" or two.
"Hope you know what you're doing." Kennedy gestured to her.
"Pope somehow got wind that Erin was associated with me. He sent someone to her house. You all know what that means." Eli declared.
Kennedy turned sharp green eyes in Eli's direction. "That's the reason we don't form attachments, your mantra Eli, if I'm not mistaken.
Caught in his own web, Eli had no response, so he ignored the remark. "Let's get down to business, what do we know?"
Blake joined them at the table. "Old Andrew is in a bind. The Feds are all up his ass. Whoever had his back is in the wind, too much attention on the organization. Liston was the last to pass on Intel. He never gave up working the case."
"Yeah, and look where that got him." Brennan grumbled.
Eli felt a shot of anger tighten his chest. If Liston had only left this alone he might be alive today. "Does anyone have Andrew's location?"
"Nope, not yet. Liston found out that Pope was outed from the Guardians taking a few of his closest fanatic with him. He wants our whole team dead and he has his cronies in every city in America on the lookout for us. I don't know if its pride or some twisted sense of retribution, but whichever it is Pope has eyes and ears. He's been one step ahead of us this entire time." Black was busy typing as he spoke.
"What's the plan, Eli?" Kennedy asked.
"We find Pope and eliminate the threat. No fuss, No muss." Eli nodded to Jayce. "That means information brother, you up for that?"
Jayce gave a megawatt smile. "I got ya."
Brennan spun away from the window and pulled his handgun from his shoulder holster. "Well, we had better get our shit together like right now. We got incoming."
****
Erin felt the now familiar rush of chills down her back and arms. "Incoming" could only mean that Pope had found them. Shit that was quick, they were in the church for less than thirty minutes. She didn't have time to wrap her head around what that signified. Without a word passing between them the team moved as a unit. The five men went from Simi-relaxed to a state of acute awareness and deadly efficiency. Brennan pulled a rifle out of a long black bag and cradled it like precious gold. Guns at the ready each man looked to Eli.
Eli grabbed her hand and squeezed. "Stay behind me no matter what." He told her, then nodded to Blake who was first at the door.
"Now." Eli whispered.
The room had no view into the hallway. Where was the threat? Erin felt her legs go numb, her feet refused to move. However many men waited outside the room, staying there wasn't an option. Erin got as close to Eli's back as humanly possible. After meeting these men she had no doubt in her mind that they had the expertise to handle life or death situations. One small problem, she wasn't at all trained or ready to face certain death like them.
"Eli," Erin whispered his name.
Eli turned to her and lifted her chin with a finger. His hand was steady, his eyes were clear and focused. "I'll get you out of here safe, okay."
Erin sucked in a deep breath not feeling braver at his words, but if he was going then she was gonna be stuck to him like glue because in her heart she knew he meant every word of his declaration. He would get her out, hopefully without looking like a sieve.
Blake jerked the door open, leading with his revolver, he checked left, then right and gave a hand signal. They moved quickly out the room with Erin between Eli and Jayce with Brennan taking up the rear position.
One glance over the railing revealed six men in dark clothing, running towards the staircase. They split up, three went left and the others to the right. Eli tugged her hand and went to the right along the wall as his team split up as well. Kennedy was behind her and Eli in front. Erin held her breath and tried not to pass out. Her heart pounded hard against her breastbone. The men on Eli's team were big, bad, and capable, but she knew that bullets didn't care how big or bad you were.
She grabbed on tight to Eli's shirt and pressed her back to the wall when Eli held up his hand to halt their movement. Not understanding why they weren’t hiding. All she could see was the back of Eli's head, she had no idea how close they were to the stairs. Erin's head spun trying to figure out what to do, where to go. There was just nowhere to go but through the armed men.
Eli shared a look with Kennedy. In a flash Erin found herself tackled by a wall of muscle as Kennedy hoisted her up on his massive shoulders. Gunfire erupted and echoed through the open space. The sound made Erin's ears ring. She couldn't see a thing except Kennedy's black jean clad ass as she was bumped up and down across his shoulders while he held her waist with one hand and fired his weapon with the other. Erin gasped as the Kennedy stepped over the first guy, a bloody hole in his forehead. Then there were two others in similar states of dead.
In a just a few minutes they were on the ground floor and she was let back to her feet. Six bodies littered the stairs. Eli and his team hadn't even broken a sweat. DAMN, they were good.
Brennan called from the doorway. "Party's not over boys, the backup crew's emptying out of a van across the street."
"We make a run for it and meet up at the northeastern safe house when we can." Eli ordered.
Brennan swung the big doors open and they took off in all directions. The street was thankfully crowed with people who were going about their day as if hearing gunfire was an ordinary occurrence. With her hand in his Eli
guided them down the street at a dead run. Erin worried about the others, but she didn't have time to think too hard or too long on it. One of the men from the van was on their tail. She chanced a glance back and the guy dressed in the same dark get up as the others ran after them, weaving in and out of the crowd. Thank goodness he didn't start shooting with innocent people all over the place.
They cut across the busy street to the sound of screeching tires and honking horns. Eli didn't slow down, he raced them through an alley and out the other side, into a park, before stopping. His head swiveled left, then right and then behind them.
"Fuck, persistent little dick." He growled.
"What now Eli?"
He took one more quick survey of the park. It was a large space with a huge playground, walking paths and a lot of trees. Eli took off again, guiding them between the trees as if looking for someplace specific. Erin could feel the killer gaining on them even if she couldn't see him. The trees didn't allow for a lot of cover, but it made her at least feel somewhat covered.
"Here we go." Eli said. He pulled her down a few concrete stairs to a metal door. She would have never noticed it if Eli hadn't pulled her down there. He twisted the handle and the door didn't budge.
"Shit. Keep your eyes open." He told her. He pulled something out of his back pocket. Erin could hear him manipulating the door behind her as she kept her eyes scanning the area. A dark figure was moving rapidly through the trees.
"Hurry, he's coming." Erin pleaded.
There was a clanking sound and Eli pulled her into darkness.
CHAPTER SEVEN
