Babying Their Dream Weaver [Their Dream Weaver 4] (Siren Publishing Ménage Amour)

by Cooper McKenzie

  Liam looked at his cousin in disbelief. “Do ye honestly think that we’re goin’ ta sit here while our woman is out there alone, scared, and possibly hurt? Are ye really that daft, man?”

  Roane looked from Liam to Penn and back again. From his cousin’s expression of resignation, he knew his brother wore the same expression of stubborn determination that he did. That was their woman out there. If he had to bind, gag, and leave his cousin behind, he and Liam would be the ones bringing her home.

  Roane shrugged as he sighed. “A’ right, get yer gear. But mind, we’re doin’ this my way. No fancy heroics from ye two that might get anyone killed. After all, we still dunna know who this bloke is or why he nabbed Suz.”

  “Hae ye heard back from the hospital about her ex?” Penn asked.

  “Nay, and I doubt they’d give us a straight answer if they did since I’m no’ the police or any other official agency,” Roane said. “Let me call a friend who should be able to find out without gettin’ inta too much trouble.”

  He got on his phone again and began making calls.

  As Penn stood to go and collect a few of the more deadly toys they had kept from their days in the military, Jubilee turned from the stove. She had been silent to this point, which was unusual for the normally outspoken and opinionated woman.

  “Bring her back, boys, but take care and bring yourselves back as well. Those babies in there need all three of their parents. In the meantime, bring me down Ruth’s shotgun, just in case this is a ploy to get at the twins.”

  Penn nodded and strode from the room, suddenly wondering if both he and Liam should leave the house. After all, if something went wrong, the twins needed at least one parent to help guide them. Of course, his choice would be for Suz since she would need to train Bonnie in how to take her place over the years to come.

  “I’ve got a couple of men coming to watch the house. Don’t shoot them,” he heard Roane say as they headed up the stairs to the second floor.

  The gun safe was in the large walk-in closet in their bedroom, well away from anywhere the children would play in the years to come. It was but one of the modifications that had been made during their trip to Scotland in the spring. Liam was already in the closet and opening the safe door when he got there.

  “Do ye think one of us should stay behind, just in case?”

  “Ye can if ye want. I’m goin’ ta bring our woman home,” Penn stated flatly. He was nearing the end of his control and not sure who he could take it out on if he had to stay home.

  “A’ right then, we both go,” Liam said, handing a handgun in its holster as well as the box of bullets over his shoulder. After sliding the box into his shirt pocket, Penn clipped the gun to the waistband of his jeans so it was nestled in the center of his back.

  “We’ll let Roane and his men handle the assholes who took her, and we’ll tend ta getting Suz,” Penn replied, his voice heavily laced with steel.

  “Sounds like a plan ta me,” Liam said, offering several other weapons that were not as loud but just as lethal as the gun. They both strapped long hunting knives to their thighs and slid smaller throwing knives into their left back pocket. “And when we get the wench back here, we’re goin’ ta make love ta her until she canna move.”

  Penn met his brother’s eyes and smiled the smile of a feral animal about to go on the hunt. “Now that sounds like the best idea I’ve heard since the hospital when ye talked me inta no’ touchin’ her until she demanded it.”

  “How was I supposed to ken that she’s as stubborn as we are? After all that screamin’ and cursin’ she did in the delivery room, I figured it would be a year or more before she let either one of us touch her again.”

  Once both men had checked and loaded their rifles, Penn took the shotgun for Jubilee then waited while Liam closed the safe. As they walked out of the closet and crossed the bedroom, he took deep breaths to center himself. He heard Liam do the same thing as he followed.

  He pushed away the love and worry he felt for Suz, needing to keep his head clear of worry as they did the monumental job of bringing their woman back alive while dealing with the scum who had stolen her away. He only hoped she had not been hurt. He was not sure how he or Penn would react but knew in his gut that if Suz was injured, there would be bodies to be disposed of.

  * * * *

  Her eyes hurting from holding back her tears, Suz verbally let loose on her kidnapper. Pain and anger drove her tirade as she pulled at her bonds, trying to get loose. The man allowed her to rant for a few seconds, then slapped her face hard, then backhanded the other side even harder, stunning her into silence.

  “Shut up, bitch. You do not want to mess with me. I doubt those bastard foreigners will be able to get the money together in time anyway, but I don’t want to have to hurt you because you’re stupid and pissed me off.”

  Suz frowned as she processed the information he had just shared. He was holding her for ransom. But she knew her men. Even if the police did step in, there was no way Penn and Liam would sit idly by and let someone hold her hostage for long. She just wished there was some way she could help them find her.

  When the man grabbed her right tit and squeezed tight, she screamed again, but her cry of pain was cut off when he shoved a dusty, dirty-tasting rag into her mouth. She tried to fight, but he was too quick for her, tying something behind her head tight enough to hurt the corners of her mouth to hold the rag in her mouth.

  “Now keep quiet and don’t go anywhere. I’ve gotta get something to eat,” he said squeezing her tit one more time. “If you’re a good girl, maybe I’ll bring you back something.”

  Suz listened as he walked away, counting his steps and figuring the direction. As the door squealed open and closed again, she turned her head back and forth to determine it was ten steps ahead and just to the right. She listened carefully and heard a car’s engine start to her left just outside the building. So, all she had to do was get herself free and head for freedom.

  Wishing her men would hurry up and come get her, Suz struggled to loosen the ropes that held her to the chair but could not free herself. She tried to stand up, only the chair would not cooperate by tipping forward so she could get her feet under her to walk away.

  So she sat and brooded. Her mood grew darker and darker the longer she waited. She never had been a very patient waiter. Sitting here not able to see and with nothing to do with her hands was giving her too much time to think. She also hoped that when the asshole captor returned he would allow her to use a bathroom. Her bladder was about to rupture. That would require him to not only release her from the chair but also unshackle her hands. Then she would fight her way to freedom.

  Dropping her head, she began to plan her escape.

  Chapter 8

  Liam drove Suz’s SUV as fast as he dared across town and out of town into the county to the address Roane had punched into the dashboard GPS. As he did, he tried to tap into the emotionless warrior he once had been. But he could not find that part of himself. The cold-blooded soldier who could kill at a moment’s notice no longer seemed to exist in his psyche.

  At this moment all he felt was a white-hot determination to find the SOB who had kidnapped his woman and to be the cause of his extinction. A glance across the front of the SUV to his brother showed that Penn seemed to be having the same problem. Had Suz’s love really changed them that much?

  Checking the rearview mirror, he saw Roane had moved the baby seats to the trunk area. He now sat in the middle of the backseat, absolutely still with his eyes closed. It was the same posture he had taken before every mission when they were in the military. He would remain like that until Liam turned off the engine. Only then would he open his eyes and become the well-trained human weapon that would bring down the wrath of the Gods if need be to get the job done.

  Once upon a time Penn had been the same way, able to push all emotion so deep inside himself it was as if he became a robot with no feelings at all. That had been the only way he could
deal with the things he had done without losing his mind. But he had always know Suz waited at the end of that part of his life’s journey, though it had taken them another few years to claim her.

  He wished Roane could find a woman to love as much as he did their Suz.

  As they approached the turnoff to the building they had received the phone call from, he slowed the SUV and looked for a place to hide the vehicle. But there was nothing but neglected fields of grass from the highway to the lone barn standing in the middle of the field that encompassed at least a dozen acres.

  “Keep going,” Penn said. “Take the next road. We’ll park and have to hike in after dark.”

  Liam nodded and turned on the next paved road, a good quarter mile down the road. The first driveway they came to disappeared into a clump of trees, so he turned and followed it. When branches and leaves scraped against the sides and top of the truck, he made a face and hoped they weren’t doing too much damage. Suz would kill them if they damaged the new SUV.

  He continued until the driveway circled around the back of an abandoned home almost completely covered with vines. Turning around, he then drove back to just a few feet from the edge of the tree line before parking. The sun was nearly set, so they would not have to worry about anyone seeing the gray SUV.

  Turning off the engine, he looked in the mirror and waited for Roane to open his eyes and join them. His cousin blinked twice before meeting his gaze in the mirror. Liam met the ice-cold blue eyes of a man who would do whatever it took to accomplish his mission and get them all home safe.

  Once they climbed out, they took a moment to check their weapons. Then Roane stepped in front of them, demanding their full attention.

  “If the kidnapper is her ex, there will be blood spilled. Are you prepared for that?” he asked in a softly lethal voice.

  Liam nodded, and out of the corner of his eye saw Penn do the same thing. If her ex-husband was the bastard who had stolen their woman, he would do the deed himself if necessary.

  “As long as Suz doesn’t see it,” Penn said, “and we can keep it from coming back to bite us in our collective asses.”

  Roane nodded in agreement then turned and took the lead.

  It was full dark by the time they walked, and then crawled, through the tall grass to reach the old tobacco barn. There was no vehicle in sight and no light coming from the building. Once they got to the barn, they split up. Roane went one way and the brothers went the other.

  They met to strategize behind the barn, well out of sight of where a car had parked not too long ago. Testing the back door, they found it nailed shut. The front door seemed to be the only one working, so they would have to go in there and hope the asshole holding their woman was not sitting just inside with a gun pointed at them.

  Remembering the hand signals easily, Liam motioned that he would be the one to go inside. Though Roane shook his head and pointed to himself, Penn nodded his agreement. He then grabbed their cousin and pulled him close to whisper in his ear. Liam did not wait for the conversation to finish before he slipped around the side of the barn and headed quickly toward the front of the barn.

  Looking around through the growing darkness, he hesitated nearly a minute, listening, but hearing no sounds coming from inside the barn. He cringed when the door squealed when he shoved it open wide enough to slip through. He entered and then stopped long enough for his eyes to become accustomed to the darkness inside the building.

  * * * *

  The door squealing startled Suz as she had been so focused on seeing herself beating up her captor she had not been listening for the car’s return. But then she had been so lost in thought an entire marching band could have paraded past and she might not have heard it.

  “Suz?” a familiar voice whispered. “Are ye here, lass?”

  She smiled behind her gag at Liam’s voice. She grunted as loud as she could, hoping he would hear her, and then she stomped her feet to draw his attention.

  She flinched when a hand unexpectedly came down on the top of her head.

  “I’ve got ye, lass,” he whispered as a rumbly car engine sounded and grew louder. “Damn. I need ye ta be quiet and behave fer a few more minutes, and then we’ll get ye untied and home. All right?”

  Suz sighed and nodded. Though she wanted to be free of her bonds, she knew she would have to wait until her men dealt with the asshole who had taken her. She could not wait to wrap herself around her men and see her babies, but first she wanted a chance to kick the man’s balls into his throat.

  She barely breathed as she listened. A car drove in and parked next to the building, but it was not the same rough, rumbly engine. Less than a minute later, she heard a fight with grunts and skin hitting skin. It sounded intense and was over almost before it began.

  “Okay, lass, let’s get ye unbound,” Liam said as fingers began to gently pull at the tape covering her eyes, starting at her right temple.

  His trying to peel it slowly from her skin hurt worse than when the kidnapper had ripped the tape from her mouth. Taking a deep breath from her nose, Suz jerked her head back on her neck and to the left, jerking it partway off her face.

  Liam gasped at her action at the same time she moaned as the pain burned through her skin. In the next instant, he yanked it the rest of the way off. Once the fiery pain receded, Suz opened her eyes. She blinked several times trying to see through the dark but could barely make out Liam’s face.

  As soon as she could focus, she met his worried pale eyes, which blurred when tears filled her eyes.

  “Shhh, lass, yer fine. We’re fine. The bairns are at home and missin’ their mama.” Liam kept his voice soft and confident as he cut through the rag tied around her mouth.

  As soon as she spit it out, he leaned close and kissed her. “Untie me. I’m going to rip that asshole’s balls off and feed them to him,” she demanded, fury surging up in her once again.

  Liam chuckled as he moved around the chair and released her from the ropes that held her to the chair. “Nay, lass, I ken Penn and Roane have already dealt with the wanker. Ye’re goin’ ta come with me while they finish up.”

  He helped her stand as he looked at the shackles still holding her hands together. In the next minute, she felt his fingers working at the lock, and then her right wrist was free. Another moment and the cuffs fell to the floor.

  She immediately turned and threw herself at Liam, who caught her to his chest easily. His arms held her tight as he buried his face in her hair. She rubbed her face against his chest and squeezed her man tight. It settled some of the anger within her, but she still wanted to do some physical damage.

  “Ready to go home?” Liam asked, kissing the top of her head and tightening his arms around her for an extended second before releasing her.

  “Uh-huh,” she said. “But first I really really have to pee.”

  She looked around but found herself in a barn with no facilities to ease her discomfort. She watched as Liam walked around then bent over. When he returned to her side, he handed her a bucket. “There ye go, lass. Pee away.”

  Suz made a face but was in such pain, she did not complain. Taking the bucket, she went to the back corner and relieved a large amount of physical stress. Once she was finished, she rejoined Liam, who stood looking out the front door.

  “So, who did it?” she asked, sliding her hand around his arm and leaning into his side.

  “Why don’t we go see,” Liam said.

  He shifted, forcing her to straighten, but before she could move too far away, he wrapped one arm around her shoulder and guided her through the barn door. They walked to the side of the building where Penn and Roane had a man kneeling on the ground between them. Roane was holding a handgun pressed to the man’s head while asking him questions. Even in his trapped and near-death position, the man on the ground continued to swear and issue threats, but the voice was not the same as the one she had heard earlier.

  It was not Luke, but she still had an idea that he was invol
ved somehow.

  Her anger flared. Pulling from Liam’s protective hold, she marched through the tall grass to stand right in front of the man. After planting her feet shoulder width apart, she set fists on hips and glared down at the man.

  “Who the fuck are you?” she barked in a voice so much like a drill instructor they had, the three cousins turned and stared at her.

  The man seemed to be as startled as the other men for he shut his mouth, swallowed hard, and answered her. “I’m Marcus Black, Luke’s cousin.”

  “Who kidnapped me, you or him?” Suz encouraged, wanting the whole truth before she personally beat the crap out of him.

  Then she remembered what Luke had told her about this cousin. Marcus was mentally challenged and had been in and out of trouble because he would do anything anyone asked without questioning the legalities of it.

  “He did. He called me at work and told me to come out here and feed you dinner before I head home. I don’t have nothing to do with whatever it is he’s into these days. You gotta believe me. If I’d known he was thinking about kidnapping you, I would have turned him in myself.” Marcus stared deep into her, and she read the truth in their depths.

  “Where is he now?” Roane took over the questioning after pulling the gun away from Marcus’s temple.

  “I’m not sure. It sounded like he was in a bar, but he didn’t say and I didn’t ask. He’s crazy and threatened to burn down my house if I didn’t.”

  “Did he call on a cell phone or a landline?”

  “I don’t know, but the number is still on my phone,” Marcus said.

  Roane took Marcus’s phone and checked the history, then pulled out his own phone and sent several texts. Finally he turned to Suz with a gentle smile. “I’m glad yer unharmed, Dream Weaver. Why don’t ye take yer men home and I’ll take care of this wanker and his cousin.”

  “No way,” Suz said without hesitation. “I was the one Luke kidnapped. I should be allowed to kick his balls to his teeth or something. But you guys are welcome to back me up.”