Ricochet's Rogue (Agent of Mercy, Book Three)

by Miller, Robin Leigh

  He opened the door and then slammed it behind him, making his final point.

  She jumped when the door banged shut and then sat there in bed staring at it. He certainly wasn’t afraid to speak his mind. She liked that about him, in fact, she liked too much about him.

  When he told her last night that he loved her, she panicked. He couldn’t possibly love her, not when every time they were together they clawed and scratched at each other like alley cats. Yet when it counted he was there for her, holding her and making her believe everything was going to be okay.

  He could have sent her back to her room, or pressured her to share the bed but he didn’t. She covered her face with her hands, resting her elbows on her knees. Then when told her he wouldn’t have sex with her until she accepted he loved her, she entered another dimension. That wasn’t normal. Men didn’t act like that. Not in her part of the world anyway.

  She was willing to settle for a simple sexual relationship. Anything more was impossible, or so she thought. Could that night at the bar when he accused her of being a slut be a product of jealousy? Did he feel the same way she did when she saw him with another woman?

  “This can’t be happening,” she said, climbing from bed.

  Maybe she shouldn’t have pulled that stunt last night in the shower. But she was so confused and wanted him so badly she thought for sure he’d follow her in there. Instead she stood at the door making ridiculous noises while the shower ran. She was sure he’d crumble, running to her for gratification.

  No, not Ricochet. He was making a point. He was busy being a gentleman, as he put it. Suddenly the whole thing seemed kind of sweet to her. What a mess. Now he was angry with her, walking around in a permanent state of arousal and she needed him to survive.

  “Nice going, Ronnie,” she muttered stepping out the door and unlocking her own.

  You always were a hot head.

  Her mother’s voice was loud and clear. “I know, Mama. I could screw up a straight line,” she replied to the voice in her head.

  She dressed, tidied up her room, brushed her teeth and slapped on some makeup. Soon they’d be surrounded by other people and have no time to discuss this. Maybe they could talk about it over breakfast. That would work.

  Pounding sounded at her door.

  “Veronica, ya ready?” he shouted.

  She went to the door and opened it. He looked miserable. His eyes were red and tired, he was frowning and his shoulders were sagging. It must have taken all his willpower to lie there last night while she teased him from the bathroom. She felt horrible.

  “Let’s go. That diner serves breakfast.”

  “Can we talk first?”

  “I don’t think that’s a good idea right now,” he said stepping away from her like she would bite.

  “Okay, we’ll talk while we eat,” she said following him out the door.

  He grunted something to her and walked three steps ahead of her as they crossed the road to the diner. This wasn’t going to be easy, she thought to herself. But she had to try.

  Chapter Thirteen

  He avoided looking at her, sitting there all sweet and soft staring at him. He glanced at his watch. Two more hours until his relief came to bail him out.

  “I’m sorry,” she said out of the blue.

  “Excuse me?” Did he hear her right?

  “I said I’m sorry for last night. What I did was cruel.”

  “Which thing are you apologizing for? Tellin’ me I don’t know my own feelin’s or torturing me with your groans of pleasure?” He picked up his fork and twisted it in his fingers.

  “Both.”

  “Oh. Showerhead didn’t do it for ya?”

  “I didn’t use it.”

  He looked at her suspiciously. “Come again?”

  “I didn’t use it, okay?” she said, holding her face in her hands. “I stood at the door and made noises, that’s all.”

  She was serious. She was crueler than he thought. He bared his teeth, seething anger. “Of all the…”

  “I know. It was mean. I just wanted you so badly and when you wouldn’t, I figured that would do the trick. I’m sorry.”

  He had to be the biggest dope that walked the earth. That was it. He was an idiot. A ray of hope snuck its way into his brain. She said she wanted him so much. That was something. He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and then looked at her.

  “Do ya believe me?”

  “Well, when I thought about it, after your eloquent speech this morning, I realized no other man would do what you did.”

  “Damn straight.” It was about time she realized that.

  “I don’t claim to understand it, but it is sweet.”

  Yuk, sweet. He wasn’t going for sweet but whatever worked.

  “Do you believe me?” he asked again.

  “Not entirely, but I’m getting there,” she said flashing him a smile.

  “Gettin’ there.” It was a start. “Veronica, you were right about one thing. I’m not the type of guy who likes to be tied down. So you can imagine my surprise when I realized that I didn’t want to be with anyone but you. And when I saw you with those guys at the bar, it hurt.”

  “So that’s where the venom came from that night.”

  “Yeah and I can’t tell ya how sorry I am for it. I’ll tell ya somethin’ else too. My friends knew I was in love with ya before I did. What’s that tell ya?”

  The waitress delivered their breakfast, left the check and hurried off. He let Veronica think about what he said as they ate. Halfway through she set her fork down and looked at him.

  “Okay, I buy it.”

  “Good.” Finally. Fireworks went off inside his chest. His pulse raced and he smiled like a fool but he didn’t care.

  “But.”

  Oh no, here it came. His smile faded, the fireworks fizzled and his pulse skidded to a stop.

  “I’m not sure how I feel about you yet and I’m not convinced what you feel is real. I believe you believe you love me, but we’ll see what happens.”

  He dropped his fork. It clanged against his plate drawing the attention of everyone in the room. She just couldn’t keep her mouth shut, could she? Letting him have his moment was too much to ask.

  “Then we’re back to square one,” he said losing his appetite. He rose from his chair and for the first time left her sitting looking after him.

  He was exhausted from the emotional roller coaster she put him on. All he wanted to do was grab a little shuteye before the team showed up and work began. He entered his room, locked the door behind him and lay on the bed. This time he fell asleep without any trouble.

  A familiar low, rumbling voice brought him out of his sleep.

  “Ricochet, wake up.”

  He glanced at his watch. “Hold on,” he said rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

  When he opened the door he was relieved to see his longtime buddy, Boomer.

  “Come on in.” He was even more surprised to see Pearson and Nelson follow him. He almost shut the door when it pushed back on him. Veronica sneered as she entered.

  “What are you guys doin’ here?” he asked the young recruits.

  “They wanted to help,” Boomer answered for them.

  Pearson stepped forward. “Ronnie’s part of our team, sir. We stick together.”

  He glanced up at Boomer who was standing behind them with his arms crossed over his chest and grinning. That grin would disappear in a second.

  “You’re aware she doesn’t do teams, no matter what kind they are.”

  “I don’t believe that, sir,” Pearson countered.

  “Ya don’t huh? Well, I’ll remind you of that when your ass is hangin’ in the breeze.”

  “With all due respect, sir,” Nelson spoke up, “we know her a little better than you do. You see her at trainin’, we’ve been workin’ together for weeks.”

  He looked directly at her. She was glaring at him with fire in her eyes. “Maybe you do at that, Nelson. Apparently, I don
’t know shit.”

  Boomer stepped up. “You got rooms for us?” he asked changing the subject.

  “Yeah. I got two extra rooms. Wasn’t sure who all was comin’.”

  “You two share a room, I get my own,” he told them.

  “Yes, sir,” they responded.

  “I’ll go get the keys,” Ricochet said heading for the door.

  “I’ll come with ya.” When they got outside Boomer nudged him with his elbow. “What the hell was that all about?”

  “Don’t ask.”

  “I figured some time alone would make things easier for ya.”

  “She don’t do easy. Kong’s not comin’?”

  “Later. Sam’s getting worse. He didn’t want to leave her any longer than he needed to.”

  “She’s getting’ worse?” That wasn’t good.

  “The bad days are more often, I guess.”

  They walked into the office. Miss Dane was standing at the counter holding the keys.

  “I suppose you’re ready for the other rooms?” she said handing them to him.

  “Yes, ma’am. Thank you.”

  “My, you’re a big one,” she said smiling at Boomer.

  “Yes, ma’am. I am.”

  They turned to leave when she stopped them.

  “You boys here to help Ronnie?”

  They shared a glance and walked back to the counter.

  “You know something we should know, Miss Dane?” Ricichet asked.

  “Just that poor girl can’t catch a break. That sick man who killed her mama is after her now, isn’t he? He’s the one who burned her apartment, isn’t he?”

  Her old eyes were filled with concern.

  “How do you know her, Miss Dane?” Boomer asked.

  “Well now, when Ronnie moved here she stayed with us for a while until she found a place of her own. We’d sit and talk at night sipping sweet tea. She told me how the only person in the world she could trust was murdered. Poor woman, such a violent death. Affected her, you know, losing her daddy then her mama, at such a young age.”

  The story sounded familiar. Sam had lost her family at an even younger age, but she didn’t go rogue. Why had Ronnie?

  “Not easy growing up mixed in a world like this,” she said clucking her tongue.

  “Mixed?” Ricochet asked.

  “Mmm, her mama was black and her daddy was white. She had no place to fit in so she made her own place. No wonder the girl don’t put much faith in people, shunned by all. Not everyone thinks the same. Twisted folk in this world.”

  Understanding washed over him, relieving some of the anguish he’d been carrying. Just a few simple words from an old woman put everything clear in his mind. It made sense now, to him anyway. He understood not fitting in anywhere, but he was lucky enough to find Boomer and Kong. She hadn’t found anyone.

  “You know the guy doing this?” Boomer asked her.

  “No. She does though. Never told me who he was, said it would only put me in danger. I believe her too. So, y’all here to help her?”

  “Yes, ma’am.” Ricochet answered. “We’re here to make sure nothin’ happens to her. She’s part of our family now. We don’t like people messin’ with our family.”

  “That’s good. Y’all need anything, ya let me know, hear?”

  “Thank you, ma’am,” they both said and then walked out the door.

  “Nice lady,” Boomer said.

  “Insightful too,” Ricochet responded. So many pieces of the complicated Veronica were falling into place. Not nearly fast enough, but he’d take what he could get.

  They entered his room and found Pearson, Nelson and Ronnie sitting on the bed talking. From what he heard she was filling them in on what had happened last night.

  “Okay, stow your gear and get back here. We need to get this show on the road.”

  When the recruits stood to leave Ronnie did as well. “Not you, Holter. I wanna talk to you.”

  As soon as everyone was gone he locked the door.

  “What’s going on?”

  “The more I learn about you the more amazed I am,” he said walking toward her.

  She backed away slowly. “What?”

  “When this is over you and I are goin’ away where no one will bother us and you’re gonna tell me everythin’ about yourself. No more secrets. Is that understood?” he asked grabbing her arms.

  “Yes, sir,” she whispered looking into his eyes.

  He crushed his mouth against hers, slipped his tongue between her lips and swept the inside of her mouth with his tongue. As fast as he did it, he pulled away. She stood there, dazed and swaying.

  “Wow.” She pressed her hand to her forehead.

  “You haven’t seen wow yet.” He walked to the door and unlocked it. “The next time ya say wow, you’ll be a pile of jelly.”

  Her face flushed. “Does this mean you aren’t angry with me anymore?”

  The door opened. Boomer, Pearson and Nelson walked in.

  “Okay,” he said slapping his hands together. “Someone is threatenin’ a member of our team. No one threatens a member of our team without payin’ the price. Am I right?”

  “Yes, sir,” they all barked, including Boomer.

  He winked at Veronica. “Let’s get some plans put together then.”

  They sat for hours kicking around ideas. Ricochet was surprised at how much Pearson contributed and how good his ideas were. Nelson didn’t say much but when he did speak it was worth waiting for. Ricochet was proud of his recruits. They’d learned a lot during their training. He only hoped they’d learned how to stay alive. The last thing he wanted to do was take one home in a body bag.

  When they decided on a course of action they hammered out the details. Nelson went across the road and brought back lunch. The smile on his face and his offer to go back to pick up dinner said he found the young waitress to his liking.

  “So basically,” Veronica said pulling her hair back into a ponytail. “I’m the bait. I make myself visible as possible while you guys wait in the wings.”

  “That’s the plan,” Boomer replied.

  She let out a long breath. “Okay.”

  “It’ll be okay, Veronica. Your team is behind ya,” Ricochet reassured her.

  “My question is, if this guy has managed to get away with so much for so long, how are we going to stop him? Even when we do capture him, he’s got connections that’ll just make it all disappear,” Pearson reasoned.

  Ricochet studied the young man. Wise beyond his years, he thought. He had no concern about this recruit thinking he was invincible and could save the world. He understood how it worked.

  “That’s where Cannon comes in,” Boomer told him.

  “I know the man is good, but is he that good?” Pearson asked.

  Ricochet slapped him on the back. “He’s that good. Put your trust in him. You’re one of his now and that means he’ll go the ends of the earth for ya. No matter what.”

  “Any other questions?” Boomer asked them.

  “No, sir,” the two young men responded.

  “Yeah.” Veronica spoke up. “Is it too late to find a body double?”

  “Trust in your training, Ronnie. You’re scared now, but when the time comes, everything will be instinct. You have good skills, except for one, use them,” Boomer said standing and stretching. “Ricochet and I have to fill Cannon in on our plans. I suggest you take the time to check your equipment, double check it and then check it again.”

  “When we get back together we’ll do a radio check and get started,” Ricochet told them. “Stay in your rooms, no wandering off, and that means no visits to the diner, Nelson.”

  They all chuckled when Nelson tried to look innocent. He couldn’t pull innocent off if his life depended on it. As they filed out the door Ricochet caught Veronica’s hand.

  “Try to get some sleep. You’ll need to be alert.”

  She shook her head, squeezed his hand and tried to give him a confident smile. She fai
led miserably. Her fear was going to be an obstacle they would have to overcome and fast.

  “Think of this just as another job you’ve been hired for.”

  “The ultimate job,” she said before walking through the door.

  He wanted to follow her to her room and hold her, kiss her until her worries and fears were pushed out of her mind. But he didn’t, she needed to work this out on her own.

  “She’ll be fine, buddy,” Boomer said behind him.

  “I know.” He hoped anyway. Truth be known, for the first time in his life he was uneasy about a mission.

  * * * * *

  She walked into her room and went straight to the bathroom, leaned over the toilet and vomited. She emptied her stomach, flushed the toilet and then leaned on the sink and stared at her reflection until her color came back. This was it. This was what she’d been waiting for since her mother’s murder. A chance to take down the man who took the one person she had left in the world.

  She should be eager, hyped and anxious to get going. Instead she was puking her guts up and shaking like a leaf. How many times had she killed the bastard in her dreams? Hundreds? One time she came close in reality, only to be thwarted by her fellow agents.

  Now she had a whole group of people behind her, watching her back, ready to take him down. So why was she so scared? Because this time he had the upper hand, that’s why. He knew who she was and where she was. He knew how to shake her to her soul.

  He wanted her blood this time and made it clear he had the means to do it. If she allowed herself to think about it, he was good. Using the noose, telling her it was her mother’s blood and leaving her mother’s bracelet behind for her to find. Oh yes, he was good at instilling fear.

  She turned the cold water on, splashed it in her face and then rinsed her mouth out. Once she was cleaned up she went to the bed and curled up in the fetal position, holding herself. What she wouldn’t give to have Ricochet holding her right now. Ricochet, he was turning out to be more than she bargained for. Did he really love her? Groaning she rubbed her temple. She couldn’t think about that right now. She needed him to keep her alive not touch all those wonderful spots that made her head spin.

  Treat it as just another job, he said. You have the skills, use them, Boomer told her. They all had confidence in her, why did she suddenly doubt herself? They were right. She did have the skills. Add what she learned at W&S to what she learned from Quantico and she should be able to handle this on her own.