The Boys Club

by Angie Martin

  Sara looked back and forth between both men, as if not understanding what Charlie was saying.

  “We can do this two ways,” Logan said. “It’s up to you as to what will be easiest for you. We can pat you down, but it would be much more invasive than you would get at the airport. Or you can remove your clothing here, keeping your undergarments on, and we can do a quick visual inspection. Then you can go in the bathroom and change.”

  Sara crossed her arms over her chest, as if covering herself even though still fully dressed. “No,” she said.

  “We don’t want to do this either,” Charlie said. “It’s necessary for your safety and for ours. We have to make sure there are no wires.”

  “Why didn’t you just check me while I slept?” she asked

  “I wouldn’t do that to you,” Logan said. “But you do have to make a choice.”

  “Why do you have to burn my clothes?”

  “In case there’s a bug or tracking device sewn into the material,” Charlie said.

  Sara looked away for a moment and shook her head. “I can’t,” she said. She tightened her mouth and tears rolled down her cheek.

  “Either you can comply,” Logan said, “or I have two more men out there that will come in and hold you down while we cut off your clothing and check. I don’t want to do things that way and I’m sure you don’t either.” He wouldn’t do it, especially since Charlie was the only one who knew about the possible leak, but he hoped the threat would spur her into action.

  She climbed onto her knees and moved backwards on the bed, her eyes darting between the two men.

  “I’m really sorry, Sara,” Logan said. “I have to be sure that we’ve not been set up.”

  Her forehead wrinkled and eyes narrowed. “I haven’t set anyone up. I don’t know what you’re talking about.” She got off the bed on the other side, her eyes making quick glances at the door. “I don’t even know who you people are or why I’m here.”

  Logan took a deep breath, remaining patient only because he recognized her fear through her actions. She distanced herself by putting the bed between them and kept looking at the door, as if she had some sort of escape.

  “I promise you,” he said, “we are not going to hurt you. If we wanted to hurt you, we wouldn’t have let you do a breathing treatment and we would have searched you while you slept. Go in the bathroom and strip off your dress. Then wrap a towel around you, come back out, and we’ll make it very quick.”

  She stood still for a moment, and Logan braced himself in case she tried to run out of the room. To his surprise, she turned around and went into the bathroom.

  As soon as the door shut, Charlie turned to him. “Do you really believe we have a leak?”

  “This job came around way too quick after this last one, and it just happens to involve Langston’s daughter. I don’t know if that’s just coincidence or if someone wants us to take her back to our camp. Either way, I’m not going to take a chance.”

  “She’s scared, Logan. I don’t think she knows anything.”

  Logan stared at the closed bathroom door. “I don’t think so either, but to keep her safe, we have to be careful.”

  “Hello?” Sara called from behind the door.

  “We’re here,” Logan said, as he walked toward the bathroom.

  “I can’t do this with both of you in here.”

  Logan looked at Charlie, who nodded. “I’ll go get her suitcase.”

  “Give us five minutes, but knock before you come in.” As soon as Charlie left the room and shut the door, Logan said, “Sara, it’s just you and me now. I sent Charlie out to get your clothes.”

  The doorknob rotated and the door creaked open. Sara poked her head out, as if making sure he had told the truth. She came out of the bathroom, gripping a towel around her body.

  Seeing her frightened broke down Logan’s defenses. More than ever, he abhorred the idea of searching her, but knew of no other way to make sure she wasn’t wired.

  “Sara,” he said, “this is not something I want to do. We have no intentions at all, other than making sure you’re not wearing a wire.”

  She fixed her gaze to the floor. “Let’s just get it over with, please.”

  “Bring the opening of the towel to your front.”

  She turned the towel until the knot was centered on the front of her body.

  “I just need to take a quick look and then you can cover back up,” Logan said. “Then we’ll do the same for the back.”

  She squeezed her eyes shut. Her fingers fumbled with the knot, but managed to loosen it. Her cheeks turned pink and she opened the towel.

  Logan scanned his eyes over her exposed skin, skipping over her bra and panties. He saw no wires and turned his attention back to her undergarments. There were no unusual bumps that signaled a wire or bug underneath the black material. He instructed her to close up the towel.

  Sara turned around and moved the knot to her back. She struggled with opening up the towel again and asked Logan to do it for her. Logan hesitated, not wanting to touch her at all. He had not prepared himself for a physical reaction to seeing her half-naked. While easy to admit that he found her attractive, as the others in the house did, he needed to suppress any thoughts about her outside of the job.

  His fingers quickly opened up the towel on the back and his eyes ran over the soft curves of her tanned skin. Seeing no indication of a wire under her panties or bra strap, he covered her back up.

  She latched onto the towel and opened her eyes. “I told you,” she said. “I haven’t set anyone up.”

  Her quiet voice wracked his heart, making him feel so much worse for putting her through the inspection. “I have to check the bathroom to make sure there’s nothing in there.” He checked every area of the bathroom, including rifling through her black dress on the floor, but found no wire or tracking device.

  He exited the bathroom and she looked at him for the first time. “Why would you think I had set you up to kidnap me?” she asked.

  “It’s complicated,” Logan said. “In a minute, Charlie will come back in here, you’ll get dressed, and then we’re going to tell you some things that you won’t want to hear. You probably won’t even believe us, but I want you to listen with an open mind. Beyond that, and this is the most important thing that anyone will tell you today, I need you to trust me.”

  Sara searched his eyes. “You kidnapped me. Why would I trust you?”

  “I get that I’m asking you to do something that is near impossible for someone in your position, but there are reasons we took you and I swear to you that it had to be done to save your life. The reason I tell you to trust me is that I don’t know who else in this house you can trust. I hand-picked this team to come here and protect you, but while I trust them, I don’t want you to. If there’s anything you need to tell us, you tell me and only me. If you have questions, only ask me. I’ll be spending most of my time with you, but if I’m away and someone asks too many questions of you or you feel like they are probing too much, let me know right away. Believe me when I say that your life depends on it.”

  “I don’t understand anything that’s going on here and I don’t know how you think you saved my life by kidnapping me the night before my wedding. For all I know, you’re all crazy and this is some kind of trick.”

  “It’s not a trick. My only concern while you’re in my custody is keeping you safe, no matter what it takes to do that. Your life and safety means more to me than you could possibly know.” Logan closed his mouth before he kept talking and gave away that her importance had everything to do with getting back at Langston for killing Karen.

  Sara held his eyes for a long moment without giving away her thoughts. “I will keep an open mind. If what you and Charlie say makes sense and I can believe that you did save my life, I promise I will trust only you.”

  Logan breathed a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Sara.” A knock on the door interrupted. “Come in.”

  Charlie walked throug
h the door rolling the suitcase Allie packed for Sara, with extra bath towels tucked under his arm. “I don’t know what you women put in these things,” he said with a grunt. “I can go away for two weeks with a small duffel bag.”

  Sara gave a small smile, making Logan believe that she was coming around. After what he just put her through and everything that they were about to tell her, the smile was a sweet reward for a grueling task.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Sara surprised herself by smiling at Charlie’s joke. She didn’t want to like anyone here, but if they were telling the truth that they saved her life, then Charlie was easy to like. His quiet voice and calm demeanor contrasted Logan’s serious nature.

  She wasn’t sure what to think of Logan. She remembered back to when she and Mary first saw him and they joked about how attractive they found him. He still had those same physical qualities, but there was a much darker side to him that she didn’t see before. She felt it when he had her in his grip and forced her to let go of the glass. She saw it in the intensity in his eyes when he pled with her to trust him. Something about him made her want to believe his words, yet she was more apt to trust Charlie than him based on instinct.

  Gripping the towel tighter to her body, she turned her feet inward so her left foot overlapped the right. The idea that Logan had seen her almost naked embarrassed her and she wanted Charlie to see as little of her exposed skin as possible.

  Charlie wheeled the suitcase into the bathroom. He came out with her dress in hand and placed it in a plastic bag. “I hate to ask you for this,” he said, “but when you’re done dressing, I need the rest of what you’re wearing to go into the bag, too.”

  “We had another woman pick out your clothes and personal effects for you,” Logan said. “She assured us that you’ll like everything and that it will all fit.”

  “I’m sure it’s fine.” She went into the bathroom and closed the door behind her. Opening the suitcase, she smiled at the sight of the clean clothes and personal items. She had never been so happy to see a toothbrush and deodorant in her life, but she desperately wanted a shower and a hot meal.

  She settled on a pair of jeans and a simple black top. After doing her best to sponge bathe herself, she brushed her teeth. Once she had dressed, she closed the suitcase and balled up her underwear and bra in her hands. She didn’t want them on display in front of the men while she put them in the bag.

  Sara exited the bathroom and Charlie held out the plastic bag. She deposited her undergarments, and he closed the bag.

  “You’ll be able to keep your toothbrush and toothpaste, some shampoo and conditioner, and a few personal items in the room with you, but the rest of the things we’ll take out of here,” Logan said.

  “Can I keep the inhalers?”

  “Of course,” Charlie said. “Just choose the ones you normally use and we’ll leave those with you. One of us will bring you the nebulizer whenever you need a treatment.”

  “We need you to remove your jewelry,” Logan said. “Earrings, necklace, and ring.”

  Sara touched the necklace around her neck. “I… I can’t give these to you.”

  “It’s not a request,” Logan said.

  Hoping to make a compromise, she removed the earrings first and handed them over to Charlie. “I can’t give you my engagement ring or the necklace.”

  “You don’t want that ring,” Logan said.

  Sara frowned and studied her engagement ring. Stephen had given it to her during a romantic night on the town a year ago. They had only dated for a few months, but he had told her he knew she was the girl for him the first time they met. The ambience of the night made her believe him then, although she had never truly been sure about him being the man for her. Now she didn’t know if he ever meant those words.

  “I know you don’t love him,” Logan said in a low tone.

  Her eyes flew up to his face. How could a stranger possibly know how she felt about Stephen? First Mary mentioned it, and now Logan. Was it that obvious?

  Watching Logan’s face, she twisted the ring and pulled it off her finger. She held it for a moment before handing it to Charlie. As soon as he took it, a weight lifted off her shoulders, as if in that moment she made the decision not to marry a man she didn’t love. When she returned to Stephen, things would be different and she would end up spending her life with him. For the moment, however, she was free from a life without love.

  “The necklace, Sara,” Logan said.

  She held her hand over the small locket. “I can’t,” she said. “This necklace belonged to my mother. It’s all I have left of her.”

  As he examined her, something shifted in Logan’s eyes. After a tense moment, he said, “That’s fine. Keep the necklace. Why don’t you get comfortable?” Logan gestured to the bed. “Are you hungry?”

  “Famished.”

  “Why don’t you eat before we talk?” Logan asked. “We want you to be as comfortable as possible while you’re with us, so if there’s anything you need, just let us know.”

  “I have baked chicken breasts already prepared with broccoli and rice on the side,” Charlie said. “Is that okay? If not, I can make something else.”

  “No, that’s fine,” Sara said.

  After Charlie left the room, Sara lowered her eyes to the floor so she didn’t have to look at Logan. The behavior of the men made no sense. They gave her a breathing treatment, apologized for having to search her, and now they asked her if chicken was okay for her meal. She supposed they might be keeping her in good condition for a ransom demand, but what did they mean that they saved her life? And why was Logan so interested in her trusting only him?

  As much as she didn’t love him, she missed Stephen. Living with him for the past three months helped her grow into their relationship, and she would give anything to hear his voice right now.

  Sara’s face scrunched up and she leaned over, elbows on her thighs, head resting in her hands to catch her tears. She didn’t know Logan had left the room until the door shut. Her head shot up and the emptiness of the room made her cry harder. The unknown terrified her, not knowing yet what these men wanted with her. She only knew her life was in danger. Whether from these men or someone else, someone wanted her dead.

  The door opened again and Logan came in with a box of Kleenex and a plate of food. She accepted both, and he moved back to the door.

  “Where are you going?” she asked.

  “Giving you some time to adjust,” he said. “Are you okay with water or do you want something else to drink?”

  She glanced at the bottled water next to her. “Water’s fine.”

  “Feel free to eat, take a shower, whatever you need to do.” He picked up the chair Charlie used and started toward the door.

  “Thank you,” she said, her voice timid and strained.

  He nodded and left the room. The clicking of the lock shuddered through her body. She used the Kleenex to wipe her tears and picked up her plate. They had given her a plastic fork and the chicken breast was precut to small size, eliminating the need for a knife. Despite the sinking feeling in her stomach, she stabbed a piece of chicken with the fork and set about eating.

  Chapter Twenty

  “How’s she doing?” Jack asked when Logan walked back into the living room and sat on the couch.

  “She’s struggling, like we thought,” he said.

  Charlie came into the room. “Just heard from Kyle. They got a call from the other team and all is good there.”

  “How’s Mary?” Logan asked.

  “Surprisingly well,” Charlie said. “Then again, she’s been awake for about half a day longer than Sara. They explained everything to her and she seems to understand what’s going on. She’s worried about Sara, of course.”

  “Of course,” Jack said. He turned to Logan. “How much more time do you think we should give her before we’re ready to move her?”

  “As much time as she needs,” Logan said.

  “Staying out in the
open for too much longer isn’t good for any of us,” Jack said. “We should just go in there now and—”

  “No,” Logan said. “We’re going to give her time to adapt before Charlie and I approach her again.”

  “Are you sure you don’t need help?” Jack asked.

  Logan glanced at his friend. He knew he was trying to help, much as Charlie had been earlier, but it still bothered him that Jack was so eager to talk to Sara. He was glad that he chose Charlie to speak with her. Jack was much too blunt to be in there with him. There was one thing, however, with which Jack could assist.

  “I may need your help, actually,” Logan said. “Sara likes to run, so if she’s doing better tomorrow morning, maybe we can take her out around the property.”

  “I’m sure not going to volunteer for that,” Charlie said. “Les might want to go, though.”

  Logan realized he hadn’t seen Lester most of the afternoon. “Where is Les?”

  “He slept for a few hours and then went outside to tinker around with the cars in the barn,” Jack said. “You know he can’t sit still for long.”

  Part of the appeal of the safe house for Logan had been the extra two cars in the barn. He had chosen the location partly because of the additional means to get away if needed and he was glad to hear Lester worked to keep them in good condition.

  “Hungry?”

  Logan turned around to see Charlie holding out a plate of food. “Not right now. Thanks, though.” He pushed off from the couch and moved down the hallway back to Sara’s door. He stared at the door for a moment, and then dug in his jeans pocket for the key to the room. Only he and Charlie possessed keys to her room and he intended to keep it that way.

  He slid the key into the lock and rotated it until it click. Taking it out of the door, he put his hand on the doorknob, but hesitated before entering. He knew it was too soon to go back in and talk to her, but he also had a desperate need to put her at ease and not let her sit too long thinking they had kidnapped her for malicious reasons.