The Boys Club

by Angie Martin

  “It was my fault,” she said. “I should have walked away from her as soon as she started talking to me and came out to find you. I just didn’t want to be rude to her.”

  “Stop worrying.” Logan touched her arm and glanced at her. “You did nothing wrong. We were in the wrong place at the wrong time. It’s as simple as that.”

  “Are you just saying that to make me feel better?”

  “Of course not.”

  Sara crossed her right arm over her chest and placed her hand on top of his. “I don’t want to screw up again,” she said. “I don’t want anything I do to end up with you getting hurt.”

  “Don’t worry about me.”

  She squeezed his hand and placed her hands in her lap. Turning to look out the window, she realized with horror that she had just touched his hand. She had done so without thinking, as if it were a natural exchange between them, and embarrassment flooded her mind. The more time she spent with him, the more comfortable she allowed herself to become. She needed to remember he was just a man assigned to protect her. He wasn’t Stephen, and they weren’t even friends, but two people thrown together in a strange situation, one that would soon end.

  “By the way,” Logan said, breaking into her thoughts. “Schaffer says Mary is fine.”

  Sara let out her breath and relief overcame her. “Where is she? Is she safe?”

  “She’s with her family in Oregon, at one of our safe houses there. They’ll keep her there until it’s safe for her to go back home.”

  “I hate that she’s involved in this,” Sara said.

  “We didn’t want to take her when we picked you up, but we had no choice. That was our only window of opportunity to get to you.”

  “I’m just glad you’re making sure both she and her family are safe.” Sara glanced at him, pushing the awkwardness of grabbing his hand aside. “Can you get me in touch with her? I want to explain this all to her.”

  “She’s been told everything already, but I might be able to get a call in between you two once we get to the Church.”

  “When are we going there?”

  “I’m not sure. Could be tomorrow, could be in a few days. Right now we’re heading to a safe house a couple hours away from here. You can get a good night’s sleep and tomorrow morning, we’ll figure out our next move.”

  Sara nodded and rested her head against the seat. She looked out the window and tried to enjoy the scenery to pass the time.

  Chapter Thirty-seven

  For two hours, they shared off-and-on light conversation about the less important things in life. It helped pass the time and Sara was grateful for no more emotional discussions about their situation or about his history with her father and Stephen. For their lunch, they ate the beef jerky and sipped on the bottled water she purchased at the truck stop.

  At one point, Logan turned on the radio and surprised Sara by tuning it to a country station. She thought he would have gone more for some brand of rock. She had never been one for country music, but she let him keep the radio on the station without speaking up and soon found the twang in the songs oddly soothing.

  A few miles after the “Welcome to Flagstaff” sign, Logan took several side streets into an upscale subdivision. Though Sara did not care for beige, grey, and tan cookie cutter homes, she could find nothing to complain about with these homes. The sight of them signified she would soon get a hot shower and a warm bed.

  Logan pulled the car off to the side of the curb near a home and turned off the engine.

  “Is this it?” Sara asked, as she unlatched her seatbelt.

  “It’s a few blocks over.” Logan turned around in the seat and grabbed his bag from the back. “We’re going to walk over to it and scout it out first. I don’t want the stolen car anywhere near us. When we get to the house, I’ll call Schaffer with its location and he’ll send someone to get it.”

  Sara watched as he took out a T-shirt and wiped down the steering wheel. He then used the shirt on the dashboard and any instruments he had touched. He put the car keys under the floor mat and used the shirt to open the door. She took the shirt from him and followed his lead, wiping down her side of the car before opening her door. Once out of the car, Logan had her watch for nosy neighbors while he wiped their prints off of the outside handles.

  Stuffing his shirt back in the bag, he motioned for her to walk with him. They moved down the sidewalk and turned right at a cul-de-sac. At the arch of the circle, they walked on the side of a home without a fence and went through the backyard.

  “Have you been to this safe house a lot?” Sara asked, impressed with his ability to navigate the subdivision.

  “A few times,” Logan said. “It’s been maybe a year since the last time I was here.”

  They trudged up a small, grassy hill. At the top, Logan held out his hand to stop her from going further. “That’s the house,” he said, pointing to a grey, two-story house at the bottom.

  Sara knelt down to catch her breath. The other side of the hill was much steeper than the side they just climbed, and her asthma already had her wheezing a bit. “Can I get my inhaler?” she asked.

  “Sure,” Logan said. He sat down next to her and retrieved it from the bag.

  She took two puffs and handed it back to him. Closing her eyes, she rested her hand on her chest and steadied her breathing.

  “We can stay here until you’re ready. If we need to go back to the car, we can drive there. Then I’ll bring it back here and walk to the safe house.”

  “It’s okay. I don’t want you going to all that trouble. I’ll just do a treatment when we get there.”

  He studied her face for a moment. “If you change your mind—”

  “I’ll be okay. Why are you so worried about them finding us at this safe house?”

  “There’s a leak in our organization,” Logan said, still staring at the house. “I kept hoping that maybe I was still wrong, but them finding us at the last one proves it.”

  “What does that mean, a leak?”

  “Someone in my group is working for Langston.”

  His words clicked in her mind. “That’s why you told me not to trust anyone at the safe house.”

  “I hate that you’re exposed to this because a leak makes your already bad situation even more dangerous, but I’m not going to let them find you. Schaffer is working on it to see if we can find out who it is.”

  “Is that why you don’t want to go to the Church today?

  “Exactly,” Logan said. “If someone on the inside is working against us, I don’t want you to be in even closer proximity to that person.”

  Sara settled down on the lush grass, pulled her knees up to her chest, and wrapped her arms around her legs. “I can’t wait to get into a hot shower,” she said. “I feel like we’ve been on the road for weeks.”

  “I think that’s the first thing we’ll both do.”

  “How many bathrooms in the house?”

  “Three and a half, if I remember right.”

  “Thank God. I thought I was going to have to arm wrestle you to see who showered first.”

  “I’d have let you win.”

  Sara flinched and looked up at him. His tone held a hint of humor, but no smile graced his face. She realized for the first time that not once since he entered her life had she seen him smile or heard him laugh. She wondered if losing his wife had created the sadness that ruled him or if his demeanor had always been more on the serious side.

  After several minutes passed in silence, Logan said, “I think it’s safe to go down there now. We’ve scoped it out long enough to make sure no one is inside. Are you sure you can make it down the hill?”

  She nodded and pushed herself up from the ground. Peering down the steep descent, she said, “Just don’t let me fall.”

  He caught her eyes. “I won’t let you fall.”

  Her heart skipped a beat and her breath hitched. He didn’t seem to notice, as he started down the hill. She composed herself and he encoura
ged her to follow his slow, deliberate steps, and Sara made sure each step she took landed exactly where he had stepped. He kept his hand out toward her, and after a couple steps she held onto his arm to help her balance. Though she had moments where she thought she would stumble and roll down the hill, Logan kept his word and got her down the hill in one piece.

  At the house, he led her into the backyard. Under the wood deck, Logan pressed several numbered buttons on a small, wooden box camouflaged within the beams and retrieved a key. They went up the stairs of the deck, and Logan used the key to open the back door. They entered through the kitchen, and Logan set the bag down on the granite countertop.

  Sara took a deep, cleansing breath, and let it out in a loud sigh. “Feels good to finally be in a safe house again.”

  “I couldn’t agree more,” Logan said. He walked to the phone on the breakfast bar and picked up the receiver. “I’m going to call Schaffer real quick. Then we’ll go get cleaned up and figure out sleeping arrangements.”

  Sara pulled out a chair at the kitchen table and watched him as he turned to the side and spoke in a low tone to Schaffer. Every so often she understood a word or two, but didn’t bother trying to strain so she could eavesdrop. If he wanted her to know what they spoke about, he would tell her.

  Instead, she occupied her time by studying his face. From his tightened jaw, his creased brow, and narrowed eyes, she could tell whatever he and Schaffer discussed was quite serious, even heated at times. Her eyes traveled from the rough growth along his cheek and jawline, to lips that moved with intent.

  He turned his head, and his ice blue eyes caught her staring at him. Her cheeks flushed and she jerked her head away to look at something else in the kitchen. Not the first time she had been caught watching him, she reprimanded herself for being so obvious.

  Pushing back her chair, she decided to explore the rest of the house while he finished the phone call. Anything to get her out of the uncomfortable situation. She ambled toward what appeared to be the living room, but stopped when Logan called her name.

  “Don’t wander too far,” he said. “I still need to check out the rest of the house.”

  She nodded and went into the living room. The décor mirrored that of the last safe house they were in, and immediately brought the rest of Logan’s team to mind. She ran her hand along the top of the forest green couch, thinking about sitting between Jack and Charlie, watching Jim Carrey movies. They all had laughed so hard, not just at the movies, but at their light conversation that day.

  Dinner that night had been a wonderful time, as she got to know all the men better, with the exception of Logan. If only she had known that was truly their last dinner together, if there had been something she could have done differently that would have resulted in their lives being spared, she would have. Even if she had to surrender herself to the men searching for her, the choice would have been easy for her. She would have done anything to keep them alive.

  “We’re all set,” Logan said from behind her.

  Sara whirled around and smiled. “Did he say anything about the leak?”

  “Nothing yet, but he thinks he found a thread he can follow.”

  “Hopefully that will lead to something.”

  “Are you ready to tour the house?”

  She followed him up the carpeted stairs at the other end of the living room. At the top of the stairs, Sara noticed a closed door on her right. Logan led her left, passing another closed door. They continued down the hall to a dead end with three rooms, all with the doors shut. Logan picked the room on the left and set his bag down on a queen bed.

  “I think I’ll have you stay here in this guest room,” he said. “I’ll stay awake for most of the time you’re asleep, but when I do sleep for a few hours, I’ll be in the master bedroom near the stairs. That way I can hear anyone coming in the house and get to them before they get to you.”

  “Do you think they’ll come here?”

  “I don’t know, but I want to be prepared for anything. There’s something I need to show you. All of our safe houses have a secret room somewhere in them.”

  “Like the room I was in at the last safe house?”

  “Exactly. If someone does come here, I want you to hide right away and don’t come out until I get you.”

  “Where is the secret room?”

  “It’s been a while, but it’s somewhere in here.” His eyes traveled over the walls of the room until they landed on the closet. “Right there.” He examined the seams in the drywall, pushed on the upper corner of the wall next to the closet, and a hidden door swung open.

  Sara jumped back. “That’s amazing!”

  “There’s a handle on the inside for you to pull it shut once you’re in there. You can also use that to push the door back open, but like I said, don’t come out until I get you.”

  As he closed the door, she memorized the release latch’s location in case she needed to use it. “Where can I take a shower?”

  “The bathroom is down the hall, on your left, just before you reach the stairs. I’m going to head down to the master bathroom and shower as well after I check out the rest of the house.”

  “I need to do a breathing treatment first,” she said, “so you’ll probably be done before me.”

  “I’ll leave my bag with you since the master bedroom should have clean clothes that fit me. You’re welcome to go through the dresser in here and use whatever you need. There should also be some things in the bathroom that you can use if you need to.”

  “Thank you, Logan.”

  “I’ll see you in just a few minutes.”

  She waited until he left before opening his bag and pulling out the nebulizer, once again amazed he had thought so far ahead to get duplicates of all her medications. She found an outlet near the bed, plugged in the machine, and prepared her treatment.

  Sitting on the bed next to the bag, she clamped her lips around the mouthpiece and breathed in the familiar medicated steam. She coughed a couple times, but settled down almost immediately.

  Boredom struck a couple minutes later, as it usually did during a treatment. She fumbled with the handle of the bag for a moment before unzipping it just a bit, then all the way. Not wanting to be caught snooping, she looked at the door and wondered if Logan would come back in. She shrugged and decided she could make up a story if he did.

  She pulled out the T-shirts she bought at the truck stop, followed by some dirty clothes. She rummaged through the rest of the bag, only stopping when her hand came across one of the two guns in the bag. She yanked back her hand and decided going through the rest of it wasn’t worth it, especially if she accidentally discharged one of the weapons.

  Putting everything back in its place, she zipped the bag back up and resumed her treatment. When the medication in the nebulizer ran out, she disconnected the tubes and cleaned the parts out in the bathroom down the hall. Back in the bedroom, she put the machine into the bag and sat on the edge of the bed to allow time for the shakiness from the treatment to wear off.

  She glanced back down at the bag and noticed a small bulge in the pocket on the side. She unzipped the pocket and reached inside. Two items came out with her hand, both surprising her. The men’s wedding band broke her heart, as she realized it was Logan’s. She rotated it around and tilted it to read the engraving on the inside of the band. The words, “My forever,” brought tears to her eyes.

  No wonder he had been so passionate when he spoke to her about not marrying a man she didn’t love. The love between his wife and he still resonated today, from the words on the inside of the ring to the fact that he still carried it with him. His morose demeanor, a constant reminder of his loss, paid tribute to the pieces of his soul ripped out of him the day she died.

  The ring stirred up envy inside of Sara. She and Stephen never had that kind of love, or any love at all. They never would. She doubted she would ever experience something as wonderful as what Logan and his wife must have had, before the cruelty of th
is world stole her away from him.

  She focused her attention on the second item, a worn photograph, the creases in the corners and the upward curvature in the middle letting her know it had been handled far more than any random picture. A beautiful brunette stood in front of a house with a wide smile, her hand resting on her pregnant belly. Sara lifted her hand to her mouth as she studied the woman. From Jack’s story, she knew Logan’s wife had died, but Jack failed to mention she had been pregnant at the time. She couldn’t imagine Logan could do the work he did while raising a child alone, so she could only assume his wife died while pregnant.

  With the wedding ring and the photograph still two items Logan kept with him, Sara knew it had to be recently that she died. Not so recent that he no longer wore his ring, but close enough that he still carried the ring and her picture with him. Sometime in the last few years.

  He hired someone to kill me. But they missed.

  Sara’s eyes grew wide as Logan’s words from their last night at the safe house raced through her mind. He said her father placed the hit on him a couple years earlier, and thinking about it now, she remembered that Jack told her that his wife died around that same time.

  Her father had killed Logan’s pregnant wife.

  Logan walked into the bedroom, dressed in fresh clothes. Sara rose to meet him, the picture and wedding band still in her hands. He stopped when he saw them. After a moment, his eyes drifted from them to her face.

  She could not contain her tears when pain flashed across his face after seeing the wedding band and photograph. “My father did this,” she said.

  Logan tilted his head. “Sara—”

  “He did, didn’t he? He killed your wife and baby.”

  “How, uh… how do you know about Karen?”

  Karen. Though she had heard the name of his wife from Jack, hearing it tumble from Logan’s lips kicked Sara in the gut. His wife had a name, a husband who loved her more than anything else, and a child on the way. The happiest time of her life, destroyed by Sara’s father in an attempt to settle his vendetta against Logan.