Soldier For Hire (Military Precision Heroes Book 1)

by Kimberly Van Meter

  That actually made him laugh and his laughter broke the tension between them.

  God, she was glad.

  She didn’t like being on the outs with Xander. She’d long since lost her objectivity, which was a bigger problem than she wanted to admit, but she couldn’t let one of her team go to prison for a crime they hadn’t committed.

  End of story.

  At least that was the end of the story for now.

  “We need to ditch this car and get a new one,” Scarlett said. “They’ll have an APB on the plates as soon as they discover it’s been stolen.”

  “Roger that.” Xander paused, thinking, then said, “You think Williams knows who McQuarry was seeing on the super down low?”

  “Yeah,” she answered, “But he’s not talking.”

  “Correction—he didn’t want to talk to you.”

  She barked a short laugh. “And you think he’s going to want to talk to you?”

  “Well, I find people are more inclined to spill their guts when they have a gun pointed at their head.”

  Scarlett narrowed her gaze. “True, but do you think that’s wise? To attack a US senator? Don’t you think you have enough charges sitting on your docket?”

  “Hey, the more the merrier,” Xander returned. “Besides, time to get reckless. Go big or go to the big house, where in spite of what the media would have you believe, is not all free cable and lobster dinners and much more like don’t drop the soap or you’ll be someone’s bitch.”

  Scarlett bit back a smile. Maybe Xander was right. They’d been playing it safe, trying to do everything the nice and tidy way. But things were already messy as shit in this kitchen so at this point, breaking a few eggs probably wasn’t going to make things worse.

  “Fine. Let’s pay the good senator a visit. Take the next exit.”

  Within an hour, they were making their way into the senator’s house. In an unexpected stroke of good luck, Williams was alone—and enjoying what appeared to be very expensive scotch in his living room while watching reruns of Jeopardy in his silk puppy-print pajamas.

  Here goes nothing...

  * * *

  The plan was for Scarlett to hang back in the shadows while Xander subdued the senator. There was no need for the senator to know that Xander wasn’t acting alone. If things ended up going south, Scarlett could still walk away from the nightmare, which was something Xander was adamant about.

  Within seconds, Xander had Williams tied tight and then motioned for Scarlett to enter the room, which she did with great stealth, hanging behind the senator so he couldn’t see her. Her job was to act as a silent lookout and to let Xander handle the interrogation.

  “I have money,” Williams said, his voice quivering with fear, visibly shaking. “Whatever you want... I can get it for you. Please. Don’t kill me.”

  “Look, Senator, I’m going to cut to the chase. I’m Xander Scott, the man being framed for McQuarry’s murder and I’m damn tired of being accused of something I didn’t do.”

  Williams cocked his head to the side, confused as he focused his gaze more intently. “Xander Scott... I don’t understand... What do you want with me?” he asked.

  “I need answers and I think you’ve got what I’m looking for.”

  “You’re in some serious trouble, son. Don’t make things worse. Turn yourself in. Let the law work. If you’re innocent, the evidence will exonerate you.”

  “The evidence has been jerry-rigged to point straight at me, even though there’s no reason why I’d have motive to kill McQuarry, much less innocent people. Whoever did this wanted to make sure McQuarry remained silent about something and I think you know who wanted McQuarry to shut his piehole forever.”

  Williams sputtered. “Me? How would I know? We weren’t friends, only colleagues. I didn’t poke around in his personal life.”

  “But everyone knows politics is incestuous, and whether or not you were purposefully listening to gossip, you still heard it. I need to know who McQuarry was banging on the down low and you’re going to tell me.”

  “I already told your friend, I’m not about to smear the name of a good man based on flimsy, mean-spirited gossip.”

  “And under normal circumstances, I’d consider that right neighborly of you but right now I couldn’t give a shit about your ethics because I need a name and I’m not leaving until I get one.”

  “Son—”

  “I’m not your son and quit acting like you care.” Xander cut the senator’s patronizing statement off. He was serious about leaving with information, one way or another. “I want a name.”

  True nervousness replaced the senator’s bluster. “I can’t.”

  “And why is that?” When Williams remained silent, Xander shared a look with Scarlett. Was Williams protecting the identity of McQuarry’s lover out of loyalty or fear? Xander nudged Williams’s foot with his booted one. “Were you lovers, too? Is that what this is about?”

  Williams’s face turned florid. “I am not gay.”

  “No shame, Senator. C’mon, out with it. Who was McQuarry sleeping with?”

  “I support gay rights and I’m not homophobic, but I already told your friend to stop barking up this tree... It’s dangerous for everyone. I have a family to protect.”

  Fear kept Williams silent. Interesting.

  Xander leaned forward to whisper in Williams’s ear. “What makes you think I’m not dangerous?” Xander trailed the tip of his gun down Williams’s cheek, giving the man time to realize what a precarious position he was in. “Here’s the situation, Senator. I’ve been framed for a job I didn’t do and my life is pretty much in the shitter right now after serving my country and the thanks I’ve gotten for my sacrifice has been less than encouraging. If I were to give the US government a Yelp review, it would be scathing right about now and I’m not feeling particularly forgiving. So I don’t give a shit about your family or the fact that you’re scared of whoever you’re trying to protect because I’m leaving with a name, one way or another. Are you feeling me?”

  “Thank you for your service,” Williams whispered, swallowing hard. “I have the utmost respect for our servicemen and women.”

  “Yeah? Prove it. Give me a damn name.”

  “Can’t you understand that I can’t?”

  Xander didn’t have time to care about Williams’s problems. “A name.”

  “It’s pure gossip,” Williams tried to say, shaking his head. “But gossip of this nature can ruin careers and some people will do anything to protect what they’ve spent a lifetime building. This person has the resources to make problems go away.”

  “Was McQuarry shacking up with the Illuminati?” he joked, half serious but curious as hell as to who this powerful person was that had everyone shaking in their loafers.

  “Unlike the Illuminati, this man is very real.”

  “So give me a name and let me take my chances.” When Williams remained buttoned-up and silent, Xander knew with a sinking heart that Williams would rather eat a bullet than face the potential wrath of whomever he was protecting. He really didn’t want to shoot an old man in puppy pajamas. He sighed and looked to Scarlett, shaking his head. She’d come to the same conclusion as well. “If you can’t give me a name, give me a direction to head into. Look, for a politician, you seem like a decent guy. Give me a fighting chance to save my own ass before this corrupt shadowy figure manages to get away with murder.”

  Williams nodded, seeming to understand Xander’s position. “I want to help you, I really do...”

  “Then help. Pretty simple.” Xander sighed dramatically, adding, “How’s that saying go? ‘All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.’ Yeah, that seems appropriate here, right?”

  That seemed to hit a chord, just as Xander had hoped it would. The thing was, Xander could sense that Williams was a good
man in an arena filled with snakes. It almost made Xander feel bad for manipulating the senator, but he didn’t have the luxury of a conscience right now.

  “I can’t give you a name but I can give you a solid lead,” Williams said, relenting. “The person you’re looking for is in Washington, DC, top brass. That’s all I can say.”

  “If you’re saying that McQuarry was screwing the president...”

  “It’s not the president,” Williams said quickly. “But that’s all I can say. I hope you can understand that I’ve given you all I can.”

  “Yeah, sure. I understand,” he said, motioning for Scarlett to go so he could release the senator. Once Scarlett was gone, he untied the man. “Sorry we had to meet under these circumstances,” Xander said, shrugging. “But being on the run and all, it’s hard to make lunch reservations.”

  Williams rubbed at the chafing on his wrists, eyeing Xander. “I’m real sorry you got swept up in all this. McQuarry never should’ve played with fire, but he had a thing for anything taboo. No matter whose life was at stake, including his own, apparently.”

  “I’m innocent,” Xander said bluntly but Williams’s sad expression said it all. It didn’t matter who knew that Xander hadn’t planted that bomb; he was the convenient patsy and no one was willing to stand by the truth out of fear that they might face the same end as McQuarry.

  “Good luck. You’re in my thoughts and prayers,” was all Williams could say.

  With a derisive snort, Xander let himself out and joined Scarlett who had the car running and ready to go.

  “Ready to get the hell out of Tulsa?”

  “More than ready,” Scarlett answered.

  “Amen to that,” he muttered. If he never set foot in Tulsa again, it would be too soon.

  Chapter 16

  “A grown man in puppy pajamas,” Scarlett murmured, settling into her seat beside Xander on a red-eye out of Tulsa. “Just because your pajamas are made of silk doesn’t make it okay to put whatever print you want on them.”

  “I don’t know. I was tempted to ask where he bought them. I thought they were pretty sweet.”

  Scarlett knew he was joking; Xander slept in the nude. “You’re getting soft in your old age,” she said, smiling. “You were never going to shoot that old man.”

  “Not soft, just practical,” he scoffed. “Shooting people is messy work. I didn’t want to deal with the spatter. Besides, as much as I hate to admit it, Williams is probably one of the good guys.”

  “Yeah, he seems like it. And here I thought all politicians were self-serving assholes. Now I can’t just lump them all in one box. Pretty inconvenient.”

  “Right?” Xander agreed, shifting in his seat. “I hate coach.”

  Scarlett grinned. “Yeah, your long legs aren’t much for economy travel. You could’ve sprung for first class.”

  “People pay attention to first-class passengers,” Xander replied with a grimace. “The least amount of attention we attract, the better.”

  Just when she thought Xander couldn’t surprise her more, he did something else to make her see him a little differently.

  “You’re damn smart,” she said.

  “Should I be insulted by the surprise in your voice?”

  Ahhh, confession time. “When we first met, I thought you were like many super soldiers—capable of following orders with extreme prejudice but not a deep thinker. Since getting to know you better, I’ve realized that you’re much more capable than I first thought.”

  “I’m flattered—I think.”

  “No, seriously, you have what it takes to be a supervisor or a team leader of your own unit if you wanted.”

  “I don’t want,” Xander returned. “Being the boss has never been on my bucket list. Too many headaches, too many responsibilities. Plus, all the admin crap gives me a gut ache.”

  Yeah, she could relate to that. “Paperwork is a giant drag,” she agreed. “But good leaders are hard to find. Sometimes our calling comes to us when we least expect it.”

  “Cute,” he said, dismissing her suggestion. “You might want to get some shut-eye while you can. Stepping into Washington is going to be far more dangerous than Tulsa.”

  And then Xander closed his eyes, prepared to follow his own advice. Within moments, he was lightly dozing.

  Scarlett sighed. Why was she trying to give Xander career advice when neither of them knew if Xander was going to have a career to go back to? Maybe she just needed to believe that they were going to be successful.

  She couldn’t stomach the idea of Xander going to prison.

  Especially for a crime he hadn’t committed.

  Damn corruption. Why did politicians have to be so shady?

  Xander was right about Washington being a different ball game than Tulsa. There would be heightened security, more sharp-eyed law enforcement and FBI crawling all over the place.

  They’d need someplace safe to hole up. Red Wolf had a few safe houses but she wasn’t sure if it was wise to use them. Another shithole motel was an option, but it would only be a matter of time before the FBI found them. With all the street cams and the FBI’s facial recognition software, it would be a miracle if they weren’t made simply going into a McDonald’s.

  Aside from Conrad, her contacts in Washington were slim and she didn’t want to involve anyone else in case things went sour.

  She glanced at Xander. Why did men look like angels when they were asleep? Scarlett wasn’t a delicate flower in her sleep. She drooled and probably snored, too. Funny, though, Xander didn’t seem to mind.

  Xander just curled his big arm around her waist and pulled her into the cove of his body and that’s where she stayed, cozy as a bug in a rug.

  And she’d never been a cuddler. Ever.

  But somehow, being pressed against Xander was the most relaxing feeling she’d ever experienced.

  They fit together. Not sure how that had happened but there was no denying it. The sex was epic—her cheeks flushed at the memory as her thighs twinged—and she didn’t want to give that up.

  But if Xander was found guilty? She rubbed at her temple where a headache was threatening to form. They were up against impossible odds. A sane person would walk away, cut their losses and wish Xander luck. Clearly, Scarlett was crazy because the idea of walking was anathema to her.

  So that meant one thing—she had to double her efforts to find whom McQuarry had been seeing behind closed doors.

  Whoever this person was, they were powerful. Powerful enough to stage a bombing and place the blame elsewhere and cruel enough to consider innocent civilians as collateral damage.

  She’d seen enough war to know that men and women in power often thought little of the lives it took to achieve their objective.

  Which was why she’d gotten out of the military. At least in the private sector, the job was about the money and there was no subterfuge about motivation. Politicians were loath to admit that half the time they attacked another country it was for financial gain, preferring to wrap their reasons up with patriotic causes that were really an afterthought.

  Xander was right; she needed to shut her brain down and get some sleep while she could. There was no telling what was going to happen once they reached DC.

  For all she knew, all hell could break loose.

  They arrived in DC at four in the morning, which was a benefit because they didn’t have as much traffic to deal with but it was cold and snow threatened in the forecast.

  Hailing a cab, Xander decided in the short term it was best to find an out-of-the-way motel to hole up for the day until he could secure something else.

  Scarlett nodded, agreeing, but they were both on edge. It was hard not to be paranoid. DC wasn’t exactly criminal-on-the-run friendly.

  They checked into a seedy motel on the edge of town with an ironic name, The Presidential, and afte
r securing the room, he suggested that they catch a few more hours of sleep.

  His legs were stiff from being bent in one position for four hours and his back was killing him. He went into the bathroom to wash down a few pain meds away from Scarlett’s watchful eye but even as he swallowed the pills, his gut churned.

  He wanted to be honest. God, if he could, he’d rather sit across from Scarlett and lay himself wide open but he couldn’t afford the luxury of penance. Not yet. Maybe if this all shook out the way they were hoping, he’d get that opportunity to spill his terrible secret but for now, he had to man up and soldier on.

  Love these pep talks, man. Doing great.

  Yeah, sure, if by doing great, he meant he was about to fall flat on his face in a mud puddle then, yep, doing fabulous.

  Xander splashed some water on his face to rinse away the stale airplane air and returned to find Scarlett already curled up in the bed, lightly snoring.

  His breath caught in his chest. He’d never tire of seeing her in his bed. She was hard as granite and yet, she had a tender side that he’d only caught stolen glimpses of. It was the stolen moments that pulled him in harder, even though he ought to be pushing back.

  If he weren’t such a coward, he’d walk right now. Scarlett didn’t need his problems becoming hers. He leaned against the doorjamb, watching her sleep. As much as he knew the right thing to do would be to cut her loose, he also knew he wasn’t going to do it. Well, he’d already tried but she’d seen through his act and called him out on it.

  Who wouldn’t fall for a woman like her?

  He climbed into the bed and pulled her close, loving the smell of her hair as she nestled against him in her sleep.

  Who would’ve thought that badass Scarlett Rhodes would be his cuddle bunny?

  Certainly not him.

  He allowed himself this moment of simple happiness. He was starkly aware of how precarious the moment was, especially since the FBI was now actively chasing them.

  Well, chasing him.

  An urgent need to make love to Scarlett nearly had his hands moving downward but he curbed his impulse. He wasn’t stupid. He knew why he felt desperate for a connection and he wasn’t going to subject Scarlett to his chaotic neurosis.