Chapter 27
Kendall fiddled with her purse strap as she sat in the large sunroom overlooking the back patio of Bethany and Jack’s house. The Saints had retired to wherever it was they actually met and she was relegated to sitting with the women. It seemed rather segregated and, working in a male dominated field, she was uncertain how she felt about it.
“It was so nice to take a day off,” Evie said, stretching her legs out in front of her chair, a cup of tea in her hand.
“Where do you work?” Kendall ventured to ask.
Smiling, Evie said, “I’m a geotechnical engineer with a munitions plant near here.”
Eyes wide, Kendall was unable to hide her surprise. Evie laughed and said, “Don’t worry if you’ve never heard of that! I often get that response.” Shrugging a little, she said, “But I love what I do.”
“And you took today off for…” Kendall prompted.
“Hey, when Bethany calls and says that the last Saint is showing up with a woman who might need help…well, we all answered that call!”
Blinking in shock, Kendall was unable to think of a reply.
Evie motioned toward the woman sitting next to her and said, “Dani works at the same company, but we work in different areas.”
Nodding, Dani added, “I used to work for the ATF with Chad, but left the agency.”
“I own my own business,” Angel said, “so it was easy for me to take a break. Plus, I was at the bakery at six a.m. so I was ready for a chance to get out.” Looking at Kendall, she explained, “I own Angel’s Cupcake Heaven.”
“Those were your confections we enjoyed earlier? Oh, my goodness, they were fabulous!” Kendall gushed. Now curious about the others, she shifted her gaze around the group.
Cam’s ebony-haired wife, Miriam, smiled as she said, “I’m a nurse. I work in a nursing home now instead of a hospital. It’s an easier schedule since we have a baby.”
“I work two part-time jobs,” Faith said softly. “I teach art at a school and work as an illustrator for the local police department.
The perfectly put-together woman amongst them was next. “I know it’s hard to remember everyone’s name. I’m Sabrina, Jude’s wife. And I run my own interior design business.”
The last woman in the gathering to speak was wearing comfortable jeans with her blonde hair pulled back from her face. “I’m Grace,” she said, her smile beaming toward Kendall. “I run a companion dog company.”
Sitting back in her chair, Kendall sipped her tea. Marc had mentioned that Jack’s wife owned the cabin rentals, as well as a successful wedding venue, next door. “I’m stunned all of you would take time out of your busy lives to come here today.” Smiling at the others, she added, “I’m humbled and don’t actually know what to say.”
“Honey, we’ve all been right where you are!” Angel pronounced. “We’ve all been caught in something out of our control and ended up meeting the man that was right for us. And it just so happened that that man was a Saint.”
“Why the name Saints?” Kendall asked. “I did ask Marc when I saw his medallion but he only said it meant something different to each of them.”
Bethany nodded and said, “Jack’s mom had told him of his namesake, who was her father, Jacques. And the Saint that he was also named for became important to him. When he started his own security company, the name fit for him. He never required it to be special to anyone else, but as it turned out…each of these men—”
“And Charlie,” Angel threw out.
Laughing, Bethany agreed, “Yes, and Charlie, all have Saints that are special to them.”
“You’re a very unique group,” Kendall observed aloud.
“We owe that to Bethany,” Miriam explained. “When she and Jack got together, she mother-henned the rest of the Saints and have brought us women together in a group as well.”
Shrugging, Bethany smiled. “I never planned it this way…it just happened organically.” Sobering, she held Kendall’s gaze. “It takes a special woman to be with a Saint. Someone supportive, but completely strong on their own.”
Kendall regarded the nods of agreement from all the other women. Each smart, independent, and brought together in their diversity by the love for their man…and each other. A strange emotion began blooming inside of her, one that she could not identify at first. As they began talking and laughing with each other, including her in their conversations, Kendall realized that what she felt was a sense of belonging. I want to be a part of this group. I want to be with Marc. The thoughts caused her to gasp softly, but as she blushed she was glad that no one seemed to notice. Joining in their conversations, she relaxed for the first time in days.
*
“With him right now…send what you’ve got.” Monty held his tablet in his hands, lifting his gaze to Nick. Hank was sitting at the table with them, nervously glancing around the small diner.
After a few more seconds of silence, Monty held the tablet out so that the other two men were able to see the photograph. “This is Tariq Mustafa. Recognize him?”
Hank’s eyes widened as he swallowed deeply. Nodding, he said, “That’s one of the men who was in the hangar with me.” His gaze jumped up to Monty’s. “Who the hell is he?”
“He’s a university student here.” Monty added, “And he has ties to one of the researchers who works under Dr. Rhodes.”
Nick, leaning his tall frame back in his seat, pierced Hank with his eyes. “We just came from Kevin, where we learned that the terrorist cell here in Fairbanks is growing in number and, even though your office is small, he’s trying to keep his eye on them. He said they’re organized and appear to have numerous backers with money.”
Hank’s hound dog eyes lasted a moment before he sighed heavily. “Okay, look. There’s more I haven’t told anyone. Once we got inside the hangar, my phone rang. The two men were making a lot of noise with the re-fueling equipment and one of the—not this guy, but the other one—shouted that I might be able to hear better if I was in the office.” Shrugging, he added, “It made sense. I saw no reason to stand there and keep watching them. So I went into the office.”
“Who called?” Nick asked, his sharp gaze assessing Hank’s sincerity.
“I’m not sure. I could hear a woman speaking, but the voice was hard to understand. She kept rattling on about how the FBI office was hard to get into and she had an issue she wanted looked into. I was on the phone for probably six or seven minutes before I could finally get her to hang up and call the main office the next day. By the time I got back out, the men were almost finished. One was wrapping the fuel line back up and the other one was in the cockpit, but I had no reason to doubt what they were doing.”
“Why did you keep this quiet?” Monty asked. “You made it sound as though you were only out of the hangar area for just a moment.”
Finally losing control, Hank barked out, “I was a chicken-shit, okay? Kevin was pissed. I was afraid of losing my job…and still might.” Running his hand over his hair, he shook his head dejectedly. “I just plain fucked up.” At the silence, he finally looked up and said, “So what now? What do we do now?”
“You?” Nick asked, his lips pinched together. “Nothing. It’s been determined that Tariq’s not in Alaska right now. We’ve been told where he’s gone and we’ll be investigating him there.”
With that, Nick and Monty left the restaurant, leaving Hank slumping in his seat, appearing more dejected than ever.
*
“Jack? We’re checking out of the hotel and getting ready to fly back to D.C. We’ve been to the university—Tariq never returned this semester. His bills were paid by Fahdil, but Tariq’s roommates said he packed up and left several weeks ago. At this point, Nick’s got to get back…this is Kevin’s jurisdiction. I’m not sure about this FBI office here, but nonetheless, it’s their territory. Nick and I’ve reported our findings to them. From what they tell me, they’re focusing more attention on the terrorist cell here.”
“Understood,” Jack responded. “You flying straight back to D.C.?”
“Yeah, we’ll be back in the area this evening. Nick’s alerted the FBI office in Baton Rouge, Louisiana to be on the lookout for Tariq in case he tries to make a visit.”
“According to Kenneth, Fahdil expected Tariq to stay with Fahdil’s wife as she recuperates. Again, that’s the local office’s jurisdiction. I’ve been in contact with them to pick him up.”
“That was the information we were given as well, Monty,” Jack acknowledged. “Charlie’s tracking his money.”
“Think there’ll be much money to track?”
“Maybe not, but Luke’s checking out the university security cameras and has found him with some students that are suspect.”
“Send me what you’ve got and I’ll pass it on to the agent here,” Monty added.
“Thought you weren’t too sure about him,” Jack queried.
“Right now, the main agent here hasn’t given us a reason not to trust him. And the younger one seems intent on trying to make amends. Quite frankly, Nick doesn’t trust either of them, but dealing with the terrorist cell here is in their hands, not ours.”
“You got that right,” Jack acknowledged. “Okay, I’ll have Luke work on Tariq’s location as well and get that to you as soon as we can.”
*
Marc appeared at the doorway of Jack’s sunroom, his gaze immediately seeking out Kendall. He had wondered how she would handle the other women, knowing they would be easy with her, but also knowing that being thrown into the whole group at one time could be overwhelming. Watching Kendall laughing and talking warmed his heart. He wanted her there…with him.
Standing, she greeted him with a smile as she stepped forward, her arms naturally seeking to wrap around him as his did the same. Enveloped together, they were both lost in each other’s gaze, everyone else in the room disappearing from thought.
“You okay?” he whispered.
Nodding, she replied softly, “Yeah, I’m good.”
“We’re finishing up some things here.”
She searched his face for any clues, but all he offered was a small smile as he pulled her head closer and kissed her forehead. “Can you tell me anything?”
“We’ve got the FBI fully involved now, since there is an active terrorist cell in Alaska. We’re also looking into both Fahdil and his son. We know the son is involved…he was one of the ones in the hangar the night my plane was tampered with.”
Shocked at this information, Kendall’s brows drew down in anger, knowing how personal Marc felt about the assault.
“And we’re going to be sending someone up to D.C. to work with the FBI in detaining Fahdil.”
At that, she sucked in a gasp, her forehead creasing further. “It’s not him, Marc. There’s no way the man I have worked with for several years has anything to do with terrorist acts.”
“We have to be willing to check all possible leads,” he said, his voice low and soft as he tucked a strand of hair behind her ear. His finger trailed over her ear and down her jaw, sending ripples of warmth down her spine. “As soon as we’re finished, you and I’ll head back to my place.”
That thought curved her lips into a smile.
“You like that idea?” he whispered, his lips now replacing his fingers on her ear.
Shivering lightly, she looked up. “You know I do.”
With a squeeze, he grinned. “Good. I’ll be back in just a bit and we’ll go spend the night in a cabin that will be a lot more comfortable than what we had during the blizzard!” Bending to place a quick kiss on her lips, he turned and stalked back down the hall.
Kendall stood for a moment observing his retreat. His back was as impressive as his front. The way his jeans cupped his ass. The way his long-sleeved polo stretched over his muscles. The neat trim of his hair that made her wish it was slightly longer so she could slide her fingers through it.
Someone clearing their throat had her whirling around, blushing furiously as she noted the women all smiling at her.
“Watching something interesting?” Bethany asked, tossing her long, blonde braid over one shoulder.
“I’d say, from that kiss, she’s already found something interesting!” Angel laughed.
Pulling in her lips as she sought in vain for a witty comeback, Kendall finally gave up and allowed a giggle to escape. “Okay, busted. Yes, I was definitely watching something interesting…and yes, I’ve found something interesting.” Moving back into the sunroom, she sat down, picking up her tea once more.
Miriam reached over and patted her leg. “Don’t be embarrassed. Like we said earlier, we’ve all been in your shoes.”
“Do you know how long you’ll be staying?” Faith asked, her gentle expression holding curiosity.
Kendall stared at the dark-haired beauty, feeling as though the woman had the ability to see inside her tumultuous feelings. “Um…well…I don’t really know. I mean, Marc wants me here as long as there’s a threat. Or until they get the person who…but, I don’t…” Giving her head a slight shake, she smiled ruefully. “I’m not really making any sense, am I?”
The others rushed to express understanding, but as she looked back at Faith, she suddenly declared, “I have no idea. My job is in Louisiana, but now the idea of trying to have a long-distance relationship doesn’t seem very appealing.”
Faith smiled gently, as though holding on to a secret. The other women looked over at Faith as Bethany asked her, “What do you see?”
Shrugging her sender shoulders, she waved her hand delicately. “I simply see change coming.” Her gaze sought Kendall’s as she smiled. “But good change.”
Kendall stared, uncertain what was transpiring but, her thoughts were interrupted when Evie offered, “I was also considering a long-distance relationship, with Patrick.” Kendall turned to face her. “We met in California where he was stationed and I lived. I worked for a geo-technical firm and, when he was getting out of the Army, he was moving back east.”
“Patrick is my brother,” Angel explained, tucking a colorful strip of hair behind her ear as she folded her bright red leggings-covered legs underneath her body, settling into her seat.
Kendall returned her gaze to Evie, curious as to how she made her decision. “What made you choose to follow him?”
“I was disillusioned with my workplace and my parents had moved to the east coast. But, all in all, it really came down to me wanting to be with him.”
Biting her lip, Kendall pondered what lay ahead. She cared for Marc, but liked working in the lab. And then there was her father to consider. If she left Louisiana, he would have no family nearby. Sighing audibly, she saw Marc walking toward the sunroom, many of the other Saints following. As she stood to say her goodbyes, she watched in awe at the men, who appeared larger than life, as they each immediately focused on their partner.
Angel pretended to pout since Monty was not present, but Hollywood-handsome Patrick threw his arm around her after he kissed Evie. “Come on, sis. You’re coming home with us until Monty is back.”
Chad, referred to by his wife as a gentle giant, hugged Dani from behind, his hands resting on her stomach and Kendall wondered if they had a secret as Dani twisted her head back and gifted her husband with a smile.
Blaise tucked Grace underneath his arm and said, “We’ve got to go feed the animals,” and, with a nod to everyone, they headed out.
Cam grinned down at Miriam, asking, “Who’s got the baby? Your mom or mine?” Miriam laughing, replied, “We can just head home, ‘cause they’re both at our house playing grandma!”
Jude bounded into the room, pouncing on Sabrina, bending her back over his arm to place a kiss on her lips. “Let’s go, darlin’.”
Luke and Charlie were standing in the doorway saying goodbye to everyone as Bethany called out, “Ladies, don’t forget we’re meeting at Mountville Cabins tomorrow. Gotta figure out the arrangements for Angel and Monty’s wedding!” Turning to Kendall, she added, “And you need to come too!”
Jack’s stern countenance softened as he pulled Bethany into his embrace. With his lumberjack looks and her girl-next-door beauty, they looked like a commercial for Outdoor Living Magazine. With that thought, she swung her gaze swiftly back to Marc, worry settling in her stomach. He’s so different from me. Can I ever be what he needs?
Bart walked into the room last, pulling Faith into his embrace tightly. As they turned to walk out, Faith touched Kendall’s arm gently. With a faraway smile on her face, she whispered, “Don’t despair. All will work out the way it should.”