Chapter 6
Kasha studied the man crouched beside her. His long lean body had relaxed in a deceptively casual position. He had that panther type of movement, which showed perfect awareness and control. He didn’t have to stomp or storm to show he was bigger and stronger than everybody else—he just looked it. But he was so in control that there was a gracefulness to him. It was part of his DNA.
She had to appreciate that. Power was dead sexy, and speaking of dead, she turned to peer through her gun port to see where the attackers came from. She could see all four lying flat in the sand, almost camouflaged in their brown khakis. But once she knew where they were, it was easy to see them. “What do you think they’re waiting for?”
“That’s what I’m trying to figure out,” Brandon said calmly. “Usually a diversion. For a signal to start. It could also be they’re waiting for more company.”
She gazed at him, startled. “How do you figure?”
“There are two options, the way I see it. They could be waiting for their own reinforcements, or they are waiting for ours to arrive to attack them. If Dave’s men fly in, they will be in the line of fire but don’t forget that they’ll be packing a lot of firepower themselves. If the four new guys are attacked by a machine gun mounted on a truck, we’d have to take out the driver first and foremost, and, if anybody’s operating a gun in an open truck bed, then he’s got to go next.”
She nodded, understanding. “I know what to do,” she said. “I just don’t have the same level of experience you do.”
“I wish you didn’t have to have any,” Brandon admitted. “I’d like to believe in a world where there was no war and women and children were safe. But we don’t live in that world. So chances are good that, before this night’s out, you will have plenty of practice.”
“Levi keeps sending transmissions. Seems Dave’s idea to send more men meant more of Levi’s men. So Levi’s sending more men.”
Brandon grinned. “Sounds like he doesn’t trust us.”
“You think you should be able to handle all this?”
“Absolutely. But there’s no doubt Bullard will need more help to keep his power in place at this holding. He must recover from this attack and create a decent relationship with the entire village. So it’ll take more than four men.”
“The plane might be delayed. Apparently they needed to pick up someone at another location.”
Brandon shrugged. “We’re not helpless. We have water. We have food. We have weapons. Better than that, we’re protected. Whatever these assholes want to do, they can bring it on.”
She found herself settling at his confidence. He wasn’t cocky. He wasn’t arrogant. He was just sure of himself. Knowledgeable in the ways of war that she hoped she’d never become. Shooting was hard—and it should be hard. But, in a situation where it was down to her or them, she was all for having a gun and using it.
She’d tried to talk to Tahlia again to see what was going on, but Tahlia hadn’t been forthcoming. She lived in the village and had a family. She’d been hoping to be hired by Bullard, and, when he had arrived, he had hired her. But she found it hard working at the holding. Going back and forth to the village was tough. Everybody in the village kept questioning her. Still, Kasha couldn’t help wondering if Tahlia was either hiding more or she really was oblivious to what was going on around her. Kasha had a lot of trouble with that concept.
“Tahlia has two sons,” she offered.
Brandon studied her face. “Any chance they’re out here?”
“I don’t know.” She turned a worried look his way. “But she’s the only one down there with Bullard.”
He pulled out his phone and handed it to Kasha. “Tell Bullard to watch out for her. There’s nothing like having a viper in the nest.”
Troubled, she hesitated.
“Warn him,” Brandon urged. “At least then he’s on guard. What we don’t want is for her to turn around and put a bullet in him while we’re all up here. If she even shows herself on this roof, I’ll take her out,” he promised.
Kasha frowned. “She could just be scared and looking for help. Maybe she’ll run upstairs to us.”
“Maybe she’ll run upstairs with a gun of her own.”
That shut her up. She did as Brandon warned and shielded the phone screen to send a text to Bullard, telling him to keep a gun close—not to trust Tahlia. Bullard’s response came back immediately.
She smiled. As she handed the phone back, she said, “Bullard says he’s watching her.”
Brandon nodded. “Bullard seems like a good guy.”
“He is.”
“So how come you want to leave him?”
She shook her head. “It’s not that I want to leave him. But a part of me would like to leave the lifestyle. Do something else. But it’s so ingrained in me now, I’m not sure I can,” she admitted. “Maybe a job with less danger?”
Brandon studied her features in the half-light. “Less shooting, killing, the necessity of it all?”
“Yeah. I’d like to have a small place of my own. Maybe even a garden and a few animals.”
“What would you like to do for work?”
“I’ll find something,” she promised. “I’m just not sure I want to keep doing this.”
“You’re pretty young for a midlife crisis.”
“I’m thirty.”
Clearly startled, he flashed that white grin at her, then remembered to shield it too. “You don’t look like you’re over twenty-four.”
Inside she smiled. “Don’t get distracted,” she chuckled, “by my good looks.”
He gave her a horrified look and peered over the top again. “They’re still there and haven’t moved.” His phone vibrated. He pulled it out and checked a text. “Merk’s got movement.”
She got to her feet. “I’m heading his way. Be back in a few minutes.” She moved quietly down the rooftop walkway toward Merk. Once at his side she asked, “What have you got?”
“Two more have arrived.”
“So there’s twelve now?” She had to admit that she didn’t like the odds.
Merk smiled. “Now we’re starting to have some fun. I would expect more coming on Stone’s side.”
“We’re already outmanned,” she said, worried. “We don’t want them to have more men.”
“We are not only outnumbered but probably outgunned too. Yet it won’t make a damn bit of difference. We can pick them all off from here.”
She studied his face and smiled. “I guess that’s why Bullard calls you guys when he needs help, huh?”
“Absolutely. We’re all the same flock. You know, if Bullard was up here, he’d already have started the charge.”
She had to admit that, whenever there was a problem, Bullard was the one who jumped in first. He figured, if he stopped the fight before it really got started, he could get a good shit-kicking in, and nobody else would get one on him. Something he really enjoyed. She never quite understood, but it seemed to be very much a macho male thing. Maybe it was part of why she was looking to leave. She didn’t know exactly; she just wanted something different. She’d been around so many military operations and was saddened at the need for them. At the same time, she wanted something else for her life. She said, “I’ll go check on Stone.”
She turned and crept along the rooftop, got all the way back around the complex to where Stone was the only one standing. The two of them were evenly spaced around the walkway. The stone wall rose on the outside chest high so they could still look over the rampart. As she approached Stone, she said, “How many men do you have out there?”
“Two and two more arriving, plus a text confirming another pair headed toward the east side.”
“So we’ve got four at each station.” She shook her head. “Not sure I like that.”
Stone just smiled at her and said, “You should check on Tahlia and Bullard.”
“I don’t want to leave you guys alone up here.”
“We’ll be fine. For us, this is child’s play. You get down there. Make sure she’s not kicking Bullard’s ass.”
There was no humor in his tone, and she realized he was echoing her own worries. She went downstairs, and, as she headed toward the main war room, she stopped, her instincts kicking her back to flatten against the wall. Something was wrong, but she didn’t know what.
“So you aren’t really a cook. I wondered.”
“Of course I’m cook,” Tahlia snapped in broken English.
Kasha frowned, pissed. So Tahlia had been lying.
“You need to put that gun down,” Bullard said in a quiet tone.
“Why would I? It’s just the two of us. I have what the men want. I figured this would be my chance.”
“Are you the one who drugged me?”
“Yes. I am. But they took you away from here pretty fast.”
“So you put it in my food?”
“Yes, but it didn’t take effect right away,” she said in frustration. “You are too big. I didn’t put enough in.”
Kasha peered around the corner as Bullard extended his arms to show the needle tracks. “Yet they gave me more drugs when I was in the village.”
“We had to. You kept fighting.”
“Of course. This is my place now.”
“If you were dead,” she said flatly, “it would be ours again.”
“My company still owns it. My men would still come look after it, clean it out to rid the vermin from here.”
“It was our place,” Tahlia snapped. “It is ours.”
“It was never your place. You stole it. But I’m sure the finer nuances of the law don’t bother you much considering you’ve already been drugging and killing people.”
Kasha watched his gaze casually wander the room, catching sight of her and glossing over that event without even stopping. He turned his attention back to Tahlia and said, “It’s too bad you’re not really the cook. The food was pretty good tonight.”
“Of course I’m a cook. I raised my sons. Every woman here cooks.”
“Do all women here carry arms?”
She shook her head. “But we’ve had to. Times have been tough. So many of our men killed. We have no choice.”
“Too bad,” Bullard said. “Because I could have used you.”
In front of Kasha’s shocked gaze, he raised a handgun and shot Tahlia.
*
With his eyes adjusted to the light of the night, Brandon could see the men still lying in wait outside. He’d been waiting for Kasha to come back from checking on Merk, but there’d been no sign of her.
He lined up his sight to see the men, heads together in a heavy discussion. They were staying just out of range for pistols but not for machine guns or grenades. Regardless, any plans they were making wouldn’t be good for him or the rest of his team. His cell phone vibrated. He shielded it as he pulled it out and checked the message from Merk. I have four. They’ve moved ahead ten feet.
Ten feet here too, Brandon answered. He waited for Stone to check in. Almost instantly Stone’s report came back with a similar text. Brandon didn’t want to ask about Kasha because he didn’t want to appear to be worried about her. But when there was no response from her, he sent her a text and asked, Is all okay?
Her response came back fast. Yes. No.
What happened?
Be there in a few minutes.
He waited, but there was no sign of her. At the same time, his instincts were already rubbed raw, firing up all kinds of ideas of what had gone on. Was she still with Merk? Or had she gone downstairs? He kept an eye on the attackers creeping ever closer. Brandon had no intention of being pinned inside the unit. He could take out all four in ten seconds but wanted to see what they were up to. So what were they waiting for?
Then he heard a sound in the far distance, like a plane. He couldn’t see it from here, but he could track the noise of it.
If it carried the four additional men Dave was sending, good. Except the invading men on the ground could easily have more men waiting for the plane to land and then to ambush them.
As the plane noise slowed and geared down, he watched to see what the attackers would do. They didn’t move. Brandon counted on Levi’s men taking them out in no time.
Just as he was ready to send another text to find out what happened to Kasha, he heard gunfire coming from where the airstrip was out of his sight. Grim, he waited with the four men down below in his crosshairs. He watched their expressions, but they didn’t even turn around to look at the battle site.
In other words, they were expecting the plane. But was that because they had a party waiting and expecting to take out the new arrivals easily? Then come down here and give them backup in attacking this holding?
If so, well, Brandon would count on Levi’s team any day. But they had no idea what they’d be up against. Brandon heard footsteps coming up behind him. He stilled but then recognized the scent. “What’s up, Kasha?”
“Levi’s team has landed.”
“Good. We could use the reinforcements. Is everything okay?”
There was this long silence.
Then he knew. “Tahlia?”
“I went downstairs. Saw it all.” Kasha sighed. “She pulled a gun on Bullard.”
“I’m sure that didn’t go well.”
Kasha shook her head. “No. He shot her. It’s just, … well, it’s sad. She was our cook. I’ve only known her a few days, but she seemed harmless.”
“Those are the more dangerous kinds,” Brandon said, pausing at the distress on her face. “Did he kill her?”
Kasha shook her head. “No. But her right arm is likely to be useless. The bullet went through her wrist. Looks like he just blew apart the bones.”
“That’ll be tough to heal properly.”
“She needs medical help.”
“What’s the chance some of these gunmen are her sons?”
“I imagine both could be out there. If they find out Bullard shot their mother, it’ll get ugly.”
“Really? Just think. It was their mother who pulled the gun on Bullard, a man already injured, who’d been kidnapped and drugged. In his home. They’ll be lucky if they have legs left to walk on before this is over,” he said. “Keep in mind who’s at fault here. Bullard has every right to defend himself, particularly when it’s not the first attack. This is his home, and he’s defending his place. We’re not the bad guys here.”
She let out a shaky breath. “I know. I’m just trying to remind myself that this shit happens. Unfortunately too often.”
“Where is she now?”
“Bullard has her restrained and is working on her wrist and hand.”
“Is he strong enough?”
Kasha shook her head. “No. But we’re short on men. What’s happening out here?”
“An airplane landed and was greeted with gunfire. These men did nothing, appeared to be expecting it. They hunkered down and waited.”
His phone vibrated. Brandon shielded it and whispered, “Stone, what’s up?”
“Levi’s landed. He’ll be here in a few minutes. He’s coming directly into the garage.”
“Then we need somebody downstairs to man that door.”
“Is Kasha with you?”
“She is. Yeah. You talk to her.” Brandon handed the phone to Kasha, now kneeling beside him, the wall as cover.
He half listened to the conversation, but his eyes were on the hillside and above. It didn’t really surprise him that Levi would come himself and before they had even found Bullard. It took thirteen hours easily to make this trek. But how was Levi making this last leg of his trip to them? Was he coming on foot? Because nobody from here had driven out to meet him.
He waited to speak with Stone, but Kasha had hung up.
“Stone’s gone already.” She handed him his phone back. “But, if Levi is coming into the garage, I presume he’s driving.”
“Where did he get the vehicle from?”
She looked at him in surprise, glanced toward the airstrip and said, “I don’t know.”
They waited, and, sure enough, a plume of dust came toward the holding. “You need to hurry down, open the garage door and make sure nobody else comes in,” he said in a low tone. “Can you do that?”
When she didn’t answer, he gave her a sideways glance. She nodded, her face grim. “I can do that.”
He felt bad sending her down alone. “I’d come, but I must keep track of these four men.”
“I’ll be fine,” she said in an airy tone. “It’s not my first war.”
“Too bad,” he snapped.
She froze, turned to look at him and said, “Why the bad temper?”
He shrugged. He hated to admit it to himself, but he was worried. He hated to see women in scenarios like these. She might be a warrior woman, like Ice; all indications pointed that way, just without all of Ice’s firsthand experience. Yet he still hated sending Kasha into something dangerous.
She chuckled. “Look at that. You’re starting to care, and we’ve only just met.” Laughing softly, she disappeared down below.
He grinned, loving the banter. He could care … there was definitely something between them. She’d come to him just now, not the others. She was also a stunner. That she could handle herself in this situation added to the attraction. That she’d been bothered by Tahlia’s actions and subsequent shooting showed she had heart—that was important in this business.
Determined not to let her distract him, he studied and watched. The vehicle came around the corner toward the garage, and the four closest invaders got up and raced toward the holding. Instantly Brandon dropped a line of fire in front of them. The men roared and backed up to where they had been before, searching the wall for him. No way they could return fire. He was fully hidden behind the stone wall. He watched as they put their heads together once again.
From the opposite side, he could hear more gunfire. He presumed Merk was doing the same thing to keep the men on his side away from the oncoming vehicle. Stone too. All the invaders were rushing toward the garage entrance to try to stop the vehicle from coming in. Not happening …
Just as Brandon had figured they would be smart about their lives, the men on his side got up and ran around the building. Brandon picked up the pace and stayed with them on the roof, watching the men on the ground as they joined up with their comrades in front of Merk’s position.
He joined Merk and said, “What do they think they’re trying to do?”
“I don’t care. But whatever they do, if they come toward us, they’ll be eating our bullets.” Merk turned to look at him. “That garage is open. Who’s down there?”
“Kasha. Tahlia pulled a gun on Bullard too.”
Merk shot him a disbelieving look. “She what?”
Brandon nodded. “Pretty stupid, huh?”
“Yeah, especially now that he’s slowly coming back. He got taken once. He won’t be such a fool a second time.”
“Apparently Bullard shot her in the hand. Caused quite a bit of damage. Now Bullard’s patching her up. She’s been tied to a chair, so the chances of her pointing a second gun at him are next to none.”
Just as the vehicle came into view, the men on the ground opened fire. Someone from the vehicle returned fire. Even so the invaders raced toward the garage. Brandon shot and snapped one man’s hand holding a machine gun and popped another in the knee. He took out another who was lining up in his direction. With Merk working beside him, they steadily dropped all eight men. One dead, seven down.
He turned to look at Merk and said, “I don’t think Bullard’s got a medical clinic open, does he?”
On the other end of the holding’s roof, they could hear Stone working his magic. “Why would they still try to charge even though they know we are up here?”
“I don’t know. Maybe they saw something in the jeep that made them panic.”
“Or they thought it was their men, and they were throwing cover shots so they could run in.”
“Until they saw Levi and afterward shots were fired from the jeep.” Brandon nodded. “That’s likely what happened. They were expecting the vehicle to be full of their own men. Not more of us.” He glanced down at the injured invaders, but nobody moved. “We still have to deal with them.”
“I suggest we get somebody in the village to come and get their vermin,” Merk said in a cold voice. “I bet Bullard knows exactly who to call.”
Suddenly Stone roared.
Merk and Brandon stared at each other. With none of the men below capable of mounting an attack any longer, Brandon and Merk headed to Stone.
He was cursing. “One of them goddamn scraped me,” he roared. There was a burn mark on his shoulder, but it had only grazed him, and that was what counted.
Brandon grinned. Stone was just pissed because it stung like a bitch.
Merk looked over the edge and sure enough, Stone’s four invaders were dead. “Was that all you?”
Stone shook his head. “Whoever was in the vehicle heard me yell when I got stung. That was it. They went down like ants on a log.”
Merk nodded. “What do you want to bet Ice came too?”
Stone’s face lit up. “Now that would be like Ice,” he said in satisfaction. “She doesn’t let anybody pop her friends.” Stone asked Brandon and Merk, “Did you leave any alive?”
Brandon shrugged. “It seemed pointless to kill them if I didn’t have to.”
Suddenly there was a round of gunfire from where they’d left the first eight invading men. Brandon raced back to see somebody running up the hill toward the airstrip. All the injured men had been shot in the head.
Merk joined him and said, “He killed his own men?”
Stone’s voice was hard. “If you don’t take him down, that asshole will come back. He’ll also take out the plane.”
The running man dropped to his knee and started firing. “Obviously Ice left somebody in charge of the plane.” There was return fire, and the gunman was thrown back off his feet, rolled down the hill and didn’t move again.
“Damn. That doesn’t leave anyone here to question,” Brandon said.
“Yes, but now we don’t have to bother calling the medic,” Merk said, then added with a hard edge, “I sure as hell hope they have an undertaker around here. Burying these guys in this ground will be a bitch.”