Small pleasures, moments within moments touched Meghan’s soul so as she walked along the lane, one hand clasped with her husband’s, her heart soared as a thousand little details helped to create a memory.

It was a beautiful day, one of many, with the sun shining brilliantly in a blue sky dotted with fluffy, moving clouds. Despite it being Halloween, the daytime weather was still warm. Typical Arizona. But when the sun went down, she could feel the changing of the seasons.

The cadence of their shoes hitting the pavement was the only sound.

She took a deep inhale and smiled. Alex’s brilliant handling of the speed bump they hit last night made everything right in her world.

They were on their way to the Dane’s. Walking ahead of her and Alex, Ashleigh and Cristián were pushing the twins in matching strollers. Her father-in-law was giving his wife shit about something, which, of course, meant that Ash was on a snippy snappy roll. The two were an engaging couple who made the most marvelous in-laws.

Meghan thought about the worries she’d once had about Alex’s family. She was certain her blue-collar Boston Irish clan wouldn’t amuse the nobility-adjacent Valleja-Marquez dynasty, but boy, had she ever been wrong! Not only did Cris and Ash welcome her with wide-open arms, but they’d also struck up a close and ofttime hilarious friendship with Meghan’s parents.

Ash was in near constant contact with Maggie O’Brien. The two women did not take sharing grandchildren lightly, and her mom expected daily updates. As a matter of fact, so did her dad. Many, many times, Alex’s mom stood in for Meghan’s when the strain of parenting newborn twins jostled her equilibrium. She really couldn’t wait for next spring when her dad’s new job at the police academy would go on hiatus for the summer, and they’d come to Bendover to stay. Spending time with her folks was an absolute for Meghan.

Beside her, Alex made a noise, so her eyes moved to his face. Dark sunglasses might hide his eyes, but she saw his cheeks quiver and what appeared to be him biting back a laugh. Lost in her thoughts, she’d missed a marital squall between her in-laws.

Everyone halted when Ash stomped her foot and turned on Cris.

“Okay, that’s enough,” the little woman groused, using a voice brimming with exasperation. “Cristián, I swear to god if you buy a 3-D printer for the sole purpose of rubbing Matt’s nose in it so you can win that stupid competition, I will, argh!” She threw her hands up and squawked. “I’m serious! Wipe that grin off your face, old man.”

It was almost time for the annual Rube Goldberg competition between Cris and Matt. A tradition dating back decades, the two old friends knew exactly how to push each other’s buttons—all of them—and this was what made the event, plus the lead-up, so amusing. Or annoying as Ash might insist.

Meghan had to cover her mouth to disguise a giggle when Cris used a mollifying approach with his snarling wife that she recognized as something Alex often tried. Disarming with charm must be a Marquez trait because her son was also starting to pull the same nonsense.

“Now, honey, come on.”

“No,” Ash barked. “Stop it. You know the rules because you wrote them. No technology. None. If you skirt the rules and find fancy tech ways to create a tiny doodad whatchamjiggit that makes some fantastical contraption work, then you’re not inventing anything except a reach around.”

“I think you mean go-around,” Cris drawled.

Alex chuckled. His mother glared at him even though her adorable sun hat and glasses obscured her face.

Flipping her signature long blond hair behind one shoulder, Ash sighed. “What’s the difference?”

Her father-in-law sniggered at the same time his son did and looked at her. “Meghan? You wanna take this?”

Ash snapped, “Are they making fun of me?”

Meghan nodded. “They can’t help it. Sophie says it’s the misfortune of the Valleja men. Arrogance and a screwy sense of humor. She thinks Teo is already exhibiting signs.”

“Ah, true,” Cris quipped. “The boy has a naughty giggle. He’s going to be a little wild, that one.”

“All right, enough.” When Ash tried to be big and bad, it was always as cute as hell. Her mother-in-law looked at Meghan, and said, “Pay attention, dear. This is how they always get away with their foolishness. Nothing is ever serious, and the conversation veers all over the place until the original issue runs out of gas. There will be no 3-D printer, you will Rube according to tradition, and what’s wrong with a reach around?”

“Oh, my god, Mom, stop!” Alex guffawed.

Cristián stood next to his vexed wife and grinned like an idiot. Like father, like son and probably like grandsons, Meghan thought.

“Mom,” she began with a soupçon of hesitation. “Uh, yeah. So, when men hear reach around, they automatically make it sexual.”

“Well, of course.” Ash sniffed. Her indignation, like her attempts at badassery, was the definition of adorable. Then she added, “I don’t get it.”

Alex laughed like hell. “You wanna demonstrate, babe?”

She smacked him on the shoulder. “Cut it out.” He motioned his surrender and took a step back. With a courtly bow, he drawled, “Please. Continue. I, for one, can’t wait to hear how you explain.”

Cris was the one laughing now. She and Ash looked at each other and shook their heads.

Men! She’d show them!

“You watch football, right, Mom?”

Ash made the touchdown sign. “Are you kidding? Go 49ers.”

“Okay, good. So you know when they get in formation, and the quarterback waits for the hand-off? There’s a bit of, uh, vulnerability involved. Know what I mean?”

A giggle answered the question.

“Well, imagine that but without the football references. Somebody is helping themselves to the goodies by reaching around in this sexual scenario. Get it? A reach around.”

Ashleigh turned on her husband and whacked his arm.

“Son,” Cris quipped as he rubbed his arm and feigned chagrin, “you married one tough cookie. She handled that like a pro.”

Meghan curtsied. “Why thank you, Dad!”

Zeus was on point slightly ahead of the strollers. Meghan saw Alex stiffen when the dog took an alert posture. Peering ahead of them, down the lane, she saw nothing but trees and bushes lining the way.

Cristián turned around and followed Alex’s intense stare. It was so quiet she could hear her breathing.

Suddenly, the dog tensed. She dug her paws into the ground and growled. When Alex’s hand moved behind his back and reached for the gun she hated that he carried, Meghan froze.

In the blink of an eye, a figure dashed out of the trees and dived across the pavement to disappear into the dense landscape on the other side.

Everything after that happened so fast she could barely process. Zeus took off into the trees followed a second later by her gun-wielding husband. She’d never seen him move that fast, ever.

Ashleigh gasped, and Meghan felt Cris’s hand on her shoulder. “Meghan!”

Right, right. They’d been through enough defensive training to prepare them for almost anything. Without further hesitation, she followed protocol and stepped next to Ashleigh. They linked arms, and each gripped a stroller handlebar. Cris put his hand on Ash’s shoulder. It was imperative that no matter what they all remain in physical contact. Her father-in-law moved in slow motion, scanning their surroundings.

Fear grabbed hold. Fear for Alex and gut-wrenching fear for her babies. They were alone, exposed, and out in the open. Anything might happen.

She vaguely heard Cris murmur and glanced his way. He was quietly talking to his watch, a sign that he was alerting security. Meghan expected a full contingent of Marines to appear at any second.

“Stay alert, ladies,” he softly murmured. “Assistance is on the way.”

Meghan started to shake. Ash firmed the linking of their arms. It was a silent signal to be strong. Aware of herself panting, she called on years of yoga training to calm down and focus. So silently it startled her, Duke pulled alongside them on one of the new electric mountain bikes that could reach nearly fifty miles per hour.

He leaped off the bike and came directly to her side.

“Ma’am,” he grumbled.

She looked at him, knowing she wasn’t hiding the fear in her expression. Meghan was having a hard time. Her body began quaking.

Duke put a finger on his ear. He was wearing an earpiece. He spoke with short, direct words to whomever he was connected to.

Ash hugged her arm, and Cristián moved in front of the strollers, ready to do whatever it took to protect them all.

“Is my husband all right?” she asked Duke in a voice so fearful she barely recognized it.

He motioned to her again. One minute. He was listening intently, focused on the information he was getting from the earpiece.

After the longest few minutes of her life, Duke spoke briskly into his wrist tech. Two seconds later, she heard an approaching ATV.

“Mrs. Marquez,” he said in a strong, confident voice. “Your husband is fine.”

The way he spoke the words gave her the impression that while Alex was fine, whoever he had chased was not.

“The Major requests that you continue to Mr. and Mrs. Dane’s house. An escort will accompany you the rest of the way.”

As the ATV pulled up, Meghan snapped. Without knowing exactly what was happening, the only thing her mind could absorb was that they were on their own goddamn property. A property awash with security. How the hell had this happened?

Her lovely breakfast roiled in her stomach. With seconds to spare, she disentangled from Ash and ran to the edge of the pavement where everything in her stomach promptly exited via her mouth. While she puked into the bushes, Ash came to her aid and gently rubbed her back while the awful spasms continued.

When she needed it, a bottle of water was pressed into her hands. She took a few sips, swished, and then spit out the vile aftermath of the embarrassing event.

With undue haste, she and the twins were hurried along to the Dane’s house. Calder was on the porch wearing a worried expression. She was too freaked out to do anything except tremble. Stephanie and Ash took control of the babies.

A scary looking agent sporting an ominous firearm and dressed in full tactical gear stood on the porch outside the front door. People spoke. Cris asked her half a dozen times if she was okay, but she wasn’t really there.

Time passed. The tension increased. And then she heard a truck pull up. She ran out the door, disregarding the agent, and waited till he was on the porch, then flew into Alex’s arms.

“Are you okay? What happened? Where’s Zeus?”

Duke was also there. He and Alex exchanged looks before her husband said anything. She didn’t like the way that made her feel. Her anxiety went through the roof when Duke did the talking.

“The incident has concluded, ma’am.”

“Excuse me?” she sarcastically snapped into Duke’s startled face.

“Meghan,” Alex muttered. “It’s fine.”

Duke plowed ahead in what she assumed by her husband’s nodding reaction was a pre-planned speech.

“The security situation was a result of an employee inadvertently straying into the family zone. He was training for his annual qualifying requirements, a 5K run, and went outside the grid. The Major neutralized the intruder and detained him until security arrived.”

“What does that mean? Neutralize,” she barked accusingly.

Alex shifted at her side. He stuck a hand in his pocket, but she spied a telltale wince. She acted with lightning speed, yanked on his hand, and then yelped when she saw his bruised knuckles.

Calder was watching from nearby and snickered at her reaction. She sent him an incendiary glare. Stephanie put a hand on her husband’s shoulder and drew him away.

“Where’s my dog?” she demanded. Nobody said anything. “Alex. Where is my dog?”

“Honey,” he said in a soothing voice that bounced off her anxiety like a dime dropped onto a tightly tucked sheet. “Zeus is okay.”

She scoffed. It was as if he forgot that she was a teacher and knew when sunshine was being blown up her skirt.

“Uh-huh. I wasn’t born yesterday, you two,” she snarled. “Now. For the last time. Where the fuck is my dog?”

Alex sighed and gestured to Duke. “Go ahead. Tell her.”

“She’s with Dr. Hunter.”

“Why? Oh, my god! Alex!” She wailed as tears rushed into her eyes. “Is she hurt? Is Zeus hurt?” She desperately pounded on his chest with her fists and got more and more frantic with each passing second.

In the background, Aiden started wailing. It was what he did if Stevie cried, so he must be reacting to his mother’s freak-out the same way.

“Mom? Can you please …?” Alex grated. He sounded miserable, and that only made her more fearful. Zeus was his first love. The dog was a talisman. She got him through the awful times when he feared that his injuries would permanently cripple him.

Meghan registered Aiden’s snuffling whimper, a sign that his Mom Mom was on it and would soothe the lad.

“Sweetie, please be calm. Dr. Hunter has her. His preliminary examination was that she took a swift kick to the ribs and her leg might be broken.”

Meghan gasped and clutched at her husband’s shirt. “No!”

“He said she’s going to be okay.”

Duke interjected with something she assumed was supposed to make her feel better.

“She chomped down and didn’t let go.” The security chief’s voice was filled with pride and admiration. Zeus was his buddy. “Instinct,” he added approvingly. “She’s never had bite training, so when she grabbed on, she was just protecting her humans.”

Alex ushered her inside. “I want to see her,” Meghan demanded. She wiped her tears away, grabbed a handful of tissues from a box on the coffee table, and blew her nose. “Mom, Dad, can you take the babies, please?”

“Of course,” Cristián assured her. “Don’t worry.”

She started marching for the door. By herself. “Hello?”

Alex’s expression grew serious. “I think we should let Jamie do his thing.”

“Yes, well, sure,” she bit out. Exasperated by his hesitation, she ended with, “But she’s alone.”

“I don’t want you upset,” he argued back.

Arguing with him could take all day, and she didn’t have that kind of time. With a gesture of resignation, she simply turned and bounded out the door. She was at the bottom of the porch steps and about to jog along the lane when Alex hollered.

“Meghan, come on. Get back here.”

Flinging her arms wide, she let her astonishment at his behavior have all the oxygen it needed.

“What’s wrong with you, Alex? Huh? This is Zeus we’re talking about. That dog just proved she’d take a bullet for any one of us. Baby,” she pleaded, “our girl is alone, and she’s hurt. She needs us.”

“I know. You’re right. Let’s go. I’ll drive.”

He gestured to the truck in the driveway. Calder tossed him the keys, and she scrambled into the passenger seat.

“Hurry,” was all she said when he started the truck.

Jamie watched the interplay between his boss, the guy’s wife, and the beautiful black Labrador dog he was tending.

Zeus was an extraordinary animal; well cared for and healthy. She’d taken a thumping, that was for sure, but her X-rays were good, and the ultrasound revealed no lung damage. Nothing was broken and thankfully, no internal trauma. She’d been kicked hard, though, and was pretty bruised up, but nothing some TLC and a bit of rest wouldn’t cure.

Alex Marquez and his wife, Meghan, were two people he found curiously fascinating. They had an unusual vibe although he couldn’t put his finger on what kind of vibe. The weird desert kingdom the couple had going on was unlike anything he’d seen before. He fit in, and since he didn’t fit in anywhere—not anymore—he’d be daft not to be curious.

“Oh, sweetie,” Meghan was cooing to the dog. “Daddy’s here, and we love you.”

He liked animal people. Anyone who talked to their dog the way Meghan did was okay in his book. He tended not to trust people who didn’t have a pet.

The black dog whimpered and wagged her tail. It was clear she adored her owners. The family laughed and groaned through a round of happy, slobbering dog kisses.

“Jamie,” Alex said. “Can we take her home?” In a quieter voice, he added, “I doubt my wife is okay with leaving her in a kennel.”

He regarded his canine patient with a critical eye. She’d be fine at home with some careful modifications.

“She’s had a pretty strong pain pill. You can expect her to be loopy, and you’ll have to keep her still, but she can walk to do her business. No harness for now and don’t lift her around the middle.”

“Can she have a banana?” Meghan inquired. “Bananas are her favorite.”

Jamie smiled at the vivacious redhead. He bet she gave Alex a daily heart attack. She did not come off like someone who understood patience.

“Sure, Meghan. Bananas are fine. They’re full of good stuff but only as a treat, okay? Don’t go crazy.”

“Did you hear, sweetie? Dr. Hunter says you may have a banana.”

Alex chuckled and shook his head with amusement. “Two against one,” he murmured.

“I heard that,” Meghan grumbled.

“Wives.” His boss snickered. “Bionic ears.”

Jamie felt his mouth harden into a grim line. The subject of wives was not where he did his best work.

“Come on to my office, Alex,” he said. “And I’ll write up a plan for Zeus. Meghan,” he said quietly so as not to upset his patient. “I’ll send you home with some milder pain meds to help with her discomfort. You’ll know if she’s uncomfortable. Dogs can’t hide pain.”

“Thank you, Jamie. We appreciate you taking such good care of her.”

He smiled, a real smile not a professional courtesy. He liked these two. They seemed like genuinely good people.

Nodding at Alex, he gestured that he’d be in his office and left them with Zeus.

Alex paced back and forth in the back driveway at the Villa. He was waiting for Drae who he had no doubt would have alerted Cam.

Flexing his hand into a fist and shaking it out, he looked at his mangled knuckles and felt a red, angry haze descend upon him.

When he thundered through the dense brush and came upon his dog getting kicked, he reacted like Bruce Banner having a rage out and beat the intruder to a bloody pulp. If security hadn’t pulled him off, he wasn’t sure if he’d have stopped.

Richie goddamn motherfucking Zimmerman was inside the perimeter, and this time, no matter what the excuse, Alex was done with him. And he didn’t give a high holy fuck if his actions in the face of this latest incursion brought the whole thing down on them with alarming speed.

Enough. They’d been messed with enough. He’d been toyed with enough. It was time for Justice to do its thing.

Drae came tearing down the drive in his Mercedes and screeched to a stop. He leaped from the car, and for the first time in a very long time, Alex had the distinct impression the legendary kicker of ass was ready to tear people apart.

Alex spoke in short, direct sentences. “Take Zimmerman out into the desert. Don’t kill him but do whatever’s necessary to get me confirmation. No quarter until you hear the name come out of his fucking traitorous mouth. Understand me? And then I don’t care what you do with him. Tie the fucker up in a bow and deliver him to the ambassador for all I care. It’s his mess. Let him clean it up.”

“So that’s it then? It’s official? Bracken is behind this?”

Alex answered honestly. “That’s an educated guess. I’m still missing the why—aside from him being a giant asshole—but it’s there. Parker revealed that the Justice Department investigated Obsidian years ago. Guess who was tied to the money trail.”

“Holy shit. So Liang?”

Alex growled. “They lured him in to help them find a way inside. Fuckers.”

“Damn. How did we miss this?”

“Parker doesn’t know why, but the case went away, and with so much emphasis on the overseas stuff, it wasn’t missed.”

“Why would he go to such lengths, Alex? This isn’t just him hating you. Well, it is, but that level of hatred has to begin somewhere. And it certainly didn’t stop with Obsidian.”

“I need to talk to Smoke. She’s involved and might not know it, but my guess is she’s already connecting the dots. She and Parker intersect a couple of times, always for overseas stuff. I think she inadvertently stepped in something.”

“And Brody? What about him?”

“Same thing. He was part of something that, for whatever reason, Bracken had his fingers in. Jensen’s ping was how I zeroed in on the ambassador. We were never all in the same place at the same time. Parker was in DC a long time ago. Domineau’s CIA skirmishes were also a long time ago. There’s a decade separating some of these things. That meant someone with a long reach over a long period, someone accumulating power along the way and with enough power to pull heavy strings, was likely behind what looks like separate things.”

“Tell me again why he hates your guts.”

“I have no idea. I’ve always assumed it was a case of ego and power trying to squash contenders.”

“But you were never one of those shitheads. You were the last person to disrupt the sand in his play yard.”

He slammed his already mangled fist into his palm. “Exactly, Drae! What the fucking fuck, man!” he shouted. “There’s something else, something I can’t see that’s the source of his rage, and since his fuckery has been on the back burner since forever, something had to have happened to push him to strike out at me.”

Drae stroked his head. His eyes were everywhere. He was thinking. “What’s the timeframe? Two years maybe? Liang’s our only concrete data point, and he cut out that autumn when Lacey showed up. Wasn’t he gone by New Year?”

He nodded. “Is Cam on his way?”

“Yeah. Ben and Ria offered to babysit tonight for Dyl and Lily. Cam had to run into town for diapers, then he’ll be along. Hey, how’s Zeus? She okay, or are you telling tales?”

“Hunter says she’s going to be fine, and since my wife scared the socks out of his loafers, I’m fairly certain he meant it.”

“And what about you? That hand looks interesting. Is there anything left of Richie’s face?”

“That fucker got within spitting distance of my kids, my wife, and my parents. Then he kicked my dog. He’s lucky to be alive.”

“Are you serious about kicking the snot out of the guy? Hey, I’ll call Roman.” Drae sniggered. “Ooh, and Rafe. It’ll be just like old times. The bald giant can crack his knuckles and eye up Zimmerman’s ass for a DFP while Roman cleans his skull.”

“And what do you do?”

“Sinjin issues the smackdown,” he drawled. “And speaking of smacks, Olie’s staying at the no-tell motel. Why isn’t he in the compound?”

“One, he knows the rules, and two, because he’s a dick, that’s why. We don’t do security clearances for dates. No sucky-fucky inside the compound.”

“Are you serious?”

Alex made a face. “He’s banging his physical therapist.”

Drae laughed. “Is that included in his health plan?”

“Probably,” he drily retorted. “Damn Aussies. It’s the stupid accent. The guy scores panties like a pro bowler counts pins.”

“G’day, mate.” Drae sniggered in a dreadful Australian accent.

“He’ll be here once Ethan arrives. I gather the therapist doesn’t care for threesomes.”

They hooted with sarcastic laughter. The endless jokes about the Aussie commandos who were part Justice blood brothers and part pains in the ass would never get old or run out of steam.

“Are you still headed to Pete’s tonight? Victoria is all jacked up about Kelly’s sure to be triumphant takedown of every pool shark wannabe for a hundred miles.”

Because costume parties, pool halls, poker chips, bull riding, and rock and roll were what was expected—of all of them—the show would go on.

“Fuck yeah, we’re going. Finn cleared the bar for Thunder to practice, so basically we’re having a party. Tomorrow is the family costume thing, and then look out, Bendover, because the boys are back and ready to thunder in the desert.”

Carmen hollered from the kitchen door. “Are you two coming in or not?”

“Better go say hello.”

“Yeah, you go ahead. I have to call Parker about some band stuff. I’ll be in.”