Chapter Eighteen
Reed’s fingers gripped the steering wheel, his knuckles white and his palms sweaty. Outwardly he hoped he conveyed a sense of ease and calm, but inside his guts were churning and he could taste the acid in the back of his throat. There was a real fear that Bryson was watching and might ambush them just as he had done with the marshals.
To protect the women and children, he and his friends had put them in the middle of their small convoy. He’d persuaded Kaylee to ride with Logan, Ava, and the twins and they were currently in the minivan right in front of him. Griffin sat in Reed’s passenger seat while Jason and Jared led the group in their vehicle with Amy and Mike right behind.
Tanner and Seth were planning to meet them at the new safe house. With any luck, they’d all arrive safe and alive.
Funny how the drive to the cabin in the daytime hadn’t been this nerve-wracking, but then Bryson’s body count had been lower. The psychopath was determined to fuck with Logan before killing him in some strange “clean up the Bryson family name” vendetta. Logan didn’t even use the Bryson name and he was a damn fine upstanding citizen. As far as Reed was concerned, that looney tune was using it all as an excuse to kill. Because he fucking enjoyed it, the bastard. Wade Bryson got his jollies killing people. End of story. He also knew he was never going to be as good as Logan, so he’d decided to wipe him off the face of the earth.
Reed and his friends weren’t about to let that happen.
That meant they had to make this drive without anyone getting killed or injured. There weren’t any streetlights out this far and it was as dark as the devil’s asshole out here. They’d made the decision to keep their headlights off, so that meant that they had to keep their speed down since no one could see a goddamn thing. They were literally traveling by the light of the moon and their satellite navigation systems. Thank heaven it was a clear night.
The only good news was that if they couldn’t see anything, then neither could Bryson and whomever was helping him.
They only had to do this for a little while longer and then they’d be out in the open on a major highway. They’d gone back and forth for awhile about whether they should stick to the side roads but had finally decided that Bryson wouldn’t want to be anywhere around large numbers of people. That was another reason they’d chosen the Denver area.
Griffin shifted in his seat, craning his neck to see in the darkness. “Jesus, I never realized just how dark it gets away from the city lights. It’s like driving through black ink.”
Sweat trickling down Reed’s back, he could only nod in agreement. The heater blasted hot air into the vehicle and he would have reached over to turn it down, but he didn’t want to take his eyes from the road for a second. He couldn’t see the damn knob anyway, so he’d just have to sweat. Assuming it was the temperature making him sweat and not the stress.
While Reed drove, Griffin was supposed to keep his eyes peeled for anything out of the ordinary and that meant anything literally. Animals, cars, unexplained lights. Whatever might be a threat to their safety. The silence stretched on as the minutes ticked slowly by, each one taking them closer to civilization. Reed wasn’t sure whether he would be relieved or even more wary. Complacency was the enemy.
“Jason said that you were the one that swayed the vote on going after Bryson.”
The road was becoming less twisty and Reed’s tension had lowered a notch or two. His fingers loosened on the steering wheel and he brought his right hand down to dry the damp palm on his jeans.
“I guess,” Reed finally replied. “As I said it’s crazy to keep doing the same thing and just hoping shit gets better. It’s not getting better, it’s only getting worse.”
“He’s taking this too personally. He’s too emotional and he’s going to get someone killed.”
Him being Logan.
“Maybe,” Reed conceded. “I have to say though I’ve seen Logan go cold as ice in certain situations. He’s not a hothead. But yeah, this situation is a cluster of mammoth proportions and he’s at the center of it all. And that’s personal. I don’t see how it can’t be personal. This is about Bryson and Logan. And in the end, it’s going to be between the two of them. When the time comes, let him take the shot. Fuck, he’s earned it.”
“Has it already been decided? Bryson’s not going back to prison?”
There was no censure in Griffin’s tone. None at all.
“No, but you know how accurate Logan’s gut is?” Griffin nodded in the darkness. “Well, his gut is telling him that Bryson isn’t going back to prison. It’s going to be dead or alive and only one of them walks away. Or maybe he’s watched too many Charles Bronson movies. Either way, I don’t think this guy is going to just throw up his hands and surrender. He doesn’t want to go back and be a guest of the state and he has to know that this time he’ll go to Florence. I’m guessing he’d rather go to hell than a Supermax.”
“And Bryson will take out anyone in his way.”
Was that what this was about?
“He will. Are you worried? You don’t have to do this, you know. We can get you on the plane and you can watch over the women and kids. No one would question you.”
“That’s not it. I just can’t help but wonder…” Griffin paused as if gathering his thoughts. “What makes a person go so far to the other side? What sent this guy on a one-way trip to suicide by cop?”
“He did see his father murder his mother,” Reed reminded his friend. “And God knows what else. I don’t know enough about sociopaths to know whether they’re born or made. Maybe a little of both. Logan says that Bryson wants to go out in a blaze of glory. He wants news coverage, headlines, and books written about him.”
“That’s sick as shit.”
“Damn right. I’m making it my personal mission to make sure that he doesn’t become famous. The day after we capture him I want him to be completely forgotten by the public. No books. No movies. No groupies. Lock him up and throw away the key. He can never be rehabilitated.”
“This has to be driving Logan out of his mind. The rising body count has to be making him crazy.”
“It is,” Reed confirmed. “Frankly, I’m surprised we were able to keep him in check this long. He won’t be happy until he’s put an end to Bryson’s reign of terror.”
The crackling of the radio captured their attention as Jared announced that they were taking the next exit to the main highway. They would begin seeing other vehicles in a few minutes.
Stay alert and vigilant.
* * * *
Kaylee was beginning to lose count as to how many times she’d packed and re-packed her suitcase. They were in another house, this time in an affluent suburb outside of Boulder. They’d arrived in the middle of the night like thieves, sneaking out of their camp and into this home.
She’d barely noticed it last night, intent on getting the twins settled into bed and making sandwiches for the hungry men, but it was quite lovely. High ceilings, oak floors, and large airy rooms. The home was surrounded by tall trees which would block anyone’s view into the windows, which she assumed was by design. Did these innocent suburbanites realize that the United States government owned this home and kept key witnesses under cover here? Probably not.
After getting a bite to eat, she’d eventually fallen into a deep sleep despite all the caffeine she’d ingested that evening, but it hadn’t been restorative in the least. She was just as tired as when she went to bed. This situation was starting to wear on her and she could only imagine how Ava and Logan felt. She’d crawled out of bed this morning and taken a shower but now standing in front of the bathroom mirror wrapped in a towel she barely had the energy to put on a coat of mascara.
I’m only going on an airplane. Does anyone really care how I look?
“Hey, babe.”
Reed stuck his head around the doorway, his face covered in stubble and his hair askew from running his fingers through it. If he’d come to bed at any time last night, she hadn’t stirred. More likely, he and the others had stayed up talking about plans and strategy. His eyes were slightly red-rimmed and he looked…exhausted. He needed about a week of sleep. They all did really, but that wasn’t in the cards.
“Hey. I don’t suppose you got any sleep last night?”
Shaking his head, he stepped into the steamy bathroom. “I’ll try and catch a nap after we take you to the airport. Josie and Evan are meeting us there which is outstanding news. You’ll be even more protected on the flight down.”
Evan, of course, was a former US Marshal and Josie was no slouch either. When she’d met Evan, she’d been on the run for a crime she didn’t commit. Smart and resourceful, she had successfully dodged the bad guys after her all on her own until Evan had stepped in to help.
“That’s really nice of them. I thought we’d just meet them in Florida.” She scraped her wet hair away from her face. “I was just trying to figure out if I needed to put any makeup on.”
“You don’t need it.”
Checking out her pale face in the mirror, she stuck out her tongue at the reflection. “Men always say that but it’s not really true. I need makeup but I’m too tired to apply it.”
Slowly, as if she might push him away, Reed slid his arms around her, pulling her close despite the damp towel she was wearing. He was going to get his clothes wet. “It’s true. You don’t need it. You’re beautiful just the way you are. Drop dead gorgeous.”
Only a man in love could say those things and actually look like he truly meant it. Her insides melted into goo and she rested her head against his chest, the steady thump of his own heart under her cheek.
“You’re wrong but I love hearing that kind of stuff.”
“I’m not wrong. You’re just hard on yourself.”
That seemed to be a trend. After talking to Ava, she was trying hard to be kinder to herself but habits die hard.
“I’m going to miss you.”
His strong hands ran up and down her back, dislodging the towel so that it fell to the floor. His rough fingertips glided down her spine and she couldn’t help her shiver in response. It felt so amazing to be touched and cuddled. She’d missed this so much.
“I’ll miss you too, but this will all be over before you know it. Then I promise you we’ll make a new start.”
“You didn’t expect it to go on this long.”
“That’s true but this time Logan is going after Bryson personally. It won’t be long now.”
Her arms tightened around his lean middle and she took a lungful of his delicious scent so she could hold onto it while they were apart. “Promise me you’ll be careful. That you won’t take any stupid chances.”
Reed was the quintessential man’s man with complete and utter self-confidence when it came to law enforcement. Luckily, he had the skills to back up that confidence but it didn’t make the worry gnawing at her stomach go away.
He leaned back, his hand cupping her chin so she had to look up into his eyes. “You’re not going to lose me. I’m going to dog your heels forever.”
She’d be happy if that were true, but Wade Bryson had left a trail of bodies in his wake.
“Bryson is a cold-blooded killer.”
“He’s not the first I’ve gone after.”
“True, but he’s desperate, Reed, and he doesn’t care what he does or who he hurts. He’s not your average criminal.”
“We’ll work as a team. They’ve got my back and I’ve got theirs.”
Kaylee trusted these men, but she couldn’t shake the sense of foreboding that had come over her. She wanted to hold on to Reed and never let go.
“I know. I just worry. I don’t want anything to happen to you or anyone else, for that matter. If I lost you now–”
Emotion tightened her throat and she couldn’t finish what she was going to say. She was basically sending her husband off to battle and that wasn’t an action to be taken lightly.
His fingers stroked her cheek and his thumb slipped over her lips before he bent his head and kissed her, slow and soft at first, but then that familiar passion flared and the kiss became something far more. More eager, more passionate, and definitely more promise. This was the absolute worst moment and they didn’t have time, but Kaylee needed to be close to Reed. As close as possible.
Reed pulled back reluctantly but his hands didn’t stop caressing her skin. “We don’t have time.”
She frantically tugged at the bottom of his t-shirt, desperate to be with him one more time. “Then you’d better hurry.”
Reed seemed to pick up on her urgency, stripping off his t-shirt so her hands could roam all over his tanned skin. As always, she was endlessly fascinated by his body, so hard and different from her own. Her fingers traced the ridges of his abdomen as he pulled her closer for another kiss, their tongues playing a heated game of tag.
They shouldn’t be doing this and they didn’t have time but dammit, they were going to get it done. Underneath the worn denim he was hard and ready, so she traced the outline of his cock, drawing a groan from his lips.
Lifting her off of the ground, he settled her onto the vanity, pressing her knees apart while kissing a wet trail down the middle of her body. What was he doing?
“We don’t have time for that.”
He looked up from where his mouth hovered over her mound, a smile playing on his lips.
“There’s always time, baby. Sit back and let me drive.”
There was nothing Reed loved more than being in control when it came to sex. Most of the time Kaylee was happy for him to take the lead, but every now and then she wanted to be in charge, too.
Now was not one of those times. She was happy for Reed to run the show.
The first touch of his tongue had her arching and twisting underneath him, but his hands on her hips held her firmly in his grasp. She was helpless as he placed her legs over his shoulders and his mouth did magic things, making her blood sizzle and flames to lick at her veins. Her head fell back onto the mirror but she barely noticed as her arousal built quickly. He wasn’t teasing her as he normally did. Reed Mitchell had gone in for the kill and damn if he wasn’t going to send her over practically in seconds.
The steam in the bathroom drifted around them, the heat almost consuming Kaylee as her body exploded in a series of waves that had her trembling and digging her nails into Reed’s shoulders. She’d barely caught her breath when she heard the metallic sound of his zipper and then a string of curse words as he tried to free his cock. There was no sweet nothings or buildup. She was wet and ready and he plunged in deep. Kaylee cried out at the invasion but not from pain. It was like being bathed in a pool of infinite pleasure, the water gushing over her as he rode her hard and fast.
They were both breathing heavy and ragged as the pressure began to build toward another climax. Reed knew her so well, their bodies completely in tune with one another. He knew exactly what to do to send her over the edge, his cock unerringly finding that sweet spot inside of her. He ran over it time after time, pushing himself closer to the cliff as well. When they both fell over, they held each other close for the entire drop to earth. Kaylee clutched Reed, her legs wrapped around his waist and her arms around his neck, holding on for dear life.
It was quick, hot, dirty, and exactly what she needed before boarding a plane to Florida. He held her for a little while but not nearly as long as she would have liked. The world outside of these walls called to both of them. They had business and commitments. Places to be and people to protect.
Wade Bryson was still out there and until he was captured, there would be no rest.