“Aww, I can hear the love in your voice.”
I winked at her and she smiled.
“Where’s Taz, anyway? I thought you two would head out for beers or something.”
“He got a call from Montana.” I explained to her. “He tried getting a hold of you but…”
“Damn it.” Hannah sighed and dug for her cell. She frowned when she activated the screen. “I missed three calls from him. Today was a bit weird at the office. Are you going to eat?”
Honestly, I wasn’t going to until Taz returned, but I gave in and joined her. In the end, she shooed me from the kitchen and cleaned up herself. I took the moment to shower.
The first thingmy eyes caught were the mountains. I inhaled deeply, held the breath then exhaled slowly. I couldn’t remember a time I’d been so at pace.
I remained on my back, soaking in the silence. It wasn’t easy to be completely relaxed, but I wanted the view outside the window to imprint itself on my brain. Eventually, I peeled myself from the bed, showered and dressed. After a few quick texts to my brothers and parents, I descended the stairs in search of coffee.
Instead, I found Taz, Swede and Kujo.
“I wasn’t going to leave without—what’s wrong?” The look on their faces left me with an unsteady feeling in the pit of my stomach.
“You should probably sit down for this.” Swede told me.
I wasn’t going to but when he motioned toward the seat with his head, I knew something was up. Reluctantly, I sat but didn’t take my eyes off Taz.
Kujo slid a picture across the island toward me. The action forced me to look down.
I should have stayed in bed.
I pushed the photograph back to Kujo and stood. “Whatever she wants, the answer is no. I’m not interested.”
“Cobra…” Taz pleaded. “Come on. This isn’t a joke.”
“Did you hear a punchline?”
“She’s in trouble.” Swede pushed. “You’re a cop. Serve and protect, remember?”
“If she’s in trouble, have her call 9-1-1 like a regular person. I don’t want to have anything to do with her. Besides, I’m on vacation.”
“What’s the story here?” Taz asked.
“That’s none of your business.” I snapped. “If she wants protection, that’s your job. I’m sure her father can pay you. Anything else, Eagle Rocks has a police station.”
Swede grabbed my arm as I walked by him. “Cobra, we all took an oath. She’s in trouble, brother, serious trouble. I know this isn’t your jurisdiction, but you have history with her and might be the best person for this job.”
I bowed my head, anger, absolute rage tearing through me. The force of it made my vision blur and I wanted to scream.
“Do this as a favor for us.” Swede pushed.
“What’s wrong?” I asked while facing them.
“Good man.” Taz patted my shoulder.
“How long have you known her?” Swede asked.
“Since we were kids.” My voice cracked. “My father used to work for hers.”
“Her father has been a government contractor for years.” Swede continued. “He owns Sargent Contractors. His last assignment was in Colombia. Out of all of us, you know that geography.”
“We don’t know exactly what happened while he was working there, but now he has people after him.” Kujo picked up the story.
