Despite his worry, Brian couldn’t help but like Moriah.He had, at least, found a new respect for her last night.The woman had gone through hell and back and held it together like a trooper.She’d provided as much intel as she could on her sister’s boyfriend, had asked plenty of questions, and hadn’t shirked away from some hard answers.He had to give her credit for her courage.
Making a left turn, he glanced into his rearview mirror.Two cars back, a black SUV made the same turn.It appeared to be the same vehicle that had pulled away from the curb behind him when he’d left the SBI headquarters.Was it his imagination, or was he being followed?
Time to find out.
KC’s cell phone rang when his uncle arrived with breakfast, and he answered it as he unlocked the porch door to let Dan and his canine companion in.“Malone.”
His brother’s terse voice came over the line.“I picked up a fucking tail at the office this morning—a black Explorer with Illinois plates.Three male occupants.I’ve been taking them on a very dull tour of Dare County.The tags come back to an Andrew Peters of Chicago.”
Grabbing a pen and pad from the dining table, KC jotted down the name, plate, and address his brother rattled off.“I’ll have Sean call Agent Samson and have him track down the registered owner.In the meantime, make your way over toward the beach house.When you’re about five minutes away, give me a heads-up, and we’ll meet you in the driveway.I want them to see Moriah and identify her.They won’t dare fucking try anything with us surrounding her in broad daylight, especially knowing there’s a state investigator present.”
“I take it you have a plan.”
Not exactly, more like half a plan, which was still developing.“Yup.I’ll fill you in when you get here.Don’t forget to give us a couple of minute’s notice.”
“You got it.I’m about a half hour away ...see you in a bit.”
KC hung up the phone and found Dan, Sean, and Moriah staring at him, and he told them about Brian’s tail.“As soon as the guys in the Ford have a good view of Moriah, we’ll work on moving her from the cottage without them noticing.Uncle Dan, can you hide her at your apartment until this is over?”When the older man rolled his eyes at the stupid question, his nephew continued.“Good.In the meantime, we’ll make it seem like everyone else is leaving Moriah and me here alone.Three against one guy and a woman?They’ll be cocky enough to try and take us on.They’ll wait for dark before attacking, but we’ll have a few surprises waiting for them.”
Curious and unsure, Moriah asked, “What kind of surprises do you have in mind?”
KC’s eyes sparkled with mischief.“The fun and nasty kind.”
For the next fifteen minutes, while Moriah and Dan prepared breakfast, the two brothers made themselves busy by making a few phone calls.Sean called Agent Samson and gave him the license tags on the Ford, which had been following Brian.The agent didn’t recognize the owner’s name as being involved with the drug dealers and would have someone check the guy out for him.He also advised Sean the DEA had just received word of a huge shipment of drugs being brought into Chicago tonight.Apparently, Adrian Hernandez was going to be present, along with several other key players, and the DEA was scrambling to secure search and arrest warrants for the huge bust.He promised to call Sean after all the arrests were made.
In the meantime, KC had been on the phone with T3, arranging a few surprises for their Illinois guests.Before returning to Whisper, the man would pack some toys and pick up fellow teammates Troy “Trouble” Mason and Rigby “Peanut” Banks.KC told T3 to pass on to Peanut that he would have to do a little cross-dressing.
Banks was smaller than most SEALs at five foot six and 170 pounds of solid muscle, but he was one of the toughest sons of bitches KC had ever met.Due to his size, though, he was often used as a decoy.Armed with Moriah’s description, he would choose a wig and some clothes to play her part.
KC trusted these men with his life, and even more importantly, he trusted them with his woman’s life.And Moriah wasdefinitelyhis woman, and after she was safe, he planned on making the title permanent—if she would have him.
His thoughts were interrupted by his cell phone ringing in his hand.Checking the screen, he noted it was Brian calling again.“What’s your ETA?”
“Less than five,” was the brief response before his brother hung up.
“Showtime, people.”
The three Malones escorted Moriah three-quarters of the way down the drive, flanking her so no one could get a clear shot of her.Being a federal agent, Sean had his holstered gun in full view.Jinx trailed behind the group, sniffing the ground.It wasn’t long before Brian’s unmarked state vehicle pulled up, further blocking any shot but making sure Moriah could be seen and identified.
Stepping out of the car, he greeted the foursome.“They’re about a block and a half behind me.”
From where they were standing, Sean was the only one who could observe the vehicle without being obvious.Trusting his brothers to have his back, KC didn’t bother to turn in the direction indicated.“We’ll just stand here chatting until they decide to do a drive-by.”
While they waited, he filled Brian in with the rest of the plan.When they were finished here, Brian and Uncle Dan would leave.Their uncle would go to his apartment and wait for Moriah’s arrival while Brian went back to work for a few hours before returning.The others would remain in the cottage, awaiting the arrival of KC’s teammates.After creating a diversion, they would sneak Moriah out of the area via an ATV on the beach, which T3 was bringing with him.Peanut would enter the same way.
Once Moriah was safely hidden above the hardware store, Sean would make a big production about leaving and then meet up with Brian later.After leaving Dan’s, T3 and Trouble would return to the cottage with the rest of their gear, again from the beach, to help set the trap.From that point, they would just have to wait for the bad guys to walk into it.
As KC finished laying it all out, Sean spoke.“They’re making their drive-by.”
Everyone acted casual as the Explorer cruised by doing the local 25-miles-per-hour speed limit.Moriah held her breath and forced herself not to glance at the vehicle as it eased past the driveway on the opposite side of the road.When they were certain the occupants had seen her, the Malones broke up the group.Brian and Dan, with Jinx following, headed to their respective vehicles while the others walked up the driveway with Moriah between the two men.
Brian steered his car in the direction the Ford had taken to see if he could find where the out-of-towners were setting up their surveillance.The day was cool and overcast, so very few locals would be out, and the beach was basically deserted.If any of the men after Moriah were on the beach when it was time to bring in the ATVs, KC would contact Sheriff Griffin and coordinate a visit from the beach patrol to clear the way.
Inside the house, Moriah was trembling as she wrapped her arms around KC’s narrow waist.“What do we do now?”
Holding her tightly, he kissed her gently, even though the rage he felt for the men in the SUV was coursing through his veins.“Now, we wait for reinforcements, and then the boys and I get to have some fun.”
Chapter21
