“Hopefully, we stopped them in their tracks,” Rebecca said. “We’ll stay here until we hear from the team.” She returned to her position and waited. Her mind drifted to Julio. Anger simmered as she realized he left her out of this without giving her a choice.
Mac entered, handing her a com piece. “Ragu wants you to have one. He says you’re in charge of the men inside the house. We have eyes everywhere on the property. We’ll take snacks to Delaney and rotate bathroom breaks. We’re in for a long afternoon.”
“Better safe than sorry,” she murmured, placing the com in her ear. “When will Leo’s team arrive?”
“They said three hours, but I haven’t heard from them. Usually, Matthew texts from the plane,” Mac said, worried.
“They’ll contact us when it’s safe. Will the men in here listen to my orders?” she asked.
“If they want to keep their job,” Mac said firmly as he peered at Rebecca. “Will you be able to handle this?”
“It’s my job,” Rebecca assured him.
The men fidgetedas they waited for the plane to descend. Leo sat across from Julio, who felt like he wanted to jump out of his skin.
“How’s Jameson?” Julio asked.
“Patch knocked him out and fixed his nose. Without a scan, he can only guess the damage by what he feels. If Jameson’s swearing is any indicator, he’ll be fine,” Leo assured him. “What about you?”
“How do you think I’m feeling? I left Rebecca and the others alone. Maybe I’ve lost my edge. It took me forever to find Rebecca. She continues to insist she only did her job. What did she tell you about… her time away?” Julio asked, his voice turning low.
Leo frowned. “Do you mean to tell me you’ve stayed with this woman for this long on the same ranch and you’ve yet to speak about what happened to her?”
Julio stared at his friend, his chest heaving with his rage boiling to the surface.
“She asked to speak with you when we arrived in Serenity Mountain,” Julio seethed.
“Get your head out of your ass. Rebecca shared the information on the women and their whereabouts,” Leo informed him. “She’s your responsibility. It’s not my job to push her for the hard questions.”
Julio swiped his hand through his hair. “I don’t know what to say to her. I’m so fucking angry. When I think of what they did to her...” He paused.
The men congregated around him. Matthew sat beside Leo. “We’ve all found ourselves at a loss with our women at one pointor another. Hell, I’m at a loss now,” Leo confided. “It doesn’t mean we don’t need help once in a while.”
“I’ve watched you with Rebecca. You two tiptoe around one another and avoid talking about the hard stuff,” Matthew chimed in. “She walks around the ranch like she’s still a CIA agent. Has she checked in with her office since she arrived home?”
“No. At least she hasn’t said anything about it,” Julio said, stroking the overgrown scruff along his jaw. “Rebecca refuses counseling and claims she did her job. I mentioned something about helping the victims, and she hastily corrected me. Kara’s coming out of her shell, and I expect she’ll ask to meet her mom soon. I can get a teen to trust me, but not the woman I love.”
“Stop feeling sorry for yourself, jackass,” Patch added his two cents. “Rebecca went through this, not you. It’s your job to make her feel safe. When she does, Rebecca will need more from you than ever.”
“It took me too long to find her. Jameson and I ran every lead, and it took me almost a year. If we located her sooner, she wouldn’t have to go through this,” Julio said, pinching his nose.
“We assisted in those leads, too, and we didn’t come any closer than you did. Does it mean we’re all failures?” Leo asked.
“No, but you don’t care about her as I do,” Julio muttered.
Leo leaned forward, making Julio glance up at him. His leader’s jaw ticked and his eyes turned icy. “Rebecca’s part of our family. You’re focusing on what happened to her, not what she needs now. I suggest you take Patch’s advice and become the man I hired. Stop second-guessing yourself. We find and take down the ring that stole her from you. It’s your job to help her heal, no matter how much it hurts. We held Doc up during Kassie’s kidnapping. We supported Michael while Lizzy fought cancer. Hell, they watched over Kit Kat while I wrestled with my own demons. Butthead over here,” Leo gestured towardMatthew. “Fell in love with the town pariah and carried on a secret affair. We found out when he manned up and asked for help rescuing her. The team rallied around Taco when Tess nearly died. You’re one of our brothers. Do you think we won’t move heaven and hell to support you?”
“I don’t need it. Rebecca does,” Julio murmured.
“That’s where you’re wrong, brother,” Shadow said, crossing his arms. “It’s time you helped Rebecca face what happened to her. Stand by her side while she heals. You must deal with your feelings and what you’ve gone through for the last year. Lean on us when your burdens become too heavy.”
Julio peered at the group of men who offered him the support he didn’t realize he lacked. Then it hit him like a ton of bricks. Over the last year, the team worked on leads and Matthew communicated between them. He and Jameson went black for weeks at a time. Instead of seeing them as brothers working toward a common goal, Julio considered himself working alone. With Jameson’s cover blown, they needed to find a new way to penetrate the ring. Searching for Rebecca cost his team. Jameson, Matthew, and he needed support until they built their own band of brothers like the one before him. First, he needed to get to Rebecca. Then, they needed to face what happened head-on. With love, patience, and time, hopefully, they’d find a way to heal. Julio refused to leave his partner. Over time, their friendship blossomed into a world Julio never knew existed. And one his heart knew he couldn’t live without.
“I appreciate every one of you,” Julio said humbly. “This last year turned rougher than I imagined. I let my fear get to me. Thanks for showing up when I didn’t see you and for continuing to do so now.”
Leo sipped his coffee, gazing at Julio. “Taco, Shadow, grab the schematic of the ranch. Let’s search for any weak areas and plug them up. I don’t know when they’ll arrive, but it’sinevitable. At least now, we’ll know how to discover the trackers. The rest of you grab some shut-eye because you’ll take the night shifts.”
The team followed his command without hesitation, except for Matthew.
