The men looked up as the front door opened. Camo took the lead and Jake and Kyle stepped out while Sargent Williams held the door open. “Give my love to little Ardie,” he told Kyle, who laughed.
“You know it embarrasses Arden when her dad’s old friends call her that.”
“Which is exactly why I do it. Take care.” Williams met Brock’s eyes and gave him a chin lift.Looks like Kyle’s managed to smooth everything outBrock thought.But will he support my mission?
He studied Kyle and Jake as they walked toward him. Kyle said something, Jake nodded, and then headed off in the direction of the festival grounds.
“Wait up,” Brock called and started after Jake.
“Negative. Get in my SUV,” Kyle told Brock as he got Camo situated in his crate.
Oh, here’s the lecture I was expecting. “Farm’s only a couple minutes’ walk.”
“You’re not going back to the festival. Now get in.” Kyle gestured to the passenger-side of the vehicle as Wolf climbed into the back seat.
“But Brianna—”
“Is under the protection of Watchdog even as we speak. Now get the hell in the truck, Badger, that’s an order.”
Brock saw the wisdom in not fighting his new boss and climbed in.
Kyle started the SUV and backed out onto the road and headed east—away from the farm.This just gets better and betterBrock thought. “Look, I’m sorry, Boss.”
Kyle held up a hand. “Good start. But I also want to say that I trust your instincts.”
What?That was unexpected.
“Williams is a good lawman, but in this case, I think he’s wrong,” Kyle continued. “Talking to both Brianna and Rachael, that car swerved right at them but didn’t finish the job. Now, it coulda been a couple of dumb, joyriding motherfuckers who saw an opportunity to scare some women for fun. Or, it coulda been a warning.”
Brock breathed a sigh of relief. “Kinda what I was thinking.”
“I don’t know if this Jerold guy is so hellbent on winning this competition that he would bribe a couple of douchebags to do in a rival, though it seems counterintuitive to take out one of the judges.”
“Unless they didn’t know who Rachael was. Maybe they only had a description of Brianna and knew where she’d be.”
Kyle shook his head. “I’m perplexed, man. At the end of the day, all I can say is that I think there’s more to this than a coincidence.”
“Agreed,” Wolf added.
“So, while Williams is gonna dismiss it, I’m taking the opposite side and looking at every possibility.”
Kyle took a left and made a U-turn, sending them back toward the farm, Brock noticed. “Not even gonna attempt to tell you again to steer clear of Brianna, because—and stop me if I’m wrong—you won’t listen to me anyway.”
“Got that right.”
“Yeah, I do. So hell, lean into it and see what you can find out—if there’s anythingtofind out. But look, like I told you, I’ve seen how getting involved with a client can really mess shit up. So, I hope you appreciate that I’m threading a needle here. I know it’s already happening so I can’t shut it down and I’m not going to do the bullshit of turning a blind eye or having you deny the truth. But if I see it becoming a problem, I’m stepping in. Fair?”
Damn. Again, Brock was blindsided. “Aye, sir. Totally fair.”
“And one more thing. I hear that surprise in your voice. You gotta know you can trust me, trust your new team, and that we trust you. I know it’s a rough transition, going from military to civilian life, but we’ve got your six. And I’m personally grateful to you for giving my fiancée that last letter from her brother.”
Brock’s chest tightened. “It was an honor.”
Kyle pulled up to the farm’s entrance. Wolf leaned forward and tagged Brock’s shoulder. “You’ve got this, brother.”
“Thanks, man.” Brock stuck his comm in his ear, exited the SUV, and headed for the gate.
Music permeated the air as Brock entered the grounds. If the other contestants were shaken up by the day’s events, he couldn’t hear it in their playing. Brock’s body immediately relaxed in response, an effect he never expected.If this keeps up, I may have to exchange my classic rock card for folk, country, and bluegrass.
