Cowboy Rescue [Men for Hire 1] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (3 page)

He waited until she’d gotten everything out that she’d wanted to say. Each woman who called always spoke in one of two ways.

The first kind of woman she was timid, and he’d have to coax her into speaking louder, reassuring her by his words even as the volume of his voice rattled her. But, with enough urging, she’d finally give him the details he needed.

The other kind of woman would rush though her explanation of why she’d called, and he’d have to back her up to ask questions about what she’d already said. The woman calling him now was the second kind.

“So you haven’t seen him at all?” He peered closer at the dot growing larger on the horizon. If a full moon hadn’t been sitting high in the night sky, he wouldn’t have seen the truck. Mike and Brad Granger were coming back from getting supplies from Tulsa. The fact that they were coming back so late meant that they’d stopped for a few beers. He didn’t mind as long as they got their work done. Besides, men like the Grangers had to be handled with care. If he micromanaged them, they’d be gone before the next dawn.

“No. But I feel like I’m being watched. No. I
know
I’m being watched. He told me so.”

He didn’t bother asking how she knew. Often a woman’s intuition was better than factual evidence to the contrary. He gave her his e-mail address and told her to forward the man’s e-mails to him. “Has he made any threats?”

“No. Other than to say he’s coming for me.”

His gaze darted to the photograph of his wife Julie that rested on the credenza behind his huge wooden desk. Her image smiled back at him, but it could never erase the heartache of that life-changing phone call. He’d just come out of a meeting with his commanding officer when the corporal had pulled him aside and handed him the phone.

“Gabe?”

He’d known right away that Julie was dead. There was no other reason for his estranged brother to call him. But he hadn’t expected to hear that she’d been raped then strangled in their home back in the States. Guilt had almost floored him. He’d left her alone in Oklahoma with no family to look after her. Afghanistan had never felt so far away as it had that day.

A few months later, he was discharged and on his way back to Tulsa. A year later, he’d found himself still unemployed, so he’d sold his home, and, with money he’d squirreled away for the dream home they’d never get to enjoy, he’d bought the ranch. That was over three years ago, and, along with men he’d selected to work with him on the ranch as well as the business, he’d managed to help a large number of women. It didn’t make him feel any less guilty for not being there for Julie, but it helped him sleep at night.

“Did he say when or how he’d be coming for you?”

She paused, and he silently urged her to go on. A knock came at the door a moment before Mike and Brad Granger stepped into the room followed by their younger brother, Jack. They all wore the usual attire of jeans, boots, and T-shirts. Only Brad still had his cowboy hat on. They were good cowboys, ones he could count on to handle the cattle and horses the way he would. All three liked doing rodeos whenever they could, but ranch work along with the occasional rescue mission kept them too busy to do the circuit.

Gabriel pushed the big silver belt buckle away from his growing midsection. He needed to get out from behind the desk soon and get some real exercise running the cattle. But it seemed more and more women were calling for help, and he’d be damned if he’d turn them down.

He motioned for them to take a seat, but as usual Jack stayed on his feet. He was the restless one of the trio, ever ready to keep on the go.

Showing his military training, Brad sat tall and straight as though ready to address his commanding officer. Mike, on the other hand, slumped in the chair, but that was only a facade. As a former undercover cop, he was good at hiding his training, but was always ready to spring into action. Jack’s training was all at Gabriel’s and his brothers’ hands, but he was just as hard and competent as they were.

“Miss? Tell me.” He didn’t want to push her too hard, but he needed as much info as she’d give him.

Her voice echoed in his ear. “No. Does that mean anything?”

She was young, in her midtwenties, from the timbre of her voice. His caller ID pegged her as living in Destiny. At least she was close by. The last woman they’d helped had been in Montana.

“Have you ever heard his voice? Has he called you or spoken to you while he was staying out of sight?”

“No. He’s only contacted me through the e-mails.”

It was crazy. A man in love with a picture, and he didn’t care that the woman he’d been chatting with wasn’t the same person. But then again, the world was filled with crazies.

He passed the paper where he’d written her name and address down to Mike along with a couple of the e-mails. Mike picked them up then sat back, grimaced at what he read, then gave them to Brad. Brad had the same reaction then handed them over to Jack, but kept the paper with her address on it. Jack gave a low whistle then tossed the sheets back onto the desk.

In the meantime, Gabriel had already forwarded her information to Fletcher Owens, his IT guy. Fletcher would have the scoop on one Miss Maria Franklin in less than an hour.

“Do you have a friend or family member you can stay with?” He arched an eyebrow as Brad, the oldest of the Granger men at thirty, helped himself to a shot of his favorite whiskey. Mike grabbed a glass and motioned for Brad to fill his, too. Jack, as usual, shook his head, refusing the drink.

“No. All my family lives in Michigan. Besides, I don’t want to put anyone else at risk.”

She was a good person. He sensed that about her from her voice as well as her desire to keep others safe. “Okay. It’s late. Make sure every door and window is locked. Then go into your bedroom, lock it, and stay put until morning.”

“Do you think he’s coming tonight?” Her voice was threaded with fear.

“No, I don’t. But, just in case I’m wrong, I want you to take care. We’ll contact you tomorrow. Stay home until we do.”

“But I have to teach.”

She was a teacher. Fletcher would tell him where soon enough.

“Call in sick. In fact, tell them that you’re taking at least a week off. Tell them it’s a family emergency. Or that it’s your doctor’s orders. Say whatever you have to say, but stay home.”

“But what if he…comes tonight?”

“I’m not going to lie. He might. But I don’t think so. He’s spent too much time working up to meeting you. From the e-mails you sent me, he’s loving the anticipation, and I don’t think he’s ready to give that up yet.”

“So he’s playing with me? I thought as much.”

At least she has good instincts.
“Yeah. He is.”

Brad’s dark gaze met his, and he nodded.
Yeah. We’ve got another one.
“Lock up, and if you have a gun, don’t be afraid to use it. We’ll be there tomorrow.”

“How will I know you?”

He slammed a hand down when Brad started to pour himself another drink.
Damn Grangers. Always drinking my booze.
“Don’t worry. You’ll know us.”

* * * *

“What’s up?”

Brad’s skin crawled as it did every time they got a new client. Like Gabriel, his brothers, and the other men who worked with Gabriel, he hated hearing about a woman in trouble. He’d never understand why men thought they had the right to put their hands on a woman. He’d hated watching his father slap his mother around, and once he’d grown big enough, he’d almost torn his father apart. The judge, an advocate of women’s rights, had caught a lot of flak when he’d given Brad a choice: either jail time or the army.

“She’s white, although I can hear a touch of a Hispanic accent. And a teacher. Seems some idiot set up a phony Friends Place page using her photographs.”

Brad snorted. “So? People do that all the time. It’s called catfishing. That hardly calls for our help.”

The six-foot, four-inch Gabriel lurched across his desk and snatched the whiskey bottle out of Brad’s hands. “Get your paws off my hooch.”

“Sure, sure. You on your period, old man?”

The growl Gabriel gave him was real, one that he heard a lot. Nonetheless, he knew from experience that the big man’s heart was as big as his head. Problem was, his bite was as bad as his bark, too. “Piss off.”

Brad didn’t jump to the bait. “Okay, so tell us what the problem is.”

“Some creep that was e-mailing back and forth to whoever set the fake page up has decided he’s fallen in love with her.”

“Let me guess. She told him it wasn’t her contacting him, but he doesn’t care. He’s all about her looks, right?” Mike started to put his feet on top of the desk then jerked them away at Gabriel’s glare.

“Right. You three are going to Destiny tomorrow and do some snooping around. Hang loose and out of sight until she gets out of school, then let her know you’re there.”

“You told her not to go in.”

Gabriel poured himself two fingers’ worth. “She’s not going to listen to me. Once the sun comes up, she’ll get less skittish and do what she thinks she has to do. That’s how teachers are.”

“Then why wait? Why not go tonight?” He hated it, but Gabriel liked to have the details dragged out of him.

“I don’t think he’s going to do anything tonight. I want to put Fletcher on the website and see what he can dig up before you go in. He’s already digging up details about our client that I’ll give you in the morning.”

“But why send all three of us? This seems like an easy job. Get in, knock some sense into the dude, then get out.” Brad sensed Jack shifting from one foot to the other. As he’d been all his life, Jack was antsy and ready to get going. To where didn’t always matter.

“Call it a hunch, but I think there’s more to this than we know. And that more isn’t good.”

“Call it a hunch.” Crap. I hate it when he says that.

Brad gnawed on his lower lip. Gabriel’s hunches had a bad way of turning out to be right.

“Well? What are you three waiting for? Get packed and ready to head out tomorrow.”

“You got it, Charlie.” Brad grinned, grabbed the bottle, and hurried to the door. Not only would Gabriel knock him upside the head for taking his booze, but he’d do so for referring to him as their Charlie like the one from Charlie’s Angels. Never mind that they were a long way away from being angels.

Brad led the way out to the great tree that stood in the middle of the adjoining pasture. From there, he could still see the two-story farmhouse as well as the two barns. One barn held the horses that Gabriel chose to breed and the other barn had been converted into bunkhouse with its own large bathroom and kitchen for the rest of the men on Gabriel’s team. Because they’d been with Gabriel the longest, he and his brothers slept in the house along with their leader and another team, the Wright cousins. Some of the other men had already built homes on the ranch as well as the surrounding areas. The only light came from Gabriel’s office.

“I need some time in the morning to finish with Jumper.” Jack kicked the dirt. A cloud settled on top of his worn boots. Jumper was Jack’s roping horse, and he was knee-deep in the middle of training the animal.

Brad took a swig then passed the bottle to Jack. “Yeah, I know. But we have to get there before she heads for school. It’s a small town, and she won’t have far to go to get there, but I’d feel better if we were already on the job. In fact, I’d just as soon we get up early and set up watch over her before sunrise.”

Mike echoed his earlier thought. “Damn. I hate it when he says he has a hunch.”

Jack paced around the tree. His youngest brother was always restless, but he was even more so today. He’d often wished that he could get Jack to relax, but his attempts had always proved fruitless.

“What’s the big deal? We go to Destiny, we find the freak that’s bugging her, and get the hell out. Sounds like a pretty cut-and-dry mission to me.” Mike leaned back against the tree.

“
If
he’s anywhere near Destiny.” Mike took the bottle for his turn. “He could be anywhere.”

Brad squatted down and chewed on a blade of grass. “Maybe. I hope so anyway, if only to keep her safe. But I can’t shake the feeling that he’s close.”

“Hell, bro. Don’t tell me you’re getting hunches now?”

Brad spit out the blade to land close to Mike’s boot. “We all have our hunches. But I tend to listen to my gut. Anyway, we’ll find out the specifics tomorrow.”

“I hope she’s hot.”

“Me, too, Mike,” added Jack.

“That’s not the point. She needs help, and we’re going to give it to her.”

“Yeah. But it makes the case a whole lot more interesting if the woman’s hot.” Mike pushed away from the tree. “I don’t mind helping old ladies like we did the last time out, but I can’t help but want a little more than fresh cookies to keep my mind occupied while we take care of business. Watching a pretty woman is a sight better than getting fat on cookies.”

“Still, they were damn fine cookies.”

Brad nodded. “Mrs. Gallow’s cookies were the best.” The octogenarian hadn’t had any money to pay them—not that they would’ve taken payment anyway—so she’d baked them more cookies than most men could eat. Of course, they weren’t most men. They were famous for their voracious appetites.

The women they and the other teams helped never had to pay. They didn’t do the jobs for the money. Some women tried to pay with sexual favors, but that was frowned upon by Gabriel and most of the men didn’t want to take advantage anyway. If the client insisted, then they might suggest she donate money or time to a local charity. To pay the team’s kindness forward was the best reward they could ever receive.

Brad watched his brothers as they strode back to the house. A horse’s nicker floated in the air, and, as he’d always do whenever he heard Jumper, Jack made a detour and headed for the barn. For not the first time, Brad had to wonder if getting his brothers involved with Gabriel had been wrong. They could’ve saved up for their own ranch, but that was all in the past.

Gabriel had recruited them soon after he’d left the army and Mike had decided that police work was too restrictive and unrewarding when the crooks were back on the street an hour after getting arrested. Jack had joined them when he’d learned what they were all about. Since then, he was proud to say he’d made a lot of women’s lives a lot safer. It didn’t make up for the way their father had treated their mother. But then again, nothing could ever do that.