Knight, Kayla - Her Long Hot Surrender [Raw Texas Heat 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting) (17 page)

“Watch and learn, boys.” She felt inside the filler neck, sighing with relief when her fingers contacted with the long, slim, stainless steel tube, held by a metal chain to the filler neck. She pulled it clear from the Merc’s gas tank before unscrewing the top and looking inside. Thank God it was still there.

* * * *

Tyler looked at the woman he’d come to love, realizing he hardly knew anything about her. Like a scene from a spy thriller, he watched her pull a slender metal tube from the gas tank. He voiced his fears. “Are you in some kind of trouble, Madi?”

“That depends.” She tipped the contents into her hand, and held up a USB storage device. “What’s on here, could blow apart the political system. This memory stick has vital proof of political corruption, and far worse.”

“Is this to do with your ex-husband?” Gabe asked, clearly having a better understanding of the situation.

“Yes. From the moment I married him, I realized he was less than honest. He has a dark side to him that frightens me. I’m never quite sure how he will react. Anyway, to cut a long story short, about a year ago, I managed to access his computer. I wanted to know what made him tick. What I found shocked me to my core. Even though I knew he was a devious and very dangerous man, I didn’t realize just how dangerous he really was.”

“What’s on the stick, honey?” Tyler asked.

Madi held it up. “What’s on here is the worst of human nature. I couldn’t stay married to him any longer. I just had to get away.”

She looked sad, and Tyler put his arm around her shoulder. He shuddered to think what was on the memory stick. “So you think whoever burgled your house was trying to get this back?”

“Yes. Carson must have run a systems check, and found out that I’d accessed his computer.”

Gabe took the USB device from Madi. “Everything is logged on a computer. Unless you’ve got sophisticated equipment, you can’t hide what you did. It’s like leaving a calling card.”

“He would have known it was me. At seven thirty in the morning, the only other person in the house was the maid, Juanita. She’s about sixty and knows nothing about computers.”

“Is this the only copy you have?” Gabe turned the device over in his hand.

“Yes. I didn’t know who to trust.”

“Right. You can’t stay here, Madi. It’s too dangerous. If this is as hot as you say, they’ll come back. These guys are professionals.”

“What can we do? I mean, how can I get Carson off my back?” Madi sounded increasingly worried.

“We have to fight fire with fire, Madi,” Gabe announced. “Pack your bags, baby. You’re staying at our place. It’s not safe here.” Like a man on a mission, Gabe took control, guiding her from the garage block back to the house.

“I’ll call the police.” Tyler flipped open his cell phone. “You need to report the burglary or you can’t claim on the insurance.”

Madi placed a restraining hand on his arm. “No. Carson has influence everywhere. Police, judges, shady lawyers, the list is endless. If you call the cops, I guarantee Carson will know it before you’ve even finished the call. Besides, most of it’s just superficial damage.” She forced a smile, but it didn’t convince Tyler.

He looked around the wreck of her home. If that was superficial, then he didn’t know jack shit. It just served to underline how scared she must feel. “Okay, honey, soon as you’re ready, we’ll take you home with us.”

Madi smiled at his comforting words. She touched her fingers to his cheek. Her gorgeous green eyes connected with his. “Home. I like the sound of that.”

Tyler held her hand and kissed her palm. “You bet. With you there it’ll be like heaven.” He watched her run up the stairs, her long blonde hair bouncing freely from side to side. Her pert little ass was beautifully enhanced by her tight jeans. She was their dream woman, all right. After last night he figured that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her. He turned to his brother. “I always knew that ex husband of hers was a fucking prick. Seems I was right.”

Gabe rubbed a hand into the back of his neck. “A dangerous fucking prick, Ty. We need to get him off Madi’s back.” He held up the storage device. “If we play it right, we can beat him at his own game.”

“What are you gonna do?”

“Firstly, put this in a safe place. Preferably a safety deposit box and then—”

A series of shots rang out. Several rounds ricocheted off the front of the house. Tyler heard masonry dropping onto the porch roof. “Madi!” he shouted, taking the stairs two at a time. He got to the top, the same time as his brother, and they both rushed into the master suite.

Madi lay collapsed on the balcony, a pool of blood beginning to form around her head. Her face appeared deathly pale.

“No, please, no,” Gabe’s voice cracked with emotion as he bent down and cradled her in his arms. “Madi, don’t you dare die. We’ve got a lifetime ahead of us. Don’t you dare quit, girl.”

Tyler clenched his hands into fists. He knew his eyes held water, but he had to keep it together. “Don’t let her die, Gabe.”

“Not on my watch, Ty.”

This couldn’t be happening. Some bastard had shot the woman he loved more than anything else in the world. And he hadn’t even told her he loved her yet. Rage filled his thoughts. He wanted revenge. He wanted to inflict pain on the bastard who’d done this to Madi. Someone had to pay. Adrenaline fuelled his thoughts. He flipped open his cell phone, and dialed 9-1-1. “I’m calling an ambulance. Stay with her, Gabe.” With that he charged from the bedroom, shouting, “If he’s still out there, I’m gonna kill the fucking cunt. If it’s the last thing I do.”

Chapter Seventeen

Madison opened her eyes. The intense brightness blinded her and she squinted in response. Beams of white light refracted and shimmered as though a billion diamonds had been lit by the sun.

A soft breeze brushed through her hair as she looked around. She could just make out a figure emerging from the brilliance. “Who’s there?” she asked. She didn’t feel remotely frightened. Just relaxed, as if she would slip into a deep, peaceful sleep any moment.

“Madison, it’s me, darling. Your mother.” Her mother looked younger than she remembered. Her hair had darkened, and the withered woman she’d last seen looked healthy and full of vitality.

“Mother? It can’t be you,” she muttered, feeling her brow wrinkle in disbelief. “You’re—”

“Never mind about me. You’ve come too soon. It’s not your time.”

Totally relaxed, Madison giggled. Now that was more like her mother. When she became annoyed, her voice always sounded nasal.

“This is no laughing matter, Madison. You need to get back to where you belong. I didn’t raise you to quit so easily. Not after all I went through.”

Madison reached out, but couldn’t quite touch her mother. “I’m sorry. I found out about the orphanage. It couldn’t have been easy for you.”

“Some things are best forgotten. It was something I didn’t wish to discuss, so I created a different childhood for myself. One I could be proud of. That’s enough of me, you need to leave here. Now scoot.”

“I know this is a dream, but you seem so real.”

“You’ve got to fight your way back, girl.”

“But it’s so very peaceful here, Mother.”

“What about the Hayes boys? If you stay here, you’ll never see them again.”

The thought of Gabe and Ty sent her breathing racing, but she said, “You don’t even like them. You always preferred Carson.”

“If you love them enough to go back to where you belong, then that’s just fine by me. I know now what a despicable man Carson is. We had a committee meeting here about him. We voted to send him to the other place, when his time comes. It will be far more suitable for a man like him.”

“That’s good. Carson never made me happy, Mother, but Gabe and Tyler do.” In the days and months that she’d come to know them, happiness and contentment had filled her soul. She was satisfied with who she was and where she’d come from. Madison pictured the two brothers in her mind’s eye. They were both tall. Their strong physiques carved from the manual labor around their ranch. With dark black locks, their eyes glinted tiger bright as they looked at her. She knew they would always look after her. They would always protect, and keep her safe from harm. She loved them and needed them. A terrible thought overwhelmed her. They didn’t know she’d fallen in love with them. If she didn’t see them again, they’d never know.

A sharp pain pierced her head, and she heard Gabe’s voice.

“Come back to me, Madi. I need you. Ty needs you. We both need you.”

“Mother, it hurts,” she groaned.

“I know, but it’s for the best. Those boys need you more than I do.” Her mother leaned across and gently kissed her forehead. She whispered the comforting words she’d heard before, “Follow your dreams. Live life to the full.”

* * * *

Gabe cradled the woman he loved in his arms. He gently rocked her back and forth as though she were a little girl. Christ, she looked so small and defenseless. What crazy cunt could do such a thing?

“Come back to me, Madi. I need you. Ty needs you. We need you.”

Madi groaned. Her lips moved, but no words came out.

“I know, baby. Keep fighting, never give in. Your momma was no quitter, and neither are you. The paramedics will be here soon.” He stroked a hand over her brow. She had a temperature. She was burning up. Her blood soaked through his jeans. He pressed the damp towel against her head, trying to stem the flow. He would move heaven and earth to keep her alive. The wonderful things he’d planned with Madi. He wouldn’t allow them to become might-have-beens. He shook his head. A woman like Madi only came once in a lifetime.

He kissed her brow. “I love you, Madi. Please don’t leave me. If I have to beg, I will.”

He thought of the wonderful time they’d shared in Lubbock. Less than twenty-four hours ago he’d been ecstatic. Little did he know his euphoria would be so short lived.

If Madi died, he would seek out Carson Delaware, and rip him apart with his bare hands. He knew Ty would do the same, too.

The urgent sound of a siren wailing in the distance brought some relief. “Thank God for that. They’re almost here, Madi. Hang on just a little longer.”

* * * *

Tyler cursed his own idiocy. He’d run all the way down to the end of the drive, searching the spot where they’d found the cigarette butts. He knew the guy would be long gone, but he couldn’t just do nothing.

He’d only just made it back to the house when he heard the ambulance turn onto the drive. Breathless from his manic dash, he motioned frantically with his hands for them to follow him up the stairs.

“Gabe, tell me she’s all right,” he demanded as he burst into the bedroom.

When his brother shook his head, he thumped his fist against the wall in frustration. Why the hell had he left Madi? Why hadn’t he stayed with her? He’d had to do something. It was his way of coping. Seeing the woman he loved lying motionless on the floor broke his heart.

The paramedics took over. “Sir, you have to let us do our job.”

Tyler watched in a surreal daze as the two guys hunkered down, one either side of Madi. “Please, sir, allow me room to work,” said the dark-haired medic.

Gabe reluctantly moved away. A large, dark red patch stained his jeans. His brother looked deathly pale, his eyes worried, his gaze never leaving Madi.

“Tell me she’s gonna be all right?” he asked again, placing a hand on Gabe’s shoulder.