Navy SEALs Complete Series: 3 Books + 3 Novellas (Tempting Navy SEALs) (27 page)

“Come on down. I have the radios picking up transmissions now. I finally pinpointed the boys looking for you, but they aren’t giving away anything important.” He loped down the cement stairs that led from the hallway.

Morganna glanced back at Clint warily as she followed slowly, catching his soothing wink as the wall slid closed once again.

“What happens if the place catches on fire?” she whispered to Clint.

“Then we peel out under the house and escape through the sewer,” Macey called back. “Nasty place, though, so I’m going to hope no one decides to burn me down. I’d get pissed and have to kill someone.”

Somehow, she didn’t think it was an idle threat.

As she stepped into the main portion of the basement, her eyes widened. Now this was definitely lived in and taken care of. A long, comfortable upholstered couch divided the room. In front of it, on a far wall, was a wide-screen flat television hung on the wall with a state-of-the-art sound system running along the walls. A scarred wooden coffee table sat between them. On each side, a recliner, used but in good condition, sat angled to the television.

Behind the couch, an electronic madman’s dream: computers, receivers, and shelves of beeping, tweeping machines that made no sense to Morganna whatsoever. Above them, several flat monitors showed the outside of the house on all four sides, giving Macey a perfect view of anyone coming up on him. Two others flipped through the rooms of the house upstairs, keeping a careful watch on each area for several seconds at a time.

“There’s beans and bread on the stove.” Macey flicked his fingers to the corner where a stove, refrigerator, and large sink sat. A small table and chairs occupied the wall to the side of it.

“Hungry?” Clint’s hand ran up and down her back as he led her farther into the room.

“No.” She shook her head. “Will the cell phone call out here? I’ll try to get hold of Raven. It takes her a while to answer sometimes.”

“Yeah, she’s good at avoiding calls. I think she stole Reno’s cell phone.”

“It was one of her conditions when she agreed to the wedding,” Morganna told him. “She was tired of you calling and bitching about me and making Reno leave the house all the time.”

“Hmm.” The noncommittal murmur had her lips twitching. “Go ahead and see if you can get hold of her. I’ll see what me and Macey can find out.”

“Get her a drink at least, Clint,” Macey muttered. “Hell,
she looks wore out. There’s beer in there, and Stacey keeps some wine coolers just to piss me off. There’s lunch meat and bread and junk. Stacey’s always eating something. I swear when that girl’s metabolism slows down, she’s going to blow up like a balloon.”

“Hey, it takes energy to keep up with brothers,” Morganna informed Macey, keeping her voice playfully tart. “If she’s anything like me, she gets tired of you having all the fun.”

She was aware of the surprise that crossed his broad face, along with his amusement.

“Stacey would like her, Clint,” he laughed. “She has mouth. I bet she keeps you and Reno on your toes.”

“More than you know.” Clint shook his head as Morganna glanced up at him knowingly.

“Kind of surprised me when I heard you were working with Merino’s crew,” Macey surprised her with the announcement as she moved away from Clint and headed for the refrigerator. “A few of our guys that frequent the clubs have been keeping watch. They say you’re damned fine for an amateur.”

“Thanks.” She caught Clint’s look of disapproval as she turned back to them. “Clint wasn’t too happy.”

“Course he wasn’t,” Macey drawled. “A man likes to keep his personal sweets stashed away from hungry eyes. He’s not stupid. Me and the others were getting ready to draw straws on who was going to have to tell him about it, though.”

“Shut up, Macey,” Clint growled.

“Yeah, like all of us didn’t know you were hungry for her, Clint.” Macey smiled placidly as Morganna leaned against the wall and watched in interest. Not many people had the nerve to rib Clint so blatantly. “Did he tell you about him and Reno getting into that fight in Germany over you?”

“Shut up, Mace.”

Now this was some surprising news.

“No.” She arched her brow in interest. “He didn’t.”

“Oh yeah, kept us all watching those two real wary like. We were winding down after a mission—”

“Shut up, Macey.”

“Seems Clint wanted Reno to do something about some musician you were seeing at the time. Wanted it stopped before you ended up in bed with him—”

“Don’t make me kill you, Macey.” Clint’s voice was suddenly harder, darker. “I need you right now, man. But later, we might have to talk.”

Macey tilted his head and stared back at Clint with a quirk of his lips, his dark eyes dancing.

“Sure, man.” He smiled slowly. “Get your ass on over here. Let that pretty thing there get herself a drink. That skirt is hot as hell, too. You wearing panties under that, Morganna?” He turned back to her, his grin rakish.

“Actually,” she drawled. “I’m not. But don’t tell Clint, okay? He might get upset.”

A shiver worked down her spine as Clint turned back to her, his gaze starkly possessive, his expression suddenly sensual, carnal.

“Get hold of Raven,” he growled. “And stay away from the one-night wonder here.” He nodded to Macey. “I’d hate to have to castrate him. Or cut his damned tongue out.”

Morganna continued to watch him as he stalked over to the bank of computers Macey was working at. Now wasn’t this just a surprising development. The musician in question hadn’t been her lover; actually, his lover had been his bass player. A very handsome young man who had idolized him. But Shawn Kevin had been desperate to uphold the image of heterosexuality. Why, Morganna had never really understood. But he had been nice and, for a while, interesting. Morganna had no idea Clint had actually been jealous of him.

Shaking her head, she pulled her purse from her shoulder and unsnapped it. Extracting the cell phone from inside, she laid the purse on the table, then returned to the refrigerator to collect a bottle of water.

Punching in Raven’s number, Morganna let it ring until the messaging system came on.

“There’s trouble, Raven. Reno has to call.” She flipped the phone closed as she pulled out the water.

Clint was talking on his cell phone, obviously calling in the team he and Reno normally worked with. She knew from the wedding that several of them were on leave until after Reno’s honeymoon.

“I can’t find Markwell.” Clint flipped the phone closed as he turned back to Macey. “Kell and Ian are still in town; Max headed out to Texas to catch up with some friends there. That leaves Markwell unaccounted for.”

“Let’s see if we can find our boy then.” Macey turned back to the computers. “I know Kell and Ian have been going between the clubs. They were the ones keeping an eye on your bit of sweets,” he snickered as Clint slapped at the back of his head.

As Clint hovered over the other man’s shoulder, Morganna eased closer to him. She felt chilled. Uncertain. Too much was happening too fast, and the implications of the battle facing them seemed overwhelming.

In that moment, Morganna realized the extent of her inexperience. She was trained to watch, to shoot. She wasn’t prepared to go against international terrorists and drug runners such as the Fuentes Cartel was rumored to be.

As she neared him, she was surprised when Clint’s arm came around her and he pulled her against him. Just like that, he tucked her against his chest, his gaze never leaving the computer Macey was working on.

“Shit. What’s this?” Macey hit a key, bringing up several pictures and a text report.

Morganna recognized the picture. Devin Markwell. He was young, smiling. Beside that picture was a chalked outline of a body in a garbage-ridden alley.

“No fucking way,” Macey muttered as Clint tightened beside her. “This happened this morning. He was found outside
a bar in downtown.” Macey shook his head before turning back to Clint, his gaze shocked. “He’s dead, Clint.”

“How?” Clint’s voice hardened, chilled.

Macey turned back to the computer, hitting more keys, his fingers flying over the keyboard until another page came up. “They found another guy. A naturalized South American. A dealer.” His voice was quiet, emotionless. “Devin was beat to death. The dealer was gutted like a fish. Santos. Wasn’t Santos—”

“Part of the Fuentes Cartel. He’s Roberto Maneulo’s bastard brother. He was born here. But Roberto has looked after him.” Clint finished for Macey before a curse sizzled from his lips. “And Roberto is a member of the Masters clubs.”

Morganna stood still, staring at the picture of the dealer on the screen.

“He’s one of the three men Joe arrested at Diva’s,” she said quietly. “He was the one dosing the drink with the date rape drug. There was Santos, Robert Lewis, and Donny Caine.”

Macey typed in the names. “Dead.” The report wasn’t unexpected at this point. “Found this morning. Lewis and Caine were found this evening outside town. Suspected drug deal gone bad.”

“Fuentes is cleaning house,” Clint said. “He tried to hit me and Morganna this evening.”

“Check for Roberto Manuelo,” Morganna suggested. “He’s our suspect at the moment in the supply of the drug. Though there was no report of a suspected connection to the cartel. I also saw him in Diva’s Downstairs the night we were there.”

The search took longer. Morganna nibbled at her thumbnail as Macey pounded on the keys, cursed, sweet-talked the computer, then finally grew silent.

“Manuelo is breathing,” he finally said. “His cell phone number matches that of the ones I’ve been tracking since the search for you and Clint began. I caught your names being
bandied on the receiver I use to monitor unsecured cells.” He flashed her a cold smile. “He’s leading the search.”

“Not for long.”

Morganna jerked around, staring up at Clint as he stood alone several feet from her.

“Contact the Admiral, Macey,” Clint ordered, the muscles in his jaw working tensely. “We have a possible hit on our men. We need Reno’s location checked, secured, and he needs to be apprised of Markwell’s death.”

“I’m on it.” Macey turned back to the computer as Morganna stared back at Clint.

“What are you going to do?” she asked, though she sensed she already knew.

He stared back at her, his blue eyes blazing in his dark face. He seemed so remote, so self-contained. This was the Clint that worried her. Cold. Unemotional. This Clint needed no one, especially not her.

“I’m going to take care of it, Morganna,” he told her softly. “However I have to.”

“The Admiral is in contact with Reno as we speak.” Macey’s voice was clipped. “He’s moving himself and Raven to an undisclosed location for the time being. He warns you to keep Morganna locked up.”

There was no amusement in Macey’s voice. His voice was just as hard as Clint’s.

First Nathan during the operation in Colombia, now Markwell. And if Fuentes wasn’t taken out, then he would come after Morganna again. He wasn’t a man who gave up, but he also wasn’t an easy man to take out. He surrounded himself with lackeys, with men willing to die for him, to protect him no matter the consequences.

“I have to get rid of the truck.” Clint had to get out of there, he had to track down information, and he had to do it alone. “Macey, keep her down here.” He turned to the other man, seeing the horror in his eyes. “If I’m not back in five hours, you know what to do.”

“No!” Morganna’s eyes widened in fear. “You’re not leaving me here—”

“The hell I’m not,” Clint growled fiercely, gripping her shoulders as she rushed up to him, clamping them tight, staring into her eyes as the rage and pain burning in his stomach threatened to overwhelm him. “You’re safe here and I don’t know what the hell is waiting out there. You’re not trained for this, Morganna, and you know it.”

“I can watch your back.” She was shaking her head, her eyes filling with tears.

“No, Morganna,” he snapped, the thought of her out there, in the line of fire, more than he could handle. “I have to check some sources, I have to ditch that truck and find out what the hell I’m looking at. I can’t do that with you with me, baby.”

He couldn’t kill while she watched. She was strong, stronger than he ever imagined, but he couldn’t bear for her to see him as he really was.

“Macey.” He didn’t have to turn to the other man.

“I got her, man,” he swore. “She won’t move from here. I swear it.”

“I need you to do this, Morganna.”

He watched the knowledge in her expression that he was right and the impotent anger that filled her eyes. She knew she wasn’t experienced enough, and it was eating at her, tearing through her.

But God help him, even if she had been, he wouldn’t have been able to take her with him. He was a killer. Stone cold. Without remorse when it came to the enemy. And Fuentes and any of his men were the enemy.

“Macey, find out if Markwell was into anything. If this was a personal hit. Get Kell and Ian out here; we’ll need their help.”

“I’m on it.” Macey stood behind Morganna, prepared to stop her if she tried to follow Clint. He was terrified she would try to do just that.

He jerked her into his arms because he couldn’t help himself. His lips covered hers, tasting her tears, her fear, then her heat. Pulling back, he pushed her to Macey. Clint didn’t wait to be sure the other man was holding her back; he knew Macey would. Clint ignored her cry, ignored the need to touch her one more time before he moved quickly for the stairs.

“Macey, I need some hardware.” He detoured to the other side of the room, moving behind the stairwell to Macey’s stash.

“Take what you need.”

He did. He chose quickly, pushing ammo into a small duffel before slinging the automatic rifle over his shoulder and pushing the handgun into his waistband. Ignoring Morganna’s arguments, he raced up the stairs and through the open entrance.

Fuentes had caught him unaware. It wouldn’t happen again He knew the monster stalking them now, and he’d be damned if he would let the bastard touch Morganna.

“Damn you, Clint,” Morganna cursed as Clint disappeared up the stairs and left the basement.