Roping Ryan (The West Series Book 6) (11 page)

R
yan found it hard to concentrate the next few days. He’d never imagined that he’d be so afraid to admit his feelings to someone. He had no problem saying the three words in his head, but every time he opened his mouth around Nikki, something else came out.

He knew he had to be on guard, especially since the feeling of impending doom was building in him every day. He hadn’t heard back from her father and they were getting closer and closer to the week’s end.

She avoided talking about it, but he could tell she was hurt that her father hadn’t come around sooner. He tried to keep her mind off it by keeping her busy. They went for walks in the evening or long rides to watch the sunset from the fields.

His family could tell something was up, and they were on extra guard. Chase had taken to packing his shotgun as they rode out every day. Ryan had demanded that Nikki stay closer to the house during the day and that someone always remain with her.

He made sure to work in the fields closer to the house and kept Nikki’s phone on him at all times. He shoved her handgun in his jacket pocket every day and made sure she carried her other gun with her at all times.

They’d talked about moving on, but something told him to stay put, at least until he’d heard from her old man. Besides, he really believed that there wasn’t any place as safe as Fairplay.

He’d told Wes and the sheriff the whole story and had asked them to keep their eyes and ears open around town. The sheriff had everyone working double shifts so they had enough eyes on the town.

When they got home that evening, he decided to grill some steaks out on the back deck. They sat outside and ate on the old picnic table under one of the large oaks. The leaves were all gone, but since the weather was cooler, they didn’t mind the warmth of the sun hitting them.

“When do you think he’ll call?” she asked out of the blue.

He looked up at her and shook his head.

“What do you think he’s doing?” She pushed her plate away and frowned down at it.

“I couldn’t say. I’ve never met your father before.”

She looked up at him quickly and then nodded. “I’d forgotten. I mean, you’ve talked to him more in the last month than I have.” She shook her head and looked down again.

He reached over and took her hand. “I’m sure that he’s working on a plan to keep you safe.” He smiled up at her and when she nodded and smiled back, he felt a little relief.

That night as they lay in bed, he listened to her steady breathing and knew that if his daughter was ever in a situation like this, he’d do anything he could to ensure her safety. Anything.

Nikki woke up early the next morning. Her head was a little dull; worrying about her dad had kept her up half the night. Why wasn’t he there yet?

She’d spent the last few days at the big house helping Missy prepare for her wedding. All of the women were working overtime on making the decorations for the big event.

She’d gone into town with Holly and had picked out a simple cream-colored dress for the event. She’d even bought a new purse and shoes. Ryan had been fitted for his tux and was going to be his brother’s best man.

But it was hard to focus on the happy occasion when something so big loomed over them.

She was just getting out of the shower when she heard a phone ringing. It took her a while to find the phone that had been stashed in Ryan’s jacket pocket.

“Hello?” she finally answered a little breathless.

“Well, hello, Nikki,” a strange voice said. She looked down at the number, and she started. This was her father’s secure line. Who could be calling her from her dad’s phone?

“Who is this?” she asked, tucking the towel more closely around her.

“I think you know who this is. If you want to see your father, all you have to do is go home. And Nikki? Come alone.” The line went dead and all of the blood drained from her face.

She looked at the phone one more time, then immediately dialed her father’s number by heart. When it clicked over to voice mail, she left an urgent message and tried a few more times. Each time it rang until voice mail picked it up.

What should she do? Should she tell Ryan? There was nothing he could do. Would he let her go? Should she go? Of course. This was her father. Like Ryan had said, he’d probably come up with a plan to protect her and had gotten himself captured. It was all her fault that he was in danger now.

If she hadn’t been trying to be a big shot, she would have just given Reece information about his brother instead of trying to deliver him.

Not only had she screwed up with her dad, but she’d put Ryan in danger too. It was her fault that they’d attacked him that night. She’d blown his cover. She closed her eyes and moaned. This was all her fault. She had to fix it.

It took some lying, but she finally got Ryan to leave an hour later under the assumption that she was staying home all day due to a headache. The second he drove off, she packed her bug-out bag with everything she’d need. She noticed that one of her twenty-twos was gone, but there were still plenty of bullets left.

Taking the bag, she walked to the end of the driveway and waited for the cab she’d called. The entire trip into Houston, she worried if she was doing the right thing. She’d left Ryan a note explaining what had happened and hoped he’d understand why she couldn’t chance asking for his help. Not when her father’s life was at stake.

When she finally arrived at her house, she paid the cabbie with her credit card and sighed. It felt good to use her own money again. Even if it was just for a short while. She looked around and prayed that her plan would work. It had to work.

When she opened her front door, she wrapped her fingers around her gun and hoped that she would have the guts to follow through.

Ryan hobbled into the house and plopped down on the sofa. He’d been gone less than thirty minutes, but he hadn’t planned on being kicked off his horse. The beast had been spooked by a snake, and he’d landed hard enough that he’d ended up calling it a day.

Nikki didn’t come out of the bedroom, so he walked back to check on her. He found her note, and instantly he was in the truck and heading towards Houston at the fastest speed it could travel, praying the entire drive that he’d get there in time.

The drive seemed to take forever, his mind continuously conjuring up images of the trouble Nikki could be in, but finally, he pulled up in front of her place. He could see her standing in her living room with two men he knew all too well and his heart skipped. He rushed to the door and flew through it quickly with her gun in his hands. He stopped cold when he saw what the actual situation was.

She stood there facing the men with her gun held strongly in both hands and pointed at the men’s chests.

“Ryan?” She turned her head towards him, and he watched in horror as her gun wavered. Pablo, the larger of the two men she’d been aiming at, reached over and snatched her wrist and twisted until he pulled her in front of him.

“Drop it,” he yelled at Ryan. He had no choice but to obey.

“Where’s my father?” She tried to jerk out of the man’s reach. “Ryan, they have my father.” Her eyes pleaded with his as he tossed his gun onto the floor.

He looked between the men. “I’m the one you want. She has nothing to do with this.” He watched the men look at one another and sneer.

“She’s the one the boss wants. You’re just a nice extra.” The skinny man he knew as Julian walked over and picked up his gun and pointed it at him. “We’ll take ’em both to the boss and maybe get a bonus.” He smiled and Ryan felt like kicking in his teeth.

“You mean Dante?” Ryan laughed. “Dante won’t know what to do with me again.”

Julian shook his head, and Ryan noted that he’d always been the brains out of the pair. The man he knew as Dante had been in charge of them but had never wanted to get his hands dirty. “No, Dante was taken care of after the boss found out that he let you get away last time.”

Ryan laughed. “It was you two goons that we got away from.”

“Yeah, but it was Dante’s responsibility to make sure we did the job right. Then when the boss found out that you were a snitch…” He whistled.

“Boss shot him right between the eyes.” Pablo laughed.

The two men smiled and nodded to each other. “Now we answer to the big man himself.”

“Yeah,” Pablo said, holding Nikki closer to him. Ryan watched her cringe and her eyes searched his. He wanted to scold her for going off on her own, but all he could focus on was coming up with a plan to get her safe.

Pablo tied Nikki’s hands behind her back and then did the same to Ryan. The rope was coarse and strong and when he tested the knots, he realized that Pablo knew how to secure a man.

“How did you get in here?” Nikki asked, looking around and frowning at her high-tech security system.

“Funny thing,” Pablo said. “The front door was wide open and the security system was all shut down.” He chuckled. “Looks like you forgot to lock up after you left.”

Ryan frowned. They
had
locked up when they’d left. He remembered her punching in her code, and he’d used her keys to bolt the doors. He had hoped the security system would save her place from being trashed, like it was now.

Pablo shoved Nikki into the back of a dark sedan that was parked in her garage like it belonged there. When the man pushed Ryan into the car beside her, Ryan kicked out and caught the man’s knees and watched him fall down to ground. Then he felt the gun poking him in his ribs and froze.

“Try that again and I’ll start shooting first,” Julian said behind his back. Nikki stared at him, her eyes huge, as she begged Julian not to hurt him.

Ryan went into the car when he was pushed, then Pablo punched him and everything went black.

N
ikki held onto Ryan’s hand tightly and prayed that he’d wake up soon. He would know what to do. She tried to watch where they were going, but several times the big man had reached around and pushed her head down.

Ryan had a cut on his forehead where the large man had hit him. As she looked at his dark eyelashes resting on his face, she realized that she loved him beyond words. She knew without a doubt that she’d follow him no matter where he went. No matter what job he did, she would stand by him. But first she had to tell him how she felt, and she hoped that he would wake up soon. She felt the car slowing and by some miracle, Ryan’s eyes opened.

“Ryan,” she whispered, not wanting to alert the men in front that he was awake.

He shook his head and closed his eyes as the man looked back at her. She rubbed Ryan’s head and pretended to try to wake him up again.

When the man turned around again, she shook Ryan and he opened his eyes again. He looked around and then looked up at her and she mouthed, “I’m sorry.”

His hands came up and brushed her hair away from her face as he nodded.

“I love you.” A tear fell down her face and landed on his hair.

He smiled up at her and nodded slightly again. She watched him working the ropes at his wrists. Trying to get them undone.

“We’ll get out of this,” he mouthed to her just as the car came to a stop. He closed his eyes and stilled his hands, pretended to be out again.

She chanced a peek over the back of the car and felt her heart skip. They were at a large house and at least a dozen men were walking around with very large guns.

They were so screwed. Her arm was yanked as they helped her out of the car. Then she was shoved into the house while they dragged Ryan by his arms behind her.

She knew that crying wasn’t going to do any good, but she couldn’t stop the tears from falling down her face as she watched in horror as they dropped Ryan on the ground.

“So, you have brought me a present.” She looked up and saw a man in his early thirties walking towards them. They were in a large room that looked like a jungle. There were mounted animals covering every wall. Large palm trees stood in big planters around the room. There was even a small fountain with a statue of a naked boy peeing into its clear waters.

The man took a few more steps towards them and dusted off his hands. Dirt from the pot he’d been working in dropped to the floor.

“Yeah, boss. He showed up shortly after she did.”

She pushed her shoulders back and demanded in a clear voice, “Where’s my father?”

The man looked at her and then laughed. “Oh, I like this one.” He walked over to her and ran a finger over her chin. She could smell the dirt and fertilizer on his hands. She pulled back and repeated her question. His hand whipped out quickly and she had no time to brace for the blow that knocked her to her knees.

Since her hands were still tied, she fell hard onto the tile floor and cried out when pain shot up her legs.

Then Ryan was on the man. The ropes on his hands had been untied somehow, and he was hitting the man so quickly that even the goons that had been standing around hadn’t had the time to respond.

By the time they did respond, he had the shorter, skinnier man who had hit Nikki
in a chokehold flat on the ground.

“Call off your men,” he warned, looking around as several guns pointed in their direction.

Nikki didn’t know what to do, so she held very still and tried not to be noticed.

“You think you can come in my house and do this?” Hijo del Diablo laughed up at him.

“Call them off or I snap your skinny neck.” Ryan squeezed a little more, cutting the man’s airflow off for just a moment.

“Back off,” the man cried out.

His men obeyed and took a step backwards, but their guns were still raised towards him.

“Tell them to drop their guns and untie Nikki.” He knew he was pushing his luck, but he needed to try.

Hijo del Diablo laughed up at him as a trickle of blood oozed from his lip. “I’m not stupid, Kevin. If I give you the upper hand, what do I gain in return?”

The use of his undercover name told him what he needed to know. In the last month and a half, they still hadn’t discovered his true identity.

“Yes, I know who you are.” The man sneered up at him. “I was very impressed with you until your partner made the stupid mistake of being recognized by one of my men. Apparently he’d busted the boy years before.” He laughed. “The kid remembered him and before your partner died, he mentioned that there was another nark. We didn’t know who it was at first, but since you were asking around to meet me…” He shrugged his shoulders. “She was just a bonus until I saw a picture of her with her dear old dad in her house; I couldn’t believe how lucky I’d gotten. He’s the man who made me, the one who ruined my life!” he screamed.

Ryan looked over at Nikki and frowned. “Where is her father?” he asked, leaning a little harder on the man’s neck.

Hijo del Diablo laughed again.

“You’d better pray that he’s still alive,” Ryan growled next to his ear. “And if you ever lay another finger on her...”

He smiled and nodded towards his men. When Ryan glanced over, he shook in horror as one of Hijo del Diablo’s men pointed a gun at Nikki’s temple.

“You think I would let you just walk out of here?” The man pulled Ryan’s hands away from his throat. “I’m in charge here. You come into my home and give me demands.” He laughed as he pushed Ryan aside and got up off the dirty floor.

“I’ve been in charge since her old man betrayed me,” he screamed and pointed at Nikki. “It’s all his fault and he is going to pay for what he did.”

Nikki shook her head and tried to get free of the large man holding her. “Where’s my father?” she begged softly.

Hijo del Diablo didn’t even glance at her. “Now, you’ll pay for breaking my trust.” He walked over to Ryan with his fists balled and hit him in the gut, causing him to double over.

He waved his hands. “Get them out of my sight.” He turned to go back to his potting.

“Wait,” Nikki screamed. “Where’s my father?”

Just then there was a loud crash as a canister was thrown into the room. Ryan jumped across the floor and plowed into the man who held Nikki. He heard something crack as they fell towards the floor.

“Cover your eyes and breathe shallow,” he warned Nikki as he rolled with her towards the small fountain. She screamed as a bright light went off and smoke filled the space. There was shouting and shooting. He just prayed that no stray bullets would hit them as they sought shelter behind the stone statue of the boy.

He splashed some water from the fountain in Nikki’s eyes as she started to cough. “Shallow breaths,” he warned her but then started to cough himself.

Men ran into the room and when one of them yanked Ryan up, he swung out as he tried to shield Nikki with his body. The man he’d hit in the gut grabbed his wrist, and Ryan stopped fighting when he noticed what the man was wearing.

He was dressed in all black and had a gas mask on. He pointed to Nikki and waved for them to follow him. Ryan picked Nikki up and tossed her over his shoulder and then followed the man out a side door. His breathing was labored as they rushed from the room. His lungs screamed for more oxygen and his throat burned from the gas. His eyes were so watery that he could hardly see to follow the man.

By the time they made it down a long hall, the shooting had stopped. There was still a lot of yelling and he could hear police sirens in the background. He could hear people running upstairs as they exited the house, but his eyes were too watery to see clearly.

“Son, set her down,” the man said, and then he patted him on his back.

“Daddy?” Nikki coughed.

Ryan set her down and took the wet cloth he’d been handed to wipe his eyes clear. Someone pulled on his arm and pushed him into a chair. He reached out and took hold of Nikki’s hand to make sure he wouldn’t lose track of her.

“Daddy?” she called out again just as his eyes started working again.

“Right here, baby,” someone said, and Nikki jumped up from the chair next to his and flung herself into the arms of the man in black who had led them outside—her father.