Playing For Keeps (Montana Men) (39 page)

“I knew you were one hell of a woman, I
just didn’t know how much, until now.”

Her lips trembled. “I don’t feel very
heroic…just very old…and tired.”

“I know, baby. It’s the adrenaline rush
leaving your body. It’ll pass.”

“I’ll free Danger. He’ll probably want to
take me in for questioning.”

He clasped her elbows, stalling her for a
moment. “You did nothing wrong, Lace. Don’t ever feel guilty over killing that
slimy worm.”

She nodded, but couldn’t find any words
at the moment. She’d taken a human life. It was something she’d have to come to
terms with later.

“I guess we have a big problem,” Rafe
said, nodding at Karen.

Lacey glanced toward the other woman,
then at Danger who hadn’t taken his eyes off her. She had the feeling he didn’t
give a damn if Rafe knew he wanted her, because he sure wasn’t making an effort
to hide it. “If what she said is true, then yeah, we have a big problem. Let’s
take things one step at a time.”

Rafe looked at her oddly, then glanced
toward Danger. “Yeah, I guess we’d better do that.”

She knew then he suspected her feelings
for him had changed. Had she somehow betrayed the fact she still loved Danger?
She felt like crying, denying it wasn’t so, but she couldn’t. “I’m sorry,” she
said. “I’m so sorry.”

“You have nothing to be sorry for.” He
patted her shoulders. “Release, Danger. I’ll call the sheriff’s office to come
pick up this scum.” Rafe held the gun on Karen. “Get up. And don’t try
anything. It’d make me very unhappy, but I will shoot you in the leg.”

Chapter Thirty-Three

Our lives begin to
end the day we become silent about things that matter.

~Martin Luther
King Jr.

Colorado

West of Denver

February 19, Thursday

Sixty-six hours after the assassination…

Flayme
thought she’d die when Duel killed the large bull elk in the herd they’d
watched earlier. “You shot it! It was so beautiful,” she cried. “Why did you
kill it?”

“He
was the oldest.” Duel’s voice was husky with regret. “His time was already
short. Best to leave the younger bulls alive.

She
saw the pain in his eyes and knew then it hadn’t been easy for him to shoot the
majestic animal. “You killed it because it was old?”

Duel
shook his head and dropped to his knees. “Partly, but mainly no. He was the
biggest and we’re going to need the room.”

“What?”
She didn’t understand, but when he started slitting the animal’s belly open she
fell to the icy ground beside him and threw up. Wiping off her mouth with the
back of her hand, she moaned. “You don’t happen to have a bottle of water
tucked in there with that battery charger do you?”

“Sorry,
love. Wash your mouth with some snow.”

She
packed a snowball and nibbled on it. “You’re hunting at a time like this?”

He
eyed her curiously. “You always get sick at the sight of blood? I don’t
remember you getting ill when you took care of my wounds.”

“No,
I’m not that weak-stomached. Don’t know why this got to me. Why are you
dressing the elk?”

“I’m
not dressing it, baby.” He dragged out the intestines.

Flayme
thought she’d be sick again. Watching the vaporous warmth rise from the guts of
the animal that had been a living, breathing, magnificent thing a few minutes
ago, made her feel faint. Her stomach seriously objected to the sight and
smell.

Duel
parted the animal’s belly, held up a flap of hide, and lifted his face to hers.
“Get in.”

“What?”

“Get
inside, then I’ll get in and pile the entrails around us.”

“I’m
not getting in that animal’s belly.”

“Yes, you are. It’s the only chance we have of surviving
the night. Come on, get in.” He helped her in, then crawled in beside her and
scrunched his big body close to hers. Pulling the warm intestines around them,
he then closed the flap and pinned it down with his knife. “See, cozy as can
be. The guts will act as insulation.”

“When you promised to show me a good time, was this on
your agenda?”

Duel laughed. “No. If we get real lucky though, the worst
of the storm will turn northeast, but it’s going to get cold, even inside
here.” He spooned his body around hers, slid his arm around her waist and
splayed a hand across her belly. “I’m thinking there’s a reason you threw up.
What do you think?”

“I think it’s way too soon to even contemplate it.”

“I don’t.”

She giggled. “Why on earth would you think I’m pregnant?
We only did
it
about a half-dozen
times. Surely we need more practice to get it right?”

“Oh, we need lots of practice, doll baby, but I’m pretty
sure we’ve already got this one thing done right.”

She wished she could see his face, his eyes. She loved the
way the green in his eyes lit up when he was being wicked, but her back was to
him and there simply wasn’t room to turn, besides, she didn’t want the guts
rolling all over her. It was creepy enough feeling the wet squishy things on her.
“You really want a baby…this soon?”

“Do you?” he countered.

“I guess so. I suppose it depends on you. Some men like to
play, but when things turn serious or a child is created, they tend to panic
and run away.”

“Flayme,” he drawled her name with that Western accent she
loved. “I’m not an irresponsible teenage boy. If I hadn’t been sure you’re the
woman I want to spend the rest of my life with, I wouldn’t have taken any
chances. I love everything about you. Your courage in the face of danger, the
way you laugh and talk. I especially love the way you walk in a pair of
six-inch heels. Your hair, God, your hair gives me an instant hard-on. I want
you. I want any children we make together. If it happens now, it’s okay. If it
doesn’t, we’ll have fun working on it. Just know I’m here for you and I’m not
going anywhere…ever.”

And so the night went, him talking to her, cuddling her as
close as possible to his body, discussing their baby, his cockiness and
certainty he’d made her pregnant. He told her about his dreams to build a house
on his share of Dancing Star, how the serial killer Smitt Davis had nearly
killed his elder brother, Jace. About his sister’s plane crash in Australia and
how they all feared she was lost to them, and how Jayla Ross had been responsible
for sending his younger brother to prison.

He teased her about putting three babies in her at once
the way Jace had done Kaycee. He shared tales of some of his assignments, but
she was sure he bypassed the grimmer things he’d been involved in.

Her toes went numb from the cold. Her fingertips ached
inside the mittens. Her teeth chattered. Her body shivered, but he refused to
let her give up, and she fell in love with him all over again. He wouldn’t let
her sleep even when she complained he talked too much.

“Hang in there, doll baby,” he coaxed. “We have a lot to
live for, you and I. We have a baby on the way. Just think, a son.”

“What if it’s a girl?” she questioned through chattering
teeth, playing along with his certainty she was pregnant.

“A girl? Huh. Never thought of that possibility.
Remingtons produce strong, hardy boys, but,” he drawled huskily, “if this one’s
a girl, we’ll have to practice making a boy. Won’t we?”

“Yes, I suppose we will.”

“If it wasn’t so cold, we’d get in some overtime right
now,” he said, nudging her butt.

“I love you, Duel, I do, but not even for you am I
stripping off my clothes in this carcass and the freezing cold.”

He laughed and hugged her closer. “Can’t blame a guy for
trying.”

Before she knew it, he was folding back the piece of hide
that had sealed them inside the animal’s belly and crawling out into the
morning light. He helped her out and washed the blood off her face with snow.
“I can’t get it out of your hair.” He frowned touching the damp strands. He
sounded upset and she wondered if he thought she was going to freak out over
blood in her hair.

She clasped his hand. “It’s only blood, Duel. It’ll wash
out in the shower.”

He nodded and pulled her close. “God, I love you, woman.
Let’s get out of here,” he said. “The cabin’s about a mile east of here.”

“What if someone’s there, waiting on us?”

Duel picked up the rifle. “Then he’s a dead man.”

*
* * *

McLean, Virginia

CIA Headquarters

February 20, Friday

Eighty-three hours after the assassination…

“Samantha
Rivers.” The CIA agent held the office phone against her ear and waited for
whoever was on the other end to speak.

“Sam?”

“Duel!
Thank God. Where the hell have
you been? I’ve been worried to death about you. Are you all right? Is Flayme
okay?”

“My
phone went dead. It’s a long story, but yes, we’re both all right for now, but
we have a big problem.”

“Hang
on.” Sam held her hand over the mouth piece of the phone and motioned Travis
inside her office. “It’s Duel. He says they’re in trouble.”

Travis
laid the transfer papers on her desk and scowled. “Where are they?”

“I
can’t ask him. This isn’t a secure line.”

“Sam,”
Duel said, “I’m in Colorado, at my cabin. It doesn’t matter if you’re using a
secure line or not, we’re already compromised.”

“What?”
Sam motioned for Travis to shut the door. “How? When?”

“I
don’t know, but Flayme and I took gunfire late yesterday. We spent the night in
the forest and damn near froze to death.”

“You
don’t know who fired the shots?”

“No.
A chopper came in low, fast, and hard, fired off some rounds and blew up my
snowmobile. I think they thought to catch us in the open and blow it up with us
on it. It didn’t pan out that way, but we’re stuck here without transportation.
I can’t drive out, the passes are blocked. You’re going to have to fly in or send
someone you can trust after us.”

“I
don’t trust anyone right now,” Sam replied, “except Travis and Rydge. I can’t
borrow Rydge because he’s on special assignment to protect the president.
Travis and I will fly out, but it’s going to be hours before we get there. And
I don’t like that.”

“Just
get here when you can. I’ll hold on.”

“Duel?”

“Yo?”

“Stay safe. And keep Flayme alive. She’s important to me.”

“You
have no idea just how important she is.” He broke the connection.

Sam
disconnected and stared at Travis. “We have a mole.”

“You’re
certain?”

“Yes.
Someone betrayed us. Someone told where Duel is.”

“Any
ideas who?” Travis fiddled with the transfer sheet on top of her desk.

“If
Neil wasn’t dead, he’d be my first guess, but you know as well as I, the room was
filled with operatives. It could be anyone, plus there’s the chance of a bug
somewhere.” She tapped a long nail against her lower lip. “Sweep the meeting
room, my office and yours.”

“Okay.
What about Mac? His activities for the last few months have been erratic.
Certainly they’ve been out of character and suspect.”

“You
think Mac betrayed Flayme?” Sam sounded doubtful. “Granted, he’s maybe been a
fool allowing his illicit affair with a younger woman to destroy his marriage,
but he was an excellent operative. He loves his country. I can’t see him being
involved in the assassination of the first lady.”

Travis
shrugged. “I just thought maybe a man who lost his wife or the woman he loves
might feel he has nothing left to lose and throw it all away, his honor, his
patriotism…everything.”

Sam
frowned. “Well, right now, we have a flight to catch to Denver. Duel needs our
help. I’m not trusting his life or Flayme’s to anyone else. Once we get to
Denver, we’ll take a helicopter to his cabin.”

“Sam,
my transfer papers are on your desk.”

She
looked around for her coat and purse. “First things first.” She stuffed the
papers in the top drawer of her desk and locked it. “I’ll look them over when I
have time.”

“I
see.”

“Stop
frowning. I’ll sign them…just not right now.”

“Sam,
you need to sign them and let us put the past behind us.”

She hesitated, then shook her head. “No. I need you.”

Travis
pulled her door closed behind them. “If only that was true.”

* * * *

Rimrock, Montana

February20, Friday

Eighty-nine hours after the assassination…

Lacey
Blackstone drew a deep breath and settled on the chair in front of Danger’s
desk. Talk about Déjà vu. Her life with Danger had pretty much started with her
seated right here in the sheriff’s office in front of him.

It
was pretty much ending right here, too.

He sat behind his desk, his face calm, but she knew, like
her, inside he was a mass of nerves. “So,” he said, toying with a pen. “Looks
like I sure made a mess of things.”

She
tried to smile, but couldn’t find any humor in their situation. “You’re still
my husband,” she said faintly, feeling slightly flushed. She couldn’t quite
ignore the rush of joy that spread through her stomach. He was still her
husband.

The last thing she wanted was to hurt Danger, but she
couldn’t see a way around it. She couldn’t just walk away from Rafe. Besides,
just because she was still Danger’s wife didn’t mean he was happy about it. He
was the one who’d wanted a divorce to begin with. She had little reason to
think he’d changed his mind.

“Yeah,
looks that way. I can tell from your expression you aren’t too happy about it.”

“Ooh,
that’s not true,” she blurted
without thinking.

“It’s not?” His face lit up. “Lacey…” he hesitated. “I’m
sorry. Not just for this, but for fucking up our lives, your life. I’ll spend
the rest of my life regretting what happened to you, Joseph and Anna.” He bowed
his head and when he finally looked back up, tears glistened in his eyes. “I’m
sorry for what Smitt did to you and I’m sorry you lost your baby. Hell, I owe
you so many apologies, I don’t even know where to start or end.”

Lacey
fisted her hands together and struggled against the overwhelming urge to burst
into tears. Tears were for the past. She had the future to look forward to now,
and it couldn’t include this man. “I think we’re past the point of apologies.
We need time to heal, all three of us. I can’t look back, Danger, not at what
was or what we had and lost. I hope you’ll understand and accept that I want a
new beginning.”

“But
you just said
—
”

“It
doesn’t matter what I just said or how I feel. I
need
a fresh start…with Rafe.”

Danger
clenched his hands together on top of the desk. “I’m trying to understand
your
reasons, but if you still love me
—
”

“Don’t,”
she said. “Just…don’t.”

He
released a pent-up breath. “I want you to know I’m the real loser here. I lost
the best thing that ever happened to me, and I know it’s gone for good. I just
wanted you to know…I know that.”

She
couldn’t find the words to give him peace. Her own emotions were in such
turmoil, she couldn’t help him or anyone else, maybe someday, but not at this
moment.