Ash shook his head. “It’s not ransom, Sam.”
“Then explain it to me. Is it because of you? Is that why you came home? Because if it is, you can go on back to wherever you’ve been for the last ten years. I can take care of Lainey and Max.”
Ash fingers curled into his palms. He took a deep breath to curb the anger he felt flowing through him. “Maybe you can, but I’m not risking my family to you yet.”
Sam’s mouth pulled down in a sneer, and he snorted in disgust. “Your family? You haven’t seen Lainey in years, and you’ve never so much as sent Max a Christmas present before you came home. So don’t come in here and make like a knight who’s come to the rescue. Because you’re no knight.”
Ash took a step closer and stared directly into Sam’s eyes. “I know that, but you’re not married to Lainey yet. And until she becomes your wife, I’m the closest relative she’s got. So stay out of my way.” He glanced down at Casey who still knelt beside the wounded man. A surprised expression covered her face. “Casey, come with me. Phillip, get yourself checked out at the hospital and report back to Firebrand.”
Phillip nodded, and Casey jumped to her feet. She followed Ash as he strode back to where Lainey still knelt with her arms around Max. They’d only walked a few feet when Sam’s voice rang out.
“You can’t just leave, Ash. We have too many unanswered questions here. The school administration will want to know what went on here today.”
Ash waved his hand over his shoulder but didn’t turn around. “You’re the sheriff. You can take care of that. Tell the principal that he needs to do better background checks on his employees in the future. In the meantime you can find me at the new Firebrand Training Center if you want to talk to me. I’m taking Lainey and Max out there.”
He stopped beside Max and squatted down, then laid his hand on the boy’s head. “Are you okay, Max?”
Max smiled up from his tear-stained face. “I am now. Thanks, Uncle Ash.”
Ash laughed. “Don’t thank me. You were the man with the moves. I’ve never seen anything like how you stomped on that woman’s toes. I don’t think she’ll be walking too well for a few days.”
Max grinned. “So I did okay, huh?”
Ash’s heart fluttered at the memory of how scared he’d been when Max tried to get free of Eve. She could easily have shot him, but she didn’t. He wondered why. No matter why she hadn’t, Max had been brave to do what he did.
“You handled yourself like a real soldier,” he said. “How would you like to go with me to the Firebrand Training Center for a few days?”
Max’s eyes grew wide. “You mean stay out there? Sleep and everything?”
Ash laughed. “And everything. I think you and your mom could do with a few days away from home, and I sure would like to show the two of you around.” He glanced at Lainey. “That is, if you agree. I think it would be good for both of you.”
Lainey stared at him a moment before she responded. “I think it would be, too. When shall we go?”
“As soon as possible,” he said.
Lainey took a deep breath and stood. “Then let’s get home so I can pack.”
Max jumped to his feet and threw his arms around Ash. “I can’t believe we’re going. I’m so glad you came home, Uncle Ash.”
He put his arms around the boy and stared at Lainey over his head. “I am, too, Max. I should have come home years ago.”
He put one arm around Max and reached toward Lainey with his free hand. She stared at it for a moment before she laced her fingers with his. With Max on one side of him and Lainey on the other, Ash guided them down the drive toward the front of the school where he’d parked Lainey’s car.
When they reached the car, he held the passenger door for Lainey to get in while Casey guided Max into the back seat. The parking lot was still crowded with cars, and Ash had a fleeting thought that perhaps the gunshots hadn’t been heard over the sound of the music. That was good. The less attention on them, the better.
All he wanted to think about at the moment was the fact that Max was safe. There would be time later to try and figure out who Eve really was and what she had been doing at Max’s school all year. The plan to hurt him must have been in the planning stages for a long time.
Today, though, they had failed, but they wouldn’t give up. They were probably angry now, and he knew from past battles how a defeated enemy thinks. They would regroup, develop their next move, and then they’d come at him with everything they had.
If they did, he and Firebrand would be ready for them.
<><><>
Max had been very quiet since they’d returned home. Gone was the nervous chatter that had continued non-stop before leaving for school. It had been replaced by a silence that concerned Lainey the longer it continued.
When they had gotten home, he’d dashed upstairs to his bedroom, and she’d followed to pack his suitcase. She’d thought he would talk to her when they were alone, but he hadn’t. She hadn’t pushed him to tell her what he was feeling but had kept an eye on him while she was getting his clothes together.
With the last shirt folded and placed in the suitcase, Lainey straightened and frowned. She had no idea how many clothes to take. They could be gone for weeks. She swallowed. Or nowhere near that much time if the people determined to kill them were successful the next time.
A bomb threat and a kidnapping in two days. How much more of this torment could she endure?
She’d thought she would die of heart failure when she’d seen that woman Ash called Eve holding a gun to her son’s head. Lainey raised a trembling hand to her forehead and closed her eyes. She’d never seen such a cold, emotionless expression on anyone’s face in her life. Her icy glare was that of a killer, and Lainey knew she wouldn’t have thought twice about pulling the trigger.
If she was having thoughts like this, she imagined Max’s must be worse. He was the one whose life had been threatened. And by a woman he had come to like and trust in the months she worked at the school. How could they have been so deceived?
A sudden pain in her stomach almost bent her double, and Lainey crossed her arms over her abdomen and sank to Max’s bed. Her body shook, and she squeezed her eyes tight in hopes she could keep the tears from streaming down her face.
She couldn’t let Max see how upset she was. He’s been through enough today without having to deal with a weeping mother. But he was her child, and he’d almost been killed. A soft moan drifted from her mouth before she could hold it back.
“Mom, are you okay?”
She opened her eyes to see Max standing in front of her, his lips trembling. He held one of the video games that minutes before he’d been stuffing in a backpack to take with him to the training center.
He looked so frightened, and her heart pricked. He was a little boy in need of a strong parent, and she was the only one who could be that for him. She held out her hand, and he slipped his into it. With a gentle tug she pulled him down to sit beside her on the bed. “I guess I haven’t recovered yet from how scared I was at the school. How are you? You’ve had quite a day.”
He squeezed her hand and scooted closer to her. Then he laid his head against her arm. “I’m okay,” he murmured.
Lainey recognized his tone. It was one he used when he was confused and frightened. And why shouldn’t he be scared? If he’d been kidnapped, there’s no telling what he would be experiencing right now. And she would be out of her mind with fear.
She reached over with her free hand and caressed his cheek. “I know you had to be scared. I was more frightened than I’ve ever been, but we got through it alive.”
Max gave a slight nod and burrowed closer to her. She could feel his body trembling and hear the shaky breaths he was taking.
“I was scared,” he finally said. “But I knew Uncle Ash was going to save me. And he did.”
Lainey nodded. “Yes, he did.”
Max pulled his hand from hers. “Do you think. . .” He stared up at her, his dark eyes narrowed, and swallowed as if he couldn’t get the next words out.
“Do I think what?” she asked.
A tear formed in the corner of his eye. “Do you think he’ll go away again?”
Lainey put her arm around Max and pulled him closer, then laid her cheek on the top of his head. “I don’t know, Max. We’ll have to wait and see.”
“But I don’t want him to go.” His words sounded more like a wail, and he threw his arms around her.
She hugged him to her and wished she could reassure him that Ash wouldn’t leave, but he had before and she had no doubt he would again as soon as he found out who was threatening them. “Max, I don’t know what his plans are.”
“You can make him stay, Mom. Can’t you?” With Max’s head pressed against her she could barely make out the muffled words
She put her fingers under his chin and tilted his face up. “Max, it’s not up to me. But why are we talking about this now? Your uncle can’t wait to show you around the new training center. You’re going to get to spend a lot of time with him out there.”
“I know, but. . .”
She shook her head and put a finger to his lips to silence him. “Let’s take it one day at a time. He only came yesterday, and today he’s taking us to the training center. You need to enjoy all the time you’re getting to spend with him.”
He sniffed and nodded. “Okay.”
Lainey gave him another and hug and smiled. “Now why don’t you finish packing the video games you want to take with you while I get the rest of your clothes.”
Max pushed to his feet and started toward his desk where he’d left the games. He’d only taken a few feet when he stopped. “Mom, do you think Miss Lundgren will come back?”
Her heart thudded, and she bit down on her lip. There was no way Max was going to forget having a gun pressed to his head.
She stood up and walked to where he stood. When he looked up at her, she almost gasped at the fear she saw in his eyes. She put her hands on his shoulders and smiled. “Don’t worry about her. Your Uncle Ash took care of you today, and he’s promised me he will again if she and her friends come back.”
“But I don’t understand,” he said. “I thought she liked me. She was nice to me all school year. But today she acted like she wanted to kill me. Why would she do that?”
“I don’t know, but your uncle and his friends are going to find out.” She smiled at him. “Aren’t we lucky to have all the Firebrand soldiers taking care of us?”
He thought about that for a moment before he smiled. “Yeah, I guess we are.”
A knock at the bedroom door startled her, and she called out. “Come in.”
The door eased open, and Ash stuck his head inside. “Are you about ready to go?”
Lainey pointed to the suitcase. “Max’s clothes are packed, but I still have to get mine. When do you want to leave?”
“I talked to Reese, and he’s coming as more backup for our drive out to the center. He should be here before long. In the meantime Casey has fixed some sandwiches in the kitchen.” He smiled at Max. “Want to grab a bite with me while your mom finishes packing?”
Max nodded. “Yeah.” He walked toward the door but stopped and glanced back at Lainey. “I’ll be back to get the bag with my video games and books in it after I eat.”
“Don’t forget your guitar,” Ash said. “One of the guys at the center has a guitar I can borrow. Maybe we can jam together.”
“Cool,” Max said as he looked up at Ash.
Lainey’s heart sank at the hero worship she saw in Max’s face. There was no denying there was a strong bond developing between Ash and her son, and it worried her. To Max, Ash was the warrior hero who wasn’t afraid to stand up to the bad guys. But he didn’t know the real man who lived inside the uncle who’d only entered his life the day before. However Lainey knew the real Ash and was very familiar with how he was capable of hurting those who loved him without ever giving it a second thought.
Ash draped his arm around Max’s shoulders, and they walked out of the room together. Neither of them looked back as they headed toward the staircase. She could hear Max’s excited voice and Ash’s soft responses as they went downstairs.
She dropped down on the bed, doubled her fists, and pounded them against her knees. What was she going to do? Max was getting too attached to Ash. But at the moment there was nothing she could do about it.
Ash might have failings when it came to his personal dealings, but his professional life was a different matter entirely. If it came to choice between either her or Max and himself, she had no doubt Ash would make the ultimate sacrifice. She prayed it wouldn’t come to that.
Chapter 9
Ash swallowed the last bite of his sandwich, picked up his coffee cup, and drained it. He leaned back in his chair and smiled at Max who had practically inhaled his food. His stomach clenched at the memory of Eve holding a gun to Max’s head. How could he have ever let her get that close to Max? His brother’s son had almost been killed and would have been if Max hadn’t acted as he did.
He tried to smother the smile that pulled at his lips as he thought of the way Max had fought back against Eve. He had to give it to the boy. It took a lot of courage to stomp on her toes the way he’d done. He couldn’t imagine Richard ever doing such a thing. He’d always tried to reason things out. Not like Ash who acted most of the time before he had a chance to think, just like Max had lashed out so quickly today. Maybe there was something in Max’s DNA that was more like his uncle’s than his dad’s.