Keira Kendrik (6 page)

They arrived at the ranch in the late evening, everyone exhausted from
the recent events.  The men showed the women into the house with Lucy fussing over them.  Lucy took them upstairs to their own guest rooms, allowing them to shower and put on fresh clothes.  Lucy was able to somehow locate clothes for both women and whip up a buffet as well.  The men went to Phoenix's office and shared a drink as they debriefed the situation.

"I think for now, it's safer for us all to stay here
.  We can sort out all the details in the morning.  The women need to rest knowing they are safe," Phoenix said.

"I agree
.  We can set up tighter security.  I know the ringleader was not among the idiots we got tonight.  He's still out there," Jackson added.

Gabe nodded
.  "Frank said they are putting all the women and girls under heavy security until they find out who is behind this."

"We are getting on it
, too, see what we can dig up.  Frank said he would call us if he got any information out of those we caught," Cade said.

"Okay, then we are agreed
.  Jackson, Cade, you can stay in your rooms here in the main house.  I had Lucy put Sophie in the room next door to yours, Jasmine will be staying in the Master," Phoenix told them.

They all agreed and then Jackson made some calls, beefing up security before they went out to join the women at the buffet Lucy had set up.

****

Jasmine fell in love with Lucy
at first sight.  She was an older woman who was kind and loving to both women.  She took them under her wing like a mother hen, herding them upstairs to rooms where they could take showers and dress in clean clothes that appeared out of nowhere.

"Here now, this is the hall closet where we keep all the towels and sheets
," Lucy said to both women. "Jasmine, this will be your room and Sophie, yours is across the hall."

"Thank you so much for being so kind to us
," Jasmine told her.

"Oh
, honey, I'm glad to do it. It's so nice to have people in the house again," Lucy said.

"You mean the men don't live here full time?" Sophie asked.

"No, they have places in the city. They usually only come up here when they can take time off. It can get lonely just cooking for two, unless the parents show," Lucy answered.

"Parents?" Jasmine asked.

Lucy nodded.
"Yes, Phoenix and Gabe's parents come often to visit. They run a winery a little north of here."

"Wow, that must be nice
," Jasmine said. She wanted to talk further with Lucy but a shower was calling her. "Thank you again, Lucy, for everything. If you don't mind, I don't know about Sophie, but I would love a shower."

Sophie nodded and Lucy said, "Look at me going on when you two have been through so much.
Go on with both of you. Come on down when you are done and I will feed you." Lucy patted them on their backs and headed back downstairs.

"See you in a bit
," Sophie said to Jasmine as she turned to go in her room, shutting the door.

Jasmine turned and entered her assigned room as well, gasping at the sight.
The room that Jasmine was taken to was huge.  The walls were painted a minty green, light and open.  There was a giant bed in the center of the room, it looked like a four-poster California king that had a deep green comforter and tons of pillows.  There were three large dressers and two nightstands as well as two giant walk-in closets.  She went to the French doors that opened onto a balcony overlooking the back part of the property.  She couldn't see very far, but she could see a lit swimming pool complete with a waterfall not too far away.

She turned away from the view
knowing it would be spectacular during the day and closed the French doors, locking them.  She then saw the door to the bathroom and went through to stand in shock at the room before her.  The large bathroom held a Jacuzzi that could seat four large adults comfortably and a shower that could hold the same number of people.  There was a separate little area with a toilet and a counter with three sinks that had cabinets along the bottom.  She peeked into the shower and saw there were bottles of shampoo and body wash already there.  After noting there were fluffy towels set out on the counter, she quickly stripped down and started the water in the shower.

She couldn't wait to be clean
.  She hadn't taken a shower since she had left her apartment that Friday, the day she had been taken.  She had been able to take small sponge baths in the room she had been kept in by using wet toilet paper with cold water, but that was all. 

The
shower stall had several showerheads all over and when the water turned on, it was like a waterfall.  She tested it to see if it was right temperature and groaned at the wonderful feeling of warm water. After stepping under the spray, she took a moment to just revel in the feel of something she took for granted every day.  It felt so good running all over her body, the warm water releasing some of the tension in her.  She got her hair wet and then washed it thoroughly, then lathered up her body.  When she was done, she didn't want to leave the haven of the water but knew she had to, they were all waiting for her downstairs.

As she went to step out of the shower,
she reached to grab the towel she had hung by the door, only it wasn't there any longer.  She wiped the water out of her eyes and saw Gabe standing there holding the towel open for her.  She didn't say a word as she stepped out, her eyes locked to his.  If she thought too much about the situation, she would be embarrassed and try to hide her body from him.  His eyes held hers as she came to him and he wrapped the towel softly around her.  He slowly dried her from head to toe and then secured the towel around her body.  Then he drew her over silently to the counter of sinks and lifted her off her feet to sit on the counter.

He took a brush and careful
ly brushed all the tangles out of her hair.  Then he took out a hair dryer and dried her hair for her as she closed her eyes.  It felt so good to have someone care for her—his touch light and caring.  She heard the hair dryer turn off but couldn't seem to open her eyes.  She felt a feather light kiss on each of her closed eyes and then one on her cheek.  She opened her eyes to stare directly into Gabe's beautiful, blue eyes.  She smiled her thanks to him and placed her hands on each side of his face.  He leaned in and brushed their lips together in a kiss that was so light but still sent electric tingles throughout her body.  He slid his tongue along the seam of her lips as he had done in the dream and she moaned as she allowed him access to her mouth.

Their tongues dueled together, sliding back and forth across each other as they explored each other's mouths
.  Gabe kept his hands on either side of her, leaning on the counter while she kept her hands on his face, sliding her fingers into his hair.  He slowly released her mouth, lightly nipping on her lips as he pulled away.  Then he gently lifted her down from the counter and led her silently into the bedroom.

Once there, he said, "Come, let's get you dressed
.  Lucy has put out a huge spread of food.  You must be hungry."

She heard
the word food and her stomach decided to speak out, growling loudly.  They both laughed as she said, "I am, obviously.  Thank you for helping me.  I didn't realize how tired I was."

"You have every right to be tired with all you have been through
.  I will always be here to help you, you can lean on me anytime.  Now come, let's get you dressed.”  He began to hand her a pair of panties, which she slid on under the towel.

“
Coward,” Gabe said with a grin.

He helped her step into a pair of Capri pants and then slipped a t-shirt over her head
.  She pulled the towel out from under the t-shirt and smiled at him as he knelt down to slide socks on her feet.

He stood and
held out his hand.  "Shall we?"

She placed her hand in his with no hesitation
.  "Let's."

Together they walked out of the bedroom and he led her down the stairs to the dining room where Lucy had indeed put out a spread of food, enough to feed an entire ranch of people.

****

After eating way too much food, the two women looked like they were ready to fall asleep where they were sitting
.  As much protesting as Sophie did when Jackson and Cade tried to help her, she didn't say a word when Jackson picked her up to carry her to bed.

Phoenix took Jackson's lead, picked up Jasmine and began to carry her upstairs
.  When she opened her mouth to protest, he shook his head at her.

"Uh-uh
.  You allowed Gabe to care for you, it's my turn,” he said firmly. She quickly shut her mouth and laid her head on his shoulder.  He kissed the top of her head as he began to climb the stairs with her.  She was amazed at his strength, he wasn't even puffing his breath as he carried her up to her room.

Gabe opened the door to her room for them to enter and pulled the covers back on the bed
.  Phoenix gently sat her on the bed and while Gabe bent down to remove her socks, he went over to the dresser in the room.  Phoenix came back with a nightgown that was purple and looked to be made of silk.  They helped her out of her pants and t-shirt then slipped the gown over her head.  She sighed as they helped her settle back into the huge bed, covering her so she was comfortable.

Phoenix leaned over her first and kissed her softly on the lips.
  "We will be right next door if you need us."

Then before she could say anything, Gabe took her chin and turned her to him so he could kiss her as well.
"And he means anything."

They stood and headed out, quietly shutting the door. She laid back in the bed and sighed wondering what tomorrow would bring for all of them.  There was so much going through her head she thought she wouldn't be able to fall asleep anytime soon.  She thought about all that had happened and about her sister. 
Her sister
.  Just when she thought she would never fall asleep, her eyes drooped shut, and she drifted off.

Phoenix and Gabe went downstairs early the next morning, both having had a restless night and for the same reason, Jasmine.  After saying good night to her, they both had had trouble falling asleep being that close to her and not claiming her.

They entered the kitchen to see Lucy slapping at Cade's hands.
"You get out of there until they are ready."

"Geez, Luce, I just wanted a sample
," Cade said, giving her the hangdog look he was famous for.

Lucy laughed.
"Nice try, young man. You will wait like everyone else." She turned and saw the two princes in the doorway. "Good morning, sleep well?"

The two men grumbled as they sat down at the table with Jackson and Cade.

Jackson laughed. "You too, huh?"

"It's hitting both of us pretty hard
," Cade said, the men nodded in commiseration.

"What's on the agenda for today?" Phoenix asked, trying to distract them with business.

"Well I am going to try to find out who owned that warehouse. It's hidden well, it's going to take a while." Jackson turned to Cade. "Maybe Frank can help with some of the blocks I am getting."

Cade nodded.
"I spoke to him early this morning and the FBI isn't willing to wait a couple of days to interview the women. That is out of Frank's control."

Phoenix growled.
"I hate putting them through that, but if it will help catch whoever is doing this, then it's worth it."

"When are they coming?" Cade asked.

"This afternoon," Gabe answered.

"After breakfast, I will go inform the men and set up tighter security
," Cade stated.

Lucy sat down large plates filled with eggs, hash browns, sausages, and pancakes on the table and the men dug in.
Once they were done, Cade headed out to talk with the men around the ranch while Jackson went to Phoenix's office to get on his computer for more information on the ring that had the women.  Phoenix and Gabe sat at the table finishing their breakfast when Jasmine walked in to find them.

"Good morning
," she said shyly.

Phoenix and Gabe both stood when she entered and Phoenix said, "Good morning, sweet
.  Sleep well?" he asked as he leaned toward her to kiss her cheek.

Gabe kissed the other and said, "Breakfast?"

She looked them both over, almost drooling at how good they looked even though she mentally noted they looked tired.  "Um, yes I slept well and yes, breakfast sounds good."

Gabe turned and filled a plate for her with the food Lucy was cooking while Phoenix held out a chair that in between them
.  She sat down and inhaled the lovely aroma coming from the plate Gabe sat in front of her.

"Lucy, this all looks wonderful
," she said to the older woman.

"Thank you
, honey.  I love having people to cook for again.”  She winked at her as she turned off the last burner and headed out of the kitchen to give them some privacy.

"So, how did you guys find me
?  How did you know I was missing?" Jasmine asked.

"Your friends, Keni and Ol
ivia, came to see me at our offices.  We own a private company called Champion that helps people in need,” Phoenix answered her.

She set down the cup of coffee she had been sipping and exclaimed, "Keni and Olivia
!  Oh my god, how could I have forgotten!  I have to call them.”  She turned to Phoenix.  "Do you have a phone I can use?"

He smiled at her and handed her his cell phone
.  "You can use my phone.  Let them know they can contact you through me for now until we get you your own phone."

She kissed his cheek
.  "Thank you.”  She looked at both of them as she stood to go call her friends.  "Really, thank you so much for rescuing me, my sister, and all the others, too.  You're true heroes," she told them sincerely.

Both men seemed to redden a little as she gave them her heartfelt thanks and Gabe said, "I told you, we will always be there for you
.  Go.  Call your friends, we should have had you do it last night.  They have been worried."

She turned and headed out on to the back porch
.  She dialed Keni's number first.  When she picked up, Jasmine said, "I'm okay.  I'm free.”  She started to tear up, holding everything back as her friend squealed in her ear.

"Jasmine
?  Is it really you?  Hold on, I will get Olivia on the other line.”  There was a click then silence right before both women came back on line firing questions at her.

"Where have you been?" Keni asked.

"What happened?" Olivia yelled.

"Are you okay?" Keni inserted.

"Where are you, we'll come get you," Olivia said.

"Okay, hang on and I will tell you
," Jasmine said as both women quieted to listen to her.  "I was taken by two men outside the club.  I had gone out to get some fresh air and they snatched me.  Then they kept me in a room for some time, I don't know how long because I lost track of time.”  She continued to tell them about what had happened, of the rescue and of the surprising news that she had a twin sister.  Her friends were shocked but continued to listen.

"Oh
, honey, are you okay now?" Keni asked.

"Did they hurt you?" Olivia questioned.

"I'm doing okay.  The men you hired, Phoenix and Gabriel Raine?  They rescued me," Jasmine told them.  "I'm with them at their ranch.  I need to stay here until the dust settles.  Don't worry, we will see each other soon, I promise.”  She felt the men join her on the porch and surround her as if they knew she was going to lose it.  She was, talking to her friends had brought all the fear of never seeing them again back to the forefront of her thoughts.

"Oh
, sweetie, we are so happy you are safe.  Please tell Sophie that we can't wait to meet her.  We love you," Keni told her.

"Ditto
.  Tell those guys thank you so much from us.  We are in their debt," Olivia said.

"I will and I will call you guys later, okay
?  I love you, too," Jasmine said as she hung up.  Then the dam broke and she fell apart.  The men were there to catch her.  They wrapped their arms around her as she laid her head on Phoenix's chest and cried.

They led her over to an old
-fashioned porch swing that hung on the back porch and sat down with her sitting on Phoenix's lap, her legs stretched over Gabe's lap.  She cried for some time before she was just sniffling and Gabe handed her a handkerchief to wipe her face.  They didn't say a word, just held her and rubbed her back to calm her.

Then she leaned back to look up into Phoenix's eyes and said, "Why?"

"Why what, sweet?" Phoenix asked.

"Why are you two being so nice to me?
" Jasmine asked.

"We have ulterior motives
," Gabe told her and wagged his eyebrows at her.  It had the effect he wanted, she laughed at his antics.

P
hoenix placed his finger under her chin and tipped her head up to look at him again.  "We care for you.  You are special to us.  We will talk about this later.  Right now you need to finish your breakfast and then we have to talk about your statement to the FBI."

They helped her stand and took her back into the kitchen
.  Gabe reheated her breakfast while Phoenix poured her more coffee.

****

Sophie came in while they were keeping her company and sat down to have some breakfast as well.  She seemed distracted but Jasmine waited to talk to her until they were alone.  They exchanged pleasantries and then the men excused themselves to go check in with the office.

Jasmine looked over at Sophie
.  "I know we really don't know each other, even though we are twins, but you seem upset.  Care to talk?"

Sophie set down her fork with a sigh
.  "I'm just not sure what to do.  I mean, according to the date, I have been missing for a month.  I'm sure I have been fired by now, which is fine, I hated that job anyway, but what should I do now?  All these questions keep running through my mind and I can't stop them."

Jasmine nodded
.  "I understand.  I really do.  I don't know if I have a job or not at this point.  I hadn't thought about that yet.”  She laughed.  "I just called my best friends who had contacted Phoenix and Gabe's company to search for me.  They didn't even enter my mind until this morning, how wrong is that?"

Sophie reached over and took her hand
.  "You're right, we don't know each other well, but I want us to.  That I know for sure.  Let's work out the rest later."

"She's right
," Jackson said as he came in through the back door.  "Nothing has to be sorted out today or even tomorrow.  We all want to keep you safe and let you rest."

Jasmine and Sophie nodded
.  "Thank you, Jackson.  You are all being so nice to us.  I know we both appreciate it," Jasmine said to him.

"No worries
.  Like I said, I know I speak for Phoenix and Gabe as well when I say that you are both welcome here, for as long as is needed," he said and then headed toward the front of the house.

Jasmine glanced over at Sophie and saw the blush covering her sister's cheeks
.  She wondered if she was attracted to Jackson the way Jasmine was attracted to both Phoenix and Gabe.  She didn't know how to handle that, but she knew they wanted her, making them a threesome.  She just didn't know how to handle the whole situation but mentally decided to go with the flow for now.

She turned to Sophie
.  "So, I guess we are going to have to talk to the FBI today.  Phoenix and Gabe are setting it up now.  Are you okay with all that?"

Sophie nodded
.  "Yeah, we have to, right?  I want those fuckers to get what's coming to them."

Jasmine cleared her throat and asked, "Did they hurt you?"

Sophie shook her head.  "No, just kept me locked up and scared to death.  Once a creepy man came in with a cane and looked me over then left."

"He came to our room
, too.  He seemed really weird.  He looked at the young girls that were with me and said 'These will do nicely.’  It creeped me out.  I knew then we were in deep, deep shit," Jasmine told her.

Sophie nodded
.  "Jackson said it was a human trafficking ring.  God, I don't want to even think about what could have been."

They finished eating and then did the dishes, cleaning up the kitchen as they went
.  Then Jackson came to take them into Phoenix's office where Phoenix, Gabe, and Cade were waiting for them.  The women sat down on the couch as Phoenix indicated and the men sat in chairs around the large office.

Phoenix remained standing when he addressed the women
.  "Ladies, we brought you in here before the FBI arrives to talk to you about your statement.  We ask that you tell your story to Special Agent Frank Brewster only.  We will make sure he is the one who takes your statements.  To anyone else, we would appreciate you keeping our names out of it,” he said as he looked at them. "We prefer to remain anonymous on many counts due to our profession."

Both women nodded and Jasmine said, "We understand
.  We won't say anything to anyone.  I think we both know how important what you do is and why it's important to remain anonymous."

"Good
.  We thank you," Phoenix said.  "Also, Jackson said that you are both a little 'up in the air' so to speak.  We want you to know that you both are welcome here at the ranch for as long as you need and hope that you will stay a while to recover from your ordeal."

"Thank you
.  I know I appreciate that," Jasmine told him.

"Me
, too.  I don't even know what to do or where I would go," Sophie said.

"Then it's settled
.  You'll stay here for a while to convalesce," Phoenix said.

Jasmine smiled
.  "That makes it sound nice but like we were going nuts and need a break."

Gabe laughed and said, "Not at all
.  Just relax.  We can get you whatever you need."

"Make a list of what you need
.  Clothes, toiletries, and your sizes.  Cade and I will go into town and get them for you," Jackson told them.

Sophie frowned
.  "What's wrong, honey?" Cade asked her.

"It's just that I...I don't have any money
," Sophie responded quietly.

"Me either
," Jasmine said just as softly.

Phoenix went over and knelt down in front of Jasmine
.  "Money is not an issue.  For either of you.  Don't give it a second thought.”  He ran his hand down the back of Jasmine's head.  "Make your lists, whatever you need or want.  Jackson and Cade will leave as soon as you are done.  Okay?"

Both of the women nodded and Cade stood
.  "Come on, let's go into the kitchen and I'll help make the lists."