Wild Borders (22 page)

Chapter Eighteen

The following morning was muggy and overcast, and Rick was sure it would rain later. After feeding the livestock for Chuck, Rick cleaned mud off his boots before he entered the house. His footsteps echoed as he walked to his bedroom.

Last night it had seemed that she had something to tell him, but instead they made love again and again until they were too exhausted to move.

He stopped at the doorway to his bedroom and found Lani still sound asleep. This time they’d slept in his bed. Where he wanted her always. She made him feel so good, just by being there. In a couple of strides he reached the bed, leaned down and whispered, “Rise and shine.”

“Mmmm.” Her lashes were dark against her pale skin, and her chest rose and fell.

Bedsprings creaked as Rick sat and shook Lani’s shoulder. “Get up, sleepyhead.”

“Leavemealone.” she mumbled and turned her head away.

“Gotta get you out of here.” Rick tried pulling the covers off, but she snatched them back.

“Go away.”

“Nope. Out of bed.”

“A little longer,” she moaned.

He leaned over and kissed her ear. “I know how to wake you.”

A sleepy smile teased the corners of her mouth as he nipped her lobe. She grabbed a pillow and covered her head with it, swatting his face in the process.

Rick couldn’t help but smile as he pulled on his bulletproof vest, T-shirt and overshirt. When he finished dressing, he lifted the pillow and nuzzled Lani’s neck. She smelled so good, her skin warm against his nose. “Get up, honey. I’ve got to get going.”

Another groan. “I will. Gimme a minute.”

“Only one.” He tossed the pillow aside and brushed his lips over hers. “Call me at work and let me know when you make it to the hotel.”

“All right.” She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him back.

As she settled against the pillow, he wanted to tell her then. Wanted to tell her how much he loved her. Was she ready?

“You need to go to work.” She captured his hand and brought it to her lips.

“And you need to get your pretty ass out of bed.”

“Okay.”

She looked beautiful and innocent, her hair splayed across the pillow, her lips soft and swollen. He didn’t want to leave. Wasn’t sure he should. Or could.

Last night they’d waited up until Sadie called to let them know that she, Chuck and Trevor had arrived in San Francisco and were safe and sound at Callie’s. He was relieved they were out of danger. Why did Lani have to be so stubborn? Why couldn’t she have gone to San Francisco where she would be safe?

Fear settled in his chest, a hard lump that wouldn’t go away. “I’ll call in. Tell Mikey I’ll be late until we get you settled into the hotel.”

Frowning, Lani shook her head. “Absolutely not. I’ll call you when I get to Nicole’s B & B.”

He knew he would only make her angry if he pushed the issue. It was enough that she would at least be away from the house. She would be safe in Bisbee.

“I expect to hear from you by noon,” he said. “If you don’t catch me on my cell phone and I’m not in the office, leave a message with Daryl.”

She smiled. “Gotcha, cowboy.”

Lani had fully intended to get up when Rick left. But it felt wonderful lying there, thinking about him, her lips still tingling from his kiss. He had smelled delicious when he came in from feeding the cattle. Of sweet oats and the promise of rain on a morning breeze. She thought about the feel of his hand in hers, the texture of his calloused fingers against her lips, the soft hair on the back of his wrist.

She moved her hand to her belly. He’d given her the world, and she hoped he’d be as happy as she was when she told him. Last night she had wanted to, but she wasn’t sure what his reaction would be and she just wanted to enjoy the time they had.

While lying there, thinking about the reason he wanted her to go stay in Bisbee, she realized what Rick’s Achilles heel was, and her smile faded.

His love for his family. His concern for others. Whatever it was he felt for her.

The bastards knew exactly how to hurt Rick—by threatening his family. But Rick wasn’t one to back down.

He would die fighting to protect those he loves. And to protect those who love him.

The thought chilled her.

She held a fist to her aching heart. She couldn’t bear anything happening to Rick. Couldn’t bear losing another person that she loved so intensely. How could she walk away and hide in a hotel while he risked his life? Shouldn’t she remain at his side? But if she stayed, would that only put him in more danger?

The past few days weighed her down, and she closed her eyes against the relentless images. James. The threat to Rick’s family. Acknowledging her love for Rick. The pregnancy.

So tired. Her thoughts moved to the only close friend she had that had gone through a pregnancy. She remembered how exhausted Theresa Cortez had been in her first trimester. The woman could hardly keep her head up or food down for three months, practically from the day she’d gotten pregnant.

Thunder rumbled outside as Lani snuggled into the pillow and drank in Rick’s earthy scent that clung to the sheets. She needed to keep her promise to him and get to the B & B so he wouldn’t worry. She would just rest a minute longer. The heaviness in her limbs dragged her further down, deeper and deeper, until darkness enveloped her.

* * * * *

When Rick arrived at the station, he headed straight to Miguel Martinez’s office.

“Everything okay?” Miguel asked, his green eyes narrowed. He sat at his desk, resting his chin on his steepled fingers.

“Got my family off to Frisco.” With a frustrated sigh, Rick ran his hand over his head. “Lani refused to go because she wants to finish her damn feature. But she agreed to stay at a hotel in Bisbee.”

Miguel frowned. “A man matching Gordo’s description was seen in the vicinity of the phone booth the call was placed from yesterday. I put Sal and Don on him, but they’ve come up empty.”

Fury simmered in Rick’s gut. “What about Bull Stevens?”

“Everything’s been quiet at his ranch.” Rubbing a palm over his stubbled cheeks, Miguel added, “But we tapped an interesting phone call yesterday that might connect him to the threat.”

Rick clenched the back of a chair, his knuckles white against the dark upholstery. Before he could respond, Daryl Jones paged him over the intercom.

“Phone call on line six for Agent McAllister.”

Miguel pointed to the telephone. “Take it here.”

Rick grabbed the receiver. “McAllister.”

“This is Juarez,” the informant said in Spanish. His voice trembled. “I have information concerning those who wish to do your family harm.”

Clenching the phone in his hand, Rick said, “What do you know?”

“Mario’s at noon. Come alone.”

The line went dead.

“I think another agent should go in with you,” Miguel said again when it was time for Rick to head to Mario’s. “We can put someone in undercover.”

“It’s only an informant,” Rick replied. “It’s a public place.”

“But it’s the first time he’s insisted you come alone, correct?”

“Juarez isn’t a concern.”

Miguel picked up his frog paperweight and ran his thumb over the smooth glass. “Nonetheless, I’ll have a couple of vehicles keep an eye out as they drive by.”

Rick nodded and headed out of the building, then strode through the rain to his truck. The drive took less than five minutes, and right at noon, he took his regular booth at Mario’s Cantina. He shook rain from his hair and combed it back with his fingers. Mari didn’t appear to be working, and another waitress took his order.

Fifteen minutes later, Rick checked his watch. Juarez was late, which wasn’t like him. He studied the regulars, several of whom were already bombed off their asses, and it was barely after noon.

Outside the open door, relentless monsoon rains pounded the sidewalk. A breeze swirled in, the scent of rain mingling with the cantina’s odors of cigarettes and alcohol.

Another ten minutes passed and unease twisted in Rick’s gut. Something wasn’t right. He stood to leave and dropped a five on the table, then caught the smell of cheap perfume.

“
Señor
.” Mari came up to him and laid her hand on his arm, her dark eyes wide and lips trembling. “A man. You were here with him before. He is in the kitchen and asked that you come at once.”

Hair rose at Rick’s nape. “His name?”

“Juarez.” Her gaze darted to the back room and then to Rick again. “He said that he cannot risk being seen out here.”

Keeping his right hand close to the gun at his back, Rick followed Mari through the doorway. The kitchen floor was littered with scraps and smelled of sour beer and stale grease. He glanced behind him as they turned a corner, then back to Mari.

She stopped in front of a dingy room. Rick caught a glimpse of papers piled on a desk and an empty chair.

Her eyes darted toward the office. “He’s in here,
Señor
.”

As he eased up to the office, an enormous man rounded the doorway. Before Rick had a chance to react, he saw the flash of metal. Blinding pain splintered his head as the man slammed the butt of an automatic onto the side of his skull.

* * * * *

The crack of thunder jarred Lani awake and she bolted upright. “Rick!” she cried, holding her hand to her pounding heart.

Panic clawed its way up her throat.

She glanced at the digital clock on the bureau. Twelve thirty? How had she slept so late? She took a deep breath, then exhaled. Nothing was wrong. It was just the time making her nervous. She’d promised Rick she would go to Bisbee and she should have been gone already.

A flash of lighting and another rumble sent shockwaves through her. Thunderclouds darkened the sky and rain poured from the heavens.

She needed to call Rick. Let him know she was running late.

Still naked, Lani scrambled out of bed and grabbed his robe. His scent enveloped her as she tied the belt and hurried to the phone in the study. She flipped through the card file and called his cell phone. No answer. She dialed his work number and tapped her fingers as she waited for an answer.

“Border Patrol. Daryl Jones here.”

“This is Lane Stanton. Is Rick McAllister available?”

“I’m sorry. He’s out of the station right now. May I take a message?”

She closed her eyes. “Yes. Please tell him I’m running late and probably won’t be leaving the ranch until after one. I’ll call him again later.”

After Daryl repeated the message, she hung up and took another deep breath. Rick was fine. She just needed to get to Bisbee so he wouldn’t worry.

She hurried to take a shower and then packed enough clothes for four days. She French-braided her hair to keep it out of her face, then pulled on loose jeans, a baggy T-shirt and tennis shoes.

When she was ready, she grabbed her laptop bag, purse and suitcase, locked the front door and headed through the rain to Sadie’s SUV, the Rottweiler trailing after her. She tossed everything onto the floorboard of the passenger side and slammed the door shut.

She rounded the vehicle and grabbed the handle to open the driver’s side door when Roxie’s bark caused her to jump. The dog bounded into the driveway and growled. The sound grew more ominous and threatening as Roxie stared down the road that led to the ranch.

Lani’s heart thudded as the dog’s deep-throated bark pierced the rain. Then she saw it. A car she didn’t recognize tearing up the dirt road, about a quarter mile away.

Oh, my god. What if it was the men who had threatened Rick?

She thought about jumping into the SUV, but knew the car could cut her off before she made it to the main road. With only stunted
palo verde
and mesquite bushes surrounding the property, there would be no place to hide a vehicle, and they would see her before she had a chance to get far.

Lani spun and ran onto the lawn, toward the front door. No. Not the house. If those were the men after Rick’s family, the house would be the first place they would look, and she wouldn’t have time to call anyone. The ranch was so far from town that no one would have a chance to get there before anything happened.

She dodged around the house and eyed the barn. No, she was likely to sneeze so much they would hear her.

Trevor’s hideout.

Wet leaves and branches slapped her face as she raced through the orchard and into the windbreak. Her foot slid on the wet grass and she tumbled to the ground. Without pause, she scrambled to her feet and hurried on until she reached the playhouse. She scurried through the door and collapsed onto the floor. Trembling, she struggled to catch her breath.

“Calm down, Lani,” she murmured as she wiped rain and mud from her face onto her sleeve. “It’s probably neighbors coming to visit Chuck and Sadie. You’re overreacting.”

But even as she said the words, her gut told her different. The same instinct that told her Rick was in trouble.

In the distance she heard a car’s engine and squeaking brakes. Roxie continued to bark, more ferocious than Lani had ever heard her. A sound like a gunshot echoed across the yard and the dog yelped.

Silence.

Lani clapped her hand to her mouth.
No!

Her entire body shook and she wanted to curl up in a ball and hide. But she needed to see who was out there. Needed to figure out what to do. As she scooted closer to the window, she remembered Trevor’s binoculars. Fortunately, she didn’t have to dig far into the toy box to find them. Sitting on her knees, she brought the binoculars to her eyes and pushed open the shutters, just far enough to allow her to see.

At first Lani saw nothing, but as she adjusted the lenses, the image of an enormous man swam into view. The man who’d almost run her off the road on John Stevens’s ranch. The name Gordo popped into her mind—it had to be the man Stevens had been talking to on his cell phone.

Beside Gordo was a man who’s face reminded her of a lizard. Lizard was waving a gun and pointing to the house. Gordo shook his head and walked to Sadie’s SUV. He yanked open the door, searched the vehicle, then slammed the door shut again. Lizard gestured to the muddy ground. Gordo nodded and they both started across the lawn toward the house.

The two men reached the front door and jiggled the handle. Lani heard the faint sound of glass shattering as Lizard used the butt of his gun to break a glass pane in the door. He reached through the broken glass, unlocked it and walked into the house.

Anger churned in her stomach. How dare they violate Rick’s home? She kept the binoculars trained on the house, occasionally catching glimpses of the men through the windows. Searching for her, or one of Rick’s family members.

Lani set the binoculars down and pressed her palms to her temples. What should she do?

Rain beat on the roof of the playhouse and lightning struck so close that for a moment Lani was deafened from its thunder. A rain-drenched breeze swirled around her and chills crawled up her spine.

How was she going to get out of this alive?