by Maya Banks
“Son of a bitch,” Sam swore. He bit out a few more colorful phrases before Garrett rocked backed on his heels, a flare of triumph on his face.
“Gotcha.”
“Okay, okay. Don’t fucking rub it in.”
Garrett shrugged. “Now, you going to call Ethan or am I?”
CHAPTER 26
AS a matter of habit, Geron Castle had an array of local newspapers from across the state of Tennessee delivered to his office every morning. It was his practice to drink two cups of coffee as he browsed the human interest stories.
Ever the politician, he looked for any angle to exploit, and he pompously considered that it kept him in touch with his constituents.
He browsed through Knoxville, Nashville and Memphis first. Then he focused on the smaller publications and yawned his way through small-town bullshit. These people had no lives. Cattle, horses, hunting and fishing. It was all they seemed to live for. It was a wonder the suicide rate wasn’t higher in this godforsaken state.
He consoled himself with the fact that these uneducated, backwoods louts were the ones who put him in the Senate, and they would indirectly be responsible for him shaking the dirt of Polk County from his feet when he made the jump to the White House.
He was sipping at his second cup and idly contemplating his upcoming vacation when his gaze lighted on the article about a Stewart County resident declared dead who had miraculously returned after surviving a supposed plane crash in a South American jungle.
He choked on his coffee and sloshed it all over his lap when he read the woman’s name. Rachel Kelly.
He leapt to his feet, slapping at his pants as the heat scorched the more tender portions of his anatomy. He let out a string of curses that would have had his mother washing his mouth out with soap. She was a devout, churchgoing woman, and she had no tolerance for ungodly behavior.
Half his life had been spent following her dictates and example. The other half had been spent veering as far from the path of righteousness as a man could.
He wasn’t proud of his sins, but he didn’t regret them either.
And now it looked like his sins were coming back to haunt him.
He tossed the cup aside, ignoring the stain on the carpet and the line of liquid on his desk. He snatched the paper back up and read the article in its entirety.
This was a disaster. Not just a disaster but the end of his career. The end of his presidency before it ever began.
How the hell was the little bitch alive?
The fucking drug cartel had screwed him over. What possible motivation they’d had for reneging on their end of the deal he didn’t know, but they wouldn’t get away with it.
He grabbed his phone and started to dial and then slammed it back down, shaking his head at his stupidity. This wasn’t a safe place to make such an important call. He couldn’t use his cell phone either.
Impatience and panic vied for equal attention. He flung his chair back and all but ran from his office, past his startled secretary, who probably saw the mess he’d made of his clothing.
Then he forced himself to calm down. Nothing good would come of him drawing unwanted attention. He forced a smile at his secretary and told her he was going home to change. A slight mishap, he said with a fake smile.
He drove out of town, giving thanks he hadn’t been in D.C. when the newspaper article was released. He didn’t always get the papers at his residence or his office there. What would have happened if he’d missed it?
At the first gas station with a pay phone he came to, he pulled off and made sure no one was close enough to overhear his call. Then he placed a phone call. His instructions were clear.
The cartel had fucked up. He needed no witnesses. Anyone who could connect him to drug trafficking had to die.
And Rachel Kelly needed to return to the grave.
CHAPTER 27
RACHEL hung up the phone with shaking hands, and then she turned to Ethan, praying she didn’t look as sick as she felt. Her stomach churned, and she was eternally grateful she’d refused breakfast.
“She’ll see me right away,” she said in a low voice.
Ethan closed the distance between them and pulled her into his arms. She clung to him, her anchor, the only thing in her world that made sense right now.
“Do you want me to go?”
She hesitated, because more than anything she wanted him to go with her. She was scared to death and didn’t want to do this alone. But worse than her fear of being without Ethan was her fear of him finding out why she was finally agreeing to go to the therapist in the first place. How could she face him and relate the horrible things she dreamed about at night when he’d been so absolutely wonderful to her?
“No, I need to do this on my own.”
Her lips trembled so bad she could barely get the words out without the urge to puke. The thought of going to some stranger and laying out her soul terrified her.
He leaned in and brushed his lips across hers. Then he deepened the kiss, seeking and exploring her mouth.
When he pulled away, they were both breathing hard, and her lips were swollen and tingling.
He reached into his pocket and took out a cell phone, and placed it on the counter next to her.
“This is yours. I’ve programmed my number as well as everyone else’s in the family. Sean, the sheriff, and all the deputies. Anyone I could think of that you might ever need. If you change your mind, you call me. I’ll be there as soon as I can.”
She smiled and leaned into him, circling his waist with her arms. She gave him a squeeze, pleased that she could feel and act so affectionate with him after the terror of her dreams the night before. In the daylight they faded and made her feel silly and reactionary.
The phone rang, startling her. They rarely got calls, and she was sure it was because Ethan’s family was respecting their privacy.
Tentatively she reached to pick it up, remembering that this was her house too. She actually smiled as she brought the phone to her ear. Her home. Her phone.
“Hello?”
There was a short pause and then Sam’s voice sounded in her ear.
“Hey, Rachel, how are you?”
His tone was gentle as it always was, and remembering how abrupt and foulmouthed he was with his brothers, she grinned. For once the thought of the big man didn’t intimidate her.
“Hi, Sam. I’m good.”
“That’s great, honey. Is Ethan around? I need to speak to him for just a minute.”
“Sure. He’s right here.”
She turned and handed the phone to him.
He gave her a quick kiss and then took it.
“Hello?”
Rachel moved away to give him space, but even across the room she felt the sudden anger emanate from him.
“What the hell? You’re shitting me.”
She winced and turned in concern to see Ethan’s face clouded in fury.
“You’ll have to come by to get me. I need a ride. Rachel’s taking the truck. I still haven’t gotten her new wheels.”
He glanced up at her as he spoke and made an effort to ease his expression.
“Yeah, give me half an hour, okay? Don’t you fucking go over there without me.”
He hung up the phone and curled his fist into a tight ball. He looked for the world like he wanted to smash something, but he stood there, breathing in and out, instead.
“Ethan?” she asked cautiously.
He slowly relaxed his fist and looked back at her. He even tried to smile. “It’s okay, baby. Just some stupid stunt Rusty has pulled. Sam wants to go over and give her hell. It’s time Mom came to her senses. This girl is trouble, and this time she’s gone too far.”
Rachel frowned unhappily. “Oh, that’s too bad. Try not to be too hard on her or your mom. Rusty has had such a bad time. She just seems so fragile.”
To her surprise, Ethan smiled, so much that it lit up his entire face. He crossed the room and took her shoulders in his hands.
“God, you sound just like yourself. So tenderhearted and always looking out for the underdog.”
“I’m trying, Ethan. I really am. I want to be the Rachel everyone knows. I just have to remember her first.”
“I know, baby. I know. You should get on the road. I want you to be careful, and if anything freaks you out or if you just get there and change your mind, you call me. I’ll come immediately.”
She rose up on tiptoe to kiss him. “I will. I promise.”
RUSTY sat on the edge of her bed staring down at the fingers that had lost feeling five minutes ago. Her knuckles were white, but she didn’t lessen her grip on them.
Even with her door closed she could hear the raised voices drifting up the stairs from the living room. Sam, Garrett and Ethan were there along with Nathan and Joe, Marlene and Frank. A regular family meeting. The only people missing were Donovan and Rachel.
Rusty frowned unhappily. She’d fucked up this time. And the pisser was she hadn’t meant to. They’d never believe her, though. They’d want her out on her ass because nobody would allow anything to upset poor, pitiful Rachel.
She should start packing, but then she hadn’t come here with anything. Everything she owned had been bought by Marlene and it just didn’t feel right to take it.
The knot grew bigger in her stomach. Stupid, stupid, stupid. It wasn’t the first time she’d been taken in by a friendly face. When was she going to learn that no one was ever nice to her without an ulterior motive? Except Marlene. Rusty hadn’t yet figured out any reason the woman had been so nice to her other than that she wanted to.
She liked the Kelly brothers because they didn’t pretend. They didn’t like her, they didn’t approve of her, and they didn’t make a secret of it. She could take that kind of bluntness. Truth was, she wasn’t that crazy about any of them either even if she did admire them in a twisted sort of way.
She admired all the Kellys. They were fiercely loyal to each other. She wanted that. Wanted to be part of something that big and larger than life.
“Dream on,” she muttered. After today she’d be back on the street trying to figure out where her next meal was going to come from.
Heavy footsteps on the stairs made her flinch. She squeezed her hands harder, determined not to let anyone see their betraying tremble.
No knock. No doubt she’d lost any privileges she may have earned in this house. The door swung open, and Nathan stood there, his expression solemn. Well at least his eyes weren’t sparking hatred. She knew she’d run into that just as soon as she faced Rachel’s little protective brigade.
“Mom wants to see you downstairs, Rusty.”
She flashed a resentful glare in his direction. “Don’t you mean your brothers want to yell at me?”
Nathan leaned against the door frame and studied her with that disturbing, probing stare that told her he saw way too much. “You don’t think they have reason?”
She started to pop off some smart-ass remark, but she closed her mouth. She had no defense, and they both knew it. With a resigned sigh, she rose from her perch on the bed. Better to just get it over with.
“Take me down to face the firing squad,” she muttered.
Worse than Nathan taking her to task, he remained silent. He just looked at her with those eyes that saw too much. She’d much rather he snarl at her or tell her what a fuckup she was.
Injecting steel in her suddenly jellified spine, she went stiffly down the stairs, dreading the bottom with every step. They were all gathered in the living room. Just great.
She tromped down the steps, not looking at anyone. Still, she could feel their heated stares, feel the anger coming off them in waves. Worse, she could sense the deep disappointment coming from Marlene’s direction.
She chanced a look at Frank, and her heart sank when she saw not anger, but sadness.
Forgoing a seat near any of them, she perched on the brick hearth instead. She could hear the intake of breath as they prepared to launch into a diatribe about how evil she was.
“Look,” she blurted. “I didn’t mean to do it. I know you all hate me. I get it. I fucked up.”
“Watch your mouth, young lady,” Marlene said in her snippy motherly tone that Rusty loved so much. Maybe because her own mother had never spoken to her in such a way. Like a real mom.
“I just want to know why you did it,” Ethan demanded.
Rusty glanced up and wished she hadn’t. Ethan stood between Sam and Garrett, and they all scared the bejesus out of her. They were pissed. Okay, she got that. They even had the right to be.
Her throat swelled and she swallowed angrily. Damn if they’d make her cry. No one could make her cry. Not her crazy-ass mother. Not her mother’s stupid husband who called himself Rusty’s stepfather. They could all go straight to hell.
Surprisingly, Nathan came to her rescue.
“Cut the interrogation,” he said to his brothers. “Let her tell us what happened. You’ve already tried and convicted her.” Then he turned to Rusty. “Okay, let’s hear it.”
Something in his expression made her want to explain. It made her want to fight for her place in this family where before she’d been prepared to say fuck you all and hit the road again. She didn’t have any experience with seeing it when people looked at her, but she could swear it was . . . trust.
She glanced over to where Marlene and Frank sat. Marlene’s face was drawn into a pained expression. Shit, it looked like she’d been crying. Frank . . . he just looked disappointed. Rusty would rather stick an ice pick through her eye than put that look on his face.
Then she turned back to Ethan, Sam and Garrett, and she finally realized why she hated them so much. They were pissed beyond reason because Rusty had done something that hurt Rachel. Rachel, Rachel, Rachel. Rusty didn’t hate her, but she envied her so much it was like poison in her blood. She wanted someone to feel as strongly about her. She wanted brothers—a family—to love her and want to protect her from all the bad shit in the world. Just like what they were doing for Rachel. Rachel who’d been through hell and didn’t deserve any of Rusty’s vitriol.
“I just wanted to be . . . one of you,” she choked out.
A tear rolled down her cheek, and she slapped the back of her hand against it, mortified that anyone would see her crying like a baby.
Sam’s eyes flickered, and his arms lowered from their position over his chest.
“Care to explain that? How does you doing a hatchet job on Rachel and shoving KGI into the spotlight make us believe you’d want to be part of this family?”
“I didn’t know he was a reporter,” she said miserably. “He was at the party so I assumed he was someone you all knew or trusted. He was nice and funny and he seemed genuinely interested in what I had to say. He wanted to talk to a member of the family and it felt so good, for just a minute, to pretend that I was.”
“Oh, honey,” Marlene whispered.
“But why would you say those things about Rachel?” Ethan demanded. “Do you have any idea what this will do to her when she sees it? She’s at the therapist this morning, Rusty. She’s there because she’s about to break. She has nightmares. She’s afraid she’s losing her sanity, and her family is the one safe harbor she should have above all else. Why would you try to ruin that?”
Rusty hung her head, no longer trying to hide the hot tears that splashed onto her hands.
“I don’t hate her. I didn’t mean to hurt her, I swear. It just all came out. I envied the way everyone seems to rally around her. I was afraid now that she’s back that Marlene wouldn’t want me to stay anymore. I thought maybe I was some lame replacement for Rachel.”
“Rusty.”
She whipped her head around at Frank’s gravelly voice. Even the others stopped whatever it was they were going to say. It was obvious they respected their father. They loved him and he held sway over his sons.
“Come here,” he directed as he shoved forward in his recliner.
On trembling legs
she pushed up from the hearth and took the few steps to where he sat. Oh God, if he denounced her in front of everyone, it would kill her.
She couldn’t look at him. Couldn’t stand to see the judgment in his eyes.
Instead he took her hand in his much larger one, one that was wrinkled and weathered by age. He squeezed comfortingly, and her astonished gaze swung to meet his.
“You were never a replacement for Rachel. Marlene, bless her heart, has decreed that you’re part of the Kelly clan. God help you. That means for better or worse you’re family. Now, not everyone has to like it. I can’t shield you from that. You have to earn your stripes in this family. You don’t automatically get respect or privilege. You earn it.”
Her mouth fell open. She had no response, no defense for the acceptance and forgiveness she saw in his eyes. She didn’t deserve it, but she wanted it. Oh God, she wanted it so badly she could taste it.
She heard a strangled protest behind her, but a disapproving look from Frank silenced it immediately.
“You owe Rachel an apology,” he said sternly. “You also owe my boys an apology for bandying their business about.”
“Y-yes, sir.”
He nodded approvingly. Then his gaze softened until the lines at the corners of his eyes wrinkled and spread out.
“This won’t be the last time you screw up. Just don’t make a habit of it. Around here, we take responsibility for our mistakes. We don’t hide from them. Understand?”
“Yes, sir,” she said again, stronger this time.
CHAPTER 28
RACHEL stumbled out of the therapist’s office, inhaling the smell of new paint, new drywall. The entire neat little building was sparkly new. It was a gorgeous office. The kind you didn’t mind sitting in while waiting forever for your appointment. Only she couldn’t wait to get out. The walls were closing in around her and so was her panic.