Scorch (The MacKenzie Family Book 17) (5 page)

Shane held back a groan and his fingers went to the button on his BDUs, popping it open and lowering the zipper to relieve his aching cock.

“I’ve got a caged beast too. She doesn’t get to come out and play very often because like you said, I’m all work and no play. The men I seduce aren’t the men I want to fuck. And then I get to kill them.”

She walked toward him with confidence and he stripped off his shirt. It was warm inside the barn, but he didn’t care.

“I guess I should feel lucky you’re here to do one and not the other. I’m assuming you won’t get reprimanded for interagency screwing?”

Her hands pressed against his chest and then dropped to the waist of his pants. She pushed them and his underwear down far enough so his cock sprang free. And then she took him in a tight fist and purred, “Verrry impressive. Are you going to keep asking me questions or are you going to fuck me?”

“I guess I’m going to fuck you,” he said, and then he let the beast escape.

His fingers bit into the flesh at her hips and he spun her so her back was to one of the stalls. This was exactly what he needed. The raw, primal need raging through him as he took everything she offered. Neither of them needed anything more than a release. It was perfect.
She
was perfect in that moment.

He didn’t bother to push his BDUs all the way down. She was damned near almost as tall as he was and she lifted her leg so it wrapped around his waist. She had a condom in her hand and slid it on him in one smooth motion. He could smell her need as he plunged inside of her, his hand fisted in her hair. There was no kissing. Nothing but his body pistoning in and out of hers at a frantic pace. And because she’d been so generous as to offer her body when he so desperately needed release, he made sure they both got a hell of a ride.

He felt her pussy clutch around him and she gave a long, low moan as her body convulsed. He couldn’t hold off any longer and he felt his balls tighten and the tremors that started at the base of his spine exploded as cum jettisoned from his cock.

They leaned against each other unsteadily and caught their breath. And then Shane pulled away and hitched up his pants. Jane walked over and grabbed her clothes and began dressing.

“Thanks for the ride,” she said, smiling.

“We both needed it, I think,” he said, answering her smile and pulling his shirt over his head. He picked his weapon up off the floor, but left hers where they lay. It was an unspoken rule to never touch another agent’s weapons. “Let me know if you need help unleashing your beast again. We’ve got empty buildings all over the compound.”

She laughed. “I’m good for now, MacKenzie. But let me know if you’re ever in Texas.”

And that, Shane thought, was about as perfect of an exchange as there was. Now he’d have time for a shower and a bite to eat before the briefing. And maybe he wouldn’t punch Declan in the face after all. He suddenly found he was in a much better mood.

A
couple hours later
, Shane was completely satiated. As his old commander liked to say, he’d been fueled, fucked, and fed information. He relayed the important details of the briefing to his team and then hit the gym for an hour.

After he showered and grabbed a protein bar from his bag, he headed back through the gym. Elena was at the punching bag, and putting up a hell of a fight. He almost felt sorry for Brady, who was holding the bag for her. Shane shook his head, and wished his friend well. Brady was an idealist. He was a genuinely good guy who always wanted to help others and do the right thing. When he looked at Elena he saw someone he could help. Someone he could heal. And his friend was going to get his heart broken trying. Because from the way Elena was laying into that punching bag, she was a very, very angry woman on the inside.

This was the quiet before the storm. He could feel it. There’d been no sign of Sophia’s husband, which was a bad sign in his estimation. Kane Huxley had been an excellent black ops agent. He’d even fooled Declan—into thinking they were fighting for the same side and that they were friends.

What bothered him the most was that it was impossible to guess what move Kane would make next. Maybe he wouldn’t try to take Sophia from the compound. It would be a suicide mission for most people. But maybe he had a plan to draw Sophia to him—wherever he was hiding. All they could do was continue to patrol and do perimeter checks. His cousin Cooper was the sheriff in Surrender, so there were eyes in town and on the outskirts as well. They were covered.

Shane came out of the gym and stopped when he saw Sophia sitting in the passenger seat of his Jeep.

“Bad idea,” he said, shaking his head. “My brother gets insanely jealous. I’ve always been the better looking one.”

Sophia rolled her eyes. “I guess beauty is in the eye of the beholder.”

“I feel like I should be insulted by that.”

“Declan always said you could be perceptive when you want to be.”

“It’s okay, darling. No matter how much you beg, I’d never take a woman away from my brother. Those days are long behind us.”

“You can’t imagine how relieved I am to hear it,” she said dryly. “By golly, if you work all your charm on me and flash that perfect smile, I just don’t know how I could hold back my love for you.”

“Ha!” Shane said and tossed his bag into the back of the open Jeep. “I hope you give Declan hell on a daily basis with that smart mouth. He needs to lighten up a little.”

“He’s got a lot on his plate. Someone has to be the responsible adult in this operation instead of playing Tarzan all the time.”

“I don’t think our relationship is going to work, Sophia. I’ve never been a fan of Tarzan. Though I’d look pretty damned good in a loincloth.” He waggled his eyebrows and the corner of her mouth twitched. “I’m assuming that if you’re not here to run away with me, there’s another reason?” he asked.

“I want to go into town and see Annabeth’s shop. Maybe pick up a few things while we’re out. I’m going a little stir-crazy. We haven’t been outside the compound in a week. Dec’s on a conference call with Australia, so he said to run it by you.”

Shane’s first reaction was to say no. Not just no, but
hell
no. But he stopped before the words could form on his lips and really thought about it. She was his future sister-in-law, and he knew what it was like to play the waiting game. To feel the anticipation of the hunt, or in her case, the anticipation of being hunted. And Declan hadn’t told her no. He’d told her to run it by him. It was just after noon in broad daylight. There was security inside and outside of the compound. It was probably the last and best chance for her to get out. His gut was telling him things would happen quickly over the next day or so, but for now, he’d take Sophia into town and get to know her a little better.

He might give his brother a hard time. Hell, he was the youngest, so that was essentially his job. But he loved Declan—he might even be his favorite brother—and he’d do whatever it took to keep the woman he loved safe.

“I’m an excellent shopper,” he said. “What are you buying? Lingerie? Sex toys?”

She laughed and he was glad to see the worry gone from her face, even for a moment. “I didn’t realize Surrender had such a seedy underground.”

“A couple of years ago Annabeth added a little back room to her shop. She sells fancy lingerie and some other
health aids
,” he said, waggling his eyebrows. “You’d have thought she was trying to legalize prostitution by the way some of the folks around here acted. It made city council meetings pretty interesting for a month or two. But then all the women in town had a secret meeting and decided if they had to go without the things they wanted to spice up their sex lives then their husbands and significant others could go without too. It was a miserable couple of weeks in Surrender for a lot of men. You’ve never seen such a sorry lot moping about. Needless to say, it didn’t take long for the approval to be given for Annabeth to sell certain items.”

“Never underestimate the power of women,” Sophia said.

“Amen to that,” he said, smiling.

* * *

“
T
his has
to be your fault somehow,” Shane said a couple of hours later as he used the jack to raise the front of the Jeep.

“You’d better be nice to me or I’ll leave you here by yourself,” she said. “I can see the gates from here. I could be back home grilling steaks by the time you get it rolling again.”

Shane worked at the lugs on the tire and felt the sweat drip down his back. “Dec would like hearing you call it home. He built it for you, even though I’m not sure he realized it at the time. None of us did. But it’s always been you.”

She sighed and handed him the tire iron when he held out his hand. “It’s complicated.”

“Not so much. You both have some shit to overcome. But you love each other. That’s what it boils down to, right?” He took off the old tire and put on the new.

“So speaks the man who’s determined to be the last standing MacKenzie bachelor standing.”

Shane grinned and shrugged his shoulders. “That doesn’t mean I can’t recognize something when it’s staring me in the face. Besides, I’ve decided I like you okay. Not everyone can be a MacKenzie. You seem to come by it naturally.”

“Only a MacKenzie would think that was a compliment,” she said, laughing.

“See what I mean? You’ll fit right in.” Shane came to his feet and dusted off his hands. “Now, you mentioned something about steak. I’ve worked up an appetite, and I’ve got the night watch.”

A shadow from above caught his eye and he looked up in time to see the small black jet cross into territory well outside of the closest public airport. Alarms sounded from within the compound, but they were out of time. He heard the familiar sound of a missile launching and watched the impact as it hit the concrete wall. The explosion rocked the ground beneath their feet. War had been declared on the MacKenzies.

“Move,” he yelled at Sophia, launching himself over the hood of the Jeep as the second missile was launched. He felt it bearing down on them and grabbed Sophia around the waist, throwing her as far as he could, hoping she’d be clear of the blast.

He knew he wouldn’t.

* * *

B
attle
—any kind of battle—was surreal. There were moments where events sped by in a blur. Where it was constant motion and split-second decisions. Then there were those times where no matter what you did, time suspended to slow-motion and nothing in your power could speed it up again. Where you no longer felt the blood pumping through your veins, the adrenaline, or the fear.

Moments like those usually meant death. Maybe it was one of fate’s cruelest tricks, that it made a man aware of his own mortality.

He felt the impact of the blast, but not the shrapnel as it pelted his body. Not the way the force of the explosion flung him like a rag doll. He heard someone call his name.
Sophia
. He hoped it was her. If she was yelling his name it meant she was alive. This was what a SEAL did. What any soldier did. Sacrifice himself for others.

He felt no pain. Nothing at all really. And he found it quite comforting to look up at the blue Montana sky as he waited for death to claim him. And waited. And waited.

He heard someone call his name again, this time more urgently, and a sob of fear as an unfamiliar voice said, “Get up, bitch.”

Shane blinked once and then once more. He could see every lash on his eyelid with clarity. But he couldn’t move. Couldn’t respond to the threat. He wanted to feel urgency. Want to feel pain because pain motivated. Pain meant you were alive and could fight through it. But he felt nothing. His eyes finally fluttered shut one last time and the blue Montana sky was gone.

E
motion had never ruled
Declan’s life, and he couldn’t allow it to now.

He surveyed the threat before him quickly and tried to assess the best way to handle Kane. His team was the best, and he had to trust that they were taking care of all the periphery work.

He came out from the cover of the trees and into the clearing with his hands raised and his gun pointed to the sky. Shane’s body lay unmoving off to the side, bloodied so badly he couldn’t assess the damage from a glance except for the horror of his legs.

“Drop the gun,
friend
,” Kane Huxley called out.

Sophia hadn’t escaped the explosion unscathed. Blood matted her hair and covered her body and her clothes were torn and dirty. Shock and pain had settled in and her reactions were slow as Kane pushed her forward so she landed on her hands and knees. She looked up at Declan with terror-filled eyes but he didn’t return her gaze. If he did it would all be over. For both of them.

Kane held the gun pointed steady at her head, and Declan had no choice but to throw his weapon to the ground. “I’ve got a dozen men with their scopes trained on you right this moment, Kane. There’s no getting out of this.”

His smile slashed cruelly on his handsome face, and seeing him now, Declan wondered how he’d ever been fooled by his act.

“We’ll see how many men you have left. You don’t think I came without my own backup do you? I’ll see you your dozen and raise you by another ten.” Kane’s laugh slithered across Declan’s skin and he tensed as the gun held at Sophia’s head wavered. “Where is the necklace? Or maybe I should just start shooting till one of you gives me the right answer.”

“It was pretty clever of you to hide the safety deposit box key inside,” Declan said.

Kane froze and Declan prayed he hadn’t miscalculated his reaction to the news that they’d discovered it. It all came down to money. Money so Kane could disappear and fund other terrorist operations on a whim. Kane had to die here and now. There was no other choice.

“I certainly thought so,” Kane said. “Found it, did you? Well, you can just give it back. You’re going to have to face the fact that I’m better than you, and I’ve won this round.”

“That’s what this is really all about, isn’t it?” Dec asked.

He saw Shane’s body twitch and he breathed out a sigh of relief. Shane was still alive. For now. But with that kind of blood loss he wouldn’t be for long if help didn’t arrive soon.

“What are you talking about?”

“Competition. That’s all it’s ever been about between you and me. You never quite measured up. Second-best in our military class. Second under my command when we were both recruited for the CIA. Passed over again and again for promotions because your skills weren’t quite at the level they needed to be. Never quite smart enough, were you Kane?” Ego was Kane Huxley’s downfall.

“I was smart enough to sell your meet location with that group of SEALs for a nice chunk of money,” he said, grinning. “You were supposed to die in that Black Hawk explosion, by the way, but I almost think it worked out for the better. I’d look at that scar on your face every day and have to turn away to keep from laughing at the realization that
I
did that.

“And then I was smart enough to steal your bitch and give her my name. That had to sting, didn’t it, Mr. High-And-Mighty MacKenzie? I can’t tell you how many times I watched our wedding video just to see the looks on both of your faces. I destroyed your life that day, and it gave me a bigger high than putting a bullet through another man’s brain. I have to admit I might have gotten a little rough on our wedding night, but I blame it on the adrenaline high of fucking you over. In more ways than one.” Kane’s smile was pure evil.

Dec let the words roll off him and kept his fury banked, even though anger boiled deep inside him. To think of the years of hell Sophia had lived through with Kane made him want to kill him again and again, because he knew once wouldn’t be enough.

Kane’s boot connected with Sophia’s back, and a whimper of pain escaped even as she tried to make herself invisible. “I don’t know what you ever saw in her. She sure as hell wasn’t a good fuck, but maybe my men will think differently. Anyone can just lay there. Isn’t that right, Sophia? I even brought those women in to show you how it was done, but you just huddled in the corner and watched us.”

“Why don’t you put away your gun, Kane? Or are you afraid to face me, man-to-man, once and for all to see who really is best?”

Kane laughed and the sound was pure evil. “You hear that, Sophia? Declan wants to fight me, man-to-man. It seems like the least I should do, considering he’s been fucking my wife. I bet you didn’t just lay there for him, did you, you little cunt? After I kill him I’ll give you another opportunity to impress me.”

“No, thanks,” Sophia said. “I don’t fuck corpses.”

Declan had always appreciated Sophia’s smart mouth, but not at the expense of her life. Kane kicked her again and sent her sprawling.

“We’ll see, baby. We’ll see. Looks like you’ve got a deal, Dec. I’m game.” He tossed down his weapon, but Declan made it a point to always know his enemy better than he knew himself. Kane had at least three more weapons hidden somewhere on his body.

“Sophia,” Dec called out. “I know you’re hurt, baby. But I need you to come here.”

“I can’t tell you how much I love this,” Kane said. “I know you’re hurt, baby,” he called out in a mocking voice. “Yeah, cunt. Walk back into the arms of the man who’s only keeping you around for the half-a-billion dollars he wants to get his hands on. Can you really be that stupid? How many times has this man betrayed you over the years, yet you always roll over and spread your legs. You must have a magical cock, my friend,” Kane sneered. “Of course, I’ve heard dozens of women over the years say it’s true. Remember those whores we shared in Cartagena?”

“I remember the whores you paid for in Cartagena, while you broke your marriage vows night after night.” Dec shook his head. “Sophia,” he said again. “Come here.”

“So modest, Dec. You’ve probably got as many bastards running around the world as I do.”

Sophia raised her head and looked at him out of shattered eyes. Kane had played with her mind for years, and he knew that training was hard to overcome, but he also hoped she realized by now that he would rather die than ever hurt her again. It would be her choice whether she trusted him enough to take what he offered, but even if she didn’t he wanted her out of the way.

She pushed herself up off the ground until she stood shakily on her feet. And then she took a step toward him. And then another. Relief at her ability to trust him after everything they’d been through sank into his bones, and he realized how undeserving he was of this woman’s love. But he was grateful, just the same.

“This is all very sweet,” Kane said. “I think it’s going to be very damaging for her to watch me kill you. It’s all very exciting.”

They both ignored Kane as Sophia managed to stumble toward him. He watched Kane closely and kept his hand free so he could reach his extra gun if he saw him making a move.

“Thank you,” he whispered once Sophia reached him. “Thank you for loving me.”

“I don’t believe him,” she panted, tears dripping down her cheeks. “My faith is in you, and I wanted you to know that if anything hap—”

He put his finger over her lips to keep her from saying the words. Kane wouldn’t give them much time. He wasn’t worried about the soldiers Kane had brought with him. Dec would put his men and their experience up against triple the men Kane had brought onto his land.

“We’re going to be just fine, babe.” He slipped the cell phone he’d been palming into the front pocket of her shorts. “I need you to go to Shane now. Text Thomas and tell him to get here as fast as possible and to arrange for a helicopter to be standing by so we can transport him.”

She nodded once and wavered on her feet as she moved back. “I’m going to be really pissed if you die. I just thought you should know.” And then she did as he asked and headed toward Shane, kneeling down beside him and taking his limp hand in her own.

Declan didn’t waste any time. He and Kane ran for each other and met mid-air, bodies clashing in a tangle of limbs and grunts and groans. His knee made contact with Kane’s stomach and the other man let out a howl of pain even as his fist connected with Declan’s ribs. Kane outweighed him by several pounds, so their momentum sent Dec crashing backward toward the ground. His back scraped across rock and gravel, and he air left his lungs as Kane’s full weight landed on top of him. They rolled several times, taking turns dealing blow after blow.

Adrenaline pumped high and Dec felt satisfaction as the flat of his palm came up and slammed into Kane’s face, breaking his nose with a crunch of cartilage and bone. Grunts and muttered curses filled the air as they fought viciously, each one knowing death would come to the loser.

They rolled again and Declan ended up on his back with Kane’s weight pinning him down. The prick of a knife against his throat had him stilling and looking into the eyes of a man he’d once called friend. Blood dripped down Kane’s face, the steady drops landing on Declan’s chin and running down his neck. Their chests heaved as they both sucked in air and not even the wind dared to move the tree limbs as they waited to see what would happen.

“You forgot one thing, brother,” Kane spat, his knife cutting into the skin of Declan’s neck.

“What’s that?” Declan said, ignoring Sophia’s quiet sobs in the background.

“I like to cheat.”

Kane’s smile froze in place as Declan put a knife in his back, slipping it between the ribs to pierce his black heart.

“I remember,” Dec said, pushing Kane off of him and rolling to his knees to suck in a deep breath. “Second best, Kane. Just like always.”

Hatred filled Kane’s eyes as they clouded over in death, but Declan was already on his feet and headed to Sophia and his brother.

“You scared the hell out of me,” she said, wiping the tears off her face. “I’ve never felt so useless in my life. Don’t you ever do that again, Declan MacKenzie. If my head didn’t hurt so bad I’d punch you in the face.” A sob tore from her throat and she turned on unsteady legs to kneel next to Shane again. He helped her before she fell on her face.

“Sit down, babe.”

“I don’t know what else to do for him,” she whispered. “He’s in shock and not very responsive. God, there’s so much blood.”

Dec noticed for the first time that she sat there in only her bra. She’d used her shirt as a tourniquet just below Shane’s knee. He whipped off his own shirt and handed it to her to put on, but she quickly used it to staunch the flow of blood at Shane’s side. He’d never felt so helpless in his life, and he dropped down beside his brother to see if there was anything he could do but watch him die.

He’d been in the same situation several times before. Sometimes he could save them, and sometimes he couldn’t. All he could do in that case was be there until the end. But it was different staring at his brother, whose face was so similar to his own.

Dec jumped as Shane’s hand came up and gripped his arm. Hard.

“It’s bad,” Shane said. His teeth chattered, and tears ran unchecked from the corners of his eyes.

Sophia had been right, shock had settled in and it didn’t look good. Fear clawed at Dec’s insides. He’d seen too many men who looked as Shane did just before they died from their wounds.

Dec kept his face emotionless and his voice firm. “You’re all good, Shane. It’s just a scratch or two. You’re going to be just fine.”

“Liar,” he said, his breath hitching as pain wracked his body. “Don’t let—” He licked his lips before trying to get the words out again. “Don’t let them take anything from me. I’d rather die. If I’m not whole, promise me you’ll let me die.” His fingers pressed so hard into Dec’s arms he knew there’d be bruises. “I mean it, Dec. Don’t let them take them. They’ll relieve me of my command. I’m not meant…not meant to sit at a desk.”

Declan took hold of Shane’s hand and squeezed it hard. “Save your breath. You’re too stubborn to die. And you’ll be commanding people long after the rest of us retire. You’re bossy as hell. Hold tight. The cavalry is almost here.”

The familiar sounds of a helicopter flying low and nearby had Declan looking up just as Thomas came running with his bag, his cousins and brothers close behind him.

Thomas knelt down beside them and Sophia scooted back out of the way. The other MacKenzies gathered around, talking in low voices, and she noticed Cade and Cooper were barking orders into headsets to the men they still had out rounding up Kane’s mercenaries.

Thomas was already busy running an IV and getting things set up so Shane could get a transfusion once he was airborne, but Shane’s next words stopped everyone cold and silence descended in the small clearing.

“Can’t feel anything now,” Shane said, smiling softly. “I’m glad you finally got the girl, Dec. You deserve it.” And then Shane closed his eyes.

Declan bowed his head over his brother and let the tears fall unchecked.