"I promise." Taylor winked at the little girl. When she looked at Ted, he was failing to hide his amusement. Maybe she should give him a chance. Not only did he keep Kam's identity safe, he also brought their turmoil to his family.
Amelia came out the door with a much less enthusiastic Clint. Kam shifted beside her. "Ehrhart?"
"I see you still have a penchant for trouble." A half smirk played on her face.
Kam return her grin. "Some things never change."
"And some times everything does." She pressed her lips into a thin line.
Kam shifted on his feet, leaning more on Taylor. "I'm sorry I couldn't come to the funeral."
Amelia patted her son's shoulder. "Why don't you go help your sister get the bags in the truck?"
They all watched the children walk away, "He looks so much like him," Amelia mused.
"He takes after his father." Ted put his hand on the small of her back.
Kam's eyes widened and Taylor wanted to know what piece she was missing. "That's Music Man's son?" Taylor looked back towards the boy, who was helping his sister lift her pink bag onto the bed of the truck.
"We were going to get married," Amelia admitted. "Then the mission went south and my whole life fell apart." Taylor understood how that felt all too well. Amelia turned to look Taylor straight in the eye, "God worked it out for the better. Clint and I were both so hotheaded and strong-willed." She took Ted's hand. "Ted grounds me and makes me a better person. I would love to know how this one cheated death,"—Amelia nodded towards Kam— "but whatever happens, know that God has a plan for you better than you could have imagined."
She gave Ted a kiss on the cheek and headed toward the truck, then drove away down the same rutted road they had just came.
"She'll take them to her mother's place in town. They'll be safe there." Ted opened the door for them again. "Let's get you settled, then you can make whatever plans you need to."
Taylor touched his arm. "Thank you, Ted. For everything."
She felt herself relax a fraction as they settled Kam on the couch despite his grumbling that he was fine. She could see the exhaustion pulling at his eyes. Ted signaled for her to step outside with him. Taylor looked over at Kam once more before closing the door and facing Ted, who stood with his hands on the railing staring out over his homestead.
"There's a hidden compartment to hide behind the bookshelf in the living room. The spare gun is secured in a false drawer underneath the kitchen sink and the ammo is stashed in theHoney O's cereal box. There is also a SAT phone in the nightstand by our bed."
"Ted, I'm sorry for not trusting you. I…"
"I get it. Don't tell me why you're in trouble. I need plausible deniability." Ted paused then faced her. "When Amelia gets back, you need to do as she says. She knows what she's doing. Not listening could get you or Kam killed."
Is that how Clint died?Taylor didn't give voice to that thought. "I'll watch her back, too."
Ted's eyes flexed, then resolve settled back on his face. "I've got to get back to work. May the Lord guide your feet and bring you safely home."
The blessing threatened to break the well a second time today. This was not her. She was strong and courageous. She was a federal agent. Amelia's words echoed in her mind.“God worked it out for the better.”
Taylor let out a long sigh. It might be time to admit that she couldn’t do this on her own, especially now that Kam was injured and needed rest. Her freedom, and even her life, depended on figuring out a way to take Dasha down. She was going to have to call in a favor or possibly all of them if they were going to get out of this. Taylor knew exactly who to start with.
CHAPTER 12
The airport had one runway stretching down the center of the clearing with hangers dotting the sides. The tower stood on one end and a small building stood next to it serving as the ticketing and lounge for those waiting to fly. It hadn't taken much to persuade Amelia to take her to the airport to gather her reinforcements, but Kam was not excited about being left behind. The man was stubborn as always. Amelia reassured him that she wouldn't let Taylor out of her sight, which was probably the only reason he let them leave him behind.
Taylor tapped her foot and stared at the sky. Amelia kept her back to Taylor, scanning the small area.
"I'm pretty sure no one here knows who I am," Taylor mumbled.
"Assumptions will get you killed," was Amelia's cold answer.
The sleek private jet glided over the runway, kissing the pavement gently, and rolling to a crawl by the time it made it to the end of the way. Relief washed through Taylor as she tracked the plane to hangar two.
"They're here." She felt Amelia fall in behind her, but Taylor kept her eyes on the jet. She felt exposed walking across thetarmac, and scanned the other buildings at the small airport. No one paid them any mind, which was fine by her.
A woman in a business suit opened the door and lowered the steps, then disappeared back into the plane. Alexei Volkov stepped into the doorway, descending the stairs like he owned the world. Taylor knew that the man was actually more of a philanthropist than the cutthroat businessman he appeared to be, but watching him now gave her pause. What if he took this opportunity to get his son back? Taylor shook her head. He had had plenty of opportunity to do that while the DA work out a plea deal, and Alexei stayed silent.
