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“The cabin was trashed?” I asked.
“Yeah, why?” my brother asked.
“Nothing,” I murmured. “Just didn’t seem like they would have had the time to check the cabin… unless they left some men behind.” I stilled as I remembered the episode on the mountain and Barton’s voice on the radio. “Barton,” I muttered.
“Who is he?” Zach asked. “What’s all this about?”
I sighed and quickly checked Oz once more before recounting the events of the past few years. During my story, Zach got to his feet and began pacing the kitchen.
“Fuck,” Zach snapped when I was done, then seemed to catch himself as he glanced at Oz to make sure his outburst hadn’t woken him up. “You’re not running again,” he bit out as he looked pointedly at me.
“I’m not going anywhere,” I assured him.
That seemed to calm him a bit, but he kept pacing. “I’ve got some contacts who might be able to give us some more information on this guy, Barton,” Zach said.
“We should start with the local cops,” Xander said. “The Haven force is small… okay, it’s just two guys, but Sheriff Huntley and his deputy are good guys. They need to know what happened on that mountain so they can be on the lookout for Barton and the rest of his men. Maybe we can keep Jake’s name out of it for now?”
“Maybe I should go public,” I said. “Turn myself in and let the chips fall where they may.”
“No,” I heard Oz say. He was still lying on his back but trying to sit up. I got up and hurried to him. Bear jumped off Oz’s lower body and Boo crawled into his arms. I went to sit next to Oz and he immediately sagged against me. “You can’t leave me,” he said tiredly.
I threaded my fingers through his hair and kissed his forehead. “It would only be for a while,” I said, but he was shaking his head before I even finished.
“No, we’ll… we’ll get you a lawyer and a bunch of bodyguards and we’ll go stay someplace where he can’t ever find us… I’ll spend every penny I have before—”
“Shhh,” I murmured as I held him a little tighter in the hopes it would help calm him. He was shaking and his voice kept cracking. I knew most of his reaction was coming from the fact that the events of the past twenty-four hours were just now catching up to him. I leaned down so my mouth was near his ear. “It’s okay, baby. I’m not going anywhere. Not leaving you.”
He let out a whoosh of air and then pushed farther into my arms so there was no space between us. He let out a little whimper, but I wasn’t sure if it was because of the pain in his arm or the fear that was cascading over him. I held him as I focused on Zach and Xander, who sat down on the loveseat on the opposite side of the living room. “Those guys weren’t DEA,” I said. “Or if they were, they were dirty like Barton.”
Zach nodded. “I checked them for ID before we left. Nothing. Let’s hold off on telling the authorities they’re out there for a few hours until I’ve had a chance to learn more about Barton. Oz is right–we need to bring in more men to keep an eye on you guys and anyone associated with you. I’m going to call some friends to go sit on Mom, Dad, and Claire.” Zach looked at Xander. “Let’s get your family up here.”
“Zoey’s at the lodge,” Oz said.
“We’ll get her here, too,” Xander said as he got his phone out and dialed. Zach did the same and got up to step into the kitchen for his conversation. Xander frowned and hung up, then dialed again. At my look he said, “Bennett didn’t answer. I’m trying Lucky.”
I felt tension roll through me when Xander hung up again. Lucky was a seventeen-year-old kid. His phone was practically glued to his hand.
“Try Zoey,” Oz said. He sat up, his body tense. He gave Xander Zoey’s number.
Zach returned to the room just as Xander hung up.
“Something’s wrong,” Xander said as he climbed to his feet.
“Did you tell Bennett about my cabin?” I asked.
Xander shook his head. “I didn’t want to worry him. I just told him that you’d left, but that I figured you were hiding out in one of the vacation cabins to lay low for a while. I told him I was going to head up there to check on you… I didn’t mention the shooting or Zach.” Xander shook his head again. “I have to go check on them.”
He’d only taken two steps when his phone rang. He quickly looked at it, but then frowned when he saw whoever it was.
“It’s Wade,” he said. He answered and put the phone on speaker.
