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“Yessir. We would. We will. We been feelin’ this comin’ a long time, now, and it’s a relief to finally have something worth fighting for.”
“Who’ll look after your cattle?”
“That’s where the few days comes in. I’ve got a couple men in mind, but they’re six hours away. We can reach them by shortwave, but this is the kind of favor you ask for in person. If the mission is a go, it’ll take two days to get them in place and work out the logistics. We can head out on the third day. Think your man can wait that long?”
I consider the question. Who knows what tortures Raptor’s wreaking on Jud. Every day—hell, every hour—could mean lifelong scars for my friend. They won’t kill him, at least not yet. He’s all the leverage they have, and they’ll use him to try and get Cora. But we’re not heading to New Orleans to negotiate. We’re going to throw down.
But we’re outnumbered. Having six more men with us to help even the odds—four of them former Marines—that would give us one hell of an advantage. We’d still be outnumbered, but we’d have a fighting chance. If we go alone, just the seven of us, including Cora, we risk failure, and on Raptor’s turf, that could very well mean death to us men, including Jud, and a lifetime of hell for our Heart.
Considering what’s at stake, I can only accept Sarge’s offer.
“Jud’s strong,” I say. “He’ll hold out a few more days. Are you sure about this? We’d owe you bigtime.”
“Yep. And if the situation were reversed, we’d accept your help and be happy to owe you, too.” He thrusts a hand my way, and we shake on it.
Just like that, we go from seven-strong to thirteen-strong.
Enjoy your last days, Raptor. ’Cause, we’re comin’ for you.
Cora
Night with Grim
“You were right,”I tell Grim, as I click off the lamp and climb into bed beside him. “They’re going to help us.” After dinner, we continued our tradition of meeting to discuss strategy. Rev and Sarge announced that we will be leaving for New Orleans in three days…together. As in all seven of us plus the six of them.
The soldiers, as I’ve come to think of our hosts, have put us up in one wing of their home. We’ve taken over three bedrooms and two baths, and we have every luxury imaginable. The beds are piled high with lacy pillows. Homey cross-stitch artwork hangs on the walls. And fluffy, white towels on polished brass racks wait to envelop us after steaming hot showers.
We’ve learned there’s a wind farm on the ranch, so our friends don’t lack for power. In fact, the turbines produce so much power, they have a storage facility for the excess. They supply this to their nearest neighbors, who moved close by for just that benefit. I’m not sure I would consider a six-hour drive close by, but then I don’t live in a vast, open state where you can see for miles and miles in every direction. The delivery system takes advantage of the existing power cables, which boggles my mind. Scrap and Rev were extremely interested in the set-up, and they’re already talking about doing something similar with a hydro dam back home. Anyway, it’s those neighbors who will take up residence here at the ranch and care for the property while the soldiers are helping us get Jud back, just as Grim predicted.
My Ukrainian husband lifts the blankets and welcomes me into his powerful embrace. “I am glad I was right,” he says with a kiss on my shoulder. “This improves our chances of success.”
I kiss his clean-shaven cheek, loving his scent of shaving cream and man-soap. Of course, I smell like man-soap, too, because the soldiers don’t have much in the way of female things, but beggars can’t be choosers. I’m just happy I got to shower with hot water. I figured while we were on the road, I’d get by on sponge baths in abandoned gas stations and meals of chips and salsa or stale crackers from convenience-store shelves. Snuggling into Grim’s fresh, clean side under warm blankets, I reflect that this is much better. His secure embrace almost makes me forget my hurt at being rejected by Brawn tonight.
I sat next to him at dinner, staking my claim on him for the night. When I’d placed my plate next to his, it was with no small amount of nerves. He’s been distant with me. I thought we’d had a real breakthrough when we spent our first night together. We figured out how we could enjoy each other without risk of him hurting me. Sure, there were some bumps, but we worked it out, or so I thought.
“No can do, sweets,” Brawn said, practically before my butt hit the chair. At my confused look, he said, “I can’t be with you right now. I need to work on some things.” His dark eyes looked intently into mine. There was no disgust in them, no negativity, like he didn’t want me anymore. His expression was more pained than anything.
Still, it hurt. My face flushed hot with embarrassment, and I ate my dinner feeling like a highschooler who was only reluctantly permitted by her peers to sit at the cool table.
When Rev and Sarge announced the upcoming meeting, I sought shelter under Grim’s welcoming arm. He’d been confused at first and had glared at Brawn, but I told him what Brawn had said to me, and Grim’s expression became thoughtful.
“Will you spend the night with me?” I asked, feeling dumb. I never want Grim to feel like he’s my second choice for anything.
“Of course,druzhyna,” he’d said with a kiss on my temple. “Brawn’s loss is my gain.” He proceeded to shower me with affection and attention, continuously stroking my hair and holding me tight during the meeting. I’ve hardly thought about Brawn’s rejection, and I don’t want to think about it now. Instead, I turn my thoughts to the strategy session we just had. Wisely, Rev stepped in as Sarge discussed the weapons we’d bring to New Orleans and reminded everyone that weapons won’t win this fight. At least, not on their own. The guys need to depend on their Gifts as well.
Starting first thing in the morning, Sarge will run a military-style mini-bootcamp, and Rev will do the same but with a focus on everyone’s Gifts. Since I don’t have a Gift, I’ll be spending my time with Sarge, learning as much as I can about guns. But I don’t want to be alone with the soldiers. I trust them, because Rev does, but I still want the security of one of my guys with me at all times.
“Will you do target practice with me while we’re here?” I ask Grim. I don’t expect to be on the front line of the battle, but I do expect to be able to protect myself while my guys and the soldiers are focused on finding Jud and making sure Raptor can never take anything from us ever again.
“Of course,druzhyna.They have a range. Steel showed me after lunch.”
After an amazing lunch of roasted chicken sandwiches and home-made French fries, Grim and Scrap took a turn helping out around the ranch, and Rev and Brawn took over guarding me. There was an interesting energy between those two, but Rev’s reassuring smiles and kisses gave me the courage I needed to sit next to Brawn at dinner.
That worked out well. Sigh.
But enough thinking about Brawn. I’m back with Grim, now, and I plan on showing him just how much I missed him while he was hanging out with Steel. Rubbing my leg over his hairy thigh, I notice he’s not wearing any underwear. This isn’t a surprise. Grim always sleeps nude. Bedtime is his special time every day to abandon all his layers without endangering anyone. But I feel playful, so I point it out.
“Going commando?” I ask him.
