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“Ruby” –Hawk pins her with his gaze– “what we are about to discuss does not leave this room, you got me?” Ruby nods instantly, stark fear on her face as if she expects Hawk to threaten her with death if she tells what they’re going to discuss. A picture flashes on the screen. All the color leaves Ruby’s face, and she begins to tremble. Tank pulls her onto his lap to comfort her. He doesn’t care if the guys will rib him about it later. Taking care of Ruby comes first. She leans into him, laying her head on his shoulder.
“Giovanni Russo, Jr.” Hawk states. Another picture comes up beside the first. This man is an older version of the first. “Giovanni Russo, Sr.” Hawk continues, “These men are the contact for Guerrera, who, if you remember was and still is our target in the Columbian jungle mission. The feds have been working for years to get enough information on these guys to take them down. It seems Mr. Amato, in the next room, may just be the key the feds have been looking for, but we’ll have to tread carefully. We don’t want this information getting out to the wrong hands, especially if it’s like Amato says, and there are dirty agents. I’ll have Tex run a deep dive on this and any agents in the New York City area as well as here locally. We need to be certain the agent Amato gives his information to is not on the take, nor any of that agent’s superiors.”
“Wait!” Ruby sits up, looking at Hawk in confusion. “Why would the military be concerned about the mob? I thought you guys took out terrorists not mobsters.” Hawk gives her one of his famous smiles. You know the one where women are swooning all over the place. Tank almost growls at the man even though he knows Hawk has no interest in Ruby. The man only has eyes for Charlotte.
“We do take out terrorists of all sorts,” Hawk informs her. “Foreign and domestic. These mobsters are working to smuggle illegal guns, drugs, and are possibly involved in human trafficking. They are some of the worst kinds of terrorists. They do their deeds for financial gain or revenge. At least the Taliban although delusional, are doing what they do based on their deep-seated belief in a higher calling. Most of what our teams do, Ruby, is highly classified. No one ever hears about our missions or makes movies or television shows about us, and that’s fine with us. The less that’s known about us, the better. Makes it harder for our enemies to gain intel on us. So it’s vitally important you don’t share anything you’ve heard here today with anyone, understand?”
“Yes,” Ruby replies. “I would never betray your trust in the first place, but I don’t have anyone to talk to at any rate. I’ve kept to myself the last six years in an effort to keep myself safe.” Hawk seems satisfied with her answer. Tank feels relief that Hawk has included her in their discussions just as he did with Charlotte when she was in danger.
“We’ll reconvene when I hear back from Tex,” Hawk tells the room. “Don’t go too far. I don’t think it’ll take too long as the government has already had him doing some work on this case for them.”
“I’ll get us some food,” Hack says. “Just hang around down here. I’ll be right back.” Hack heads toward a set of stairs, in the back corner of the room, that lead up to the main part of his house. The rest of the guys begin talking among themselves as Hawk and Straw head toward Tank and Ruby. Hawk has his ear to his phone, deep in conversation.
“Thanks, Tex,” Hawk says as he stops next to where Tank and Ruby are sitting. “I look forward to hearing back from you.” He ends the call and pockets his phone before turning to Tank. “Thought I told you not to be late?” Hawk glares down at him with an unreadable expression on his face. Tank looks up at his superior officer unable to tell if he’s joking or if he’s serious.
“Well, uh…” Tank is scrambling to come up with some explanation of why they were late that doesn’t involve him disclosing his sex life with Ruby. Hawk throws his head back and gives a big belly laugh. Tank frowns up at him not at all seeing the humor in the situation.
“Just messing with you.” Hawk slaps him on the shoulder. “I knew you’d be late when I told you not to be.” Hawk waggles his eyebrows at Tank before turning to look at Ruby. “You all good?” Hawk asks her. “That was a lot to take on this morning. I’m sure all of that was a bit of a shock.”
“Yes, it was, but I’m fine, Hawk,” Ruby replies. “Thank you for asking, but more importantly, thank you for trying to help me out of the mob.” Hawk nods and gives her a smile.
“We will do our best,” Hawk tells her. “I meant what I said to your brother. You are one of us now, and we take family very seriously. You won’t ever be alone again. If you’ll let them, my wife Charlotte and the rest of the women will be your best friends. They might get in your business and drive you crazy, but they mean well.” Ruby grins back at Hawk, nodding her head. Tank wants Ruby to be a part of the team’s tribe of women. He wants her to have all the love and support she’s been missing the last six years. Straw takes a seat near them whipping out his phone and calling Abigail. When he’s ended his call, he looks over at Tank and Ruby a happy smile on his face.
“Abigail, okay?” Tank asks. He knows Straw is worried, leaving her home alone while they are taking care of Ruby’s situation. He’s going to tell Straw to go on back home after he answers.
“Yes, she’s good.” Straw grins. “A little pissed, but she’s good.” Tank frowns at his closest friend wondering why Abigail is pissed. Straw continues, “Charlotte, Daisy, Elise, and Emma are over there doting on her. She’s frustrated with them not letting her do everything on her own. You can’t keep her down. She’s entirely too feisty. She’s doesn’t like depending on someone else for anything.” Tank smiles. He can believe it. Abigail is a highly independent woman as is his Ruby. He tightens his hold on her for a moment.
“I hope y’all are hungry,” Hack announces as he descends the stairs with a large tray in hand. It is loaded down with submarine sandwiches. The men crowd around him grabbing sandwiches off the tray as he passes by them on his way to the center of the room.
“Fuck, Hack!” Worm exclaims after taking his first bite. “I didn’t know you could cook.” Everyone begins to chuckle at Worm’s inane statement.
“There’s no cooking involved in making sandwiches you, dumbass.” Virus rolls his eyes. “Seriously, I thought you were smarter than that.” Virus snatches a sandwich off the tray and bites into it. His eyes roll up, and a look of utter bliss comes over his face. “Well shit, maybe I’m the dumbass,” he says around a mouthful of food.
Tank takes a couple of the sandwiches off the tray as Hack strolls by. He lifts the top bun to see what kind of sandwiches Hack has made. Roasted chicken is on one of the sandwiches and shredded BBQ pork is on another. He offers one to Ruby. She eyes the large sandwiches finally choosing the roasted chicken. Tank and Ruby bite into their sandwiches at the same time. Ruby moans, provoking potent memories from last night and this morning into his mind. Flavor explodes on Tank’s tongue as he begins to chew. Hack has outdone himself and Tank wonders where Hack got his cooking skills. Last Tank knew the man lived off microwave meals and take out.
Hearing footsteps on the stairs, Tank glances over to see Lisa coming down the steps carrying another tray of sandwiches. Tank smacks Straw on the knee. When their gazes meet, he throws his chin toward the stairs. Straw looks in the direction Tank has indicated. His eyes go wide the flying back to Tank’s. “I knew there was something going on with those two when we were in California,” Straw leans over to whisper to Tank. Ruby looks to see what the men are talking about. She frowns.
“I thought they were a couple,” Ruby says. “They’re always together when I see them, although they seem to argue a lot.”
“We aren’t sure what’s going on with those two,” Straw says. Straw and Tank share a grin before filling Ruby in on the things they’d witnessed firsthand while they were in California last year. Tank figures it’s only a matter of time before the couple make their relationship public, or it blows all to hell, making team gatherings highly uncomfortable. When everyone has a sandwich, Lisa makes her way over to join them.
“Hi, Ruby,” Lisa says. “I’m Lisa Winters, a close friend of Charlotte’s. She wanted to be here today, but she’s looking after Abigail, so I told her I’d come help out with food and make sure these men don’t overwhelm you.” Ruby smiles up at her and takes Lisa’s proffered hand to shake.
“Hi Lisa,” Ruby responds. “I remember seeing you at the fundraiser planning meeting.” Lisa nods, her face getting a dark look as she glances over at Hack. She blows out a breath and turns back to them. She takes a seat before saying anything else to Ruby.
“Yeah,” Lisa begins, seeming to look for the right words to say. “That was a bit of a rough day for me. I’m sorry I wasn’t more sociable.” Lisa gives her a sad smile. “We aren’t here to talk about me, though. Is there anything I can do for you?” Ruby looks taken aback at Lisa’s question. “I just know these guys can be intense when they’re trying to work on a problem. I just wanted you to know I’m here to listen if you need a friend.”
“Thanks, Lisa,” Ruby replies, her voice getting thick with emotion. “I’d like that. I haven’t had any friends in a very long time and even before then I never really had anyone close. My mom…she sheltered me a lot, so it was hard to make close friends.” Lisa nods as if she understands. Tank wonders about Lisa’s background. Charlotte has been tight lipped about Lisa’s past, only disclosing the two women have been friends since they were children. Tank knows Lisa is divorced and has some children from that marriage, but he’s never met her children. He gets the impression the ex-husband isn’t a nice guy, but he doesn’t have anything firm to base his conclusion on. It’s more just a feeling.
Hawk’s phone begins to ring. He quickly answers it, going into the weight room to take the call. Tank is itching to hear what Tex has found out, but he knows Hawk will share with them in time. If that is Tex on the line. It could be someone else entirely, including Charlotte updating him on Abigail or the kids. Tank can feel the tension in Ruby. He reaches over to take her hand in his. She smiles at him, seeming to take comfort in the small gesture. Lisa’s gaze zeroes in on their clasped hands. A look of longing and regret are all over her face. She blinks a couple of times before looking around the room. Her eyes landing on Hack. As if he can feel her eyes on him, Hack looks over at her. Tank is a little shocked at the look he sees on the man’s face. It’s the same look Tank has when he looks at Ruby. He glances at Lisa to see her expression and is sad to see the same look of longing and regret. Tank shakes his head. The woman is clearly denying the connection she and Hack obviously have. It’s not his place to interfere. Still they are a team, a family, and they look after one another. Tank decides it’s time he, Straw, and probably Hawk need to sit Hack down and see what they can do to help him. It will have to wait for now, though. Hawk is entering the room, and the look on his face says it’s time to take care of Ruby’s problem, then they’ll work on Hack’s and Lisa’s problems.
44
RUBY
As Hawk comes back into the room, Ruby tenses. She can tell Hawk has gotten information from his friend. She just hopes it’s the information they need to put an end to her six-year-long nightmare. Tucker squeezes her hand gently. She looks over at him, and the look he gives her melts her heart. He leans over and whispers in her ear, “Don’t worry, beautiful, this’ll all be over soon. I promise.” She nods in answer, but it’s hard for her to believe it. She’s run for so long. It’s hard to trust in the hope anything good will happen, but Tucker looks so confident. She wants to believe him.
“That was Tex,” Hawk informs them unnecessarily. “He has a lot of information on the cartel, the Russo family, as well as the Amatos. It seems Ruby is tied up in things related to our most recent out of country mission. The asset we were searching for was abducted by Guerrero’s men because he believes she is the woman the Russo family has been searching for, and he wants to be the one to deliver her to them. I suppose he is hoping to get some brownie points or something, to help seal the deal on their illegal goods. However, if Guerrero finds out that girl is not who he thinks she is…she’ll likely be in worse danger. If they’ve kept her from seeing their faces, it’s possible they’ll let her go, if not…” Hawk trails off. Ruby shivers as she can infer what Hawk isn’t saying. The girl will be murdered. Guilt, fear for the girl, and shame that she’s caused this poor girl to be kidnapped overwhelm her. A sob escapes her throat. She wasn’t even conscious she is crying.
