“What happened?” Avery asks, coming closer with slow, shy steps.

  I reach out, and she takes my hand, so I pull her even closer, desperate to feel her touch, to smell her perfume, to see her clearer. “I got ambushed,” I tell her. “I don’t know the details yet, nor do I remember much at this point, but it’ll come to me. Where are my guys?”

  “Your deputies? They’re all outside in the waiting room, worried sick about you,” she says. “Fallon called. He’s only a few minutes out. Luke is on his way, too. I just got a call from the hospital, they said you were here but didn’t tell me anything other than that.”

  “I’m glad you came,” I tell my woman with a soft smile.

  “Why was Charlene here?”

  “I have no idea, Avery, I swear. She was here when I woke up.”

  “Well, I’m glad you’re okay. The doctor said you’ll make a full recovery, but that you got banged up pretty badly.”

  “Let me guess, broken ribs?” I ask, and Avery nods once. “I can feel that with every single fucking breath, dammit.”

  “Three, to be exact. Luckily, none of them punctured your lungs, so all the pain aside, he says you’ll be okay, provided you get plenty of rest and time to heal properly.”

  “I’ll be fine, Avery. I’ve recovered from way worse,” I say, trying to reassure her.

  “I was so worried,” she says, moving closer. “I thought you… oh, God,” she shudders, bursting into tears. I can’t take it.

  I pull her in and kiss her softly on the lips, tasting her sweetness, feeding on her kindness and letting her very spirit refill my frazzled soul. “I’m okay, Avery. I promise. It’ll be rough and painful for a while. You’re gonna have to be on top for at least a few weeks,” I shoot back with a playful smirk.

  Avery chuckles lightly, wiping her tears as she begins to relax, her hand glued to mine. “I’m afraid to even hold you right now.”

  “I’ll be fine. Fallon will make a whole lot of terrible jokes at my expense. Don’t take any of it seriously. We used to call him Nurse Ratchet back in the service. Great at giving first aid, terrible with moral support.”

  “And Luke?”

  “Oh, Luke is like Mother Goose. He will smother me and bring me hot tea. He’ll ask if I need another pillow, he’ll liaise with the doctors. A micromanager, through and through.”

  “Or a very efficient girlfriend,” Avery giggles.

  “I’ve got you, though,” I say, trying to put the whole incident out of my mind, if only for a minute.

  Avery glances back at the door, then gives me a worried look. “Do you want me to have your deputies come in? They really want to see you. I guess they have a lot of questions about what happened. I didn’t understand much when I first came in, but they said you were checking out a drug den?”

  “I was actually there looking for a meth lab,” I tell her. “Just another day on the job, babe.”

  “Who attacked you? Did you see them?”

  I shake my head. “I didn’t see much before I was attacked. But he had a gun. He pointed it at me when I was down. He could’ve killed me but he didn’t.”

  “Thank God,” Avery says, her voice lower, her tone getting colder. “He must’ve had a reason. Do you think it was one of the dealers you’re looking for?”

  “I don’t know anything right now,” I tell her.

  But whoever that was back at the house, I will find them.

  One way or another, I’ll figure out who they are and what they were doing there. If it’s something drug-related, it’s only a matter of time before I take down the whole ring. I’ll use Wolfhound Security resources on top of everything else if I have to. I’ll hire more deputies and cleanse the entire fucking county of this plague until the people feel safe again. Until children can play in their yards and out on the sidewalks without stumbling into mindless junkies or aggressive dealers or getting accidentally stuck by discarded needles.

  The situation is spiraling out of control, and the local council isn’t helping. I took an oath when I accepted the sheriff’s badge, and I intend to keep it. Down to the last word.

  But if this isn’t drug-related, if this somehow circles back to Charlene in one way or another, I will rain down fire and fucking blood upon her. I will forsake every oath I’ve ever taken, and I will go dark side on her ass for bringing this sort of trouble to my doorstep. I never asked for any of this. She’s the one who lied, who snaked herself into our beds and our lives. Whose dark money damn near got us killed back in Iran.

  I don’t know if she came to the hospital out of genuine concern or to find out how much I remembered. Either way, I won’t leave a single stone unturned. I will find the truth, no matter how far I have to go. The problem I’m facing now, however, is that I don’t yet know whether the attack on me was an isolated incident or the first of many to come.

  20

  Fallon

  My brother barely made it out of that drug den alive. Whoever attacked him, they wanted him to know that they could’ve killed him but chose not to. That was a power play, and I have dealt with people like that before. But they’ve never dealt with someone like me, otherwise, they would’ve known better than to go after Kellan.

  He chalked it up to his drug-related investigation, but Charlene’s presence at the hospital has me suspicious. Her behavior is suspect, and I am certain that woman wasn’t there purely out of concern. I can smell bullshit from miles away, and Charlene reeks of it. She can cover herself in layers of expensive perfume and fine silk but I will still catch that wretched scent of hers. I’m not buying the reformed criminal act, either.

  I don’t believe in coincidences.

  In the years that Kellan has been Sheriff of Lincoln County, he’s had his fair share of perps trying to come at him. He has dealt with aggressive actions before, but nothing like this. This was premeditated and well-thought-out. He never should’ve gone in there alone. He knows that, now. All we can do is keep our eyes open and our senses on high alert from here on out.

  The puzzle pieces are still scattered across the board for the time being. They will make sense soon enough. Until then, I decide to carry on with my life as usual. We’ve got a baby on the way, a woman to win back, and two little girls who need us. I think we need them more than they need us, but that’s not something I’ll say out loud just yet.

  Kellan is out of the hospital and recovering back at the mansion. He goes into the office once a day, but only for a couple of hours and only to make sure his deputies are hard at work on finding the fucker who attacked him. We’ve got a tighter security detail on Avery, though she isn’t aware of their presence. We’ve got eyes on the school, as well. The last thing I need is another Daniel trying to come at them in order to hurt Avery or us. It’s better to be prepared for the worst and hope for the best.

  “Any news on Toby?” I ask Luke. We’ve been on the phone for the past twenty minutes, talking about the current developments. I’ve just closed my garage and I’m headed down the street. Around the corner, my car is waiting, wedged at the end of an alley. One more security measure, just in case. “Do we know where he’s from, at least?”

  “Not yet. I need his fingerprints,” Luke replies, and I can hear papers shuffling in the background. “One of us needs to get close enough to lift at least a partial from him.”

  “That means getting close enough to Charlene. I can’t tell you how much my skin crawls at the thought of that,” I shoot back with a dissatisfied grumble.

  Glancing around, I see nothing out of the ordinary. Just a typical evening in North Platte—people walking up and down the street, going in and out of various shops and cafes, supermarkets and drug stores. Some have just finished their shifts while others are only beginning theirs. The bars and pubs are open and some of the town residents have taken to a drink or two before going home. Slowly but surely, spring is thawing away at Nebraska’s frozen cheeks, and it’s nice to see the place coming back to life after a particularly hard winter.

  The evening darkness and dim streetlights are making it hard for me to see everything clearly, but my instincts are sharp and so are my senses. Our training isn’t something that simply wears off.

  “Toby’s been trying to get pretty close to Avery,” Luke says. “Why not approach him from that angle instead?”

  “I don’t think he’s a fan of ours.”

  “He doesn’t have to be. One of us just has to be with Avery when Toby’s around. We could lift a print off a mug or something.”

  “Fair enough. I’ll see what I can do.”

  Luke exhales sharply. “I don’t like this any more than you do, Fallon, but we have to be careful. As long as Charlene is on the loose, she could turn out to be a problem.”

  “I know. I know! I fucking hate it, though. We were doing so good.”

  “And we will get back there again. Sooner than you know. As long as we watch our backs and make sure Charlene has no way of hurting us or Avery.”

  We agree to catch up later at the house, and I hang up as soon as I turn the corner into the narrow alleyway. There’s an emergency light above the service door right next to where I parked my car, but it’s out. The shadows appear longer and darker. A troubling sensation creeps up my spine, making the hairs on the back of my neck stand up. The air smells dank, and it feels colder than it should be for this time of the year.

  Footsteps echo behind me.

  I turn around so fast that he doesn’t realize I’m already on to him. I see the knife coming. The silver metallic glint of the blade as it flashes out, its sharp tip reaching for my gut. I jump to the side.

  He comes at me again.

  I can’t see much, dammit. He’s dressed all in black. A balaclava on his face. Black jacket and jeans. Combat boots. Black gloves. All fucking black except for the knife. He’s shorter than me, and he’s a fast motherfucker.

  “Come at me,” I hiss as he misses again.

  He mimes a direct hit, then throws out a left hook that almost catches me in the ear. I hit back, an intended uppercut to the chin but I miss.

  He slashes at me once more before his knee comes up.

  This prick is determined to hurt me. I’m bigger and slower but I’m stronger. Which means that all I need is one blow to take him out, and I’ve got enough anger in me to want to break him into little bits and pieces. He moves to the side, and I move with him.

  I don’t see the hand reaching for his jacket pocket.

  I only see it come up and feel the pepper spray hitting my face.

  “Fuck!” I cry out and jump back as the poison burns into my eyes. He didn’t get me directly, but he got enough to temporarily blind me. I only have my ears to guide me, now. I’m fucked if I’m not able to block what’s bound to follow.

  His boots scratch across the asphalt.

  He’s coming closer.

  I throw a punch, just to keep him at bay. I manage to open one eye, and I see the blade coming from the left. I slap his wrist with enough strength to hear him grunt from the pain as he drops the knife. This is it. My single opportunity to make this moment count. I tackle the fucker, but he’s strong, way stronger than I suspected.

  I can’t lock my arm around his neck. Shit. He’s wriggling out of my hold like a cat possessed by the Devil. I punch him in the gut, and I try to get him into a lion’s chokehold, but he’s a slippery bastard. We go at it for what feels like forever until he knees me in the groin. A hot flash of pain shoots through my whole body.

  “Hey! What are you doing?” someone calls out from the street.

  I’m close to falling to my knees, but I’m able to see my attacker as he bolts away. He rushes to the other end of the alley, running as fast as his legs will carry him. He left the knife behind. Relief washes over me as I lean back against my car, panting and struggling to catch my breath.

  “Hey, man, are you okay?” the young busboy asks me. I know him from the diner next door. Good kid in his early twenties. “Fallon?” he croaks upon recognizing me.

  “What’s up, Trent?” I reply, my voice ragged. “Thanks for spooking that asshole.”

  I can barely see him, my eyes stinging and constantly tearing up. But at least the assailant is gone. One thing is for sure, though—what just happened was no coincidence. Someone is definitely gunning for us. They are determined to either take us out or at least down long enough for an agenda to be fulfilled. Whoever it is, they’re about to find out they fucked with the wrong Cassidy’s.

  “What happened? Who was that guy?” Trent asks.

  “I don’t know, buddy, but I’m definitely gonna need to check your CCTV footage,” I tell him. “Assuming he’ll show up on it.”

  “Need me to call the cops?”

  “Nah, don’t worry about it. My brother’s home. I’ll talk to him directly.”

  “Okay. Do you need anything?” Trent asks.

  I rub my eyes with my jacket sleeves, increasingly uncomfortable with the prospect of getting behind the wheel in my condition. We’ve got eye drops and a solid first aid kit back at the house. I’ll need to use that before I can trust my vision to drive.

  “Yeah, actually. Can you give me a ride home? I can’t see shit.”

  It’s been a long time since someone has driven me home, but this is a stark reminder of how vulnerable I can become in an instant if I’m not careful. Fucking hell, I thought I was careful. At least I didn’t get stabbed. It’ll make for a bitterly funny story someday, though. The night the mountain got maced. Oh, yeah, Luke will get a kick out of it.

  A couple of days later, both my brother and I are noticeably better. Kellan still has trouble moving, but at least he’s able to breathe easier. We haven’t told Avery about the guy with the knife. We agreed that she doesn’t need to know. Not yet anyway. I was able to get right into a shower and wash the mace from my eyes before she knew anything was amiss.

  We also agreed that the two of us need to talk to our parents again. This time, however, we’re using a different, more aggressive tone. We find them at their ranch, riding their horses back from the pasture while the ranch hands bring the cattle in from grazing out in the wide, northern field. Mom seems surprised to see us standing outside their house, but I think Dad saw us coming since word of Kellan’s incident first got out. Yet neither bothered to even text us, to ask if we were okay. That in itself speaks volumes.

  “Ah, behold, my wandering sons,” Dad says in a smug tone as he gets off his horse.

  Mom, on the other hand, is all smiles and giggles, rushing to hug us. I step between her and Kellan as if out of instinct. “Don’t,” I tell her. “Broken ribs, remember?”

  “Right, right,” she sighs and stands back, hands fumbling through her coat pockets. “How are you two doing? Kellan, shouldn’t you be in bed, still resting, honey?”

  “Since when do you care?” I shoot back.

  “Don’t talk to your mother that way,” Dad interjects, joining the conversation as Peter, their stable hand, gingerly guides both of their horses back to the stables.

  The evenings are still cold, particularly out here in the open field. But the smell of spring is in the air thanks to the blooming cherry and magnolia trees that line the road from the front gates of the property to the ranch house. Slowly but surely, life is coming back to the land. I just don’t like what it’s bringing along with it.

  “We need to talk,” Kellan says, his tone stern and heavy as he leans against his car.

  Mom looks at him, then at me before she whips up a pleasant smile. “Sure thing. Come inside. We’ll make you some tea.”

  “We’d rather stay out here,” Kellan replies.

  She was expecting him to be the amiable and compliant one, and she’s giving me the stink eye, thinking I’ve finally rubbed off on Kellan. It’s been a while since I’ve seen my parents face-to-face. I only wish it were under better circumstances, but those better circumstances never happened, nor will they. It took me longer than it took Kellan to truly accept who the Cassidy’s are, what they’re about, and what they are capable of, including toward their own sons. No one is safe if Mom and Dad are determined to protect their fortune and web of deception they’ve weaved.

  Corruption has been running in our family for so many generations, and my brother and I really are the odd ones out. We’re considered the black sheep because we turned tail as soon as we were eighteen. Dad had expected us to take hold of our trust fund and join the Cassidy business. Instead, we went to military school, we joined the Navy, and when we came back, we teamed up with Luke and started Wolfhound Security. Kellan joined the police force and ended up replacing the old Sheriff which, in turn, has been causing heaps of trouble for our parents since they no longer have the same leeway in the eyes of the law.

  Though they are weary of us, our mother continues to act as if we might suddenly change our minds and join the empire every time we come to visit. Thus, the fake enthusiasm, hugs, and offers of tea. It's only a matter of time before the Feds gather enough evidence against them. Only a matter of time before Kellan and I end up seeing our parents in prison. Until then, however, we need to play our cards right. They can still be dangerous. They’re still well-connected and there are too many criminal figures across Lincoln County who benefit from their presence and ongoing so-called business activities.

  “What’s this about?” Dad asks, defensively crossing his arms as he looks at Kellan. He can’t even stomach meeting my gaze.

  “You know what this is about,” I say. “Something is going on, and you two are definitely connected to it.”

  “Oh, my Lord, Bill, do you hear what our son is saying?” Mom gasps, bringing a hand up to her chest for an additional measure of drama.

  “Somebody tried to kill me,” my brother replies. “And somebody attacked Fallon, too.”

  They look at us with a mixture of outrage and disbelief. For a moment, I’m actually tempted to believe their reaction is genuine. “You?” Dad asks me. “Who got the drop on you, boy?”

 

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