Witness Pursuit (Bodyguards #1)

She tugged the sleeve higher, exposing the hyena’s sharp-toothed snarl. Ah, this was where she’d seen that tattoo. “What does this mean?”


Turning his arm to the side, he eyed it. “My last name’s Hyena and this is a family tat, only one I don’t care to associate with since I’m better off without them. I told you I had a crappy family. My dad, who’s an ugly son of a coot and actually looks like a hyena by the way, thought he’d take me to the Tat Club on my sixteenth. That’s where I had this ink done. But this is no gift. This is a mark from hell.” He dug in his pocket and drew out a cigarette and lighter.

“Nice family.”

“Yep. Why’d ya ask what the tat meant?” He shoved the unlit cigarette between his lips.

“I saw a man downtown yesterday with one, or almost the same one, right after we were at the gas station. His hyena had a raised claw though, but other than that they’re alike.”

“Dad’s tat doesn’t have a raised claw, but my uncle’s does.” His gaze narrowed as he lit his cigarette and took a deep drag until the tip glowed red and hot. “You stay away from Ladd if you see him. He’s the worst, as bad as Dad. I ended up in juvie because of both of them.”

“What happened?”

“It was right after I’d had this ink done at Wellington’s Tat Club. My dad and Ladd took me with them to what should have been a business meeting, only it was anything but. The back alley at the club was dark and I was told to wait outside while they disappeared inside. A few minutes later gunshots rang out and a window broke over my head. When I looked up, a body came at me at warp speed from three floors up. I ducked but the dead dude landed on top of me and broke one of my legs. I blacked out, and after I came to, the boys in blue were there. Dad and Ladd had dumped me and left.”

“I’m so sorry.”

He snorted. “It’s fine. I was used to the cloak and dagger stuff. After the doctors fixed me up, I was tossed into juvie until Ronson came along and organized counsel to clear me. Ronson was retiring, and my case was the last one to cross his desk. He took an interest in me when no one else did.”

“Why didn’t they go to jail?” Clearly his uncle wasn’t in the slammer since she’d seen him.

“Neither of them did. I’ve been told they had alibis for the night, and they said I was just a stupid kid. I didn’t even see who made the shot, so nothin’ I said counted.” His tone was bitter, and she totally understood why. Crappy was not a strong enough word for his family.

She squeezed his arm. “You’ve left your past behind. You should be proud of where you’re at now.”

“Yeah, and everyone here is my family, only I don’t like that you’ve seen Ladd. He’s got no business being in Blenheim.”

Chills raced down her spine. “Ah, I overheard him on a pay phone saying he’d seen the brat at the pumps, and no one ignores Kern. He called her lady, told her it was about time she came through for him, that he’d been searching for her kid for six months. I think I got that right. Does any of that make sense?”

Puffing on his cigarette, he slanted his head. “Kern is my father. He came to me in juvie, saying he was sick. He looked it too, something about kidney failure. He wanted one of mine, and I got tested. I was a match, but I was never gonna give it to him. It was just sweet to have something over him for a change.”

“So, the lady would be your mother?”

“My stuck-up mother’s never wanted me on the scene, abandoned me at birth. She married a white collar, like she is. I’ve only ever seen her a handful of times, when Dad had her come by, but if anyone could find me here, she could. She’s into computers and all.”

“Why would your mother help your dad and Ladd try to find you?”

His mouth turned down. “Dad’s got something over her. He always did since I’m her dirty little secret. He makes her do stuff, you know with the computer when he needs it. I stay out of the way.”

“I still don’t feel right about any of this. You should talk to Colt since Ronson’s away and let him know what’s going on. Your uncle sounded like he meant business. He did say he’d already seen you by the pumps.”

That had to have been when Drake had filled her tank up, maybe ten minutes before she’d seen his uncle at the phone booth. She shivered. Yuck.

“I guess I was watching you too much. Still, I got nothin’ to fear anyway, not when I got a kidney Dad wants. Ladd does what Dad says. There’s a pecking order in my family, if ya get my meaning.”

“Hey, Drake.”

Slade jogged around the corner, holding his Stetson on his head with one hand.

“Yo, here.”

“Bro.” Slade came to a stop in front of them. “You’ve taken so long. Colt needs that rifle down at the crossing.” He flapped a hand through the air, dispersing Drake’s cigarette smoke. “And you’ve gotta stop smoking. Marianne will throw a fit if she sees you doing that anywhere near her kids. Get a hurry on. We have work to do.”