Sins and Scarlet Lace

chapter SEVEN

Sophia felt the blood rush to her ears and her heartbeat slow to a dull thud as she faced down Gabe Brennan. Thought ceased to exist and she didn’t even feel her hand reaching for Declan’s weapon. All she knew was she’d never be a caged animal again, and she’d go out fighting instead of cowering in the corner like she had the last time Declan betrayed her.

Her hand wrapped around the warmth of the butt of the gun, but before she could pull it free Dec had her wrists wrapped securely in his grasp and he’d pulled her into his body in a hold that left no room for movement.

“Bad idea, sweetheart. At least wait to shoot him until we find out what he learned about the men chasing after you.”

“Who said I was going to shoot him? You’re the first on my list.”

“You’re a lot more violent than you used to be. Maybe you should stop wiggling before we give our audience a show that could make them blush.”

She felt the steel length of his erection against her back and she stopped struggling.

“Pervert,” she hissed, turning her head so the others couldn’t read her lips. Her life had been on display enough over the last few months. She didn’t need to add exhibitionism to her list.

Dec’s lips touched her ear and his hot breath sizzled across her skin and through her nerve endings. “You never used to complain.”

“Ease off, Dec,” a feminine voice said.

Sophia felt Dec groan and she looked up to see the youngest MacKenzie scowling at her brother. Darcy hadn’t changed much over the years, and it looked like she was still giving her brothers hell and taking names.

Darcy and Declan could have been twins, their coloring was so similar. Long black hair waved around an exotic face with high, slashing cheekbones and full lips. Her eyes were an electric shade of blue and they sparkled with a mix of good humor, mischief, and understanding.

“You don’t want to get in the middle of this, Darce.”

“Of course I do. Someone has to look out for Sophia. The men in this family have a tendency to steamroll whatever is in their way and not check for collateral damage.” Darcy smiled at Sophia. “It’s good to see you again, Soph. Though I’m sure you feel differently. Men can be a*sholes, so we women have to stick together.”

“Is this bring your wife to work day?” Dec asked, turning to the man lounging on the couch. He tightened his hold around her waist when she tried to move away. “I must have missed the memo.”

Brant Scott grinned and steepled his fingers over his hard stomach as he looked at his wife adoringly. His blonde hair was cut short and his face was stubbled with a couple of days worth of beard. He wore a weapon at his hip like the others, but there was an easy-going expression on his face that made him seem more approachable than the other two men in the room.

“What can I say? She can’t bear to leave my side.” He turned piercing green eyes in Sophia’s direction and she was struck by how handsome he was. “We were supposed to leave for vacation last week, but Declan pulled us all in to help work your case.”

“And now your part of the work is done and we’re leaving tonight,” Darcy said, glaring at Declan. “I’m terrified Brant’s parents are going to call any minute and tell us to come get the kids. We have a one and a two year old,” she explained to Sophia. “This is the first time we’ve gotten the chance to get away by ourselves since the oldest was born, and I’m getting my vacation. I love my children, but it’s like living with small hurricanes. I’m still amazed our house hasn’t crumbled around our ears.”

“You got exactly what you deserved,” Declan said, relaxing his hold on Sophia and leading her farther into the sitting room. “You were a nightmare as a child.”

Sophia felt like she was trapped in her own hurricane. She wasn’t sure where she was or what was going on, but she could feel the threat of danger breathing down her neck, and she didn’t think it was the best time for a family reunion. The words trembled on the edge of her lips, but she wasn’t able to get them out before Darcy’s eyes lit with the fire of battle.

“Oh, really. Because it wasn’t me that put those garden snakes in my backpack.”

“No, but it was you who put itching powder in my jock strap.”

“Ouch,” Brant said, shaking his head at his wife. “That’s harsh.”

“You can’t prove it was me,” Darcy grinned at her brother. “And that was the best football game you ever played. You threw for four touchdowns.”

“Jesus,” Gabe said. “Why didn’t you just let Sophia shoot me? Every time I walk into this office I get mixed up in some kind of MacKenzie family squabble. I’d like to get on a plane and fly back to London at some point today. I haven’t slept in thirty-six hours.”

“Can we get back to the part about me shooting you?” Sophia asked Gabe, pulling out of Declan’s grasp and separating herself from the rest of the group. “It’s the least you can do after letting my house get burned down.”

“Holy shit. They burned down your house?” Darcy asked, shooting Declan a worried look.

“Finally,” Gabe said. “We can get down to business. Somebody grab the lights.”

Declan went to the wall panel and pushed the light switch all the way to the left so the lights dimmed to darkness, and Sophia watched in surprise as the walls turned to giant computer screens.

“We knew it was only a matter of time before someone came after the money,” Gabe said.

“And just like I told you the day you brought me in, I don’t have any money. I never had any money.”

“And I believe you,” he said, surprising her. “But the fact of the matter is someone used your name, your signature, and accounts tied to both you and your husband to hide millions of dollars. We think your husband withdrew the money and put it somewhere safe, intending to retrieve it again, but then he died and we don’t know where he put it. We also found partial proof that he’d been keeping bidding records whenever he put a new agent on the auction block. More than likely the money and the rest of the records are all together. Maybe in a safe deposit box or a home safe?”

“You asked me those questions before. We didn’t have a safe deposit box that I know of, and the safe we had in our house was searched by the a*sholes you had go through every inch of my house. I told you I only saw Kane twice the last three years of our marriage. The first time I didn’t even know he’d been at the house until I found some things moved around in different places. He’d gone through my drawers and my jewelry box, but I didn’t notice anything missing. He sent me a text with a picture of myself sleeping.” She shuddered at the memory of how helpless she’d felt in that moment. He’d proven to her he could have hurt her any time he wanted.

“The last time I saw him was a few months before he died. He didn’t bother to be subtle that time. When I came home from work he’d trashed the house. He was looking for something but couldn’t find it. I don’t know what. I held a gun on him until he left. I never saw him again.”

“I remember,” Gabe said, nodding. “We did our job, Mrs. Huxley. You’re guilty until proven innocent. I don’t care what anyone tells you.”

“I still don’t understand what any of that has to do with me,” Sophia said, unable to hide the anger in her voice. “Kane got the luxury of dying. I’m the one who lost my job, my security, and now my home. I want out of this mess.”

“That’s why we’re here,” Declan said softly. “We can protect you and help right the wrongs that bastard did.”

“You call him a bastard now because he turned traitor, but you called him friend all the years before,” Sophia sneered.

“He was no one’s friend. Just like he was never the husband you deserved.”

Sophia sucked in a breath and felt her lungs burn the longer she held it in. She let it out slowly and her gaze iced over as she stared at Declan. “Maybe so, but he was the one who wanted me and I was stupid enough to believe him. Some of us want to be loved and live normal lives. Not everyone is cut out to be James Bond. I’ve been nothing but a pawn for both men I’ve ever had a relationship with, and I told you before I’d rather take my chances on my own. I trust myself. Not you, your family, or your friends. My life would be different if I’d never met you.”

“That may be, but you can’t change the past, sweetheart.” She could hear the anger in his voice, but she didn’t care. “Someone believes you have that money, and the speculation is more than enough to put you in danger. I’m going to protect you whether you want me to or not.”

“I’m sure my heart should be all a-flutter over the caveman routine, but you’re going to have to beat your chest and swing your dick around some other time.”

Darcy snickered from the corner and then quickly covered it with a cough, and Dec’s eyes turned a deep and stormy grey as he stared her down. But Sophia had never cowered in a man’s presence, not even during the worst times of her marriage, and she wasn’t about to start now.

“How did you know about the men coming after me?” she asked.

“We’ve had your email and banking accounts under surveillance in the hopes that someone would go fishing for the money,” Declan said, freely admitting they’d invaded her privacy. “We got a red flag a couple of weeks ago, and I immediately went down to check it out. It didn’t take me long to spot the men following you.”

“I knew I was being watched. I could feel it,” she admitted. “But I thought it was more of your goons. I know you’ve all been watching since the day you let me go.”

“You knew someone was watching you, yet you continued to go on with your daily routine without taking the necessary precautions?” Dec asked, his voice nothing more than a growl.

“I had all the necessary precaution I needed pressed against your chest when you broke into my house. We both know if I’d wanted to pull the trigger I could have.”

“I know I could paddle your ass for taking such stupid chances. You should have called someone to help.”

“Yes, because my address book is just filled with contacts,” she said. She looked back at Gabe. “Could you get on with it please? I’d prefer to leave while it’s still dark outside.”

Gabe’s lips quirked but he did as she asked. “Dec got the flag on your accounts a couple of weeks ago, and we immediately looked at satellite imaging to see how many we were dealing with.”

“They were mercenaries,” Dec said, taking over. “Hired guns that were more muscle than brain. The last one I talked to said he didn’t know the name of the person who hired them. It was all done electronically. The assignment would come in and when it was completed the money would show up in their bank accounts.”

“I got partial identification through the satellite images,” Brant said, standing up and going to the wall. He slid his fingers across the screen and two images came up. “We have Jimmy Gaines and Robert Slade. They don’t have the smarts to pull off something like this alone. Their rap sheet is longer than my arm, and they’ve never been very good about covering their tracks. Former military. Dishonorable discharge for both.” Brant crossed his arms over his chest as they all stared at the screen. “They have trouble following orders, but whoever they’re working under this time scares them enough that they’ve kept their noses clean.”

“Who else?” Dec asked.

“We also have Walter Dale. He’s got a couple of assault charges in his file early on, but he’s been clean for the last dozen years. Above average intelligence and good with electronics.”

Sophia stared at the image on the screen. The man had longish dark blonde hair and dark brown eyes. His face was square and his shoulders were broad and muscular. He had the kind of looks some women might find attractive, but if it was her she would’ve taken one look into those soulless eyes and run the other direction.

“I don’t recognize him,” she said.

“We wouldn’t expect you to,” Dec said. “More than likely none of them have any connection to you or Kane. They’re guns for hire. The only reason I recognize him is because we had a short conversation tonight. He was definitely the leader of the bunch. His instincts were sharper.”

“Were?” Sophia asked. She felt the blood drain from her face at the thought of Declan taking such a chance. There’d been six of them, for God’s sake.

“It was them or us, Soph. That’s the first rule of war. And I needed information.”



***



Declan hated the look that came across Sophia’s face when he’d admitted to killing the men sent to kill her. He’d never wanted her to see him as that person—the person he had to be when necessity called for it. It was just another reason he’d felt he had to push her away, and now here she was seeing it up close and personal.

She seemed to withdraw into herself even more, her arms crossed over her chest as if she were trying to ward off the cold.

Gabe grunted and turned back to the screen. “Did you arrange for a cleanup team to sweep the area?”

“There wasn’t time,” he answered. “They sent in a secondary unit about twenty minutes after the first. The house fire would have drawn local attention, so you can bet there’s already an investigation underway. The authorities will think Sophia is either dead or she’s been abducted, so we’re going to have to keep a low profile from them as well. Maybe if we can make whoever’s behind this think she’s dead we can buy ourselves a little time.”

“It’ll be tricky,” Brant said. “No one is going to give up that easily, and as long as they think there’s a chance of her being alive and that she knows where the money is, then she’ll be in danger. You could be looking at a long stretch underground.”

“I’m willing to take the chance.”

Brant and Gabe both nodded at his decision. What Dec wasn’t saying out loud but the others understood was that he was going underground with Sophia and staying there until she was safe. Brant would take control of the D.C. branch of MacKenzie Security, and his brother, Cade, was already in charge of the Dallas branch. He trusted his family to keep things going and get the jobs they’d already been hired for done.

“Cal Colter and Archer Ryan are both off on assignment, so you need to get in contact and update both of them,” he said to Brant.

Cal and Archer were two of his top agents and he wanted everyone to take extra precautions. Whoever was behind this was sharp enough with computers that it was possible Declan and the security firm he’d created could be compromised. No computer or security system was infallible. Not even his, though it was close.

“Close down the offices while you’re on vacation. There’s nothing else that’s pressing at the moment. Make sure you pass the word to keep an eye out for breaches in the system.”

“We can postpone the vacation if you need us to, Dec,” Darcy said, coming up to him and putting her arms around his waist in a tight hug. She was a pain in the ass sometimes, but when it came down to it no one was more loyal to family than she was. “You don’t have to do everything on your own. We’d help if you’d let us.”

“I know you would, but I’d feel better if we shut down for a week or two. I want to see the kind of reach the person behind this has, and if he’s as good at manipulating the systems and hiding his tracks as I think he is, I don’t want to inadvertently put anyone in this office in danger.”

“I’ll let Cal and Archer know what’s going on, but they’ll probably both be another couple of weeks at least on their assignments,” Brant said. “What are you going to do about the Dallas office?”

“The whole office is already in Colorado working on freeing those cult members. Things are tricky there, and last I heard from Cade they’re trying to prevent another Jonestown. Max and Jade are working undercover inside. I’ll fill Cade in when I can. I don’t want to add to his worries.”

“You’re going to need help,” Brant said. “You can’t do this on your own.”

“I know, which is why I’m taking Sophia home to Surrender. I’d rather settle this on my own turf where I’m familiar with the surroundings. I’ve got the land and the resources to put up a fight if we need to.”

“That’s what you want?” Brant said, raising his brows in question.

“No, but if he’s as strong of a hacker as I think he is I want to be prepared in case he runs down our location. Shane and his team are on leave, and I can have a few of them for backup in a couple of the empty cabins on my property. My cousin is the sheriff, so he can be on the lookout for trouble in town.”

“You’ve forgotten one thing,” Sophia said.

Declan could tell by looking at her that she was spitting mad and trying to rein in her temper. Jesus, he had it bad. One look at those pouty full lips and stubborn chin and he was hard enough to drive nails. Suddenly the decisions that had seemed so important years ago seemed like a mistake now. But he couldn’t bear to lose anyone else because of who and what he was, and here he was dragging Sophia into the middle of games she didn’t know how to play. Only this time there was no option for failure. He couldn’t lose her like he’d lost his friends and the agents he’d known through the years. What was left of his soul would be completely destroyed.

“What’s that?” he asked, knowing exactly what she was about to say.

“You’ve forgotten to ask me if this is what I want to do. I’m not an idiot. I realize I’m in over my head with whatever is happening here, and I’ll take whoever you have to spare to protect me while I’m in hiding until this bastard is caught. But I’ll be damned if I go anywhere with you.”

“Too bad, sweetheart. I’m all you’ve got. What are you afraid of? That you’ll take up where we left off while we were stopped in the middle of the highway? Don’t worry, honey. I’m game if you are.”

Her jaw tightened and he heard the barely audible growl of frustration in the back of her throat.

“This seems like a good time for me to make an exit,” Gabe said, heading to the door. “You owe me one, my friend.”

“More than one,” Dec said. “I’ll be there whenever you need me. Brant and Darcy will see you down.”

“I don’t know, Dec,” Darcy said, biting her bottom lip with worry. “It seems like someone needs to think about what Sophia wants. I love you and all, but if she doesn’t want to go with you then we shouldn’t make her. Why don’t you let her come with us?”

Dec gave his brother-in-law a look and Brant took the cue. “Come on, love. Our time here is done. I’m ready to see you in a bikini.” He wrapped his arm around his wife’s shoulders and herded her towards the elevator and Gabe.

“Don’t you try to handle me, Brant Scott. I want to make sure Sophia’s taken care of.”

“She will be,” Brant assured her. And then he whispered something in Darcy’s ear that had Declan’s eyes narrowing and his sister relaxing.

“Darcy,” he called out. “Sophia is going to need some clothes and personal items. Can you drop them off before you leave for your trip?”

“Absolutely,” she said, giving him a grin over her shoulder, laughter in her eyes. “I’ve got a company credit card, and I’m not afraid to use it.”

Declan groaned as the elevator doors shut and turned to face Sophia. Only she was no longer in the room. No wonder Darcy had been laughing.