Stop number two was to pick up Brad from the BOQ, who went with him to pick up his car, now fixed, and turn in the rental. It still heated his blood to see the key marks on his door. The windshield had been a quick fix. To get the paint redone would be longer than he wanted to be with a rental car. For now, he’d live with it.
While waiting at the rental place, he received Kara’s text telling him she’d spoken to the lawyer and gotten his name approved for the file and information on the situation. She also sent the lawyer’s contact information.
He decided to take this as a positive sign from last night. It had been touch and go for a while, emotionally. But this sealed the deal for him. They were on the other side of it. Her worst fears were out in the open. Now they could start taming them.
And lastly, to the gym for the last day of workout before they flew down to Texas. When he stopped into the training room first to get two fingers wrapped as a precaution, he was surprised to see Nikki filling one of the large water jugs with ice. He raised a brow at Marianne, who shook her head and rolled her eyes, mouthing, “Later,” while she taped him up. He took that to mean she would explain later. That should be interesting.
Coach Ace led them through the first circuit, explaining every station before they broke into groups of four to work and rotate around. Graham was as surprised as everyone else when they found the circuit to be lighter than anticipated. They’d all assumed the sadistic man would take the final day to kill them, as they would have three days off before their first practice in Texas. But he’d surprised them all.
Twenty minutes into his second circuit, Graham caught movement from the corner of his eye. Two Marines in uniform—MPs from what he could tell—walked into the gym and headed straight for the training room. Two of his group members stopped working the heavy bags entirely to stare, and he growled.
“Get back to it, lazy asses. We get on a plane in forty-eight freaking hours. Don’t waste what time we’ve got.”
Another minute later, Marianne stepped out of the room, and the door closed behind her. She sat against the wall, her laptop on her thighs, seemingly uninterested in the proceedings behind closed doors.
Levi wheeled the water jug to its place beside their station. Graham paused long enough to grab a cup and some water. “Thanks, man.”
The younger kid—probably twenty or twenty-one, max—just stared at him as if he’d busted out his limited Greek instead of speaking plain English. Okay, then.
After another few minutes, the gym quieted as they all heard a shout from the training room. Marianne jumped up, setting her laptop aside. Levi sprinted for the door, but she held him back with a palm on the chest. He tried to knock her hands away, but she pushed back with both hands. They started to argue, and Coach Cartwright ran over to give her help. Graham felt someone walk by him, and he reached out to snag Brad’s shirt before he went over and made it worse.
“Leave it alone, Brad.”
“Fuck off, she needs some help.”
“And she’s got Cartwright. Let her handle it.” He winced when Marianne had to knock Levi back from the door again. “She’s holding her own. She’ll skin you raw if you step in and handle it for her. Cartwright’s there, and he won’t let her get hurt.”
His friend sagged a little. Graham couldn’t blame him for wanting to run over and step between Marianne and trouble, even the mild kind a kid like Levi might give her. He’d want the exact same thing if it were Kara there.
Graham realized the entire team was watching now, with nobody even giving the pretense of working out a shot anymore. Coach Ace, normally a hard-ass about distractions, was as riveted as the rest of them at the scene unfolding in their gym.
Levi thrust his hands in his shaggy hair and paced away, then back again. “She needs someone!”
His voice rang out clearly now, with nothing and no one else to compete with the sound.
“They’re just asking her questions. If she has nothing to hide, then she’s fine. Leave it. Leave it!” she barked again, shouldering him back. The kid, though on the slender side, towered over the athletic trainer. But she was sturdy, strong and determined, and wasn’t about to take any bullshit.
It was no wonder Brad was head over heels crazy for her. If he hadn’t fallen for Kara, he might have been just as enamored. Marianne, pissed and in charge, was quite a sight.
The door opened behind her, bumping her in the back. Marianne jumped away as one of the MPs walked out, holding a sobbing Nikki by the upper arm. Her hands were at her sides, except when she reached up to her face to wipe at the mascara-tinted tears running down her cheeks.
The second MP held Levi back as he rushed at her. “What the hell is going on? Nikki. Nikki!”
“I’m sorry. I said I’m sorry! Please don’t. Please. I’m sorry!”
“Nikki, tell me what happened. Please. God damn it, let me go!” The younger man shoved at the MP, but the Marine held firm until his partner had the young woman out the door. Levi’s head drooped, then the MP leaned forward and whispered something to him. He jerked from the Marine’s hold and stalked out the door himself.