Clark's Decision: Brotherhood Protectors World

Chapter 1

Clark Riceman slowedhis truck down when he saw lights ahead and breathed a sigh of relief. It felt like he’d been driving in this storm for hours, but according to the clock on the dash, only one hour had passed. He looked around and knew he had at least two hours before he reached his destination, but knew he wouldn’t make it. Not only did he have to go to the bathroom so badly that his back teeth were floating, but his gas gauge told him he had better stop soon. If memory served, there was a gas station up ahead.

He looked at the clock on the dashboard and saw it was only two in the afternoon. He hoped to be home before dark, which would give him almost three hours. He had plenty of time. Thinking of his full bladder first, he pulled into the first place with lights on, and sighed in relief when he realized it was a bar. After shutting his truck down, he read the name, but didn’t think he”d ever heard of a bar named Gunny’s before. He hurried in and saw a woman behind the bar, and a man sitting in a corner of it.

“Bathroom?” he asked with raised brows.

“Down there,” the man said with a thumb thrown over his shoulder and a smirk.

Clark nodded and headed in that direction. He made it just in time and didn’t think he would ever stop going. When he did, he washed his hands, then looked in the mirror and winced. He looked like he’d been pulled through a knothole ass backward. He splashed some water on his face, and ran his hand through his hair. Not that it was that long, he’d gotten it trimmed a few weeks ago, but he had just gotten back from a mission a few days ago, and had the opportunity to come home for the holidays. He jumped on it with both feet, now he only had to grab a cup of coffee, some gas, then he could see his sister for the first time in years. With a happy smile, he left the bathroom, and stopped at the bar.

“Excuse me,” he asked the waitress behind the bar. She turned and he frowned. “Do you happen to have any coffee?”

“You don’t want a drink?”

“No, I still have a ways to go before I reach my destination. Coffee would be fine.”

She didn’t move right away, and Clark turned to look at the man sitting in the corner, who was looking at the woman with a worried look.

“RJ?” Clark heard the man ask the woman. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah,” she answered with a shake of her head. She got him a cup of coffee, but continued to stare at him. “I’m sorry, I don’t mean to be rude, but I know you. I don’t know how, but I know you.”

Clark looked between the man and woman, and saw anger on the man’s face. Clark held up his hands and shook his head at him. “Hey, this is my first-time home in several years. I do not know this woman.”

“RJ, how do you know this man?”

“I told you I didn’t know how, but I know him. Don’t get your boxers in a bunch, Cog. I’ll figure it out.”

Clark snickered at the expression on the man’s face, and to defuse the situation between them, he grabbed his cup of coffee off the bar and went over to a wall with photos on them. He almost dropped his coffee when he saw one of them. He whipped around, winced when the hot coffee sloshed out to land on his hand.

“Rucker?” Clark called out, and the woman whipped her head up, then screamed.

“Clark!” She came from behind the bar, and by the time she reached him, he had set his cup down and laughed when she launched herself at him. He caught her in a hug.

“It’s good to see you. I see you’ve grown up.”

“Yep, and the big lug standing behind me with the look of death coming your way on his face is my husband.” RJ laughed and stepped away from Clark. She ended up next to the man and laid a hand on his chest. “Cog, this is Clark Riceman, I recognized him because years ago, when Gunny sent me out to apprentice with someone, it was to the Ricemans’.”

“Erin’s Way?” the man asked his wife, then turned to study Clark. He stuck his hand out. “Jake Cogburn. I know your sister well.”

“How well?”

“Not like you’re thinking, I’m a happily married man. As I said, I’m Jake Cogburn, and I work for Brotherhood Protectors.”

“Ah, you’re the guy that helps her out with running background checks on people.”

“Correct. Come, have a seat. How long are you in town for? Does Erin know you’re coming?”

“No, she doesn’t. I want to surprise her. I’m out.” Clark sat at the bar and nodded when RJ refilled his cup. He sipped, and sighed heavily. “I’ve been run ragged the last few days. Hell, I don’t even know what day of the week it is right now.”

“Tuesday, Thanksgiving is on Thursday, two days away.”

“Good, then I made it home in time. Or I will, I still have two hours to go.”

“Technically,” Jake grinned at him. “It’s an hour and twenty-seven minutes.”

“Yeah, but I still have to stop and fill up, I don’t want to go over the pass with a quarter tank of gas.”

“I hear you. What else have you been doing?”

“You know I’m a SEAL, right?”

“Yes, as was I.” He bent down and knocked on his lower leg, giving it a hollow sound. “Medical discharge.”

“Sorry about the leg. I was on a mission from the beginning of October, and we thought we weren’t coming home until after the New Year. Turned out everything was in our favor. We got home late last Tuesday, debriefed all day Wednesday. I was handed my DD-214s on Thursday, packed all weekend, closed everything, and hit the road yesterday morning. I should have been home earlier, but I got a flat, then the snow started.”

“It’s snowing?” RJ asked in glee.

“Yes, and I’m going to take my leave. It was coming down pretty hard, and I want to get home while there’s still light out. Please, don’t tell Erin I’m here.”

“We won’t.”

Clark reached for his wallet, and they both looked up as a man walked in. He walked directly to the bar, and Clark frowned at Jake then at the man. He was in his late forties to early fifties, wore a cowboy hat, scuffed cowboy boots, and he didn’t look like he was playing at being a cowboy, he looked like he was one.

“Excuse me, Ma’am,” the guy said to Rucker. “I’m looking for someone, and was wondering if you could tell me where she is?”

“I’ll try, but if they’re not a regular at this bar, I won’t know them. I don’t get out much.”

“Naomi Alcott. I’m looking for a Naomi Alcott.”

“Never heard of her. I can ask around, do you have a name or number I can reach you if I find her?”

The man pulled out a business card and laid it on the bar. RJ left it there, and the three of them watched him leave. As soon as the door shut behind him, Jake jumped to his feet and took the knife and roll of plastic RJ handed him. He rolled some film out, flipped the card onto it with the knife, then sealed it inside the clear film.

“Can I ask what that is about?” Clark asked.

“I know Naomi Alcott.” Jake answered as he looked at the card. “Fuck me.”

“No thanks, what’s wrong?”

Jake turned the card to show the name on the front. “Who’s Patrick Clemmons?”

“A potentially dangerous man.”

“Explain.”

“You know that your sister hires me to run background checks on all her employees, correct?”

“Yes.”

“Naomi Alcott is the first woman she hired to work at Broken.”

“What’s broken?”

“Nothing, it’s the name of the second ranch she opened. The Broken Wheel.”

“That’s right, are you saying that you missed something and this Naomi is a bad egg?”

“No, I’m saying that Naomi may be in trouble.” Jake shook his head and sighed heavily. “After doing a check on her, I did some more digging, and investigating. I’m working with someone over in Nebraska, and it turns out that her father was behind her accident.”

“What accident?”

“Barrel racer, horse goes out from under her.”

“Yes, paralyzed from waist down. Horse had to be put down? Erin told me about it. Her father screaming at her that it was all her fault before she was even loaded into the ambulance.”

“Yes, do you know her?”

“No, Erin said she was going to hire her the last time I was here, but she gave me the link to watch it online. It wasn’t pretty.”

“No, it wasn’t. The people I’m working with suspect the father had the horse drugged to take a fall during that competition. This guy’s name keeps popping up in that investigation.” He held up the makeshift baggie that held the card.

“I’ll run it for prints, and get with my guy. Please, be careful and warn your sister if you can. I’ll let you tell Naomi when and if you think the time’s right.”

“Here,” Clark withdrew one of his own business cards and flipped it over to write on the back. “I don’t have to tell you that you have Erin’s number, but that’s my personal cell number on the back. The front numbers won’t work now.”

“I understand.” Jake took the card and slipped it in his pocket.

“I’m going to leave now, can you call Erin to give her the head’s up? I don’t know if that guy is going to ranches yet asking for Naomi.”

“I will, thanks Clark. I look forward to talking with you more.” They shook hands and Clark left, but not before downing his coffee in one swallow. Outside he quickly started his truck, then wiped the snow off, and headed for home.

Three miles down the road, he pulled into a gas station, left the truck running, and used his card to put as much gas as the tank would hold. He didn’t know if Erin had kept up the ritual of keeping a gigantic five-hundred-gallon tank full on the ranch like their father had.

As he got back in his truck, he put his seatbelt on, turned on his wipers, and grinned as he looked forward. “Home, James,” he said, then laughed at his own joke. He hoped Jake wouldn’t mention to Erin that he was coming home. He couldn’t wait to see his sister and his friends.

He also knew that he had the daunting task of learning what Erin had done while he’d been away. He couldn’t wait to see what had been done, but that would be for another day. Right now, he had a little over an hour before he reached home. He programmed the radio to one of his favorite stations he’d listened to when he was younger, and began to sing along with the rock and roll music blaring from his speakers.