17. Saddle Up
CHAPTER 17
Saddle Up
I f Garrett thought of it as a mission, he could stay calm. Well, calmer.
Knowing Kimi was walking willingly into a volatile situation was terrifying. It reminded him far too sharply of Shaggy heading into situations that could literally blow up in her face. She’d led the team into so many places and had saved so many people.
Kimi wanted to do the same. Take down the bad guys and help the dogs.
He let everyone else focus on the overall mission. His was to keep Kimi safe. Brandon was bringing her a burner cell phone with pre-programmed numbers. Garrett had ensured his number was on it.
He’d also talked Troy into making him a panic button. If Kimi pressed it, it would alert several phones, including Garrett, Marcus, Brandon, and Shirisha.
Then he’d suggested she carry one of her scalpels sewn into the lining of her clothes. The FBI had nixed that one in case they needed to pass through a metal detector.
He paced the cottage while Kimi got herself prepared. The fight was scheduled for eleven in the evening, but the invitation to meet Chuck was for nine-thirty. Apparently, people needed time to study the dogs and their paperwork and statistics. The entire thing made Garrett’s skin itchy, and his stomach roil.
Olaf whined from where he sat on his dog bed in the kitchen, and Garrett forced out a few deep breaths before coming to squat down by the dog. “Sorry, Olaf. You’re picking up on my stress. It’s not about you. I’m worrying about Kimi and what’s going to happen tonight. I’ll be better once it’s over.”
“Me too.” Kimi’s voice had him turning and his jaw dropping.
Kimi was a gorgeous woman. She didn’t wear makeup, and she usually wore jeans and t-shirts with flannel shirts over the top. He loved that look, loved the way they fit her personality and her job. There were no pretensions with Kimi.
Tonight, she wore a silky emerald green tank top that dipped in the front. Low enough to tease while not really showing anything. Her black pants were of the same smooth material. The black jacket she shrugged on was more silk, more sexy.
Sleek, glittery earrings and a matching necklace added to the rich aura. Her hair was sleek and loose. Normally, she wore it in a ponytail, but this reminded him of the way her hair looked when spread out on his pillow.
Her makeup was subtle but changed the impression of her face. Changed the angles of her eyes, made her face rounder, lips poutier. She was Kimi, but not his Kimi. He wanted his Kimi back. “I’ve never taken you on a date.”
Kimi’s eyes widened as she laughed. “Where did that come from?”
Garrett shrugged, unable to process his feelings. He certainly didn’t want to mention that he wanted her face bare and her sexy jeans back on. She needed confidence. “With you all dressed up and fancy, it made me realize I’ve never taken you anywhere fancy.”
Her smile widened. “That’s because I’m not a fancy person, and I’m not a huge fan of getting dressed up.”
“Still, one day, I’m going to arrange a fancy date for us.” Someplace out of town, in an expensive restaurant with slow and sexy dancing followed by a luxurious hotel room.
She rolled her eyes while she laughed. “No need, cowboy. I’m plenty happy with the dates we’ve had. ”
Which had him grinning. Not many people would include working with traumatized animals as a date, but they both did.
Maybe now was the right time to tell her he loved her.
A knock on the door and Olaf’s happy bark had him squashing that idea. He waved for Nina and Heath to come on in.
Nina grinned as she entered. “Hey, Olaf. How’s my guy?” Then she dropped to the floor to pet him. The pit bull was slow to trust people, but the teen had won him over easily.
“Thanks for hanging out with the animals for a while.”
Heath grinned, but it was Nina who answered. “It’s going to be fun. We’ll make sure they all get fed and settled for the night for you. And if Olaf wants to have a sleepover with Animosh, he can do that too.”
Then Nina looked up and saw how Kimi was dressed. The girl’s eyes widened, and her head tilted. “Whoa. You look so different. Nice, but different. I thought you guys were helping Marcus with something.”
They hadn’t shared the details with Nina, but he sensed she knew more than anyone had said.
Kimi smiled. “We are. I have to dress like this to do my part. Can’t wait to get back in my jeans.”
Nina nodded. “I bet. Life’s more fun when you don’t have to worry about getting dirty.”
Garrett smiled. “You got that right.”
Kimi ran through the instructions for all the animals again, and then they headed outside. Nina threw a stick for Olaf, who still didn’t understand the game of fetch. Still, he followed the girl and tried to make her smile.
Heath kept his voice low. “You make sure you’re safe out there tonight. After everyone here is settled, the guys and I will head out. I know the FBI is going in first but we’ll be your personal backup.”
Garrett’s eyes welled up, and he had to close them to shut down the emotion. “Thanks, Slick.”
Kimi hugged Heath. “Thank you. I’m sure it’s all going to be fine. The agents have a good plan in place.”
But they all knew that sometimes shit went sideways despite the best preparation. Having the extra backup eased his mind. These guys were the best of the best and nothing less would do with Kimi’s safety on the line.
K imi blew out a breath as Brandon, no Jason , drove through the town of Keene. They’d spent the past ninety minutes going over their backstories and learning how to speak and act in character.
Brandon— Jason —was much better at changing into another person. His body language even changed when he was Jason. He sat straighter and moved with a careless negligence. His tone was confident, bordering on cocky.
“Okay, Marlena, we’re going to stop here on the side of the road for a minute. We need to turn on our comms and make sure the camera is working.”
“What if someone spots us pulled over and wonders what we’re doing?”
Jason’s eyes twinkled. “Then we’ll have to fake a make-out session, my dear Marlena. Just don’t tell your cowboy, or he’ll rearrange my face and I’m partial to breathing.”
Kimi laughed. “It’ll be our little secret.”
His face grew serious. “I’ll keep the PDA to a minimum, but Jason is an entitled asshole, so when I touch you, it’s with that in mind.”
She nodded. He’d emphasized that a few times. The man wasn’t in the least bit creepy. He’d gone out of his way to reassure Garrett that he would take care of her.
None of the agents were particularly nervous. They didn’t expect there to be complications, but they were ready for them. She couldn’t remember how many backup plans they’d discussed, but she was sure there were more than a dozen.
Jason leaned over and helped her situate the tiny earpiece. Even if her hair was pulled back, it wouldn’t be obvious. Her earpiece would be muted after the sound check so she wouldn’t hear the chatter going on behind the scenes. That would have made it too difficult for her to focus on her own task. This way, the FBI could listen to what she said and heard in case Jason’s mic didn’t pick everything up. And in case they got separated somehow. She hoped that didn’t happen.
He tapped his own ear. “This is Gammon checking in. Marlena’s going to say hello so we know if her piece is working.”
“Hello.” It felt weird knowing people were going to hear her words.
Shirisha’s voice was calm. “Both comms are loud and clear. Camera is operational.”
“We’re nearing the final approach and are in character.”
“Affirmative, and we’ll mute Marlena’s earpiece now. Proceed to the target.”
Jason pulled back onto the road and clicked on the GPS. About ten minutes later, he turned onto a quiet, unlit road. He slowed his speed and then stopped beside a light post as a man stepped into the road and held up his hand.
Jason buzzed down his window, and Kimi picked up the burner phone to scroll through the social media apps they’d installed for her to pretend to use. The plan was to keep her face averted whenever possible.
Another man approached the window. “Names?”
“Jason Gammon and my plus one.”
“Name?”
Jason rolled his eyes. “Marlena Lauzon.” His tone was snotty enough to convey how he felt about dealing with peons.
The man waved them ahead, and Jason followed the intermittent lights to a parking area. Once he backed into a spot, he turned to her. “See, Marlena. There are at least two dozen other cars here. The place is filled with people. It’s going to be a good surprise.”
She knew he was giving his people intel while keeping in character. Channelling Marlena, she sighed as she put down the phone. “I hope so. Being in the middle of the woods isn’t appealing and I don’t know why you thought I’d enjoy this. Couldn’t they at least light up the area to keep the shadows from closing in?”
She waited while Jason rounded the car and offered his hand. He tucked her hand into his elbow, and they walked toward a gated entrance to the compound. Armed guards spread through the parking lot .
As the person without a clue to where they were going, it was her job to ask questions that would give hints to the team. “Looks like they’re protecting the Crown Jewels with all of this security. Is that what we’re going to see? A jewelry auction?”
Jason laughed. “Now, Marlena, relax. It’s not about jewelry, not tonight. But if things go well, maybe that could be our next stop.”
At the gate, the guard looked at a tablet, back to them, and then moved aside to let them inside. “Your guide has already arrived. At the end of the building, go left. He’ll be waiting for you.”
The industrial buildings were odd in the middle of the woods. She could smell the dogs, though, and steeled herself for what was to come.
Arrows pointed them further into the complex, with enough guards and cameras to spot anyone heading anywhere else.
“It smells like a zoo, Jason. Tell me you haven’t brought me to a zoo.”
He laughed again. “Not this time, although I do have a connection if you want to get up close to some wild cats. We can do that one day if you like.”
She made a noncommittal noise and tried to look bored, not appalled. Jason patted her hand as they rounded a corner and joined a group of people, all looking away from them.
She aimed for a rich-girl pout in her voice. “I can’t see anything, Jason. There have to be forty people in front of me. How am I supposed to see what this surprise is?”
She’d kept her eyes low but looked up through her lashes. A few people around her rolled their eyes at her words. Good. She was easy to dismiss that way, and the last thing she wanted was attention.
Jason looked over the crowd. “I don’t see our guide. Wait. There he is. Let’s move over to the left there so we can check in with him. He’ll be able to take us on the grand tour.”
That gave them a better view of the setup, as well as brought them closer to Chuck. Jason lifted his chin in the way men did. Chuck did the same, almost making her smile.
As soon as the man approached, a shudder ran through her. Chuck exuded creepy vibes. His eyes raked her over and landed on her chest as he greeted Jason. “And who is this gorgeous chick you’ve brought with you?”
Kimi straightened and let her disgust shine through. “If this cretin is your surprise, Jason, you don’t know me as well as I thought.”
Jason growled and patted her hand. “This is definitely not my surprise. Chuck, if you don’t apologize and get your eyes off Marlena’s body, you’re going to need a new set of balls in about ten seconds.”
Chuck’s eyes widened and flew to Jason’s, surprise evident. “Sorry man. No offense meant.”
Another growl from Jason had Chuck’s eyes flying to Kimi’s and away. “Sorry, ma’am.”
Kimi didn’t bother to nod or answer. Instead, she turned to Jason with her eyebrows up.
Jason finally tore his gaze from Chuck to check on her. When she nodded at him, he turned back to the creep. “Let’s get on with the tour, and I’ll decide if I’m spending my money here or not.”
Chuck straightened, and his glance zipped away to his left. Kimi desperately wanted to turn to see who he was afraid of disappointing, but she refrained and stayed in character.
Chuck stayed on Jason’s side and directed them to an open door. She added an ounce of curiosity to her voice. “What’s inside this building? It looks like a warehouse. I hope it’s more interesting than that.”
Chuck nodded and directed his answer to Jason, not Kimi. “This building is where we keep the records of the breeding, bloodlines, and everything else concerning the dogs. We take daily records of weight, food intake, and training schedules. We’ve got documents showing the breeding history of each dog, and also histories of their dams and sires. Some of our dogs have fighting lineage going back ten generations. We also track their records in fights and the damage inflicted on their opponents.”
Kimi clamped her teeth together, knowing if she spoke, she wouldn’t be able to keep it together.
Jason talked with Chuck about the data, but Kimi kept her mouth shut and worked on acting like a bored tagalong. Her partner was a good actor, and he let excitement for the event show in his body language and his voice .
Chuck checked his phone. “The main event starts in about thirty minutes. If you’d like to view it, your wagers must be in place before then.”
That was her cue. Kimi forced herself to look at the creep. “What is the main event, anyway? Jason here hasn’t said a word about it. Are we watching a dog show?”
Chuck cracked out a laugh before he remembered he was trying to talk Jason into dropping several thousand dollars. He was also trying to keep his balls intact. “It’s a show all right. We’ve brought in the best fighting dogs from seven states. They’re all ranked by the stats I’ve been showing you. After everyone’s made their wagers, the fights begin in the pit.”
“Fights? Pit?”
He grinned at Jason. “You kept it all a secret, didn’t you?”
Then Chuck turned his attention to Kimi, careful to keep his eyes on her face. “There’s a big pit outside where the dogs fight. They’ve been trained by the best to be strong and have lots of grit. Tonight is our biggest night of the year. We’ve got more than a dozen fights on the card and if you’re any good at figuring out the stats, you could walk away with a pretty penny. The biggest winners put lots of time into studying the dogs and their histories.”
Again, Kimi clamped her teeth together.
Jason spoke, probably to draw Chuck’s attention back to him because he guessed she was trying to figure out a way to get Chuck into the pit. “Now, who do we see about betting, and do you have an odds table I can study?”
They moved to another room, complete with security guards openly carrying guns. Jason chatted them up while placing several bets. He spoke aloud throughout the process, feeding his team information about the money exchange and the betting procedures.
Eventually, Jason nodded at Chuck. “Where’s the show? Let’s do this thing. I want to see my wagers pay off.”
Kimi hoped like hell the wire had picked up everything and the agents had what they needed to make arrests. She wasn’t sure how she was going to handle it if the FBI didn’t come crashing in soon. She wouldn’t be able to watch a dog fight without trying to stop it.
They followed Chuck outside. He moved along the edge of the crowd to find a place where they could see the action. He nodded respectfully at a couple of men, and she tried to memorize their faces without staring. One of them wore a sling, and she wondered if he was the man who’d been driving the truck the other night. She quickly averted her face as she pretended to stumble.
Jason steadied her with a smile and squeezed her hand as he tucked it into his arm again. They passed a tight group of armed men and she wondered if John Mead was in the center and if they were protecting him.
Chuck gestured. “Here we are. You’ve got a great spot. You won’t miss any of the action here.”
Kimi gritted her teeth together and looked up. The pit almost made her vomit. It was a square, maybe four and a half feet on each side. The wooden boards were covered with blood and scratch marks.
She tore her eyes away and realized from their new vantage point, she could see more of the area. Off to one side, a large roof covered the dogs’ living spaces, if you could call them that. Each animal was chained to a stake. The chains themselves were long and thick. To move at all, the dog would have to drag the chain with him. They’d staked the dogs out of each other’s reach so they couldn’t make friends.
She blinked her eyes slowly, trying to keep both the rage and sorrow under wraps. She lowered her gaze and pulled her phone out of her pocket as if she was bored and flipping through social media.
Her other hand was still looped through Jason’s, and she was sure he could feel her vibrating. While he and Chuck spoke, he patted her hand frequently, probably trying to keep her steady.
Then she realized he was patting her hand in the prearranged pattern to let her know the teams were on their way. With relief, she squeezed his arm, using the same signal to let him know she’d finally understood his message.
He smiled down at her. “Soon, Marlena. It’s going to start soon.”
Chuck laughed, obviously thinking Jason meant the fights. “Won’t be long now. The first fight’s between Grunt and Tornado.”
She tuned out his recounting of the statistics of the dogs and listened for signs of the cavalry arriving .
“What the fuck?” Chuck’s voice was harsh and angry. He pressed his ear, and she realized he was wearing an earpiece of his own.
Chuck’s gaze flicked around the arena and then back to Jason. “You fucker.” Rage transformed the man’s face, and Jason let go of Kimi’s hand.
He shifted to stand in front of her. “Run, Marlena.”
She squeezed her panic button and looked around for help, but chaos erupted around her. People were yelling, and more than a few pulled out guns. They turned around, looking for someone to shoot. She didn’t see anyone she knew, only the people from the event.
Jason grunted, and she whirled back toward him, wishing she’d snuck in the scalpel like Garrett had suggested. Jason threw a punch that knocked Chuck back a step, and then the man roared like a bull and charged.
Jason met the charge, and the two men grappled. Did Chuck have a gun? How could she get help? There was nothing near she could use to thump over Chuck’s head.
Jason repeated his order for her to run, but she couldn’t leave him. He grunted again, and blood poured from his abdomen. He collapsed, and Kimi screamed for help. She dropped to her knees to put pressure on the wound. Gunshot or knife wound?
Chuck yanked her back up and whirled her around so her back was to him. He looped a hand around her waist and held up a knife covered in Jason’s blood in front of her eyes.
Shouts from FBI agents filled the air, and Chuck brought the knife to her throat. “If I go down, you’re going with me.”