Chapter 14
CHAPTER 14
“No,” Reid said firmly after being told what Ryan had planned. “I absolutely forbid it.”
Pru drew in a deep breath, ready to blast the other man, but she looked down at the hand on her arm, and up into Ryan’s face. He smirked, and shook his head at her. He leaned in and whispered in her ear, causing her to do a whole-body shiver with his mouth that close.
“Let’s hear what he has to say.”
Pru nodded and turned in her chair to study everyone around the table. From their talk a few days before, they had waited until the meal was almost eaten before Ryan brought up what he was going to do for Erin. It was deadly silent as the three of them had laid out their plans, then they sat back and waited for the fireworks to begin. Ryan actually smirked when Reid was the first to respond.
“Why not?” Clark asked as he sat back in his chair to look down the table at his friend. “I think it’s an excellent idea.”
“How can you say that?” Reid actually jumped to his feet as he yelled at his former boss. “Ryan just got out of the hospital after being captured and tortured by those fuckers.”
“That was months ago,” Denver spoke then. He leaned forward on his forearms and shook his head at Reid. “I’m going to go with Clark on this, Reid, I think it’s an excellent idea.” When the other men at the table agreed with both Denver and Clark, Erin spoke into the silence.
“I think,” Erin said firmly, “You need to listen closely before you say something that you might regret.” When Reid turned to gawk at her, she only raised an eyebrow at him. “We’re telling you about this because we feel that with Jake’s help, we can get the Firths and Royal. As of right now, no one knows where they are, or what they are planning. With Ryan going in undercover, then we will at least have a chance to formulate a counter plan on any attack they may be planning against us.”
“I don’t like the idea of his going into enemy territory.”
“What’s he got to do now?” Erin asked. She shook her head at him. “I can’t allow him to start work until he at least gets his stitches out. All of us, you men and my women, have all been seen around town. I’m talking both Fool’s Gold and Colorado Springs. Ryan had a run-in at Gunny’s with those three men, sure, but other than that, he hasn’t left this ranch. Everyone here has. He’s the most logical person to send in undercover. I myself only have one concern.”
“What’s that?” Reid asked through gritted teeth as he glared at Erin.
“If Ryan does get hired by Royal, and does happen to find out information, will it be considered entrapment if he is caught trying to do something to me and the ranch when and if he goes to court?”
As one, the entire group of people at the table turned to look at Jake Cogburn. The other man shook his head at them. “I can’t answer that. I’m not in law enforcement. For right now, in my personal opinion, what you’re thinking of doing is just gathering information. I’ll talk it over with Sparrow and Jim, but if you’re only gathering information, I don’t see where you would have any problem with entrapment, but let me check with them first.” He looked around the table, then shrugged with a grin. “I do know that it’s not against the law to protect yourself if you get information of upcoming danger. That’s human nature.”
“What’s to say that Ryan would have back-up if he gets into trouble?” Reid demanded.
“That’s where you guys come in,” Pru said. “Didn’t you hear us tell you that someone from here would have weekly contact with him?” She shook her head when it looked like he was going to say something. “I take eggs to Gunny’s once a week. If Ryan does get hired on by Royal, and he won’t be at Gunny’s when I deliver them, then he can leave his notes in the envelope with the egg money.” Pru looked at Jake with a raised brow.
“I don’t see that being a problem. The only problem we might have right now is that there isn’t any room available in Gunny’s B&B, however,” he said as he held up his hand to ward off any objections from Reid. “That won’t stop us from making room for him in the offices of Brotherhood. We have a bedroom in the basement in case one of the guys needs to crash. I see no reason why Ryan can’t stay there.” He looked around the table, then turned and looked directly at Reid. “We at Brotherhood Protectors will keep an eye on your boy when he’s at Gunny’s.”
Reid wore a look of absolute anger, and it was Ryan who leaned on his forearms and looked down the table at the other man. “Reid, I know you’ve always looked out for me, especially when it came to my sister, but I have to do this.”
“Why?” Reid asked with clenched teeth.
Ryan didn’t take his eyes off the other man, and talked to him like they were the only two in the room. “I need redemption. I wasn’t there for Broome when those fuckers tortured him. Nor was I there for Sanchez and Gould. If I had paid more attention to my surroundings, then we might not have been captured. Let me be the one to gather information to protect Erin’s Way, The Broken Wheel, and Riceman Stallions.” He paused, then shook his head slightly. “Tell me you wouldn’t want a man on the inside if you could get one there. Just because I was captured and tortured by those assholes overseas, doesn’t mean I’m not willing to go undercover now. Sure, I don’t work here yet, but I will eventually.”
“Why don’t you work here?” RJ asked in confusion. She hadn’t meant to interrupt, but the question just blurted out.
It was Pru who answered. “When I saw Ryan fighting those men trying to drag Sally away in the parking lot, I jumped in to help. He didn’t tell me until we were on our way home that one of them had a knife and sliced him.”
Ryan stood and lifted his shirt. Everyone sucked in their breath at the eight inch long cut that was healing, yet still had stitches in. What Ryan didn’t know was that the scars he’d sustained from his captors were also revealed. He lowered his shirt, and sat back down. He looked down the table at Erin with a grin, then turned back to RJ.
“Erin won’t let me work until the stitches come out. I figure by the time we iron out all the details, they’ll be out, and I’ll be good to go.”
“The way I see it,” Denver said into the silence following Ryan’s statement. “There’s really only one major thing we need to work out.”
“What’s that?” Ryan asked.
“Where can we get a vehicle that isn’t as good as yours? If I was someone like Royal, and though he might be stupid in some things, I think he’s smart in others. If he was really smart, then he would hire someone to do background checks on his potential hires.”
“Okay, but what does my truck have to do with anything?”
“It’s a brand-new one. What down on their luck soldier would have a vehicle like that? I think if we had a beater for you to drive, it would help seal the deal that you need a job.”
“The Brotherhood can come up with that,” Jake said as he pulled a small notebook from his pocket and made a note. He looked at Ryan with a grin, then at everyone at the table. “I didn’t tell you this as soon as I arrived, because I wanted to know what you had planned, but I think Ryan can be hired right away.”
“Why?” Reid asked bluntly.
“According to Sparrow and Jim Faulkner, the three men Ryan and Pru took out in the parking lot at Gunny’s are hands to Royal. They not only broke a hand on each man, but two of them had to have their knees repaired with surgery. Before coming here today, I talked with Sparrow, and she said the men cannot give an accurate description of their attacker.” He looked at Ryan with a grin. “They couldn’t even say you had an eye patch. Royal’s fit to be tired because he’s down three men.”
“Perfect,” Ryan said with a grin that caused Pru to shiver, and not a good shiver, it was a shiver that had her thinking that she wouldn’t want to meet the man beside her in a dark alley. That look must have been what turned Reid around, because when he spoke, he had agreement in his tone. “You’re going to need a burner phone without any of our names in it. You can have our numbers, but not our names. We don’t want them to somehow get ahold of it and connect the dots.”
“Again, the Brotherhood can provide that.” The women had been in the process of clearing the dishes, and Jake nodded as he had a clear spot before him. “This is what I think we should do,” he said and the men spent the next three hours working on a plan as to how to get Ryan hired at Rudolph Royal’s ranch. By the time they were done, Ryan was satisfied that his plan was coming to fruition and he would be able to implement it by the end of the week.
“That went well,” Pru said hours later as they settled down in the living room with a bowl of popcorn between them. She grinned when Ryan snorted a laugh.
“Jesus, I’ve never gone through that many questions, not even when I was a teenage boy and was out after my curfew.” He shook his head in wonder. “I knew my friends and fellow teammates had been worried about me, but I don’t think I’ve answered that many questions even before we went on that secret mission.” He shook his head again, and reached over to gather a handful of popcorn. They sat there eating it in silence for several minutes before Pru looked at him.
“I can’t speak for the others, but I think you’ll do good and you will get the information we need. In my personal opinion, I hope you can get what you can to send these assholes to jail for the rest of their lives. If you go to the authorities before we have to step in, then all the better. Not that I wouldn’t mind taking a shot at Royal and the Firths, but hopefully you can get what we need to finish this once and for all. I know the other women are getting frustrated that Erin doesn’t want to have any more clients come until this matter is settled.”
“I can totally understand why Erin thinks that way.” Ryan looked at her and smiled at her quirked brow. “Less people to put in danger if they plan to attack.”
“Ah, yeah, I knew that.” Pru continued to eat her popcorn as she stared into the empty doors of the fireplace. She continued to stare as they ate their snack. Once they were done, Ryan turned her head toward him, waited for her eyes to clear, then smiled at her.
“There you are, I thought I lost you for a minute there.”
“No, just thinking,” she said, then leaned her head back on the sofa. “Can I ask you something?”
“Absolutely. Before you ask, Pru, I want to tell you that I like you. I will always answer your questions as honestly as I can.”
“That’s good to know, thank you.” She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly, looking directly at him as she spoke, “You’re leaving here Friday night, correct? You’re going into Fool’s Gold to get a room at Gunny’s?”
“I am. On Saturday I’ll drive around asking about work, and make my way over to Royal’s to see if he’s hiring. Was there something you wanted from me before I left? I have to tell you that I don’t know how long I will be working undercover.”
“I know that, and yes, I do want something from you before you leave, but only if you’re willing to.”
“I won’t know if I’m willing unless you ask, Prudora.” Ryan shook his head because she had looked off into space after her statement.
“Oh, sorry,” she said as she set the empty bowl of popcorn on the table, then turned to look at him. “I would like to know if you’ll have sex with me before you leave?”
Ryan sucked in his breath, then released a slow grin. He grinned harder when she licked her lips, and did a whole-body shudder. “I would love to make love with you before I leave.” He didn’t wait for her to respond as he leaned in and gently took her lips with his. He smiled against her lips when she let out a deep sigh at the contact, and wrapped his arms around her.