Chapter 11
CHAPTER ELEVEN
EVERYONE STILL HAD A job to do, so after Elvis made Delaney promise she wouldn’t disappear and that they would work this out together, she and the U.S.
Marshal headed to the security room. Not before the marshal took some bacon with him, of course, but they were gone all the same.
And all Elvis wanted to do was rush right out after her.
After all, it hadn’t been the smoothest of conversations.
None of their conversations had been easy since she entered his life again if he were honest with himself.
“I need you to promise me,” he had said for her ears only. “Don’t disappear on me again. I couldn’t take it.”
She lifted her chin as if to argue. “I never meant to disappear the first time.” Her eyes shimmered, fury and fear behind them in equal measure. “You think I want to vanish now? I left one life behind already, remember? I’m not doing it again, no matter what.”
He gave her a slow bob of his head, swallowing the tight ache in his throat. “Good. Because whatever’s coming, we’ll figure it out together. Blaze will track that second ping on your name. We’ll get to the bottom of this.”
Now Levi stood in the middle of the room, hands on his hips, staring at Elvis. “Well, that turned into a cluster real fast. You couldn’t wait two more days to go off script and get your answers?”
“Levi—”
“You knew this summit was high profile with cameras, reporters, keynotes, and someone with the skills to piggyback whatever you were doing,” Levi continued, cutting him off.
“You just went with it and jumped without looking.” He shook his head.
“You know better. Now, I need to know if you’re still here with us.
We need to get this weekend behind us before you go any further down this new rabbit hole. ”
Elvis folded his arms over his chest as he gave the other man a curt nod. “I never back out of a job. Now, what do you need from us?”
Levi stared at him for a moment, arms folded over his chest, aggravation pinching his features.
Elvis understood the man’s annoyance now that everything had blown up on him, but there wasn’t anything he would have done differently.
Now all he could do was his job, and he simply stood there and waited for Levi to tell him what that was.
Finally, Levi blew out a breath and passed out their assignments, and the first thing he did was separate Elvis and Hawk.
“You’ll be with me,” Levi told Elvis. “Gideon will go with Barrett, and Taylor can go solo this time around.”
“If it’s all right with you, I’ll hang with Colin,” Blaze said. “I have a feeling you all might need a referee.”
Levi just gave the younger man a curt nod and then passed out the earpieces. “Let’s get in position.” He then cut a pointed look at Elvis. “And let’s try to stay focused.”
Elvis said nothing as he slipped his earpiece into place, but he knew it would be a long day, especially with an irritated Levi glued to his hip.
Being Saturday, the last actual day of activities, the summit was split up into different areas, each offering a unique experience.
Levi led Elvis to the larger of the several conference rooms, which was already buzzing with conversation and people asking for more coffee.
Most of the participants had dressed casually in jeans and pullover shirts, while others dressed up in shirts and tie, a few wearing coats, but almost all of them looked like they had stayed up too long at the mixer on the roof.
Many sported bags under their eyes, moving with sluggish steps, while hiding yawns behind their hands.
Elvis simply laughed as he shook his head.
On any other morning, he would’ve felt the same hungover sluggishness.
Now all he felt was an impatience to get the weekend over so he could have his time with Julia.
He sighed. Delaney, that is.
As they found a place along the south wall to take their post, he heard Levi mutter a growl beside him.
Glancing up, he spotted the Director of Security Operations, Raymond Boudreaux, heading toward them. Probably just doing a check-in, but with everything that happened last night and that morning, he wasn’t counting on it.
He kept his gaze on the room, ignoring the tall man lumbering toward him, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t taking the man’s measure.
Raymond Boudreaux stood about three inches past six feet, with dark brown hair possessing streaks of silver at the temples, which he kept short and neat, not military tight, but disciplined.
Professional. His pale green eyes were sharp and assessing, always taking in his surroundings without even turning his head, and when he looked at you, it was like a hand at the back of your neck.
He possessed a thin scar near his left eyebrow that Elvis had heard the man received from ducking too slow in a bar fight when someone tossed a bottle at him.
Built like a linebacker in a business suit, he had thick shoulders that strained the seams of his custom-tailored suit jacket and possessed a heavy presence that shouted both experience and command.
His skin was a sun-worn bronze that didn’t come from vacations, but was more a testament to his years in the field before he traded tactical gear for boardroom briefings.
The man could charm the pants off the ladies while scaring the hell out of men who stepped out of line from everything Elvis had heard about him before agreeing to take the job with Silver Security.
When he reached them, he moved over to Levi, turning to face the filling room, arms crossed over his chest. “We have a U.S. Marshal in my security room.”
Levi glanced at the man, his brow cocked. “All right. And?”
“Do you know anything about it?” The man still hadn’t looked at them.
Levi glanced over at Elvis, a growl on his face, but Elvis kept staring out at the computer geeks.
Shaking his head, Levi said, “Not anything I can share. You’ll have to ask him.”
“Did you call him?”
Now Levi’s expression grew incredulous as he turned to face the man. “Why the hell would I call a U.S. Marshal?”
“Well, I know I didn’t.”
“There are other teams here, remember?” Levi pushed. “Aren’t you being audited by Obsidian Analytics? Why not check with them?”
“Because the U.S. Marshal’s hovering over that woman like bees to honey, and according to our monitors, they were both seen coming out of your room this morning.” The man turned and stared at Levi, one brow cocked. “So, I assumed you knew something.”
“Well, what I know isn’t mine to tell,” Levi said, casting another glance at Elvis. “So I suggest you talk to the marshal.”
The director stared at him for another moment, then gave a curt nod and wandered off.
Levi glanced back at Elvis. “Somehow, I don’t think this guy’s going to call us back to help him anytime soon.”
Elvis sighed. “Sorry about that. I honestly didn’t know this was going to blow up the way it did. It’s not like I planned any of this.”
“Didn’t stop it, either,” Levi snapped, keeping his head on a swivel, monitoring the goings and comings of people in the giant room as people settled down to listen to whoever would stand at the podium first. “I get it. Really. And I have no problem helping you with whatever you need once this is over. My brothers would tell you the same. I just wished you would’ve given me a heads up, that’s all.
I don’t need these people watching our every move like we’re the problem and not to be trusted instead of the ones keeping this circus from catching fire. ”
“I know,” Elvis admitted. “And I appreciate it. To be honest, I was winging it after I saw her. It was like seeing a ghost. It was all knee-jerk reactions. If I could go back and handle things differently, I would. But I can’t unring this bell. She’s here, and I’m not losing her again.”
Levi exhaled, frustration flowing into resignation. “You loved her, huh? Still do I take it?”
“I never stopped loving her,” Elvis confessed. “She’s the reason I never settled down or grew attached to anyone. She was my first love and my last.”
Levi nodded. “Well, let’s hope nothing bad came of Blaze’s digging..”
“Agreed.”
From there they spent their time watching the room, speakers getting up to tout the latest and coolest gadgets and methods. They broke for lunch, and though he had tried to find Delaney, she wasn’t anywhere in sight, so he joined Blaze and Hawk for lunch in the casino buffet.
The cafeteria wasn’t glamorous with stainless steel counters, plastic trays, lukewarm coffee, and generic beige plastic plates.
But the food was hot and filling, and Blaze was already tearing into his third plate like someone might try to take it from him.
Hawk looked like a coiled spring, his gaze darting between casino staff and the nondescript security guards posted in various corners.
People from the summit moved about, laughing and sharing stories of their experiences, most still having their badges dangling around their necks.
To his surprise, Dane joined them, sliding into the seat across from him without a sound, and without even asking, Elvis knew Blaze must have called their boss. He could only hope it wasn’t another lecture coming his way.
“Elvis,” Dane said as he spun his plate in front of him so the brisket was closer.
“Boss.”
“Blaze. Hawk.”
They offered quick greetings between bites and sips, none of them surprised that the man was there.
“So, how’s it going?” Dane asked as the server set his tea in front of him, draping his napkin over his lap.
He looked casual, like this was just a friendly check-in, but Elvis knew better.
He had been with Dane Garrison in the thickest of battles and darkest of missions.
He knew when Dane had ulterior motives, and this was it.
“If you mean working with the Silvers,” he said, “it’s good. They know what they’re doing. I can see where Sage gets her savvy.” He reached for his drink. “However, if you’re talking about the reason Blaze is here, then, well, that remains to be seen.”
Dane nodded, his golden-brown eyes focused on Elvis. “So, tell me what there is to know. Is it really her?”
Elvis nodded. Dane was the only one he had ever shared the story of Julia with and how heartbroken she had left him. “It is. She finally admitted it, much to the marshal’s dismay.”
“I can imagine,” Dane said as he glanced around at the others, then back to Elvis. “Probably made his job a lot harder right now. Have they sent people to her parents?”
Elvis nodded as he dug his fork into his meatloaf. “Yeah, and her baby sister. He tried to get Julia…” he paused and shook his head, “…Delaney—to go back to Oregon and away from here, but she refused.” He felt a smile tug at his lips. “Still stubborn as hell. Always loved that about her.”
Dane nodded. “What else?”
“Blaze is working on tracking that second ping to see who monitored our search outside of the marshals.” Elvis took a slow breath. “If they know we’re searching for her, if they even think she’s alive…”
“Then they could have watched you do another search on Delaney Rhodes and put the two together.” Dane nodded his head. “I get it.”
A silence stretched between them, filled with the sound of chewing
“So, what’s the plan?” Dane asked before shoving a spoonful of red beans and rice into his mouth.
Elvis sighed, his glass in hand. “I wish I knew. All I know is that I’m not letting her out of my sight again. I understand the issues, but there’s no way I’m turning away from this second chance that seems to have fallen into our lap.”
“I wouldn’t expect you to,” Dane told him, and the others agreed. “I just want to know how to back you up on this. We’re a family first, and we’ve always got each other’s backs.” He cut into his brisket. “What was her mother’s name?”
“Carmela Moretti.”
Dane made a slow bob of his head as he turned to Blaze.
“So let’s find out what she testified about.
If this marshal is still nervous, then it had to be something big.
I want every name, every case file, every connection to this family.
We’re playing catch-up here while the feds scramble to plug holes.
Let them focus on protection,” he held up a hand before Elvis could interrupt, “along with you, and the rest of us can see about putting these people down.”
Blaze nodded, already reaching into his backpack and pulling out his tablet.
“If someone comes sniffing around, we’ll be ready,” Dane assured him. “Gage and Callen are due back tonight, and Grim and Sage will be in the day after. Nothing else is on the calendar, so you got us all. I’ve already told Abbie to let them know what’s going on. Just tell us where to go.”
Elvis told him he appreciated it, and then they turned to how it was working with the Silvers. As they talked, Elvis leaned back in his chair, staring up at the cafeteria ceiling. The fluorescent lights buzzed overhead, and he let them burn through his thoughts.
He had made a mess of things by not taking time to think through his next step. But even so, he wasn’t walking away from it. Nor was he letting her walk away.
Not this time.
Not ever again.