Chapter 2
CALLEN MCHOLLISTER SIGHED AS he shut his front door behind him and hung his keys on the hook above a small table he had as a catchall by the door.
His date had been an unmitigated disaster from the moment he picked up the overly made-up woman at her apartment.
She had insisted he come in and meet her cat, Mr. Fluffy, and then droned all night about her real estate business, bragging about her sales numbers and fat commissions in a way that made Callen’s skin crawl.
When he had tried to steer the conversation in another direction, she just steamrolled over him, oblivious to his lack of interest. And she wanted kids.
Lots of kids. One thing he knew about himself was that he was not a kids type of person.
She even talked about her collection of old spoons!
“Why the hell did I ever listen to Elvis?” He stomped his way into the kitchen where he knew a bottle of whiskey waited for him. Elvis meant well, he knew. But the man’s taste in women was questionable, even though he always seemed to have one hanging on his arm.
He reached for the bottle of Woodford Reserve, poured himself a healthy glass and then headed for his back porch.
All he wanted to do right then was wash away the foul taste of the evening.
A plume of smoke from the neighbor’s grill wafted through the air, making his mouth water despite his foul mood.
Even his neighbor was having a better evening than him.
Hell, everybody was probably having a better evening than me, he thought with a sigh as he dropped into the weathered camp chair.
He stretched his long legs out in front of him as he took a slow sip of his whiskey, the amber liquid burning its way down his torso.
His gaze drifted over the treeline about fifty yards away from his property as night slowly swallowed the sky.
The forest always looked different at night, more mysterious and foreboding.
He had grown up in a small town in Georgia with a similar view and loved it.
He had spent many weekends camping and exploring the woods with his friends, and each trip out seemed like a brand-new adventure.
His father had even bought a cabin out in the middle of nowhere they would spend many a weekend at, fishing, hunting, sitting around a fire and burning hot dogs.
He had always found a strange sort of peace just staring into the darkness between the ancient oaks and pines, a soothing balm to a restless soul.
Reaching into his shirt pocket, he pulled out a cigar and then reached for the matches on the table beside him.
He nipped off the end of the cigar and struck a match, touching the flame to the thick end and puffing until it was lit.
Fragrant smoke swirled around him as he exhaled, further calming his frustration of the evening.
Only the hoot of an owl in the distance disturbed the quiet of the night.
Of course, all good things must come to an end.
His cell phone buzzed in his pocket, and he frowned as he pulled it out, wondering who would call at this hour.
Once he dug it out, he squinted at the screen in confusion when he didn’t recognize the number.
The cigar dangled from his lips as he swiped to answer, ready to yell if a telemarketer had disturbed his peace. “Hello?”
“Callen? Callen McHollister?”
“This is him.”
“Perfect. It’s Roger Harrington. Your mother gave me your number. I hope I’m not interrupting anything, but I need your help.”
Callen felt his brows pinch as he took the cigar and held it with two fingers. Senator Harrington. That was a name he hadn’t thought of in over a decade. Actually, he didn’t even think of it back then. All he thought about was the man’s daughter.
He straightened in his chair slightly as he stared out at the treeline once more.
In all the years he had known the senator through his father’s friendship with the man, they may have spoken a dozen sentences to each other.
The man was as stubborn as a mule and rejected help as often as he could, as well as advice, and guarded his daughter with a tight fist. The man liked Callen’s father, but wasn’t a fan of Callen being close to his daughter.
For him to be calling now meant something serious had to have happened.
“What can I do for you, Senator?” He took another puff of his cigar as he settled back to listen, his senses now on high alert.
“I don’t know how much you pay attention to what’s happening in Washington, but I’m trying to help push this bill through and have received some threats.
” He could hear the panic in the man’s voice.
“They’re credible from what I’m told, and I’m afraid these people might go after Meaghan.
I tried calling her to get her to come here where my people can protect her, but my daughter’s always been a stubborn one with listening to anything I have to say. ”
“Yeah, well, from what I remember, stubbornness is a family trait. Aren’t the FBI handling this threat if they think it’s credible?”
“They’re working the case. That’s not what I need help with. It’s Meaghan.”
Callen felt his face pinch. “Meaghan?” That was a name he hadn’t heard in ten years. He had thought about her—how could he not?—but he hadn’t heard her name or anything about her since… Well, since back then.
“These people will try to hurt her. I need her protected. I need you to go there and force her to come here, to get her out of sight until I get this settled.”
“I assume she refused your offer of protection.” It didn’t surprise him.
Meaghan hated anything to do with her father, thinking he sacrificed his family for his ambitions.
He remembered her rants well enough to know she hadn’t changed her mind since then.
The two of them had been close growing up, with her tagging along on every outdoor adventure and road trip despite her father’s wishes against it.
More than once, Callen had saved her ass from some bone-headed plan she had concocted or some idiot who thought to break her heart. And then he was the one who broke it.
“Look, Senator, I appreciate you calling me to help you, but I don’t think I’m the one your daughter wants to see riding in on a white horse. Besides, why would she be in any danger? Last I knew, she had distanced herself from anything to do with you.”
“You know I can’t tell you anything specific, but this bill we’re trying to push through…
let’s just say there are some powerful people who won’t be happy if it passes, and they’ve made that quite clear.
And they’re not above hurting my family, including Meaghan.
That’s why I need you to get to St. Augustine and drag her back home where I have people who can keep her safe. ”
The hair prickled on the back of Callen’s neck.
Despite the vagueness of the man’s words, Callen could read between the lines well enough.
While he wasn’t sure someone would kill over a bill, he knew something had the man in panic mode.
Whatever was happening, it was serious enough that he truly thought Meaghan could get hurt—or worse.
While Callen didn’t fear for his own safety, the thought of someone threatening Meaghan made his blood boil.
Even if they hadn’t seen each other in years, and even after the way it ended, he felt a deep protective streak when it came to her.
“If she won’t listen to you, she definitely won’t listen to me. You know that, right?” He ran a hand through his hair, rubbing his lips together. “She’ll more than likely tell me to get bent.”
“You heard me use the word drag, didn’t you? Use those skills you learned in the Rangers and get her here. Look, I wouldn’t even be bothering you if it weren’t important. Her life is in danger.” The worry in the senator’s gruff voice told Callen the man believed what he said.
“I still don’t see why you don’t send the FBI to get her.” This wasn’t making sense, even if the senator believed what he said.
He heard the other man sigh. “Because, to be honest, I don’t know who I can trust. That’s why I’m calling you. You’re outside the system, and if I’m going to protect my daughter, then that’s what I need.”
The phrase outside the system sent red flags flying.
Callen squeezed his eyes shut and massaged his temples, making sure not to burn himself with his cigar.
Part of him knew he shouldn’t allow himself to get dragged into whatever was really happening to the senator, knowing the man wasn’t telling him the entire truth.
However, Meaghan had been his everything before he entered the military.
He couldn’t simply turn his back if there was even the slightest chance of her being in danger.
He took another puff of his cigar, savoring the taste of the smoke for a second as he mulled over the situation, and then blew it out in a huff.
There really was only one choice to make.
“All right. I’ll go to St. Augustine and try to talk her into going to you for protection.
But I’m not dragging anyone. She’s a grown ass woman, allowed to make her own choices. ”
“Just get her here,” the senator said. “And thank you.” There was audible relief in the man’s voice, which only added to the credibility of his tale. At least a little. “I’ll text you her address and phone number. And hurry!”
He assured the man that he would get there as soon as he could and then ended the call.
Before he set the phone down, though, he hit Dane’s name. Might as well let him know what was going on now rather than wait.
As his boss answered the line, Callen could hear his dog, Athos, howling in the background and started laughing. “Someone doesn’t sound happy.”
“Oh, he’s not. Not at all. Marissa bought a cat, and Athos is telling her how he feels about that. Not like you to call this late. What’s up?”
Callen sighed and then filled Dane in on everything that happened. “So, I need to get to St. Augustine and see how credible this threat is. Roger was a good friend to my father, so for Dad’s sake, I need to follow through on this.” He left out the past history between him and Meaghan.
“You want me to send Elvis or Hawk with you? We’re pretty slow right now, so we can spare them.”
He took a long pull from his cigar. “No. At least not yet. I’m fairly certain this is going to be a bust, so no sense calling out the troops until I know more. Meaghan’s always been stubborn, so the odds of me convincing her to go to her father are slim to none.”
“Okay, but if you change your mind, or the situation changes, don’t hesitate to call me.”
Callen assured the man he wouldn’t and then dropped the phone in his lap.
Dane had been an excellent man to work for ever since he formed his own company, Garrison Security Innovations, and several times, the team had pulled each other's asses out of the fire. Hell, just last month, they saved Sage from getting in too deep with her ex. Of course, now the redhead was snuggling in at night with her ex’s younger brother, but hey, love worked in mysterious ways.
Regardless, he knew if his back was against the wall, one phone call would have a slew of former Navy SEALs, Rangers, and S.W.A.T. come busting through the door, and no one wanted to take that on.
Draining the last swallow of whiskey from the glass, he stood and stretched out his cramped muscles.
He took one final drag from the cigar before snuffing it out in the ashtray on the table beside him and took a deep breath, feeling the tension seep from his body.
Whatever was going on, he intended to get to the bottom of it.
He already planned on calling Blaze tomorrow morning for help.
And if she was truly in danger, like her father suspected, well, he would do whatever it took to make sure she was safe until the senator or the FBI or whoever eliminated the threat.
A wry smile tugged at his lips as he turned to go inside and start packing.
He was used to traveling for work. It came with the territory.
However, this adventure took him back to his past, and he wasn’t sure he was ready to dig into that after all this time.
He only hoped she would listen to him, rather than racking him in the family jewels.