Chapter 32
MAEVE
The wind outside the hacienda carried sand and smoke, both scents sharp in her lungs as Maeve slipped through the shadows of the compound.
She discovered the wardrobe holding her clothes was just big enough to hide in if she pressed herself right to the very back and let the clothes hang down.
Luckily, it was Ricco who had opened the wardrobe’s doors when Carlos started trashing the room because of her disappearance.
Ricco spotted her, gave her a wink, and closed one door, leaving the other open like there was nothing to hide.
“She’s not in there,” Ricco said. “Which one of you idiots managed to let her slip out unseen. Were you asleep?” he barked, and even though Maeve couldn’t see anything, she knew he was yelling at the guards manning her room.
They spent a few more minutes searching around, and then all went quiet. That was when she made her move.
Maeve crouched low behind a pile of skids and waited for the pair of guards she didn’t know to pass.
As the guard in the guard-tower turned to look out over the wall, she dashed across the open space toward the building that housed the Hummers.
She didn’t have the same access as Dean, but there were enough weapons in there to not only kill Carlos but get Dean out of solitary.
She’d heard the commotion and saw what Carlos did after storming out of her room, as pissed off as a honey badger.
She figured that she’d have to jimmy open the door, but the handle was unlocked.
It was her lucky night. The place smelled of rubber tires, and she had to admit she loved that scent.
Maeve pulled out the lighter she’d stolen and flicked it on, holding it up to look around.
There were so many shelves and everything was neatly packed, and she didn’t even know where to start.
Her boots made no sound on the concrete floor, the faint hum of generators outside masking any noise she might make.
The hood of her black sweatshirt stayed up as she moved.
Somewhere beyond the compound walls, men were hunting her.
She’d heard Carlos barking orders to find her.
That she couldn’t have gotten far on foot.
True, which was why she wasn’t stupid enough to try.
Besides, Dean was still inside, and no matter their quarrel about the past, she wasn’t leaving him here. The thought of him chained up and bleeding made her hands tremble.
Maeve turned down the fourth row, which looked promising.
Racks of rifles loomed in the dim light, and crates marked with half-faded serial numbers were stacked to the ceiling along the aisle.
She moved fast, eyes scanning labels, searching for silencers, grenades, anything that could give them a fighting chance.
The plan was simple and suicidal. Load up, find Ricco, and get him to help rescue Dean, kill Carlos, and this Keene asshole, then get out.
Something creaked behind her—barely a sound, a whisper of motion. She froze. Right now, she really wished she’d never watched the Alien movies. She stepped deeper into the shadows between two shelves. She only heard the thud of her own pulse, but the hair stood on the back of her neck.
She tried to reach for the gun, tucked in her waistband, when an arm wrapped around her waist, hard as iron, and a gloved hand clamped over her mouth, lifting her off the ground.
Maeve’s scream died against the palm, and instinct took over. She slammed her elbow back, catching muscle, twisting to break free. The grip only tightened. A voice, low and urgent, hissed near her ear.
“Quiet,” he growled.
The word was rough, but familiar and warmed her from the inside. She stopped struggling. For a breathless second, the air shifted, and the hand loosened.
“Wolf,” she mumbled, and the man holding her set her on her feet. She twisted, not believing what her ears were telling her. The hood fell back, and the world seemed to crack open as she looked up into his caramel eyes.
“Waya,” she breathed, reaching up to touch his face.
Wolf stared down at her like he’d seen a ghost. The scar along his jaw caught the light. It was new, but other than that, he looked exactly the same. He was dressed like the men who had taken her from him, his face streaked with dirt, eyes wide and disbelieving.
“Maeve?” He blinked, the corners of his mouth twitching into a smile.
Her knees almost gave out. Anger flared through the shock. She hit his chest once, then threw her arms around his neck, and kissed him with a desperation and relief that shook her to her core. Wolf held her tight, kissing her back like she were his oxygen.
“You came for me,” she choked out, trying to hold back the tears.
“Nothing could keep me away.”
“I thought you died on me, you son of a bitch,” she mumbled against his lips and then kissed him again, his hand snaking up into her hair.
“You’re not going to get rid of me that easy,” he teased, and she smiled, sighing. The world was right again. It didn’t matter where they were, or how much shit was chasing them, as long as they were together.
Her breath hitched. All the nights she’d spent lying awake, thinking about his body stuck in the wreckage, and him bleeding out. She pressed her forehead against his chest.
“You have no idea what you put me through. I was so fucking scared for you. I had to threaten to shoot myself to get them to leave you alone.” Maeve held him like he was going to disappear. She never planned on letting him go again.
“Yeah,” he said quietly, his hand coming up to the back of her head. “I do. I’ve been just as scared about what was happening to you.”
His heartbeat was steady under her ear. She stayed there a moment, breathing him in, trying to believe it was real. He brushed a thumb under her chin, tilting her face up.
“You look incredible,” he murmured, and she smiled. For the first time in weeks, something like laughter slipped loose.
Then the memory hit her. “Where’s Duke?” Her voice cracked. “Please tell me he—”
“Missing you,” Wolf answered.
A laugh bubbled up through her tears. “God, I just want to run out of here with you and never look back.”
He grinned, and for a moment, the world outside the warehouse didn’t exist.
A soft cough had her head snapping to the left.
“Jesus, kid, it’s good to see your face.” Morry was standing at the end of the aisle, leaning against the tall rack, rifle slung across her chest.
“Morry?” As pissed as Maeve had been at her, she broke from Wolf and ran to the woman who had been like a mother, a sister, or anything that felt like family. They collided in a tight embrace, and Morry laughed as she stepped back. “You came too.”
“Of course I did. You really think that I wouldn’t?” Morry pulled back and gripped her shoulders. “Fuck, I’ve been so worried. When you went off the grid and didn’t check in…I can’t explain how scared I’ve been.”
“I need you to tell me right now. Why did you not tell me who I was?” Maeve demanded, wiping at her face as Wolf laid his hand on her shoulder.
Morry shook her head hard. “I didn’t know who you were until all this shit started going down.
Dean came to me and handed me a photo. He asked me to do him a favor, to find you and look after you.
I didn’t ask any more questions after he told me you were important to him.
I swear, I didn’t keep who you were from you on purpose. ”
Maeve’s throat tightened. “I’m sorry, I’m such a pain in the ass.”
Morry laughed, the sound turning into a sniff. “You’re my favorite pain in the ass, now stop trying to make me cry, you know how much I hate tears.”
That was all it took. Maeve didn’t care and wrapped her arms around Morry. They clung to each other, shaking with the kind of relief that only came after too many near-misses and too little sleep.
When they finally pulled apart, Maeve noticed three other men standing in the shadows, watching silently.
A smile split across her face when she recognized Trev, Arek, and Kes.
They didn’t speak, just nodded in quiet welcome.
Wolf kept a steady hand on Maeve’s back, as if to make sure she didn’t vanish again.
“You’re all here?” She whispered, looking from face to face.
Trev’s voice was low, steady, the same lawyer voice that he’d used from the first day she’d met him.
Trev nodded. “For you and Dean. We would’ve come sooner, but it took a while to figure out what was going on. We’re just waiting for Keene to arrive tonight. Once the bird touches down, we will move.”
Maeve shook her head. “I’m good at sneaking around. I overheard Carlos say that the meeting had been bumped up. Keene’s arriving sometime this morning instead and bringing extra men with him. I don’t know how many. I think they are planning on hunting me down. They think I escaped.”
Trev stepped forward, his arms crossed. “Are they meeting somewhere besides the compound?”
Maeve shrugged. “I don’t think so, why?”
“We saw a huge convoy leave.”
“They are either looking for me or Yasmine.” Maeve smiled.
“So, what you’re saying is you managed to draw a bunch of the guards away from the compound…” Arek said, with a smirk. “Nice.”
“Yeah, I guess I did.”
“Do you know where Dean is?” Wolf asked.
“Yeah, his father found out that he snuck Yasmine and the kids off the property and beat him before tossing him into solitary. That’s why I was in here, I was after weapons to get him out.
Also, there are a bunch of guards on Dean’s side, but they won’t act until he asks.
I don’t know who they all are, though. Ricco is one, I can point him out. ”
“Hmm, this is more complicated if we have friendlies mixed in with enemies,” Trev mumbled.
She looked up toward the ceiling. The low hum of rotors was faint at first, then grew to a pulse rolling through the walls. Dust drifted from the rafters. Her heartbeat synced with it.
Wolf’s chest touched her back, protectively. “Looks like they are doing a very early meeting. You sure you’re up for this?”
Maeve pulled her gun and checked the magazine, the click echoing in the stillness. “I am not leaving until Carlos is dead.”
A faint smile touched his mouth. “Didn’t think so, but you’re not going anywhere without me.”
Morry walked over to a shelf and flipped the lid, pulling out a shoulder strap lined with hand grenades. “Welcome back to the shitshow,” she laughed.
The sound outside grew louder, like thunder, echoing through the metal building. Light flickered across the slats of the high windows. The floor trembled beneath their boots as Keene’s helicopter roared overhead, and then a second. Shadows danced along the walls, long and trembling.
Maeve gripped Wolf’s hand.
“Wolf and Maeve, go rescue Dean. The rest of us will make sure Carlos and Keene never make it off this property alive,” Trev ordered.
Maeve was tempted to argue, but the bay door suddenly opened. Wolf started to run, holding her hand and keeping her right on his heels. They burst out of the main door, staying hidden in the sharp shadows cast by the sun.
“That way,” she pointed to the quiet back entrance of the hacienda as adrenaline flooded her body. As they pressed themselves against the cool wall, she looked up at Wolf.
“Ready?” he asked.
“I was born ready,” she teased, earning a smile.
But there was truth to the joke. Her story had begun with violence, fear, and abuse, but it would end with choice. She’d save Dean, kill Carlos, and finally live the life she’d dreamed of. One built on love, not survival.
That was a promise she intended to keep.