Chapter 11 Rob
ROB
“Parker’s baby sister?” Sinner hissed from the front seat. “Seriously, man. You really know how to step in it.”
I glanced at Krista, asleep on my shoulder. How the hell did I not recognize her? Then again, I must have recognized her in Vegas. Everything was so fucked up in my head, it really wasn’t that surprising that I somehow didn’t recognize her.
“It’ll be fine.” I remembered how everyone in town knew about us. Parker had to know. “Chances are he already knows about us. That whole fucking town is a gossip mill.”
“Maybe, but if he did, why didn’t he say anything to her?”
That was a good question. Fuck, there were so many loose ends, so many question marks that still loomed over my head. I wasn’t prepared to answer them all.
“We’ll figure that out when this is over.”
Derek and Claire were both sleeping. They were the lucky ones. My mind wouldn’t shut off for me to actually get any shut-eye. I was wide awake, and would be for the foreseeable future.
“You want me to take a shift driving?” I asked.
“Nah, I’m good for another few hours.”
Krista shifted beside me, lifting her head as she stretched her arms over her head. “What time is it?”
“Five. We’ve still got a long way to go.”
She yawned, covering her face like a lady. It was cute. Which was funny considering how little I thought of her as an actual lady. I mean, she was gorgeous and sexy as hell, but her house was an absolute mess. And then there was the way she took on those men…
“Where did you learn to fight like that?”
“Where do you think? I grew up with three brothers. If you didn’t fight dirty, you didn’t make it out alive.”
“You don’t throw people through windows, do you?”
She glanced over at me, a smile playing at her lips. “That’s a Blake thing. I have nothing to do with it. So, you still haven’t told me much about what’s going on or how we’re gonna get out of this. Or who you are.”
Shit, that whole morning-after thing was rearing its head for the second time. Only now, we had an audience.
I held out my hand, feeling silly about just now doing proper introductions. “Rob Markum.”
“Krista Parker.”
I grinned at her, though none of this was funny. “I work at Reed Security. I’m in the IT department.”
“What’s that?”
“Technology. I handle the operations, making sure everything runs smoothly.”
“Ah, so you’re more in the background than in the field,” she said, cocking her head at me with a smile.
But the way she said it set my hackles on edge. “I’m field trained.”
“Not that he goes in the field very often,” Sinner jeered.
“So, you’re not a door kicker, or whatever they call it.”
“No, but trust me, I can handle myself.”
“Well, you did survive long enough to come to my aid.”
Somehow, the way she said it made it sound like an insult. Did she really think I couldn’t handle myself or was she just screwing with me?
“I can take care of myself,” I snapped.
“Relax,” she chuckled. “I’m just teasing. So, you work in the IT department. Does that mean you can find people anywhere in the country and erase their identities?”
“Given the right circumstances, though, digital fingerprints are making it harder and harder for that to happen.”
“Well, if I ever need to disappear, I know who to call.”
“I’m pretty sure once we get you home, Parker’s never going to let you leave his sight again,” Sinner muttered.
“He does tend to be a tad overprotective. In fact, it would probably be best if I called home and told him where I was. At least then he would know I’m with you.”
I shook my head immediately. “Not until we know who we’re dealing with.”
“Why? Wouldn’t he be able to help?”
“It would put a target on his back. Then again, since they were after you, they probably already have targets on their backs.”
Sinner grabbed the SAT phone and tossed it back to me. “Make the call. No better time than the present.”
I winced as I stared down at the phone. “I hardly knew the man.”
“Still, better it comes from you.”
“Somehow, I doubt that,” I grumbled, scrolling through the index to find his name.
When he didn’t answer, I breathed a sigh of relief.
A message would allow me to tell him what’s going on without having to hear him yell at me.
It was perfect. “Hey, Parker. It’s Rob from Reed Security.
Just a heads up, I have Krista with me. We sort of have some people after us and we don’t know why, but we’ll figure it out, and when it’s over, I’ll return her to you in one piece—”
The other end picked up and Parker’s angry voice came over the line. “What the fuck do you mean you have my sister?”
“Uh…beep!”
“Wrong fucking end of the phone call, asshole,” he growled.
Fuck, I wasn’t very quick on my feet. Ever since I woke up at Krista’s, my head was severely fucked up, making it impossible to think the way I normally did.
“Oh, hey man!”
“Don’t even start that shit. Tell me why you have my sister.”
“Well, funny story. I woke up at her house, completely unaware of why I was there or who she was. Strangely enough, everyone in that town seemed to know who I was. Then I left, went out to Cali for a trial, where I was attacked repeatedly. Your sister may have come up a few times, and I’m not sure why.
But when I realized they were after her, I came right away.
So, now I have her, and we’re gonna figure things out—”
“You were here and didn’t think to tell me what the fuck was going on?” he growled.
“Well, in all honesty, I didn’t realize she was your sister. Sinner figured it out—
Sinner was sliding a finger across his throat as murder shone in his eyes.
“Sinner’s there?”
“Yep, and Derek and Claire. Not that they had anything to do with this at all. They just happened to be the ones who picked me up.”
“And you thought it was okay to flee and not tell me a fucking thing?”
“Listen, I get that it sounds bad—”
“You have no idea what bad is,” he snapped. “When I get my hands on you, I’m gonna make you wish you were never born.”
That was such a typical thing to say. And it would have scared me—Okay, scratch that. It was Parker. It fucking terrified me.
“I swear to you, nothing will happen to your sister. I mean, she was attacked at the hospital, and you should have seen her take care of herself. Word to the wise, protect your nuts.”
Silence descended over the phone, and Sinner audibly groaned from the front seat.
“She was attacked at the hospital, and you’re just now telling me this?”
I winced, glancing over at Krista, who had a grin on her face. She could hear every word he said, even though he wasn’t on speakerphone.
She motioned for me to hand over the phone, but I wasn’t so sure that was a good idea. She tore it from my hands anyway.
“Hey, Mike! I’m fine, but you should probably check on Lizzy. I told her I would be back after I ate something, and that was hours ago.”
His voice thundered through the phone. “You were attacked at the hospital?”
“I know you already know this. I just heard Rob tell you.”
“What the fuck is going on?”
“I honestly don’t know. And frankly, it’s really shitty that you’re yelling at me. I was attacked and I’m on the run. You should be asking if I’m okay.”
“I—”
“I don’t have my ID on me, and I don’t have a coat. Honestly, it’s really shitty of you to be angry with me when I’m the one who should be angry with you.”
“But I—”
“You’re a big, badass military guy. You should have seen this coming. Why weren’t you there?”
“Krista—”
“Frankly, you should be applauding me for handling myself so well. But I know this is hard on you. It’s difficult when you can’t be in control.
And because I know this, I forgive you for your tirade.
We’ll check in when we can, and until then, take care of Lizzy for me, and try not to yell at anyone else. Love you. Bye!”
I watched as she totally manipulated her brother as if it was something she did every Tuesday. She was amazing. And she did it without a care in the world.
I wanted to be her when I grew up.
She hung up the phone and handed it over to me with a grin on her face. “There. That should take care of things for five minutes.”
“He’s just gonna call Cap,” Sinner sighed. “And then Cap’s gonna call us.”
“Well, I don’t know Cap,” she grinned. “Besides, it’s fun to mess with him. He’s too tense.”
“If you thought he was bad before, it’s going to be ten times worse after this,” I sighed.
She tucked her hand into mine and squeezed. “Relax. I’ll protect you and kick his ass.”
Storm growled from the back seat and Krista jerked forward, spinning around to find Storm’s large jaw widened in a yawn.
“What is that?”
“Krista, meet Storm. He’s a gray wolf.”