Banished (A Retribution Novel) (11 page)

“I have a flash drive of files I copied the day
before my dad died. I tried to access them with the password he gave me, but my
brother must have changed it. I’ve tried all the passwords I can think of, but
I can’t figure it out. I don’t suppose you know how to hack one.”

He grinned, his expression infecting her. “I don’t,
but I know someone who does. Are you up for a ride into the city?”

Thick, green forests opened into farmland as
Violet and Ryan made their way to Portland. Occasional farmhouses grew to
suburbs and then to thick traffic and towering buildings. Despite the increase
of brick and cement, pines and other trees filled the empty space between the
buildings, and she approved of the roses growing wild along the road. She’d
never find anything like that in Denver.

They drove with the top off the Jeep. Sunshine
rained down on them as the delicious breeze toyed with her hair and chased away
her fears.

Violet gazed out over the beautiful Willamette
River as Ryan took them across a bridge and straight into downtown. He parked
in front of a tall building that seemed to be made entirely of glass. She
fought to regain the calm she’d found on the drive into the city, but
anticipation of where he’d taken her resurrected her anxiety.

Ryan took her laptop and helped her from his Jeep.
He held her hand as they entered. They rode the elevator to the fifteenth floor
and stepped into a lush lobby that was several degrees above Murphy Shipping’s
offices.

A mirrored logo stating Neider Financial Partners
hung on the wall behind the reception desk.

“Good morning, Mr. Adams. Are you here to see Mr.
Secrist?”

“Yes, ma’am. I have an appointment.”

“One moment.” The receptionist picked up the phone
and announced them. Violet caught that she’d called him Adams instead of
Atwood, but said nothing. “You can go back, Mr. Adams. He’s expecting you.”

“Thank you.” He held her hand as he led her down a
subdued hallway and stopped at the entrance to an office with the name of
Xander Secrist.

A handsome man near her age with brown hair and
hazel eyes stood, his smile quickly turning to one of interest. “Come in. Shut
the door.”

“This is Violet Murphy,” Ryan said once they all
sat. “Violet, this is Xander, a friend of mine.”

Xander shook her hand, and she appreciated the
friendliness in his gaze.

“I need you to hack the password on this.” Ryan set
Violet’s laptop on his desk before he tossed the purple flash drive to Xander.

Xander switched his gaze to Violet. “I believe I
saw you the other night. At Flo’s.”

She nodded, trying to remember him, but couldn’t.

“I thought so.” He glanced between Ryan and her
several times as though trying to read what might be between them and then held
Ryan’s gaze for several long seconds.

Ryan gave him an almost imperceptible nod. Xander repeated
the gesture before he removed her laptop from the case. If she hadn’t been
paying attention, she would have missed the silent communication between them.

Xander fired up her computer and had her enter her
password to unlock it. He typed in several things, tapped the mouse a couple of
times and then slid her drive into a USB port along the side.

“I’m especially interested in the financial
spreadsheet and the file called Other Accounts,” she said.

Violet studied his face while he worked. He had
nice hair, and his dark blue tie complimented his eyes. Her gaze dropped to the
ring on his left hand. Married. He would be, of course. Anyone that handsome
with a nice job like this. He probably had a beautiful wife waiting for him at
home.

“Got it.” Xander cracked a wide smile and sent a
shiver racing through Violet.

“That fast?” She’d played with it for hours.

“What can I say? I’m good.” He grinned and turned
her laptop. A list of Murphy Shipping files showed on the screen.

“May I?” She slid the laptop closer to her. Xander
had opened the Other Accounts file. She scanned the information, widening her
eyes at the list of shipments and payments that filled the spreadsheet.

“These aren’t companies we regularly do business
with.”

Xander came to stand behind her, and Ryan’s chest
brushed her shoulder as he leaned closer. “It looks like a list of shipments.
What did they haul?”

“It doesn’t specify contents. Normally, we keep all
the information together for ease and transparency.” She lifted her gaze to
Ryan. “I think this is a list of whatever my brother is transporting on the
side.”

“Do you think it’s drugs?” Ryan looked to Xander.

Xander shook his head. “Could be. Why don’t you
call Denver PD and ask them to look into it?”

Violet shook her head, but Ryan answered for her.

“Her brother has at least one friend on the force,
a detective that pulled a knife on Violet, intending to kill her. We’re not
sure who we can trust.”

Xander flattened his lips as he shook his head. “I’m
sorry to hear that, Violet. We’ll all do what we can to help you.”

Violet lifted her brows, not certain exactly what he
meant by “help”.

“Look.” Ryan leaned across Violet to point to
something on the screen, momentarily distracting her from her thoughts and the
conversation. His subtle aftershave tickled her senses, and she couldn’t help
but admire the well-defined muscles on the back of his arm.

“Several of them have northwest destinations,”
Ryan continued. “They’ve already picked up a couple of loads in Portland to be
delivered to Idaho. Another is scheduled for midnight next Saturday. I say we
intercept it.”

“How?” It wasn’t as if they could set up a
roadblock like the cops could.

Both men shifted their gazes to each other and
then to her.

“Ah, hell.” Ryan flicked another glance at Xander
before he turned more fully to her. “We’re involved with a group that handles
sensitive security matters on occasion. Things that the police have a hard time
dealing with sometimes. We step in and lend them a hand.”

She narrowed her gaze. “How do you mean?”

Xander raised his brows and looked to Ryan.

“Let me explain it like this. If you turn your
brother into the police, do you have faith you’ll get justice for what he did?”

She sat for a moment and then shook her head.

“We make certain justice happens.” He eyed her
with a steady gaze, but tension pounded between them.

“Like vigilantes.” The idea excited and scared
her.

“We try not to use that term,” Xander said, his
expression serious.

She exhaled. “Okay, then.”

Wow. Apparently, Ryan was involved with an
interesting group of men. She remembered the guys who’d watched the football
game at Salty’s and wondered if they were the same. She also couldn’t help but
wonder exactly how far they operated outside of the law.

“I’ll get in touch with Hunter,” Xander said as he
resumed his seat. “May I keep the flash drive and laptop, Violet? I’d like to
see if I can mine out any other information.”

She glanced at the purple drive sticking out of
her computer. That was her only proof that her brother was involved in illegal
activities and that he’d most likely tried to have her murdered.

“You can trust him,” Ryan said. “He’ll take good
care of it. I would trust this guy with my life.”

She exhaled. “Thank you so much, Xander, for
helping me with this.”

“Anytime. I’m sorry about your brother.”
Compassion filled his eyes. “It sucks when blood turns on you. My wife has personal
experience with a supposed loved one turning on her, and it can be
devastating.”

Violet nodded in agreement, wondering if his wife
had lost as much as she had.

*        *        *

Tension ran through Ryan like a taut wire as he and
Violet climbed the steps to Hunter’s three-story log cabin set back from the
Wilson River Highway. Violet held his hand, and he could tell she was nervous.
He hoped she’d like his friends and that they liked her, too.

He hesitated before he opened the door and turned
to her. Dusk had settled on the forested area, giving the evening a rosy glow.
Her dark hair hung over one shoulder, and her blue eyes were as stormy as the
day he’d met her. “You’re beautiful, you know. I think the salty air agrees
with you.”

She smiled, and his heart expanded another notch.
“I think so, too. I never thought anywhere but Denver would feel like home, but
I’ve never felt more at peace than I do here along the coast.”

“Good.” He kissed her soft lips. “There’s
something I need to say before we go in.”

She raised her brows and the anxiety in her
expression increased.

“These people in here are my friends. My family,
really. You might hear or see things that make you uncomfortable.”

“Like what?”

He shrugged. “The other day, at Xander’s, when we
told you what we do—you can’t talk about anything we might say to anyone. Not
everyone agrees with what we do, but we do it because we care. If you can’t
respect that, I need to know now. I won’t hold it against you, but it might be
best if we don’t go inside. I wouldn’t have brought you here if I didn’t think
I could trust you, but I need to know.”

She studied him, and for a moment, he feared she’d
ask to leave.

“I’m one of those people you’re helping. How could
I judge you harshly?”

He looked to the ground and then met her gaze
again. “I’ve trusted before and been burned. That hurt only me. I won’t do
anything that might endanger the people I love.”

She put a hand to his cheek, sending a shiver
through him. “In case you haven’t noticed, I’ve fallen for you, Ryan Atwood. If
you love these people, then I know I will, too. Your friends are willing to
risk their lives to help me. I will protect them at all costs.”

He watched her mouth move, but his comprehension
stalled when she said she’d fallen for him. Was that her way of saying she
loved him?

Before he could ask her, she had her mouth on his,
dragging him into a sensual world filled with need. He tightened his hold on
her, pushing her back against the door.

Ah, hell. He was a goner.

She tilted her head, allowing him access to her
tantalizing neck, and he attacked. The heady scent of her musky perfume
surrounded him, making him want more. He slid his hand down her side.

Before he could go farther, the door opened,
catching him off guard. He barely had time to grab the doorjamb to keep from
falling to the porch.

Hunter caught Violet as she stumbled backward,
saving her from a similar fate. He cleared his throat as he set her on her feet.
“Uh…hello.”

“You have impeccable timing, Hunter,” Ryan
growled.

“Sorry. I heard your Jeep pull up. How the hell am
I supposed to know you’re going to make out before dinner?” He extended his
hand to Violet. “Hunter MacFarlane.”

In the porch light, Ryan could see her blush.

“Violet Murphy. It’s very nice to meet you.”

“Likewise. Why don’t you both come in? Janie’s
cooking us a surprise, and it’s almost done.”

“God, that smells good,” Violet said as she
stepped inside.

Ryan couldn’t help but smile. Everything about
Violet felt so right. He wasn’t sure what he’d done to deserve her, but there
was no way he’d let her go.

Violet held tight to Ryan’s hand as he escorted
her toward the dining room. Hunter’s house was warm and opulent with rich woods
bringing everything to life. Large windows and outside lighting provided a
lovely view of the forested area surrounding the house. Hunter, himself, was reserved.
His dark hair and cautious gaze gave him a mysterious air.

She had to admit she was nervous to meet the
people who meant so much to Ryan. What if they didn’t like her?

Ryan tugged her into a gorgeous, round room with
windows circling it. A massive round table occupied most of the space with
large wooden chairs surrounding it, and she quickly counted them. Ten. “This
reminds me of King Arthur’s table,” she whispered to Ryan.

He snorted. “That’s what I said.”

Xander sat next to a woman with lovely dark hair
and a friendly smile. Two other guys, one with blond hair and the other with
longer, dark hair watched her with interested gazes as Hunter came in behind
them.

“Y’all, I’d like you to meet Violet.” Ryan made
the introductions, starting with Xander. Nicole. Sam with the blond hair.
Christian with the long hair.

“Hi,” Violet said. “It’s so nice to meet all of
you.”

Another woman, willowy with blond hair walked into
the room carrying a large ceramic bowl with another platter stacked on top.
“Can a lady get some help here?”

Sam jumped to his feet. “Sorry Janie.” He took the
heavy bowl from her and placed it on the table. “Anything else?”

The woman looked at the table laden with chicken,
some sort of pasta dish among other things and shook her head. “That’s all.”

She wiped her hands on her apron and then removed
it before she walked toward Violet and extended her hand. “I’m Janie, Violet.
I’ve heard a lot about you, and it’s very nice to meet you.”

Violet shook her hand, liking her immediately.
“Thank you for cooking for us. It smells heavenly.”

She smiled. “No problem. It’s my favorite thing to
do.”

“Hey,” Sam admonished her.

Janie rolled her eyes before she walked to Sam.
She leaned over him and wrapped her arms around his chest, placing a kiss on
the side of his neck. “I wasn’t counting you.”

“Let’s get on with this,” Hunter said,
interrupting their flirting. “We have a lot to discuss.”

They passed the dishes around the table, everyone
helping themselves to Janie’s delicious cooking.

When everyone had settled and had started to eat,
Hunter cleared his throat. “What’s the update on Hardy’s group?” He turned to Sam.

“The plan’s been put in motion. I’ve spread rumors
about new meth being on the street, coming from an outside source. I’ve made
sure key people know Guy Contreras is supplying it, and that I’d heard he
wanted to expand his territory. Several of Hardy’s people think he’ll
retaliate.”

Violet widened her eyes. These men were involved
in a serious, dangerous business that left her shivering.

“It’s worked,” Ryan added. “Word is Contreras isn’t
happy, but I’ve yet to spot him in town. I think if you play up the fact that
he hasn’t been seen much, that might draw him out.”

“Not necessary.” Christian with his warm brown
eyes and dark hair addressed the group. “Guy’s already called a meeting. It
sounds like Donati’s demanding it. He doesn’t like dissension among his ranks.
It will be public to keep it civil. The Sunday Market downtown.”

“How do you find out all of this?” Sam asked,
shaking his head as he smiled. “I have guys everywhere, and I don’t get this
kind of detail.”

Christian shrugged. “I’m cool like that. People
tell bartenders stuff they’d never tell the cops.”

Cops
? Violet glanced at Sam. Was he an
officer? Working both sides of the law?

Ryan shifted in his chair. “I’m going to be there
even if it’s a public venue. If Guy surfaces, I’ll figure out a way to get him
alone and torture the truth out of him if I have to.”

Silence stole over the table for a few
uncomfortable seconds, and Violet studied the man beside her. He’d been so kind
and gentle with her. With the exception of threatening to kill her brother, she
hadn’t seen this side of him.

“Yeah, man,” Hunter finally said. “I have your
back.”

Ryan nodded before lifting his glass of beer.

*        *        *

“I’m sorry if I freaked you out back there.”
Lights from Ryan’s dashboard illuminated his face.

Violet placed her hand over his where it rested on
the gearshift. She wouldn’t deny that it had made her uneasy. “You seem pretty
angry with this Guy person.”

“Hell, he used to be my best friend. He was the
one who betrayed me. Who cost me my life.”

“He’s here? In Oregon?”

“That’s what brought me here in the first place.
Fortunately, I like it enough to stay after he’s behind bars or dead.”

“It sounds like he’s mixed in with some bad
people.”

“Yeah. I wish I would have figured that out
sooner.” He glanced at her and then faced the road ahead of them. “Apparently, being
a felon is a lifestyle choice for him.”

“How do you mean?” She needed to understand what
made the man tick.

“We met overseas, both stationed in Afghanistan,
and we hit it off. We were both trained as snipers. Some days I outshot him.
Some days he outshot me. It was a friendly competition that grew into a
friendship. But apparently, he’d made friends with other folks, too. Folks that
like to buy stolen weapons.”

She tightened her hand over his.

“Guns fetch a high price in areas like that. We
were stationed in Kabul, and Guy asked me to grab a duffel bag from his locker
and meet him at the edge of the base. I thought nothing of it. The bag was
heavy, but it wasn’t my business, you know?

“Then suddenly, I had ten military vehicles swarm
me. They checked my vehicle, found the bag, and busted me. I tried to explain
it wasn’t mine, but the fuckhead Guy had even used one of my old bags.

“I rotted in prison for him for three years. The
only reason I didn’t get longer was they couldn’t prove I’d sold anything. My
background was clean. Guy was a week from getting discharged. He got his life,
while I paid his price. His fucking choices cost me
everything
.”

She wanted so much to comfort him, to show him
everything would be okay. “You still have Flo.”

He barked a laugh. “Flo’s not really my mother. I
met her after I came to Seaside. I come from a long line of distinguished
soldiers, and my family couldn’t handle the stain on their posterity. My sister
visited me in prison one time.
Once
. Out of all of them, that was it.”

His words broke her heart. Utterly and completely.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispered, not knowing what else to say.

“Guy owes me, and he’s going to pay.”

She shivered from the intensity of his words. “What
do you intend to do?”

“Make him talk. Make him own up to what he did. I
gave the government ten years of my life. Would have given them more if he
hadn’t screwed me over.”

He pulled into his drive and stopped the Jeep
before he turned to her. “They took my medals. They took my dignity and
everything I’d worked so hard for. I want it back.”

What could she say? She would have wanted the same
thing. “I’m sorry, Ryan. You don’t deserve this. If I can help, I will.”

He slipped a hand behind her neck and tugged her
toward him. “You do help. This helps.” He slid his lips over hers, demanding
entrance to her mouth. She complied.

She let him pour his anger and passion into the
kiss, and took everything he gave her. The result left her heated and wanting
more. “Take me inside, Ryan,” she whispered against his lips.

They made it inside the house but not any farther.
He tugged her sweater over her head, his hands greedy on her breasts. She
kissed him as she popped the button on his jeans. Her bra came off with a flick
of his fingers, and they both paused long enough to remove their pants.

He came to her, his expression full of fiery
passion, matching the energy burning inside her.

She needed him. She needed him now.

She tugged him toward the couch, but they sort of
missed and landed on the floor.

Violet laughed, the sound breathless. “Sorry.”

“I’m not sorry.” He covered her with his powerful
body, her heart thundering in her chest. He claimed her mouth, his kiss
bruising her as he demanded more.

She pulled from him, breathless. She tried to
maneuver them over so he was on his back, but he resisted. She shoved against
his shoulders, but he took her hands and pinned them next to her head.

She wiggled beneath him, but he shook his head.
“Uh-uh.”

She wanted to pretend she was unhappy with his
unwillingness to comply, but having him hold her and bend her to his will made
her want him all the more.

He gazed down at her, a wild animalistic look in
his eyes. “You’re mine.”

An excited shiver raced through her. She gave him
a grin, but shook her head.

“Yes, you are.” He shifted until the hard length
of him pressed against her apex. “And you want me.”

She thought about shaking her head again, but she
couldn’t wait any longer. “Yes,” she whispered.

He buried himself deep inside her with a hard
thrust. She bucked as she took the full length of him all at once, her insides
threatening to break open with pleasure.

“God, yeah,” he said against her shoulder as he
repeatedly drove into her.

She wanted to say something, wanted to think, but
blinding need stole everything but the sensation of joining with him.

With his hot, hard body pumping into hers, it
didn’t take her long to reach her pinnacle. She gripped his back with her
fingers, afraid if she didn’t hold on she’d be lost forever.

She cried out, and then melted to a puddle of
quivers beneath him.

“Hell, yeah.” He paused and kissed her, his mouth
still demanding, still turning her on.

The buzz started low in her again, and she took a
breath, prepared for another round of sensual attacks.

When he made her come again, he succumbed to her
wish and rolled over. She sat up, straddling him, the cool air hitting her
heated body.

He reached up and cupped her breasts, his breath
coming in ragged waves. She positioned him beneath her and took him inside. He
closed his eyes as though immersed in extreme pleasure. “I’m never going to get
enough of you,” he whispered.

His soft words tugged at her heart. “I’m never
going to get enough of you, either.” She leaned forward and kissed him, keeping
the rhythm going between them.

He tried to rise up, to turn them, but she used
all her force to hold him down. He gave her a moment, and then lifted despite
her protests and flipped her over.

He took her with a vengeance then, his body
hitting her with enough force to steal her breath. She clenched when she was
close, and he drove even harder.

As pleasure exploded within, she gripped his arms.
He stiffened, pumped a couple more times, and then collapsed on top of her.

Their weighted breathing filled the air.

“Shit,” he whispered. “I’ve never experienced
anything like that.”

She filled her lungs. “Me, either.”

He cradled her against him. “What am I going to do
with you?”

“Keep me?” She’d never wanted anything more.

*        *        *

Ryan sat opposite Sam in his souped-up black
Charger. The streets near the docks in Portland were quiet that time of night. He
and Violet spent the previous week loving, laughing and living. They both had
recognized it as the calm before the storm, and it made things all the sweeter.
He didn’t know if it was possible to know someone well enough in a couple of
weeks to truly fall in love, but he was certain he wanted to spend his
foreseeable future finding out.

But the time had come for both of them to face
their difficulties, starting with Violet.

Darkness hovered around Sam and him, exiled only when
a car passed. Xander, Nicole and Violet sat somewhere near the warehouse where
they expected one of Murphy’s trucks to pick up its load.

Waiting was the hardest part. Whether his enemy
was halfway across the world or closer to home. Tension thickened the air. He
hoped they’d find something that would bury her brother so he didn’t have to
bury the prick himself.

“How are things with you and Janie?” Ryan needed
to talk about something, or he’d go crazy.

“Great, man. We’ve never been happier. I gotta
say, it’s a relief to have her ex gone from this world.”

“That’s what I’m looking forward to. I need this
asshole to evaporate.”

“Yeah, if only it worked that way.” Sam picked up
his cell phone from the center console and checked the screen. “Things getting
serious between you and Violet? Some of us were surprised you brought her to
the den.”

Their interest didn’t offend Ryan. They’d all
committed to protecting their group with their lives, and his brothers knew he
didn’t take that lightly. “Yeah. If I could clear up all the shit that’s
standing in our way, life would be looking pretty damn good.”

Silence filled the air again, and he sighed. “She
has a car like this, you know?”

“A Charger? I bet she loves it.”

Sam’s cell phone rang, making both of them jump.

“Are we on?” Sam paused to receive information. “Got
it. Blue cab. Murphy Shipping in red letters on the side. Like Violet said.”

He hung up the phone. “They’re headed this way.”