Banished (A Retribution Novel) (5 page)

He patted his lap. “Put your foot right here.”

A shiver of attraction raced through her, and she
felt guilty for being attracted when he’d gone out of his way to help her. She
placed her foot on his leg, and closed her eyes so she wouldn’t sigh when he
touched her skin.

The rough pads of his fingers were gentle as he
inspected each cut and scrape. “This one looks bad, too.” He pulled another
bandage from the kit and opened it.

“And maybe this one.”

She leaned over to check the patchy abrasions on
her ankles. He’d already covered a total of five areas with antiseptic cream
and bandages, and that was only on her legs. “I think that one’s okay.”

“Are you sure?” He met her gaze, and she had the
sudden sensation that he was dragging this out as long as possible. The thought
left her warm and hazy.

“I’m sure.” She twisted in her seat. “This one on
my elbow hurts, and I can’t see how bad it is.”

He leaned close enough she could feel his warm
breath on the back of her arm. “It’s pretty messed up, not to mention it’s in a
spot that will get bumped a lot.”

“Then maybe a bandage there, too.” She inhaled,
loving the feel of his fingers on her. “I’m going to owe you a whole box of
bandages by the time we’re finished.”

She looked back, finding his gaze less than a foot
from hers. His chiseled jaw and short hair lent him a serious look, but he
couldn’t hide the vulnerability in his eyes, or the way his smile, when he
flashed it, gave him a mysterious, but alluring facade. “I feel like all I’ve
done is say thank you, but seriously, thank you. You’ve turned a day of hell into…”
Heaven. “Something more.”

“Ditto.” He ran a hand down her arm, leaving her
with a frisson of goose bumps. “I guess you’re all patched up, unless you want
me to take a look at your other cuts.”

She placed a protective hand between her breasts
before she realized what she’d done. “No. Those are okay.”

He stared at her for what seemed like forever.

“Okay. I’ll honor our deal.” He glanced at the
clock above the table. “What would you like to do? You wanted to see the ocean
so much, how about a walk on the beach? One where neither of us gets wet.”

She laughed. “I would love it. Despite what
happened earlier today, I want to see more. It has a certain magnetic appeal to
it.” She slipped her feet into her flip-flops. “Do you know what I mean?”

He tilted his head in agreement. “Why do you think I
moved here?”

Ryan used the pretense of helping her down the
uneven terrain to take Violet’s hand. Although the bright moon provided enough
light, the small incline and grassy beach could hamper a person if she wasn’t
careful, and the last thing he wanted her to do was fall again.

Her hand seemed small and delicate beneath his,
but warm and alive. Alive with a presence he hadn’t felt since the day he’d gone
to prison. He’d had a hard time trusting since then, though there were a few
people worthy of his efforts. Florence for one.

He wondered if Violet might be another.

She didn’t release his hand as they made it to the
wet, compacted sand, and that fact pleased him more than he could say. He loved
the way his black hoodie swallowed her, loved the way it protected her from the
cool rush of wind.

They walked for a long time in silence, the waves
and the wind making the only sounds. When they reached the end of his small
cove, he turned them back toward the house.

“I guess the tide’s in now, right?” she said.
“Since there’s hardly any wet sand.”

“Correct.”

“I didn’t realize how fast it could come in, but I
guess I learned my lesson.”

“Yeah, you were in quite the bind. I hate to think
what might have happened if I hadn’t shown up when I did.”

She squeezed his hand and pulled him to a stop,
the light from the moon reflecting on her face as she looked up at him. “That’s
the second time in two days that I’ve almost died.”

He shook his head as the reality of what she’d
said sunk in. He didn’t know why he should care about someone he hadn’t known for
more than a few hours, but he did. “What happened? Is that where your cuts are
from?”

She looked up at the midnight sky. “I don’t want
to talk about it.”

“You brought it up.”

“Because it made me realize some things. One, that
life is short. Two, that I need to appreciate each moment. I’m happy I’m still
here so I could have the opportunity to meet you.” She paused. “Three, it could
all end tomorrow, so if there’s something I really want to do, I shouldn’t
wait.

“And I really want to do this.” She stood on her
tiptoes and pulled his head close to hers.

Her lips met his, firing up intense needs as she
softly kissed him.

Damn, he’d wanted to kiss her as well, but hadn’t
dared. But opportunity had gifted him, and he’d appreciate it, just like she’d
said.

He gripped her waist and pulled her up against
him, her curves meeting his hard angles. He couldn’t get enough of her. He
moved his hands to both sides of her face, holding her as he tilted his head.

He ran his tongue across her lips, and she opened
for him. Ah, hell. He groaned as he deepened their kiss.

Then, as suddenly as she’d kissed him, she pulled
away and gave a breathless laugh. “Wow.” She placed her fingers on her lips,
moonlight cascading on her long hair as it danced in the wind. The image of her
looking at him, as though she’d discovered nirvana, would forever be burned in
his mind.

“What?” He reached for her, needing to hold her
again, but she evaded his grasp with a laugh.

“That was the most amazing kiss.” She smiled at
him as she backed farther away.

“Then why did you stop?”

“Because,” she laughed and twirled in the breeze.
“I barely know you, and if I let you keep kissing me like that, we would end up
naked on the sand.”

He smiled and walked toward her. “And that’s a bad
thing because…”

She stopped and let him catch her, smiling up at
him as he pulled her into his arms. “Because I need to know you better before
I’d let that happen. Because this has been the most perfect night, and I
wouldn’t want to screw it up with an awkward morning. Because I wouldn’t want
to take advantage of you after your hell of a day.”

“I see.” He had to respect her for her choice, but
he was damn disappointed that she had such scruples.

“How about we head back to the house, then? It’s
getting chilly out here, and I don’t want you getting cold again.”

“Okay,” she said as she took hold of his hand. “If
you’re ready, you could drive me back to my car.”

“Or, you could sleep here. I have an extra room,
and it has a lock if you’re worried about that. No sense paying for a hotel
room, and your car will be just fine.” He knew he’d need to let her go. They
both had lives to get back to, but he wasn’t ready yet.

“You are too kind. I’m a little short on cash, so
that would be wonderful if you’re sure it’s okay.”

“Yeah, well, you’ve helped me out tonight, too,
whether you realize it or not.” He couldn’t remember the last time he’d taken a
load off. He missed those carefree days, back when he could let loose and enjoy
a beer with his army buddies. Back when he could hit on a pretty woman, and he
didn’t follow each thought with, if he fell in love, how would she handle the
reality of his life.

He opened the back door to the house for Violet
and let her precede him. She released his hand, and he missed her touch
immediately. The barrage of emotions he’d attached to her was unwise and
unrealistic, he knew. But for the moment, everything seemed right in his world.

“Good night, Violet,” he said as he left her at her
bedroom door. “Sweet dreams.”

“Good night.”

“Would it be wrong to hope your sweet dreams are
of me?” He tugged on a strand of her windblown hair.

“Not at all.” She gave him a kiss on the cheek,
and he knew why. Temptation would be too much this close to a bed. He felt it,
too.

She closed the door with a smile.

*        *        *

Violet bit her bottom lip as she stared at the
door she’d just closed. Her mind swam with all kinds of crazy thoughts, and she
turned and made her way to the twin-sized bed in the middle of the small room.

Could the last two days be real? Could she have
been attacked outside her front door and ran for her life, only to almost die
again on Oregon’s rocky shores and then be saved by the most handsome man she’d
ever met? It was absolutely preposterous, yet here she was.

She glanced around the room. The walls were a soft
shade of blue, and a dark blue quilt rested on the bed. The furniture looked
old, like something she might have found in an antique shop, and she ran her
hand over the wooden dresser. She thought about crawling into bed, but the
events of the day left her too wired to sleep.

Instead, she slid open a couple of the drawers,
but they were empty. She’d hoped to get a peek inside Ryan’s life, wanting to
know more about the man who’d saved her. In more ways than one. She hadn’t
quite given up on mankind, but she’d seriously wondered what kind of people
lived in the world, especially when she couldn’t trust her own brother or a
sworn officer of the law.

She moved to the closet and quietly opened the door.
A couple of heavy coats hung on the rack, but nothing else. An old box sat atop
the shelf in the closet, and she stood on tiptoe to reach the edge of it and
pull it forward so she could grasp it. Guilt nipped at her for snooping, but
she’d trusted her life to this man, so it couldn’t be completely wrong to learn
what she could. Any smart woman would.

She sat on the bed and opened the small metal box.
The hinges squeaked as she lifted the lid, and she froze, waiting to hear Ryan’s
footsteps as he came to investigate. When he didn’t she peered inside.

Several folded newspaper clippings topped the
stack of memorabilia. She opened the first one and widened her eyes in surprise
as she began to read.

Local decorated officer sentenced to three
years in military prison
.

The Huntsville Times article was dated five years
ago. She put a hand over her mouth as she continued to read.

It appeared her hero had done time for stealing confiscated
arms from the military and selling them on the black market. Wait. Not actually
selling them.
Attempting
to sell them.

The article went on to discuss members of Ryan’s
family who lived in the area and included several statements from neighbors
who’d grown up with Ryan and were shocked by the news.

She lifted her shoulders as a cold shiver passed
through her body. He wasn’t the saint she’d thought him to be.

She found another article for a bronze star
commendation, but skipped past it to dig deeper. The next article repeated the
same information as the first.

So, he’d done his time and had moved away from his
home state. With the way the people in the articles had talked, he probably
couldn’t show his face there anymore.

Unless, he’d moved west to continue his illegal
activities. She glanced at the door and then slowly made her way across the
room and turned the lock. She hadn’t gotten the sense he would harm her, but he
hadn’t seemed like a dishonest thief, either.

Other military memories filled the box, including more
small-town newspaper articles that highlighted his impressive military career.
Mr.
George Atwood announced to the Times that his son, Ryan Atwood, had taken a
commission with Special Forces and would soon ship out to Afghanistan. He
couldn’t be more proud…

What a waste of an accomplishment. That wasn’t the
first time she’d witnessed something similar. Look at her brother. Their father
had handed him a solid business, but that wasn’t enough. He wanted to crawl in
bed with criminals, and it appeared he was willing to kill her to accomplish
it.

No, she would not spend any more time with Ryan,
whatever his deal.

She thought about crawling out the window to
escape, but he might hear that, and it might be wiser to wait for him to fall
asleep before she left. He had no reason to suspect she knew about his past,
and therefore would have no reason to need to defend himself.

Perhaps he’d reformed and was now a decent man,
but she couldn’t take that chance. Wouldn’t take that chance. She had enough
trouble with her brother. She didn’t need more.

She crawled onto the bed and turned off the
bedside lamp, hoping he’d think she slept. Instead, she curled her knees up to
her chest and waited.

*        *        *

“Hey,” Ryan said into the phone with a low voice, and
waited for Hunter’s reply. “No. The mission was a failure. Harvey had a woman
with him again tonight, and I couldn’t stand by while he bloodied another one.”

“What happened?” Hunter asked.

Ryan swore under his breath, not wanting to convey
the disappointing news. He and Hunter had been on this crusade for far too
long. He wanted the man who’d ruined his career, and Hunter searched for the
man who’d killed not only his wife, but also the woman he’d fallen for after
his wife’s death. Two years ago, he and Hunter had discovered they were on the
same path looking for retribution, searching for people connected to Georgio Donati,
and they’d decided it made more sense to work together.

Since then, they’d allowed three more guys, all
with scores to settle, into their group that now sought their own form of
justice when the legal system failed.

“I took him down, attempted to extract information
from him and then kicked his sorry ass.” He sighed. “But he hadn’t heard from
Guy since he’d moved in. I’m not sure why Guy purchased the house and then
hasn’t surfaced, but the sack of shit didn’t know anything.”

“Well, hell.” Hunter heaved a loud sigh. “I guess
we regroup and start from scratch.”

“Yeah. I hated to give up my surveillance, but I
couldn’t allow him to continue abusing those women.”

“Understandable. Have you found out anything else
on the photo? Where it originated?”

Ryan frowned, knowing Hunter meant the picture of
a woman who was eerily familiar to his deceased girlfriend. “No. My contact has
been off the grid. I’m hoping he’ll be back in town in a week or so. He never
goes too long without checking in with his mama.”

“I uncovered an interesting piece of information.
Angel Hardy, the man connected to Janie’s ex, has ties to Donati.”

Ryan blew out a breath, letting the information
sink in, allowing more puzzle pieces to fit into place. “Have you told Sam?”
Their buddy was super protective of Janie and would be very interested in that
tidbit of information.

“He’s the one who found the link between them.”

“
What
?” That surprised the hell out of him,
though it shouldn’t.

“Yep. We both know Hardy claims Portland as his
territory. Apparently, Donati provides support and takes a cut.”

“Hell, Hunter. How did we miss that?”

“Fuck if I know. But if we’re ever going to get
Donati, we have to work smarter.”

“Then that means Guy and Angel both work for him,
both covering different sections of Oregon. Do they ever bump up against each
other? Maybe we could use that angle to our advantage. Even if they don’t, we
could make it seem as though they do. You know what they say about a house
divided.”

Hunter chuckled. “I like how you think, Atwood.”

“At least I kept one benefit from all the years of
Army training. They might be able to strip everything else from me, but they
can’t take what they put into my brain.”

“Damn straight. One of these days, we’ll get Guy
to confess, too, and they’ll have to give everything back, or we’ll die trying.”

The knife they’d buried in his heart when they’d
prosecuted him twisted deeper still. The love for his country burned strong
inside him, and he’d still give his life for it today. “Yeah. We’ll see. But I’ll
make damn sure Guy’s brought down for what he did. The traitor has to pay.”
Vengeance burned just as strongly, maybe more so.

Former family and friends had accused Ryan of
living life in black and white. Maybe that was true. Right was right, and wrong
was wrong. Unfortunately wrong sometimes escaped justice.

But not if he and his brothers could help it.