Broken Road (22 page)

   “Thanks,” Devil said before taking a drink, “You always did know what I wanted.”

   Celia grinned at her friend. “Then I think what you really need is to go home. You look so tried I feel that way just by looking at you.”

   “I guess your right. It time I head back out to the ranch. I’ve been here for a week and I already miss everyone.” Devil grinned at her friend. “I missed a week with Winthrop if you know what I mean.”

   Cee wagged her brows. “Right?”

   Laughing Devil headed down the stairs to her dressing room and pulled out her new cell phone.

   “Hello?” Winthrop answered the phone after coming back down stairs.

   “Hi,” came a soft voice on the other side. Hearing that little voice sent his heart speeding.

“How ya doing? When are you coming home?”  he asked softly, not wanting to wake Lilla.

   “Good, so far. I’ll be heading back in a few hours after some signings and few other things. Give her a kiss good night for me, will you? I miss you two so much.”

   A smile crossed his lips. “Of course I will. I’ll be waiting for when you get here.”

  Devil hung up the phone with a grin and went back to work. The harder she worked the quicker she could get back and go to bed.

…

She was escorted to her dressing room one last time and after a shower and a change of clothes she was ready to leave. It had taken a bit longer then expected so she had sent Cee to get the car while she packing her stuff up.

   There was a knock on the door and Devil went to answer it figuring it had to by one for the band members who hadn’t left on the bus yet.

   As the door swung open and she caught a look at who was out side she quickly slammed the door closed and locked it.

   There was another knock on the door then, “Miss Runner, it would be appreciated if you would let us in.”

   “Who are you?” she demanded while she was running through her escape routes from the room. There was a window and the air vent, even the-

   “We work with the government Miss Runner; we were part of a special group with a man you know. Winthrop Canter,” called the deep voice on the other side.

   Devil took a steadying breath and nodded to herself. The man whom wanted her was dead and she no longer had to worry. So she unlocked the door but kept it only open enough to get a good look at them.

   The two tall more were built it heavy weight champions; one had a buzz cut and the other a short ponytail of blonde hair. They were both in matching black suits and sported so heavy dark shades. The blonde one grinned at her and took of his sunglasses.

   “Can we come in? There are a few things we need to tell you.”

   Devil nodded and back away from the door, the moment they were seated on the couch Devil gave both the once over and settled for a frown of disapproval.

   “What can you two possibly want?” she asked of the two.

   The one with the buzz cut took off his glasses now and glared at her. “Is that anyway to treat someone?”

   “After I had been nearly killed more then once in the past year? Yes, it is,” Devil snapped.

   The man winced and smiled sheepishly. “I guess it is then, sorry
,
Miss.”

   The blonde shot his friend a glared and smiled at her. “We have come to understand you were involved in one of our cases. We’ve been after the man named Dutch for a few years now.”

   Devil frowned. “But Dutch is dead.”

   “No he isn’t. the man killed in the crash was his son, Daniel. Dutch is well over in his fifties. We know for a fact that he is involved in your sister’s death as well as Winthrop’s little brother.”

   “That brings us to the point,” chimed in Mr. Buzz Cut, “that we need you to answer a few questions.”

   She nodded slowly taking in the shocking news the man who wanted her was still alive.  A cold sweat broke out on her skin.
             

   “Do you know anything that could point us at these men?”

   She swallowed. “On the plane while I was in the cockpit I heard the men whispering about where I was to be taken before they busted in. A place called Belgium. Does that help?”

   “I believe that answers everything,” the blonde one said getting up with his mate.

   Devil stopped them at the door. “Who are you really?”

   Both men grinned at her. “We’re part of the special OPS team that was headed by your boyfriend Winthrop. He made a few calls and we looked into a case we had a few dead ends on. Your father’s case as it happened.”

   “M-my father’s?” she stammered faintly.

   “Yes, ma’am. It turns out your father did some hit work for them and borrowed more money then he could
n’t
pay back.”

    Devil sank to the ground gasping. Her father a hit man? There had been so much she didn’t know about!

   “What do the OPS have anything to do with this?”

   “We were charged with taking him out,” the blonde one said. The other slapped his shoulder.

   “We told her more then we were allowed to, you dolt.” He turned to Devil. “This is classified Miss. Those of our team on the base ranch will watch out for you.”

   He turned to leave, but she stopped him with a hand.

   “Why did you tell me this?”

   “Because you are not the only one he wants. Your sister took something of his that he wants back and he will do anything at this point to get it. He may even just come for it himself. Beware.” With that they left and Devil sat back down in her chair, dazed.

   Something he wanted that Wylde had taken?

   Then it hit her, the one thing her sister had left just for her to find. It must be what Dutch wanted all along.

“What do you mean your sister stole something and he’s still alive?”

   “I think that is the reason he killed her and wanted me so bad. It’s not the debt but what she stole from him,” Devil panted as she ripped the apartment to pieces.
“Whatever it is it has him scared that we might have it.”

   “What are you looking for?” Winthrop asked, looking over the thing Devil threw around.

   “Something, anything that looks important,” she said as she looked into a vase and moved it aside.

   “If it was something so important you wanted to hide it then wouldn’t you hide it where no one would look?” Winthrop asked her.

   Devil turned around slowly. “Yeah?”

   “Then you would hide it in plain sight knowing they would over look it.”

   She beamed up at him. “That’s it! If she was hiding it in plain site then even Lilla would know where it is! Go get her from the crib and bring her here.”

   A giggling little Lilla was placed her arms and smiled up at her. She had been starting to te
eth and she held a sopping wet
little plush star in her hand. The same one she had had before.

   Devil handed Lilla back to Winthrop and took the star from her. Lilla shocked that her mother would take her toy away began to cry, but instead Devil gave her the baby chew toy that had been on the bed.

   With shaking hand Devil ripped the toy in half and tore out the fluff inside. And there she found a little black
flash drive
marked
DUTCH.

   “We have him!” Devil squealed in delight, clutching the
flash drive
in her hand.

   Winthrop glance at what was in her hand and felt a chill go down his spine.
“Is that what I think it
is
?”

   “My best guess says Wylde made a copy of all his data and put it on here. We got everything we could need to go after him!” Devil said already making plans.

   “Whoa there!” Winthrop said throwing his free arm around her to pull her against him. “You are not going t
o go after anyone. I’ll call
Davis and Jack and tell them to come get it. You are not going to pull another danger thing like you did with that plane.”

   Devil pouted for a moment before she sighed. “I really wanted to get him this time, but I guess your right. I wouldn’t want to die this time.”

   He kissed her temple. “Thank you for listening this time.”

…

Three week later…

Giving her a grin the two agents greeted her on the porch. It had been three weeks since she gave them the evidence, two weeks since they did a full scale raid on Dutch’s safety house and one week since she had had t
he pleasure of being at his tria
l and watched Dutch sentenced to death for his crimes of her family
and far more
. It had been far from easy to get that snake, but finally with a bit of help from Royal the army had gotten their hands on him.

   “How ya been Miss Devil,” asked Jake
,
the one with the buzz cut.

   “Its all been like a dream to be honest. I still can’t believe
it’s
all over now.”

   “We’re glad we got him
. Without you the case would have closed again and this time sealed.” The blonde one Davis took off his glass and looked at her with dark grey eyes. “I’m glad you’re here for Winthrop.”

     “We’re all under his unit in the last war. He was a good leader and a friend.”

   “Would you like to come in and see him?” Devil asked with a bright smile.

   They hesitated a
nd then shook their heads. “We b
est be on our way.”

   Devil grabbed one hand of each man and pulled them inside the ranch house. “Don’t be silly, he’ll love to see you!”

   “I really don’t think so Miss, there is a reason he left,” Davis said, looking
faintly
panicked. “He didn’t want to see any of us again after the attack.”

   Devil paused and turned to look at them. “Attack?”

  
The men froze in place, staring over her head.

   “Yes, the attack on our bunker the night before all of us were to go home,” a deep voice drawled from behind her.

   Devil winced and turned around to face him. Winthrop stood against the door
way
to the kitchen with Lilla in his arms, his face a grim mask.

   “I lost three men that night and I almost didn’t come home either. I still have nightmares of it time to time. I have nothing to hide.” He smiled faintly. “I have my past much like you do. But
it’s
in the past and doesn’t matter now.”
He looked over her head and nodded to the men.
“Good to see you boys after so many years. What do you do now?”

   “We are SI, special intelligence, now Captain. But we still do some lancing for the OPS.”

   Winthrop really smiled at that. “So you were the boys who got Dutch huh? Nice work.”

   “Thank you, sir.”

   Devil smiled at them again and asked if they would like to stay for lunch. Davis and Jack agreed the moment they saw Lilla and she reached for them.

    It was the perfect ending to her nightmare, Devil thought. Finally she would have her family and who else knew what was in the future for her?

   But Celia was next on her list. Devil grinned and wondered if Grange was up for the job.

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