Crazy for Her (22 page)

“What would he ask?” They were the first words Eli had uttered since she’d started talking.

“That you protect me. He would want you to keep me safe. You’re not my husband, Eli, nor will you be. But you are Evan’s twin and his family. I do love you, but it’s the love one would have for a brother.”

“But he’s me, so how can you say you can’t love me like you loved him?”

It was like talking to a child and trying to answer his endless whys. Even the expression on his face was that of a boy trying to understand the world around him. Instinctively, she tempered her words to ones a child would understand.

“Whoever told you that lied.” Damn you, BS. “You’re you. You can’t be Evan, because you’re Eli. Somewhere in this vast world is a woman meant only for you. It isn’t me. Love me like a sister and you’ll always be a part of my life. Try to force me into something I don’t want and I’ll hate you for it.”

“I don’t want you to hate me,” he said, his voice plaintive.

This whole situation was bizarre, surreal. Kneeling in front of him, Dani curled her fingers over his hands. “I could never hate Evan’s brother, my brother. Please, you have to stop this insanity.”

The door banged open. “Ain’t this a cozy scene?”

Dani glanced over Eli’s shoulder to see Mean Eyes staring at them, his lips curved in a leer. Letting go of Eli, she backed up until she hit the wall. Had her words gotten through? Would he stand between her and danger?

“Don’t look to me like she’s ready for him,” Mean Eyes said. “What’s going on here, boy?”

“She’s turning out to be a stubborn one,” Eli said, his back to the guard. He winked at her before he turned. “I’m having doubts she’s gonna be an obedient wife.”

“You still think he brought her here for you?” The man laughed, the ugly sound of it filling the small room. “You’re stupider than I thought, Eli.”

Dani’s still-unsettled stomach roiled at the implication of Mean Eyes’s words. Pressing her back against the wall, she slid down it and pressed her face against her knees.
BS
meant to marry her? Bile rose in her throat at the thought of those lily-white hands touching her again.

“Get out,” Eli said.

She lifted her head, hope blossoming that Eli understood what Mean Eyes implied and not liking it. He towered over the other man by at least a head. If it came to a fight, Dani had no choice but to put her money on her new brother. At least, she prayed he was starting to look on her as a sister he had to protect.

Mean Eyes slid cold eyes her way. “It’s almost time. Get the woman ready.”

“Get the hell out,” Eli said, taking a step toward Mean Eyes.

“Blessed Son’s not gonna like your language.”

Eli narrowed the distance. “And I’m sure you’ll tell him, so I’ll say it again slowly just so you don’t get it wrong. Get. The. Hell. Out.”

Dani bit down hard on her bottom lip to keep from cheering. Mean Eyes slammed the door behind him. She looked at Eli and hoped he saw her gratitude. “Thank you.”

He stared back at her for a long moment, and then one corner of his lips twitched. “I’m beginning to think you’re too much trouble to marry.”

She could live with that, for sure. “There was more than once when Evan would have agreed with you.” Raising her hand, she tugged on her hair. “It’s the Irish in me. He said my red hair should have been a warning.”

“When I listen to you talk about my brother, it hurts that I’ll never know him. Are you going to put on that dress, Irish?”

“No.”

“Then fair warning, Papa Herbert’s not going to be happy. I’ll try to direct his anger at me.”

That was unfortunate, but there was no way she was putting on the dress. She ran a hand over her jeans, glad she’d worn them today instead of shorts. “I think all this was his idea, am I right?”

He walked to the window and looked out, keeping his back to her as he began to talk. “I know I’m not Evan, but Papa Herbert said we were one and the same. I wanted to believe him. If Evan was in me, then maybe I could be good because he was. I can’t explain it, but Papa Herbert can make you believe anything he wants. He said because Evan was a part of me now, that you were our wife, and when I brought you back, we would have a ceremony to make it legal.”

He turned and faced her. “Thing is, the longer I was in Asheville and away from him, the more confused I got. Was I really Evan? Were you my wife? Now you’re telling me it’s all a lie, and I think maybe you’re right. Papa Herbert tricked me, didn’t he? He really wants you for himself.”

From what she’d read of cult leaders, they were masters of mind control and deception, fear and intimidation their weapons. Considering how many years Eli had spent under the influence of BS, Dani thought it amazing he could still think for himself. Whether he realized it or not, he had a strong will and a mind apart from Herbert Ballard. He was more like Evan than he realized.

“Eli, you remind me so much of Evan my heart aches from missing him, but you’re not him. Yes, you’ve been tricked, but I don’t understand the motive. What does BS want from me?” There had to be more to this than just BS deciding he wanted a woman he’d never met.

“Who?”

“Papa Herbert.” Damned if she would call him Blessed Son.

An uncomfortable expression crossed his face. “It’s in the Bible. Wives, be subject to your own husbands, for the husband is the head of the wife. Papa Herbert says that means your worldly possessions will belong to me when we marry, but I guess he really meant they would belong to him.”

Whoa. Would that include her trust fund? “Is it my money you want?”

He gave a vigorous shake of his head. “Not me. All I wanted was you, Irish.”

“So Papa Herbert wants my money? How does he even know how much I have?”

“He knows everything. He says God tells him, but he spends a lot of time on his computer, so maybe that’s how he learns things. I don’t know anything anymore.”

He walked past her. At the door, he turned. “I’ve said more than I should have. I’ll be back in an hour. It really would be best if you put that dress on.”

Alone, Dani sank onto the bed. So, the greedy bastard wanted her money. Did BS think she would just agreeably sign over everything she owned to him? What an idiot. A scary one, but still an idiot.

CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

D
ani jerked awake and sat up, confused. Where was she? Eli stood just inside the door contemplating her as if she were some kind of puzzle he didn’t know how to solve. Right, it all came back. She was in hell. She scrambled off the bed. How in the world she had managed to fall asleep was beyond her.

“Eli?” she asked when he continued to stare at her, making her uneasy.

“We have to go.”

Dani’s feet grew roots into the floor and refused to move. She shook her head. “I can’t.”

“Do you trust me, Irish?”

Whether it was because he no longer called her Danielle, or the boyishly hopeful look in his eyes, she nodded.

“Then you have to come with me now. We don’t have long before they start looking for us.”

Relief poured through her, so profound she swayed and grabbed hold of the chair. “Do you mean it?”

He nodded and that was all it took for her feet to let go of the floor and rush to his side. Grabbing her hand, he pulled her out of the cabin and around the back.

Mean Eyes and Smirk Face were nowhere in sight. “Where are the guards?”

“Dinner. I told them I was taking you to Papa Herbert and they’d been released to go eat. If we can make it across this field without being seen, then I think we’ll be home free. Until they miss us anyway.”

“Just tell me what to do.” She eyed the stand of trees they seemed to be heading for. They looked to be a hundred miles away.

“Well, our chances of not being seen might be better if we crawled, but that would take forever, and they’ll know we’re gone long before we reach the woods. It’s dinnertime, so everyone will be in the common room except for Papa Herbert. How fast can you run, Irish?”

She squeezed his hand. “Just try and keep up, brother mine.”

When she started to take off, he pulled her back. “Will you still be my sister when all this is over?”

More than anything, she wanted to put distance between her and BS, but sensed Eli needed reassurance he was doing the right thing. She met his gaze. “Yes, Eli, it’s what your brother would have asked of me if he’d known about you. Even so, aside from Evan, it’s what I want. Now, let’s haul ass.”

“If I’d ever said ‘ass,’ I would’ve had my mouth washed out with soap and then been sent to the detention cabin.” He grinned down at her. “All right, Irish, let’s haul ass.”

Every second of the five minutes or so it took them to reach the woods, Dani expected to hear a warning shout, or worse, the sound of a gun firing. When they scrambled behind the first tree, she bent over and gasped for breath. Eli hadn’t once let go of her hand, pulling her along, helping her to keep up with him.

“Thanks,” she wheezed.

“We’re not safe yet. Maybe you should save that thanks until we get you home, or at least get you back to your soldier.”

Well, that was irritating. He wasn’t even breathing hard. “My soldier?” she gasped. “Do you mean Logan?” To be safely home with Logan and Regan seemed almost too good to be true.

He pulled her deeper into the trees. “Yeah, him. Do you love him?”

“Yes, I do. You should also know Evan loved him. He was your brother’s closest friend.”

“Do you think he’ll like me, too?”

The man was such a child at times. “He’ll like you if I ask him to.”

That seemed to satisfy him. He picked up the pace, and she jogged along beside him. Did he have a plan, or was he just winging it? She didn’t want to slow them down by talking, so she kept her questions to herself for now. All that mattered was getting out of this place.

The woods grew thicker, tall weeds and bushes slapping at her legs. For whatever reason, she’d decided to wear jeans and tennis shoes that morning, and she could only be thankful. Eli slowed and put a hand on her arm, stopping her.

“My dogs are just ahead. Don’t be afraid, they won’t hurt you as long as you’re with me.”

Huh? “What kind of dogs?”

“Dobermans. They’re guard dogs, but they belong to me and they’ll obey me. If I’d left them behind, all Papa Herbert would’ve had to do was let them go and they would’ve led everyone right to us.”

“That wouldn’t be good.” She peered through the branches and saw four black dogs sitting on their haunches, staring back at them. “So, they’re not going to attack me, right?”

He grinned. “Not unless I tell them to.”

Right. Stay on Eli’s good side. “They’re just sitting there.”

“Because I told them to. They won’t move until I give them the okay.”

Taking her hand, he led her to the Dobermans. “Irish, meet Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.”

“Nice to meet you all,” Dani said, absurdly, biting back a giggle. This day had been so nerve wracking and strange, why not talk to four killer dogs named after Jesus’s disciples?

“Friend,” he said, and held her hand out to them. Each one sniffed her and then looked expectantly at Eli. He slashed his hand through the air.

“Why’d you do that?”

“I just told them not to bark. We’d best be going. They’re going to miss us any minute. Surprised they haven’t yet.”

“I’m all for that. Lead on.”

“Heel,” Eli said, and they took off again, four Dobermans trotting along beside them.

In another few minutes, they came to a locked gate. Eli twirled the combination lock and opened it. After they were through, he closed the lock and spun the dial. Imagination or not, the air on this side of the fence seemed fresher, more welcoming. They turned to go and a loud horn blared.

Eli lifted his head and looked back the way they’d come. “That took longer than I thought. Let’s haul ass, Irish.”

Logan’s cell buzzed. “Kincaid.”

“Hey, boss, our bad guy just took off across the back of the compound with Mrs. Prescott,” Reynolds, the lookout, said.

“Going where?” Logan demanded.

“Not sure. They disappeared into the woods on the north side of the compound, running like a pair of agitated rabbits. Looked like the evil twin was dragging her along.”

“Keep watching and report anything you think I need to know.”

Logan slammed his finger onto the
END
icon and grabbed the satellite photo out of Barbie’s hands. There was nothing on the north side but woods. “Who’s the closest to here?” he asked, jabbing his finger at the area where Eli and Dani had disappeared.

With only a quick glance at where he pointed, she tapped a key on her computer. “Decourdeau. It’s where he asked to be, why?”

The man really was beyond spooky the way he seemed to sense the perfect spot. No wonder his teammates had nicknamed him The Seer. “Looks like Eli’s gone rogue. Question is, is that good or bad? Cancel the plane. We won’t be parachuting in. Get Buchanan back here to take command. I want this compound surrounded, and under no circumstances is Dani to be taken back inside. Tell him I’ll keep in touch.”

She handed him two fully charged satellite phones. He put one in his pants pocket, the other in a backpack along with several bottles of water and some protein bars.

“May God be with you, boss.”

Logan nodded, his mind already on finding Dani, and find her he would. There was no other option. He set off to search for Decourdeau. It took two hours. He’d had to evade men from the compound with the same goal as his. They wanted her back, but not nearly as much as he did. He’d kill every one of them if need be. No one but him was ever again putting his hands on her.

“Andre,” Logan hissed.

“Heard ya coming a mile away,
mon ami
. What took so long?”

Logan emerged from behind a pile of rocks. “Fuck you. Where is she?”

Decourdeau lifted his chin. Logan looked up at the mountain. She was up there, but where? And what was Eli up to? The sun was setting fast, but fortunately, the night was clear and the half-moon would give them some decent light. “Let’s rock while we still have some daylight.”

The heavy wheezing of men sounded behind them. Andre did his disappearing act, and Logan followed suit. Three men—hunting rifles slung over their shoulders—stopped and began arguing only feet away from where Logan had burrowed next to Andre under leaves and dead branches. Every minute their argument lasted was time away from finding Dani. If they didn’t settle it soon, Logan was going to do it for them.

“I ain’t gonna get ate by no mountain lion or get bit by a rattlesnake I can’t see in the dark. I say we go back down and hole up ’til morning.”

“Blessed Son said we’re not to come back without the lady.”

“Then you go tramping around in the dark, Joe, acting like mountain lion bait. We don’t even know if they came this way. As for me, I don’t care what Blessed Son says. ’Sides, he don’t gotta know. Come to think about it, if he wants the woman so bad, why ain’t he out here looking for her? What ’bout you, Richard, you gonna go with him?”

Logan narrowed his eyes at Richard. Make up your mind, man. Decourdeau nudged him, and Logan gave a slight shake of his head, holding up three fingers. He’d give the assholes three minutes before he and Andre settled the discussion for them.

“Yeah, I’m with Joe,” Richard finally said, although Logan thought he sounded reluctant.

Too bad. It would’ve been better if the three had called off the search until morning. Now, with the two idiots stumbling around in the dark, he and Decourdeau would have to do something about it. At least one of them had eliminated himself from the game.

The unnamed man shrugged and turned to go.

“I’m going to have to report you to Blessed Son when I see him,” Joe said.

The man turned around. “Know what, Joe? I don’t rightly care ’cause I’m tired of this crazy place anyhow. I’m thinking I’m gonna walk myself down this mountain and just keep a’going. Wish I could say it’s been fun.”

Smart man. Logan listened to him blundering his way down, half-tripping over rocks and bushes, until the sound of his mutterings ceased.

“Ignorant heathen,” Joe said. “He was never a true believer anyway, so no loss.”

Richard remained quiet. Logan had the impression he envied the heathen and longed to join him. The clock was ticking. The remaining two had less than a minute before they got the surprise of their life. Next to him, Andre shifted like a cat gathering his leg muscles under him, getting ready to spring.

Joe and Richard received a reprieve when they walked off. “Damn,
mon ami
,
why you be wanting to spoil all my fun?”

Logan chuckled. “You’ll get your fun. I’d just rather sneak up on them. Safer that way.” He sat up, pulled the satellite phone out of his pocket, and called Buchanan.

“There’s a man headed back down,” he said, and gave a description when Jake answered. “Claims he’s leaving the cult. Pull him in and if he’s serious, get him out of the area. Then send word to the teams to start rounding up any of these clowns they come across. They’re stumbling around here like a bunch of idiots. Find a place to keep them until we’re done.”

“Got it, boss. You be careful out there.”

“No need to worry, I’m with Decourdeau.”

“Ah, you’re with the demon. In that case, you rule the night.”

“Let’s go put those two out of their misery,” Logan said after hanging up the phone.

He and Andre tracked the cultists for about a half mile. Finally, Richard collapsed onto a rock.

“Hold up, Joe. I need to rest a minute.”

Joe came back and sat next to Richard. He took a canteen off his shoulder, opened it, and drank deep, then handed it to Richard. “You think Eli came this way?”

“Who knows with that boy,” Richard said, handing the canteen back.

Logan walked his fingers in the air, telling Andre to circle behind them, and then watched the Cajun fade away into the dark. Careful where he put his feet, Logan slipped close to the men, taking a position behind the trunk of a tree. When he heard the hoot of an owl, he lifted his gun and screwed a silencer to the end.

“If either one of you moves so much as a finger, you’re a dead man,” he said quietly.

The fools jumped up from the rock, grabbing for their rifles. Logan took aim and shot the barrel of Joe’s rifle, the silencer keeping the noise to a minimum. Both men froze. “Going on the assumption you’re both hard of hearing, I’ll say it one more time. You move, you die.”