Wounded Courage (Lucky Thirteen) (23 page)

“Yeah, I second the sleep thing,” Chris said. “I’ll see you two in a few hours.” He left the compartment, sliding the door closed behind him.

I turned in Murphy’s arms, and rested my arms on his shoulders. I pressed my body against his, wanting to feel his warmth against me. He responded almost immediately, his embrace tightening around me. His head dipped, his lips deftly tasting mine for a short kiss.

“I checked all the doors and windows. We’re pretty shut in here,” Murphy said.

“Of course we are. It’s a train compartment.” I laughed.

“Smart ass.” He kissed my forehead. “You’re taking this well.”

“Taking what well?”

“This. Running. Facing Simon.”

“I spent over a year with these people. The danger doesn’t faze me anymore. I’m more worried about what will happen to my brother and you. You said your CO doesn’t know. And you can’t go back…”

“We can handle ourselves. And Master Chief will help us, too.”

“That’s what that thing by the exit was. With Jesse.” I remembered them saying “Clear” in the corridor. Knowing this, that it wasn’t just them acting alone was comforting in a weird way, though the guilt at pulling them into this was nauseating.

“Yes.”

I cleared my throat and stepped out of his embrace. The train car was too cold without him to heat me. “So. You seem pretty confident that I can get you close to Simon. What’s the plan?”

Murphy’s face didn’t change, nor did he reach for me again. He sat down on the bench across from me. “There will be a strike team ready. They’ll be waiting for my signal.”

“It won’t work.” I hated to be the naysayer. But I knew the Giroux family. I knew them almost as well as I knew my own. And that wasn’t by chance. I’d studied them all. The various mannerisms of the family, the way the siblings had interacted, the way they’d sucked Alex back into their world so easily. I’d worked so hard to get him out, and he’d backslid so fast. “Simon never leaves his damn house and it’s got a fucking army guarding it.”

“You’ve been there.”

“Yes, the one time I met him. Because like I said, he doesn’t leave.” I didn’t think Murphy was getting the extent of the crazy that was Simon Giroux, and he’d passed on the crazy gene to his children. And while three of them were dead, the craziest one, the one that scared me more than Rene did, he was still out there somewhere.

Besides Alex, they had all been monsters. Killers. Thieves. Rapists. Terrorists. They brought so much fear and misery to the world. How had I managed to keep sane through this last year?

I breathed out and sunk to the bench seat across from Murphy. I rested my palms on the seat on either side of myself, in an effort to steady myself. “Simon’s going to want to kill me. He can’t, but he could make me want to die.”

“Won’t happen,” Murphy swore, his tone so low and dangerous it sent shivers down my spine. “Listen, it’s late, we’ve had a long day, and you need to get some rest, relax some, and not stress out about this. I’m here.”

He stood so he leaned over me and rested his hands on my upper arms. I couldn’t see how that could have been a comfortable position, but I was just grateful for how close he was. “I’ll make the bed up for you so you can sleep.”

I nodded, but said nothing.

He straightened, and I stared out the window while he moved around. The train had started to move a moment or two earlier, so it was interesting to watch the platform turn into city before countryside took over. 

A few minutes later, he took my hand and pull me to a standing position. He cupped my face, and kissed me in such a gentle way, I almost thought he was afraid I would break.

He undressed me slowly, like he was my nursemaid or something. But I didn’t fight him over it. He left me in a camisole and panties and then lifted me into the small single capacity bed on top. I was dismayed over it, because I wanted him with me.

“I’ll be right here, watching over you,” he whispered, as if he’d read my mind. He brushed my hair out of my face, and gently kissed me. “I’m taking the bottom, for precautions.”

“I love you,” I said.

He grinned at me, a full blown Murphy grin, and kissed my forehead. “Stop that. You’ll erode my willpower. We’ll have to come up with ways to do it in a train compartment the size of a closet.”

“Sounds fun.”

“Hush, you. Get some sleep.”

“You’re not going to sleep?”

“I will. I’ll be down here.” He turned out the light, brushed his lips over my bare shoulder and then he was gone. I could hear his breathing below, which was comforting, but I wished he could sleep with me. I closed my eyes, exhaustion washing over me as I listened to his even breathing, letting it lull me into a deep sleep.

Addison

I didn’t know how long I’d slept. When I woke up, it was light again, and Murphy was already moving around. He’d put his bed away, and was packing up toiletries. I could smell his aftershave and the clean scent of his soap. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, so I stayed in bed and watched his muscles stretch with his movements.

He reached over the sink and grabbed his watch from where it rested, wrapping it back around his wrist and fastening it easily. I even liked the way he did that.

Man. I was a goner.

I stretched out, which caught his attention. He turned to face me. “Hey, you.”

“Hey,” I said, sliding from the top bunk to the deck as carefully as I could so I wouldn’t fall flat on my face. I maneuvered around him, on autopilot to the sink basin where I splashed water on my face. He handed me a towel, which I took gratefully, and dried my face.

I wanted to spend the next three days in bed, but that wasn’t going to happen.

“Sleep well?”

I nodded, but I really didn’t have the conscious effort available to reply. He chuckled at my expense.

“How’s your leg?”

“Stiff, but not too bad.”

He strapped a small gun to his calf and pulled his pant leg down over it. “Get dressed. We’ll hit the dining car.”

I watched as he shrugged a button up shirt on over his shoulders, sad when it covered up his wonderful body. And then he strapped on a shoulder holster, complete with gun, which sent shivers through me, reminding me of our precarious situation.

He glanced at me, smiling. “Come here.”

It only took a single step to reach him. I stepped into his embrace, wrapping my arms around his torso, and laid my head against his chest. His steady, strong heartbeat against my ear comforted me.

“I missed holding you.”

“Did you?” I laughed. “You could have joined me.”

“Did you see how little these beds are? I’d have never lasted up there. You’d have kicked me off.” He kissed me and turned me away from him. “Now, dress. Let’s meet up with Chris and go eat.”

I did as he told me to, and quickly changed into decent clothing. The walk to the dining car was quick. It was early, so there weren’t a lot of people out and about. And the steady rhythmic clack of the train beneath us was almost relaxing. I could have pretended we were on vacation and it would have felt real.

But it wasn’t real and we were on track to dangerous territories.

Chris was already sitting at a table in the dining car, so we joined him, with Murphy taking the seat facing the more trafficked entrance and Chris facing the other one. We ordered, and sat in quiet, uneasy silence while we ate.

“You’re not saying much this morning.”

I looked up from my plate, Murphy’s eyes branding me with the heat within them. If I ever doubted that he wanted me, I was an idiot. Even sitting there, he allowed me that one window into his soul. His face was impassive, but his brilliant eyes… they said everything he couldn’t.

“I don’t really have anything to say,” I replied. Only because I was completely consumed with thoughts of fear. We were going to meet one of the most dangerous men in the world, and I had to pretend that I wasn’t a complete wuss and actually had the stones to do what I needed to do.

“There’s a first.” Chris chuckled.

“Hey!” I swatted his shoulder. “Jerk.”

He just chuckled again.

The thing was… there was something else in the back of my mind. Something about Alex’s death, about Rene dying, about how convenient it all was. I hadn’t really considered any of it in the last few months because I was completely consumed in my situation with Murphy and being held by the US government.

But being away, being a fugitive, it gave me a little more perspective, and some additional time to think about things other than my own survival. My leg was almost fully healed now, just mainly stiff from the new muscle tissue forming there. My mind had started going to other places, considering other things.

“How are you doing with all this?”

I glanced around at the sound of Murphy’s question and bit my lower lip. “I’m okay.”

I nearly cursed when that came out of my mouth.

“I see.” His voice gave nothing away. “This will be over soon.”

I shook my head. “No, it won’t. Simon is not a one-trick pony. He’s not stupid. He’s cunning, and he wouldn’t have wanted to meet me if he didn’t think that he had the advantage over me.”

“I won’t let anything happen to you.” His promise scored my heart, burning its way deeper into the depths of my soul. He couldn’t know how important that promise was to me, and how much it hurt at the same time. Because if Murphy got hurt or died because of me, I’d never recover. I’d let him get too close to me. I’d let myself get to close to him.

But I didn’t get to answer him, not that I had anything I could say. As soon as I opened my mouth, the back of the dining car in front of me opened. The man that came through was a few years older than Alex, but had matching cheekbones and the same dark eyes. Of all the people I’d thought would show up to collect me, I’d never considered it being this one.

Murphy must have seen my face change because his face hardened. “Who is it?” He didn’t turn.

“Jean Giroux.” Chris said it before I did.

The man hadn’t seen me yet. He was scanning the car, each dining passenger one by one. Behind him, his bodyguards trailed, their large bodies filling the space between the tables easily.

“You didn’t know they’d send him, did you?” The low whisper was accompanied by a quick, easy squeeze of my hand. I didn’t move. I felt cold all over.

“No.” My voice came out in a soft croak.

“Okay, just relax. We’ll get through this.”

Of Alex’s two brothers, Jean was the scariest. He was the oldest, the one Simon was grooming to take over the family business. His dark eyes landed on me, freezing me over. He smoothed his suit, and a malevolent grin appeared on his face. He strode over, not even flinching when he saw Murphy’s face.

“Hello, Addison.” The deep French accent purred from his lips, but it only sent shivers down my spine. “It’s good to see you again.” I didn’t reply. He gestured to the empty chair at our table. “May I join you?”

“Well, I can’t really say no when you flaunt your muscle, now can I, Jean?” The whole sentence came out sounding braver than I felt.

He chuckled as he pulled the chair to the table and seated himself. “On the contrary. You absolutely could, however, it could be construed as an act of aggression. And you know those do not turn out well, don’t you, kitten?”

I ground my teeth at the nickname he’d given me. It stemmed from a joke he’d made once, about me being quiet until I was ready to pounce, but I couldn’t actually do any harm. I hated it then, and I hated it now.

His bodyguards took up position around each exit, sitting down at the nearest table to the exits. The move wasn’t lost on Murphy and Chris, who remained silent, but his eyes scanned every inch of the room.

“Who is the new guy, Addison?”Jean turned his attention to Murphy, raking his eyes over my personal SEAL in obvious disgust. “I didn’t take you for a jock sort of woman.” He smiled at Chris. “Good to see you, Hardy.”

Chris didn’t reply, but I noticed how tense both of them had become.

I cleared my throat. “Why are you here, Jean?”

“You have something my father wants. I’m here to take you to him.”

“But anyone could have picked me up,” I said.

“True, but I thought you might be comforted by a friendly face.”

“How fucking sweet.” Friendly face, my ass. Jean wasn’t a bad looking man, but there was a quality in his face that made me want to hide under the table when he was nearby. That, and I’d seen enough of Jean to scare me shitless.

“You still have the language of a crude sailor.”

“And you’re still an asshole.”

I glanced at Murphy, who had remained completely silent for the moment. I’d expected him to be more active, but he seemed content to let me fight with Jean. His blue eyes were dark inside, so deep I could have fallen into them.

Jean chuckled and folded his hands together as he leaned on the table. “Oh, Addison, I do enjoy your wit.” He glanced out the window of the train car and then back to me. “We have several hours before this train stops at the next destination. I would suggest that you retire to your compartment, and rest.”

Translation:
Go to your room and think about what you’ve done.

I rolled my eyes and took a bite of my food. “I just woke up. I haven’t had my coffee, and I’m eating.”