Page 85 of Peace Under Fire

“Yeah, I do. She won’t hurt me.” Crusher’s voice was full of conviction.

Squish hoped he was right. Of course, if JoAnn did fry his ass, she could just heal it again. Which was handy as hell.

Mandy climbed out of the Land Rover and drifted after Crusher. She looked exhausted again, her face almost as gray and lined as her sister’s. Luckily, there was a second couch on the jet.

Too bad he couldn’t carry her to it this time. After a round of quick goodbyes, he led her to the plane. He slowed his pace as she stumbled along beside him.

“Sounds like you had quite the experience,” Brick said, falling into step beside him. “Is it true the sister can teleport, or skip through time, or some shit?”

Crusher had certainly been busy expounding on his theories.

“No clue what she’s doing.” He paused before adding reluctantly, “But she did something and saved our asses back there.”

Brick opened his mouth and shot him a sideways glance. Whatever he saw on Squish’s face convinced him to drop the subject.

The pilot and Crusher were waiting for them on the jet. After a quick “catch you later,” Brick took the staircase back down fast enough that it thrummed and banged beneath his boots.

Was the pilot going to say anything about the extra passenger they’d arrived with? She hadn’t cleared airport security. The dude didn’t say anything though, just closed the outdoor hatch.

“I need to use the restroom before we take off,” Mandy murmured.

Without waiting for a response, she headed toward the back of the jet. Squish followed her, slipping past when she stopped to check on her sister. The cooler was just where he’d left it. He rummaged through it, loading his arms with anything he thought Mandy might like. It wasn’t until his arms were stuffed full, that it occurred to him he could have just waited and asked her what she wanted. She’d walked right past him.

Jesus, he was an idiot.

He dumped everything back in the cooler at the sound of the latch releasing on the head and rose to his feet. But before he had a chance to ask her about her food and beverage preferences, he heard Mandy’s footsteps increase and her panicked voice fill the plane.

“Jo? JoAnn.” She skidded to a stop in front of the galley, her anxious eyes catching his gaze. “Where’s Jo? She’s gone.”

CHAPTER 21

The Refuge encompassed miles and miles of forests, rustic log cabins, and a barn full of rescued animals. Melba, a brown and white cow, was Mandy’s favorite. The huge creature was beyond sweet, with soft brown eyes and a gentle disposition. Mandy hadn’t spent any time around animals and her practical knowledge of cows sat at a big, fat zero. She’d certainly never suspected they loved attention and cuddling. Although maybe the cuddling was just a Melba trait.

Her second favorites were the barn cats. Tonka, the big, silent guy who cared for the animals, and practically lived in the barn, said the cats were feral. But a couple of them were super friendly and liked ‘scritches and scratches’ as much as Melba.

The more time she spent around the animals, the more she wanted a pet of her own. Maybe a dog—like Mutt, Brick’s three-legged mixed breed. Or maybe a cat like the orange tomcat with the missing eye who would swagger over for chin scratches and back rubs.

She’d make sure that their next home—when her family was together again and ready to start looking—came with a pasture. A cow would make a perfect pet. Of course, Giulia would disagree with that assessment, Mandy was certain of that, and could already envision endless arguments over pets and pastures and cows.

Dreams of Giulia, or more like nightmares, had started up the first night they’d arrived. Horrific dreams full of humiliation and helplessness. But the details were so vague, nothing she’d shared had helped Tex locate her sisters. Sometimes, in the dark of night, when she had no distractions to focus on, she wondered if Tex would ever find them. Were Giulia and the others destined to remain captives for the rest of their lives?

For a moment Mandy’s chin wobbled. She pressed her lips together, tucked her coat tighter around her shoulders, and stared down the dirt path that wound through the trees and dead-ended at the front porch of the cabin Brick had assigned to them.

Them—as in her and Jacob.

The thought of sharing a house with him would have thrilled her two months ago. But the reality of their cohabitation was painful. A tense, constant itchiness.

She’d been undeniably nervous over the past three days, although she wasn’t sure why.

This was a different emotion than worry over her sisters, which was always churning within her. This was Jacob-focused, which was ridiculous. For one thing, she wasn’t still obsessed with him. Really, she wasn’t. She’d moved on. And for another, she’d already spilled all her secrets—all their secrets—or most of them anyway. There was nothing left, that if exposed, would prove humiliating. Besides, if she didn’t care what he thought of her any longer, there should be no awkwardness between them. Right?

Yet there was. And a lot of it.

Even now, as she lounged on the deck enduring the chilly Los Alamos November afternoon, she could feel the anxiety building. Judging by Jacob’s one syllable responses and black moods, he wasn’t anymore thrilled with their living arrangement than she was. So why did he insist on following her everywhere? If she headed inside, he’d follow her in. If she sat outside, he sat outside with her. Since the tension was considerably thicker inside their cabin, she spent most the daylight hours outside, at the barn, or on the deck, or sometimes—at least in the beginning—in the main lodge, which was also the hub of the Refuge.

Jacob had thrown such bad juju her way—reminding her the sole purpose of a protection detail was “to stay the fuck out of sight”—the few times she hung out in the lobby or dining room that she avoided those areas now.

But wasn’t she supposed to be safe here? Isn’t that why he’d hauled her all the way over to New Mexico?

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