Page 29 of Scarred Souls

“Stop being such a cranky ass and say hello to your chicken. Your baby misses you.”

Someone nearby snorted. Pretty sure it was the doc.

Esmeralda bobbed her head and clucked in an excited way like maybe she could see and hear me through the phone. Could chickens do that?

I’d had Esme since she was a hatchling, and she was surprisingly good company. It didn’t hurt that she ate all the spiders around my cabin. I really hated those eight-legged fuckers.

I cleared my throat. “I’ll be home soon, Esme.”

She pecked at the screen, which made Sage laugh. “See? Was that so hard?” She put Esmeralda down and headed out of the barn and into the sunshine. “All right. What can I do for you?”

“Did Brandon fill you in on our phone call last night?”

“Yeah. It almost sounded too crazy to be true. How’s it going with Espinoza’s daughter? Is she anything like her piece-of-shit dad?”

“Ahh”—I held in my laugh—“No. But she’s standing right here, so you can ask her yourself.”

“What?” Sage’s eyes widened. “Thanks a lot, Decker. Why didn’t you mention that?”

“Woman, I’ve been trying.” I rubbed my forehead. “Listen, she prefers to be called Hope now. Can you explain to her what we do?”

“Like, here at the ranch?”

“No. I mean the team. Tell her everything.”

Sage spun, giving me a view of the green mountains behind her. “Sure. Put her on.”

I gestured for Hope to come closer and passed her the phone.

“Hi,” she said cautiously.

“Hi. I’m Sage. Sorry I spoke so rudely just now.”

Hope shrugged. “It was a fair question. And no. I’m nothing like Carlos. Are you a friend of Vaughn’s?”

“He’s found family. Kind of like an annoying older brother who invites himself over, makes a mess, and drinks your last beer.”

Daphne moved nearer to listen in.

“Let me guess,” Sage added. “Decker rolled into town, forgot to put away his teeth and claws, and made a shitty first impression. Am I right?”

“Nailed it.”

“I know he looks all menacing and murdery, and he is, but only toward people who really deserve it.”

Hope curled her hair behind one ear. “The cartels.”

“And anyone involved in their human-trafficking rings. That’s what Vaughn and the team do. We track down those responsible for stealing women off the streets and forcing them into sex slavery. Then the team goes in, eliminates the shit bags, and rescues the women. The victims are invited to our ranch in Montana, where they’re welcome to stay as long as they like to heal from their trauma. Some even choose to stay and work with us. It’s their choice.”

“You’re part of the team?” Hope asked.

“I guess you could call me support crew. Intelligence, mostly. But I’ve been known to get my hands dirty in the field and teach the bad guys a lesson or two.” Sage’s mischievous smile didn’t convey how brutal she could be. That woman showed her enemies no mercy.

Hope blinked a bunch of times, then her gaze darted between me and Sage as though her world had just tilted on its axis.

Sage shielded her eyes from the sun. “I’m sensing you’ve still got reservations about Vaughn, and that’s probably because his foot has been permanently lodged in his mouth since you met. I’m betting you already wish you could tear it out and shove it up his ass.”

I frowned. “When I called asking for your help, this wasn’t what I had in mind.”

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