Page 29 of Operation: Unify

There was so much they had to do the next day, and she was a big part of it. At least she no longer had to do everything on her own. Once Melinda was safe, she’d have to think of a new way to show Connor that she could be trusted with his heart. She just wasn’t sure how.

Connor quietly closedthe door and prayed Lacy got some sleep. He’d had the feeling that she hadn’t gotten any while he’d been there. He’d hoped his presence would be calming. Instead, he’d done the opposite.

In the living room, Randy sat on the sofa. The soft glow of his phone gave his face an eerie green tint. He headed for the window and glanced through the wooden blinds. Out on the street, nothing moved. All the neighbors had security lights, leaving wide arcs at the front of their homes. Dogs didn’t bark. Cars didn’t drive by. He glanced at his watch, and it read 3 A.M., a full hour until Tod headed home and the perfect time for him to make poor decisions.

Randy clicked his phone and tossed it to the other end of the love seat. “See anything?”

Connor shook his head. Though he was only about fifteen years older than Randy, that could just as well be a lifetime. Randy was far different from him. He wasn’t military. He hadn’t started a family. He was still young enough to be in college.

“What do you hope to achieve by befriending my wife?” He glanced at the younger man.

“You mean your ex-wife, right? I don’t hope anything. I saw a way to help her and help myself. If I helped her, I could get a fewdays off, paid. She’s nice and I’d like to see her friend in a safe place. I know Tod is like my boss and that makes him too bad to ignore. I can’t imagine being married to someone like him.”

“So, you’re not completely altruistic, but mainly you want to help.” He filled in the blanks.

“Yeah. I also wouldn’t mind if this leads me somewhere else. I live at home because I have to, but I don’t want to anymore. Since I go to college online, I can live anywhere that has internet. I was adopted, so I don’t know if I have family anywhere else.”

He wasn’t right for Wayside. There were necessary skills his men had to have, and Randy didn’t possess those. There was always helping in the kitchen, but with Randy’s microwave skills he probably wouldn’t want that job. “What were you hoping would happen?”

Randy took a deep breath as he stared at the window, then squinted. “Friendship. That’s what I hoped for. I thought, maybe, if I made myself available, I could have friendship with someone who wasn’t online. My friends from school all moved away. When I saw Lacy sitting out in the hallway at the hotel, there was something about her that said she was nice and that I should be kind to her. I’m not attracted to her, in case you’re worried.”

Connor couldn’t help snorting. Randy wasn’t the type of guy Lacy would be attracted to, but at least he didn’t have to havethatconversation. “I’m not going to give you false hope. I run a ranch where people come to heal from some very bad things. My guys are all trained to do their jobs.”

“Do you have internet there?” Randy asked with sarcasm dripping from his barely over teen voice.

“Yes, we do. Why?”

Randy finally met his eyes. “Because if I can prove to you that I can be trusted, you might let me come with you. I’ll cleanbathrooms if you want me to, but I’ve got to get out of this place. I’m so tired of feeling trapped.”

He could relate. Maybe not to his feelings about his family, since his own father had always been supportive, but feeling stuck. “I’ll do my best.”

“Thanks.” Randy squinted again and lifted one of the blinds.

A car drove by outside slowly and lowered its window.

“Do you recognize that car?” Connor asked.

“No. I’ve never seen Tod’s car. I’ve only seen him in the hotel.”

Something about that car made him instantly tense. What were they doing? He reached for his gun.

“Connor, duck!” Randy dove to the side as the living room glass shattered.

Lacy’s scream echoed down the hall.

Chapter Eleven

Lacy heard the shot and the breaking glass simultaneously. She dove off the bed as the window to her right slid open with a screech like someone was prying it with a tool. Lacy crawled toward the door, staying low, and hoping she wouldn’t be seen.

Connor whipped open the door, almost hitting her, and flooding the area in light. His gaze searched the bed as his mouth dropped open. “Lacy?”

She’d never heard him sound so scared.

“I’m here,” she said from the floor.

He reached down and helped her up even as he aimed his gun at the window. “Show yourself,” he commanded.

Lacy wasn’t one to hide behind Connor in most cases, but this was one where she wasn’t taking any chances. She let him shuffle her behind his body, giving him full access to the room and whoever was breaking into it.

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