Page 29 of Running Scared
“Son, after what these men just did for you, I’m pretty sure you’re married in the eyes of their clan.”
Bailey could feel his cheeks heat in spite of the semi’s stellar air-conditioning.
“I only meant we’re new,” he said with what dignity he had.“But what was Dean doing there for work?”
“Well,” Val said, “from what I understand—and Dean is a closemouthed bastard, which is why I’m the only sibling who knows aboutyou,my friend, so don’t get your panties in a wad when everybody else gets all in your face.But from what I understand, mind you, Dean and Marcus are sort of… well, the cartel busters of their division.”
From the intercom, Bailey heard Rory McCauley snort.“Two most out of control sonovabitches in the Bureau,” he said, a note of admiration coloring his voice.“I mean, the shit those two get into—legendary.But yeah, over the last year or so, they’ve been tracking an unholy alliance between one of the local cartels—Corazones de Sangre—and a branch of Bratva, the Russian mob.I would imagine you stumbled onto a Russian mob hit, Bailey.No wonder Dean wanted to get you out of there before the world even knew Vlade Karcek was dead.”
“So….”Bailey swallowed, trying to keep the hurt from his voice.“That’s why Dean was in Austin?For this… this Bratva thing?”
“That’s why he was there forwork,” Val said gently, as though reading Bailey’s mind.“But you should know that he had lots of chances to come home to Sacramento—or to see the family—that he’s passed up in the last few months, mostly because he wanted to see you.”
“Do you know,” Bailey said, unable to keep the bitterness out of his voice, “that until this morning, I thought you andMarcuswere his only two siblings, and when he said your family wasa lot, that just meant your parents were really nosy?”
Val’s laugh filled the cab of the truck—and so did McCauley’s from the back.
“Oh my God,” McCauley whooped.“Val, wait until he meets your parents.He’ll know why that’s so funny.”
“Meet your parents?”Bailey said, surprised.“What does he mean by that?”
Val grunted.“Well, for one thing it means I may have been able to put one payload off on one of my employees, but I’ve got another one waiting for me in LA that is both insured and worth a lot of money to my company.I can’t put this one off, so you’re catching a ride from Chance and whoever he can con into going with him.”
“Reg and Anthony,” McCauley said from the back.
“Anthony?”Val sounded puzzled.
“Who’s Anthony?”Bailey asked, pleased that he at least knew Chance and Reg were Dean’s little brothers.
“Rory’s son,” Val said, still puzzled.“Great kid, really, but I don’t know why he’d be hanging out with Reg and Chance.”
“Don’t you?”Rory McCauley asked cryptically.“Do you really not know?”
Val frowned.“I didn’t realize they’d all gotten tight.”He smiled a little.“It must have been at the family reunion.”
There was a faint snort, and Bailey wondered if, should he see Rory McCauley’s face, he wouldn’t be gazing at Val Royal with a hint of pity, but then Val added, “I was hoping Dean would bring you to that, but it must have been too soon.Hopefully you’ll be able to make it to the Thanksgiving thing.”He raised his voice for the intercom.“You too, Connor.My folks set a big table around Thanksgiving.”
“It’s been a while since we sat at a big table,” Connor began, but Bailey rapidly saw this conversation—and his life and his relationship with Dean—spiraling neatly out of his control.
“Dad, don’t get your hopes up.This man just pushed me out of a plane, remember?”
And this time, hisfathersnorted.“Son, you justletthis man push you out of a plane—with your cat, which shows he knows you.I’m saying the cat alone should get you to give him a shot till Thanksgiving.”
“He obviously didn’t want me around during the family reunion in—When was it?”he asked.
“Early June,” Val said.“You two would have been pretty new.”
Bailey grunted.“Or he’s just a closemouthed bastard who wasn’t ready to share his family,” he said bitterly.
“So you got some things to say to the man,” Val said, nodding.“I totally understand.Me and Dean have been saying shit to each other since he got smarter than me—when he was about eight and I was in high school.Little asshole.”He smiled indulgently.“I love him so.”He sobered.“And whatever his reasons for not mentioning the family reunion, you’re about to be eyeballs deep in familynow.HisandRory’s, for whatever reason—”
Rory let out what was almost a giggle, and Bailey fought the totally useless urge to turn around in his seat.Val ignored him and continued.
“—so you need to prepare yourself.Dean likes to keep his secrets to himself, and you, my new friend and hopeful in-law, are apparently his secret keeper.You are going to be grilled like a trout, with lots of spices, until you are delicate, flaky, and tender.”
Bailey stared at him.“That’s an, uhm, oddly specific analogy,” he said, hoping Dean wasn’t a member of a closet tribe of serial killers.
“Don’t mind him,” Rory said.“He’s starving.First barbecue place you see when we get back to Texas, call out.They almost all have parking for semis, and we’ve got to get us some chow.”
