Page 100 of Knot Her Cowboys
“Can I come with you?” I asked.
Cooper squawked. “Absolutely the fuck not. You’re not going within a hundred miles of Darrell Decker.”
“He doesn’t have to know I’d be there.”
Cooper narrowed his eyes at me. “It’s not a risk you should be taking.”
I knew it was a terrible idea, but I pushed back anyway. “Maisie is living the life Darlene wanted for me. She never had anyone to protect her.”
“Andhoware you going to protect her now?” he asked plainly, but not unkindly. “Pretty sure she’s bonded and has an armload of kids.”
I turned to Levi. His sister had fled abuse, so he’d probably be the best to ask about the situation. “What if she wanted to leave?”
He hesitated, caught in a staring match with Cooper. “If she wanted to leave, we certainly have places for her to stay.”
“You might as well lay out a welcome mat for the Deckers in that case,” Cooper hissed. “We’ve already got Darlene scaling the fucking fences to get to Riley. How are we supposed to defend against the whole compound if Maisie shows up at our door? They could kill all of us.”
“Maybe law enforcement would finally do something about it then.” Levi frowned, crossing his arms. “Listen, I don’t want to put Riley in any danger, or us, but I’ve heard the stories of that compound as well as you. Riley’s right. Nothing will probably come of it anyway, but Maisie should know she has somewhere to go if it comes down to it.”
Cooper looked like he was about to implode. “I know you’re both probably thinking I don’t give a shit, but that’snotwhat this is. I know Maisie’s life is what I prevented Morgan from experiencing, and I know it’s what Darlene wanted for Riley, but Ialsofucking know the Deckers are bad news. There are too many people here and we can’t risk our guests or our staff. That’s not fair to them.”
I wilted. “Cooper’s right. I wasn’t thinking about that part. I’d still like to go, though. Even if I can’t get her out, I want her to know she’s not alone.”
“I just got you back,” Cooper pleaded. “Don’t go.”
“What’s going on up here?” Cash asked as he slipped through the open door. “Having a conference without us? Riley went haywire in the bond.”
Dakota followed him in, a soft smile on his lips at seeing Cooper and me tucked away beneath the blankets.
“Riley’s trying to run headfirst into danger,” Cooper told them. “Darlene’s trying to sell her to Darrell and now Levi’s got it in her head about her going to the compound.”
“That’s not what I did,” Levi defended, pinching the bridge of his nose. “I just offered to bring a message.”
“Let’s all take a breath,” Dakota ordered. “What’s this about Riley being sold to Darrell?”
All four of them focused on me. With a sigh, I explained. “Darlene thinks if she gives me to Darrell, it’ll buy her way back into the compound. She tried to do it when I was a teen, and now she’s trying to do it again.”
“Whoa, whoa,whoa.” Cash crossed the distance between us and parked himself on the bed next to me. “She didwhatnow? Why didn’t I know about this?”
“Because if I told you, you would’ve told Cooper, and Cooper would’ve done something very stupid and wouldn’tbehere right now.” I narrowed my eyes when Cash opened his mouth to argue. “Don’t even. You know it’s true.”
He blew out a breath. “Okay, you’re not wrong.”
“Why do you want to see Maisie?” Dakota asked.
“She’s my sister, or at least half. I only ever got to see her at school because her mama hated mine. Once I got to high school, I never saw her at all since she was a year behind Morgan. She probably wouldn’t even recognize me now. I just want to see if she’s okay with my own eyes, and Iknowshe’s probably not, and I don’t know what I’ll do with that when I’m faced with it, but since I’m staying here, I can’t just ignore that she’s in that position.”
Pure delight blossomed in the bond. ”You’re staying?”
I squawked as Cash descended on me, wrapping me in a hug. “I never wanted to leave you before, and I don’t want to now. I might be terrified of a lot of the things still here, but I’m really trying to not let Darlene cost me another twelve years.”
“I don’t think it’s safe for Riley to go into the compound,” said Dakota slowly, “butI understand why she would want to. If we could make her unrecognizable, cover her scent so no oneknows she’s an omega, and we all go under the guise of assisting Levi with the animals, then I would support a single visit to check on Maisie.”
Cooper stole me from Cash, cocooning me in his arms. “Do they do weapons checks? I don’t want to go in there unarmed.”
“They do.” Levi nodded. “I’ve already called my cousin to let him know I’m going in. If he doesn’t hear from me by morning, he’s going to consider it a kidnapping situation.”
Cooper sighed. “Tell the staff to be on alert and to lock the gates after we’re gone.”
