Page 53 of All Twisted Up
Candy and the guys let us into an FBI safehouse in Ventura late that afternoon, leaving us after telling us to stay safe and limit our time outdoors. The house was hidden behind a private gate and located on a bluff, built on caissons driven deep into the bedrock to keep it safe from Southern California’s frequent earthquakes. It had remarkable west facing views from the master bedroom balcony of the single-story structure. We’d arrived just as the sun was sinking on the horizon, casting long, golden glimmers along the cresting waves of the ocean far below.
We’d driven straight to the house after leaving the West Hollywood Collective’s cluster of shops and restaurants. Assured by the captain that even though SAC Bradley had nothing good to say about the situation, he’d acquiesced in the end, agreeing that having Joshua join his family in WITSEC probably wasn’t a good idea. Joshua was clearly a target, and it was obvious that Gomez’ sicarios were intent on getting to him at all costs.
Though I was convinced that the cartel had discovered us at 24 Hour Fitness quite by accident, no one could be 100 percent certain the FBI or the Marshals Service hadn’t been infiltrated. It was nearly impossible, but it had been done before. With hundreds of millions of dollars at their disposal, drug lords had been known to have spies within the government. I was relieved that the bosses were able to find something so quickly and even happier that the only safehouse available to us at the moment, was this beautiful seaside residence.
Mickey and Rex showed up an hour after our arrival with a cat carrier holding a very unhappy Marvin, loudly wailing the song of his people from behind closed bars. Rex looked distressed as he rolled up his sleeve, showing a line of scratches on his forearm. “Fuckin’ cat,” he grumbled, setting down the bag of food and a fresh litterbox as Joshua ran to the carrier to free my favorite feline. The second the door was open, Marvin dashed off into the bowels of the house to find a place to hide from the evil humans who’d kidnapped him.
“I’m really sorry, buddy,” I said, looking down at Rex’s arm.
“It’s fine. I just do better with dogs.”
“Yeah, that’s right,” Mickey said with a grin. “You have that three-legged dog, right, Texas?”
“She has two legs,” Rex corrected.
Joshua looked up from the litter he’d been pouring into the clean tray. “You have a two-legged dog? How does she walk?”
Rex smirked. “Ontwofeet.”
Mickey cracked up laughing as he smacked Rex on the back. He glanced at Joshua, and I smiled, knowing what was coming. “Rex’s dog has two front paws and sits his ass in a harness with wheels.”
I watched Joshua’s jaw drop open as he straightened from his task. “What?”
“It’s a wheelchair,” Rex explained. “They make ‘em for dogs with arthritis and such things.”
“It’s the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen,” I said. “Show Joshua a picture.”
Rex smiled, reaching into his back pocket and pulling out his wallet. He flipped it open and held it out for Joshua to see.I walked over to look down at the fluffy, white poodle in her harness. She stood proudly, smiling up at the camera, tongue lolling, wearing a pink tutu, glossy butterfly wings, and a tiara with pink bows. Her front toenails glittered with sparkly, pink nail polish.
“Oh, my God! I love her!” Joshua cried, looking up at me with a wide grin. He smiled at me for a few seconds before turning to Rex. “What’s her name?”
“Lola.” The big Texan grinned with pride. “Lost her legs after a car ran over her, but she’s healthy now.”
“You’re kidding?”
Rex took the wallet back and looked down at the picture, smiling at it. “Some bastard hit her and left her for dead on the side of the road. I found her on a rescue site and entered a lottery to be allowed to adopt her after the vet was forced to amputate her back legs and fix her up. They got more than a hundred applications, and I was the lucky one.”
“You’re just a big softie,” Mickey said as Rex tucked the wallet away.
“I’m an animal lover…simple as that.”
“Well, I think it’s wonderful,” Joshua said. “But who watches her while you’re away at work? It can’t be easy for her to get around on her own.”
“Most times, she’s fine on her own. Got me hardwood floors which makes it easy for her to crawl to her food and water bowls, and I have a nice yard with a special doggy door set low to the ground when she needs to go outside. She wears a protective wrap around her waist so she don’t get all scratched up, but because she’s female, there ain’t a problem keepin’ clean when she urinates. I take her out in the mornin’ and when I get home, Ilet her out again to do her other business. Most of the time, she’s as clean as a whistle when I get home, though. She’s a good girl, my Lola.” He smiled.
“I think it’s awesome,” Joshua said, patting my friend’s thick bicep.
“Well, we’d better get going,” Mickey said, slapping Rex on the back. “Come on, animal lover.”
“Thanks for getting Marvin and bringing our stuff over,” I said, eyeing the two duffels they’d dropped on the floor in the house’s entryway. I really hoped they’d packed up the right clothes after I gave them specific instructions on where to find everything. If both of those duffels were packed with nothing but my underwear and Joshua’s jockstraps, I was going to have words with my brothers.
“No problem,” Mickey said, giving me a guy clench. He held out a hand to shake Joshua’s. I honestly wasn’t surprised when he simply threw himself into my best friend’s arms. I was learning just how touchy-feely Joshua was with people but chalked it up to how warm he seemed to be witheveryone. After he also hugged Rex, my two friends left.
Since I’d already decided he should have the master, I threw his bag into the larger of the two bedrooms after I locked up. I went into the kitchen to see what the fridge was stocked with. Even though it hadn’t been long since we’d eaten, a light salad sounded good.
I straightened after pulling out lettuce and other fixings and was surprised to find Joshua had walked right up into my personal space, crowding me back against the kitchen counter. He looked up at me, fluttering long lashes as I held the vegetables between us.
“Put those down.”
