Smart man.
“Of course, Ghost. Good to see you.” Ghost? Fucker’s got a curious handle. She gives him a one-armed hug at his side. “Just been terrified for Whisper and worryin’ about Boxer and Lincoln.” She lowers her voice, moves a step closer to where I’m seated, and puts a hand on my shoulder in a show of solidarity. “No harm been done to me. I been safe with this man.
Fuck sake, like I’m out to beat up on old ladies.
He hands her phone to her and she pockets it. “Ghost, put your gun away and be leavin’ him alone. We all be on the same page. I be vouchin’ for this man. Dem bones of mine never lie.”
Dem bones?
“He’s got some explainin’ to be doin’, some regrets to put to bed and some forgivin’ to be requestin’, but now’s not the time or the meetin’ place. More importantly, have you found Whisper? Where’s Boxer and Lincoln? Are they all right?”
“No. They’re here. Not exactly,” he replies in a nutshell.
Then she looks at me, assuming this big guy is going to take her word straight off the bat, put his weapon away, and have ourselves a tea party. “Did you get what you be comin’ in here for? I been worried.” From the look on her face, I believe she was actually worried about me.
“Nope. Just about to have a word with the bartender.” I ignore the gun and turn, signaling for the bartender to come over.
“Package for Ellwood or Homer?” I bring my best redneck to the table.
The wiry old guy looks me over and shakes his head in the negative. “Been here since opening and no package been dropped.” His gravelly voice sounds worn out from smoking and drinking. Jonathan just put himself on my wanted-man list. Fucker’s got answers I want to be hearing because now the bastard ran scared from my earlier call.
I know Mocha-chocolate is listening. I settle my tab and get up. We all move toward the door. Mocha-chocolate positions himself next to me, keeping Miss Catherine on his right. That gun will be hidden, but still trained on me as he directs the conversation toward her.
“Heard you decided to go on a road trip with a total stranger. Doc Evelyn briefed us. Now, what’s Boxer gonna be thinking about that?” He looks at the old lady with affection.
“Nobody else be available to be helpin’ me. Couldn’t be sittin’ about waitin’ when Whisper’s life been on the line. Edge been lookin’ after me.”
This guy doesn’t seem the wiser about my original intentions and follow through toward Whisper.
He stops outside the bar. “Before we go over to our car, I need to warn you of a few things. Joel’s been beaten to a pulp. He has a lot of internal injuries, so he was out of commission for a few days and is still in the hospital. He managed to sweet talk a nurse into letting him borrow her computer, and he’s been helping me from his hospital bed.”
“He be okay?” She’s worried for this Joel. He’s a friend, but not close enough to warrant swapping phone numbers.
“He’ll live. Tough guy.” He rubs a hand over his closely cropped dark hair. “Cutting a long story short, Lincoln and Boxer been MIA, as you know. After not being able to get through to Boxer or Lincoln, Joel called Doc Evelyn to see if she heard from either of them. She let him know about what had been going on from your end.” He arches a dark eyebrow. “The limited amount you cared to disclose to her.
“Joel’s next plan was to hack my personal information and get a hold of my cell number. Never had a situation for anybody other than Boxer to need my personal details before.” He shrugs. “I’m a private man. He’d already hacked their phones and found out the last breadcrumb, the last location those phones were at.” He looks over at me, deciding whether I should be listening to any of this. “How they got into that mess, I’ll explain later.
“Doc Evelyn has a thing for Boxer, even though they both won’t admit it, and she arranged a set of wheels to come to Jackson as soon as she could. And Joel’s been keeping her up-to-date on everything.” He taps his ear. “He’s listening in right now.
“This brings me to Boxer and Lincoln. They’ve both had it pretty rough, with broken bones and being left to starve to death.” Miss Catherine’s hand flies up to her mouth. “They’ll live. Done what I can for them. I picked up a bag of medical supplies Doc Evelyn had organized for me to collect after I gave her their medical update of injuries that I could physically see. Was on my way to meet up with Doc Evelyn, and she’ll be able to look after them better than the makeshift job I’ve done for them.”
We start walking again and make it over to the Beamer, where a black, fully tinted SUV has boxed us in.
No prizes for guessing whose.
I can see through the front window there are people inside the car. One is in the front passenger seat laid out horizontally with the seat jacked back and part of another body is lying across the backseat. Neither appears to be moving. The old lady tries to get to the back passenger door, but the guy holds her arm, stopping her from getting any closer.
“I’ll warn you, they look bad. I found them in a large bunker underground in the woods outside of Jackson. I got to them in time. Doc Evelyn knew you two were headed to Jackson, so Joel got the GPS working on your phones and here I am. I didn’t call you ahead…” He looks at me. “Didn’t want the man with you to know I was coming in. We realize none of this was coincidence. It was a cleverly hatched plan to get Whisper alone, and we’re hoping you can fill in some blanks.” He lets go of her arm.
Miss Catherine hurries to the back door, swinging it open, while I follow on behind. These are her people, but I made a promise to her. She opens the door and then kneels down next to a guy who looks to be in his mid-forties and is out cold. I take a good look at the two unconscious men buckled up. Both have fucked up legs and are hooked up to IV bags hanging from the oh-shit roof handles.
Before anybody else can get another word out, a car pulls up beside us in a hurry to stop, and my concealed gun is out swinging in its direction.
And then a gun is shoved into the side of my head. Mocha-chocolate is the voice of reason. “Easy, Edge, lower your weapon. It’s Doc Evelyn to see to Boxer and Lincoln. Joel’s been feeding her our location, and those men need her immediate attention.” I only have to hear Doc Evelyn’s name and the gun is being holstered, and I no longer have one at my head.
She’s out of the car, running over to the SUV with a bag, and starts checking them over, mumbling to herself. Sounds like she’s cursing their day job.
Mocha-chocolate gives me a rundown. “Lincoln, the blond, younger guy, is Whisper’s best friend. And the other guy, Boxer, is as good as Whisper’s father.” I don’t like hearing her best friend is male. It actually sends a streak of emotion through me I don’t want to identify, and I’ve only spent a few hours with her. I only know her favorite and least favorite movies, that she really isn’t a beer drinker, and she can’t lie for shit.
And… she’s my sweet and wild girl.
I don’t know where that came from.
“Edge, we’re gonna take it from here. You can go back to Albuquerque. Whisper is no longer your concern. Appreciate what you have done for Miss Catherine, and she can fill in any missing blanks Doc Evelyn couldn’t, which I assume is a fair bit. Not unless you got anything you want to add?” Mocha-chocolate thinks he has this all worked out.
“‘Fraid I have to beg to differ… hot shot. I’ve made Whisper my business.”
Fuck you very much.
Now, I appreciate these people are her people, but I am now involved, whether they like it or not. We glare at each other, which does nothing for anybody. Too much testosterone in the air for my liking and that shit makes men dangerous.