“That’s great to know. Also, if you see anyone lurking around the property, call me immediately.”
“Do you mean the two thugs in the suits with a black SUV?”
He caught Gage by surprise again. Having been an attorney for years, he thought he was aware of all the potential tricks the defense had in store, but he hadn’t been keeping up with that method like before. “Yeah.”
“Yeah, when I went in town to grab us some lunch, they flashed her picture around. Don’t worry. I’ve got no time for Baxter Cummings and his goons.”
“You know them?”
“Oh yeah. I fired one of his associates’ cousins, and that’s when I suddenly had that accident, leaving me out of work for a whole damn year.”
“Fuck. Maybe that’s something we could use against them,” Gage offered, tapping his chin as he thought about the possibilities of getting rid of Cummings legally.
“No. I’ve tried, but they claim my accident was just that. They know how to do things corruptly.” His face drooped and his shoulders slumped as Cummings got the better of him.
“Well, I want to install more surveillance around here,” Gage smirked, standing up and clapping Bill’s back.
“Maybe you should do more to fence off the main house.”
“I’ve considered it.” Gage had already lined up a security company owned by one of his friends to come set up the cameras. They’d be at the ranch tomorrow.
“Well, I’ve got to get these boys home so I can get some fucking sleep. Be careful.”
Once Bill drove off, Gage took the stairs two at a time to see her. “Hope, can I come in?”
“Yes.”
Gage opened the door and saw her sitting on the bed looking so beautiful. He gasped, staring at the way her long red hair rested on her right shoulder in a loose braid.
“He’s gone. Sorry it took so long. I sent him on his way.” Gage gave her a crooked smile, hoping she didn’t get upset with him. He couldn’t explain how she changed him, but she meant more to him than he understood.
“No, it’s fine. I know that I popped into your world uninvited.” She bit her bottom lip.
“You are more than welcome, Hope. In fact, I don’t want you to leave.” The tension between them grew with every word and look.
Unsure of what to say to his promise of keeping her, she muttered out a denial. “You’re going to want to send me packing when I become too much trouble.”
“We’ll see. Now, how about some food?”
“I can go for that.”
Chapter Eight
His fate rested in his boss’s hands, and it wasn’t looking good. He’d failed and when someone failed Cummings it didn’t end well. A cold sweat dripped down the nape of his neck as raised his hand to the wooden door. Jimmy wrung his hands together, rocking from one foot to the other as he waited for Cummings to tell him to enter.
A roaring, “Enter,” ripped from behind the closed oak door. Jimmy stole a glance at his partner John and shook his head as he turned the knob slowly, hoping to delay the truth. He feared Cummings because a man willing to sell his child to feed his drug habit had no limits to his rage. It pissed Jimmy off that he’d become so weak.When had he lost his spine?
Cummings stood up and looked around Jimmy and John, then sat back in his chair and leaned on his elbows. “Well?”
Rubbing the back of his neck and feeling the perspiration, Jimmy responded, “Boss, we didn’t have any luck. We’re thinking she jumped on the back of someone’s pickup truck, but we don’t have surveillance footage, so we can’t tell where she went.”
Cummings slammed his fist down on his desk, then stood straight up while pulling a gun out. Both men took a cautious step back and waited for Cummings to get his breathing under control long enough to speak. Jimmy swallowed hard.
“Damn it. You were supposed to have her delivered to Navarro. She was handed to you on a silver platter, and you couldn’t pull her off the damn bus. I should shoot you both right now,” he snarled, walking around his desk like a dangerous predator.
John pleaded his case, blurting out, “It’s not our fault. By the time we got there, she wasn’t anywhere to be found. The bus driver left her there, stranded as fuck. It should have been easy. There was only a handful of people around.”
Cummings lurched at him, grabbing John by the throat. “Whose fault is it? This is the second time you lost her.”