Taking the Fight, page 18
Braden looked over at me, his body tense. “It’ll be okay.” It took a few minutes, but two guys got out of the car, dressed in dark clothes. I couldn’t see much, as it was too dark. Braden jerked his attention to the blanket and held out his hands. “The binoculars. Let me have them.” Heart racing, I handed them to him, holding my breath as he lifted them to his eyes. “I don’t recognize them.”
“Let me see,” I said, holding my hand out for the binoculars. “I’ve seen Finn’s men.”
He gave me the binoculars, and my breath shook as I let it out. When I peered through the lenses at the two men, I didn’t recognize either one, but it didn’t mean they didn’t work for Finn. They were both bulky and muscular with black hair, each holding a gun. One of the guys fiddled with the lock on the door and got it open.
“Fuck,” Braden hissed. “Whoever they work for, they’ve found us.”
I lowered the binoculars. “What are we going to do? What if they break into our rental house? They’ll see that we’re still here.” I was thankful I turned off all the lights, and our rental car was in the closed garage.
Braden scanned the woods behind us. “If they do, we’ll wade through to the other side of the river and wait them out. Then, we’ll grab our stuff as soon as they leave.”
“It’s a good thing we’re already packed.”
The two men disappeared inside the house and emerged a few minutes later. I thought they were going to leave, but then the backseat door of the car opened. My stomach coiled into knots when I saw a man get out. I didn’t have to look through the binoculars to know who it was.
“It’s him,” I whispered.
Braden took the binoculars, growling low when he looked through them. “Son of a bitch.”
I’ve always fought against fear, but right now, I was petrified to the point I thought I’d vomit. Nevertheless, Finn was obviously willing to go to great lengths to find us. He and the other two men talked for a few minutes, but then they all returned to the car and left. I breathed a sigh of relief when they didn’t stop at our house.
We waited for a few minutes to make sure they didn’t come back, and then we took off through the water to the riverbank. Braden’s grip was achingly tight as he pulled me up the hill to the house.
“Get the keys and I’ll grab the bags,” he commanded.
I did as he said and ran inside to grab my purse and the keys. Once in the garage, I lifted the car's trunk lid just in time for Braden to toss our suitcases inside. I jumped in the car, and Braden got behind the wheel. When we got to the top of the road, Braden turned the opposite way Finn and his guys went.
“Where are we going?” I asked, clutching my stomach.
Braden pressed on the gas. “I don’t know but far away from here.”
I almost expected to see headlights behind us, but there was nothing—only darkness. I tried to think of somewhere we could go, and then it hit me. There was one place we could be safe with no trace of us ever being there.
“Oh my God, Braden.” He glanced over at me, his face illuminated by the dashboard lights. “I know where we can go.”
His brows furrowed. “Where?”
“East. We have to get to Maine.”
CHAPTER 31
BRADEN
Our destination: Hallowell, Maine.
There was a bed and breakfast there, owned by two retired undercover agents, Jason and Aylee Avery. Jason was the brother of Reagan’s aunt Brooklyn, and from what I heard, he was pretty badass at taking down the bad guys in his time. I’d only met him and his wife once when they came to California to visit with their son and daughter, who were a couple of years older than Reagan and me.
It took four and a half hours to get to Hallowell, but we didn’t want to show up on Jason and Aylee’s doorstep at seven-thirty in the morning. So we drove around and found a park along the Kennebec River. Once parked, I grabbed my phone and pressed Seth’s number.
“You know it’s four-thirty in the morning in California, right?” Reagan pointed out.
The line started to ring. “I don’t give a fuck. We have to tell someone what happened.”
Reagan and I were exhausted. The adrenaline had worn off, and there was nothing left. I wanted to go after Finn with every fiber of my being, but I knew my limits. I could handle him one on one, but I couldn’t compete with his guns. I wasn’t stupid, and I definitely wasn’t going to risk him getting a hold of Reagan.
The line rang some more, and then Seth huffed into the phone. “This better be good, Emerson.”
“Finn found us,” I said, not wasting any time. “It’s good that Reagan and I weren’t at the house. He had two cocksuckers with him, and they broke in, guns and all. I doubt you’d be talking to me right now if things worked out differently.”
Seth grumbled under his breath. “Fuck. Are you and Reagan okay?”
“Would you be if you had a psychopath hunting you down?” I snapped. “Look, I don’t give a shit about my safety, but I do care about Reagan’s. I refuse to let that fucker get anywhere near her.”
“Yeah, Emma would kill me if I let anything happen to her sister.” He blew out a sigh. “Whatever you do, don’t tell anyone where you are. I’ll call you back when I have more information.”
He hung up and I dropped my phone in the center console, my insides burning like fire. I’d take Reagan to the ends of the world to keep her from Finn, but that wasn’t a life for her. I wanted this shit to stop. But how?
“I wish there were something we could do,” Reagan said.
Looking over at her, I admired how she had so much strength left in her tired eyes. I reached for her hand and clasped it in mine. “There is. We’ll figure it out.”
Her eyelids started to drop, and it wasn’t long before she passed out. It was still too early to show up at the bed and breakfast, so I let her sleep.
An hour passed by and then another. All I could think about were different ways I could deal with Finn. What concerned me was the lengths he’d go to to find me. Would he go after my family? Of course, he would. I already knew he’d blow up an auto parts store with innocent people in it. My family meant nothing to him.
Reagan awoke with a gasp and sat up, grabbing her chest when she realized we were in the car. “Oh my God, I had a horrible dream.” She covered her face with her hands. “
“You’re okay,” I soothed, rubbing her back.
She kept her face covered until her breathing slowed down. “I thought it was real.” Her terror-filled eyes met mine. “They killed you. It was the worst thing I’d ever witnessed in my life.”
“Hey,” I said, grasping her face with both hands, “nothing’s going to happen to me. I promise.”
Reagan leaned into my touch, and the fierceness I loved about her returned with a vengeance. “You’re damn right it’s not. I don’t know how Finn thinks getting you out of the way would ever make me want him.”
Sliding my hands away from her face, I stared right into her eyes. I hadn’t told her what Seth told me about Paul Sellinger making a contract deal with Finn’s mother, and how she lost and was forced to marry him. It didn’t seem like the right time to tell her now.
“He’s fucked up in the head, Reagan. The same goes for his sister.”
“That’s for damn sure.” She glanced over at the clock and sighed. “I could really use a bed right now. Do you think we can head to the B&B?”
“Sounds good to me,” I said, starting the car. “Let’s hope they have a spare room.”
Reagan grumbled. “Oh, I hope so.”
We were only ten minutes away from the B&B, and when we pulled down the long driveway, Reagan beamed when the white plantation-style home came into view. It was in the middle of a large open field with a massive red barn in the back.
Reagan kept her gaze out the window. “I remember coming out here once when I was a little girl.” She pointed off to the left. “There’s a pond out that way and walking trails you could get lost on for hours. Aylee’s uncle was the owner of the place at that time, and he made the best blueberry muffins I’d ever tasted. The place became hers when he passed.”
I parked along the side of the house and shut off the car. “Maybe Aylee kept up the tradition and has some muffins inside.”
Her stomach growled. “That would be heaven. I could eat a dozen of them right now.”
Before getting out of the car, I grabbed my phone and we walked around to the front entrance of the house. When we stepped inside, Aylee was behind the desk counter, tapping away on her laptop with a straw hat on her head. It’d been a few years since I met her, but she still had the same bright red hair. She looked up and did a double take when she saw Reagan.
Eyes wide, she stood. “Reagan, is that you?”
Reagan smiled and perked up even though I knew she was about to fall out on the floor. “Hey, Aylee. It’s good to see you.”
Hurrying out of the office, Aylee held out her arms. “You get more beautiful every time I see you,” she said, hugging Reagan tight. “Jason and I watched your last fight. You were spectacular.”
“Thanks,” Reagan said, her voice tired.
She let Reagan go and her grin widened when she looked at me. “And you’re Braden Emerson. My husband is a big fan of yours. I don’t know if you remember meeting us.”
Aylee held out her hand, and I shook it. “I do remember. You have a great place here.”
She peered around the room with pride. “Thank you. This place was my home growing up. When my uncle died, I couldn’t fathom the idea of selling it. I’m glad Jason agreed to leave North Carolina and retire here.”
Reagan bit her lip sheepishly when Aylee turned back to her. “You wouldn’t happen to have a vacant room, would you?”
Aylee winked at her. “This is your lucky day. It just so happens we had a cancellation this morning. It’s one of our best rooms too.” She walked into the office and grabbed a key off the wall with the number eight on it. “Follow me,” she said, taking off down the hall. We followed her, and she pointed out various parts of the house. “The dining room is there. We serve breakfast every morning.”
Reagan sighed. “Please tell me you have blueberry muffins.”
“I make them fresh every day,” Aylee said, grinning back at her. “It’s my uncle’s recipe.”
“Do you have some now?” Reagan asked.
Aylee laughed. “They’re in the kitchen. I’ll bring some to your room.”
Reagan looked like a kid at Christmas. “That would be amazing. Thank you.”
Aylee pointed out the library and the different sitting rooms where guests could mingle and relax. Our suite was on the first floor and had windows that overlooked the gardens at the front of the house.
She handed the key to Reagan and smiled. “Does this work?”
Reagan hugged her again. “It’s perfect. Just let us know how much we owe you.”
Aylee waved her off. “Your money’s no good here. Stay as long as you like. I’ll be right back with your muffins.”
She strolled off and I went up behind Reagan, wrapping my arms around her waist. “You know I won’t stay here without paying her, right?”
Reagan snorted and I let her go so she could face me. “I wasn’t about to, either.”
A few seconds later, Aylee came in with a plate full of giant blueberry muffins. “Here you go,” she called out, handing them to Reagan. “Enjoy.”
Moaning, Reagan breathed them in. “Oh, I will.”
Aylee smiled at us again before turning on her heel and shutting the door behind her. Reagan sat on the bed and took a bite out of one of the muffins. I grabbed one and ate it within seconds. I didn’t realize how hungry I was.
Once we were done eating all the muffins, I laid back on the bed with Reagan in my arms. “I’ll get our bags in a little while.”
Reagan waved a hand in the air. “No worries. I just want to sleep.”
She rested her head on my chest, and I was just about to fall asleep when my phone rang. Reagan gasped and sat up while I fished my phone out of my back pocket.
“Who is it?” she asked. I turned the phone toward her so she could see the name on the screen. It was Carter.
“Hey,” I answered, putting it on speakerphone so Reagan could join in. I turned the volume down so everyone else in the house wouldn’t be able to hear.
“Are you guys okay?” Carter questioned.
Glancing over at Reagan, I laughed lightly but there was no humor to it. “Don’t know yet, but I’m glad you left when you did. Finn and his guys broke into the house I rented; they found us. Luckily, Reagan and I were able to get away.”
“What the hell?” Carter snarled. “Where are you now?”
“We’re safe,” I told him.
Carter huffed. “Jesus Christ. Emma’s going to freak the fuck out when I tell her. Have you talked to Seth?”
“Yep. He’s supposed to call me back at some point. He said he’ll handle it. What I want to do is go after Sellinger and end it myself.”
“I know but that’s not how those people work,” Carter pointed out. “They have too many connections. Which is why I’m calling. I have some bad news.”
Reagan and I looked at each other, and I could feel my stomach fall. Reagan was the one who spoke up. “What is it?”
Carter sighed. “Trey Miller’s dead. It’s been all over the news this morning out here. He was found in an abandoned warehouse, beaten to death.”
Gasping, Reagan slapped a hand over her mouth, tears forming in her eyes. “He was one of Finn’s fighters.”
“I figured you’d find out eventually,” Carter said, “but I wanted to go ahead and tell you. What you’re dealing with isn’t child’s play; it’s more dangerous than you could ever imagine. I want you both to be careful and not do anything stupid. I know how hotheaded you can be, Braden.”
I huffed. “I’ll be fine.”
But if I ever got the chance to fuck Finn up, I wouldn’t back down. We finished the call, and I held Reagan as she cried over Trey’s death until she passed out. It wasn’t long before sleep overtook me, too.
CHAPTER 32
REAGAN
TWO DAYS LATER
* * *
For two days, Braden and I pretended everything was okay. He fished with Jason in the pond while I helped Aylee in the gardens. We also walked through the fields and wandered along the trails. I wanted to relax, but I couldn’t. We hadn’t heard anything from Seth since we called him two days ago. It was nerve-racking.
Braden busied himself helping Jason mend one of the fences, so I decided to take a walk around the field. There were wildflowers everywhere in all sorts of colors; it was breathtaking. The air was fresh, and the breeze brought in the scent of honeysuckles. I wanted to bottle it up and take it with me.
Once I reached the top of the hill, I sat down on the soft grass and made some phone calls. The first one was to my mom, who said she’d told my dad that Braden and I were together. He was looking forward to roughing him up in the ring when we returned. I happily told him that he was getting old and that Braden would probably put him on his ass. Needless to say, it made him want to challenge Braden even more. I just hoped we’d be able to make it home at some point in our lives.
My second call went to Emma. I could tell she was worried about me, so I only talked about her wedding. It was coming up in two months. Through hell or high water, I was going to be there. Nothing was going to stop me from being by my sister’s side on her big day.
Then, finally, the third call went to Peyton. I didn’t tell her anything about what was going on. She needed to keep her focus on the movie. However, I did tell her I was thinking of finding my own place to live, only I kept out the part that it might be with Braden.
Braden and I discussed it briefly, but it got me thinking … why not? Even though we hadn’t been together long, I was ready to take that step. Setting my phone on the ground, I laid back on the grass and stared up at the clear blue sky, watching as wisps of white clouds floated by.
My phone vibrated beside me and I reached for it, only for my stomach to drop the second I saw who it was. Finn. I wasn’t scared of him, but I was angry. I didn’t know if I could answer his call and keep my wits about me without saying something I’d regret.
The phone stopped ringing, but then Finn called right back again. Heart pounding in my chest, I sat up and blew out a shaky breath. I had to answer it.
“What do you want?” I snapped.
“I guess I deserve your hostility,” Finn replied.
“Deserve it? Are you fucking kidding me right now? You deserve to be institutionalized.”
“I’m not crazy, Reagan. I’m determined.” He said it so matter-of-factly.
“Yeah, I guess your sister is, too,” I hissed. “Was it you or her who tried to have me poisoned?”
Finn growled, his voice laced with fury. “I would never do that, Reagan. If Annika weren’t my sister, I’d have already put a bullet through her head.”
“So, it was her?” I already figured it was; I just wanted the confirmation.
“Yes,” he answered. “It was payback for me trying to have Emerson killed.”
I scoffed. “You two are seriously messed up. I will never forgive you for that.”
“You don’t have a choice.”
My hands shook from all the pent-up rage. “Like hell, I don’t!”
“I need you to hear me out, Reagan,” Finn demanded. “It was brought to my attention that I should take a different approach with you. I want to strike a deal. Seth has all the details, and he’ll be calling Braden shortly.”
“What kind of deal?” It felt like a stone had dropped through my core.
“I’m going to let Seth explain. But if you agree, it’ll give you a chance to get back at Annika for what she did to you. I’d personally like to see her pay for being so reckless.”
