Total pages in book: 126
Estimated words: 119746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 119746 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 599(@200wpm)___ 479(@250wpm)___ 399(@300wpm)
Out of all of us, Cole is the one closest to Marcus, and he’s been the thorn in my side for a long time. Not a friend, not a ranch hand, just a glorified babysitter Marcus brought on to make sure I wasn’t snitchin’ or looking for a way out. Red was the same. I’d like to think we became friends over time, but now I see it, the fear, the idea that Marcus’s operation might all fall to pieces because of this woman.
And even though I’m mad at Aubrey, even though I can’t trust her, even though I don’t know if I believe her when she says she’s not here on business, I know I have to protect her from them if it comes to it.
Not that Red poses a threat at the moment.
“This is a setup,” Cole sneers. “Has to be. Why else would a Fed be up here with us?”
“Does it matter?” I counter. “We need to focus on Red. Now give me her god damn gun or I’m going to take it from you.”
A sinister look comes over his face. “You’re in on it, aren’t you?” he says to me.
“You’re snitching on Marcus. That’s why she’s here. You hired her.”
“I don’t even know who the fuck Marcus is and I don’t care,” Aubrey says. “Jensen has nothing to do with this.”
“Then why hide it?” I ask her, unable to keep the betrayal from my voice. “Why not just tell us from the start?”
Her eyes meet mine, something like hurt flickering through them before being masked by professional detachment. “Would you have helped me if you knew? Or would you have sent me away the moment I showed my badge?”
The question hangs between us, unanswerable because we both know the truth. If she’d come to Lost Trail Ranch as Special Agent Wells, I would have shown her the door before she could finish introducing herself. Not just because of my arrangement with Marcus, but because of what happened to Lainey and Adam. Because of what I’ve seen in these mountains, what I’ve done and failed to do.
I’d wanted absolution. I didn’t want a death sentence.
Red groans, a wet, pained sound that breaks the standoff. “Could you argue about this after I’m not bleeding out?” he manages through gritted teeth.
Aubrey immediately refocuses on his arm, her hands still steady despite the tension crackling through the room. Her resolve is impressive. “I need to finish cleaning this wound. Arguing won’t change the fact that he needs medical attention.”
“How do we know you’re not going to poison him or something?” Cole asks, desperation edging his voice. “How do we know you didn’t plan this whole thing with Hank?”
“That’s ridiculous,” Eli says, speaking up for the first time since Aubrey’s identity was revealed. “You think she arranged for Hank to turn into…whatever he is now? To attack Red? Hell, she could have just arrested us if she wanted to.”
I appreciate Eli speaking out, but I give him a sharp look anyway. If Aubrey truly isn’t here for Marcus, then she doesn’t need any additional information. I’d already confessed to her that the ranch belonged to Marcus and I was in debt to him. If she doesn’t know anything else then I certainly want to keep it that way.
“Arrest us?” Cole cries out, waving her gun around again. “I’d like to see her fucking try. Just fucking try, city girl.”
Aubrey ignores him, continuing to tend to Red’s wound with methodical precision. I watch her hands—the same hands that had traced fire across my skin in the firelight light—now covered in another man’s blood, moving with practiced efficiency that speaks to training I should have recognized sooner.
How many other signs did I miss? How blind was I, distracted by her beauty, by the connection I thought we shared? Maybe in the back of my mind I thought she was a nurse, but I know deep down it was something more than that.
Regardless, I find myself moving to her bag. I want to take the gun from Cole but not when he’s so combative. Instead, I rifle through the side pocket and my fingers clasp around a bottle of hand sanitizer. Despite everything, Red should be the focus here.
I give Cole a steady look, a warning, as I bring the bottle over to Aubrey.
Our eyes hold for a moment, tension rippling. Then she nods at it. “Squeeze a bit on the wound. It will help some.”
I do as she asks and Red gasps out in pain.
“We need to decide what to do with her,” Cole says, turning to Eli. “She’s compromised everything. The whole operation could be at risk.”
Aubrey raises a brow and I can tell she’s filing that information away.
“Shut it, Cole,” I snap at him.
“I think we need to secure her,” Cole says, stepping closer to Aubrey, gun raised, hand shaking. “Tie her up until we figure out what’s really going on.”