At that, Garry blew up furiously. “You know what would happen to us then, don’t you?”

  “Yep, I sure do,” Blair confirmed. “Do you think I give a shit?”

  Silence settled over the room. At that, Richard pointed the gun at her. “We were doing just fine before you came along.”

  “That’s why you killed Larry’s mother too, wasn’t it? It’s not that Mr. Kartal wanted her dead, but you wanted her dead because she was working at trying to get him to be a better person and to let go of all this. You didn’t like her interference, so you’re the one who shot her. You probably made Mr. Kartal think that it was his idea, but it was you all along.”

  Richard stared at her, … fury making his face work. “How the hell do you know that?” he roared.

  “It’s easy,” she declared, “and I know all kinds of other shit too. I also know that you have no plans of sharing your largesse with your partner here. You’re planning on knocking off Garry before this day is done.”

  Richard stared at her in shock, while Garry glared at Richard. “What?” Garry asked his partner.

  Knowing she had them on their heels, distracted, even divided, she continued. “After all, your men are being hunted now. It was only a matter of time before you would have to whittle down the numbers, and this was a good way to do it. Plus you don’t even need the money from Larry because you’ve been ripping off his father for decades. All a part of the game, and he was okay with it to a degree, as long as you kept it to a reasonable amount. But, after you killed Larry’s mother, things didn’t go quite so easily between you, and Mr. Kartal was getting a little more worried. He even set up his own private little revenge, just in case.”

  “What’s that?” Richard asked nervously.

  She smiled. “I guess you’ll have to wait and see.”

  He stared at her uneasily and then looked at the exit.

  “Yeah,” Blair taunted, “you should be looking for the damn exit.”

  Without warning, he raised his gun and fired a bullet at her.

  Only she was no longer there; she stood in front of Legend, just slightly off to the side. “Yeah, that worked out well, didn’t it?” she asked in a mocking tone.

  He glared at her. “What the hell,” he cried out. He fired again and again and again, but, each time, he missed. He stared down at the gun, then over at Legend, who just stood there, his hands on his hips. His voice a whisper, clearly in shock, Richard asked, “What are you people?”

  She smiled. “We’re special,” she replied in a mocking tone, a word that he had used to describe Larry. “You just have no idea how very special we are.” She walked up to Richard but looked over at his partner. “Were you ready to die tonight?” she asked in a conversational voice. “Honestly, that was the plan.”

  Garry shook his head. “No, hell no, I want out of here. In fact, I’m prepared to leave right now and never come back.”

  “Good choice,” she confirmed. “Go out the front door, don’t stop, head straight down the driveway, and don’t take a vehicle with you.”

  With that, he booked it for the front door and never slowed down.

  She sent Terkel a message about his flight path. Then she turned to Richard. “Put out the call to rescind the order,” she ordered.

  He shook his head. “You can’t make me, even if I don’t know what the hell you did to his gun.”

  “Well, if it’s the one left in the safe, that’s easy. We fixed it before we left here earlier.” She looked over at Legend and smiled. “You think I didn’t see you do that, huh?”

  Legend sighed. “You could let a man have his moment, you know?”

  She laughed. “Not Richard, he doesn’t get any more moments. If nothing else he should go down for the murder of Larry’s mother. However, the fact of the matter is, nobody will even want a trial. They would rather put a bullet in his head and help him disappear, along with the rest of this insurrection nightmare,” she shared, with great delight.

  “Well, you won’t be the one to do it,” Richard stated, his face twisting. “I don’t even need a gun to take you guys down.” As he spoke, he pulled a knife from a sheath in his boot.

  She looked at him and shrugged. “That might cause some damage, but, between the two of us, I think we can do a whole lot more.”

  All of a sudden came sounds of vehicles coming up the driveway. When Richard twisted suddenly, she nodded. “Yep, that is the sound of your window of opportunity … closing.”

  He turned to look at her, scowling.

  “That’s the military here to pick you up,” she stated, with a smile. “Now, a wire is about to go out, letting everybody know that you’re talking nicely to the military and helping them out for a lighter sentence. You won’t get one, and we’ll be certain to help out all we can to ensure you go away for a long time. That’s under the unlikely scenario that you live to go to prison at all because somebody will cheerfully put a knife in your back between now and what, Sunday, you think?” She faced Legend for a moment, then looked back at Richard. “Do you think you’ll live that long?”

  Since Sunday was a couple days away, she didn’t think Richard would even make it that far.

  “No, I don’t think he’s got a snowball’s chance of making it to Saturday, let alone Sunday,” Legend shared, his arms coming around her shoulders, pulling her back against him, his fingers squeezing her gently.

  “No, I don’t think so either,” she agreed.

  Just then the doors opened, and teams of military raced in. She pointed out Richard. “He’s the one you want, gentlemen. He’s the one behind the insurrection, the coup, and he has murdered various people all along the line. We can hand over plenty of very interesting paperwork and USBs to help you nail him for it.”

  “What paperwork?” Richard asked, turning to look at her.

  “Well, one of the things we found in the safe was an insurance policy Larry’s father had written against you. It’s a list of all the people that you took out, some of it for him, but it doesn’t really matter who it was for, since it was you who pulled the trigger,” she explained. Then she pulled out the one USB key that hadn’t gone into the bag and handed it to the military commander, who was staring at her. “You’ll find the names and dates are all here,” she said.

  He took it and smiled, then turned and looked at Richard. “Sounds like you and I need to have a talk.”

  “If you want to talk to him, you better do it fast, before his cronies find out. Don’t forget to make sure everybody knows he’s singing like a bird.”

  “Absolutely, and that should keep as much of this revolution down as we can.” Then he ordered Richard to be taken outside.

  At that, the commander turned and looked at her. “I have met you somewhere before, haven’t I?”

  She nodded. “You have, indeed, but it’s been a few years.”

  He pondered that as he headed toward the front door. Then he turned and said, “It was about a little boy who was deathly ill, wasn’t it?”

  “Yes, it was.”

  He nodded. “As I recall, you and somebody else did an awful lot to keep him alive.”

  “Keeping him alive has always been our priority, and that’s why we’re here today,” she explained. “He’s just a little boy.”

  He nodded. “Just make sure he doesn’t turn out like his father.”

  “Not an issue,” she declared. “That’s the last thing he would ever be.”

  At that, the commander raised a hand. “Good. Make sure of it.” And, with that, he was gone.

  Blair turned and there was Riff, standing in the shadows. “You almost look like you’re bored,” she noted.

  He shrugged. “It took a fair bit to actually direct them right here,” he replied, “particularly after you sent that idiot outside again. Not to mention the fact that I had to keep your energy up the whole time to avoid those damn bullets.”

  “Thank you for that,” she said, with a big grin. “You really should consider working with Terkel’s team full-time.”

  “Why, so I can deal with more crazies like you?”

  “Absolutely,” she agreed, with a broad smile. “You do know some female doctor is hassling Terk too, right? About you?”

  He stared at her, then groaned. “Of course she is.”

  “You will find the answers regarding your fiancée’s murder, but you do need to walk away from it at some point.”

  “When I get answers?” he asked, his gaze flying to her. “What do you even know about it?”

  “I don’t know a whole lot,” she admitted, “but I do know that there is an answer, and it’s fairly close, and an awful lot of people want you to find it, so you can get back to the land of the living.”

  He nodded slowly, his gaze penetrating her. “Anybody in particular?”

  “Perhaps,” she said, with a smile, as he stared off in the distance. “You know perfectly well that’s where you belong, and it’s only guilt that’s sending you in this other direction.” He stiffened, then glared at her. She shrugged. “Yeah, I do know I have a habit of speaking when people don’t want me to. Don’t worry,” she added, with a wave of her hand.

  “Will everybody at Terkel’s place be like you?”

  “I don’t know. I haven’t been there yet,” she said, “but I’m kind of hoping so.” There was an almost wistful tone to her voice. “It feels like I’ve been alone for a very long time.”

  At that, Legend pulled her back until she leaned against his chest. “Of course this big galoot behind me,” she muttered, “is not so different from you. He’s had his own demons to deal with, so he’s ignored me too.”

  At that, Riff laughed. “Well, I sure as hell hope you start tormenting him and leave me the hell alone,” he noted in disgust.

  “I plan to, but you can bet that friend of yours, the doctor, is calling out loud and clear for help,” Blair told him, “and when she starts sending signals—”

  “She’s a megaphone, I know,” Riff replied, with a pained expression, “but I can’t get her to stop.”

  “That’s because you’re not listening. Stopping is one thing. Listening is another.”

  He snorted. “I’ll see you guys back in Cambridge.” And, with that, he disappeared into the shadows.

  She turned, twisting into Legend’s arms.

  *

  Legend looked down at her and shook his head. “What the hell are you even doing here?”

  She laughed. “I fully intended to follow your instructions, honest to God.” Then she explained what happened.

  He nodded. “Well, I can’t really fault that because, when your instincts say you need to make a move, you need to make a move.” He pulled her into his arms and just held her close. “Now what?”

  “Now, I suggest we grab some real food, some shut-eye, and head to Cambridge. I’m looking forward to seeing Larry again.”

  Legend chuckled. “Yeah, that’s a good point, and we at least need to let them know we’re okay.”

  “No, we don’t,” she said. “Terkel knows, and he’ll pass on the message.”

  Legend sighed. “It’ll be very strange to get used to this many people knowing about everything we do.”

  “It will. But it’ll also be strange to know that you actually have somebody who cares whether you come home or not. But you can handle it. I have faith.”

  He looked down at her, his grin wry as he asked, “There’s really no hope for me, is there?”

  “Not one hope in hell,” she said, smiling sweetly.

  He sighed. “What if I don’t want it?”

  She stopped, looked up at him. “Do you not want it?”

  Just enough challenge filled her tone that he tapped her nose. “Of course I want it. I just never believed I could have it.”

  “But that’s the thing,” she murmured, “because you can. You really can.”

  “Promise?”

  “Absolutely, and, if we weren’t here, I would prove it to you.”

  “Oh, so you’ll prove it to me, will you?” he challenged her, his gaze sparking with interest.

  “We could go to my old bedroom here and make a moment of it now.”

  “God no, anyplace but here.”

  “Good point,” she agreed, “so back to the motel it is, but this time we’re picking up food on the way.”

  “I presume you’re hungry,” he said, with a sigh.

  “I think I’m always hungry, but particularly when I’m burning energy.”

  As they walked back outside, toward the vehicle, he turned to her. “Did you really have something to do with those bullets?”

  “Yeah, I sure did,” she admitted. “I can shift air. I just can’t stop the gun from firing.”

  “So, you were taking a chance,” he noted, stopping and looking at her. “Those bullets still could have hit you.”

  “Sure, but they could also have hit you, and I wouldn’t let that happen.”

  He gave a shout of laughter, wrapped an arm around her, and added, “I would say, Let’s go home, but I’m not sure where home is. So, grab the bags, and go back to the motel. Tomorrow is a whole new day.”

  Chapter 15

  For all the effort of getting into the motel, by the time Blair and Legend tumbled into their motel room, laughing and giggling like kids, with a bag of takeout in their arms, the only thought Blair had in her mind was about Legend.

  He wrapped his arms around her and whispered against her ear, “Food first or …?”

  She chuckled, already lifting his T-shirt to slide her hands underneath, feeling the smooth expanse of his bare chest. “You can eat,” she murmured. “I’ll feast on something else.”

  He burst out laughing and quickly shucked his clothes, only stopping when she placed her hands on his boxers and slowly lowered them herself. He sucked in his breath, as her hands found him. He whispered, “You’re wearing way too many clothes.”

  “Not for long,” she replied quietly, as she slowly slipped his boxers all the way down to his ankles, helping him to step out of them, while she feasted on the proud manhood in front of her. She quickly slid her hands up the back of his thighs and around the inside, stroking and soothing the leg muscles, while watching his erection twitch with each inhaled breath as she got closer and closer to the area he really wanted her to touch.

  Slowly she slid her hand over the top of his firm erection, grasping it gently in one hand, sliding her hand down and back up, as her other hand kept exploring. He stood, his stance wide apart, breathing heavily.

  “Good Christ, at this rate, it’ll be over before it’s begun.”

  She gave him a cheeky look. “Then we’ll just have to do it again. I am a teacher, you know, and practice is part of an everyday schedule.”

  His eyes opened wide, and he looked at her for a moment blankly. Then he started to chuckle and, within seconds, had her picked up and flying through the air, where he tossed her onto the bed. “Yeah, I’m all for any lessons you think you want to teach me, and believe me, I’ll be a very attentive pupil,” he replied, as he came down on top of her.

  “In that case, you really need to start with some basics. You have no clothes on, and I’ve got way too many, so this just won’t work.” He waggled his eyebrows, and, with an example of his deftness, she was suddenly stripped down to the buff. She shrieked with laughter. “Oh my, apparently no lessons will be required after all.”

  “Just the ones that are fun,” he noted, as he lowered his head and slowly draped his heavily muscled body atop her frame, giving her every chance to pull back, but she wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him even closer.

  “I waited a long time for you to finally make your way back home again,” she murmured.

  He nuzzled her nose gently and nodded. “I was always home. I just couldn’t quite get my mind wrapped around how it was supposed to work.”

  “That’s because you let that magnificent brain of yours interfere, but there are times when you’re just supposed to let things happen.”

  He smiled, gently kissed her once and then twice, before she protested.

  “Now let’s do it properly,” she ordered.

  “Yes, ma’am,” he said, and, with a twinkle in his eyes, he lowered his head and kissed her deeply, their tongues warring in remembrance of times gone by.

  She sighed against his lips and whispered, “Much better.” She wrapped her legs around his hips, pulling him even closer. “I didn’t think we would ever get here,” she whispered.

  “Well, we are now, so we can forget about all that time in between.”

  She nodded and held him tight, then slowly slid her hands down to his buttocks and dug in her nails. He yelped gently, and she laughed. “That’s just in case you think you would spend all of our time here socializing,” she murmured.

  “Never with you,” he noted. “As I recall, you are all about getting to the point.”

  “Oh, I like to take my time too,” she added, “but not after it’s taken us this long to get back here again.”

  “Oh, I can agree with that,” he replied, his voice thickening with passion. He used his knees to spread her thighs wide and settled between them.

  However, instead of entering her, as she thought he would, he slowly dropped his head and took his time, as he made a pathway down to her breasts, first one and then the other, before slowly slipping down farther and farther.

  He spent several moments at the smooth muscles along her abdomen and then at her hips, her belly, his fingers going all the way down to her toes and under her feet. She gasped and giggled, as he slid up the inside of her arch. He smiled, but, just as she relaxed, he dropped his mouth against her plump outer lips and gently suckled. She shuddered, coming apart in his arms, the orgasm striking her so fast and hard that she wasn’t even ready for it.

  When it came again and then again, she was a bundle of jelly, quivering in his arms, before he finally made his way up and positioned himself at the entrance to her. He looked down at her. “Remember.”