Beautiful Burn (The Maddox Brothers #4) (22 page)

He looked around, over each shoulder, like whatever he had left behind might have followed him.

“But you feel better eventually, right?” I asked.

“I’ll let you know when it happens,” Liam said, standing.

Tyler rounded the corner but stopped when he recognized Liam and me sitting at the bar together.

“Best be off to the meeting,” Liam said.

“Good talk,” I said, raising my cup.

Liam clinked his empty glass to mine, and then left for the conference room.

Tyler paused for just a few seconds before making his way over to me. “What are you drinking?”

“Sprite. Get your own.”

He shook his head, scanning the lobby. “I’m a Cherry Coke guy.”

“Where’s Taylor?” I asked.

“Not here. Not yet, anyway. He called me earlier. He met a girl.”

“Here? A local?”

He shrugged. “He didn’t have a lot of time to talk. I guess she’s a waitress or something.”

“Interesting. Oh, fuck. Tyler,” I said, seeing Agent Trexler stop at the front desk. He flirted with Darby the desk clerk for a few seconds before heading toward the automatic doors, noticing Tyler as he passed through. When he didn’t stop, I exhaled a sigh of relief.

“Taylor’s got a handle on it,” Tyler said.

“How?”

“He just does. Gotta go.”

To my surprise, Tyler leaned down to kiss my cheek before following Liam to the conference room. When he opened the door, I saw a lot of official-looking people standing at the head of the table, holding down the newly unrolled papers fighting to return to their previous position. There were phone calls being made, tapping on iPads, and typing on laptops. The hotshots were standing around, waiting for orders while the TAC team gathered information. I saw some of my boys for half a second before the doors closed, arms crossed and looking tough until Puddin’ caught a glimpse of me and waved like a kid seeing his parents from the stage at a school recital.

“Hanging in there, Stavros?” Darby asked, leaning on the bar. Her white button-down was perfectly pressed, her red lips matte and perfectly lined, her black slacks lint-free, and her honey-colored mid-ponytail pulled tight, not a single hair out of place. With her curves and million-dollar smile, I wondered if Darby was a former pageant queen. Every movement she made was elegant, every smile planned.

I glanced over at her, immediately suspicious. Trexler had been flirting with her earlier. Maybe she was an agent, too.

“The firefighters don’t tip,” Stavros grumbled. “And so far, all of them are straight.”

“It’s been like this for a week,” Darby said, resting her chin on the heel of her hand.

I felt my body stiffen, worried to say or do anything that might help Trexler with his investigation of Tyler’s family.

“Are you all right?” Darby asked.

“Who was that guy who just left? The one who talked to you before rushing out the door?”

“Trex?” she asked, her eyes instantly sparkling at the sound of his name on her lips.

“Yeah,” I said.

“He’s a firefighter, staying here until the fire is out. He’s like … some kind of special crew. He’s not a hotshot or ground crew. He doesn’t really talk about it.”

“Like fire secret service?” I asked, only half-teasing.

She giggled, although the sound seemed awkward coming from her, as if she wasn’t used to laughing. “Probably. He’s about that uptight.”

“So you don’t know him?” I asked, wondering why he’d lied to her.

“A little.”

“Just a little?” Stavros said with a smirk.

“What about you?” Darby asked, combing through her hair with her fingers. Her brown eyes reminded me of Tyler’s: warm with gold tones and a lot of hurt behind them. “I’m guessing you’re a reporter from your card.”

“Photographer. I’m following the Alpines around.”

“Oh. I’ve met Taylor Maddox and Zeke Lund. They’re sweethearts. They’ve been hanging out with Trex.”

“They have?” I asked, confused.

“Yeah. Been up in his room almost every night since they got here.”

“How long has Trex been here?”

Darby shrugged, glancing behind her to check that no one was at the desk. “Two weeks. He got here before the fire started.”

My eyebrows pulled together. “That’s kind of weird.”

She smiled. “Maybe it’s not the fire secret service. Maybe it’s fire secret psychic.”

A family of four breezed in through the automatic doors, approaching the desk. Darby hopped up and returned to her station, greeting them with her red-rimmed smile.

The conference door opened, hemorrhaging hotshots and TAC team officials. I saw more than just my crew in there, and I wondered how many had been called to the Colorado Springs fire.

Tyler and Runt stood next to me, looking like father and son instead of crewmates. Runt was two heads shorter than Tyler, but just as strong. Like the other guys, Runt had leaned out over fire season, but even though he was the newest and smallest, he was usually the last one in the truck at the end of the day.

“What’s the verdict?” I asked.

Tyler crossed his arms, scanning the crowd forming in the lobby. “It’s deep. We’re going to ride in as far as we can, and then take a helo to the fire site. Alpine has the eastern edge.”

“Should I get my gear?” I asked.

Tyler cringed. “No.”

“What do you mean
no
? When are we headed out?”

“We’re not.”

I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”

“You’re not cleared to go. It’s a fast-moving fire. They’ve already had some close calls. The winds are changing by the hour, and it’s just not safe, Ellie.”

“It’s never
safe
,” I hissed.

“The only safe zone is the black.”

“Then I’ll shoot the black.”

“I won’t be in the black. They need me on the fire line.”

I turned my back to him, fuming. The decision wasn’t his, but knowing that didn’t help. “Did you at least stick up for me?”

“He vouched for you, Ellie,” Runt said. “We all did.”

“I could probably get my red card by now. This is some sexist bullshit,” I growled.

Tyler sighed. “There are half a dozen women out there right now. It’s not sexism; it’s a safety issue. No civilians on the mountain. They’ll reconsider when it’s closer to being controlled.”

I turned to him. “Are you fucking kidding me? Are you saying if I had a dick they wouldn’t let me up there with my press pass? A fire is never controlled. It’s never safe. You don’t know what it’s going to do. We all just hope it goes our way up there. Now I’m going to be shooting the horizon and the ground pounders mopping up when it’s over.”

“I told you not to come,” Tyler said, impatient with my tantrum. “We have to go. I’ll see you when I get back.”

“Get me out there,” I called after him. “Maddox!”

The crowd in the lobby quieted and watched Tyler walk away from me toward the elevators. I turned to face Stavros, trying to hold back angry tears.

“You said ‘dick,’” Stavros said. “I like you already.”

“Pour me a vodka tonic.”

Stavros smiled. “Really?”

“Really.”

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

My fingers were spread out in my lap, all ten ink-stained and covered in dirt. I intertwined them, touching the knuckles of my thumbs to my forehead and closing my eyes but praying to no one. Echoes of movement traveled down the hall to my cell, and my knee began to bob again. This was the first time I’d been arrested without knowing my father would have me freed within the hour.

Tears stung the gash on my cheek, just one of several wounds the forest had left on my body while I’d tried to trudge through the thick trees and dry, razor-sharp branches. My head was still swirling from the countless vodka tonics that had helped me decide to sneak into the black.

The bars rolled to the right, and the sheriff’s deputy caught the gate just before it crashed into the wall.

“You got some friends in high places, Edson,” he said.

I stood, holding my hand in front of my face to block out the bright light. “Who?” I asked.

“You’ll find out soon enough,” he said.

I stepped out, hoping to God the person on the other side of the wall wasn’t my father.

The deputy guided me by the arm to a small room where Trex sat in a folded chair. He stood, reaching out to take me from the deputy’s grasp.

“Don’t speak,” Trex whispered.

“We’re releasing Miss Edson into your custody, Agent Trexler. We assume you’ll make sure she’s not in a restricted area again?”

“She’ll be up north. Nowhere near the fire,” Trex said.

We walked down a long hallway into the front of the county jail. Tyler was sitting in one of the dozen or so chairs lining the white wall, his head in his hands. When the door closed behind us, he looked up.

“Oh, thank Christ,” he said, standing up and pulling me against his chest. He kissed my hair, breathed me in, and then held me at arm’s length.

I cringed, knowing what he would say.

“What the fuck were you thinking, Ellison? I mean … what in the actual
fuck
?”

“Not here,” Trex said, holding open the front door.

Tyler grabbed my hand and pulled me through, following Trex down the sidewalk to an Audi much like my father’s. Trex opened the back door for me, and I sat, sliding over when Tyler began to climb in next to me. Once the door shut, the yelling began again.

“Do you have any idea how scared I was when I got the call?” he seethed. “Do you have any fucking clue how much trouble you could have been in—how much trouble we
all
could have been in—if Taylor hadn’t gotten Trex involved? Do you know what that would have done to me if something had happened to you?”

“I’m sorry,” I said. “I wasn’t trying to get you fired.”

Tyler grabbed my shoulders. “
Fired
?” He shook his head, releasing me before sitting back against the seat. “Goddamn it, Ellie, I thought you were dead.”

Guilt overwhelmed me, and the past six hours of wandering in the black, slightly intoxicated, and then getting fully booked into the system after my arrest finally hit me. “I’m really,
really
sorry. That was so stupid. I wasn’t thinking.”

“That tends to happen when you’re drunk,” he snapped.

“I’d only had two drinks,” I said, immediately feeling guilty for lying. It didn’t take long for me to resort to old habits.

Tyler raised an eyebrow, dubious. “You’re really going to lie me? After I just pulled a hundred strings to get you out of jail?”

“I’m not.” I paused, shrinking from Tyler’s glare. “Lying.”

“Wow. Okay, then,” he said, facing forward.

“Technically, I was the one who pulled all the strings,” Trex said.

I frowned at Tyler. “How did you get him to do it?”

Tyler looked down, frustrated. “Don’t ask how, Ellie. Just say thank you.”

“To who? The FBI? I want to know. What’s in it for you, Agent Trexler?” I feared the worst: that Taylor or Tyler had agreed to share information about their brother in return for Trex’s help.

“It’s not agent anymore,” Trex said. I wasn’t sure if he sounded deflated or relieved.

“What?” I asked.

Tyler nodded. “He’s serious. He no longer works for the bureau. Apparently his boss is a real dick.”

Trex breathed out a laugh, somehow finding humor in the situation.

“How did he pull strings, then?” I asked.

Tyler sighed. “He just did, Ellie.”

“
Why?
” I insisted. “What did you do in return, Tyler?”

“It’s what you’re
not
going to do,” Trex said.

“All of us,” Tyler said.

I crossed my arms and narrowed my eyes. “What are you talking about? What do you mean?”

“Darby,” Trex said.

“Darby?” My nose wrinkled. “She thinks you’re a hotshot,” I said, my tone accusatory.

“I’m aware. Did you tell her otherwise?” Trex asked.

“No,” I said.

“Good. We need to keep it that way,” Tyler said. “That’s the deal.”

“That we let Trex lie to Darby?” I asked. “Who is she?”

“Just a girl,” Trex said. “But you blow my cover with her, and you’re back in that cell.”

I settled back into my seat, unhappy about his conditions. “You’re not going to hurt her, are you?”

He grimaced, his thick eyebrows pulling together. “That’s the point, Ellison. Do you agree or not?”

I looked up at Tyler. “Do you trust him?”

“He got you out of jail, didn’t he?”

I pressed my lips into a hard line, shaking my head. “You’re not investigating her?” I asked.

“No,” Trex said simply.

“Fine,” I snapped. “You’re a hotshot.”

I could see Trex smiling in the rearview mirror. “Thank you,” he said.

When we arrived at the hotel, I passed Darby. She waved at me, and I smiled, hoping Trex was telling the truth. I had talked her again during my fourth-ish drink, and from what I could remember, she was in Colorado Springs to start over, running away from someone or something. Darby didn’t need more trouble. She’d been hurt enough.

Tyler walked me to my room, pausing just outside my door. He looked pained over what he was about to say. “I know you’ve had a long day, but I need you to go in and pack your bags.”

“What? Why?”

“Because Trex might have gotten you out of jail, but Chief is beyond pissed. He wants you back in Estes Park. He’s already called Jojo.”

I covered my face. “Fuck.
Fuck
… Because of one mistake?”

“Sneaking into a restricted area, and then getting arrested is a big one.” He looked down the hall at nothing, having a hard time looking me in the eye.

“Am I out for good?”

“I don’t know. Give me some time to talk to him. I’m going to let him cool off first.”

I exhaled, wishing I could rewind the day and start over. “What about you? Are you still mad?”

Tyler’s jaw clenched, and then he folded his arms around me. I closed my eyes, pressing my cheek against his chest. There was nowhere safer for me than Tyler. “I’m just glad you’re okay,” he said.

“Stay with me,” I whispered.

He kissed my hair. “A car will be waiting for you outside in fifteen minutes. Chief wants you on the road heading north. I’m just here long enough to make sure you’re packed, checked out, and on the road. Then I have to get back to fire camp.”