Beyond the Past (15 page)

Chapter 38

Gabby slowly came to consciousness, her neck a little stiff and her arm wrapped around Lucas. She smiled, feeling content as she listened to his soft snores.

Sitting up, she looked at him. His head rested against the back of the couch with his mouth slightly open. As she studied his strong jaw and the little lines around his eyes, her body heated, despite the chill in the air. Glancing over at the fireplace, she noted the flames had almost burned out, and she wondered how long they had slept. She looked out the picture window and saw the grey day had darkened a little, leading her to believe it must be late afternoon. At least, the snow had stopped, and she couldn’t see any of the footprints from their walk.

She wondered again what Lucas’s vision meant. She kind of got the feeling he wasn’t telling her everything, but quickly dismissed it.

Cuddling with him on the couch felt so right—like her life had been missing a few puzzle pieces, and with Lucas by her side, everything was complete.

Leaning in, she gently kissed his jaw, loving the feeling of his whiskers under her lips, the scent of shampoo and a light twinge of sweat. Desire for the man she loved coiled in her belly, and she kissed him again, moving her hand over his chest. How she longed to feel the once deep ridges and valleys of his muscles. However, even in his thinner form, she found him attractive and she wanted him.

She brushed her lips lightly over his. Her hand moved to his waist, and he opened his eyes. They stared at each other a moment and Lucas gathered her in his arms to pull her onto his lap.

As she straddled him, she felt the long, thick length between her legs, and desire pulsated through her body.

Bringing her mouth to his, she realized she would never get over this man. They’d been together through thick and thin as children and adults. Theirs was a true storybook romance, one to outlast the ages and the trials and tribulations of modern life.

He lightly ran his hands up and down her torso, barely skimming her bruised ribs as he ground his hips into her core. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she settled into him, pressing her chest to his.

A moment later, he stood, taking her with him, and then laid her out on the couch.  As he loomed over her, she noticed the bulge in his jeans and reached out to stroke it. He closed his eyes as she did so, and then stepped away.

Without a word, he pulled off her jeans and underwear, then helped her sit up and he removed her turtleneck and sweater. Her nipples hardened at the chilly temperature, but her body heated further as Lucas leaned down and slowly traced the hard peak with his tongue.

He peppered her torso with light kisses, and her breath caught as he gently kissed her stomach, laid his hands on her bent knees, and pushed her legs open.

She closed her eyes when his hot tongue found her slick center, and she groaned as he lightly stroked her nipples, his mouth suckling her, licking her, kissing her private flesh.

He traced his fingertips down her ribcage and to her inner thighs, then wrapped his arms around her legs and met her gaze as he continued his ministrations. Slowly, he lifted his tongue up her core, circling her swollen nub, never breaking eye contact. Her breath hitched as he suckled her, and her orgasm came barreling down on her as if she would light up from the inside.

Lucas plunged his tongue into her, and she threw her head back and laced her fingers through his hair. “Don’t stop,” she whispered. “Please, don’t stop.”

The chuckle emanating from his throat sent vibrations through her flesh, increasing her need to climax.

She gyrated her hips against his mouth, quickly traveling to the place of utter bliss as Lucas lapped at her.

Just as she reached her peak, he pulled away.

“No!” she shouted, gazing at him as he stood. He hastily shucked his t-shirt and unfastened his belt, letting his jeans fall to the floor, his thick sex bobbing at his hips, ready to be used. He knelt down between her legs on the couch and lifted her hips as she tried to sit up.

“Stay where you are,” he ordered, and she complied as she couldn’t sit up with the bruise on her ribcage, anyway.

His hips slammed into hers, and she gasped as he filled her. They both panted as her body got used to the invasion.

“Good God, I missed you,” he said a moment later, withdrawing and sliding back into her. “It’s you and me, Gabby. It always has been.”

She nodded as her body hummed and her core pulsed around his shaft as he ground his hips into her, going deeper. She laid her hands above her head and stared at him, a light sheen of sweat glistening across his chest and shoulders. He shut his eyes as he moved, and the low light from the fireplace cast dancing shadows across his face and torso.

A moment later, he gazed down at her and grinned. “You look so fucking beautiful,” he whispered. “You cheeks are pink, your tits look amazing, and you are so tight and so hot. You’re so ready to come for me.”

He pressed his thumb onto her clitoris, and bolts of pleasure tore through her. As he drove his cock harder and deeper within her, she again reached the edge, gripping the back of the couch for leverage. Lucas swirled his digit over her nub in a slow, torturous circle, slammed his hips into her, and her world went black, except for the stars bursting beneath her lids. She cried out as her back arched and waves of gratification moved throughout her body.

Lucas tightly grabbed her legs and she heard his breathing increase as his hip movement hastened. “We belong together, Gabby,” he said, “we always have. It’s supposed to be that way. I love you, Gabby, do you hear me?”

She opened her eyes as he spilled within her with a loud shout, his head thrown back, the tendons in his neck taut and his screwed shut. A few moments later, he sat back on his haunches, breathing hard, and gazed down at her.

“Do you hear me?” he whispered, slipping out of her.

Standing, he helped her to her feet and gently kissed her.

“Do you hear me, Gabby?” he repeated. “I love you. We belong together, babe. You and me.”

She studied him, his eyes pleading for some type of response. As they stood naked together, she couldn’t image them being any more vulnerable or raw.

Trying to fight him would be futile, and she knew everything he said was the truth. They did belong together and had too much history and too strong of a connection for it to be broken. “Yes,” she whispered, “I hear you.”

Lucas grinned and folded his arm around her shoulder. “Thank God,” he whispered against her lips as he kissed her. “Us. We’re better together than apart, Gabby. We always have been.”

“It’s about time you realized that.” She slipped her arms around his waist and laid her head against his chest.

“Sometimes, I’m not very bright.”

Gabby chucked. “No, Lucas. That’s an understatement. Sometimes, you are a complete and utter moron.”

“Hey, now. That’s not fair.”

She gazed up at him and smiled. “I think it is.”

He kissed the tip of her nose and grinned. “Okay, you win. I can be a moron. Will you sleep with the moron tonight?” he asked, leading her down the hallway.

She nodded and placed her arm around his waist. “I would love to.”

He slowly caressed her arms and shoulders, sending tingles across her skin. Pulling back the covers, he motioned for her to slip in.

As she lay back on the pillow, he pulled up the covers to her chin, and stared down at her.

“I’m embarrassed by what I let happen to me,” he whispered, his cheeks reddening. “I hate that I let myself become this.” He motioned to his torso.

Gabby took him in. Yes, she preferred his stocky, thick frame, but she still loved him, no matter what he looked like.

Her gaze traveled over his chest, down his torso to his waist, and down to his legs. She couldn’t help but grin as she noticed his cock growing larger the longer she stared at it.

“You’ll get your body back, Lucas. And I love you with or without your muscles.”

He smiled and crawled into bed next to her.

As he spooned her and pulled her close under the purple and yellow quilt, tears stung her eyes. His arms around her gave safety and comfort; his heart beating against her back offered her love. She never wanted to lose this minute of complete bliss and contentment. In their little slice of the world, time had stopped, and she’d be happy if it stayed that way and they spent the rest of their days in the deep darkness of a night in the wilderness.

“Let me love you,” he whispered into her hair. “Please forgive me.”

Taking a deep breath, she nodded, and Lucas wrapped himself around her tighter.

As her eyes shut, there wasn’t any doubt in her mind that this was exactly where she was supposed to be.

Chapter 39

“Do you know who he is?” Lucas asked Joe as they sat at the kitchen table with Thomas, Garrett, and Gabby.

Joe nodded, and Lucas felt the satisfaction of revenge roll through him. It had been two days since his last contact with Joe, and he’d done little else but keep the fire going and make love to Gabby. He’d also made sure they were well-fed and that he went for his run everyday. Between the healthy food, being in his wife’s good graces, and the exercise, everyday, he became stronger physically and mentally.

Jerrod and his vision never strayed far from his thoughts, and the more he considered the images he’d seen, the more he grew convinced his initial assessment had been correct—if he and Jerrod battled, it would be a toss up on who would be the victor.

Lucas had every intention of making sure it was him.

“Who is he?” Gabby asked.

“His real name is Neal Jerrod,” Joe said as Thomas slid a manila folder in front of him. He opened it and scanned the typewritten page. “Neil Jerrod, age thirty eight. He served time in Iraq and Afghanistan, and was pulled from duty after he gunned down two civilian women.”

“Oh, my God,” Gabby said, slipping her hand into Lucas’s under the table. 

“I don’t believe He was present when the two women met their unfortunate demise,” Joe commented, still looking that the paper. “Obviously, the man should have been court marshaled, but he wasn’t. It was as if he disappeared in a puff of smoke, his file sealed and most of it redacted.”

“Where did he go?” Garrett asked, sitting back in his chair and chewing on a toothpick.

“It seems he was tapped for a special unit within the military. It doesn’t have a name, but I’ve been studying the members for quite a while and given it the name of Group Nine. It is made up of black operatives who perform the dirty work the other parts of government don’t want to touch. In turn, the members are given immunity for their crimes. In essence, they are untouchable as long as they are following orders.”

“So basically, they get paid to be bad guys,” Garrett said.

“In essence, yes. They are like ghosts, and very difficult to track. This Neal character doesn’t even have a credit card in his name, or in the name of Jerrod Stern.”

“Why do you call them Group Nine?” Gabby asked.

Joe smiled. “Originally, I could firmly tie nine members to the group. It’s not a very creative name, but then again, I’m not an artist.”

Lucas stared at the table. They dealt with something from spy books and movies. He’d heard of agencies like the CIA having clandestine operations, but he’d never imagined black operatives existing in the military as the organization thrived on rules, regulations, and strict codes of conduct. It seemed to go against everything the military believed in.

“After doing a little more research into him, I believe I can track him back to five murders this year, including the death of Corporal James Freeman.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?” Lucas exclaimed.

Joe peered over the top of his glasses. “I’m sorry. I thought—”

“I never told him,” Garrett said, leaning forward and placing his arms on the table while removing the toothpick from his mouth.

“James is dead?” he asked as Gabby squeezed his hand. He remembered his vision of the incident, but had hoped it had been erroneous. It hadn’t been a pretty way to go, and he imagined the kid’s final moments had been filled with stark fear.

“Yeah, man,” Garrett said, and explained how they had all been gathered in a central location. “Brody and James were going online, looking for everyone, which we know was not allowed. They drugged us, and then had us all in this room with bags over our heads so we couldn’t see anything, but apparently, you missed that party. They blew the poor kid’s brains out to show us they meant business. We either play by their rules, or we get whacked.”

“Oh, no,” Gabby muttered.

“Based on that incident alone, we can see that this Group Nine has also taken over monitoring the calls your entire unit receives,” Joe said, glancing over the papers in front of him again.

“This Neal bastard murdered James?” he asked incredulously.

“Yeah,” Garrett said.

Just another reason Lucas would make him pay.

“So what’s the plan?” he asked, anxious to get something in motion.

“There are two ways we can approach this,” Joe said. “We can either find him, or we can let him find you.”

“I thought you said he was impossible to track,” Lucas said.

Joe glared at him over his glasses. “Nothing is impossible, Lucas. In fact, the word doesn’t exist in my day-to-day vocabulary. Everything is possible if given enough time and energy.”

Lucas nodded, feeling like a chastised child. “So, what does each of our options entail?”

“The first option, finding Neal and dealing with him, will require time. You will need to stay in this cabin, and I will try to monitor his overseers to find out where he is and when. I’m sure it will be a lot of hit and miss as people like Neal tend to move in, get the job done, and move out. There is also the problem of us not controlling where he is.”

Lucas glanced over at Gabby. If she’d known where he’d been, she’d be dead, and he could sense her understanding of that fact, as well.

“The second option is far more dangerous, but highly effective. The situation will be over quickly.”

“And that is?” Gabby asked.

“We lure him here.”

“No,” she said, shaking her head.

An almost literal explosion went off in Lucas’ brain, and he realized what the white in his vision represented—snow. The battle between him and Jerrod/Neal would take place here, amidst the snow.

“No, we have to do it here,” he murmured. “It’s the smart way to do it.”

“Lucas—”

“No, that’s the best way, Gabby,” he said, interrupting her. “Please, just think about it.”

He could practically see the proverbial wheels spinning in her head.

“This Neal is going to be difficult to find, if it can even be done, at all,” Joe said, staring at Lucas over the top of his glasses. “Everything about him has been erased. Remember, this man lives completely off the grid. He has no phone records, house payment, electric bills, or bank accounts. He is, in essence, a ghost. Therefore, my guess is he’s very comfortable moving about society and spends very little time worrying about being caught, if he even thinks of it at all. In my opinion, we are, after all, dealing with a psychopath. We also have to consider that metropolitan areas have pesky things like police stations and laws that need to be obeyed.”

Lucas read between the lines. If he went after Jerrod in a metropolitan area, he had a better chance of being caught by actual law enforcement for unlicensed guns and any other law he would break in his pursuit. If they confronted the bastard on their own turf, they’d have a home advantage, and they’d control the environment.

“We don’t even know if he’s looking for you!” Gabby exclaimed.

“Oh, but we do,” Joe said, turning his gaze to her. “We know that Lucas, and you, are his top priorities. You both are his current assignments, Gabby.”

“And how do you know that?” she asked.

Joe leaned forward. “Gabby, my methods of getting information are illegal at best, treasonable at the worst. Through many years of developing computer programs and learning the ins and outs of becoming a hacker, I’ve been able to bring together some of the best minds to work for me. Who they are doesn’t concern you, and neither do their methods. What I can tell you is that when information lands in front of me in one of these manila folders, it is correct, and has been checked and verified multiple times.” He tapped the folder in front of him.

“What if we do nothing?” she asked. “What if we just disappear like you offered?”

“We can do that,” Joe said, “but I can also guarantee you that Neal will not stop until you’re found.”

“But if he’s killed, won’t someone else just take his place?” she continued.

“I can assure you they will, but at least we will have a head start on creating your new lives,” Joe said.

“What did you have in mind?” Lucas asked.

“Like I said, I think it’s best for us to bring him to our turf, namely, this cabin. It’s isolated, and clean up will be simple. It’s much easier to remove a body from a cabin in the woods than, say, a hotel room in downtown Los Angeles.”

“And how do you get in contact with him? Do you just call his cell phone or something and tell him where we are?” Gabby asked, her voice dripping with sarcasm.

Lucas gave her hand a squeeze under the table. He understood her concern, but she also had to realize that they were up against a formidable force with government backing and no one to hold them accountable for their actions.

“No, Gabrielle, it won’t quite work that way,” Joe said, giving her a hard stare. “It will be far more intricate than that. We will infiltrate the government group’s communication center and make the message look like a transmission from his handlers, and then lead him here.”

Gabby glanced at Lucas. “I would rather run,” she murmured.

As he gazed at his wife, he noted the bruises held a green tint to them and the swelling on her face had gone down. However, he still couldn’t look at her without wanting revenge for what Neal or Jerrod, or whatever the fuck his name was, had done.

He looked at the option from each angle, and came to the conclusion that Joe’s assessment proved correct. They needed to get him up here.

He’d walked away before in hopes of protecting Gabby, and he’d failed. In this instance, he needed to confront the threat head-on to assure her safety.

He shook his head. “No, we need to do this, Gabby.”

“Lucas—“

“I’ll leave you two to discuss this,” Joe said, wheeling his chair away from the table. Thomas stood and grabbed the folder, then followed his boss. Gabby, Lucas, and Garrett trailed behind.

“Garrett and Thomas, please wait outside for a moment,” Joe said.

“Later, man,” Garrett said, giving Lucas a fist bump.

“Bye, Garrett,” Gabby whispered as he wrapped her in his thick arms and kissed her cheek.

The front door closed, and Joe turned to Lucas. “There is one last thing. If you do decide to proceed with the ambush here, Garrett cannot be directly involved. I say this simply out of selfish reasons. I need him in one piece and breathing, Lucas. He will be on the outskirts, most likely doing some monitoring, but I can’t have him in the direct line of battle.”

Lucas nodded, not wanting his friend involved anyway. This was his war, his revenge to be exacted. “I got it.”

Joe smiled. “Good night, Lucas. Sleep well, Gabby.”

Lucas opened the door for him and Joe wheeled himself down to the edge of the porch, onto the ramp, and into the running van. The vehicle slowly made its way down the snowy road and disappeared down the hill.

He shut the front door.

“I don’t like this,” Gabby said, arms crossed over her chest. “Not one bit. This seems like suicide.”

Grinning, he took her in his arms and kissed the tip of her nose. “Have a little faith in your husband, Gabby.”

“I do,” she murmured into his chest, snaking her arms around his waist. “But I just feel like I got you back, and I don’t want to lose you again.”

He stroked her hair, and they stood locked in the embrace for a long time. “I need to do this, Gabby,” he whispered. “I need to do it for you, and for me.”

“You don’t have to do anything for me,” she mumbled. “I’m fine.”

He smiled. “I’m going to do this ambush, and when it’s done, I’ll come get you and we can start our new life together, okay?”

She pulled away and looked up at him. “What do you mean, you’ll come get me?”

“Well, you’ll be safety tucked away with Joe, honey.”

She stepped back and crossed her arms over her chest again. “Oh, no, I won’t, Lucas Tate.”

“Gabby—“

“No. I’m going to be where you are, and that’s all there is to say.”

Fear coiled in his gut. “Honey, that’s just not a good idea. What if—“

“Exactly,” she interrupted. “There is a lot of room for a lot of ‘what-ifs,’ and I’m not going to be away from you.”

“Gabby—“

“No, Lucas. This is not up for debate.”

He sighed as she walked into the kitchen. He needed her to understand that this confrontation would be dangerous at best, and she had no business being anywhere near it.

Running his hand through his hair, he had a feeling it would be a long night.