Brianna's Navy SEAL (20 page)

Brianna's breath caught in her chest, her voice erased by her surprise.

"It's okay.” Before she recovered, he kissed her again, this time with much more purpose. And need. He deepened the kiss and the boldness of his strokes on her body, making love to her with more passion and desperation than he ever had before.

She couldn't catch her breath, or slow him down to figure out what was wrong. She wanted to believe he was reacting to her being missing for a few hours, purging his fear. But she was afraid it was much worse than that.

They came together, clutching each other and gasping. Brie wept, and Cable looked like he would have if he'd been capable. But he said nothing else, and she decided to play ostrich and pretend it would go away if she ignored it.

But she knew better.

He didn't do it right away.

Brianna waited for Cable to break up with her in the morning, but when breakfast passed with him not getting close to her but otherwise treating her normally, she realized he wouldn't do it at his sister's house, not during a holiday visit. So she went along with the pretend and acted like everything was fine.

They had a nice New Year's with Alena and Frank. Not quite quiet, with the boys hanging around and being rambunctious, but nice. They could keep pretending to be family, though Brianna found it hard to remember that it was just pretend.

Then everything changed.

"Who?"

Frank's bark into the phone halted the conversation around the breakfast bar. Brianna held her breath when he glanced at Cable, his expression unreadable but significant. Cable moved closer to him. They all listened, even the boys, to Frank's unenlightening side of the conversation.

"When? How many? What did he say? All right. Yeah, I'll find out. We'll be there in half an hour.” He hung up, pointed to the hallway, and waited for his sons to leave the room. Brianna opened her mouth, but he held out a hand. “Upstairs,” he called, and they heard grumbles from the hallway, followed by footsteps on the wooden stairs.

Frank turned to Cable. “Do you know a guy named James Omeron?"

Cable's expression didn't change. “I taught him in BUD/S. He washed out before Hell Week."

"Apparently, that was your fault."

"It was years ago. Why would he be trying to pay me back now?"

Frank shrugged. “All I know is, the guys assigned to investigate Brianna's abduction followed some leads, learned ‘Gip’ was some guy's BUD/S name. He stayed connected with some of the other guys, and over the past few years he's been building a vigilante network. No idea how he learned you guys would be here, though."

Brianna left the kitchen. She didn't know if she was more annoyed that this guy unfairly blamed Cable for his own weaknesses, or that Frank and Cable were ignoring her completely. She knew they were about to go down to the station, and she'd be damned if they'd go without her.

They were opening the front door when she came back downstairs with her purse. She set her jaw when Cable looked at her, but he only held the door and waited for her to go through.

Maybe because Frank was with them, they were buzzed right into the station where Omeron was being held. Cable's brother-in-law led them through a maze of offices and cubicles to a blank door, where they were joined by a tall, gray-haired detective with his badge hooked to his belt.

"Tom, this is Brianna Macgregor, the abductee.” Brie shook his hand while Frank introduced Cable.

"Thanks for coming down so quickly. We need you both to make identifications and sign some statements.” He shook his head. “Whatever you did, man, this guy hates you."

"I made him do pushups,” Cable said.

They filed into the little room that looked, surprisingly to Brianna, just like the observation rooms on TV. Long and narrow, the room contained a row of straight chairs and a large window that was obviously two-way. On the other side of the glass, the man who'd drugged her sat at a table, looking insolent.

She'd expected emotion, but not the rage that flooded her. She wanted to smash through the window, take the asshole by surprise, and pound on his face. She inhaled deeply, held it, and let it seep out. Cable watched her until she'd relaxed.

"You okay?” he asked.

She nodded. “Just don't let me near the fucker."

The expletive startled a laugh out of him. They all sat in front of the mirror, and a man Brianna hadn't noticed before settled at a little table with a legal pad.

"Do you recognize this man?” Tom asked.

"He's the one who drugged me."

They walked her through her statement as she described, again, the events of the other night and confirmed that James Omeron, the man in the other room, had been one of the men. Then Cable confirmed his former relationship with the man, and the transcriber left the room.

"That's all we'll need now,” Tom told them, rubbing his hands together. “The prosecutor will be in touch with you both about possible testimony."

"Possible?” Brie asked. Surely they had enough to charge and try him.

Tom nodded. “He has to be arraigned first, and probably won't make bail if the prosecutor can convince the judge he's still a danger. Then he could plead guilty, which means no trial. Or his attorney could make a motion that derails the whole thing. You never know. It could be years before anything happens."

"Will you put us on a notification list if he's released at any point?” Cable requested, and Tom agreed. Then he ushered them back outside.

"Seems anticlimactic,” Brie said as they descended the steps of the station. “After all the drama of the attack, I expected a bigger deal."

"Don't knock it.” Cable's tone was flat, and she knew things hadn't changed. He still planned to end it. And she didn't know how to stop him.

The rest of the visit passed uneventfully, with neither of them saying very much, while Alena cast worried and angry looks at them alternately.

"Thanks for coming, sweetie, even if it wasn't the best New Year for you.” She hugged Brianna. “Keep in touch, okay?"

"I will.” Brie hugged her back. Despite what had happened and what was coming, she'd made a friend, one she knew she'd value. “I have your e-mail address and phone number. And snail mail address,” she added when Alena pulled a pen out of her pocket.

"I expect more than holiday cards, you know.” She glared fiercely at her brother. “He doesn't have to sign them.” Her smile was sad when she turned back to Brianna. “Call me."

It was obvious she knew this relationship was over, too, and Brianna wondered if she was the only one who didn't think it was a good idea.

She thought about that on the flight and then the drive home. Cable had replaced his Expedition with a Highlander hybrid. Brianna liked it much better, but decided, by the time Cable pulled into her driveway, that her opinion on his vehicle was less than meaningless.

Cable turned off the ignition and they sat for a minute, silent. She didn't want to, but eventually Brianna asked if he wanted to come in.

Cable looked at her. “Not tonight. I'll help you with your stuff—"

"I've got it.” If he wasn't going to break up with her tonight, she didn't want to deal with the agony of having him near. “It's only one bag.” She climbed out of the truck and sighed when Cable did, too. But he only retrieved her suitcase from the back and handed it to her. Without a kiss, or a touch. But wearing that goddamned somber expression, like he regretted what he knew he was going to do.

She couldn't face it anymore.

"Thanks for the trip, Cable. I enjoyed your family.” She turned away before he could respond, and he didn't follow her.

School was typically crazy the next day, trying to get the kids to settle down after the long break. It didn't help that it snowed in the middle of the day. Just a dusting, not enough to make travel dangerous, but enough to make the kids prefer oohing and ahhing out the window to doing math tiles or spelling pretests. Brianna only got a glimpse of Cable in the hall as he brought his afternoon class to his room and she led hers to phys ed. He smiled normally, but his eyes had the same expression he'd worn the night before.

He stopped at her room after the kids had been dismissed.

"You want to do dinner?” he asked, leaning on the doorjamb. He wouldn't even come into the room.

"No, thanks.” She prowled, restoring loose supplies and retrieving dropped papers. “I'd prefer you just do it now."

"Do what?"

She stopped, exasperated. “Shall I lead you through it?” She lowered her voice. “Brianna, I don't think we should see each other anymore. It's too dangerous.” Back to her normal voice. “But Cable, danger is everywhere. Lois Joyson was killed in the construction zone two weeks ago. I know, Brianna, but I can't deliberately put you in danger. It's not fair to you.” She stopped and sighed. “The truth is, Cable, it's not fair to you, either. I can argue all I want to about the fact that I'm already in danger, that people know I'm close to you, and that they won't care if you break up with me. I can tell you that you can protect me better if we're together. But just as you can't put me in danger, I can't put you in fear.” That truth weighed more heavily than his intentions did. She sat in one of the little chairs at the art table, weary.

"I love you, Cable, so I can't put you under that kind of pressure."

Cable stared at her, not liking the way this was going. She'd been right on the money about his arguments, but he hadn't anticipated hers. And now he wanted to argue the other side. The reasons why they should stay together. Because it didn't feel so noble now, trying to separate her from him. It felt cowardly.

"I'm okay, Cable.” She straightened, took a deep breath, and stood. “I understand. And I want you to be safe. Maybe you never will be, but I'll always make you less so."

Still he didn't know what to say. “I never wanted this, Brie."

"I know.” She retrieved her bag from her desk and flipped off the lights. She was close enough to embrace now, but he knew that would be a mistake. She looked up at him, and unshed tears glistened. He felt a flutter of panic and squashed it.

"You can't run from your past.” She blinked, which made a tear fall. She didn't wipe it away. “Sid turned out to not be a threat, and Gip was caught, but how many more are there? I can't let you always wonder who's next.” She grimaced. “And to be honest, I don't think I could live with that tension, either.” She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek. “I'll see you around."

He watched her lock her classroom door and walk down the hall, her stride containing no energy. He hated the hole this opened up in his life, in his chest. A hole he'd always thought would be filled someday. That he thought
had
been filled. But now he wondered how he could have thought it. How he could have believed he could break his past, present, and future into parts that had no bearing on each other. Brianna was right. Someone new could always arise to threaten those he cared about. Brianna, her family, his family. His kids.

His heart stuttered in his chest.

His kids.

"Is there a true threat?” Steve Dvorak asked again, pacing around Cable and his desk in a fretful circle. “I mean, have they sent letters threatening the kids or anything?"

"No.” Cable had gone into combat mode. Complete stillness and absence of emotion had descended on him, and he'd carried that with him to the principal's office. “There have been no direct threats or announcements of intentions. I don't think the person who torched my truck has anything to do with my past, and he wouldn't hurt the kids. He's just a jealous suitor."

"Ah.” Steve nodded. “Ken Salzer. Brianna talked to me about him. There's no proof of his involvement, I understand, so she didn't go to the police.” His lips curved briefly. “I believe Brianna has adequately taken care of Ken. However, there is the matter of her abduction in Florida.” He glanced at Cable out of the corner of his eye. “Will this Gip character send someone else after you? Does he know where to find you?"

"Carothers did. He Googled me. If that piss-ant can figure it out, so can these guys. They're organized, equipped, and focused.” He shook his head. “I don't think they'll do anything without Gip's leadership, and he's not used to leading from jail. His network doesn't extend that far."

Steve stopped pacing and looked out the window. “We don't have any substitutes available to take over your class."

"I think you should start looking.” It was one of the hardest things he'd ever had to say. “There have been three attacks on me, my property, or people I care about. I can't assume no one else is a threat. I can't risk putting these kids in danger."

"Of course not. But we have no evidence that they are.” He turned back, looking determined. “We'll try to obtain a new substitute. I don't think we'll be able to get Dina back from maternity leave, but I'll contact her first. If she won't, I'll get right on finding a replacement.” He peered anxiously at him from under his eyebrows. “You'll stay on until we find one?"

Cable stifled a sigh. Once he'd realized the danger, he'd wanted to get far from everyone. But Steve wasn't wrong. He didn't
know
there was danger. And he couldn't leave them without a good educator, either. “All right. I'll stay. But don't dally about it, Steve."

"Of course not.” But he looked relieved, and Cable knew he'd have to keep the pressure on or he'd be “forgetting” to get around to it.

He trudged out of the school, feeling heavier than he ever remembered. He'd had responsibility for a lot of people in his life. The citizens he protected as a cop, the perpetrators he tried to bring to justice, and his fellow officers on the force. Then his SEAL team, the men he fought with and the men he led. Knowing any of them could die at any time was a burden, but it had been tempered by the knowledge that they'd chosen to be there.

How could he put that burden on anyone else?

Brianna could handle it. He knew she could. She'd shown that in Florida. But why would she want to?

She didn't, he reminded himself. She'd agreed to remove herself from the equation. But the kids were a whole different matter, something he'd never considered when he went into teaching.