Mastering the Devil (Rush Series Book 4) (9 page)

Devon swallowed as defeat crashed over her just like a tidal wave over a city. “I guess I knew that. I just so wanted to believe I could find her.”

Cash hooked his binoculars onto this utility belt. “Well, let’s go see who this house belongs too… seeing as how we’re already here.”

Moving stealthily forward, they made their way
to the opulent double wooden doors. Not expecting to find them unlocked, Cash hesitated when he found the opposite to be true. He cut his eyes to Devon and she stopped as he counted with his fingers – one, two, three. On three, he pushed the door open and stood with his weapon drawn as she swept by under his cover. He swept the room but didn’t see anything. Moving through the house, they checked each room, quietly and methodically, before moving up the wide wooden staircase.

They’d gone through each of the rooms and didn’t find anyone in the house. Seeing Cash holster his weapon, she did the same. Spotting a balcony at the end of the hall, they turned and walked towards it, hoping to get a clear view
of the lands surrounding the house. Cash stepped in front of Devon to open the multi-paned windowed doors. Once he opened the doors, he began to walk through them but stopped short, causing Devon to ram into him with a grunt of pain.

“What the hell?” she said.

His unnaturally still and tense body instantly put her on guard. Her hand went immediately to her weapon. “Devon, step back… step back now!”

She blinked as she took in his words. From years of experience of working together, she followed his words blindly, and stepped back while keeping her hand on her
weapon.

She watched as he moved forward then off to the side where he was out of her line of sight. “Cash?” she said uncertainly.

There was a hesitation, then she heard him say, “Devon, come here.”

Slowly, she rounded onto the balcony. She saw Cash standing beside someone who was sitting in one of the balcony chairs. Once she had an opportunity to take in more of the picture, she realized the person wasn’t just sitting in the chair, the person was duct-taped to the arms of the chair. When Cash slowly moved away from the figure, Devon began to shake so badly, she couldn’t keep herself upright and landed hard on her knees before Cash could catch her.

Tears blinded her and her lips trembled. Sitting not two feet away from her was the person she’d spent the last five years striving to find… the person she’d given up everything to find… the person, she’d give up everything again if need be… “Mom?” she whimpered.

Sharon Munoz’s head shifted in Devon’s direction. It was then Devon realized her mother was blindfolded. Cash knelt down beside her mother and quickly slipped the covering from her eyes. She blinked rapidly against the emergence of sunlight against her pupils.
Tears flooded her eyes when they finally focused on Devon’s. “Mijo,” she whispered.

Devon gasped and shoved forward to clutch her mother’s still restrained body against her own. Her body trembled and she struggled to contain the sobs welling up in her body. She’d found her… finally found her! “Oh,
Mom,” she cried.

Gently, Cash pried her away and began to tear against the duct tape at her mother’s arms, then her feet. Then Devon and her mother had their first real hug in more than five years. Finally, Devon pulled back and rocked back on her heels, still squatting at her mother’s feet. “What happened here, mom? Where have you been for the last five years? Have you been here? Where’s Miguel? Why didn’t…”

Devon began firing questions before Cash laid a restraining hand on her shoulder. “Devon, give your mother a chance to catch her breath. Let’s get her inside… get her a drink… let her freshen up, okay?”

She blinked up at him as rational thought began to reprocess in her brain. “Yes, yes, of course. I’m sorry, mom,” she murmured, as she helped her mother to her feet.

Once she had fully risen, both women clutched together for a long, firm embrace. “I’m missed you, mom, so much… so very much.

“Oh, my darling girl. I’ve missed you as well,” her mother whispered into her hair.

Turning, Devon helped her mother into the house. Once there, her mother pointed to the master bedroom and indicated the bathroom. “Is it okay if I use the restroom first?” her mother asked.

Devon blinked, not understanding the question. “Uhh, sure. The house is empty. Do you need help or something?”

Now it was her mother’s turn to blink as tears filled her eyes. “It’s been so long since I haven’t had to ask for permission,” she chocked.

Devon’s body tensed and she clenched her jaw to keep the rage from spilling from her lips. Swallowing hard, she said softly, “You’ll never have to ask for permission again. I swear it!”

As her mother reached the bathroom door, tears spilt and slid down Devon’s cheeks. Angrily, she swiped at them as fury beyond any she’d ever known burned in her belly. Remembering Cash’s presence, she turned her head to find him standing, leaning against the doorjamb, giving her the space she desperately needed in that moment. “I hate that son-of-a-bitch,” she rasped through her tear-cloyed throat.

Cash stood silently by several more moments, before finally speaking. “You know, none of this makes any sense, right?”

She stared at him as she willed her emotions to quiet so she could once again think clearly. “You mean, like why she was left here all alone? Yeah, I got that. Any ideas?” she asked.

Pushing away from the jamb, he shoved his hands into the front pockets of his well-worn jeans, and sighed. “No, but I’ve got a bad feeling about all this. I think the sooner we get your mother out of here the better. I’m going to place that overdue call to Jacob,” he said turning back towards the door. Over his shoulder, he said, “You should give Alex a call.”

When she didn’t answer, he turned back to face her. She refused to meet his eye. “What?” he asked.

Her heart pounded painfully behind her ribs. “I… I can’t.”

Cash cocked his head to one side and continued to stare at her. “Can’t… or won’t?”

“He won’t want to know.
He… I…
we
decided to… part ways,” she replied.

“Hmmm. He did mention being done. But, he also told me to keep him posted.”

Devon couldn’t contain the flinch his words brought. It was really better this way. She needed to devote herself to her mother right now. She needed to try and help them both heal from the past five years. Although, she didn’t know how she’d ever ‘heal’ from Alex Masters. “It’s never been all that serious…. you know, it was like, casual,” she replied as she pulled her hair out of its elastic-band confines.

“Well, it’s not my business, but… maybe
it
is time for you to move on. Masters can be… well, a little intense. A total control freak,” Cash said.

Devon
shrugged and forcibly shut her mind against the thought of never seeing Alex again. But no matter how she tried, she couldn’t stop the harsh squeeze of her heart. Fortunately, her mother came out of the bathroom at that moment and she was able to focus on something other than her failed relationship with Alex Masters.

“Mom, you okay?” she asked as her mother came out of the bathroom looking a little lost.

Sharon raised a hand to her cheek and gave a shuddering sigh. “I’m just confused at what’s going on. How did you find me? What happened to Miguel and his men? What happened to Lazlo Ruiz?”

“Who’s
Lazlo Ruiz?” Devon asked, as she walked to her mother’s side and directed her to sit with her on the bed’s edge.

Fluttering a hand against the duvet, Sharon replied, “Miguel’s right-hand man.”

Devon shook her head as she tried to make sense of what was before her. “Don’t you know what happened to them? Why did they tie you to the chair?
Who
tied you to the chair?”

Her mother’s hands flitted nervously against her thighs and she looked around in confusion. Lifting a hand to her lips, she said softly, “I… I don’t know. Miguel was here, as well as the rest, we sat down on the balcony and had breakfast… that’s the last thing I remember. I woke up when that young man
touched my arm. What’s happening?” her mother said as tears filled her eyes.

“I don’t know exactly. But we need to gather what we can of yours and get out of here while the getting is good. Okay?”

Sharon Munoz brushed an unsteady hand across her cornflower blue eyes. “Okay.”

Before she could rise from the bed, her mother threw her arms around Devon and sobbed. “Oh, thank God… thank God! I didn’t think I’d ever get away from him.”

“Was it terrible?” Devon whispered in anguish.

Seeming to pull herself together and in an obvious attempt to protect her daughter, she looked away and said, “No, not terrible. I just missed you, that was the worst part. But now we’re together.”

Furious rage flooded Devon once more and she trembled with the need to extract payment for the injustice done to her family at the hands of Miguel Munoz.

“We need to get going,” Cash said from the door, hanging up his call.

Remembering her mother didn’t know Cash, she quickly made the introductions. “Mom, this is my partner, Cash Devlin.”

“Partner?” her mother asked, confusion marring her features.

Devon sighed. Her mother, of course, wouldn’t know she’d joined the I.D.E.A. when Miguel had stolen her away. There was a lot she and her mother needed to discuss. “Let’s get you packed and we’ll talk on the way home,” she finally said.

From the doorway, Cash said, “Devon, can I speak to you?”

Brushing her lips against her mother’s forehead, she said, “Grab what you need, and I’ll come back and help you pack.”

Her mother reached out a hand and
pulled against Devon’s arm, needing to maintain contact with her. Her hurt shoulder jolted in exquisite pain and Devon couldn’t contain the yelp of pain. “What?” her mother asked concerned.

“I dislocated my shoulder a few days ago,” Devon responded lightly as she massaged the tender tendons.

“How on earth did you do that?”

Devon sighed again. “We’ll discuss that on the way home, okay?”

Tears filled her mother’s eyes once more. “I’ve missed so much. I feel like I don’t even know who you are. Miguel has stolen so much from us,” her mother said through shuddering breaths.

Devon swallowed at the truth of her words. “I know, mom. But now that’s over. I’ll never let him hurt you again!”

With those forceful words ringing in the air, Devon turned and followed Cash from the room.

“Did you get a hold of Jacob?” she asked.

“No, I left a message. I really don’t like this. Something bad is going on. None of this makes any sense. I’m going to go downstairs and root through the office, maybe that’ll turn up something… but I doubt it. This is all…” he stopped and shook his head, “too set up.”

“Just like the drug house,” Devon stated.

Cash nodded his head. “Yes, just like the drug house. I just don’t understand the game, though. I mean, why lure you out here just to give you your mother? Why not wait and take you out when you arrived?”

She walked past Cash to stand against the balcony rail, lost in troubling thoughts. He followed and
leaned backwards against the same rail to face her. “What?” he asked.

“How did he know we’d be coming today?”

Cash blinked at her as her words tumbled through his mind.

“I didn’t tell anyone,” she said, “did you?”

Cash tilted his head and hesitated before replying. “Masters… he was the only I told. I called him from your house this morning.”

Quickly she shook her head. “No, Alex would never… he would never put me in danger like that. He would never be in cahoots with Miguel,” she said emphatically.

“Maybe not intentionally. But he was pretty angry after you left the hotel the other night. Maybe he inadvertently told someone?” Cash said as he tried to work through the puzzle.

Slowly, she shook her head again. “Maybe.”

“Or maybe your house was being watched… or was bugged,” Cash said.

Again, she replied, “Maybe.”

Pushing off the railing, Cash started for the door, then turned back and hesitated once more. “I… I think you should ask Alex just in case. It’d be the easiest way to clear that up,” he said lightly.

She inhaled sharply as she felt for the first time in many years, the loss of connection with Alex Masters. She knew when next she saw him, it would be awkward and painful. Over the years, no matter how much time had passed without them seeing each other, it was never awkward… instead it was if they’d never been apart. They’d always come together with explosive passion and need. Now, she felt the full force of her loss.
Anger once more at all Miguel had taken from her… her father; her best friend, Roman; her mother for more than five years; and inadvertently, Alex, roared through her in a rush so strong she stumbled back from the force.

Cash laid a hand on her arm in comfort. “He’ll come around… he always does,” he said comfortingly. 

Remembering the words she penned in her note, she slowly shook her head. “Not this time,” she replied.

“I need to get downstairs, then I’ll go get the car. We need to be out of here within the next fifteen-twenty minutes,” he said.