Page 62 of Lesson In Faith

“That’s understandable. If she’s married, it’s likely she’s been through… well, I wouldn’t presume to guess what the fuck she’s been through.”

“She isn’t married.” And she wouldn’t be unless she made that choice of her own volition, Merrick vowed. He’d sworn off marriage after the disaster with Helena, but if Tamsyn wanted that security, he would bend over backwards to give it to her.

“Oh.” A note of surprise rang in the single word.

Archie’s head popped up, her eyes bright and aware, while her husband’s eyebrow arched over blue eyes darkening with knowledge. Before his wife could speak, he covered her mouth with his hand. “I think the details of Merrick’s personal relationship with the girl are best left private, kitten. However, it might be prudent to offer some advice.”

Ready for battle, Merrick squared his shoulders. “You gonna piss me off, Fairfax?”

“In all probability. If you’re planning on fucking the girl—”

Rolling her eyes, Archie wrenched the sadist’s hand off away and sighed. “Men. Merrick, these guys see women as their property. They take measures to ensure they remain virgins and kill them if they’re not. We’re going to shut them down, permanently, but with all these gaps in the data, it might take longer than we’d like. Even a week opens up a window for them to pinpoint Tamsyn’s location—they’ve been searching for over a month, and my gut instinct is telling me they have connections in the area. Police, search and rescue, maybe even locals who benefit from a wad of cash thrown their way to keep an eye out for threats to the community. There is a net waiting to come down on her, and they’ll be tightening it as they narrow down how far she can get, the most likely places she’ll be. If they didn’t have dogs, they might have brought them in by now. The scent trail will be old, but who’s to say they won’t get lucky?”

“We have security.”

“Excellent security with Grit in charge,” she agreed, “but the system is new and still has minor flaws. He hasn’t cemented a solid, trustworthy crew yet, and the reality is, Evander and Elias haven’t designed the security to stand up against a threat like this. I know additional measures were put in after the shit with Tabitha went down, but I’m still not convinced they’re prepared for what these assholes could do.”

“Jasper, request a meeting with Eli, Evander, and Grit. Explain the severity of the situation and suggest bumping up their security. Tell them we’ll provide whatever they need.” Atticus took charge again. “I can deploy Beta team today. Grit knows most of them. Once we have enough intel to move on the community, I’ll send Alpha team in.”

“How many teams do you have?” Merrick asked. “Won’t that leave you short-handed?”

“We’re in the process of expanding. Alpha team will remain here in case we get an urgent situation, but as of now, we’re in the planning stages of several operations. I can spare Beta team.”

“We’ve gone off point,” Anarchy interjected. “What I’m trying to say is, if Tamsyn’s father and his creepy friends manage to retrieve her—which is a long shot—they’re not going to be happy if she’s… you know, not a virgin. That’s going to seriously cut down our window of time to save her.”

Jasper shook his head. “Kitten, despite everything, you are still so naïve. I love you for it. If they take her, they’re going to kill her anyway. Groups like this who have their hands on the reins from conception to death won’t tolerate disobedience of this level. They’ll kill her and use her death as a warning to the others—either murdering her in front of the other women, or parading her body to send the message.”

“I… fuck.” Eyes softening with tears again, Archie scowled. “In that case, go for it, Merrick. Show her what she’s missing. Life is too fucking short not to be loved for whatever time we get.”

Truer words were never spoken, he thought as Anarchy rubbed her face against Jasper’s arm. In this case, it wasn’t going to be an issue, because there would only be one murder if Jedidiah Drake and his cohorts tried to get their filthy hands on Tamsyn.

Cut the head off the snake, and all that.

“On that note,” he stated, “I’m gonna go sit with her awhile. Stay as long as you want; help yourself to food and whatever.”

Running his hand down Archie’s arm, Jasper shook his head. “Thanks, but this is a good time for us to take a break. Grit hooked us up with a room in the clubhouse, so we’ll get settled in for the long haul. I know someone else who could use a nap to recharge her batteries.”

“He only recharges them so he can beat my ass when the urge strikes,” she said dryly.

“It strikes often with a brat in the vicinity.” Jasper smirked, but Merrick was starting to read him now, and there was a brutal kind of love inside the man. As cold as his eyes could be, that love burned twice as hot. “Pack your gear, kitten, we’ve imposed on Merrick long enough today. Att, I’ll work on getting Tabitha on board and keep you updated on everything we’ve discussed so far.”

“All right. I’ll brief Beta team later on this afternoon and ship them out. If Evander has any recommendations for accommodations nearby, let me know. If not, I’ll find them a motel as close to the resort as possible.”

“How many are coming?” Merrick asked, rising from his chair.

“Twelve.”

“Talk to Grit,” he suggested to Jasper. “There’s a bunkhouse on the west property line reserved for security personnel. There should be enough room for your guys.”

“Good work.”

“Daddy.” A cross voice came down Atticus’ side of the line, female and oh so Little. “You promised you’d come play tea party with me and Mr. Bear.” Thewithsounded likewiv. “You’s very late.”

Atticus heaved a sigh. “Sorry, princess. I forgot all about the tea party. How about we order in pizza for the horde and have a movie night instead? I just have a few details I need to clear up here first.”

Suspicion leaked into the woman’s voice. “’Mergency?”

“Yeah, Alicia. An emergency.”

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