Page 22 of Desert Wind

“Mary, she was the first of us. She became our unofficial leader just by her sheer ability to evoke compassion and maternal instinct. She knew that there was a place for us to be safe, and she started tracking Kane and the others. That woman had balls the size of softballs,” he chuckled, shaking his head.

“We walked up to the cabin in Wyoming like we were welcomed guests. She knew enough to know that Kane wouldn’t shoot without asking a few questions. We lost some good people in all of that bullshit as we were running away.”

“I heard,” nodded Luc. “Uri Bellum and his wife. I met Uri a lifetime ago. He was a good man.”

“Yeah. And Mary. As I said, she was like a mother to me. And to the others, as well. Kindest, sweetest woman who ever lived. Your mother reminds me of her.”

“Yeah, Mama has a way of making everyone feel loved and cared for,” said Luc. Luc looked at Nash and then at his brother, then back again. “Do you think you can convince her to go back to Belle Fleur until we figure all this out?”

“I don’t want to force her,” said Nash. “I feel as though decisions were forced on her since she was a kid. Hell, some were forced on her before she had the ability to say yes or no. I don’t want to be that guy.”

“Brother, there’s no way that you’re ‘that guy.’ You’re just being a good man, Nash. You care for her, and I think you’vebeen incredibly patient and kind. Far more so than I was with Montana,” said Luc. “I nearly pushed her away.”

“She wasn’t going anywhere, brother. I knew she loved you from the moment you danced together at Bull and Lily’s wedding.” Luc nodded, laughing at his brother.

“Just like we all knew that you loved Ella the second you saved her and Ryan,” grinned Luc.

“You guys definitely seem to have cornered the market on picking the right partners,” said Nash. “None of you are divorced, are you?”

“There are a couple of us,” nodded Antoine. “Pierre was married once before, but she died. He almost made a mistake the second time. Moose was married once before. A few of the other guys as well. But to your point, once they set foot on Belle Fleur land, it all seemed to right itself.”

“Can we agree all of that is attributable to your mother?” smirked Nash. Luc and Antoine laughed.

“I think if we don’t, we might be struck by lightning.” Antoine stood, nodding at Nash. “I’m gonna get some shut-eye. Hopefully, we’ll have a plan in the morning that will make all of us happy.”

“From your lips to your mother’s ears,” smirked Nash. Antoine and Luc stared at Nash a moment, sobering.

“Brother, don’t joke about Mama hearing us. That shit scares me.”

CHAPTER FOURTEEN

“I smell coffee,” smiled Jenna, walking out of the bedroom dressed in a pair of long tan shorts, tennis shoes, and a soft cotton shirt. She looked rested, relieved, and somehow different to the men this morning.

“Coffee is a requirement in the military,” said Luc, pouring her a cup. “Partly to stay awake, partly to tolerate your superiors. Either way, it’s a mandatory part of wearing the uniform.” Jenna laughed, taking the coffee from his hands.

“And after you’re no longer wearing the uniform?”

“Oh, we’re all wearing it beneath our civilian clothes,” said Nash. “It never goes away.”

“I was thinking while I was in the shower this morning. There’s nothing here for me. I appreciate the care that they gave me, even though they were pretending to be my parents. But there’s nothing left here except more questions.”

“What do you want to do, Jenna?” asked Nash.

“I think we should go back to Belle Fleur and figure things out from there.”

“We’re sure glad to hear you say that, honey,” said Antoine. “We think that’s the right thing to do as well. Jenna, we do have a question for you.”

“Sure.Anything.”

“Did your parents, the people who were the family that you knew, did they leave you anything?”

“Leave me anything? No. They had nothing as far as I knew. I had a few letters from them at the convent telling me that they were okay. Like I told Nash, the twins married right out of high school. I wasn’t happy about that because I thoughtthey were too young, but my folks said that they were both in love.

“Dad, John, or Victor, or whatever his name was, apparently had a good job by then, and they moved to an apartment closer to Tucson.”

“Tucson? That’s where they were found dead in the desert,” said Luc. “Maybe they knew someone was coming for them, and they decided to run.”

“I wish I knew,” said Jenna.

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