Page 24 of Ma Belle Marguerite
Nodding, he pulls away from Bella's house and heads out of town. After ten minutes, I’m sure a vehicle is trying to tail us. I thought maybe they were just heading to the local gun range, but we passed that three minutes ago.
“Have you noticed the vehicle following us, D?” I don’t take my eyes off the mirror.
Looking in the rearview mirror, he nods and says, “Yes, I was hoping it was my imagination. Want to keep going to the bunker, or should we drive around aimlessly and see if they turn off somewhere?”
“Let’s turn off up ahead and see what they do. The next road only has a couple of farms, I believe.” Can I ever just catch a break?
“Got it, boss,” D doesn’t signal and makes a last-minute turn. He could just take off and lose them, but then we won’t know for sure if we are being followed.
Watching behind us, we see the vehicle turn at the last second. “There’s an abandoned barn just down the road. Pull in there. Do you have my gun?” I hate not knowing where my things are.
Without taking his eyes off the road, he reaches into the seat behind us, grabs a bag, and puts it on my lap
“Everything you’ll need is in there. Josh grabbed your gun when you crashed his car. With you sleeping so much, we didn’t want to chance someone sneaking off with it from your room at the hospital.”
This is why he is my second in command; he’s always prepared. D is who I go to in these situations, and Josh is who I talk things out with. He’s my second brain to bounce things off of.
As I pull my favorite gun out of the bag, D speeds up and turns off the road toward the barn I had told him about. Pulling around the back quickly, we jump out to be ready for whoever is following us. As my feet hit the ground, I let out a loud grunt.Man, that fucking hurts my ribs.
“You okay, boss?” D asks as he comes around my side of the truck.
“Yes, I’m fine. Concentrate, would you? You go left. I’ll go right.” I don’t wait for him to reply.
As I carefully sneak around the building, I see the car that has been following us sitting on the side of the road, idling. My breath catches. I can’t see if there is anyone still in there or if they got out, too. My steps become sloppy as I feel my body stiffen with the unease of what is happening.
Is this whoever stole my weapons from my cache? Maybe it is whoever ran me off the road coming back to try and finish the job. Who's to say they are even different people? They could make this easy on me and just show their face, I doubt I will be that lucky.
I crouch down behind an old tractor beside the barn. I feel my phone vibrate in my pocket. I ignore it. Now is not the time to talk to someone. I need to focus.
To my left, I see D hiding in some bushes. Looking back at the car on the road, I see movement from the front seat. Then the car suddenly takes off, leaving a trail of dust in its wake. What the fuck?
They were definitely following us. But why? Shit, I didn’t think to get the plate number, but hopefully D remembered. My memory is still being affected by the concussion. This better not last.
I feel a hand on my shoulder and jump, pointing my gun at whoever just snuck up on me. Did someone get out and we missed it?
With lightning fast reflexes, D pushes my gun away from his chest. “Whoa, boss, it’s just me. Didn’t you hear me saying your name?”
I drop my gun to my side quickly. “Sorry, I’m still a bit foggy. Did you get the plate on that car?”Fuck, I’m off my game after just a couple days.
Nodding to me, he says, “I did. I already sent it to Josh to start running it. He said it shouldn’t take too long.” D keeps watch around us. At least one of us is paying attention. “Let's go before they circle back. I don't want to risk them bringing backup.”
Walking back to my truck, I pull my phone out to see who called. Fuck, it was Bella. I send her a text saying that I’ll call her back once I make it home and to wait for me to finish anything she may have started. What I wouldn’t give to be with her instead.
I zone out knowing that D is watching everything carefully, and we make it to the bunker in what feels like no time. From the outside, everything looks normal, like they said.
D unlocks the bunker and leads the way in with his gun out. He’s always on the ball when it comes to our safety. Being ex-military may have something to do with that as well. Old habits die hard.
Once the bunker has been cleared, I head to the secret door I had my weapons hidden behind. Opening it, I see that it is, in fact, empty. Not only are the guns gone, but any ammo I had has been taken. I believe my guys, but it’s one thing for someone to tell you something and another to see it with your own eyes.
This means someone has either followed us here or is on the inside and been paying more attention than we realized. Either way, they better prepare to pay for their actions. I don’t take kindly to betrayal or misuse of my trust.
Looking at D, I let my anger show through my words. “There had to be more than one person to load everything that we hadin here. And they will pay when, not if, we find them. Make sure we have enough room to have multiple ‘guests’ stay over in the basement. May need to use the old barn out back if there isn’t room. Do you have a list started of who may have done this? Whenever Josh gets a name back from the plates, it will need to be added.”
Sighing, he answers, “Josh has a list started, but it’s pretty short. We can’t figure out who would have discovered this location. We have always been extra careful.”
“Let’s close up and head home. I need a few hours of sleep, and then we will get started with fresh minds. Hopefully, Josh will have a lead on who was following and stole from us by then.”
Pulling into the driveway, I notice Josh’s Corvette off to the side, completely totaled, sending a shiver down my spine. How I was able to walk away with only minor injuries is surprising.
