With Faltering Steps (concluded, part 5 of 5)
by Tonya Muir
Chapter 23: Facing Demons
Taking Molly home was a sad affair all the way around. The little girl cried most of the drive and both women had to assure her that everything would be all right. They'd decided not to tell her any of their plans until things were more certain, not wanting to give her false hopes.
The three had been inseparable the last few days, temporarily putting the farm and horses on hold until Molly left. The most work Lacey had done was a late night meeting for Vinnie and some phone calls the previous morning in reference to the horse autopsies. Only one had been completed and the bracken fern poisoning had been confirmed by the evidence of myelin degeneration.
George, Bernard, and Rico had been in and about the house consistently but no further attempts on Rachel had been made and their searches for Benny had come up empty handed.
Now Rachel, Lacey, and Molly stood on the front step to the suburban home where Molly lived. Rachel held her daughter closely, whispering words of assurance and love.
"Mama," she whimpered. "I want to stay with you."
"I know, baby," the young blonde responded, tears on her cheeks. "I love you, you know that. And some day we'll work everything out."
Lacey swung the child up in her arms and hugged her fiercely. "You be good, kiddo. Okay? We'll come get you for the weekend before you know it."
She nodded, small arms wrapped around the tall woman's neck, hands tangled in her long hair.
"Here," the dark woman set the little girl back on the step and pulled out a business card. "This is my home number, pager number, and cell phone number. If you ever need anything at all, you call okay? Any time."
Molly nodded, hugged the dark woman again. "I love you."
"You too, Molly."
"Take care of my mama," she grinned, blue eyes watery.
"I promise," she parted from the child gently and Helen took Molly's hand, pulling her slightly toward the house.
The retired teacher nodded to the two women and smiled at them. They knew the little girl would be okay. They waved one last time before turning and going back to Lacey's Grand Cherokee.
"Let's go grab a bite to eat first," Lacey said softly once they were pulling out of the subdivision. She knew the young blonde had to regroup before they could go meet with the aunt and uncle she'd been dreading seeing.
Rachel nodded her agreement.
They shared a medium supreme pizza, talking casually over the meal. The two women made plans for moving Rachel into the house during the upcoming week and her ensuing GED exam on the weekend.
Lacey watched her young lover push around a pizza crust for the better part of ten minutes before she pointed out the obvious. "It's time to go, Raich."
The young blonde sighed deeply and met her partner's blue gaze. "Do you think Molly's in any danger from Benny?" she asked, trying to put off the inevitable even though they'd already discussed this very topic.
"Nah. I think he's more focused on the barn and on me. I think Molly will be fine. 'Sides, I have someone watching her."
"Really?" Rachel raised her eyebrows. That was something that hadn't come up before.
"Mmm," the dark woman nodded slowly. "It's time."
Rachel just watched her quietly.
Lacey read apprehension in those green eyes she'd grown to know so well. "I won't let them hurt you, love. I promise you that," she said softly, reaching across the table to hold a small trembling hand.
Rachel smiled weakly. "I know. Just so many memories. I never wanted to see them again. What if they don't live in the same house?"
"They do," Lacey assured her. "I checked it out. C'mon." She tugged on the hand until her partner was standing and then guided her to the cashier to pay before leaving.
Minutes later they were on the doorstep Rachel had hoped never to stand on again. She was fidgeting nervously, fighting butterflies. "I'm gonna be sick," she moaned.
"No, you're not," Lacey chided gently. "C'mon. Confidence, stand tall. Remember the first day you met me? Remember how forward and brash you were?"
Rachel grinned at the memory, knowing that even then there had been something between the two of them.
"That's the Rachel we need right now," she rang the doorbell before her young companion could say anything else.
It seemed like forever before the front door was pulled open, revealing a slight woman in her fifties. Her grey eyes blinked for several moments before recognition hit.
"Rachel?" she whispered softly.
Rachel simply nodded and made no attempt to offer any kind of familial greeting.
The older woman leaned back into the house. "Harold, come out here and look who's ringing our doorbell." There was no tenderness in the wrinkled features when she turned back to the two women.
They stared at each other silently until Harold came up and stood next to his wife. He looked at the two women and practically sneered. "What do you want?"
Well, that was the question. She didn't want to tip her hand, didn't want them to know that it would kill her if they pursued custody of her daughter. So she stuck to the plan that Lacey had outlined. "I ... I was in town and I thought, maybe, I could stop by and say hello."
The two people blinked at her.
"This is my friend, Lacey," Rachel trudged on. "Lace, this is my Aunt Jean and Uncle Harold. They kinda raised me."
"We don't take credit for you, child," Harold said slowly. "You spent two miserable years here and it was two years too many. Ungrateful for our love and care. You drove your mother, my only sister, to her death-"
"I didn't," Rachel argued shakily. "You know I didn't. She wanted to be with Dad. She loved him so much."
"Shut up, child," the greying man snapped. "Some things never change."
"I'm trying to change things," Rachel said softly, drawing strength from the dark woman who stepped nearer. Easily able to feel the anger and hatred rolling off of her lover, she forged ahead to their reason for being here. "I was in town to visit my daughter."
"That bastard child? If you think we're cleaning up any more of your mistakes, you're wrong. We don't want anything to do with you or that child. You're not welcome here and you're no relative of ours. Murderer," he spat angrily, his face turning red with his fury. "Your mother would be ashamed, thank God she's not here to see what you've become!" He pulled his wife away from the door and slammed it on the two women.
Lacey stood stunned, her hands clenching and unclenching as she'd had to fight to control herself. Finally, she shook her head in amazement and heard the sniffling beside her.
"Okay, baby," the dark woman whispered. "Okay. Come on, let's get out of here," she encouraged gently, taking the elbow nearest her and ushering the young woman back down the sidewalk and into her vehicle. She belted Rachel in and wiped at her tears. "Shh, honey. I know it hurts."
Lacey jumped in the driver's side and left the neighborhood quickly. She pulled over as soon as she could and unbuckled her silent passenger's seatbelt. Then she crawled into the back seat and tugged Rachel with her, pulling her onto her lap.
"Okay, it's okay," she crooned and, finally, Rachel let it go. She clung to the dark woman and cried heavily into her shoulder. "That's it, Raich," Lacey encouraged, rocking the small body. "It's over. You never have to see them again and Molly can come home. They won't bother you again," she assured the young woman though she did wonder, on the edge of her mind, if the couple was malicious enough to come after Molly despite their hateful words.
"My mom wouldn't be ashamed of me," the young woman whispered hoarsely, choking on her own sobs.
"No, she wouldn't, love. She'd be proud of what you've become."
"They were so mean to us. They said Mama killed herself because Leslie and I were so bad. We were just kids, that wasn't fair."
"No, it wasn't," Lacey agreed, rubbing the smaller woman's back firmly. "They were wrong, you know that."
"But it still hurts," she cried.
"I know it does, baby."
"He used to beat us and she'd just stand by and let him do it," the young blonde was on a roll now and it all came pouring out, accompanied by hiccups and whimpers. "He was so hateful. He loved Mama so much and he was so mad that she was gone. He never liked Dad..." the rest of Rachel's words were mumbled and incoherent, but it didn't matter. Lacey knew she was lightening her load and simply soothed her young lover with hands and voice.
It was much later that she was finally silent, breathing raggedly into the dark woman's neck. The Grand Cherokee had become humid and stuffy with her tears and the windows steamed faintly.
"Let's get home," Lacey said at last, holding the smaller woman away from her and wiping her face clean. "It's all over, Raich. You don't need them."
"But I never wanted them to hate me," she whispered.
"I know."
"They were all I had left of my Mama ... and of Leslie."
"No, honey. They're nothing. Leslie and your mom are in your heart. They really loved you. Not those old fogies. They never cared, okay? They're not worth it." She nodded encouragingly, pulling the smaller woman to her for another fierce hug. Then she pushed her forward gently. "Climb up there. We need to go."
The young woman fell asleep on the drive home, clutching desperately to her lover's hand.
Chapter 24: Getting to the Bottom of Things
"I feel like an idiot," the dark-haired woman muttered under her breath as she and her partner crossed Wheatridge's visitor parking lot. She glanced at Rachel ,who was dressed in baggy clothes with her hair tucked under a baseball cap. Her dark sunglasses completed the outfit. Lacey's own outfit was incredibly out of character with white linen pants, a yellow sweater, and black hair braided into two thick ropes that fell across her shoulders.
"Hush, crony," Rachel whispered back, admitting to herself that the Mary Sunshine approach just didn't work for her tall lover.
"You shoulda stayed with Bernie and George," Lacey evidently wasn't listening to the young blonde at her side. She ran nimble fingers through raven bangs, then flipped one braid back over the saffron knit.
"And you can identify Sunny?"
Whatever response may have come from Lacey's lips was so unintelligible that Rachel didn't understand it. She just shrugged slim shoulders and pushed her hands back into the pockets of her barn coat, deciding she probably hadn't wanted to hear the biting words anyway.
The weather had turned icy overnight and the early morning fog had yet to dissipate. The young blonde watched her breath frost in the air with interest, then caught her partner's blue eyes watching her.
"Hmm?"
Lacey replied with a gentle shake of her head, unable to voice the emotions she felt for this slight woman at her side. The night had been silent and solemn, spent holding and talking. But, upon waking, Rachel had apparently decided to let bygones be bygones and not mentioned the previous day's encounter with her hateful aunt and uncle.
Instead she'd formulated a plan to come to Wheatridge and act as mare owners in search of a suitable stud. Lacey had argued, of course, that it was too dangerous but the deciding factor had been that the tall dark woman couldn't tell bay from chestnut from buckskin. And then George had worried that the stable employees might recognize Lacey since she wasn't exactly low profile in their dark world. But Lacey refused to let Rachel go with anyone but her. So this ridiculous outfit had been developed. They'd also tried to hide Rachel's features as some of the barn hands might recognize her from her work at Aqueduct.
So here they were, on enemy territory, rounding the corner towards the stallion barn. They'd called ahead so had been able to get through the farm's large front gate though now they were prepared to be accosted at any time.
Rachel was peering into the last stallion stall when they were discovered.
"Can I help you?" the dark voice was borderline curious and hostile.
The two women turned simultaneously to take in the man at the end of the aisle. He was about Rachel's size with light brown hair pulled away from his face in a tight ponytail. His searching eyes were grey.
"Yes," Lacey stepped forward first, placing herself between this man and her lover. She extended her hand. "I'm Laura Cranberry. We called about looking at your stallions for our mare?"
"Ah," he nodded his head slowly. "That's right. You spoke with me. I'm Wheatridge's barn manager. Name's Chris. And who is this," he tilted his head towards the woman leaning against the stall door.
"That's my trainer, Rita," Lacey grinned, her white teeth contrasting with tan skin and accenting blue eyes. Chris was immediately disarmed and barely noticed the young blonde standing several yards away.
Rachel had to smother a laugh at the look on his face. "Ms. Cranberry wants a bay stud for her Abigail."
"Surely, Ms. Cranberry, you understand that color is not really a serious consideration when looking for good matches. We need to consider stamina, spirit, build. Color is merely the wrapping."
"I want bay," Lacey said slowly and dangerously. It caught Chris slightly off guard. "Little or no white. White markings are so unseemly, don't you think?"
Chris knit his brows in confusion and finally chanced a look at the smaller woman whose expression was nearly impossible to read under those large sunglasses. "Uhh ... well. Only one of our studs is bay. And he has four high whites." He thought he heard the tall woman gag. "That's all we have. I can show you his pedigree and his race records. He's an outstanding stallion and his offspring have already started proving themselves on the track."
"But he has four white socks?"
Chris ran his tongue over his teeth, glanced from one woman to the next. "Yeah. But-"
Rachel stepped forward and took the man's elbow, pulling him a few steps a way. "Ah, Chris? Right, Chris?"
"Yeah?"
She glanced over her shoulder, met amused blue eyes. "I've worked for Ms. Cranberry for several years now and, well, let's just say she's a touch eccentric. I brought her here because I heard you had a no markings bay .. a colt who maybe wasn't in the breeding program this year. If we could see him, maybe get on his bookings for next season or the following ... I could probably talk her into Music Man," she referred by name to a stunning chestnut stallion at the end of the aisle. "He's my first choice for Abigail, he accents her well."
"We don't have such a horse as this bay you're talking about," Chris insisted. Rachel watched his features and body language. He appeared nervous but whether it was because he thought they might be onto something or because he was surrounded by insane women was unclear.
"You're sure? One of Abigail's exercise boys said he saw such a colt on the track. He was under your colors."
"No," he shook his head, ran a large hand over his face to rest on his chin. "No solid bay colt. I wish I could help you."
Rachel considered this, pursed her lips thoughtfully. "Okay," she nodded. "Do you mind if I walk her through your training barn, show her some of you offspring to let her see what kind of talent your stallions throw?"
"No, not at all," he said almost cheerfully, seemingly glad to have an excuse to abandon these two women. "You two go ahead. I have some other things to get back to. If you need anything else, let me know." With one final awkward wave to Lacey, he quickly turned and walked back down the aisle.
"Well?" the dark woman questioned as she came up beside Rachel.
"He said he doesn't have a horse like that here."
"Could they have put white markings on Sunny?" Lacey questioned under her breath, her face close to her young lover's.
"No. It's hard to put markings on a horse, easy to cover them up."
"Did he seem nervous?"
"He thought you were insane," Rachel grinned with twinkling eyes. "But I couldn't tell if he was worried we might discover something or that we might sprout horns and start spewing things from our mouths."
"Nice picture, Raich. Thanks," the dark-haired woman muttered sarcastically. "I'm thinking he wouldn't have abandoned us to check out the training barn if he were hiding something there."
"I agree," Rachel nodded, removing her sunglasses and chewing on the stem absently. "But I gotta look." Mist green eyes looked up expectantly and Lacey sighed.
"I know, love. Let's go," she placed her hand at the small of the other woman's back and escorted her gently from the barn.
As suspected, the training barn had shown nothing out of the ordinary. There was no trace of a solid bay gangly colt. With obvious disappointment, Rachel climbed into Lacey's third car: a seven series BMW. She sunk into the soft leather seats with a deep sigh.
"Let's get back to the house and see what the boys found," Lacey said gently as she drove down the long treed driveway towards the front gate. Once she turned on the highway several minutes later, she started steering with her knee and undoing the tight braids in her hair.
Rachel grinned and reached over to hold the wheel.
"I feel like I belong on a commercial, waving around dish washing fluid," the dark woman grumbled, indicating her bright clothing before taking back control of the sleek grey car.
"Or floor cleaning supplies," Rachel supplied helpfully.
"You be quiet," Lacey growled but she was grinning.
"I like the dark look better, Lace," the young blonde conceded. "But you look beautiful in anything."
The dark-haired woman glanced to her partner and smiled tenderly. "You sucking up, love?" she reached out to capture a blonde lock.
"Nah. Only the truth."
Lacey turned her attention back to the road and pulled out her cell phone, hitting a memory button to speed dial Bernard.
"Hey, Boss," the voice on the other end sounded cheerful.
"What's up?"
"Well, we got those overview maps you wanted. I think you'll like what we found. Rico went to the track and wandered through Wheatridge's barn there but he didn't see anything that could remotely match Sunny's description."
"Aah, it was a long shot anyway," Lacey shrugged. "Chances are they wouldn't steal him and then put him in broad daylight. What do the maps show?"
"There are a couple decent places on the Wheatridge property that are away from the main barns. We can check them out tonight."
"Great," Lacey nodded her approval, winked to her passenger. "We'll be to the house within an hour and we can talk about our next step." After hanging up, she reached over to hold Rachel's hand and squeeze it tenderly. "We'll get to the bottom of this."
XXXXX
Their evening plans set and still most of the afternoon to kill, Lacey had talked her team into moving stuff out of Rachel's apartment. She'd had to pay a penalty to the leasing office for breaking Rachel's contract, but she wasn't really worried about it.
George and Rico did most of the work loading the bright yellow Ryder truck in the lot. Bernard was a decent foreman but his bulk made it difficult for him to move boxes and furniture down the narrow outdoor stairs. Rachel and Lacey tossed things into boxes.
"Ya know, you really don't have much," Lacey observed, looking at the few boxes they'd packed and glancing around at the mostly bare wall.
The young blonde shrugged. "Don't need much." And she couldn't really afford much so she wasn't into gadgets or miscellaneous. Most of what they'd packed was shelves of books and a few memorable trinkets. The rest were clothes and kitchen items.
"Thank goodness you're not a packrat," Lacey teased gently, sensing the mood change and wanting to lighten. "Cuz you and your stuff would be out on your ear."
Rachel snorted her amusement and went back to wrapping dishes in newspaper. "What are we gonna do with the kitchen stuff? You don't need it."
"I dunno," Lacey paused in thought and then yelled to the group that had just come in the kitchen. "Hey, Rico. You need some dishes and things?"
The teen stopped and tilted his head. "I guess I could."
"Where do you live, anyway?" Rachel asked, watching this young man she'd come to like a lot in the last few days.
"Closer to Vinnie's."
"Room mate?" the blonde woman kept pushing. Rico blushed. "Ah ha! Do tell, Rico!"
George laughed. "Rachel, honey, you're embarrassing the kid."
"You don't belong here, Rico," Rachel said more solemnly, inclining her head slightly to observe the lanky form in front of her.
"Where would you rather I be?" he grinned playfully, trying to divert the conversation.
"No. I mean it, Rico. Or George, you have a family. And Bernard, you're just a big teddy bear."
"Not so, hon," Bernie said gently.
"Rachel," Lacey warned softly but her young lover was on a roll.
"Maybe you should all leave when Lacey does. Maybe that would work. Do you think so, Lace?" Rachel turned to regard her partner and saw a distant look in her eyes. She realized, suddenly, that Lacey hadn't revealed her plans to her team.
"What? Leave?" Bernard was the first to speak.
"Aw, shit, Lace," Rachel whispered. "I'm so sorry."
The dark woman smiled tightly. "S'okay, love." The three men looked at her with bewildered expressions and she heaved her shoulders in a sigh. "Close the door. Let's all sit down."
The only place to sit was the floor in the living room. They pushed away newspaper and flat boxes to clear room. Rachel sat close to her lover, crossing her legs and resting her hands on her knees. She felt like an idiot for spilling the beans.
"So," Lacey began slowly, looking to the small group around her. She'd known Bernard for nearly a decade and George just under that. She'd watched George's kids grow up, she'd been to Bernard's wedding. Despite their violent jobs, she knew the hearts in these men and she knew this would be the hardest part of leaving Vinnie. Because as much as she liked to portray her hard hearted exterior, these men were the only family she'd known in a very long time.
"Does Vinnie know?" George asked softly.
Lacey shook her head, gave him half a grin for trying to make things easier for her. "I haven't talked to him yet. I promised myself I'd finish out this mess with Kalzar and Raoul before I left. I don't even know if he'll let me go."
"You're the best, Lace," Bernard said gently. "There's been no one to replace you for years. Operations have never run smoother."
Lacey grinned at the compliment and let a little of her feralness show in her eyes. "They're afraid of me."
"But it works," George grinned back then he turned serious. "Vinnie will be reluctant."
"I know."
"Umm," Rachel spoke for the first time since letting the cat out of the bag. "Are you in danger? Will he hurt you?"
Lacey looked to her lover before glancing at her team members. "Maybe."
The young blond tried to jump to her feet but her wrist was caught in a cast iron grip. She was pulled back to the floor with an audible thump.
"Maybe he will. But I don't think so. I've been loyal to him for a long time. He knows he can trust me not to change sides or to go after him."
The men in the room nodded their agreement.
"I want to finish this up for him, then I'm going to ask to be let go. Free and clear."
"What about us," Rico asked slowly. He hadn't been in the business long but he readily recognized how lucky he was to have been assigned to Lacey's team.
"I can't make those decisions for you, Rico. But if you want to go when I do, I'll do everything in my power to keep you safe," the dark woman swore. "All of you."
"What are you gonna do?" George asked.
Lacey shrugged, moved her grip from Rachel's wrist to slide down and tangle their fingers. "You have any ideas?" she grinned slowly.
Bernard smiled. "Let's see ... professional hit man?"
Lacey cleared her throat and glanced to her young lover.
"Okay, maybe not.. How about .... Private Investigator?" George had to add his input.
"No, no, no," Rico spoke up, getting entirely too excited with the direction of the conversation. "How about a security consultant ... kinda like that movie Sneakers!"
"Great," Lacey rolled ice blue eyes. "Look. The point of all this was to tell you that yes, I am planning to leave the business. I've had enough. I want a more sane life with less drugs and death and more Rachel and Molly," she looked down at their entwined hands. "It's time."
They were silent for a moment, realizing their boss was embarrassed by the confession. "Well, for what it's worth, Lace," Bernard spoke up at last, meeting her eyes earnestly. "I've never seen you happier. And I've known you a very long time. You're not the woman I worked for last year."
George nodded his agreement.
"I will do my best to keep you guys safe, if you leave or stay. You've ... stuck with me through a lot. And though maybe I never showed my appreciation for you, it's there."
"We knew," George smiled gently. "You've always had a good heart."
The dark woman snorted, growing entirely too uncomfortable with the emotional conversation, and jumped to her feet. She pulled Rachel up next to her. "Let's get back to work. We need to have Rachel packed before dark so we can go do a little prowling at Wheatridge."
Chapter 25: Wheatridge
The darkness was all encompassing, even the stars seemed to be hiding from sight tonight. Rachel tilted back on her heels, stretched her neck back to stare at the sky above.
"Stop fidgeting," Lacey whispered in front of her and tugged at the young blonde's jacket yet again to bring her attention back.
"Sorry," the rider responded, rocking forward again to stand flat footed. She tilted her head down to watch what her lover was doing.
"Raich, honey. I can't see," the dark woman whispered, trying her best not to sound impatient or frustrated. She turned blue eyes to Bernard who stood silently at her side. He winked.
"Sorry," Rachel said softly again. She stopped watching the nimble hands at her front and instead redirected her attention to the dark head in front of her.
"Thanks," Lacey said softly.
"What are you doing?"
"I'm putting a tracker on you in case we get separated," with those words, Rachel felt the long fingers slide up under her shirt into her bra. They were cold as ice and caused her to jump. "Chilly?"
"Mmm," Rachel agreed softly.
"Okay," she made a few more adjustments then pulled her hands out. "Go ahead and tuck your shirt in."
Rachel obliged.
"Now," the dark woman was pulling items out of a bag. "Carrots into your inside pocket," Lacey described her actions as she tucked the vegetables neatly inside the leather jacket Rachel wore. "This," she held up a gun for Rachel, "Is a small frame nine millimeter. It'll fit your hand better."
"Lace, I don't think-"
"Hush," the dark woman said quickly. "Listen," she ejected the cartridge. "It's loaded." She slammed the clip back in after showing Rachel the bullets. "The safety's on. Right here. When you hold it in your hand, you can flip the safety off with your thumb. See?" She demonstrated and waited for Rachel's reluctant nod. "Flip the safety, aim, fire. You don't have to cock the gun. The first trigger pull will be hardest because it also chambers a round. You may have to give it a good tug. After that, each round will chamber so the pulls will be easier. It's a nine round clip."
Rachel met her lover's eyes with hesitant green. "I don't want to fire that," she whispered.
"And I don't want you to unless you're in danger, okay? It's just a precaution. Leave the safety on," she flipped it back in place and put the gun into Rachel's other inside pocket.
"I don't like it," Rachel felt herself getting nauseous.
"Are you going to be sick?" Lacey asked warily, watching her friend's face change to different shades of green. She'd become pretty used to Rachel's sensitive stomach over the last weeks. The young blonde had spent most of the night hanging over the toilet after her confrontation with her aunt and uncle.
"Maybe."
"It's making you nervous?"
"Yeah," the blonde said softly.
Lacey pursed her lips in thought, glanced from the young woman's face to her team. George shook his head, Bernard shrugged, Rico was busy scratching some of his dinner off his coat. "All right," she said at last, pulling it out and handing it over to George.
Rachel heaved a sigh of relief and her color slowly came back.
George slapped something else in his boss's extended hand and she glanced at it briefly and then grinned to the dark man.
"Good idea. Here, this is better," Lacey held up a canister for Rachel to see, illuminated by the Maglite Bernard held. "Pepper spray."
"Why do you have pepper spray, crony?" some of Rachel's confidence was returning.
"Dogs, mostly. But you use it for anything, okay? Aim for the eyes."
The blonde nodded as Lacey shoved the spray into her pocket. Then Lacey zipped up her lover's jacket and kissed her on the nose.
"Stay with me," the dark woman repeated for the umpteenth time. "Or with the guys. Once we find the horse, you know what to do?"
Rachel nodded and patted the backpack she held in one hand.
"Good, let's go."
George acted on the order and moved forward with bolt cutters. He easily snipped through the chain on the gate in front of him, using Bernie's light for guidance. The chain fell to the ground and George pulled the gate open.
Then the whole group jumped into Lacey's black Grand Cherokee. George drove while the other men filled in the seats. Lacey and Rachel sat in the back compartment with the doors open and their feet dangling towards the darkened ground.
"Are you okay?" Rachel whispered after a moment, noting her friend's increasing distance. She reached over and latched onto Lacey's forearm.
"Yeah," she confirmed quietly, even though it was a lie.
Rachel recognized it easily and reached her other hand over to tug at a long black braid. "Talk to me. Is it just a work mode thing or is it something else?"
Lacey sighed, turning ice blue eyes quickly to her young lover before looking away again. "Just memories. Another job."
"Tell me," the blonde urged softly.
"It's about a past lover," Lacey whispered, warning her friend.
Rachel shrugged. "I can take it."
Lacey sighed again and looked thoughtfully at her long fingers before continuing. The rocking of the four wheel drive along the barely traveled dirt road was almost soothing.
Rachel considered further prompting but decided instead to wait the dark woman out. Her patience was rewarded before too long.
"It was a gun deal. George, Bernard, Susan, and I. She was more of a sidekick than anything. Shouldn't have been on our team, shoulda been in a less active group. She didn't have natural instincts like Rico does. She wasn't a quick learner. She was only there because we were sleeping together and I let her talk me into bringing her along. She thought it was her opportunity to prove herself. She was Vinnie's niece, new in the business, wanted to be like me. So I let myself be convinced." The husky voice stopped as Lacey looked up to the sky, seeing just a few stars peeking from behind the clouds. She felt increased warmth on her hands as Rachel reached over and covered them with her own.
With this support, she continued. "So, we met ahead of time only Susan wasn't there. We waited, I paged her, tried her cell phone, her house. No good. So we gave up on her and decided to go just the three of us. We entered the warehouse." She sighed, easily recalling what she'd seen. "There should have been a small group of Miami gun runners with a shipment. But instead there was ... I saw Susan. She was hanging by her neck, head tilted at a grotesque angle, and eyes open and staring. Obviously dead. There was a note pinned to her shirt explaining she'd tried to make the buy on her own and failed. Her body was marked up enough to indicate that she'd been beaten, her death had been slow. I don't know how early she got there."
Lacey felt a gentle squeeze from her lover. Then Rachel leaned into her shoulder in a show of comfort. She wasn't sure she really wanted to subject her young companion to the rest.
"Go ahead," the blonde whispered softly. "I'm listening."
The dark woman quirked a grin at the softly spoken words. "There was movement from behind some abandoned cargo crates across the main floor so we were all drawn and ready. On edge. Angry. The gun runners swaggered out, their own weapons drawn casually, looking smug. The first guy ... he said," she took a breath, closing her eyes and hearing the voice in her memory. "He said 'Your little friend screamed like a baby before she died.'" the words echoed in Lacey's dark head today as they had echoed in the warehouse so many years ago.
"I lost it. I wanted to finish the deal, kill them all, take her body and get out of there. But I knew I couldn't do all of those things and still complete the job. So I stepped forward and grabbed the nearest guy's shirt front, pushed him to his knees, and placed my Glock right on his forehead." Lacey tapped her own forehead in the exact spot with a long index finger. "I looked right in his eyes when I pulled the trigger. I saw him know he was going to die. I saw his fear and his panic and I reveled in it because I knew he'd seen the same in Susan's eyes. Then I shoved the lifeless body to the floor and walked back to George and Bernard. The other guys were stunned. My own had expected it from me. But no one retaliated because they knew they were wrong. We finished the deal and we walked away."
"Did you take her with you?" Rachel asked softly, fighting nausea for the second time in less than an hour.
Lacey must have sensed this in her companion because she reached over and gently rubbed Rachel's stomach through her layers of clothing.
"Yeah. I did. We sent her home to be buried. Vinnie chewed us up one side and down the other. But he believed us ... believed that she had done it herself." They were both silent for a very long time, listening to the rumble of the vehicle and the quiet mutters of the men closer to the front.
"Thank you for telling me," Rachel whispered at last. "I know it was hard for you."
"I didn't love her," Lacey said softly in response, surprised at the blonde's chuckle.
"You don't have to say that for me, Lace. I know we each have pasts."
"I'm not," the ice blue eyes that met mist green were honest. "I didn't love her. It was more physical. I ... I didn't really love anyone. Not even myself. She was attracted to me and I needed a release. I guess I led her on. That was four years ago ... I hadn't been with anyone else until you."
"Really?" Rachel asked, interested.
"I ... I didn't want just release anymore. I didn't want anything because it didn't get me anywhere and just got someone else hurt."
"So you had no one?"
"No."
"How did you survive?" the blonde tilted her head gently. "You need someone to love you. You crave it."
Lacey surprised her partner with a soft chortle. Rachel had eased that deep aching part of herself that needed love and commitment. "Yeah. But I just closed off from it. Until you."
"What was so different about me?"
"I love you," the dark-haired woman said simply, shrugging leather clad shoulders.
"From that first moment?" Rachel asked skeptically.
"I think so. But it wasn't until later that I realized it. Must be fate," she flashed teeth to her partner in a grin, their white almost blinding in the darkness.
"Must be," Rachel returned the smile with a beam of her own and then leaned forward to claim wind chilled lips. "I love you," she muttered, barely pulling away so their lips touched with the movement.
"I sure hope so," Lacey responded easily. "Cuz this would be too much trouble for someone who hated me."
"Hey, ladies," George called back, completely clueless to the thick emotions in the end of the Grand Cherokee. "We're almost to the first place."
They'd outlined four different areas to look for the colt. One was a network of caves, one was a run down shed, and the other two were heavily forested sections that would be hidden from the road and the air.
It was well past midnight and they were in the second section of woods when Lacey called to her group. "It looks like traffic has been going through here," she indicated a narrow path between trees, looking down to see a tire track.
"Wheelbarrow, probably," Rachel said as she came up to her partner's elbow.
"Yeah," the dark head nodded agreement, guiding the beam of her flashlight up the narrow trail and into the trees. "Let's go."
They'd only traveled twenty yards into the dense underbrush when they heard frantic nickering and stomping of feet. Lacey didn't need her flashlight with the light from Rachel's ear to ear grin.
The young woman ran the rest of the distance, tripping a few times on exposed roots, then climbed a green paneled steel fence and threw herself at the waiting colt.
Sunny stood for the overflow of emotions, pushing affectionately on Rachel's shoulder and back. He whuffled her hair and nickered over and over.
"Am I intruding on a moment?" Lacey asked wryly and got a smile for her question.
"God, he's beautiful," Rachel whispered, running her hands under his blanket and over his body. Then she did the same with his legs. She pushed gently on his shoulder until he shifted his weight and she picked up the hoof to examine it. "They kept his shoes on." She quickly checked his other feet in the same manner, nodding her approval. "Good, that'll be better. I wonder if they kept up with the vitamin shots." She stepped back to watch him stand and he did look better, the hunched back, leg-splayed stance gone.
Meanwhile, her dark lover leaned casually against the gate Rachel had scampered over and watched the surrounding forest. After a moment she raised her weapon and pointed it at the small trail they followed in until she recognized Rico's blonde head.
"Good," she dropped her gun back to her side. "Call the guys back in. I'll meet you at the truck in a minute."
He nodded curtly and turned around to trot away.
"I need a hand," Rachel called from inside the enclosure so Lacey obliged and tucked her gun in her waistband before climbing the gate. "Hold his head." Rachel had already pulled a snaffle bridle out of her backpack and slipped it over the colt's ears.
Now she adjusted the bit and fastened the cheek strap. "When I was a kid ... twelve, I think," Rachel began speaking softly and Lacey listened intently. Rachel didn't talk about her past much outside her daughter and her crime. Plus the whimpered words the night after facing her aunt and uncle. "I had a horse show at the barn where I took lessons. I was riding a little Arabian gelding named Tyler. After our first class I put him back in his stall to rest and my Dad wanted to help me. He didn't know a thing about horses but he was eager to be with Leslie and me. So I asked him to take off Tyler's bridle for me."
The young blonde finished with the bit and settled the brow band. "When I went to get Tyler to warm up for my next class, I found the bridle sitting on a chair outside his stall. Every single buckle and strap had been unfastened. It was a pile of leather and a loose bit," she laughed softly at the memory. "I thanked him for his help and took the jumble into the stall to sort it all out. I was almost late to my class." Rachel finished her story with a wistful smile and pushed the reins into Lacey's hands.
"How did you do in the class?" Lacey asked tenderly, reaching out her free hand to run it down her companion's arm as she turned to the backpack.
The colt danced excitedly as Rachel pulled out a tiny racing saddle she'd borrowed from Briargate. She cocked her head slightly in thought. "Second, I think. I don't remember." The young rider pulled off Sunny's blanket, letting it drop to the leaf littered ground, then tossed the saddle over tall withers.
"Did you show a lot?"
"Almost every weekend during the show season. But always on borrowed horses or lesson horses. I've never had a horse of my own," Rachel responded, cinching up the saddle with expert hands.
"Never?" Lacey asked, surprised.
"Nope." The blonde was busy adjusting the stirrups from racing height to a more comfortable riding seat.
"We may need to do something about that," Lacey said softly, giving her companion a warm smile which was returned readily.
"I just might hold you to that."
"I hope you do," the tall woman responded sincerely.
"We're set," Rachel told her dark-haired companion who gladly handed over the reins and opened the gate. Rachel led Sunny through the opening while he snorted and spun. "Shit, buddy. They had you in there since last week?" she chided the excited colt gently. "Spit and fire," Rachel muttered, secretly happy that he appeared to be doing so well despite his ordeal with the bracken fern.
"Pardon?" Lacey asked, falling into step behind the colt and woman as they headed back down the trail. She did her best to shine her flashlight in front of Rachel.
"He's gonna be a handful, I'm afraid."
"Can you ride him?" Lacey asked, suddenly concerned. She hadn't been worried about this part of the plan, but her lover was a little sore still and hadn't been on a horse since her bad fall. She cursed herself for not considering Rachel's part in the horse napping.
The young blonde snorted as if she'd never heard anything so silly. "Can I ride him?" she repeated cockily.
Lacey laughed softly, dismissing her worries.
They emerged from the trees and the underbrush to stand about fifty yards from where the Grand Cherokee was parked. Lacey glanced over and could see the men milling around the area of the vehicle and nodded her approval.
"I need a leg," Rachel called, pulling Lacey's attention back to the horse and woman.
"You have two," Lacey responded teasingly, not at all understanding the request but misinterpreting it on purpose.
"A leg up, crony," Rachel growled.
"Show me how," the dark woman stepped forward and looked to Rachel's hands. The young rider had intertwined her fingers and held her two hands cupped together.
"I put my knee in there and you give me a little toss up into the saddle. Little. Don't you dare throw me over him to the ground on the other side," Rachel warned.
Lacey nodded and put her flashlight on the grass, holding her hands as she'd been instructed. Rachel gathered the reins and a handful of hair at Sunny's withers and then placed her knee into her partner's grip. She was impressed when Lacey executed the move perfectly and Rachel was able to toss her leg over and land neatly in the saddle. She found her stirrups quickly and stood in them for a moment to test their length.
"Okay?" the dark-haired woman asked, picking her flashlight back up.
"One more thing," Rachel murmured and she leaned over to run the fingers of one hand under the girth to test its tightness again. In order to loosen the restricting girth, some horses let out deep breaths once they have a rider up. Sunny was no exception so Rachel had to control the colt with one hand while dropping her stirrup and placing that foot up on the saddle's pommel. This contortion allowed her to reach under the saddle flap and pull up a billet, tightening the girth another notch or two.
Lacey observed these acrobatics warily. "Is that safe."
"You handle the guns and attire, hon. Leave the horse stuff up to me," she grinned at her dark lover as she settled her foot back into its proper place.
"Deal," Lacey responded, returning the look with a smirk of her own.
Suddenly, some shouting from the direction of the Grand Cherokee caught her attention and both women glanced over at the vehicle to see the men jumping in. Then Lacey tracked her eyes further across the field to see headlights bouncing their way from the barns.
"Shit," Lacey groaned. "Go, Raich. Meet us at the trailer."
The colt spun with excitement but his rider glanced from the woman at their side, to the waiting Grand Cherokee, to the headlights. "You won't make it, Lace," she said frantically.
"Go," the woman shouted, shoving at the broad shoulder next to her. Sunny was more than ready to listen to her pleas.
"Lace! They're pulling away." Sure enough, George had waited as long as he felt comfortable but had begun to move the vehicle. She had always taught them how to split up and regroup and he easily followed those ingrained instructions.
"I'll be fine," Lacey argued, her voice raised angrily, eyes flashing back to the headlights which were gaining quickly. They must have seen their vehicle. "I'll go into the woods. You get out of here."
Rachel reached down and gripped her lover's shoulder with an iron hand, strengthened from years of handling reins. "Come with me," her emerald eyes sought Lacey's blue and found them. Their gazes locked for a long moment.
Slowly, reluctantly, Lacey nodded. Because she wouldn't have survived if she had to ride out and leave Rachel here. How could she expect anything less of her lover.
Rachel was greatly relieved as she maneuvered the colt back into the edge of the woods until she found a downed tree. "Hop up here."
"Oh, Raich," Lacey groaned, doing as she was bade. "I've only ever ridden once and it was a pony on one of those little go around things."
"S'okay, hon," Rachel reassured her. "Get on behind me." Rachel was going to tell her to hold on once she did but Sunny lurched forward as soon as he felt the unfamiliar extra weight and the dark woman reached out reflexively, wrapping long fingers into the leather coat in front of her.
"Raich?" the dark husky voice sounded a little worried and Rachel took just a moment to reflect in the irony that this woman could face down gun fights but was afraid of this act.
"Put your arms around me," Rachel commanded, looking at the headlights that lit the path they'd left and caught them in the peripheral. "Hold onto his mane instead of me, more secure," the blonde grasped her partner's hands and shoved them into the colt's wiry black mane, nodding approval as long tan fingers wound into the coarse hair.
"Will it hurt him?"
"No. Horses don't have nerve endings in their hair like we do. Hold on as tight as you can. And grip with your legs.""
Rachel glanced over her shoulder to check out the dark woman and saw that Lacey looked more secure. Now or never, she mused. "Here we go!" she yelled and it took very little encouragement for Sunny to go from a dancing stand to a dead run. Rachel leaned over his neck; Lacey leaned over Rachel.
"Smooth," Lacey commented after her initial yelp of surprise.
"Yeah, well hold on anyway," Rachel called back, the mane whipping her face, the wind catching her words and dulling them before they reached her partner's ears.
Rachel turned the colt with expert hands until he was flying down the rutted dirt road. She prayed he wouldn't take a hard stumble as she wasn't sure Lacey could stay on with that kind of jolt at this speed. With that thought in mind, she guided him away from the road and onto the less traveled grass at its side.
Lacey was warm against her back and she felt the tautness of the dark woman's muscles as she held on for everything she was worth.
"What do you see?" Rachel asked after a moment of running full tilt towards the fence line near the gate they'd broken.
She felt Lacey move as she glanced over her shoulder and around to each side. "George is almost to the gate. The truck is right on his heels.
"Do they see us?"
"I don't think so. But we won't make the gate."
Rachel calculated quickly, remembering where they'd parked the rented truck and trailer. She hoped George would go out the gate and turn right, leading their pursuers the opposite direction.
"George'll remember," Lacey reassured the blonde as if reading her mind. "Shit, there's another truck, Raich. He must have called for backup."
Suddenly their whole world lit up as the second truck swung around and shone bright headlights directly onto them.
"Fuck," Rachel growled. Sunny flicked back black tipped ears at her exclamation. Without a moment's hesitation, Rachel swung the colt to the left and headed at an angle towards the fence line to where she guessed the trailer to be.
"What are you doing?" Lacey asked, releasing her death grip on the black mane to reach for her gun as the truck gained on them.
"We're gonna go over."
"What?!"
"Don't get your gun. I need you to hold on."
Lacey was a moment away from arguing until she realized how correct her young lover was. She snaked her hand back around and gripped the mane again. The fence loomed before them, the moon had finally broken the clouds and silver shards of light reflected off the white in front of them.
"They'll drive through it," Lacey argued.
"No. It's metal poles, look at it. They'll crash right into it," Rachel tilted her head back so Lacey could hear her.
The dark woman peered over the blonde's shoulder to examine the fence more closely as they approached. She was right. It was five horizontal poles, connected every ten feet to a sunken metal pole. "If he hits his feet on that, we'll all die."
Rachel nodded her agreement, the adrenaline pumping through her and refusing to let her feel that fear. "He better not then, huh?" she murmured, knowing her lover couldn't hear her.
Thirty feet. Pounding hoofs. They could hear his labored breaths, smell the sweat that poured off of him. Twenty feet and they felt him tense as he watched the moonlit fence before him.
"Oh God, son," Rachel yelled. "Please don't balk. You can do this, buddy." She knew if he refused the fence at this speed, she and Lacey would fly right into it. It was more than likely the colt would slide into it as well and tangle his long limbs with metal.
"Trust in me, son," she called to those hesitant flicking ears. She gave him every cue she could think of to take the jump. She leaned forward, taking Lacey with her. She raised in her stirrups so her weight was on his shoulders and she slid her hands up his neck to give him a half release. This would allow him his head for the jump but gave her contact to keep him straight. She pressed her legs harder into his sweating sides.
Fifteen feet. Rachel tensed. One more stride and he should be leaving the ground. She held her breath, felt Lacey do the same.
Then he did it. He shifted his tall frame to his haunches, had faith in the small woman on his back who welcomed him into the world and raised him and trained him. He made adjustments for the extra weight of the dark woman who smelled funny to him but had enough of his rider's scent on him to make him feel it was okay. Pushing off with powerful hind legs, he stretched his neck, tucked his knees tight against his body so that his shoes actually touched his elbows. His alert ears flew forward, already paying attention to the ground on the other side. And then his front feet were connecting with the earth, denied any longer flight without the wings of Pegasus.
The first jolt tossed the women forward and Rachel steadied them both, dropping one hand from the reins to reach back and hold her lover's thigh. The second jolt as back feet hit balanced them and gave Rachel a chance to grab the reins with both hands. Rachel heard the joyous whoop of her partner even as she herself remembered to finally breathe.
She let him run full out until they hit the tree line and then she pulled him down into a controlled canter. Just as they passed into the first trees, they heard the horrifying crash behind them. The sound of metal wrenching into metal nearly caused Sunny to jump out from under them in his panic. Rachel used calm hands to steady him even as she heard the steam rising and popping sounds of a mutilated engine. She trembled at the thought of the dreadful scene behind them.
"It's okay, Raich." Lacey murmured, squeezing her partner. She was much more comfortable now as Rachel pulled the panting colt down to a hurried walk and broke from the trees out onto the road.
"Trailer?" Rachel asked, breathing hard herself.
"Up there," Lacey pointed, her eyes focusing on the truck and trailer about a quarter mile up the road.
"Hold on," Rachel nudged the tired colt back into a canter and ran along the berm of the road until they were across from the rig. Then she pulled him to a stop. "Train stops here, love," she said softly.
Lacey slid off to rubbery legs and caught her partner as the young woman did the same. Together they led the colt across the black top road, Rachel gave the reins over to the dark-haired woman and jogged ahead to unhook the large back door and swing it open. It was a standard stock trailer without any barriers.
Sunny stepped in easily behind Lacey.
"Go out and push the door mostly closed. I'm gonna untack him really quick so he doesn't hurt himself."
Lacey nodded at the instructions and stepped back into the cold night. Moments later, Rachel was elbowing her way through the small opening. She watched Lacey close and latch the door before they jogged to the truck and each hopped in. Rachel tossed the tack to the floor at her feet while her dark companion started the truck and eased it back onto the road.
They rode in silence for a few moments before Lacey heaved a huge sigh of relief.
Rachel laughed out loud.
"That was something," Lacey shook her head in amazement. "Kinda fun," she threw a slightly feral grin to her passenger. "When can we ride like that again?"
"Okay, we are never ever ... ever riding like that again," Rachel chuckled. "Holy shit. We really got him."
"We sure did. There's a phone in the glove compartment, love. Get it out so I can call George."
Moments later, Lacey was holding the phone up to her ear. It was actually Bernard who answered the ringing. "Bernie!" she shouted.
"Oh my God, Boss. Where the fuck are you?"
"We're all right," Lacey said instead, not willing to give out such information over the cell line. "How are you guys?"
"All in one piece. We're following the plan, still. Is Rachel okay?"
"Yeah," Lacey chuckled. "She's right here. We'll see you soon." She handed the phone over to her passenger who hit the end button and stowed it back in the glove compartment.
Chapter 26: Tying Up Loose Ends
Bernard and George sat in the cold night, watching their breath frost into the air in front of them. They exchanged few words in these hours just before dawn and instead focused on the horse and women across the yard.
Rachel was walking out Sunny carefully. She'd sponged him off, put liniment on his legs and wrapped them. Then she'd covered his body with a warm wool liner and an outer shell. She fully expected him to be lame in the morning. His lithe legs weren't meant for that kind of weight and that kind of full fledged run across open land.
Lacey walked beside her, entwining their fingers, whispering words every now and then.
Rico was in the house with Karma, going from room to room and ensuring the security systems were all functioning properly.
By the time the early morning sun was forcing crimson rays through foggy mist, Rachel had at last turned the colt loose. Now the two women stood in the enclosed porch and watched him eagerly graze on the sparse grass in the huge backyard.
"Get some sleep," George suggested quietly from the doorway. "We have everything covered."
It didn't take too much convincing for the dark woman to drag her lover up the stairs where they took a quick hot shower together before piling into the king sized bed. The morning sun cast orange streaks across the floor and the bedding as they each found sleep.
XXXXX
Rachel nearly skipped out of the building and into the parking lot. Her jade eyes scanned the vehicles until she found a familiar one. It was the black Grand Cherokee from their illicit horse napping nearly a week a before.
She jogged over and jumped into the front seat, casting a quick hello to the three men crammed into the backseat before leaning over to kiss Lacey's cheek. The dark woman grinned easily as she put the vehicle into drive.
"How'd it go?" Lacey asked gently, as if she couldn't tell from the sheer joy pouring off the woman next to her.
"Great. Thank you for your help."
"Any time," the dark-haired woman smiled.
"Are you ready?"
"Ready as I'll ever be."
"Am I staying in the car?" the blonde grinned mischievously. "I promise not to play with the windshield wipers. The radio I can't guarantee, though."
Lacey grinned as well. "Actually, you even get to come in. It's a security risk to have people sitting in the car. Kind of a get away set up," she regretted the words as soon as they left her mouth and she must have winced visibly because the young blonde's haunted look faded slightly.
"S'okay," she assured her friend, laying a warm hand on a sweater ensconced arm.
Everyone in the vehicle remained silent for the rest of the trip to Vinnie's sprawling mansion.
Rachel waited silently in the passenger seat of the Grand Cherokee while her dark companion made her way around the vehicle. Then she opened the door and hopped out to stand next to the woman. The men piled out beside them and the five stood there looking at the front double doors for long moments before Lacey took a step forward. Everyone else followed.
They walked in quietly, the two women not touching but no more than an inch or two apart.
"Lace," a tall olive skinned man opened the door for them, glancing easily over Lacey's lithe form to take in the small beauty beside her. He moved his gaze along the others with easy familiarity.
"'Berto," Lacey mumbled by way of greeting as they stepped into the foyer. "This is Rachel."
He nodded his greeting and Rachel glanced at him briefly and smiled before moving her attention to take in the room. It was huge and well lit. A large open entry way went farther into the house and a grand winding staircase found its way upstairs. The floors were a light oak as were the rails to the stairway and the trim on all the doorways. Light poured in from the solitary skylight and bathed the floor with glistening highlights.
They were led down the hallway into a large anteroom with sofas and an assortment of coffee and end tables. There was a silver tray set out with coffee and tea for guests.
Much to Rachel's surprise, 'Berto moved up behind her and lifted her arms to start frisking her. She yelped and squirmed away.
Lacey cast the offender a dark glare and stepped closer to her young friend.
"Policy, Lace. You know that."
"Yeah, but don't sneak up on her for Christ's sake," the dark-haired woman growled. She turned to Rachel, offered her half a shrug. "It's okay."
The young blonde nodded, raised her arms again to allow 'Berto access. He frisked her quickly and a touch too intimately for Rachel's tastes but Lacey was watching closely and made no comment so it must not have been out of the ordinary.
Apparently, crony number two had reached the status of not being frisked because 'Berto simply nodded to her before frisking her team with quick expert hands. He walked across the lush burgundy carpet to the only door in the room.
Vinnie himself emerged after a brief knock, though Rachel wouldn't have known it except he introduced himself.
"Rachel Wilson," she responded quietly, shaking his hand and meeting his dark eyes. She found them warm and friendly and this confused her. She glanced to Lacey who offered no smile in the presence of this man but her sapphire gaze told the blonde that everything was okay.
Vinnie's brow wrinkled slightly as he tried to recall the name and its connection to him.
"Briargate," Lacey supplied when it was obvious her superior wasn't going to come up with it quickly.
"Ah," he nodded, remembering now. "If you'll please excuse us, Ms. Wilson," he inclined his head slightly in her direction and then stepped back towards the room from which he'd emerged, knowing that Lacey and the others would be right behind him.
When the dark woman looked to her companion, she saw the beginning of worry in the emerald depths. Rachel glanced from her friend to the tall dark man still standing in the anteroom, waiting. The rest of the team had already gone inside.
Lacey stepped forward, touched the young woman's arm gently. "Just wait here for me, you're safe. I'll be right back." Her eyes turned from ice blue to gentle violet and Rachel nodded dumbly.
It seemed like hours she waited there, sipping coffee, flipping through inane magazines and watching 'Berto watch her. Finally, her tall dark companion emerged from the office with Vinnie on her heels. The rest of the men were right behind and though none of them were outright smiling, neither did they look like they feared for their lives.
XXXXX
They were silent until all five of them piled back into the Grand Cherokee and Lacey maneuvered the vehicle away.
"Well?" Rachel asked at last, unable to hold her questions any longer.
"Our threats to Wheatridge apparently worked and they have no interest in pursuing Sunny further," Lacey began, referring to the conflicts that had happened since the horse napping. Wheatridge had known the culprits but since their ventures had been less than legal as well, they had little to stand on. Lacey responded with some harsh words and well placed threats. "And Vinnie's agreed that we can keep Sunny on our property as long as we don't geld him and Briargate maintains breeding rights," she continued, knowing, though welcome information, this wasn't the question her young lover wanted answered.
Rachel grinned at this news, even though the dark woman had counted on it and a barn was already being built behind the backyard's fence. Luckily, Lacey's property was zoned for horses.
"They found Benny," Lacey continued, noticing Rachel's grin fade.
"And?"
The backseat seemed to grumble as the men muttered to each other. Lacey hesitated. "You don't really want to know, love."
"Who did it? Your side or theirs?"
"Ours," Lacey answered honestly. The husky man had been found hiding just outside of Chicago and had been disposed of after questioning. What Lacey didn't admit was that she somewhat regretted it hadn't been at her hands. Benny had revealed Oz as his accomplice in poisoning the Briargate horses for profit. He'd even described how he'd pureed the bracken fern and made the mineral blocks with sugar so the horses would eat more of it.
"What about the rest, Lacey?" Rachel glanced into the backseat to see three wide grins and she knew it was good news.
"We're all free to walk. He asked that we wait until Kalzar is finished and that we stagger our departures so we can train incoming before we go. I'll be the last. Rico's the first."
Rachel nearly screeched her joy and the whole vehicle cringed with the ear shattering sound. The young blonde lunged across the front and hugged her partner awkwardly.
Lacey laughed. "You're gonna make me have an accident, Raich. We can do this in a minute."
Rachel disengaged her hold and reached back to squeeze each of the men's hands in turn. Then she settled back in her seat and belted herself in. "How about lunch?" she asked excitedly.
Lacey nodded her agreement as she cast her glance sideways to the other woman's fair profile. Her green eyes blazed with pleasure. God willing, they'd live long happy lives raising Rachel's daughter.
The End
Thank you for taking the journey with me. I had a lot of fun writing it, hope you enjoyed reading it. I’ll gladly talk horses or Siberian Huskies with anyone, just drop me a line.
I would like to take this opportunity to hop on a soap box and encourage you to spay/neuter your pets and not breed them for fun or profit. There are enough cats and dogs in the country as evidenced by the alarmingly high number being euthanized in pounds and shelters on a daily basis. If interested in adult dog rescue, please take a look at our rescue page for Siberian Huskies or I could direct you to other purebred or mixed breed rescues in your area. Pikes Peak Siberian Husky Rescue: http://www.prodogs.com/rescue/siberian/pikepeak.htm. Thank you … I’ll get down now J .