CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Alistair woke early and stepped outside to call Clark. He knew that she was an early riser as well and wasn't concerned with waking her.

"Morning, beautiful."

"Good morning, handsome," she smiled. "How are you?"

"We're doing okay. Making some progress for sure. We're hoping to be able to meet with the dealer today. If we can do that, the next step is the head of this operation."

"Be careful, Alistair. I know you're a professional. I know you're trained. But this guy doesn't have any qualms in killing whoever is in his path. Even Marines."

"I know, babe. I've got a great team with me. That's why we do this. No man is by himself."

"Maybe not, but this guy has locals that need money, drugs, and don't give a shit about anything else."

"You might have something there. Maybe we should send a few guys into the smaller towns up in the mountain closer to where the old location was. Also, I'll ask Hiro and the others to see if they can see anything on satellite or by drone. It's thick forest up there, but it's also fall. Leaves are falling, and the trees are getting barer by the day."

"I'll mention it as well," she said. She waved her hand at him and wiggled her fingers. "One more trip to the pond, and we think my new and old break will be healed. I could use this hand for other more important things."

"Baby, you're killing me, and I can't do a damn thing about it right now. Subject change. Did you talk to your folks? When are they coming?" Quickly changing the subject, he needed to get his mind off her beautiful hands, and body, and lips, and damn.

"Yes," she laughed, "I talked to Mom and Dad. They're excited about meeting you and everyone else. They're ready whenever you get back, and the wedding is set."

"I'll be home soon, babe. Then we can start our life together."

"I can't wait," she whispered. "Alistair? Seriously. Be careful. I love you."

"Love you too, babe."

"She worried about you?" asked the deep voice behind him. He turned to see his friend, Dan.

"She's worried about all of us. And she's ready to get married," he smirked. "Me too, brother. I never thought I'd say that, but I'm damn sure ready to be a husband to that woman and that woman only."

"I get it," laughed Dan. "Meeting Finley changed my world. She was so different. Quirky. She's brilliant, beautiful, and tolerates my insanity."

"I think insanity is contagious for all of us," said Alistair. "Maybe that's Mama Irene's gift. Making us all a bit insane."

"Good morning, sirs," sniffed Victoria.

"Victoria? Honey, are you okay? Are you sick?" asked Dan. He heard her blow her nose and sniff a few times.

" No, sir. I'm fine," she said in a trembling voice.

"Victoria, you're not fine. What's wrong, honey?" asked Alistair.

"You'll think I'm being silly."

"I can promise you that we would never think you're being silly," said Dan. "Are you alright? Is something wrong?"

"Hayes. He hasn't texted, e-mailed, or called in over a week. Plus, he turned his comms off! Why would he do that? He's met someone else, hasn't he?"

"Victoria, honey," smiled Alistair. "I don't think he's met anyone else. His training is incredibly intense right now."

" Training? But he finished his basic training," she said.

"Yes, he did finish his basic training," said Dan, "but now he's doing his specialized training. I'm going to bet that our comms devices cause interference for him when working with certain equipment. He probably turned it off to avoid that. The training that he's undergoing is the most intense training you could possibly imagine. When they get a free moment, they literally only have ten or twenty minutes to eat, sleep, shower, and go to the bathroom."

"So, you don't think he met someone else?" she asked innocently.

"Victoria, I cannot imagine a world where Hayes would meet someone better than you. He's a good man, and he's crazy about you. It will all be okay. He'll be home soon after the training is done, and then you'll see that everything is okay. Feel better?" said Dan.

" Yes. Much. Thank you, both. Oh! I was actually calling to tell you I've been trying to nail down that other familiar voice. The man, Roper. I didn't find anything or anyone with that name, but his voice was so familiar to me. I decided to create a program for voice recognition."

"Smart. Did you come up with anything?" asked Alistair. The others were now gathering on the front porch of the inn, waiting to hear.

"I did get a match, but it wasn't for that man. It was a ninety-four-point four percent match for someone else."

"Victoria, what does that mean? If it doesn't match him, how could it match someone else?" asked Dan.

" Because that someone else is his brother, and he's famous. World famous. Have you guys heard of Lance Stone?"

"Sure. Everyone has heard of him. Big-time action star, makes millions on all his movies. Not one of my favorites, mostly because he doesn't do any of his own stunts, nor does he seem to give a damn about the integrity and accuracy of his films," said Gator.

"You know a lot about this guy," smirked Alistair. Gator shrugged.

"He's right. He never wants to listen to the subject experts on the film. In fact, Colonel J.D. Milton served as the expert on his last film and left, saying he wouldn't support the film or its stars. He's also been accused of bullying his co-stars, harassing them and the crew, and he's been caught twice stealing items from the set. This year, he announced that he would be branching out into producing films and music."

"Oh, damn. He's the one that's doing this to Dove and the others," said Garr.

"Victoria, where is he right now?" asked Alistair.

" I don't know yet. He finished his last film and said he needed a break and was going to relax for a while. The guy, Roper? He's his brother. His real name is Bernard Steiner."

"Steiner? Lance Stone's name is really Steiner?" frowned Dan.

" Yes, sir. Milton Steiner is the man you want. They also have a sister, Raelynn Steiner. She is usually beside him at all the red-carpet moments, but she's been out of sight for a while. A reporter said he overheard Lance telling his sister she needed to lose some weight. One thing you need to know. Raelynn is an aspiring singer and actress."

"Victoria, you are brilliant, honey. If Hayes is stupid enough to leave you, come see me," smiled Garr.

" Um, okay, but I don't think he'll leave me. I mean, he hasn't indicated anything, so that must be good. Right? Wait. Don't answer me. I'll figure this out for myself. And, no offense, Garr, but you might be a little old for me." They heard her sign off, and all looked at Garr.

"I think I'm actually hurt by that."

"Don't be, brother. We're all too old for her, but we can be there for her like the big brothers she should have had watching out for her. I, for one, think Hayes is just tied up with training. I think she'll turn around soon, and he won't want her out of his sight," smirked Alistair. Garr nodded.

"Agreed."