Chapter 14

CHAPTERFOURTEEN

Cora woke in the morning to Pipe kissing her forehead. He was standing at the side of the bed, leaning over, his arms caging her in.

“Good morning.”

“Morning,” she mumbled.

“We need to get up and get ready to go.”

“Okay.”

He smiled. “You awake?”

“Yeah.”

“You sure?”

“Uh-huh.”

His grin grew. “Right. I’ll start the coffee. If I don’t hear the water running in three minutes, I won’t let you have any of the special black cherry brew that I’m gonna make.”

“Mean,” Cora grumbled.

In response, Pipe leaned down and kissed her on the lips this time. “Get up,” he repeated, then stood and headed for the door. Cora couldn’t help but admire his ass as he went.

It was then that she realized he wasn’t wearing anything but a pair of boxers. She should’ve felt embarrassed or shy or something, but instead she felt…mellow.

At the door, Pipe turned. “Cora?”

“Yeah?”

“Slept better last night than I can remember sleeping in a very long time.” He grinned at her. “Three minutes.”

Then he was gone.

Cora sighed and closed her eyes as she stretched. She’d also slept like a rock. Well, after her nightmare, that was. She hated the dreams she still had occasionally. She’d tried really hard to put her past behind her, but there were times her brain still liked to dredge up her crappy childhood, as if to remind her that things can always go bad—or get worse.

The second Pipe’s arms had wrapped around her last night, she’d felt safe. Safe from the horrors of her childhood, from the taunts of other kids about her lack of a family, from the fear of being homeless, from all of it.

“Two and a half minutes!” Pipe called from down the hall in his room.

Cora couldn’t stop the laugh that escaped her lips. It was hard to believe she was finding anything humorous right now, considering what lay ahead of her and the others later in the day, but she did.

“I’m going!” she called back as she swung her legs over the side of the bed and headed for the bathroom. Instead of dwelling on her nightmare, or the fact that Pipe had spent the night in her bed, holding her tightly, she let the tiniest bit of excitement flow through her veins. She’d been doing everything in her power to get to this moment, to find out what was really happening with Lara. And today it was happening. The police might not believe her, or Lara’s parents, but she was more certain than ever, especially after everything that Tex guy had found out, that Lara was being held against her will.

All she needed to do was get to her, get Lara to admit that she wanted to go home, and they were out of there. Ridge wouldn’t be able to stop them, not with Pipe, Owl, and Stone at her back.

Cora grit her teeth in determination. She wasn’t leaving Arizona without Lara. Whatever it took, she’d make sure her friend was safe.

* * *

Hours later, Cora’s determination had waned a bit and nervousness had taken its place. The flight had gone without any issues and the four of them had rented a Jeep Wrangler. They were now parked on the street, a ways from Ridge Michaels’s mansion.

“So I really am just going to go up and knock on the door?” Cora asked nervously.

“I’m thinking that’s better than skulking around the grounds and risking a trespassing charge,” Stone said with a shrug.

“I’m okay with it, but you aren’t going by yourself,” Pipe said.

Cora looked over at him and realized he was extremely tense. They were sitting in the back seat, while Stone and Owl sat up front. The latter had his attention on the house, taking pictures from the passenger seat as they waited for…something to happen.

“I might have a better chance of talking with Lara if I’m by myself,” Cora argued. “You guys aren’t exactly nonthreatening.”

“And Michaels could decide to grab you too,” Pipe countered. “If Stone or Owl is with you, that won’t happen.”

Cora tilted her head as she studied Pipe. “Why them? Why not you?”

Pipe snorted. “Yeah, right.”

“No, seriously, why not?”

“Look at me, love. A rich bloke like Ridge Michaels isn’t going to let someone like me into his home. He’ll take one look at me and know something’s up.”

Cora frowned, not happy at the way he disparaged himself. “Or maybe he’ll take one look at you and realize he messed up. He’ll poop his pants and let us have Lara without any fuss.”

Pipe’s lips twitched.

“This isn’t funny!” Cora argued.

“Poop his pants?” Pipe asked.

Cora tried not to smile, but she was so worked up, so full of nervous energy, that she couldn’t stop herself. “Yeah, well, cussing hasn’t exactly made me any friends, so I’m trying to tone it down.”

“We don’t give a shit if you cuss,” Owl said from the front seat.

“Nope,” Stone agreed. “We aren’t exactly non-cussers ourselves.”

“And, for the record, I agree with Cora,” Owl added. “Michaels will see you with her and know she’s got reinforcements. There’s no guarantee he’ll hand over his girlfriend, but—”

“She’s not his girlfriend,” Cora growled.

“Right, sorry.”

“Still don’t think this is a good idea, but all right. I’m not letting you go up there by yourself. But you should all be forewarned, if this Michaels guy tries anything, if he touches Cora, I can’t promise I’ll hold my temper.”

“Noted,” Stone said.

“Cool,” Owl added.

“So, what’s the plan?” Cora asked. “Do we have a cover story?”

“Cover story? Cora, he knows who you are, that you live in DC, and the fact that you’re suddenly on his doorstep, wanting to see Lara, shouldn’t come as a huge surprise. Not with how close the two of you are. We don’t need a cover story.”

“Right. Sorry, I’m just nervous.”

Pipe reached out and took her hand in his. “I’ll be right there.”

Taking a deep breath, Cora nodded. “I know. And I appreciate it.”

“Owl, is there anything you can see that we didn’t get from the satellite pics Tex sent us?”

“Yeah, you know that large, flat space we saw that we thought were tennis courts?” Owl said as he stared through a pair of binoculars toward the house. There weren’t a lot of trees in the fancy neighborhood to block their view of the house. The perimeter was surrounded by a low brick wall, easy enough to see over and scale, if need be. There were cacti sprinkled around the entire neighborhood, and the house they were surveilling had a gate across the driveway.

“Yeah? What about it?” Pipe asked.

“It’s not a tennis court.” He lowered the binoculars and turned to grin at Stone. “It’s a helipad.”

“No shit?” Stone asked, sitting up straighter and staring at the house.

“Yup. I can just see the blades of a chopper sticking out from around the house.”

“Ridge has a helicopter?” Cora asked. The base of her spine was tingling. She remembered Ryan’s words about stealing the chopper, just like Ridge had stolen Lara, and wondered anew if the other woman had somehow known about the helicopter or was just guessing.

“Apparently,” Owl said, lifting the binoculars again. “Looks like an R66 Turbine.”

Stone whistled low. “That’s not cheap. I mean, it’s not the most expensive civilian chopper out there, but it’s not exactly inexpensive.”

“How the hell can he afford that if he’s using Lara’s credit cards?” Cora asked.

“That’s what I’d like to know. Although, it could be Daddy’s. And why does he even need it?” Pipe added.

“Well, I guess right now it doesn’t matter. I’m getting more and more nervous sitting here. Can we just go and do this?” Cora asked. “I want to see Lara for myself.”

Stone turned around. “Be careful,” he said.

Cora wanted to roll her eyes, but instead she simply nodded.

“Intel only at first,” Owl added. “We need to know what’s going on inside that house. If the hired help is assisting him with whatever he’s doing with Lara or if they’re clueless. Best-case scenario, Lara leaves with you, but if he doesn’t let you see her, don’t lose your cool, Cora. We’ll simply come back with another plan.”

“You guys and your plans,” she mumbled.

Stone chuckled.

“Okay, let’s do this,” Pipe said.

He squeezed her fingers before letting go and reaching for the door handle.

Cora got out on her side and was having a hard time believing she was actually here. And that she had three badass ex-military guys at her back. It was so much more support than she’d dreamed she’d have. “Please let this work,” she mumbled under her breath, then Pipe was there. He reached for her hand, and the feel of his warm fingers around hers went a long way toward easing her nervousness.

Pipe started walking toward the house, talking under his breath as he went. “Stay calm, no matter what he says. Don’t let on that you know about the credit cards. Just say that you’re here because you’re worried about Lara, and you took vacation time to come out and make sure she’s okay.”

“I know,” Cora told him. They’d been over this before, but she was still afraid she was going to screw everything up by saying the wrong thing.

They headed for the long gate to the driveway. There was a walk-in entrance next to the gate, and to Cora’s surprise, it wasn’t locked. They walked right inside and down the driveway.

The house was large, but not as huge as some mansions she’d seen. It had huge white columns on the front, which looked a little tacky here in the southwest, where something that blended in with the xeriscaping would be more appropriate. There wasn’t a lot of grass in the yard, it was mostly crushed rock. Cora saw one person to the side of the house, doing some work on the yard, but otherwise felt as if she and Pipe were the only people on the grounds.

“Deep breath, you’ve got this,” Pipe told her, squeezing her fingers.

Cora didn’t think she’d be able to do this at all if it wasn’t for the man at her side. She’d do anything for her friend, but this was actually kind of scary, especially after learning more about Ridge. If she hadn’t known anything, she probably would’ve marched up to his door with her usual bravado, but now that she knew he was lying his ass off for some unknown reason, and not knowing if Lara was even still alive, she was kind of freaking out.

Before she was ready, they reached the front door. She turned to look at Pipe and saw his head was on a swivel. He was on the lookout for…what? Danger? Bad guys jumping out from behind a cactus with a knife? She had no idea, but again, she was glad he was there.

Without hesitation, he reached for the door knocker and slammed it down a couple of times. The loud bang it made each time it hit the metal plate made Cora flinch. Her hands felt sweaty, but she held onto Pipe for dear life.

It took a couple of minutes, and Pipe even knocked again, before they finally heard someone on the other side of the door. Cora couldn’t help but wonder if it had taken so long because Ridge was trying to hide Lara. Or threaten her. Or something else equally scary.

When the door opened, it wasn’t Ridge on the other side. It was a man probably around Cora’s age. He was a little taller than Pipe and extremely muscular. He immediately intimidated her.

“Whatever you’re selling, we don’t want,” he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

His attitude irritated Cora, making her find her backbone. She straightened her shoulders and met his glare with one of her own. “Good for you, but we aren’t selling anything. My name is Cora Rooney, and I’m here to see Lara Osler.”

“She isn’t seeing visitors,” the man replied without hesitation.

“She’ll see me,” Cora told him, lifting her chin stubbornly.

“No, I mean she’s not well enough to see anyone.”

Cora’s stomach flip-flopped. “What’s wrong with her?”

“I’m not going to disclose the lady of the house’s issues with a stranger who shows up on our doorstep,” the man sneered.

“Look, I’m her best friend. I know everything there is to know about Lara. I know she gets cramps really bad when she has her period and nothing but a heating pad and Advil will help her. She hates seafood, and she has to pick those little mushroom pieces that you can’t even taste out of any dish made with cream of mushroom soup. Trust me, I’m no stranger. I’ve known her since we were fifteen years old, and I’ve come all the way from Washington, DC to see her and make sure she’s all right.”

“She’s fine,” the man said, not persuaded in the least by Cora’s statement.

“I’d like to see that for myself,” she argued.

The man didn’t budge. “Sorry, no,” he told her, not sounding sorry in the least.

“It would be a shame to have to involve the authorities in this matter,” Pipe said. “All she wants is to see her best friend, make sure she’s all right. She hasn’t heard from her in a while, and Lara left DC very suddenly. You let us in, let Cora see Lara, and we’re out of your hair.”

Creepy Guy’s gaze swung to Pipe, and it made Cora’s skin crawl when he studied him from head to foot before narrowing his eyes. “Ms. Lara isn’t feeling well. I’m sure she’ll be happy to know you came by to see her. I’ll tell her to text you later.”

“No!” Cora practically shouted. Her heart was beating a million miles an hour. Something was very wrong, she felt it in her gut. She thought something was wrong before, but now she was convinced.

The man’s arms uncrossed and his legs shifted so he was more secure on his feet. Ready for some sort of…what? Cora didn’t know. Confrontation? Did he think she was going to jump him?

But the man’s eyes weren’t on her—they were on Pipe.

She glanced over and realized why the man’s stance had changed. Pipe’s outward appearance could be intimidating to some people, Cora was aware of that, though she’d never been scared of him. Not once.

But right this moment? If she was the recipient of the look he was giving Creepy Guy, she’d be the one pooping her pants. His jaw was ticking, his eyes narrowed, and the hand that wasn’t holding hers was in a fist at his side. His muscles were tense, as if he was one second away from losing his shit on this guy. Which probably wasn’t a wrong assessment.

“Tell Michaels we’ll be back,” Pipe said in a tone that seemed like it was an octave lower than his usual voice.

“Right, sure,” Creepy Guy said.

“Please tell Lara that I was here,” Cora rushed to say. She had no illusions that anyone would tell her best friend that help was on the way, but she could hope. “Tell her that Jenny Thompson sends her best wishes too, and that I’ll see her soon.”

As far as clues went, it was lame, especially because she felt there was less than a two percent chance this jerk would pass along any messages to Lara…if she was still alive to get them.

Jenny Thompson was a girl who used to pick on Cora in high school. She was nothing but a bully who’d loved to torment her by making fun of the fact she was a foster kid and no one wanted her. One day, Lara got sick of the taunts by the other girl and got right up in her face—saying it was better to be a foster kid with no family than have a murderer for a father.

It was harsh and cruel, but it had the desired effect. Apparently, it wasn’t common knowledge that Jenny’s dad had been found guilty of first-degree homicide and was doing life in prison. Jenny had left Cora alone after that, then had switched schools not too much later.

Cora wanted to remind Lara that she had her back. That no matter what, she wasn’t going to give up on her.

Creepy Guy didn’t respond to her request, just continued to stare at them both.

“And let Michaels know that maybe I’ll see him at the Blue Moon later. I’ve heard it’s the best around,” Pipe added, before taking a step back.

Cora followed, not that she had a choice, since his fingers were like a vise around hers.

Creepy Guy narrowed his eyes, his own jaw ticking now, before turning and shutting the door in their faces.

“Bloody hell,” Pipe muttered, before hustling her off the front porch and back down the driveway.

“I’m guessing that gate we went through is gonna be locked from here on out,” Cora said in a daze.

“Probably,” he agreed.

They arrived back at the Jeep and climbed into the back seat.

“Well?” Stone asked impatiently. “I take it you didn’t see her?”

“No, we didn’t. And if the gorilla that met us at the door is any indication, things aren’t good,” Pipe said.

“Any sign of Lara at all?” Owl asked.

“No,” Cora said, her shoulders slumping.

“Next up…Blue Moon,” Pipe said.

“You think he’ll be there after you made it clear you know Ridge frequents the place?” Cora asked.

“No. But I do want to talk to people. See if he’s got a specific stripper he’s been spending money on.”

“I still want to know about that chopper,” Owl said under his breath.

“Gotta be his father’s. Though it would make sense for Ridge to use it if he doesn’t want anyone to know he’s got money issues. Flying around in that thing would portray a certain image,” Stone said with a shrug.

The men continued to speak, but Cora tuned them out. She felt incredibly disappointed. She’d truly thought that maybe, just maybe, she’d get to see Lara today. That they’d knock on the door and Ridge would take one look at Pipe and let her talk to her friend. But to be blocked as firmly as they’d been, to not even know if Lara was, God forbid, alive or not…it was a blow she was struggling to absorb.

“Hotel,” Pipe said abruptly, jerking Cora out of the fog she’d been in.

“Right,” Stone said, turning the key in the ignition and pulling away from the curb.

Cora’s eyes stayed glued on Ridge’s house as they drove past. It sucked to be so close, and yet just as far as she’d ever been to finding out what was going on with her friend.

Pipe squeezed her hand again. He’d only let go long enough for them both to get into the car, and she was grateful for his silent support.

She also appreciated that he didn’t give her platitudes about how he was sure Lara was fine. They both knew that likely wasn’t the case…not with the way that man so firmly refused to let them in the house.

Cora turned to look out at the passing landscape. Tears filled her eyes, and the scenery blurred as she struggled to keep her composure. She couldn’t lose Lara. She just couldn’t.

Feeling as alone as she’d ever felt growing up, Cora desperately tried not to start bawling.

Then she felt Pipe lean toward her. She didn’t turn to look at him because she didn’t want him to see her tears. “I give you my word, love, that we’re going to help her.”

Cora closed her eyes. He was close enough to her that his breath warmed her neck as he spoke directly into her ear. She nodded but didn’t turn. She couldn’t imagine a world without Lara. She was her rock. Her anchor. She was quiet, kind, dependable, and a perfect balance to Cora’s brashness and tendency to act before thinking. Without her, Cora would be lost.

She had to be all right. She simply had to be.