Chapter 16

Chapter

Sixteen

Nick hada fun evening with all the children that could walk, besides little Izzy who was terrified of him. They took turns climbing on him, wrestling with him, and begging him to ‘throw me' over and over again.

He helped Darcy and the other volunteers with bedtime. He'd been around his nieces and nephews enough to be some help, but the little ones all clamored for Darcy. He savored seeing her in this setting. She was loving, radiant, and fun.

If only he and Darcy could someday have a child of their own. He had no clue how to make that ‘someday' work.

He didn't like the way that guard had looked at him when they'd first arrived. In fact, he didn't like anything about that guard. He was going to get Paul, and the weapons he knew were in the back of the Range Rover, and go investigate.

After he spent some more time with Darcy. Hopefully Paul was comfortable lying in the back of the vehicle. He smiled to himself. He'd hear about leaving his friend there for too long.

Finally, the last door was closed behind a sleepy little one. Darcy turned and leaned against the wall, peering up at him. "I'm exhausted, and I didn't go three rounds with the vicious Jagger to win a million dollars before lunch."

He grinned and pressed his hands on either side of her shoulders, leaning in. "I've got much more stamina than the average human."

"Do you now?" She arched an eyebrow.

"Yes, ma'am." He lifted one hand and cupped her soft cheek.

"You aren't bruised and broken from that fight? I don't want to hurt you." She peered at his nose.

He chuckled and pumped his eyebrows. Luckily, his nose hadn't been broken, just bloodied. "Nothing you could do would hurt me, beautiful Darcy."

"We'll see." She grabbed his shirt and pulled herself up closer to him, fusing her lips with his.

Nick pressed her into the wall and took full advantage of her lovely mouth.

A door closed down the hallway. He should've stepped back, but he didn't know how much time he'd have here. If the guards ‘staying' in the basement were running a drug ring through Darcy's house, he would blow the operation wide open, and things might get a little sticky after that.

A throat cleared, and Darcy pulled back, straightening his shirt and patting his chest. "Sorry," she said.

"You're not." He winked at her.

"I'll do it again in a minute," she reassured him.

"Darcy." The older lady, May, was close by. "I think Gary and I need a very long story out of you two. Herbal tea, in the kitchen, now."

Nick turned to May and nodded. "Yes, ma'am. We're right behind you."

"No, you two walk in front of me. Gary's already down there and I can just see you slipping away to kiss some more."

Darcy laughed, so Nick joined her. The lady was teasing. He took Darcy's hand and gestured. "Ladies before gentlemen. Please."

"Oh. I see." She gave him a sassy swat on the arm, right on the spot a bruise was forming.

She took off down the hall, and they followed. They descended the stairs and went through two smaller living areas to the large kitchen in the back. The house was old and, except for the kitchen, mostly chopped up rooms. It looked like they'd redone what they could.

Gary was indeed waiting. He shook Nick's hand and asked, "Does the other guy look worse?"

"Oh, definitely." Nick grinned.

"He earned those bruises and scrapes winning me the million dollars." Darcy punched her fists in the air but kept her voice down—to not wake the little ones, he was sure.

"Yes!" May threw her arms around Darcy, and they danced and cheered quietly.

They settled down to tell Gary and May the story of their week, winning the money, and then Gary and May grilled him about his past and what he did for work. He could tell they wanted to ask his intentions toward Darcy. If only he knew. Could he give up his security ops to be with her? Did he have to? Could he cut down the missions he went on and come back to her as often as possible? It hardly mattered. Until Johnny Trattori was taken out, they couldn't be together.

Finally, Gary and May admitted exhaustion and headed to bed.

Nick looked at Darcy. "We'd better get you to bed as well. Am I sleeping on the couch?" He'd noticed how full every space was in this house. There was a lady that slept in the room with the babies and one with the smaller toddlers as well. Some of the helpers had gone home for the night.

"Or my room."

She was teasing. He hoped.

"Sorry, not happening."

"I was teasing." She pulled him in and kissed him. It was a good thing he'd promised Papa Pete when he was fourteen that he'd never sleep with a woman until he was married to her. This kiss alone made him want to never let Darcy out of his arms.

"Do you have sheets for the couch?" he asked, pulling back. "I bet there's a sleeping bag out in the Range Rover."

"I've got sheets." She let him go and found some sheets and a pillow and made him a bed on the most comfortable couch in the front parlor.

Nick walked her up to her room, savoring one last kiss goodnight.

She hugged him tight. "Thank you for being here. It means the world to me. Seeing you with Samuel and the other children…" She put a hand to her heart, and her blue eyes lit up. "Thank you."

"I'm happy to be here." That much, at least, was true.

Grinning, she slid into her room.

Nick looked at the closed door for a long moment, wishing he could tell her everything. He trusted her—it wasn't about that—but the information was classified and could endanger her. What if she was in more danger not knowing? She'd been in danger the past eight years, being around Trattori and the guy still keeping his ‘guards' around her.

Nick was here now, and he'd keep her safe.

He walked soundlessly down the hallway, the stairs, and through the hallway and the kitchen. Typing in the security code, he slid out the back door, then entered the code again. Sadly, the biggest risk to Darcy and her children was the supposed guards who probably had the code.

Nonchalantly walking to the Range Rover, he noticed a guard leaning against the front gate, smoking. He raised a hand as if he were simply the uninformed American boyfriend showing up with Darcy and coming out to grab his overnight bag. He wondered if they'd reported him to Trattori already. Most likely. He'd love it if the guy would personally show up. A stray bullet and all their troubles would be over. Nick had always instinctively loathed drug dealers because of his past, but he had a special loathing for Trattori and the way he'd hurt Darcy.

Walking around to the back of the Range Rover, he clicked open the rear door, and it rose slowly. The interior lights came on, but the darkened windows would make it impossible for the guard to see anything. He was blocked from the view of the guard by the vehicle.

"Guard fifty feet from the driver's side door, at my three o'clock," he told Paul quietly, lifting the cover off and smiling at his friend.

"About time," Paul groaned, rolling up to a seated position.

"You've been dead asleep this whole time, old man," Nick teased in a whisper. Paul was all of thirty-five.

"I wish. I'm too old for this."

Nick smiled and lifted out a duffel bag he knew would be loaded with an M27, two 1911s, extra loaded magazines for each of the guns, knives, surveillance equipment, and even some grenades. There would be a change of clothes and toiletries in there as well. He'd have to go purchase more clothing if he stayed very long.

Paul slid out of the vehicle, handing over a pair of infrared/night vision goggles and an earpiece. He put his own goggles on his forehead, the earpiece in his ear, and slung his duffel over his shoulder. "What do you need, friend?"

"I suspect Trattori is using the basement for a transfer point. As close as we are to the border, there might even be a tunnel down there. Identify any other threats, but don't incapacitate yet. I'll head for the basement. Follow me when you can without raising suspicion."

"Got it." Paul eased around the opposite side of the car, out of sight of the guard.

Nick held onto the goggles, slung the bag over his shoulder, and shut the rear hatch, easing around to the side of the vehicle. The man up front hadn't moved. He raised a hand again.

Was it Sean or were there two of them now? He hadn't seen anyone but Sean wandering around outside the windows, but somebody could have spelled Sean off while Nick was distracted putting little ones to bed or kissing Darcy.

Maybe he shouldn't risk going into the basement tonight, but Paul was here to back him up. He needed answers before he called in the troops to start monitoring and decided if he needed to relocate an entire children's home. His gut tightened at that thought. He'd keep Darcy and her children safe.

He turned on his earpiece. "You good?" he asked Paul.

"Yes, sir."

He sauntered toward the back door, but as soon as he was hidden from the man's view by the house, he put the goggles on and turned them on. Doing a slow scan, he couldn't see anything moving or any heat signatures besides Paul and the guard. That was good.

He slid around to the back of the house where he'd seen the basement entrance. He'd checked, but there was no basement access from the inside. They must've sealed it off during the remodel. That was good news for the children, if what he suspected was in this basement was actually here. He paused and scanned the backyard. Nothing. He turned and scanned for cameras … there.

Casually walking past the door and the camera, he slid a clip onto the camera so it would keep recording but wouldn't rotate and wouldn't pick him up. The exterior basement door was likely armed, and there was no way to know what he would be walking into, so he slid along the house until he reached a basement window. He crouched beside the window and eased over just enough to search inside. No heat signatures. All quiet. Could be good or bad. The angle didn't let him get a clear picture of the layout of the room or its contents.

"I'm going through the back window. Avoid the camera by coming around the other side of the house," he said quietly.

"Put the guard to sleep?" Paul whispered.

"Sure."

Paul could make the man sleep like a baby and not even realize he hadn't just fallen asleep on the job when he woke up.

Nick smiled and pulled out his utility knife. Silently unlocking the window and sliding it open, he was relieved when no alarm sounded. He slid in through the window, landing in a crouch.

He looked around with the goggles. The open basement room was about thirty by forty feet and appeared empty save a cot, mini fridge, an overflowing garbage, and a couple of camp chairs. It reeked of old takeout containers and spilled beer. Stairs went up to the exterior entry he'd avoided. A set of double doors was on the other side of the room.

Searching for cameras, he saw one in the corner that had been activated by his movement. Too late to turn back now. He darted across the room and dismantled the camera. If there was nothing to hide down here, nobody would be monitoring the feed. If there was, all heck would break out soon. He smiled, welcoming a battle. It might be his chance to end Trattori.

Paul slid in the window and raised a hand. "Tried the next door yet?"

"You do the honors, friend."

Paul bowed and then eased to the double doors. Nick approached from the opposite side of the doorframe. Paul tested the handle. Locked. That fact alone showed there was something to hide.

He jimmied the lock. The door slid open, but the alarm pad just inside the door frame was flashing. They had seconds to punch in the alarm code, or waking up the children would be only the start of the chaos. There was almost no chance the code matched the one from upstairs.

Fishing around in his duffel, Paul pulled a small device out of a side pocket and placed it on the alarm. A pulse and the flashing light disappeared. Nick went left and Paul right, taking out the cameras in each corner of the interior room, or … tunnel.

All was secure, for the moment. He took the time to look around. Rows of running lights at the base of each wall lit a wide dirt tunnel. A small electric Ranger utility vehicle sat next to them, ready to run them, or Johnny Trattori's latest shipment of drugs, to the other side of the border.

"My Spanish is better, and I look more like a native," Paul said.

"I'm Italian. I'll tell them I'm Johnny's cousin," Nick countered.

"The love of your life is sleeping two floors above us." Paul clasped his arm. "I'll check it out and be right back."

Nick couldn't argue. Darcy was his priority. He had to stay and make sure she and her children were safe.

"Hurry," he urged. The tunnel could be half a mile long. If they weren't planning on a shipment tonight, would they turn their guns on Paul? No. They'd assume it was one of their men. Unless those cameras had raised alarms and they were on guard.

Paul grinned, started the Ranger, and took off down the tunnel.

Nick prayed his friend would be safe and that he wouldn't have to wait long. He should be exhausted from this long and eventful day, but adrenaline coursed through him. He'd gone without rest before.

Easing back through the open door to the other room, he searched around again. He heard nothing and didn't see any other cameras that they'd missed. Pulling out his phone, he texted Aiden what they'd found. He pushed send and heard the rumble of tires on gravel outside.

His spine stiffened, and he had to put his goggles on his forehead as dim lights penetrated the basement window. He saw the lights of two vehicles stop next to his Range Rover.

Easing closer to the window, he counted eight men climbing out of the two vehicles. They fanned out, angling for the basement door. They had to know he and Paul were here. He hurried to close the door they'd opened then grabbed the still open window frame and lifted himself out, sliding the window almost closed. Replacing his goggles, he searched around. Men were headed for the main floor kitchen entrance and the basement door.

He wanted to curse. He eased around the side of the house, away from the men, and sent a text to Paul in case he couldn't hear him over the noise of the Ranger or in case the men could hear his voice. A load of men. Stay.

Then a text to Aiden. A load of men. Come quick.

Best case, Aiden was an hour out. How could he keep everyone safe and expose, arrest, or kill Johnny Trattori?

First order of business was to get to Darcy. He heard movement around the side of the house, and then the kitchen door opened and the alarm beeped. They knew the code.

He looked at the house and knew exactly which upstairs room was Darcy's. Setting his duffel bag on the ground, he quickly armed himself, then pulled out the Gecko gloves. He normally liked playing Spiderman, but not when the woman he loved was in danger.