Guardian Defender
Author
Jacquelin Thomas
Reads
15.2K
Chapters
26
Can a former US marshal protect an agent running for her life? Not even leaving her old life behind can keep former Homeland Security agent Rylee Greenwood safe from the ruthless cartel hunting her. After a murder leaves her WITSEC identity compromised, Rylee joins forces with former US marshal Kaleb Stone. But uncovering evidence to take down a powerful enemy who's always one step ahead plunges them into a deadly game that could cost them their lives…
Chapter One
Just as she did every time she worked, Rylee gave a cursory scan of the restaurant, checking the tables for any patrons who seemed fixated on her. A party of four waited at the hostess stand, so she took one last look in their direction before moving on to an older couple standing near the bar. The man’s bald head shone in the dim light. His wife, dressed from head to toe in a black velvet pantsuit, had a clump of pearls around her neck and a silver bracelet stacked with charms on her wrist. Rylee offered them a friendly smile while piling nuts into a bowl.
It was almost 10:00 p.m. on a Friday. The subtle lighting in the bar area of the Promenade Steak House accentuated the muted colors of the liquor bottles on display. The bottles were translucent, ranging from small and round to tall and slender. Each one was dressed differently; some had dark wood-paneled labels with neat handwriting, while others sported clear glass, revealing the beverage’s hue.
A man with reddish hair and brilliant green eyes dropped on the stool directly before her.
“Hey, Seth,” she him greeted warmly, then asked, “what are you drinking tonight?” Rylee spoke loudly so he could hear her over the many conversations going on in the bar area.
“Whiskey sour,” came the response. “I just left a party, and to be honest, I need a drink.”
“How many did you have at the party?” Rylee asked.
“There wasn’t any alcohol. That’s why I came here.”
She soaked in the laughter and the energy of the patrons as she served him quickly.
He took a sip, then said, “No one makes a whiskey sour the way you do, Rylee.”
She grinned. “Thanks, Seth.”
He was a regular and one of her favorite customers. He was always respectful and a great tipper. Seth’s drinks were either a whiskey sour, a beer or a cognac on the rocks.
He handed her a twenty-dollar bill. “Keep the change.”
She smiled and moved down the bar. Everyone looked successful in their expensive suits and business attire. She caught a glimpse of herself in the large mirror behind her. Rylee examined her reflection. She and her coworker were the only ones who looked normal in tuxedo shirts and black slacks. That was the idea. In a high-end restaurant such as this, the employees were not supposed to stand out—only the drinks and the food.
A server walked up and asked for a glass of the house red wine for a customer in the dining room.
Rylee accommodated her request, then placed a second mug of beer in front of her next patron. She’d never been a drinker, so it amazed Rylee how her customers were able to keep laughing and drinking for so many hours.
“Hey, gorgeous... Can I get a drink?”
The request jolted Rylee out of her thoughts. The voice had a mysterious quality to it. “Of course. What would you like?”
Rylee faced the man with dark eyes and black hair. She had never seen him here before tonight. New faces were not uncommon, but his intense gaze sent shivers up her arms. This time her intuition was on high alert.
He stared at her with an emotionless smirk. “I’ll have a Jack Daniel’s on the rocks.”
She grabbed the bottle and poured a shot of the dark liquor into a glass filled with ice. Rylee placed it in front of him, then glanced up at the clock on the wall. Her shift was ending soon. She’d been at work since noon and looked forward to soaking in the tub when she got home. Her days were much more monotonous than they’d been fifteen months ago. Sometimes she missed her old life, but other days she was happy for the quiet.
“Where’re you from?” the man asked.
Rylee gave him a polite smile, then, as casually as she could manage, she asked, “Why don’t you start off by telling me your name?” He already knew hers because of her employee badge.
“Luis,” he responded with a grin that was likely meant to dazzle her but failed.
She eyed him. Her guard was up, but Rylee kept her face friendly. “It’s nice to meet you, Luis. I’m from Seattle. And you? What brings you to Racine?” The lie was becoming easier.
As Luis removed his gloves, Rylee noticed the old bruises on his knuckles. A shiver ran down her spine as she recognized the sinister energy that emanated from the man. Dressed in faded black jeans, a turtleneck and a leather jacket, he looked at her with a predatory gaze that made her feel exposed and vulnerable.
Luis’s flat, hard eyes held her still as he spoke. “Chicago. I’m in town on business for a few days.” He downed his drink in one gulp, never once breaking eye contact with her. “I’m an accountant.”
Rylee’s heart began to pound heavily in her chest. Pointing to his empty glass, she asked, “Would you like another one?” She hoped to end the conversation and get away from him as quickly as possible.
“No, I’m good.” Luis pulled a ten out of his wallet and laid it on the counter. “The maître d’ just signaled that my table’s ready.”
As he walked away, Rylee breathed a sigh of relief. It was only then that she realized how tightly she had been holding on to the edge of the bar.
“It was nice meeting you, Rylee,” he called back over his shoulder.
She watched as he disappeared into the crowd, feeling like prey being stalked by a predator. Rylee tried to shake the uneasiness, but it wouldn’t release its grip on her.
A young woman dressed in an identical uniform as Rylee walked behind the bar—this was her replacement. Rylee gave her a quick update before walking briskly to the staff room.
She snatched her puffy coat, scarf and gloves out of her locker, slipping them on quickly. She retrieved her leather backpack and the hat sticking out of it. She glanced uneasily over her shoulder as she clocked out. Normally, she ordered a meal to take home with her, but not tonight. Rylee couldn’t wait to escape to the safety of her apartment.
She pushed back against the wave of apprehension swirling in her gut. Everyone believed that Rolanda Green was dead. There wasn’t anyone looking for her. The hospital staff had all been instructed to report her death. Rylee tried to convince herself that she was overreacting.
Get a grip, Rylee. She placed the knit hat on her head. Don’t stop trusting your gut now.
The eighteen-degree weather rudely slapped Rylee in the face when she exited the employees’ door. In all this time, she still hadn’t gotten used to the Racine weather, but she’d learned how to drive safely when it snowed.
Rylee always parked her Honda Accord in a well-lit area and away from other cars. Taser in hand, she surveyed her surroundings, then hurriedly made her way to her vehicle. She unlocked the driver-side door and climbed inside. She spared a glance at the ebony-colored car with the silver trim parked next to hers as she drove away.
Rylee’s stomach felt like it was doing somersaults as she pulled onto the road. Her heart hammered against her chest as each second ticked by. Willing the car in front to speed up, her knuckles blanched with tension as she wrestled with the steering wheel. A chill raced down her spine as she glanced into her rearview mirror, afraid she wouldn’t be alone. Since entering the witness protection program, Rylee had refused to become complacent. Letting her guard down could prove deadly. After trying to take down the notorious Mancuso cartel, she’d lost her partner and her life in LA. An image of the man responsible flashed in her mind. Calderon. A top lieutenant in the cartel. He was still out there, and she’d never lost her drive to expose him. Had he found her?
She glanced up at the rearview mirror again and noticed a dark vehicle two cars behind her. The stirrings of caution prickled at the back of her neck when it suddenly maneuvered around the other vehicles to get directly behind her. She recognized the car as the one that was parked beside hers earlier. The silver trim gleamed beneath the streetlights.
Rylee deliberately drove past her apartment building, hoping the driver would turn onto the upcoming street.
The car kept at a safe distance but continued to follow her.
She made a right turn two blocks from where she lived. Her heart rate picked up when the car following her did the same. The driver was definitely tailing her.
“Call Easton Bennett,” she said clearly to voice command.
When her handler answered, Rylee stated, “I’m being followed. I recognized the car from the restaurant. It was parked right beside mine earlier.”
“You know where to meet me?”
“I do,” she responded. “I’ll be there after I lose this person.”
“I’m on my way,” he said. “I’m about fifteen minutes out.”
Rylee imposed an iron control on herself and sped up.
The car behind her immediately gained speed to keep up with her.
Rylee clenched her jaw, reached inside her glove compartment and pulled out a gun. When the vehicle was beside her, she glanced over and saw it was Luis, the man from the restaurant.
Grinning, he gestured for her to pull over.
When Rylee showed no signs of doing what he wanted, his grin became more menacing.
She met his sinister eyes without flinching. Rylee drew a deep breath, forbade herself to tremble and pressed down on the gas pedal, increasing her speed.
She ran a red light.
Luis followed and was T-boned by a car, the initial impact between the two vehicles creating a loud, sharp crash.
“Yessss...” Rylee didn’t feel an ounce of regret for cheering on the person who’d hit Luis. She pulled over. Shattered glass and remnants from the vehicle were sprinkled in the street. She prayed his car was rendered completely useless. At least the accident would help widen the distance between them. She put the car in Drive and took off.
Rylee jumped on the highway for four miles, then took the first exit ramp, using a side road to get to the designated meeting spot, an abandoned warehouse. She used a remote Easton had given her to enter the building, closing the door behind her.
She turned the car around so that she faced the entrance, then turned off her lights. She pulled out a pair of jeans from her backpack and changed into them, then exchanged the white tuxedo shirt for a black sweater. She had to be ready for anything.
Gun in hand, she waited in her car. There was no doubt in her mind who’d sent Luis.
What puzzled her most was how that man could’ve found her. She’d done everything by the book and had given up everything so that no one ever would...
Easton arrived a few minutes later.
She got out of the car. “What happened? Who blew my cover, because I sure didn’t. Everyone is supposed to believe I died along with my partner. This man walked right up to the bar and started a conversation with me. He said his name was Luis.”
Easton approached, hands in his pockets. “Are you sure he wasn’t some dude just trying to get to know you? You’re a very attractive woman, Rylee.”
“Maybe it was the bruises on his knuckles that make me seriously doubt he wanted me to pull over just to talk.” Rylee was furious. “How did they find me?”
“This is a huge problem if my office has suddenly sprung a leak,” he responded.
She knew it wasn’t Easton’s fault, but she’d never felt so vulnerable as she did now, and Rylee didn’t like the feeling. “Let’s go with the assumption that Calderon sent someone after me until you find out differently. Did you call anyone after you talked to me?”
Easton shook his head. “No, I came straight here. Right now, I don’t know who I can trust in the agency, so we’re on our own.”
“How could that have happened?”
“I don’t know,” he said, “but I’m gonna find out. We’ve never had anything like this happen here.”
“And what about this place? Does anyone know about it? How can you be sure that it’s safe?” Rylee asked. Once she was someplace safe—they could try to figure out the leak.
“It’s safe. My uncle owns this building.” Pointing to a black SUV with tinted windows parked a few feet away, Easton stated, “We’re leaving in that.”
Rylee always kept a small suitcase in her car in case this moment ever arrived. She grabbed it along with her backpack, then strode over to the SUV and climbed inside.
She swallowed hard as shivers snaked down her arms. “I could tell there was something off about that man. I can’t explain it, but the moment he looked at me—it was like he knew who I was. His eyes...” Rylee couldn’t finish the thought. She ran trembling fingers through her shoulder-length hair as her steady resolve began to wilt. “I’ve always been extremely careful. I never once broke protocol.”
“I’m gonna find the leak. In the meantime, we’ll put you somewhere safe.”
“We never saw this guy coming, Easton,” she uttered with a slight edge of defiance. “I’m telling you now. I won’t make the mistake of foolishly believing that I’m totally safe again. I could’ve just taken my chances at home instead of freezing here in Racine.”
“I know what you’re thinking... Rylee, you can’t go back to Los Angeles. It’s really not safe for you there.”
Staring out the window, she responded, “Apparently, it’s no longer safe for me to stay dead, either.”
EASTON HAD RYLEE toss her phone out of the window as they left Racine.
“I’ll get you a new one,” he told her.
He seemed to be driving around in circles to ensure they weren’t being followed. He drove to a secluded area in Milwaukee. He turned off the lights, pulled off the road and parked at a distance, scanning what he could see of the property.
Rylee surveyed the area as well. Shadows transformed from one shape to another as beams of moonlight danced from tree to tree. Her heart pounded wildly as she searched and listened. A physical barrier and camera surveillance enclosed the safe house where they would spend the next few days.
Under normal circumstances, Easton and another marshal would provide twenty-four-hour protection whenever a witness was in a high-threat condition, but Rylee knew he thought it best to work alone at this moment. She agreed.
“Everything looks exactly as it should.” Easton started the ignition and drove the rest of the way.
They entered the dark house through the garage.
Inside was a network of anti-intrusion systems and closed-circuit cameras that monitored the grounds, corridors and doors. This house differed greatly from the safe site she’d stayed in during her orientation in Washington, DC. That facility consisted of a one-bedroom suite with an exterior courtyard surrounded by high concrete walls, from which Rylee could hear other witnesses but had no idea who they were or what they looked like. She was never allowed to have physical contact with any of them and couldn’t leave her living quarters unescorted.
During that time, the marshals had provided groceries and any other items she required, including Rylee’s pain medication during her recovery. They also supplied her with books, maps and newspapers to familiarize her with Racine. She had been given a choice as to where she wanted to live and chose Wisconsin over Iowa. She also had to study similar information to support her cover story—information on Seattle—the city she would tell others she was from.
Racine had finally started to feel like a place she could call home. She’d made a couple of wonderful friends at work and did normal things like going to movies, festivals and a couple of parties. She had no social media presence and wouldn’t let anyone snap photos of her. She explained it away by telling her friends that some guy had stalked her.
“I can’t believe we have to do this all over again,” Rylee uttered, dropping her luggage on the floor in the living room. “If there’s a leak, I’ll never be safe. All my information needs to be scrubbed from your files. I can’t stay in WITSEC.”
Easton picked up his phone.
“Who are you calling?” she asked.
“A friend of mine. Don’t worry,” he responded. “He’s no longer with the agency. I trust this man with my life, so I will have him meet us here. Then we’ll decide our next move.” He went into one of the rooms to talk to his friend.
Easton returned a few minutes later, saying, “I need to show you the basement. There’s a panic room down there.”
“Do you think we’ll have to use it?” Rylee questioned.
“Nope, but I want you to know what to do if necessary.”
Once down there, Easton pointed toward a large clock on a granite-covered wall. “There’s a camera hidden in it. From inside the room, you can see what’s going on down here only. The guy who designed the room didn’t want anyone to spot any unusual wiring—that’s why he didn’t connect any of the cameras upstairs to here.”
He led her over to the wall and showed her how to open the hidden door. “There is a multipoint locking system installed.”
Inside, Rylee glanced around at the rustic design. She eyed the built-in bunk beds that extended beyond one wall. A plush sectional sofa and ottoman were in the center of the room. There was a TV, a compact refrigerator and a microwave. “This is some panic room.”
“The door is bulletproof, and the walls are reinforced. You’ll be safe in here. There’s snacks in the pantry over there. Microwave meals in the fridge along with bottled water.”
“Well, it’s not like we’ll be needing to stay in here,” Rylee responded.
“Right, but I wanted you to know about it,” Easton stated. “Better to know and not need it than not know.”
Although he was trying hard not to show it, she could tell he was just as troubled as she was.
They returned to the main level. Rylee planted herself in the living room and pulled the nine-millimeter Glock out of her backpack.
Easton’s eyes widened in surprise. “Where on earth did you get that?”
“I bought it from a guy I met at the restaurant,” she responded nonchalantly. “He comes to the bar every time he’s in town. He mentioned one evening that he had one to sell, so I bought it.” She didn’t mention that she’d bought a second one from him as well.
“I shouldn’t have to tell you how risky—”
“I have to protect myself, Easton. Look, I’m not some criminal. I have a permit for it.”
She pointed to the chessboard. “Wanna play?” The discussion had come to an end as far as Rylee was concerned. There was no way she’d be without weapons to protect herself. She’d trusted her partner, Stuart, with her entire being and almost lost her life. She trusted Easton to protect her, and now they were on the run. Armed with a Taser, her Glock and the other gun in her backpack, Rylee felt better prepared to defend herself should it come to that.
“Sure,” Easton responded. “When did you learn to play?”
“Promenade hosts a chess tournament every year. I know how much you love it, so I thought I’d learn. I must warn you, though—I learned the game from one of the best.”
Her handler offered one of his rare smiles. “Sounds like you’ll be a challenge. I’ve been playing this game since I was in high school. I’ve even won a few championships myself.”
Shrugging, Rylee chuckled. “Those days may be over. I’m just saying...”
After she beat him, Easton yawned and stretched. “I guess I was more exhausted than I thought. I normally beat the mess out of my opponents.”
“Uh-huh...”
He settled back on the couch. “You go and try to get some sleep.”
Rylee strode to the bedroom closest to the entrance. She made herself comfortable in the middle of the queen-size bed, pulled out her iPad and began reading.
Within minutes, unable to fully concentrate on the novel, Rylee gave up. She lay back against the pillows, willing her body to relax as she contemplated her future fully.
During the investigation, after she and Stuart were shot, fentanyl was found in her partner’s house and two million dollars in his bank account linking him to the Mancuso cartel. Although Stuart and his wife had separated shortly before his death, Rylee’s heart hurt for Elena and the children. She regretted not being able to personally offer her condolences or assurances that Stuart remained an agent with integrity and honor until the end of his watch. She’d never believed he was involved with the cartel.
Rylee was able to place a key member of the Mancuso cartel at the shooting, which was why she was placed in WITSEC. She missed her mother, who still lived in LA, every day.
Now that the cartel knew where she was, the bright side of her current dilemma was that she could finally go home.
She wanted to reach out to her department head at Homeland Security but decided to hold off for now. Rylee was steadfast in her belief that Stuart wasn’t a drug trafficker. She wanted to clear her partner’s name for his family. He was a good man—a shining example in all walks of life. There was no way he’d be involved in trafficking fentanyl. His mother had died of a heroin overdose when Stuart was fifteen. He hated drugs with a passion and fought diligently to get them off the streets. Rylee had joined Homeland Security for a similar reason—her younger brother had had a cocaine addiction. She’d left the marines after six years to help her mother with him. Unfortunately, he’d died two months later. That was when she’d applied to join Homeland Security Investigations.
Rylee lay back against the pillows, pushing the painful memories away. When she finally drifted off to sleep, the familiar dream returned—the one where she and Stuart found themselves face-to-face with a group of armed men, and one of them was Calderon.
“You don’t want to do this. We’re not alone,” Stuart bluffed. “This place is surrounded.”
Rylee knew the truth. There was no one coming to their aid. No one knew they’d come to the waterfront that day.
Before Stuart was shot, she’d heard him utter, “This was a setup.”
Just as the shooter fired at her, Rylee was snatched awake by Easton.
“Get up,” he urged. “We got visitors. Three men with guns.”
Rylee quickly slid out of bed and grabbed her Glock. She picked up her backpack to retrieve extra ammunition.
“What are you doing?” Easton asked.
“We’re shooting our way out, right?” She found a perverse pleasure in the challenge of taking on the people sent to kill her. “I’m locked and loaded.”
“Look, there’s no time for this. Take your stuff. Leave no evidence that you were ever here. Move quickly and get to the panic room.”
She paused long enough to ask, “What about you?”
“I’m staying out here. Now go...and stay there until I come for you. Do not come out. You remember the safe word?”
“Yes...”
“Go,” Easton commanded.
Rylee did as he instructed. She grabbed her backpack and suitcase then rushed to the basement.
Once there, she sat down on the sofa to wait.
For what, she had no idea.
The only question on her mind was, how did they find her so quickly?