An Ill Wind Read online

  “Columbus is Sinaloa territory, yes?” Vanko asked.

  “Yeah. Vicious fucking bastards.” Trey growled and squeezed the phone. “The cartel owns Colombus, no matter what law enforcement did to clean up that gun-running mess. No one in that place is safe. Hell, the cartel runs loose all over the damn border.”

  And a fucking wall still wouldn’t keep the drug cartels from conducting their violent, dirty business, no matter what some politicians thought. The only place his little doc would be safe was in his home—in his arms and bed each night.

  Vanko looked from Trey to Price. “Your sister has three more months in order to satisfy her year so the government will forgive a year of medical student loans, yes?”

  Fee also had another whole year after that to work off, but—“I’ll buy it out….” Trey said.

  Trey had made that decision a while ago, right after he’d visited her the first time in the dangerous New Mexico border town. But Fee hadn’t been ready to let him into her life nine months ago. Hell, she’d refused to let her own brother pay her medical student loans.

  “…or suggest she transfer to Idaho and take the deal Keely’s worked out for Fee to do the rest of her loan repayment here.”

  Trey would have to tread carefully with Fee. His woman had a great deal of pride and a stubborn streak a mile wide.

  “Wonder what happened to make her agree to dinner? It wasn’t all that long ago she was using me as a buffer.” Price stared at his cards, then looked at Trey. “Should I call her and find out if she’s okay?”

  “Why wouldn’t she be okay?” Trey growled. “Maybe she’s finally realized I’d cut off my dick before hurting her?”

  While the three men had discussed Fee’s about-face, Trey’s sister-in-law Keely had sidled closer to the card table and was listening intently to their conversation. He shook his head and grinned. The nosy little sprite would report the whole conversation word-for-word to her hubby and everyone else on Sanctuary. His long-distance pursuit of Fee was a hot topic of discussion, and bets had been placed on how long Fee would hold out against him.

  “Maybe,” mused Price. “But she’s my sister and I know her better than you. Something happened.”

  “Or…” Vanko drawled. “Trey is correct, and his patience and faithfulness wore her down and won her over.”

  Price threw popcorn at Vanko who caught some of the kernels and ate them. “Shut it, Vanko. That’s pussy-type thinking.”

  “Pussy-type thinking?” Vanko laughed and shook his head. “Fuck you, Price.”

  Keely narrowed her gaze at the back of Price’s head.

  “She’s my sister, and I say something happened.”

  “Want to bet on it?” Trey took offense at the insult to his carefully thought-out plan to win Fee’s trust. Unlike Price, Trey had seen her face when she’d first noticed the flowers and candles when he’d brought her a meal last month. She’d kissed him in thanks. He replayed her shy brushing of lips—and his return of the kiss—every night in his dreams since then.

  “Sure.” Price grinned. “If I’m right and Fee decided to have dinner with you because something specific happened to get her to change her mind, then you’ll do my next three months of climbing duty with Tweeter to check on the security arrays.”

  Trey winced. Fuck, Price. Trey hated climbing, hanging in mid-air on ropes, and crawling like a freaking spider over cold and often icy rock walls to do the seemingly unending maintenance to Sanctuary’s early warning system. He heaved out a breath. “Fine, you bastard, but if I’m right and she decided to date me because of my patience and persistence all these months, then you have to take the wild land firefighting training and join me and the others on the Grangeville hot shot crew.”

  Keely crept closer, her focus now on her ever-present computer tablet as she tap-typed furiously.

  Price glowered. “Fine. Was gonna do it anyway…” At Vanko’s hoot of derisive laughter, Price turned his hot gaze on the other man. “…sooner or later.”

  Every man on Sanctuary, but Price, had taken the training to become a hot shot in order to fight fires in the densely wooded mountains which surrounded their acreage. Wild land fires could happen at any time and did more frequently with climate change and the increasingly hotter and drier conditions they experienced in the panhandle of Idaho.

  “It’s a deal.” Trey held out his hand. “Shake on it.”

  Price grabbed Trey’s hand and squeezed the shit out of it, but Trey just smiled.

  “How will you judge who wins?” Vanko looked at each man in turn. “Neither of you can ask her—and if you did, she might not tell you.”

  Trey looked at Keely and then at Price. “Fee would admit it to Keely, right?”

  “Yeah, she would,” Price smiled. “Having three sisters, I can tell you women stick together and share all sorts of personal shit.”

  Keely whacked Price on the back of the head with the flat of her hand. “Women are more evolved than you knuckle-dragging alpha-males. Want to know what Fee said?”

  “You already asked?” Price rubbed the back of his head. “You were eavesdropping on our conversation?”

  “Yep and yep.” The smart, feisty blonde leaned over Price’s shoulder and rubbed her cheek over his. “The next wild land firefighting class in Grangeville starts the end of April. I’ll have Ren sign you up.”

  Trey laughed and threw his losing cards in. He didn’t feel the need to bluff his way through the hand to win the poker pot, because he’d just won the lottery—Fee trusted him and that was the first step to making her his forever.

  CHAPTER 2

  Saturday, March 23rd, 7:15 a.m.

  Stanley Parker Health Center

  Fee frowned as she listened to yet another silent voice mail and a hang-up from yet another unknown number. Changing her phone number two days ago hadn’t stopped the calls.

  Anger, frustration, and, yes, fear fluttered in her stomach.

  “Fee, how’d it go last night?” Dr. Stanley Parker, the health center’s namesake, braced his lean, runner-fit body against the intake counter, a warm smile on his face.

  Fee jerked, having not heard his approach. Yeah, she was spooked all right. She shoved her cell into the pocket of her scrubs, then turned to fully face her boss.

  Damn, for a sixty-eight-year-old, he looked full of vim and vigor. Had to be a result of all the healthy living he did at Sun City, the intentional community that shared borders with Columbus.

  Ten years ago, Stan had made a financial killing on a couple of patents for medical treatments for traumatic wounds. Most doctors in his shoes would’ve retired, but he’d chosen to come home. He’d used his wealth and political connections to open the health center—and then kept his hand in by alternating twelve-hour shifts with her in the small ER.

  She wanted to be Stan when she grew up.

  “Typical Friday night stuff. Domestic abuse. Drug overdoses. Knife wounds when words might have been a better choice.” Her lips twisted into a mockery of a smile. “The life of an ER doc.”

  But no more innocent deaths, for which she counted her blessings. The staff still hadn’t recovered from Trina and her unborn’s deaths three nights ago. At least, Levi had arrested the abusive, murdering bastard.

  “Get out of here and enjoy your weekend off.” Stan patted her hand where it rested on the counter. “I twisted the arm of one of the residents at the county hospital to cover your call this weekend. I don’t expect to see you back here until seven o’clock, Monday evening. Got that?”

  Two whole days to spend with Trey?

  Her mood lightened. The disturbing phone calls were shoved to the back of her mind since nothing could hurt her if Trey were near. He wouldn’t allow it.

  This weekend could be the beginning of a future with the hunky former Marine.

  “You’re the best.” She walked around the triage desk and gave him a hug. “If your wife wasn’t such a nice lady, I’d give her a run for her money.”

  Stan
grinned. “I think that fella making all those trips from up north might have something to say about that.” He winked. “Pia told me you’re finally gonna give the guy a break. About damn time. As much as I love having you here, you should think about moving closer to him so he doesn’t have to fly down here so often. Save the environment in the process.”

  Fee shook her head and laughed. Stan was all about saving the environment and his harangues on fossil fuels, air pollution, and climate change were legendary.

  “I’m finishing my year contract for sure.” She looked him in the eye. “I’m not a quitter.”

  Um, yeah, you are. You let Dr. Adam-effin’-Stall run you out of Detroit.

  That had been a totally different situation.

  Pia joined them. “Hey, Dr. Parker.” She gave the older man her thousand-watt smile, then turned to Fee. “Want to catch some breakfast at my mamá’s restaurant? Then you can get your beauty rest on a full stomach and be relaxed and ready to eat when that man of yours arrives to take you to dinner.”

  “Sure.” Fee’s phone vibrated. Distress set her stomach to churning. She gave Pia a forced smile. “Give me a sec to take this call and then I’ll meet you at the exit.” She pulled the phone from her pocket and waved Pia off.

  “Whoever it is tell them you’re busy!” Pia jabbed a finger toward Fee. “No doing anyone favors on your weekend off.”

  “Got it, mom.” As Fee swept the screen, she snorted as Pia gave her a middle finger. “Dr. Teague here.”

  Silence.

  “Hello?” She looked at the screen. Another unknown number. The call was still connected. “Is anyone there?”

  Then came the sound of breathing. Masculine-sounding breathing. Her blood turned cold and dread settled like a lead weight in her stomach. It was Stall. He’d breathed in just that way as he held her down and brutally took her body.

  The call disconnected.

  Blankly, she stared at the phone and tried not to vomit. She swallowed a whimper, then firmed her jaw and blocked the phone number. Then she turned the phone off. Stall wasn’t here. He couldn’t intimidate her with cowardly, anonymous phone calls.

  He just did.

  God, why wouldn’t he leave her alone?

  Because he’s a sociopathic raping bastard?

  “Fee?” Stan touched her arm. “What’s wrong? You turned green there for a second. Who was on the phone?”

  She shook off the lingering sickness the call had caused. “Um … a heavy breather.”

  The older doctor’s gaze narrowed. His lips turned down. “Have you had other calls like that?”

  “Yeah…” Fee looked into Stan’s eyes and hoped hers didn’t show her fear that the hell that was Adam-fucking-Stall was starting all over again. “Right after I got here. I reported them to the phone company, and they said the calls came from pre-paid phones and couldn’t trace them. So, I changed my number and the calls stopped for a while.”

  “And now they’ve started again.” It was a statement, not a question.

  She nodded.

  “Do you have any idea who’s on the other end?” Stan asked.

  “Yes.” She pulled her frazzled emotions together. There was no use in burdening this kind man with her problems. “I’ll handle it. Don’t worry about me.”

  Stan covered her hand with his. “You don’t have to deal with this alone, you know. You have friends that can help.”

  Such as Trey. Your brother who’s so not like your stick-up-his-butt father. The folks at SSI. Maybe it’s time to stop being so stubbornly self-sufficient and let people who care about you help.

  “Yeah, I know. Thanks.” She pasted on a bright smile. “Pia’s waiting. I’m starved, and she has to be also. We didn’t stop moving all night. No time for a meal break.”

  And she was babbling.

  Stan eyed her closely, opened his mouth, probably to quiz her further, then shook his head. “Run along. Have a great weekend. See you Monday evening.”

  Fee headed for the exit to the emergency clinic wing of the health center. Since it was Saturday morning and the regular clinic wasn’t open, the emergency waiting area was full of mothers with sick children and people with injuries that wouldn’t normally be considered an emergency.

  Stan’s philosophy was patients should be seen no matter the time of day or night or the severity of their condition. So on weekends, the ER docs covered all illnesses and injuries. Come Monday morning, it was all about triage; the less sick people would be seen in the general clinic and the real emergencies would be seen by Stan from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. and by Fee from 7:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m., 24/7. That was the schedule—two doctors with only the odd substitution, now and then, of a resident from the county hospital to give them a break.

  Yeah, it was hectic and exhausting being on twelve and off twelve, but she’d finish out her year so as to give Stan time to find a replacement or replacements for her. She’d already made the decision to move to Idaho at the end of her contracted year. Several months after arriving in New Mexico, she realized she was ready to move on from what had happened in Detroit. Missing Trey after his last visit had merely cemented her decision.

  Pia sat in a chair by the exit and scanned her cell phone. The nurse looked up as Fee approached, then frowned. “What’s wrong? Did Dr. Parker cancel your weekend off?”

  “No?” Fee stared at the best friend she had in Columbus. In fact, her best friend ever. “Why?”

  “You look … freaked. What happened?”

  Pia had a mulish look on her face. Fee knew from past experience the nurse wouldn’t budge an inch until she told Pia what was wrong.

  “That call I took?” Pia nodded. “No one was on the other end. Just breathing.”

  “You got a heavy breathing call? Is this the first?”

  “Uh, yes … and no. There’ve been other calls, but no breathing, just silence.” Fee hesitated, not used to sharing her burdens, but Pia was one of those friends Stan had alluded to.

  Go on tell, her what you suspect.

  “I told you about the doctor who’d raped me?”

  Pia nodded, a look of grave concern on her face.

  “I’m sure the calls are from him.” Fee rubbed a hand over her diaphragm to release the tension so she could catch a full breath.

  “That bottom-feeding, scum-sucking culo is now stalking you long-distance?” Pia surged to her feet, her hands fisted. “You need to tell Levi.”

  Fee wasn’t going to bother Levi. He had enough local criminals to deal with.

  “I can change my number again.” She and Pia exited the building. “He’ll eventually get tired of calling and stop.”

  You don’t really believe that, do you?

  No.

  “Not good enough. If you don’t tell Levi, I will.” Pia was furious on her behalf, and maybe a little bit of that fury was aimed Fee’s way. “Fee, you have to see, this is the sign of a seriously disturbed man.”

  “He’s in Detroit.” Fee opened the door of her Jeep Cherokee, but remained outside. The heat buildup in the vehicle was already unbearable, and it was only half past seven in the morning. The temperatures were already in the low eighties and it was only March. “Stall won’t come here.”

  Head in the sand … again?

  Pia opened the passenger side door and leaned in, but also stayed outside until the interior cooled a bit. “There are these miraculous contraptions called airplanes. He could be here even now.”

  Fee opened her mouth—

  “Anh,” Pia held up a hand, “I don’t want to hear one more rationalization. Tell Levi or tell that hunk Trey—or both. You don’t have to handle this alone.”

  What she said.

  Fee climbed into the Jeep and slammed the door. “I don’t want to be one of those weak women who relies on a man to solve her problems.”

  “Fee—” Pia’s tone was full of exasperation. “Everyone needs help at one time or another.”

  Not according to her father who’d preached se
lf-sufficiency, stiff upper lip, and gut it up at every turn.

  Pia climbed in and slammed her door. “Ignore me, if you must. But I’m deliriously happy you’ve decided to date Trey. His presence means your burdens will be history. I don’t see that man—one who adores you—allowing anyone or anything harm you.”

  Fee couldn’t deny the truth of what Pia said. Trey, like her brother Price, was a protector. But—

  Stop with the buts. Just let Trey handle it. Tell him about the calls tonight.

  Fine, she would, and just like that, the fear roiling in her gut melted away. Trey would handle it, and he wouldn’t think less of her. He wasn’t like her father. He wasn’t like Stall. He was a paladin.

  The short drive to Mamacitas Restaurante took less than three minutes. They could’ve easily walked it from the clinic, but afterwards they’d head to Fee’s two-room-plus-a-full-bath adobe on the outskirts of Columbus, located in a sparsely built-out subdivision. Pia had left her car there the evening before and had ridden into work with Fee. The plan had been for Pia to vet Fee’s outfit for her first date with Trey.

  Entering the restaurant, the spicy-fatty smells of Tex-Mex breakfasts hit Fee in the face and had her mouth watering. She placed a hand on her stomach which growled loudly at the scent of food.

  They sat at the counter and then Fee turned to Pia. “When did we eat last?”

  “We only took one break, and it was a short one,” Pia responded. “I think we both had a diet Pepsi and a granola bar … and dammit, one of the techs had brought in homemade lasagna and I wanted some, but never got around to it.”

  “Patients rank before eating.” Fee shrugged. It was the life she’d chosen and so a growling stomach was a small price to pay. “We’re here now, so let’s eat.”

  Fee practically bounced on the stool at the thought of the tasty treats coming her way. She smiled at Pia’s mother. “Hola, Carmela. Chilequiles and a Diet Pepsi, please.”