Chapter Three

      One of the most gorgeous male specimens Kenderly had ever encountered had choked while laughing at her. She wished she knew what he and his captain were talking about outside. The captain seemed to have brought news Garrison didn’t really want to hear.

      She’d been introduced while the murder weapon was locked away in the captain’s trunk. Now she was eating toast at the kitchen window and watching the men talk.

      Captain Oaks was calm, watching her from where he stood in the backyard. His hands were behind his back, as stoic and sturdy as his name. But her rescuer waved his hands, disagreeing or in disbelief. She could make out the words no and no way. Just a few minutes before he’d said “hell, no” loud enough to be heard in the next county.

      Garrison adamantly refused whatever his new assignment required. The only movements that were relaxed at all were reaching down to pet Clementine or take her ball and throw it again. Such a normal action that he performed without thinking.

      He hadn’t broken a sweat saving her life today. Confident. Cocky. Extremely good-looking. A little arrogant. And sweet, sweet Thelma, he rode a motorcycle like it was nobody’s business.

      Her fingers tangled in the mess that was now her hair.

      The long extensions were so matted that she couldn’t unclip them from her head. The wind had done permanent damage, and it would take hours of combing to make them wearable again. She headed to the bathroom to see if she could get them loose. Bear followed and sat in the doorway, then slid to his belly.

      “I suppose you’re used to the door staying open,” she said gently to him, stroking the old boy on the head. She looked in the mirror and almost screamed. “I look like a middle-aged drug addict.”

      The slate liner was smudged under her eyes and halfway down her cheeks. She had no way to repair the damage, other than removing all the makeup. She had nothing except her cell. Her makeup case, purse, keys and car had all been left at the Tenoreno estate.

      How was she going to get to work? Or work without her supplies, for that matter? Everything was in that bathroom or her Beetle. Her ID, debit card, checkbook...how would she even eat until they could be replaced?

      But she couldn’t feel sorry for herself. Isabella and Trinity had lost much more than supplies or money.

      Much more.

      The men hadn’t opened the jewelry case yet. It had also been locked in the captain’s trunk almost immediately. Neither of them asked what was inside. They’d just assumed it was important. Probably because she’d asked to go back for it.

      She took a deep breath and tried to slow her racing heart. Turning the water off, the men’s voices drifted in through the slightly open window.

      “You have your choice. Protect her or be the bait.”

      “I appreciate your confidence in me, sir. I don’t think I have a choice. I don’t have the skills or patience to sit and wait. And isn’t it against some type of regulation or something? Don’t we need to involve a female DPS officer to be on her protection detail?” Garrison was marching back and forth across his grass.

      “You’re the one insisting that she needs protection without evaluating if what she saw is admissible in court. Or what’s in that case you locked away. How dangerous do you think the threat to her is?”

      Garrison stopped pacing. His smile was gone, and he suddenly looked grown up. The white teeth he’d flashed all evening put her at ease, but it made him look much younger.

      “From everything you’ve told me about these two families, they shoot first and never bother to ask if it’s the right person. If they find her, they will kill her, sir.”

      “You’re right, and she’ll be safe. I’m giving you the option, son. Keep your word and be a part of her detail. Or you nail these bastards once and for all. As I said before, the Tenoreno family released a blurred picture of you both to the media. They’re going to find the fake background information we set up for you to get the job. It won’t take them long before they track down your cover phone. We need a decision and need a plan.”

      Kenderly wanted to crawl through the tiny window and shout at both the men. They were making decisions about her life without asking her anything. She wasn’t running off with Garrison Travis to hide. But she also wasn’t stupid enough to go home. Without money or a place to live, the Texas Rangers were her best chance to stay alive.

      “That ID got me on the grounds. The pictures will get me back inside. Regarding Kenderly, there isn’t a choice here,” Garrison said so seriously it scared her. “Without me, you don’t have a connection to the shooter. If Kenderly comes forward, it will blow the entire operation. It’s the closest we’ve been to bringing these crime families down in years. If they join forces, we might never get the chance again.”

      “As of today, the Tenorenos and Roscos were falling behind the cartels. Together...” Captain Oaks shook his head with the implication. “They’ll either kill each other, taking a lot of other people along the way. Or they’ll be strong enough to control seventy percent of organized crime in Texas.”

      “There’s only one choice, then. I go back inside. Try to convince them I was just running for my life when the shots started. It would help if I had something of value to trade. I don’t see anyone making an identification from the pictures. I’ve got my fingers crossed there’s something in that jewelry box that Isabella thought was worth smuggling out with Kenderly.”

      She couldn’t see the captain’s face, but she did have a good look at Garrison’s dissatisfied expression. He shoved his hand through his sandy-blond hair. He’d changed into jeans and a button-down shirt. She’d seen his badge ready to go on the kitchen table before he slid it into his back pocket.

      “We’ll do the initial Q and A here. We both need to hear her answers firsthand. You could come to headquarters but—”

      “Got it. The fewer who know about Kenderly Tyler, the better.” Garrison looked more relaxed.

      Why he should be...she had no idea. He was planning on returning to the Tenoreno house surrounded by men with guns...and more guns.

      “I’ll make a call and get a video camera here. Then we’ll get started. You okay with your cover story about why you left in such a hurry?” Captain Oaks asked.

      “Easy to explain. Shots start flying, and I’m not hanging around. It might take longer to wrap