Hardwired (The Brotherhood Series) Read online

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Jen

  Summer had officially arrived. Jen wouldn’t have any more late-night calls for work the following day, and she wouldn’t be scrambling to find a sitter for Bella. She wouldn’t be completely unemployed though; her first waitressing shift of the tourist season was only a week away. As much as she despised waitressing, she loved it, too. People could be complete assholes, but then there were those who made her day that much better just by having sat in her section.

  Jen was excited for her week off. She had fun things planned for her and Bella. Instead of scrambling last minute for funds, she had saved throughout the year so that they could enjoy their week, free of financial worry. At the thought of money, Jen found her purse and dug inside of it looking for the information she needed to call in a payment for her water, otherwise their good week would be ruined.

  The black cell phone her mysterious savior had gifted her fell into her hand. She pulled it out of her purse, a bit surprised it was still even turned on, since she hadn’t bothered charging it. There were no new messages or missed calls which, if Jen was being honest with herself, upset her a little bit. Deciding it was absolutely ridiculous that she didn’t even know the man’s name who had saved her, she decided to try one more time to get it out of him.

  “I don’t know what to save your number under, since I don’t know your name…”

  It was a weak argument at best, but she didn’t care. After a few minutes of staring at the phone waiting for a response, she realized she was being absurd and dumped it back in her purse. Jen found her water bill and quickly called in a payment.

  A buzzing in her purse startled her. Her heart pounded against her rib cage as she dug the phone back out and opened the message.

  “Nice try.”

  Jen smiled at his response.

  “I guess I’ll just save it under Hero.”

  The title seemed to hit a chord with the man, according to Bella’s rendition of their conversation from that night.

  “Think darker, more destructive.”

  “Should I be afraid of you?”

  “I’ll never allow any harm to come to you or Bella.”

  “Did you know my husband?”

  “No.”

  Jen wasn’t sure what her expectations had been for the conversation. She found herself a little upset that he hadn’t known Luke. The details of his death were hazy at best, and after months of begging the Navy officials that she could get a hold of, she had finally given up ever finding out what had truly happened to him. Not that it really mattered; he wasn’t coming back.

  “Until next time, Jen.”

  Her fingers drifted over the keys to type out several different responses, all of which she deleted. It should frighten her that he knew her and Bella’s names. It should frighten her that he had shown up in her home in the middle of the night, even if he had saved her. It should definitely frighten her that he felt the need to give her a burner phone. For some reason, though, she wasn’t afraid of him. The air of mystery and danger that surrounded him, that she was afraid of.

  “Bye.”

  She dumped the phone back into her purse. An afterthought had her digging it back out and finding the charger she had thrown in her junk drawer so that it could charge.

  “Mamma, what phone is that?”

  “It’s just for emergencies, it’s nothing really.”

  “Okay. Can I have a tea party? I’ve been coloring, but I’m bored with that.”

  “What would you think about driving up to Duck and going to the aquarium?”

  “Yes! Oh, I’m so excited for the fishies! Can I take Butterfly?”

  “Of course. Once I get lunch cleaned up, we’ll go.”

  Chapter Twenty-Three

  Luke

  Luke went out on another mission, but this time he managed to stay off the Operations Officer’s shit list. Just as he had suspected, when he had shown back up at the barracks he had received more than just a stern talking to. Luke took it in stride.

  As soon as he had debriefed everyone on the mission, he got back on his bike and hit the road. The motel attendant didn’t blink when Luke threw down the same over-payment as before. He simply handed him the key to the room he stayed in the last time. As soon as night time hit, Luke ventured out to Jen and Bella. This was his life for six months. If he wasn’t gone on a mission, he was sneaking off to see them.

  Jen texted him periodically. They never talked much, just more of a checking in text. She always asked him for his name, which he never answered. Then she’d instruct him to stay safe. No doubt her worry for him was harbored from the loss of her husband. Luke still liked the fact that there was someone out there who seemed to care.

  Just as he was about to leave the motel under the cloak of darkness, the burner phone buzzed in his pocket. He smiled, thinking it was ironic that she was thinking of him as he was thinking of her. The smile disappeared once he read the text.

  “Help.”

  Luke ran. Instead of taking his normal route on the beach he raced down the streets, his muscles pumping with the rush of adrenaline zinging through his body. A pain shot through his quads.

  Fuck.

  Dean had swapped Luke’s chip for his civilian chip as soon as the debriefing had been done. Luke was still more in shape than the average man, but his muscles would fatigue; there would be no pushing his body. He also wouldn’t be able to fight like normal; the civilian chip would hold him back. For the first time since it had been installed, Luke wanted to rip the hard drive from his back. That would do Jen and Bella no good either, though.

  He finally hit the street they lived on, pushing himself through the pain of the chip fighting to regulate him. He heard a scream just as he breached the top of the stairs to her deck. Luke was confronted by a man wearing all black, holding a semi-automatic weapon. Luke’s body and mind went into overdrive; years of training kicked in. He had the element of surprise on the man as he grabbed the gun and slammed it into the man’s face over and over until the man dropped to the ground.

  The door was locked, but that was only a minor deflection for Luke. He busted through the sliding glass door, feeling the tiny pieces of glass rip at his flesh. Jen held onto Bella with all her might as two men tried to tear them from each other. Luke couldn’t make out the men’s faces, but he had a feeling if he could have, he would have recognized them.

  The one holding Bella instantly let go, raising his hands. Luke didn’t take prisoners though. The man sealed his own death the moment he decided to touch what was Luke’s. He grabbed the man by the throat just as the other man let go of Jen and raised a handgun to her head, pulling her back against his chest. Luke gripped the man’s throat tighter.

  “No, don’t kill him,” Bella pleaded.

  Luke wanted to give in to her request, but he couldn’t. Neither of the two men in front of him were leaving alive.

  “How many did the Operations Officer send?” Luke asked.

  “Leave it be. This is what’s best for everyone,” the man who was holding Jen answered.

  “Did they tell you this was a suicide mission?”

  “No one has to get hurt. We have orders, same as you.”

  The man Luke had by the throat quit thrashing, his body going limp. Luke squeezed for a bit longer before letting the body drop. The man holding Jen tried to hide his fear as Luke prowled closer.

  “You’re not going to kill her, so drop the gun. I’ll let you live on one condition.”

  The man thought for several beats before he dropped the gun.

  “Tell them I’m coming for them.”

  With his hands in the air, the man moved around the room toward the shattered entryway. Luke watched him the entire time, his eyes boring into the man as if to strengthen his warning. Once the man had cleared the house, Luke stepped outside to make sure he had, in fact, left.

  “Was there anybody else in the house?”

  Jen shook her head and pulled Bella
into her embrace.

  “We have to leave. Pack what you need.”

  “Not until you at least tell me your name,” Jen said.

  She moved through the house, and Luke knew she was headed for the light switch. He had no choice but to oblige her. There would be no animosity if he was going to get her and Bella to safety. The lights flipped on, and Luke turned to face her, pulling his hat off. Jen’s face exploded with shock. Luke took a step forward confused by her reaction, but Bella’s tiny hand tugged on his fingers.

  He looked down, drowning in her blue eyes.

  “Daddy?”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Jen

  Jen stumbled sideways as she yanked Bella to her, shoving her behind her legs. The man in front of her looked identical to Luke; her Luke. It was impossible, though. Luke had died, and the man staring at her like she had two heads didn’t seem to have a clue who she was.

  “How do you know my name?” He asked, his voice thick with the emotions his face was hiding.

  “My husband’s name is—er—was Luke.”

  “Mamma, is that Daddy?” Bella asked from behind Jen.

  “Your husband died,” Luke wasn’t asking her, he was verifying what Bella had told him.

  “Yes, he did, but aside from the fact that you share the same name, you look exactly like him.”

  Luke took another step toward her, reaching out with his hand as if he was going to touch her. Jen flinched her heart and brain at war with what she was seeing. Luke dropped his hand. He seemed to be just as confused as she was, as if he wasn’t sure who he really was.

  “Luke?” Jen sobbed, wondering if there was hope that he was alive and standing right in front of her.

  He dragged his hand through his hair but didn’t say a word. Jen remembered Bella mentioning that he had dog tags, so she reached for hers. She slid them up from under her shirt and held them out for him to look at. His eyes studied hers briefly before he stepped closer. Jen’s mind was trying to protect her, but her heart was galloping full speed toward a magical fairy tale ending. That was a dangerous dream to have as a military wife.

  Luke moved close enough to pluck the dog tags out of her palm. He hadn’t had them in his hand long when he dropped them, pulling his hand back as if they had burned him. His eyes narrowed in on Jen, as if she were deceiving him. The danger that surrounded him from the moment he had pulled in on his motorcycle thickened like a fog, making her clutch Bella’s hand and take a step back.

  “Who are you?” His tone was that of a soldier now, instead of a man.

  “My name is Jen Kiersey, widow of Troop Chief Luke Kiersey, United States Navy SEAL. Who are you?”

  “When did your husband die?”

  “He died on August 23rd, 2013, in some desert overseas.”

  Luke’s eyes were wide by the time she finished talking. He opened his mouth several times to say something, but each time he would immediately close it again. Jen wanted to scream at him to speak. Suddenly he hit his knees, his hands cradling his head as if he were in pain. When he finally looked up she saw the pain in his bewitchingly dark eyes.

  “You’re mine; Jen and Bella,” he whispered.

  “It’s you?” Jen asked, stepping toward him. She reached out tentatively, not sure if she should touch him but unable to resist. If the man before her wasn’t her Luke, then he had a twin brother she had never known about; one who had also gotten the exact same tattoos as her Luke.

  Her hand finally touched his cheek, and the same zing of electricity that had always been between them shot through her arm. Jen covered her mouth with her other hand as the tears fell freely down her face. She moved her hand up the side of his face and into his hair, just as she had done a hundred times before. Luke leaned into her touch, his eyes locked on hers. She kneeled in front of him, but before she could say more, he jerked away from her, grabbing his head again. He leapt up on his feet and struggled as if something had a hold of him.

  “Luke, what’s wrong?” Jen cried.

  “Mamma, I’m scared,” Bella whimpered.

  As much as Jen wanted to try and help Luke, Bella was her priority. Jen turned and hugged Bella to her chest so that she couldn’t see Luke struggle with the pain.

  “Luke!” Jen yelled his name out in agony.

  A man walked in through her sliding glass door, catching Luke’s full attention. Luke looked at the man with homicidal anger. The man had his hands up in the air.

  “Luke, I’m here to help,” he said, his thick southern accent begging for mercy.

  “You knew, didn’t you?” Luke roared.

  “Shit. Luke, it’s not so black and white as that; there’s some gray areas. There’s no time to explain right now, just know that I’m trying to help you.”

  “It’s black and white to me. You took my family from me! I was used as a war machine for five years while my wife and child thought I was dead and were left alone.”

  “Luke, they’re coming. You have to let me change your chip, or you’ll never beat them. The civilian chip you have in, they can override it and track you or even worse, shut you down. Please, believe me. Let me put this chip in. I programmed it myself, off-site; no one knows about it but me.”

  “So you can track me and turn me over?” Luke scoffed.

  “No, I won’t turn you over. We have to hurry. If you’re going to take them, we need to do this so you can leave, now!”

  Jen had no idea who the man was, but he seemed to be trying to help. Luke seemed blind to anything but his anger.

  “Why are you talking about a hard drive?” Jen finally asked.

  Luke’s eyes darted back to hers, and the fear she saw reflected there was heart wrenching. Luke shook his head and then looked back at the man.

  “Luke, it’s now or never; them or us.”

  Luke lifted his shirt over his head and turned his back to Jen. She wished he would have warned her, so she wouldn’t have gasped at the sight of his back. Once she had her wits about her, she ushered Bella back to her bedroom and ordered her to pack herself some clothes and toys.

  Once Bella had shut the door behind her, Jen walked to Luke. The man was working on switching the chips, as he had called them. Jen moved to Luke’s side and held her hand up, so he could see it and know what she was going to do before she did it. He still jerked when her fingers touched his back.

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Luke

  “This is my burner phone number. Nobody else knows about this phone. If you need me, I’ll help you. I know it doesn’t seem like it Luke, but I really have always been on your side.”

  “Fuck off, Dean,” Luke said as he crumpled up the piece of paper and threw it back at the man he had once seen as his best friend.

  “You have to go, now.” Dean growled.

  “We need to move. I can’t protect you here.” Luke said, directing his command to Jen.

  Jen nodded and turned to go get Bella. He watched her disappear back through the house. The sound of a truck pulling down the cul-de-sac told Luke they were out of time.

  “Good luck, Luke,” Dean said as he pulled his gun and headed back out of the door to buy them some time.

  Dean’s actions wouldn’t buy him forgiveness in Luke’s eyes, but Luke was grateful for the extra time. Jen and Bella came down the hallway, each of them with a small bag, and Bella clutching a tiny stuffed unicorn. Gunfire erupted out front. Before Jen could grab Bella, Luke swooped in and lifted the tiny girl into his arms and grabbed Jen’s hand, tugging them toward the back of the house. Jen’s windows were old school and propped open, which gave them an easy escape.

  Luke opened the closest window and ushered Jen out first. The drop below the window wasn’t too bad. Then he set Bella down, who didn’t need much coaxing to go through the window and drop down to her mother. Luke managed to ease himself through last. He picked up Bella again and grabbed Jen’s hand, maneuvering them through the dunes and sand oats.

  They could hear the commotion f
rom Dean’s confrontation with the new round of men. A loud thud signaled someone had fallen. For a brief second Luke hoped it wasn’t Dean but dismissed the thought. He couldn’t worry about Dean. His mission was to save Jen and Bella.

  Luke didn’t turn back as he led them toward his motel room.

  “Shit,” he muttered when he realized all he had was a motorcycle for them to get away on.

  Jen looked over at him, but she didn’t say anything. Luke moved back toward the houses. They needed a vehicle, but he needed one old enough that he could hotwire it quickly. The first couple of houses had newer vehicles. Luke could hotwire them, but they were harder, and he didn’t have the time. Jen tugged on his hand, grabbing his attention.

  “The Anderson’s leave their keys in their vehicle,” she whispered.

  “Show me.”

  Jen led the way, and sure enough the Anderson’s left their keys in their Honda Accord. Luke couldn’t believe their stupidity, but he was thankful for it. They all jumped inside; Jen joined Bella in the backseat. It made sense, but Luke felt a pang of longing for either of them to want to be as close to him as they were to each other.

  “Mamma, why are we taking Mr. Anderson’s car? Won’t he be mad?”

  “We’re just borrowing it; he’ll understand.”

  “Okay.”

  Her tiny voice sounded even smaller than normal and scared. Luke hated himself for tearing into their life and bringing nothing but chaos and destruction with him. With only one way off the island, Luke drove as fast as he could. They would catch up to them, he knew that. He really wanted it to be later rather than sooner, though.