Jenna Kernan - Eagle Warrior

“No. Who was he, the one from church?”

“I never saw him before. He didn’t give me his name.”

“You tell him anything else?”

“I may have said that the daughter’s name was Morgan and she worked nights at the tribe’s casino.”

Last Sunday, Ray thought, the day before Kenshaw called him in to watch Morgan.

The sound of sirens reached him, still a ways off. He turned his head and then looked back at Peck, noting the moment he heard the approaching police.

“You called the cops?”

“You’re trespassing on sovereign land.”

“What about our deal?”

“Only deal I’ll make is that if I ever see you on tribal land again, I’ll break this.” He set Peck’s hand on his chest and gave it a little pat. “And, if I see you near Morgan or Lisa Hooke again, I’ll kill you.”

Peck trembled. Somehow the man sensed Ray wasn’t bluffing. He was surprised to recognize that he wasn’t making idle threats. He knew himself capable of killing this man for daring to touch Morgan. Why did this woman rouse every protective instinct in Ray’s body? That question troubled him more than this miserable excuse for a burglar.

And who was the man at the casino asking questions? Ray set his teeth as he realized the threat to Morgan may have only just begun.

Chapter Three

Peck’s eyes widened. As Ray stood over him, the bank manager rose to his elbows.

“You want it for yourself. Did you find it already? Is it gone?”

“Yeah. Gone.” Ray made an exploding motion with both hands.

Ray left him to meet the police, passing Morgan and Lisa still sitting in the shabby white Honda with the windows rolled up and fogging. He noticed the gray duct tape securing the driver’s side mirror and shook his head. She needed someone to look after her.

Morgan looked up at him with big wide eyes and in that moment she didn’t look much older than her ten-year-old. He wondered two things simultaneously. How old had she been when she’d had Lisa and who was the bastard who left her all alone?

He gave Morgan a smile as he passed and belatedly noticed he had a bloody hoodie.

He knew the young officer who’d arrived first and directed him to the intruder. The next one he sent to speak to Morgan and Lisa.

“Tell her I’m her neighbor. I live right there.” He pointed at the house behind hers.

“I thought you lived in Pinyon Forks,” said Officer Cox.

“Looking after a friend’s place for a few days while he’s away.”

Ray waited a few minutes for Jack to arrive. It didn’t take long to tell him what he’d learned.

“He might press charges,” said Jack.

Ray shrugged and made a hissing sound of dismissal. “So?”

Jack left it at that. He spoke to Morgan and her girl and oversaw the removal of the crying mess that Andrew Peck had become as his dreams of riches turned to the real possibility of jail time.

Peck went into a police unit and Jack waved Ray over to make introductions. Morgan stood with an arm resting protectively on her daughter’s narrow shoulders. Lisa stayed close and very still, watching them.

“Ms. Hooke, this is an old friend of mine, Ray Strong. Ray and I served together in Iraq. I’m sure you have met him at some point. We were only a year ahead of you in school.”

Jack didn’t mention that Ray had dropped out and had to take his GED in order to join up with Carter, Dylan, Jack and Hatch.

The awkward pause coupled with Jack’s scowl made Ray realize that Jack wanted him to chime in.

“Oh, yeah,” said Ray. “Nice to see you again, Morgan. Long time.” He rubbed his neck and glanced to Jack who lifted his chin as if silently ordering him to continue. Ray hated small talk. “I’m staying in Felix’s place while he’s away.”

Morgan’s expression brightened and she glanced toward her neighbor’s house.

“Felix Potts? He told me he was going to Waco to visit his daughter and the new baby. It’s her third.”

Her voice was musical, like a flute, full of light air and sweet tones.

“Oh, yeah,” said Ray, his skin prickling now. “Isn’t that something?”

Ray’s customary position with women was that they either turned him on or they didn’t. If they did and they liked men with a bad reputation, and a surprising number did like that, then they were off to the races. Now he found himself in the awkward position of having to chat with a woman he had no intention of sleeping with.

He knew enough to stay clear of single mothers for a lot of valid reasons. And beyond that, it was a bad idea to mix work and play.

“He didn’t tell me you’d be watching the place,” said Morgan.

Because Kenshaw had called Potts after he’d left to ask if a fellow Turquoise Guardian could stay in his place. The answer, of course, was yes.

“Well, I’m watching it but he’s helping me out. I lost my place recently so...” He looked to Jack to take over. Because he was terrible at making stuff up. Not at lying, he was very good at lying, convincing to a fault.

Morgan held her smile and she now did look beautiful. The pause stretched and her smile faded.

“Ray is a hotshot,” said Jack. “One of our captains.”

Morgan looked impressed and well she should. Their forest-fighting team was nationally recognized and much requested. They flew all over the country battling blazes. Seemed the Apache men were good at fighting anything, including fires.

Morgan gave Ray a long, speculative look and he could almost feel her gaze like a caress. His skin tingled and his palms began to itch. That wasn’t good. Now he was staring at her mouth and his gaze had become speculative. Her lips and cheeks seemed especially pink.

She cleared her throat and he met her curious expression with a grin. That grin had gotten him into more trouble than his fists. Her brows lifted as if reading the vibe he was sending and not knowing what to do with it.

“He’ll be back next week. Will you be staying on when he comes home?” asked Morgan.

Ray squinted, wondering how to play this. “I need to find a place. I’m looking around.”

Her gaze swept over him and he wished they were alone. He thought of Morgan’s bed and imagined her stretched out naked on that the white coverlet. Clearly the sexual part of his brain had re-emerged. He shifted his position at the unwelcome ache that began below his belt.

“You were in the casino today,” she said.

And yesterday and the day before that, he thought.

“Guilty,” he said.

“Did I get you a drink?” she asked.

“No. I just come in to watch...”

Her frown deepened.

He grinned wider. “To watch the games on the big screens.”

“Oh!” Her cheeks went bright pink.

Shame on her for making assumptions, he thought.

“Baseball,” she said and smiled, the tension easing out of her shoulders.

Her daughter wiggled out from beneath her mother’s arm to take a step closer to Jack. She was staring up at the detective who was six-five in his stocking feet and now wore boots. If she didn’t quit she’d get a crick in her neck.

“Are you Apache?” she asked him.

Ray’s gaze shifted to Jack whose mouth went tight. Most folks didn’t come right out and ask, but Lisa was ten and ten-year-olds were as blunt as dull axes.

“Yeah. Sure am. Roadrunner Clan. You?”

Lisa was still eying the mountain of a man that Jack had become. He looked more Samoan than Apache and it was a constant sore spot for Jack.

“I’m Butterfly Clan,” said Lisa. “Why was that man in our house?”

Ray watched Morgan to see what her reaction might be and found her looking as curious as Lisa. Had working in that casino taught her to bluff or was she in the dark?