Page 34 of Shadow Redemption
“Find out what you can,” he said to his friend.
A sunny smile curved the operative’s mouth. “Won’t take long. We can be very persuasive.”
Ben tucked Ruth inside and climbed behind the steering wheel. He drove away as Jon and Eli marched the two thugs into a thick stand of trees.
“Where are Eli and Jon taking the two men?” Surely they wouldn’t kill them in the trees. Too many people could have witnessed the breakneck chase through the subdivision and onto this winding cow path masquerading as a road.
“Into the trees to interrogate them.”
“Interrogate?” She twisted in her seat to stare at Ben. “Is that a euphemism for killing them?”
He flashed her a grin. “What an imagination you have. They’ll question the bruisers who ran us off the road and got me into trouble with Bear.”
Her brows furrowed. “Who is Bear?”
“A Fortress mechanical genius. He’s the one who upgrades our vehicles with armor plating and bullet-resistant glass.”
“Why will you be in trouble?”
Ben grimaced. “Bear takes it personally when one of his vehicles comes back to the shop damaged. Usually the operative guilty of not treating his handiwork with the respect it deserves pays a hefty price to appease the big man.”
“Big?”
“Oh, yeah. He’s the size of a Grizzly. Hence, the nickname Bear. He also has the personality of a grouchy bear woken too soon from a long winter’s nap.” Ben glanced at Ruth, eyes narrowed. “That’s not to be repeated in Bear’s hearing. You better not rat me out, Monihan.”
Ruth grinned. “You better make it worth my while to remain silent.”
“Blackmail, huh? How much will your silence cost me?”
She pretended to think about that when in reality she knew what she wanted. Ruth tapped her chin. “I don’t know, Martin. This is a big secret. My price must be steep enough to reflect the value. I’m not sure you can afford it.”
He snorted. “Please. If you’re thinking of a monetary reward, you’re in for sad surprise. You make more with one job than I’ll earn this year.”
“Then it’s good I wasn’t thinking of a dollar figure.”
“What do you want?”
“Five kisses.”
He glanced at her, lips curving slightly at the corners. “Just five?”
“Hmm. You have a point. This is a big boon I’m granting you. Ten kisses. Ten excellent, melt-my-fingernail-polish-from-the-heat kisses. Do we have a deal?”
“You drive a hard bargain, but I don’t have much choice if I want to keep my hide intact. Deal.” He synced his phone to the Bluetooth and called Zane. “It’s Ben. Eli and Jon intercepted the Explorer and are chatting with the two thugs. I’m in Eli’s SUV with Ruth.”
“Copy.”
“Keep track of us, Z. Since I don’t know if those thugs had friends in the area, I have to assume we have hostiles looking for us.”
“I’ll monitor your progress. The boss wants an update. I’m transferring you now.”
Silence, then Brent Maddox’s voice filled the cabin. “Sit rep.”
Ben reported everything to his boss, using what sounded like military jargon.
“We need to check your SUV for a tracking device. Are you driving it now?”
“Rear passenger tire was shot out and the SUV has rear end damage.”