Here With Me (The Archer Brothers 1)

“No, Fran. I don’t want you involved. When you finally fall asleep at night, I’m awake and sitting in the chair watching for shadows with my gun locked and loaded and my knife hidden underneath the chair cushion. Ryley is the only one brave enough to mention what she’s thinking, but the truth is, I’ve been thinking it too.”

Evan stiffens beside me and I try to ease the tension in his arm to no avail.

“We need to check in with each other daily, no excuses,” River says and the guys all agree.

“Ryley and I need to leave,” Evan says abruptly and I know better to question his decision. I get up and hug Frannie, promising to call her in the morning and she says the same thing. We’re going to follow what River says because we know it’ll give him and Evan peace of mind. Plus, we’ll leave a trace.

Evan grabs my hand and pulls me through the sand and into the parking lot. I have to jog to keep up and once we’re in the car, I lock us in. He’s speeds out of the parking lot, and heads toward home. After five minutes of silence I can’t take it anymore.

“Talk to me, Archer.” I use his last name to get a rise out of him. I’ve never really called him that except when we’re fooling around. I know he likes it, but right now I just want his attention on me.

“I’m concerned, Ry. River and I… we were discussing this earlier and the fact that you brought it up, means others are likely thinking the same thing. I don’t like it.”

I run my hand up and down his arm until he links his fingers with mine. “I don’t either. I want to get home to EJ,” I say, getting the reaction I’m looking for as Evan pushes down on the accelerator, breaking the speed limit.

The usual fifteen-minute drive takes us about eight. We’re both out of the car and by each other’s sides as quickly as we can be. When we get inside, relief washes over me as I find EJ snuggled up to my dad’s side. Both of them are sound asleep. My dad is snoring so loudly I don’t know how EJ is sleeping.

“Take EJ upstairs. I need to talk to your dad.” I know better than to argue, and I carefully remove EJ from under my dad’s arm. He grumbles, but wakes quickly and helps me lift EJ into my arms. I’m halfway upstairs when I hear the quiet whispers of Evan and my dad.

I could stay on the stairs and listen, but the truth of the matter is that I’m scared of what I brought up this evening. I wish I were the only one who felt this way. I’d feel more secure knowing it’s just me being paranoid. But the fact that Frannie has been having these feelings scares me. Not to mention the fact that Penni and Claire seem to have disappeared and the way Rask’s parents reacted.

If they’re trying to scare us into compliance, it’s working.

Whoever they are.

The next two things I hear are the front door shutting and the telltale sign of a gun being loaded. My SEAL is back.

AS SOON AS JENSEN’S in his car and driving down the street, I call for Deefur, step back into the house and lock the door. Blinds are pulled and windows checked. I open the closet door, pull out my black case and carry it to the couch. Ryley’s upstairs putting EJ to bed and as soon as she’s done I’ll be doing a sweep of the house. Deefur follows me, keeping on my heels. I wish I hadn’t missed the time he was growing up. I wanted to train him to protect Ryley. That’s why I bought him. I wanted her to feel safe and never have to worry. It’s in a dog’s nature to protect his master, and I want to make sure he knows just how valuable her life is to me.

I look over my gun and make sure everything checks out before I load the bullets. I know Ryley can hear the gun when I move a bullet into the chamber. I’m okay with that as long as she knows she’s safe. I told Jensen about our suspicions, and he’s going to see if he can get Carole to back off a bit before anyone catches wind of what she’s doing. The last thing I want is for her to be in the middle of a hot bed of issues that she can’t escape. We need to find the pilot from the C-130 we traveled on and see if we can get him to talk. If we can, I think we’ll start uncovering a lot.

Ryley comes down the stairs in a pair of yoga pants and a tank top. My eyes immediately fall onto her breasts, and I wish they hadn’t. I swallow hard and set my gun down, hoping she’ll grace me with her presence.

“Do you remember how to shoot?” I ask her, thinking back to the many hours we spent at the shooting range.

“I do,” she says as she sits next to me. “My gun is upstairs. It’s sitting on my bed.”

I nod and kiss her briefly before getting up and taking the steps two at a time. She knows where I’m going and knows what to expect. Ryley knows I’m going to keep her and EJ safe. They’ll have to shoot me in the head before they get to my family.

After I check her gun over, making sure it’s loaded and ready, I click the safety on and set it in her beside drawer. I notice that there are two pictures on her table. One is of her, Nate and me. The other is of her and EJ. It gives me hope that she has either put the photos of Nate away or she never had any. It’s the small things that are allowing me to

look forward to the next day.

When I get back downstairs, Ryley is curled up and asleep on the couch. My options are limited, and I’ll be damned if I’m going to carry her upstairs when I can sit next to her all night. I gently lay a blanket over her and watch her snuggle into the sofa. I could sit across from her – this view gives me excellent view of the front door – but I don’t need it. I know we’re being overly paranoid, but we all have too much at stake to not have our senses heightened and make sure we’re prepared. I take the open space next to her, with my back to the wall. It’s the best vantage point for me and if by chance something happens, I know Ryley can shoot a gun.

I slide my knife under the couch and settle in next to Ryley, picking up her feet to rest them in my lap and turn on the television. I’m far too wired to even think about sleep. In fact, it’s the last thing I want to do. I really should go to the gym and take out my aggression on the bag, but I’m not leaving Ryley and EJ alone if I can help it. I’m going to have to talk to Ry about her daily schedule and find out when she’s going back to work. Hell, I need to find out if I’m still being paid.

Flipping through the channels, I decide to watch the U.S.A. Summer basketball game. It’s annoying to see these professional athletes getting all the attention when it should be the college kids. These guys make too much money for a lack of effort. At least when the college guys are playing, they’re playing to make a difference, not a paycheck. I keep the volume low so I can hear the noises from outside. The house creaks, just as it does every night. Deefur lies at my feet, his ears perking with every noise. I like that. I like knowing that he’s alert.

Ryley rolls over and looks at me. She’s only been asleep for an hour and it’s not even late. It’s just emotionally and physically exhausting talking about the shit that’s going on in our lives. I don’t blame her for needing a catnap. I’d love to lie down next to her, but tonight’s one of those nights where I’m going to stay awake just to see what’s going on outside. I’m not expecting much, but that doesn’t mean I’m letting my guard down.

The shit McCoy’s going through scares me. His wife is gone and there’s no trace of where she is. That shit is messed up and I can’t even imagine what the hell he’s feeling. Hell, I don’t even know how he’s functioning right now, but he is. I can tell you this, whoever is behind us being dead for six years better hope they take care of themselves because we’ll be coming for them and it won’t be pretty. McCoy is a torture specialist and the rest of us just might forget about ethics.

I startle when my cheek is slapped. I jump, causing EJ to laugh. I look at my watch and back at my son who is staring at me. He looks so much like I did when I was his age, but with Ryley’s hair color. Ryley is still asleep next to me and the TV is showing some infomercial. I can’t believe I fell asleep. My subconscious could be telling me that we’re safe, but I’m not sure I’m buying it. I look at my watch and see that it’s just after four a.m. and he shouldn’t be awake right now.

I put my fingers to my lips, letting him know that he needs to be quiet. Quickly glancing at Ryley, I make sure she’s still sleeping and pull EJ up onto the couch. I have to bite the inside of my cheek when he snuggles into my side. I’ve dreamed of moments like this with my wife on one side and my son on the other. The wife part I’m working on, but having my son in my arms is the most surreal feeling I’ve ever experienced.

Flipping the channel to a cartoon, I lean back and bring EJ closer to me. He sets his head on my chest, pulling his blanket closer. I had one when I was his age right up until I started school. I used to carry it everywhere. My dad hated it, but I didn’t care. My blanket was my buddy and was the only one I could confide in.