A Place to Call Home Read online

  She tried focusing on her hatred for the man. On the way he still forced himself between her legs despite her pleas and cries of how much it hurt. How much he hurt her. Those dark, evil eyes looked amused and satisfied as he gripped her neck and forced her to say she belonged to him always, as he pounded into her, his weight upon her body making her gasp for breath as he crushed her. Tears streamed down her face as she painstakingly walked to the bedroom to get dressed, wearing her robe and feeling defeated. He’d broken her down again. It was like he knew, or he sensed a fight in her growing and last night reminded her of his power over her. She hated him, and feared him to the point of sickness and body shakes. What was she going to do?

  She got dressed and talked herself into putting the plan in motion. As she opened the closet door, she saw the duffel bag. Her gym bag. She had carefully cut the lining, loaded the sides with cash. Cash she stole slowly from him. She just needed to run. Run as far away from New York as she could and hide out somewhere. Build her strength, her physical abilities. Matias had forbidden her to do any form of self-defense classes. She did a cardio kickboxing that didn’t include bags or gloves, but the moves did help her feel inspired. She would do some kind of training wherever she wound up. If she made it.

  She patted the sides, and knew she did such a good job that no one would notice a thing. She would go to the gym in the hotel. There was a bathroom in the back, and a small window that led to the outside alleyway. From there, she would enter the back door to the restaurant entrance to the building next door, then escape through the other exit until she was three blocks over and grabbed the subway. She knew which train she needed to get onto. New Jersey. From there, she would catch a bus south and decide her final destination. This was it. Today she took her life back, and would never look back, never trust a soul, and live her life alone. She had no family. Her father did this to her and her brothers were dead. Victims in combat giving the ultimate sacrifice. When she got the news she cried for days. She had no one left but herself. She could do this. She had to.

  She packed the additional clothing in her bag and a towel. She got dressed in one of her workout outfits, and her best running sneakers, because she was literally going to be running for her life in about thirty minutes or less from now.

  She gripped the bag and exited the bedroom to see Ferno was there. He was a mean bastard, who looked at her like he would love nothing more than to rape her and beat her like Matias. They were all bad, every one of his guards, and they were capable of anything. She saw things, witnessed conversations, and even saw people get beaten and killed. She knew what they were capable of and that she could die today, but the thought of Matias taking from her body again motivated her to go for it or die trying. She walked slowly, playing up her aches and pains as her heart hammered inside of her chest.

  “You sure you can handle the workout this morning?” he asked, eying her over, and she knew he’d heard Matias’s threats, his commands and demands from her as he assaulted her every day and every night.

  She swallowed hard. “To stay in shape for Matias, I need to,” she said, and he smirked and nodded.

  “I’ll be sure to tell him you said that.” He escorted her to the elevator and then down to the next one before arriving by the hallway to the gym. As she went to enter the room, he grabbed her bag. She gasped.

  He stared at her and then unzipped the bag. Her heart hammered inside of her chest. Please, please, please don’t see the stitching. Don’t feel the inside. Oh God please let this work.

  She took a deep breath and exhaled. “Is there a problem, Ferno?” she asked him, and thank God he zipped it back up, but not before his fingers landed on her black lace bra. He stroked the large, deep cup before eying over her breasts in the tank top and sports bra she wore. She was well endowed and the way he looked at her gave her the chills.

  He zipped her bag back up.

  “I’ll be right here. I’m taking calls from Matias, so make sure you remain within my view or we’re going back upstairs.”

  “I’ll only need to go into the ladies’ room, Ferno, and no place else. I know the rules,” she said in her most defeated voice.

  Again, he roamed over her body with his eyes. “You should by now. Go,” he ordered. Actually ordered her like she was also under his command. Under all their commands. These men, every one of them had no respect for women. They were fucking monsters. She turned and walked into the gym. She didn’t talk to anyone. It wasn’t allowed. It was a pretty decent size, but Ferno could see her go into the bathroom from where he stood. She would only have a couple of minutes to get through that window.

  She pretended to work out for about fifteen minutes, and he turned away as he spoke on his cell phone. She grabbed her bag and hurried to the hallway and the bathroom. This was it. It was do or die. She got into the bathroom and dropped her bag on the floor. She ran to the window, took an unsteady breath, her heart racing, fear gripping her a moment, warning her that Matias was going to beat the hell out of her and break her arms, her ribs, and cause worse damage than ever before. She hesitated as tears filled her eyes, but freedom was right out that window. There was a whole world out there. Places to hide, to go and live and breathe freely. She didn’t want to get raped over and over again. She wanted a life. She wanted to never feel pain again.

  She reached for the lock, undid it, and shoved it open. An alarm sounded. “Fuck!” She threw her bag through the window and then climbed up, slid down, and landed on the ground. She picked up the bag and went running. She could hardly breathe and it felt like her throat constricted, but she ran, then pulled open the back door to the restaurant and quickly closed it. She ran through the kitchen, ignoring the yells, the threats, and then went toward the dining area and through the other side door.

  She shoved by people and ran, just ran, her focus on the subway and not looking behind her. She ran so damn fast, she nearly tumbled down the stairs. She jumped the turn table where you deposited tickets, not wasting the time to purchase one as the subway train she needed was there and about to leave. She heard yelling but ignored it, and practically dove into the subway car, the doors closing, her hand gripping the bag and people looking at her strangely, but then ignoring her. That was New York. No one gave a shit about anything.

  She looked through the windows as the subway car went by and she didn’t see Ferno, or anyone else. She sat down and held the tears inside. She wasn’t out of the clear. She never would be. She had to remember that always. She was alone in this world, had to change her way of thinking, and could be whomever she wanted to be. She pulled her sweatshirt out of the bag as well as her sunglasses. She tucked in her hair, pulled up the hood, and threw on the sunglasses. God help me. Please, help me.

  Chapter 1

  1 Year Later

  “Good afternoon, Sheriff McCabe,” Mrs. Scanton said to him as he stood outside of the cafe in town.

  “Afternoon, ma’am,” he replied, tipping back his hat. The older widow blushed as she shyly kept walking, and he chuckled to himself. He didn’t think he was a good-looking guy. He was hard, distant, didn’t trust easily at all, more some from his military background, but he was fair, and his family settled in Cherry Hill upon its existence more than ninety years ago. He was used to being flirted with and ignored the passes. No one interested him, or his brothers for that matter.

  As he thought about Culter, Chase, and Fox, he wondered when Chase and Fox would be coming back from their latest job. Culter was running the dojo with some of his military friends, but he needed Chase and Fox for the more intense military training a lot of the military and law enforcement guys in town enjoyed doing. He hoped they were okay, but knew he couldn’t say a word about their professions now as mercenaries. They just weren’t ready to settle down. Hell, the house they all shared was technically in Central Valley on the border to Cherry Hill. He heard the small bus coming toward the main street and kept a hand on the butt of his gun and one on his hip. Like clockwork, the quiet, secret
ive brunette exited the bus, sunglasses on, and ready to walk the mile to the place she rented from Cynthia and Clay Gaynor.

  “Afternoon, Hannah,” he said to her, and she gave a soft smile.

  “Afternoon, Sheriff McCabe,” she replied, and was going to pass right by him.

  “How was work at Spark’s today?” he asked, pushing for a little further conversation.

  In the past few weeks since she’d arrived in town, she didn’t engage in many conversations, and minded her own business, only coming into town for some food shopping once a week, and never on the same day. He knew she took some martial arts classes in Central Valley at one of the Dojo’s there, only because Deputy Lotus McCuen, his cousin, had friends who owned the place and worked out there.

  “It was busy, kind of unusual for a Wednesday,” she said, and then nibbled her bottom lip. He wanted to see her with those sunglasses off, knowing how gorgeous her deep green eyes were. She was a very attractive woman, but didn’t socialize. She still seemed to have a sexy figure that filled out the modest uniform she wore, a mid length black skirt, white blouse, and sneakers.

  He squinted his eyes at her. “There are a few activities coming up in town that all the residents of Cherry Hill like to enjoy.”

  “That’s good to know. Thanks. Well, I need to get moving. I have a bit of a walk home.”

  “I can give you a ride,” he said to her.

  She stepped back and shook her head. “No thank you, Sheriff. Have a good evening,” she said, and then walked by him.

  His gut clenched, warning him about this woman. Something was up with her, but there was also an interest, an attraction he felt, and that bothered him. He wasn’t the kind of man to settle down. Not now. Now after his years in the military, the shit he saw and did, and then being a sheriff like his father and grandfathers before him were. He watched her walking, saw a few men tip their hats toward her, say howdy, and look to stop and talk, but she just kept walking. She didn’t engage in conversations with anyone really, but when she did, she made it short and it ended with smiles. What was her story?

  “Blew you off again?”

  He heard the deep voice and turned around to see his cousin, Deputy Lotus McCuen. Kane didn’t even acknowledge his statement, just looked at the direction Hannah walked in. He saw her lift her small backpack over her shoulder and head home.

  “She’s a mystery, and a gorgeous one at that. What do you think, she’s like twenty-one or so?”

  “A little older maybe, but still low twenties probably, why?”

  Lotus, who was about six three with light brown hair and a very distinguished jaw gave a wink. “Bets around town about her.”

  Kane squinted with concern.

  “Nothing too bad, just her age, if she’s single, and who she might accept a date with. That kind of thing.”

  “Who’s been looking and asking?” he asked.

  He rambled off a few names and Kane felt a bit of a jealous feeling hit his insides.

  “She declines any offers if the guys could even get her to converse long enough. I saw Harper talking to her outside of the bar yesterday.”

  “Really? You think she was seeing if Hannah was looking for work?”

  “Maybe, they talked for a bit actually. Maybe Hannah might take a job there too since she only works two days at Spark’s in Central Valley?” Lotus said.

  “Maybe. I guess we’ll know soon enough. Is everyone still planning on meeting at Harper’s Saturday night for the UFC matches on TV?”

  “That’s the plan. You’re coming, right?”

  “If Culter is going, then I’m going, too.”

  “Great, well I’d better get back to work before the boss catches me slacking off.”

  Kane chuckled. “Yeah, don’t want the other deputies thinking there’s any favoritism, cos,” he teased back, and Lotus chuckled then headed down the street.

  He still couldn’t stop thinking about Hannah and who she was, where she came from, and why she was so resistant to making any friends. Her behavior was suspicious, and as the sheriff of Cherry Hill, he’d make a point of finding out more.

  Chapter 2

  “We aren’t coming up with anything. I’m sorry, Voight, Louis, but it’s like she disappeared and must have found a safe place to hide. We know that Garcia has men searching for her. I also found out that he’s been smuggling in some potent drugs, as well, and directly to a guy with terrorist ties,” Ferion told them over the phone. Ferion was on speaker and Voight and Louis were at their home in Pearl, Texas.

  “Jesus, this asshole keeps getting away with more and more. I want to take him out. Take his entire operation out,” Voight said to him.

  “I think it’s smart if we can find your sister and get her under your protection and mine before we do anything complicated. Obviously, he’ll need to be eliminated in order for her to live freely. She must be incredibly smart and determined to evade being found. It may help if I bring in some of my other men. Men who have abilities people pay big bucks for, and men you know and can trust.”

  “Like who?”

  “Fox and his brother Chase. They just finished up a pretty intense assignment overseas. They take a week off tops, and then are ready for the next thing. It will take them time, but they could help.”

  “I don’t know if I want to reach out to too many people with this, Ferion. It risks her life, her being detected.”

  “They’ll be fully informed. You think about it and let me know. It’s been a year. That twelve months and counting since she’s escaped from Garcia’s penthouse.”

  “We know, Ferion. We know. Let my brother and I discuss things a bit and get back to you.”

  “Watch your backs, too. I wouldn’t put it past that asshole to put men on you despite you living locally in that town. He’s got to be desperate to find her and get her back. The information we got showed the intensity of his obsession with her.”

  “He’ll never get his hands on her again, Ferion. We’ll protect her with all we have.”

  “Understand, Louis, Voight, and you got us, too. The entire team. Talk to you soon.”

  Voight ended the call and leaned back in the chair.

  “Where could she be, Louis? Where?”

  “I don’t know, but wherever it is, she must be safe there and that’s what matters.”

  “What do you think about Ferion’s offer? Fox and Chase are fucking good. Really good. They do crazy shit.”

  “I know, but like you said, we need to be careful about how much attention we’re giving this and to whom. Ferion is right, Garcia could have men on us right now.”

  “I think we would have noticed, especially in such a small town like Pearl.”

  “We don’t really go into town much, just for supplies and to the dojo. We’ll keep better watch.”

  “And if someone is watching us?”

  “We’ll take them the fuck out. I’m done playing fucking games with Garcia and his minions. He doesn’t have Athena in his possession. We never got far enough to make a move in New York when Ferion got word that she’d escaped. He would have put someone on us and on our father immediately, thinking she would go to us.”

  “But maybe she thought we were dead just like we thought she was.”

  “Then he wouldn’t bother and we have nothing to worry about, Louis. Let’s take the precautions, and if we are being followed or watched, we do what needs to be done and discreetly.”

  “I’m game. Would like nothing more than to come out of retirement for a spell and eliminate these dicks, one by one if necessary.”

  “Agreed.”