Against the Edge (The Raines of Wind Can - By Kat Martin Page 0,88

might want to intervene, but Egansville was a small town, and once the sheriff had verified Ben’s identity and checked with the Texas police, he was happy to leave the boy with a social worker and his father. There would be plenty of paperwork once they got back to Houston, but all of that could wait.

As soon as the authorities had the information they needed, the deputies headed for the bayou, and Ben headed for home. On the way out of town, he stopped at a cheap motel so he, Sam and Ty could shower and put on dry clothes.

Claire had been carrying clothes for Sam since her shopping excursion in Houston—one of her better ideas, since Ben refused to stay overnight in the little town that was home to the Bayou Patriots. He wanted all of them safe.

The Denali led the way to Texas, Ty’s rental car following in case they ran into trouble. It wasn’t likely, but the internet was a powerful resource and the Patriots did have their own website. Sam slept in the backseat with Pepper as Ben drove the two-hundred-ninety-mile trip to Houston, pulling up in front of his garage at eight o’clock the next morning. Aside from a stop for an Egg McMuffin at a McDonald’s in Beaumont, Sam had slept straight through.

Ben turned off the security alarm and the guys carried the bags into the house. Everything was going smoothly until Pepper danced happily through the front door behind Sam, and Hercules came meandering out of the kitchen. Herc jumped into cat combat mode, arching his back and hissing viciously at the intruder in his domain. Pepper’s ears went up and a look of surprise came into his face.

“Leave him alone!” Sam demanded, coming to his dog’s defense, dropping to his knees and throwing his arms around the black Lab’s neck. Pepper just stood there, his head cocked to one side as he studied the big gray cat that fearlessly stood its ground just a few feet away.

“That’s Hercules,” Ben said. “Herc lives here. They need to get to know each other if they’re going to be sharing the same house.”

“I don’t think Pepper likes cats. What if Pep tries to eat him?”

Ben chuckled, reached down and scooped up the big gray ball of fur. “Herc’s a pretty tough old boy. I think he can take care of himself.” Ben rubbed beneath the cat’s chin until he was purring, then set him back down on his feet.

Herc eyed the dog, turned and walked haughtily back to the kitchen as if the animal didn’t exist.

“Do you think they’ll be okay?” Claire asked.

“We’ll keep an eye on them for a couple of days, just to be safe. In the meantime, I think we should all get some sleep.”

He cast Claire a glance that made her cheeks feel warm, but both of them knew they wouldn’t be sleeping in the same bed now that Sam was in the house.

In the end, Claire slept in the guest room, Sam conked out beside her, still exhausted from his ordeal. Ben slept in his own room, and Ty stretched out on the sofa.

It was late afternoon when she and Sam wandered into the living room.

“Where’s Ty?” Sam asked, rubbing his eyes.

But there was no sign of the lanky dark-haired man who had helped when they needed him so badly, just a note on the kitchen table. Claire picked it up and read it out loud.

“‘Thanks for a great time. Ty.’” She smiled.

“I guess he isn’t much for goodbyes,” Ben said as he walked toward them down the hall.

Claire glanced at the alarm keypad next to the front door. The perimeter alarm was still set. “How did he get out without setting it off?”

Amusement curved the corners of Ben’s mouth. “Guy like that, better not to ask.”

“I liked him,” Sam said.

“Me, too,” said Ben.

Ty Brodie was on his way back to L.A. Ben would be busy making a home for Sam. There were things Claire needed to do, arrangements she had to complete, before she sprung her little surprise on Ben.

* * *

The Egansville sheriff, Lester Dumont, phoned Ben that afternoon.

“I wish I had better news,” he said. “Took us a while to find our way into the compound from the road. By the time our deputies got there, the men were gone. The whole damn place was empty.”

Ben flicked a glance at Claire, who was waiting impatiently for news. “I’m not surprised,” he said. “These guys have been preparing