Chapter 10

Max let out a long breath. What the hell was wrong with him? Even when he was deliberately looking for female companionship, he didn't have this kind of reaction to someone. Sometimes he wished he did, and that his dick was a little more enthusiastic about some of the women he chose to spend his free time with.

Not that that particular organ had shirked his duty when it was clothes off and onto the mattress. But he'd made up his mind he couldn't give the proper attention to a relationship while he was still in the SEALs. And in retirement he'd finally realized that just having sex as an exercise didn't have the excitement it once did. As the rest of his life stretched out before him, he finally understood that he wanted what many of his friends had. What Si had. A woman he connected with on all levels who wanted to share his life with him. But why did she have to be the one he was going into a dangerous mission with?

They'd have to make sure they convinced the people in the cabal they were in fact a real married couple. Could they do that and leave sex out of the picture?

Jackass. You don't even know if she's attracted to you, and this is for sure not the time to find out. Stick to business.

He washed up in the bathroom then opened the special suitcase he'd brought. Si had told him to bring everything he'd need for this meeting plus the one with the cabal. He certainly had whatever would be required, although he hoped he wouldn't have to use them. He glanced over the toys he'd packeda Glock 17 with several boxes of ammo plus a Browning SA-22 grade one takedown rifle, so-called because it can be taken apart and carried in a small canvas bag. He'd also packed his Ka-Bar utility knife, in case he got into some close quarters situations.

A knock sounded on the door and, when he looked up, he saw Si in the doorway, a hard-sided suitcase in one hand, looking at him with a raised eyebrow.

"If you're asking to come in, the door's open, right?"

Si wandered over to the open suitcase and studied the weapons Max had placed on the bed. "I see you brought your toys with you."

"Never leave home without them."

"I have some additional goodies for you," Si told him. "Some Ferren Industries weapons." "They'll think it's strange if you don't bring any of those with you, so I have a few here for you to show them."

"Because I need those with the Ferren name on them?"

"Yes. Believe it or not, there's a target range at the back end of this property."

Max barked a laugh. "Nothing about this place would surprise me at this point."

"We'll block out some time to get you and Regan some target practice so you both can get a feel for them."

"The wives shoot, too?"

Si chuckled. "Oh, yeah. Wait until you meet them. Oh, and Regan knows her way around guns. No worries there."

"Good to know. I always wanted a wife who could shoot straight." Then he frowned. "Are you saying they'll expect me to demonstrate the efficiency of these weapons?"

Si nodded. "Most likely. Remember. They're going to arm these fucking terrorists they've been smuggling into this country. Regan has pieced together enough chatter to know they're planning simultaneous attacks in well-populated areas. Ferren was also getting them explosives, but we'll take care of that. I don't now if they have any of the guns at the lodge, just to see what's being used. If they do, just in case, only the ones you demonstrate will work. The firing pins will have been removed. But that should be no problem for you. There hasn't been a weapon made yet that you couldn't handle in less than five minutes."

Max shook his head. "Jesus Christ, Si. Who the fuck are these people?"

"We'll be starting to review them after lunch. You won't believe half this shit."

"But I'll bet I will."

They both turned to see Regan standing in the doorway.

"That's right," Si agreed. "You did the initial workup when you first pieced this together."

She shook her head. "It still makes me sick that people who have untold wealth and power because of this country want to destroy it."

"How did they all get together?" Max asked. "Si, that's one thing you never explained when you gave me the rundown."

"I wanted to wait until I could lay it all out for both of you at the same time." He glanced at his watch. "Come on. I think lunch is ready. Let's eat and get back to business."

The lunch was delicious, but Max noticed he wasn't the only one eager to finish and get on with things. Once the dishes were cleared away, Silas turned the laptop on again, and once more set up the small screen at the end of the table.

"Let's begin with the Whitlows, Jed and Anna. Their place is in Utah near the Four Corners, as it's called, where Arizona, Colorado, Utah, and New Mexico touch."

He hit a key, and a picture of the couple popped up on the screen. Jed had close-cropped, curly gray hair and a long face, dominated by a hawk-like nose. Anna, on the other hand, seemed shorter than he was, almost petite, with blonde hair that fell to her rounded jawline. Her face was set in a look of arrogance. Max disliked her at once and wondered if she was like this in person.

Si went on to describe the size of their wealth and the connections they had. "It still surprises me that no matter how much money some people have, it's never enough. In the past five years, they've made millions from the Rojas cartel smuggling both people and goods into this country, using Whitlow's land as a distribution point."

This kind of business always made Max sick to his stomach. The human misery that resulted from it just kept rising, but the people making money just kept on keeping on. Why shut off the money stream, right?

Si clicked through the rest of the group. Gavin and Elizabeth Emery were both in their early fifties. Their ranch was in New Mexico.

Another click and they were looking at Lorena Alvaro and her husband, Elias.

"She's the link to the cartel," Si told them. "Well, actually her husband is. Their ranch is two hundred and fifty thousand acres, located in the southwest corner of Arizona so it bumps up against both California and the Mexican state of Sonora."

"Very convenient," Max commented.

"Sure is. For decades they've been collecting a king's ransom from the cartels for allowing them to use their land as a direct route to smuggle drugs and even people into the country. Apparently the arrangement began with his grandfather, who came here with millions from the drug business and bought this ranch. When ownership changed, the situation barely missed a beat. Except I understand the ante was upped. Lorena is a greedy bitch."

"Greedy is right." Regan shook her head. "You'd think the millions they've made in ranching and investments would be enough for her."

"For some people," Si pointed out, "there's no such thing as enough."