by Ket. Now if they’d found Huff beaten unconscious…
“Maybe we should file a missing persons report on Huff?” I wondered aloud.
“We can file,” War said. “Doesn’t mean anyone’s going to go looking. Not without any physical evidence of violence.”
I sighed and nodded my agreement.
War changed the subject back to Ket. “Do you have a restraining order against that bastard ex of yours?”
I laughed the bitter laugh again. “No. He has one out against me.”
War gave me a quizzical expression. “The crazy bastard! He put a restraining order on you?”
I nodded. “Wild, huh?”
“You didn’t fight it?”
“And play into his hands? Go broke paying legal fees? No thanks. He filed in California after I’d come back to Washington, hoping to draw me down there. The order is a nuisance. Nothing more. Anyone who’s known me more than thirty seconds knows I would never voluntarily go anywhere near Ket.”
War gave me another sympathetic look. I was so damned tired of being the object of pity.
War picked up on my mood. “We’ll help you get your life back, CT. I’ll call the hotel and alert them. I have a few friends in the department. I’ll call them and give them a heads-up about Brooks. See if they can send someone around to patrol the area. In the meantime, I suggest you call your lawyer and get a restraining order here.”
I nodded.
“I’ll personally oversee your training this afternoon. Should this guy come calling, you’ll be prepared.”
War made copies of the photo of Ket to distribute to the group. After he and I made our calls, we met up with the others in the mock city. War sat me in an overstuffed chair inside a mock living room in a mock apartment in the mock city, and passed out Ket’s mug shot. Actually, it was more of a publicity photo that Ket looked damned good in. Seeing his handsome face threw people off. How could such a gorgeous, charming-looking man be evil? It didn’t compute. Ket’s appearance worked against me. Women fawned over him. Men? Their reactions varied from envy to dislike.
Nestled within the apartment’s three walls, I felt secure and homey in a creepy, gothic sort of way. The others gathered around, filling the sofa, the chairs, even the floor, waiting for War to make the next move. I watched their reactions to Ket’s picture.
Peewee tossed it aside and threw me a dirty look, mouthing, “I didn’t tell him.” Van studied it thoughtfully. Cliff and Jim took a cursory look. Steve stared at it for some time.
“Listen up. Time for debrief, CTs.” War stood behind me.
Everyone stared at me.
“Sorry for ruining lunch, guys.” I settled back in my chair, trying not to appear nervous. I hated people knowing about my situation with Ket. It always changed the way they viewed me. And not for the better.
“The MREs ruined lunch,” Van said.
“You provided the excitement,” Steve said. “What do we do now? Call the cops?”
“This is not a camp game, CT.” War put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed before praising the men for their quick action and the way they obeyed orders, and giving them a quick rundown on the situation with Ket. “Slight change in the afternoon plans,” War said in closing. “R will come with me for some advance lessons on hand-to-hand combat. The rest of you will go with Kyle and Ace for more practice at the firing range before we begin our instruction on reflexive shooting.
“Ace, Kyle, or I will always have our eye on R while she’s here. I expect the rest of you to watch over her at the hotel. If anyone gets any word on Huff, notify me immediately.”
War and I remained in the mock living room after Kyle and Ace led the others away. War sat across from me, ostensibly coming up with a way for me to defeat big, bad Ket in a fight where I was out of my weight class.
“Done much fighting?” he said at last.
I shook my head. “I’ve always been more of a pacifist. If battle must be done, I prefer to
“Maybe we should file a missing persons report on Huff?” I wondered aloud.
“We can file,” War said. “Doesn’t mean anyone’s going to go looking. Not without any physical evidence of violence.”
I sighed and nodded my agreement.
War changed the subject back to Ket. “Do you have a restraining order against that bastard ex of yours?”
I laughed the bitter laugh again. “No. He has one out against me.”
War gave me a quizzical expression. “The crazy bastard! He put a restraining order on you?”
I nodded. “Wild, huh?”
“You didn’t fight it?”
“And play into his hands? Go broke paying legal fees? No thanks. He filed in California after I’d come back to Washington, hoping to draw me down there. The order is a nuisance. Nothing more. Anyone who’s known me more than thirty seconds knows I would never voluntarily go anywhere near Ket.”
War gave me another sympathetic look. I was so damned tired of being the object of pity.
War picked up on my mood. “We’ll help you get your life back, CT. I’ll call the hotel and alert them. I have a few friends in the department. I’ll call them and give them a heads-up about Brooks. See if they can send someone around to patrol the area. In the meantime, I suggest you call your lawyer and get a restraining order here.”
I nodded.
“I’ll personally oversee your training this afternoon. Should this guy come calling, you’ll be prepared.”
War made copies of the photo of Ket to distribute to the group. After he and I made our calls, we met up with the others in the mock city. War sat me in an overstuffed chair inside a mock living room in a mock apartment in the mock city, and passed out Ket’s mug shot. Actually, it was more of a publicity photo that Ket looked damned good in. Seeing his handsome face threw people off. How could such a gorgeous, charming-looking man be evil? It didn’t compute. Ket’s appearance worked against me. Women fawned over him. Men? Their reactions varied from envy to dislike.
Nestled within the apartment’s three walls, I felt secure and homey in a creepy, gothic sort of way. The others gathered around, filling the sofa, the chairs, even the floor, waiting for War to make the next move. I watched their reactions to Ket’s picture.
Peewee tossed it aside and threw me a dirty look, mouthing, “I didn’t tell him.” Van studied it thoughtfully. Cliff and Jim took a cursory look. Steve stared at it for some time.
“Listen up. Time for debrief, CTs.” War stood behind me.
Everyone stared at me.
“Sorry for ruining lunch, guys.” I settled back in my chair, trying not to appear nervous. I hated people knowing about my situation with Ket. It always changed the way they viewed me. And not for the better.
“The MREs ruined lunch,” Van said.
“You provided the excitement,” Steve said. “What do we do now? Call the cops?”
“This is not a camp game, CT.” War put a hand on my shoulder and squeezed before praising the men for their quick action and the way they obeyed orders, and giving them a quick rundown on the situation with Ket. “Slight change in the afternoon plans,” War said in closing. “R will come with me for some advance lessons on hand-to-hand combat. The rest of you will go with Kyle and Ace for more practice at the firing range before we begin our instruction on reflexive shooting.
“Ace, Kyle, or I will always have our eye on R while she’s here. I expect the rest of you to watch over her at the hotel. If anyone gets any word on Huff, notify me immediately.”
War and I remained in the mock living room after Kyle and Ace led the others away. War sat across from me, ostensibly coming up with a way for me to defeat big, bad Ket in a fight where I was out of my weight class.
“Done much fighting?” he said at last.
I shook my head. “I’ve always been more of a pacifist. If battle must be done, I prefer to
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