Annie left her face blank. She wasn't expecting the kids to talk to Cade about her interrogations. She called them conferences. She had the boys come in and go over their cla.s.ses, their goals and then tried to get them to talk about football as much as she could.

"They're great kids. I'm sorry about the loss tonight. It was a tough game." She kept her eyes on his and tried to keep her thoughts focused.

"Thanks. It was sloppy and some players need more work, but I saw promise." Cade watched her closely. She was really good. She didn't give anything away. He had known what she was doing the past couple of weeks. She was bringing in players and questioning them. The added benefit was his players thought she really was interested in them and came out with a little more confidence. She was actually a really good guidance counselor.

"Thanks for coming to the game. It really means a lot to me." He gave her a smile and watched as she blushed again. It was really cute when she did that. It made him want to know more about what was underneath her tough DEA cover.

"To you?" she stuttered.

"Yeah. You're supporting the team and that's really great of you." Cade was enjoying himself. He liked making her feel as dis...o...b..bulated as she had made him feel.

"Oh! Yes, the team. Anything for the team," she mumbled. Cade smiled. Something about this woman made him feel as if he could do anything. He looked up and saw that most of the parents had picked up their kids and headed out. The parking lot was quickly becoming empty.

"Can I walk you back to your car?"

Before she could say no, which he knew she would, he put his hand on her back and gently pushed her forward. He stopped in front of her dark green convertible. He had to focus on keeping his hand still. He desperately wanted to run it up and down her back to feel every inch of such an intriguing woman.

"Thank you, Cade."

They stopped and he watched her dig around her purse for her keys. Well, it was now or never, and if he didn't do this, Miss Lily would be mad at him and tell Miss Daisy not to feed him the next time he went to the Cafe.

"I was wondering if you'd like to go out to dinner with me?" Cade could swear his heart stopped beating. Was it a good sign or bad that she wasn't answering right away?

"Cade! Look out!" she screamed and tried to grab him, but it was too late.

A van skidded to a halt next to him, almost running him over. The van door was open and two men with s.h.i.+ny shaved heads looked out. He shoved Annie hard against her shoulder. She fell backwards against her car and out of reach of the hands grabbing him from the van. In a split second, Cade had a.s.sessed the situation. These guys were idiots.

They had fumbled when they grabbed him. They had blindfolded him, but they did such a bad job that he could still see everything. They had tied his wrists, but he could easily get out of them. It was then that he decided instead of escaping, he'd see what they wanted. He looked around and took in the guy with a broken nose and a guy in the pa.s.senger's seat with a cast on his leg. Ah, these were the same geniuses that had tried to rough him up. He had to admit, he was curious to see what they wanted.

The van was a standard utility van. There was industrial carpet on the floor. No seats except the front two. There were three men in the back of the van with him. They were all burly guys who looked like they had been using S2 themselves. So many men thought the bigger the muscles the better the fighter, but that just wasn't true. Sure they may be able to lift more weight than he could, but being a good fighter meant that you had strength, speed and precision. These guys were so bulky they'd never be able to keep up in a fight. He had a feeling though that this wasn't about fighting. This was about drugs, and he had was pretty sure he was about to meet one of the key players in the drug trade. Annie would be very happy with this news.

He watched the scenery change as they drove into Lexington. Horse farms with rolling bluegra.s.s gave way to commercial s.h.i.+pping centers, subdivisions and shopping malls. They drove round and round, trying to confuse him. They thought he couldn't see, and the length of the trip would make it impossible for him to tell where they were. Well, except for the fact he had just seen that they had gone past Rupp Arena and were driving downtown. They circled around Rupp and headed back towards Keeneston. They pulled into one of the strip malls closest to the small country road that led back home and parked.

He saw the neon lights of Iron Club and Spa, one of the national chain gym franchises. There was one in Keeneston too. The lights were on, but it was after ten o'clock at night and there was no one working out. They pushed and shoved at him to get him moving. He pretended to stumble and smashed the foot of one of the goons next to him.

Even if he couldn't see, he would know it was a gym. There was a distinct smell that belonged to gyms. It was a mix of sweat, metal, rubber, and disinfectant cleaner. He was pushed through a small door camouflaged into the wall near the racquetball courts and led up a flight of stairs. At the top of the stairs was a small lobby and bathroom. To the right was an open door to a large office that overlooked the gym from behind the two-way mirrors that covered the walls of the gym.

"Take it off," a gruff voice with a slight Scottish brogue said.

Cade's blindfold was taken off, and he pretended to blink his eyes as if adjusting to the sudden light. When he brought his eyes up, he came face to face with a thug in a suit. This must be upper management.

"Good evening, Mr. Davies." The man stood from behind his desk and walked around his desk and placed a hip on the edge of it.

Unlike the goons who had a hold of him, this man earned his muscles from the streets, not the gym. That was obvious from his thickness, but lack of bulging muscles like the steroid triplets behind him. His guess would be that he was imported from Edinburgh or Glasgow to run this little drug ring. It was common to import someone with a reputation, but not well known. That way they could start a lie about how many people they had killed and the horrible acts they had committed just to gain respect. It worked because there was no way to check it out.

"By the name on your desk, I a.s.sume you are Trevor Gaylen. If there was something you needed, there is this little invention called a phone." Cade watched the red-headed Scott crack a small smile. A flash of a gold tooth caught his eye before Trevor pushed himself off the desk and came towards Cade with his arms crossed over his barreled chest.

"That I am, Mr. Davies. I'm glad you catch on so fast. I was afraid this would be a rather long, painful meeting if you were just another dumb academic." Cade stood with his arms loose, even in the face of veiled threat. "It seems that you are off to a rough start with your football team this year." Trevor stopped a couple of feet in front of him and took his measure.

"We'll turn it around. We're a young, inexperienced team."

"I thought we could enter a partners.h.i.+p of sorts."

"What kind of partners.h.i.+p? You'll let my boys use these facilities for free?" Cade watched as Trevor tossed back his head and laughed.

"Aye, you are funny, Mr. Davies. But, no. That is not the kind of partners.h.i.+p I was wanting. See, I have something that will help your players grow stronger, run faster, and increase their reaction time."

"And what would that miracle be? Some new vitamin supplement your gym is pus.h.i.+ng?"

"Not exactly. It's an injectable supplement."

"Injectable, huh? As in steroid based?" Trevor grinned again, but it was calculated. He was in full sales mode.

"It's a derivative of steroids, yes, one that doesn't show up in any standard test. It will improve your players tenfold by mid-season. Guaranteed."

"And would this be called S2?"

"So, you've heard about it. Well, of course you have. You specifically tested for it during training camp. Strange that you've heard about it, considering that it has just now been submitted to the FDA for the animal testing phase. Also it's strange that you knew you had to test specifically for S2." Cade watched as Trevor transformed from the buddy-buddy salesman to the cold blooded dealer that he hid underneath a nice suit.

"I'm the kids' coach. I hear them talk in the locker room. See what they do when they think no one is around. I see and hear everything that goes on with my team. That's what being a good coach is all about."

"A good coach, yes, but not a great coach. I can make you a great coach."

"How?" Cade was interested in seeing how much he could learn for Annie. Would bringing her this information get her to say yes to a date? She hadn't, after all, been able to give him an answer to his question about a date.

"I can make you a great coach by you accepting my proposition, Mr. Davies. My very profitable proposition."

"I'm listening, but I can tell you now the mostly likely answer will be no." Cade heard the steroid triplets suck in their breath. At the sight of Trevor's eyes narrowing into cold flints of blue ice, he guessed not too many people told Trevor no, and of those, not many lived.

"No one says no to the Gaylen and lives to tell about it. What do you want me to do about it boss?" one of the steroid triplets asked.

"Isn't that a little cliche?" Cade suppressed the chuckle. It was all straight out of a bad movie.

"Nothing...for now. Let's see what Mr. Davies says after I have pitched him my proposition." Trevor took a step forward and jabbed him in the stomach.

Cade sucked in a breath from the punch he was not expecting. He had gotten caught up in laughing at the goons and didn't take Gaylen seriously, a mistake he wouldn't make again. It wasn't the strongest punch Cade had ever taken, but it was enough to make his stomach knot. Okay, time for playing games was over.

"Now, be a good boy and listen to what I have to say before you answer. As a teacher, you should know better than to make a judgment before hearing all the facts." He watched as Gaylen stepped back to lean against his desk. "This is what you are going to do. You are never going to test for S2 again. You are going to strongly recommend to all your top players that they come in for a free, six month promotional pa.s.s to the Keeneston Iron Club and Spa. They will receive free personal training from retired NFL player Devon Ross as a nice perk and enticement to join. It should also give you peace of mind to know they're being trained by one of the best."

"Didn't Ross only play for one season with the Cincinnati Bengals?"

"It's more than you played. I believe your coaching bio states you only played high school ball," Gaylen scoffed.

"You got me there. Go on. What else do you want?" Cade tried not to roll his eyes. Fighting terrorism got in his way of college ball. Apparently Trevor hadn't dug that far in his history. Not too smart on his part.

"Oh Coach, it's not what I want. It's what I can give you. I can give you the best team in the state. All I need from you is for you to coach the team."

"That's it?" Cade asked skeptically.

"That's it. You recommend the players come to the gym, you stay out of the locker room after practice, and you stop the special drug testing for S2."

"You're asking me to break the law. To supply my kids with an illegal substance."

"Not at all! S2 is only temporarily illegal. Soon enough it will be legal when we have a chance to present it to the FDA. And, I am not asking you to supply it. Simply turn a blind eye to it and in return you get a champions.h.i.+p team."

"What about the state required drug tests?"

"Do them. By all means do everything the athletic board requires of you. Just what they require you to do. No more special testing, which, by the way, the board does not require you to do."

"And in return I get a share of any profits from the sale of your supplement or maybe from gym members.h.i.+ps."

Gaylen tossed his head back and laughed. "Aye, you are a funny one. But alas, no, Mr. Davies. It's much more simple. In exchange, I let that cute little girlfriend of yours live. I always did have a thing for red heads."

"N..." Cade started to say.

"And if you say no, I will take everything and everyone that you cherish from you, one by one, starting with that hairy mutt of a dog and ending with your mother, or maybe that hot little sister of yours."

Gaylen's tone had turned deadly. Cade recognized it for what it was. The truth. He would try. He may not succeed, but he believed he would, and sometimes those who overvalue their strengths are the most dangerous because they simply do not understand that they cannot win, so they keep trying. He needed to buy time to see how this would play out.

"Can I think about it?"

Gaylen relaxed and gave his salesman smile. "Of course you can. I'll give you until Monday morning. Good evening Mr. Davies."

With a flick of Gaylen's wrist to indicate the meeting was over, the steroid triplets grabbed him and pinned his arms back. The remaining man tied the blindfold over his eyes, poorly, again. He contained his sigh at these amateurs only because he knew Gaylen was trying to be intimidating. He didn't want to fracture his ego. He was a gentleman after all, and he needed to get back to Keeneston as soon as possible so he could find Annie. He had played enough games with her these last weeks, little innuendos and taunts trying to get her fl.u.s.tered and wondering if he really knew who she was. Well, the time for playing was over. He needed her help to protect his team.

Chapter Seven.

Annie couldn't believe it. The b.u.mbling idiots had gotten Cade into the van although he didn't put up much of a fight. Maybe his military record was forged? He always seemed to need saving. She had tried to follow them, but her d.a.m.n keys had been eaten by her purse. She had to toss the whole thing on the hood of the car to find them. By that time the van was gone and she stood alone in the large parking lot.

She'd tossed all her junk back in her purse and headed home. She drove through the church parking lot which was sprinkled with cars for some sort of Bible study or singles dance, or whatever they were scheduled for tonight. There may not be many people in Keeneston, and there may not be that much of a night life, but St. Francis could throw some kicking parties.

Annie parked next to the small wood cottage house and leapt up the stairs to her front door. Unlocking the door she ran to where her computer still sat on the kitchen table the only place she could fit it and booted it up. She may not know where Cade was now, but she could find out where he would be when it was over.

She typed in his name and found his address. She entered it into the mapping system and stared at a dot in the middle of a field. The system said it couldn't find the location. Flipping open her phone she dialed the only number she had bothered to learn since moving to Keeneston.

"Blossom Cafe. What can I do for ya'?"

"Is this Miss Daisy or Miss Violet?"

"This is Miss Violet, dear. What can I do for you, hon?"

"This is Annie Hill. I need to know how to get out to Cade's house."

"Oh, bless your heart, I won! I won! I never win! Daisy Mae I won!"

Annie had to hold the phone away from her ear as Miss Violet shouted out into the Cafe.

"What do you mean you won? Who is it Violet Fae?" she heard Miss Daisy shout.

"It's Annie. She wants to know how to get to out to Cade's house! I won the pool! Today was my day!" There was a chorus of groans as the patrons of the Cafe checked their dates in the pool and even through the phone Annie bet they could see her red face. "Thank you, dear. It was about time the two of you got together. You've been circling each other ever since you got to town."

"I got twenty on a June wedding!" someone shouted.

"What?!" Annie shouted into the phone. "Miss Daisy, what was that?" Annie's stomach had flipped at hearing the word wedding. Talk about a commitment-phobe. With her history who wouldn't be?

"Oh nothing, dear. Now, you want to know how to get to Cade's. Easy. Turn right out of your house onto Main Street and keep going for about five miles. You'll see his parents' stone gate entranceway on the right. Go a half mile further and turn left into Fire Gate Nineteen there. Then make a right on the first dirt road you come to and take that for about a mile. It'll stop at his house."

"Seriously, there are still dirt roads? And what's a fire gate?"

"You'll see it. There's a break in the fence line, like a driveway, and there's a white wood marker that has the number 19 in red on it. That's the fire gate. Of course there are still dirt roads, honey. His house is almost a mile from the road. You know much that would cost to pave? Now, would you say you like the month of July or September better?"

"Neither. I'm partial to January."

"Isn't that a little soon? Oh well, why waste time is what I say. Have fun tonight!"

Annie closed her phone and stared at it for a full minute. She could just see Miss Violet putting twenty bucks on a January wedding that was never going to happen. Not that a wedding to Cade would be bad, but those were just fantasies. First she needed to make sure he was still alive.

Annie missed the fire gate twice and the dirt road once. A mailbox or a light would be helpful. She turned onto the dirt road and turned on her high beams. She drove through pastures and saw more cows than she ever had before in her life. Soon she came upon some trees and followed the dirt path through the woods.

She rounded the corner, slammed on her brakes, and sent dirt flying as she stopped before hitting a family of deer. Letting out the breath she realized she was holding, she started heading down the dirt road again. She drove around a bend and came out in an opening. A white farmhouse stood there. It was beautiful. She could tell from the architecture that it was very old, but also from the fresh paint job and what looked like a new deck, that Cade had just finished some renovations.

The house was lovely, a two-story, wood farmhouse with a large front porch that had soft-looking chairs sitting out and speakers wired for music. She pulled up to the front steps and turned off her car. The house was dark, and Cade's SUV was nowhere in sight. A tingle of worry crawled down her spine, but if half of what she read in his military file was true, then he could easily handle himself. She had to admit, she was pretty curious to find out what that joke of a kidnapping was about.

She climbed up the stairs and looked at the comfortable porch chairs, but then she looked toward the house. She wondered what it was like inside. She also knew that to do her job, and do it well, she needed proof that Cade was not supplying his team with S2 or anything illegal. Evidence like that coming to light during a trial would break any case she would make against any of the dealers. Sometimes in her job she had to do things she didn't like.

Well, if she were honest, a little B and E never hurt anyone. And think how much she could learn about Cade. She took out her pick case, but when she reached for the door, she discovered it unlocked. The k.n.o.b turned easily in her hand, and she felt her heart speed up at the thought of walking around Cade's house alone.

She pushed at the door and nothing happened. Huh? It was unlocked. The door was open just a sliver. Why wasn't it opening all the way? She pushed again, but it didn't budge. Was something barricading the door? She took her pick and ran it through the sliver of open door. No, nothing was barricading the door. She took a step closer to the door and bent her knees. She put her shoulder to the door and pushed.

She heard someone grunt and the door flew open. It opened so fast she fell forward onto the old hardwood floor. It was her time to groan. The jeans had prevented her knees from being sc.r.a.ped up, but she had landed hard on her hands. She lay there for a second, regaining her breath, when she felt that she was not alone. She slowly raised her head and came face to face with him.

Annie stared, he stared, and neither of them moved. He had big brown eyes that seemed to look right into her soul. With his lopsided grin, he looked like he was laughing. Even his soulful eyes twinkled with some untold joke.

"Hi there. I wasn't expecting anyone at home," she said in a calm voice so as not to upset him.

Slurp! A big pink tongue lapped her across the face. She looked at the happy face in front of her and at his tongue hanging out, his white hairy jowls, and his big, black tail as it thumped against the ground, and smiled. Cade's dog looked like he had just stepped out of a Disney movie.

"What a guard dog you are. You sure know how to keep people out and then how to make them feel welcome once they can push past you." Justin's tail thumped again as he c.o.c.ked his head to one side.

"Well, if you don't mind, I'm going to take a look around. Do you want to show me where things are?" Justin stood and walked beside her. His big, black nose kept nudging her hand every time she stopped rubbing his head.