Skylar was his complete antithesis. Bright, cheerful. She had a sunshiny personality. If it weren’t for the fact that Donovan knew firsthand her ability to kick a man’s ass even if he was twice her size, he would have even called her perky. But somehow a woman who could take a man down in two seconds flat and have him begging for mercy didn’t qualify as perky.
Could a cheerleader be a Rambo-ette? Because if so, Skylar deserved that moniker. Although she might be insulted to know Donovan was comparing her to a cheerleader. It wasn’t an insult, but some women took it as such. Cheerleaders were actually damn good athletes. They had to be to perform the feats they pulled off.
“So what are we going to do about Breckenridge?” Sam asked, bringing the topic back to what was most important. The safety of Donovan’s family.
“He was damn careful about doing anything that could be perceived as a trade. Eve for the kids,” Ethan said. “I swear he knows we were trying to set him up. He didn’t buy the concerned-citizen bit, but on the other hand, a legitimate father in distress would not have been so calm about agreeing that Eve needed help before the children were allowed back home. What the hell kind of parent agrees to that? If he’d been for real, he would have had the police so far up our ass we would have had the imprint of their badges for a week.”
“Exactly,” Donovan confirmed. “He does not want police involvement. But neither did he do or say anything to incriminate himself. He thanked us for our concern and then agreed that getting Eve the help she needed was the first priority. That’s bullshit. As a father his first concern should have been making damn sure his children were okay. He should have demanded to see them. And then agreed to do whatever the fuck we wanted so he could get them back. Instead he leaves with this ‘I’ll be in touch’ bullshit? Like he needs time to think about it?”
“More likely he needs time to figure out a plan to get both Eve and the children. Punish Eve. Get the children back under his thumb. Eve too, for that matter,” Garrett muttered.
“The hell that’s happening,” Donovan growled.
“So what’s the plan?” Skylar asked.
Donovan looked at Nathan and Joe and then to their teammates, Swanny, Edge and Skylar. “I want him under surveillance twenty-four-seven. I don’t want him to take a piss without us knowing about it. Phone calls monitored, taps, tracking devices. The works. And I want it done yesterday. Find the son of a bitch and make sure we’re so far up his ass he can taste what I had for breakfast.”
“I think we should meet over at Mom’s,” Sam said.
“What the hell for?” Ethan demanded.
“Because the compound is safe. Ma and Dad still live outside. I want to make damn sure they know the situation and that they’re protected. Until they move inside the compound, they’re going to be a target for anyone wanting to strike out against us. We can meet over there and plot our next move. Not even someone as arrogant as Walt would try to make a move on a house full of cops and KGI. But you can bet your ass he’s already trying to uncover our weaknesses. And Ma and Dad are big-ass weaknesses because we’d do anything it took to prevent harm from coming to them. So yeah, we’re meeting there; make sure there’s plenty of protection. Nathan and Joe’s team can get set up on Breckenridge.”
“I agree with Sam,” Donovan said. “I’ll go get Eve, Cammie and Travis, although, Sam, you think Soph would mind if Cammie stayed with her? Travis is old enough and he deserves to know what’s going on and what we’re up against. Cammie, however, is too young to understand and I don’t want her frightened. We need to explain everything to Eve—and Travis. I promised Eve I’d tell her what was decided yesterday, but she wasn’t feeling well. She’s starting to fray at the seams. The stress and fear are getting to her, and that pisses me off.”