Defending Morgan (Mountain Mercenaries #3)(41)

“Uh . . . right. Got it,” Meat said. “You’re still going by the clinic right after this, then bringing her to The Pit?”

Arrow nodded. “She’s not happy about seeing the doctor, but knows it needs to be done. Her mom is meeting us at The Pit afterward. They need to see each other. Every little girl needs her mother to make things better.”

“True. Okay, Black and Gray are on their way there now. They’ll get with Dave and make sure the back room is closed until we’re done. Allye and Chloe will meet us there later in the afternoon, and the rest of us can handle any problems with the press being overzealous.”

Arrow took his eyes off Morgan long enough to look at Meat. “Thanks, man. I appreciate it.”

“Fuck off,” Meat responded. “You’d do the same for me. Besides, we’re a team. There’s no I in team.”

Arrow rolled his eyes. “Please tell me you’re not getting a poster with that bullshit saying on it.”

Meat chuckled. “I wasn’t. But now I am. Gonna put it up in our corner at The Pit. Maybe I’ll get it embroidered on a pillow and give it to you as a wedding present.”

“First, there’s no way Dave would allow that shit to be put up in his bar,” Arrow said, referring to the gruff bartender. “Second, if you get us anything that’s embroidered, I’ll kick your ass.”

“No protest about the wedding thing?” Meat asked.

Arrow smiled and turned back to look at Morgan. “Nope.”

Meat clapped Arrow on the back and said, “Happy for you, man.”

“Don’t be happy yet,” Arrow warned. “There’s a long road ahead of us both.”

“Good thing you’re stubborn, then, isn’t it?” Meat asked. His face turned serious. “If something happens, get Morgan out of here. We’ll deal with everything else.”

Arrow nodded. He’d planned on it. But he was aware his teammates knew that was the plan. They’d had a similar plan when Chloe had faced the press after what had happened to her.

The next twenty minutes were the longest in Arrow’s life. He hated seeing how uncomfortable Morgan was with the way her dad was talking as if he’d single-handedly swooped down to the Dominican Republic and rescued her himself. He was a bit of a braggart, and pompous, but Arrow supposed that came with being a CFO, and the excitement of having his daughter back.

The press asked a few questions, but it was obvious they were holding back to ask Morgan the real juicy things they wanted to know. Then it was Morgan’s turn to speak. She stood up slowly and walked to the microphone on the podium.

Flashes from cameras went off constantly, and she blinked in the harsh lights. After she cleared her throat, she said just what Arrow had suggested.

“Thank you very much for your concern, and for every tip that was called in after I disappeared. Knowing no one gave up on finding me means the world to me. I’m still acclimating to being back in the States, and I hope everyone will give me some time to come to terms with everything that has happened over the last year, and recently. For those of you who have missing loved ones, the best thing you can do is never stop believing they’ll come home. Thank you.”

Then she nodded at the cameras and turned to walk toward Arrow.

The reporters lost their composure when they realized she wasn’t going to take questions and began shouting at her as she walked away. Some tried to get in front of her, to block her from leaving.

Arrow was on the move immediately. He shoved one woman with a small tape recorder out of his way as he strode toward Morgan. She looked up with big green eyes filled with tears. Without a word, he tucked her under his arm and made his way to the exit.

He felt her arm come around his waist, and she buried her head in his chest as they walked. She couldn’t see a thing that way, and Arrow felt his heart swell with the trust she was giving him. She might not be ready for more than friendship right now, but she would be. He knew it.

Within seconds, Ball, Ro, and Meat had pushed back the reporters enough to allow Arrow to escape out the side door with Morgan. He quickly made his way through the hallways of the police station, nodding at the officers he passed. No one tried to talk to them or block his passage. He pushed open the back door and made his way toward his beat-up pickup truck, parked there for exactly this reason.

He’d hoped that things would stay civilized and they wouldn’t need to make a quick exit, but experience had made him always have a backup plan, just in case. He helped Morgan climb inside before reaching over and putting on her seat belt for her. She seemed a little shell-shocked, and Arrow wanted to take the time to comfort her then and there, but didn’t dare. He needed to get her away from the station before someone saw them and tried to follow. The press was useful in a lot of things the Mountain Mercenaries did, but this was not one of those times.

Arrow ran around the front of the truck and hopped into the driver’s seat. He started the engine and put on his seat belt at the same time. He pulled out of the parking lot as calmly as possible, not wanting to bring undue attention to them. The limo they’d arrived in was still sitting in front of the police station, acting as a decoy. Meat had driven Arrow’s truck to the station and parked it in the back.

Once they were safely away from the station, Arrow still didn’t say a word. He simply reached over and grabbed Morgan’s hand. She intertwined their fingers together and held on tightly. Knowing she needed some time to process the press conference before he took her to the clinic, Arrow drove them to Memorial Park. It was a large green space not too far from the police station, with a large lake.