Gabe (In the Company of Snipers, #8)(62)
She complied, which was really weird. Her? Taking orders? Even her family knew better than to ask her to ‘get something while you’re up.’ She wasn’t staff or anyone’s gopher. But Zack wasn’t so bad. A drink might do everyone some good.
She snagged four bottles and stepped over Whisper and Smoke on her way into the front room. Another weird thing. She did not approve of animals in the house. Ever. Until now. Kelsey’s dogs made her happy, and that, Shelby discovered, made her happy, too.
She took her place alongside Kelsey on the couch and doled out the icy cold bottles. Gabe and Zack twisted the tops and Zack took a long pull on his. She twisted her bottle cap and took a sip. Here she was, surrounded by a definite military lifestyle complete with two soldiers. Her world was changing in a lot of weird ways.
Gabe and Zack sat cross-legged on the floor, Gabe near Kelsey, his arms on his knees. He twisted the top off Kelsey’s beer for her, but she placed it on the end table instead of taking a drink. When everyone was seated, Gabe started the video. He’d managed to get fairly smooth footage following the dogs while they did their thing. He’d done good making them track Alex twice. But watching him stroll into the river as if it were no big deal? Scary.
Shelby looked closer. The guy was lean, but well-muscled. Those green and black plaid boxers were kind of sexy. A smile tweaked her lips. She’d seen what was beneath them. Glancing at the guy in question, her heart set to fluttering. He’d caught her looking. He winked a sly wink. The flirt.
She looked away, but couldn’t resist. One quick glance back and there he was again, still smiling. Still winking. She rolled her eyes back to the screen in time to see him dive into the river, and hopefully before Kelsey or Zack noticed their innocent exchange.
“Not smart, Cartwright.” Zack chuckled. “Only an idiot would’ve done that.”
“We’re lucky he’s still here,” Shelby murmured, her heart in her throat. “Ah, I mean, yeah. What were you thinking, Agent Cartwright?”
Zack gave her a look. She offered a glare in return but he’d either heard the emotion in her voice or the foolish attempt to disguise it. His left brow arched giving him a truly devilish look.
She focused on the television screen and took another sip of that icy cold beer. At this rate, her bottle would be dry in no time.
Bubbles surfaced. Minutes stretched. But no Gabe. The camcorder silently recorded the ever-widening ripples. Only Whisper and Smoke’s panting from the riverbank broke the silence.
“I’m actually impressed the kid could hold his breath this long,” Zack teased.
At last, Gabe splashed to the surface, but only long enough for a gulp of air before he dived again. Then again. Shelby cringed and clenched Kelsey’s hand. Darn, he was seriously one crazy guy.
At last, he erupted out of the water with a splash and a sputtering, “Jesus Christ!”
Kelsey pointed to the screen. “What’s that floating thing? Right beside you. It looks like a log.”
“That, my dear, is a body,” Zack announced as a corpse bobbed alongside his very frantic junior agent. “Gabe found one of the SUVs that ran you off the road. This guy was in it.”
Shelby couldn’t look away. Every powerful stroke Gabe took seemed to compel the corpse to follow. It looked like a scene from a living dead horror flick. She took another drink, her lips dry and her heart pounding despite the fact that he sat less than six feet from her. Darn him. Hearing about it was one thing, but seeing it? He’d taken too much of a risk. He could have died out there.
“There were actually two bodies. Their buddies must’ve ditched them and their ride when they got shot,” Gabe explained. “This guy couldn’t wait to get out.”
“But who shot them?” Kelsey asked.
“That’s right. You haven’t heard the whole story yet, have you?” Zack asked.
Shelby cringed, needing another swallow of beer. Kelsey was fragile right now. Should they be telling her all this?
“The same guy who saved your life shot these two jerks,” Gabe muttered. “Actually, there were four jerks to begin with. They shot your car after they ran you off the road and into the river. Connor and Rory found some security footage that shows a guy in black shooting back at them. Once he chased them off, he jumped in after you.”
Kelsey sat in a daze—just what Shelby was afraid of. The video showed too much and too fast, and this new information was more than the poor thing could absorb.
“Can I watch my boys find him again?” Kelsey asked quietly.
“You bet.” Gabe dropped to the front of the TV and set the video to replay.
Kelsey leaned forward, her elbows on her knees. First Whisper sat, his sign that he’d located the scent he’d been told to find. Then Smoke. Then Gabe made them do it again.
“You took such a risk jumping into the river,” she said. “You were all alone. What if something happened?”
Gabe pushed off the floor. He set his beer on the end table and sat beside her. “Something did happen. You saw the dogs track Alex, didn’t you? They found him. Twice. That’s good enough for me. He is alive. You were right.”
Shelby downed the last of her drink. Kelsey seemed to have stopped breathing. She stared at the paused image on the screen. Gabe had caught both of the dogs’ faces when he’d paused the replay. They smiled with black licorice lips. At Kelsey.