Sor (Voodoo Guardians #29)

CHAPTER FIVE

A few weeks later, Nell found herself in Sor’s arms at the wedding of Alistair and Clark. She’d splurged on a gorgeous plum-colored gown that somehow made her eyes look the same color. Her long brown tendrils were twirled into soft ringlets, held together on one side by an antique hair comb with jewels encrusted on the edge.

“You look stunning,” he said, smiling down at her.

“And you are the most handsome man I’ve ever met in my life. Is it possible to get you to wear this uniform all the time?” she smirked. He laughed, shaking his head.

“For you, I just might do that. Although, I suspect that after a while I’m not going to fit into this uniform. The way they cook around here, I’m going to gain fifty pounds.”

“I doubt that,” she smiled. “I’ve seen you run. I mean, not that I’m watching you, but you run out by the cabin now and then.” He smiled at her, nodding.

“Can I tell you a secret?”

“Of course. Anything.”

“I run out that way to check on you. Not check on you. To make sure you’re okay. That you’re safe out there by yourself. I’m worried about you.”

“Sor, that’s the sweetest thing I’ve ever heard,” she said, kissing him sweetly. “I’m fine. I love that you check on me, but you don’t have to do it behind my back. Come out and stop by. Have coffee with me or breakfast. Any time. Day or night.”

“Yeah? Day or night, huh?”

“Well, I mean,” she blushed, shaking her head, then looked up at him. “Yes. Day or night.”

“I’m not walking away from this, Nell. I don’t know how I know this, but I know that you’re the woman I should have been with all along. I hate that we had to go through all that shit with our exes, but it led me to you.”

“I feel the same way, Sor. Most days, I have trouble remembering my life before you were in it. Neither of us deserved what happened, but I’m so glad it did happen.”

“Me, too, baby. Me too.”

For Sor, the time spent with Nell was the best of his life. They took long walks on the property, lazy boat rides through the bayou, laughed over intimate dinners with their friends, and talked about every possible topic in the world.

“Hey, man. Everything good?” asked Garr.

“Yeah, brother. Everything is great.”

“Nell is a great girl. I hope you’re smart enough to keep her. I mean, we wouldn’t want her to be available or anything.”

“Brother, if you wanna keep those teeth, you’ll stay away from her,” said Sor. Garr laughed, shaking his head.

“Sor, you’ll learn that around here, we don’t fuck with our brother’s woman. Ever. It’s just not how we were raised.” Garr heard a phone ringing and realized it was Sor. Looking at the number, Sor just shook his head.

“If it’s important, brother, pick up.”

“No. It’s an old teammate. No big deal.” When it rang again, Garr raised his eyebrows.

“I think he thinks it’s a big deal.” Sor nodded at him, answering the phone.

“Teller.”

“Teller, it’s Marshall, man.”

“Hey, Marshall. What’s up?”

“Brother, some weird shit is going down. Someone has been following me for weeks now, and my apartment was trashed yesterday.”

“Did you call the cops?”

“Of course, I called the cops! Fuck, my apartment is on-base. I called the MPs, I called everyone!”

“Okay, okay. I’m sorry,” he said calmly.

“Fuck, Sor. I don’t need you to say sorry. Listen, brother. Someone spray-painted something on my wall. Something only you, me, and DeWitt would know about.”

“Well, now you’ve got my attention,” he frowned. He heard some shuffling on the other end of the line and then Marshall’s voice.

“What the fuck are you doing here?”

Sor heard some mumbling on the other end of the line, then signaled to Garr to get someone to tap into the call. As the others gathered around him, Sor placed the call on speaker as they all listened.

“Get the fuck out! Get out of my fucking apartment! What are you doing? What are you…” There were five muffled shots fired, and then nothing. A few seconds later the sound of a door slamming, then silence.

“Shit,” he muttered.

“We’re calling the base now,” said Luke. “MPs are on their way over there.”

“He said someone spray painted something on his walls that only he, another of our team, and I would understand.”

“What was it?” asked Hex.

“He didn’t get to tell me. I need to know what it was.”

“We’ll figure it out, brother,” said Luke. When Sor’s phone pinged that a text message was coming in, it was Nell texting him. “What’s wrong?”

“Oh, shit!”

Nell finished the last of the items that needed to be sent for final review by the new non-profit she was working with. They were a new food pantry that catered to homebound elderly. She loved it, and she loved that they figured out a way to use food delivery service companies to get the groceries to them.

“There. Hopefully, that one will do the trick,” she said to herself.

Looking up at the clock, she realized she only had about an hour before Sor was going to pick her up for their date. They’d seen one another almost every night since Alistair and Clark’s wedding. Showering, she dried her hair quickly and then dressed in jeans and a warm sweater. Apparently, they were going to visit the animals on the island tonight.

Hearing sounds on her front porch, she thought it might be him, although it was early. As she approached the door, she could see someone trying to peek through the drapes, wiggling the doorknob.

“Oh, God,” she whispered. Running back to the bedroom, she grabbed her phone and walked into the closet, pressing on the false wall at the back. Quickly, moving inside, she pulled the wall tight, locking it in place.

With a width of only two feet and barely any space to move, she was grateful that Sor had enough insight to create such a space. Quickly, she texted him.

In trouble. Someone breaking in. Hidden.

We saw on cams. Stay put. Don’t move. Don’t breathe.

Got it.

Almost there.

I hear them in the cabin.

I love you Nell. I love you.