Chapter Six
Two weeks later
Brody MacCafferty checked the address he’d jotted down. He studied the house in front of him. It was a small ranch style home with a white porch on the front.
He sighed. It’d taken him a month to untangle the trail his brother had left when the idiot ran away from his aunt’s house in Dallas. Now it was time to get his brother’s ass back home. He climbed the steps and knocked.
A tiny Hispanic woman opened the door. “Si?”
“Hello, are you Mrs. Elena Romanos?”
“Si.” The woman smiled.
“I was told you might be able to help me find my brother.”
“Tia Elena?” A young man came down the hall, a soda in his hand. “Who’s at the door?”
“A gringo looking for his hermano.” Mrs. Romanos opened the door wider. “He says I might know where he is.”
“Brother?” The kid got closer. When he saw Brody, his eyes widened. “Shit, you look just like him.”
“Juan, language.” She waved Brody in. “Come in and sit. Would you like a soda?”
“Yes.” As eager as he was to find out what Juan knew, he didn’t want to insult Mrs.
Romanos.
“Bueno. Juan, take our guest to the living room and tell him about his hermano.”
“Si, Tia Elena. Will you come with me, Mr. MacCafferty?” Juan led the way and gestured for Brody to choose a seat.
“Call me Brody. How did you meet Yancey?” He knew what Yancey had been doing before he disappeared, but Juan didn’t look like the kind of kid who hustled. He gave himself a mental shake. Yancey hadn’t seemed like the type either.
“We met at some clubs in Austin.” Juan curled up in a chair across from the couch Brody sat on.
“You don’t look old enough.”
Mrs. Romanos brought his drink to him. He smiled and thanked her.
“Fake ID. Never tried to order a drink, so they didn’t check too close. Yancey sort of took me under his wing. Made sure I knew which guys were there to dance and which ones were looking for more. He taught me how to send out the right signals. The ones that weren’t going to get me trouble. We became friends.” Juan grinned. “You look so much like him. Now I know how hot he’ll be when he’s your age.” The kid blushed.
“Thanks. Do you know where he is?” Brody’s voice shook in his excitement. He was getting closer.
“Sure. I talked to him last night. After he got out of the hospital, he needed a place to stay.”
Fear shot through Brody. “Hospital? What happened?”
“I’m not sure. He just said he got caught in a gang fight. Got beat up. He’s fine now.
My tio said Yancey needed time to straighten things out.” Juan stared at him, searching for something.
“Where is he?”
“You know, I asked him once about his family. He said his dad could barely take care of himself and his brother had to leave town because of some bad shit he got involved in.” Juan’s gaze dropped to the can he held in his hand. “Why now?”
Brody gave the kid credit. Juan wasn’t going to give him information until he was satisfied with the answers.
“I got tired of running. Five years ago, I ran away from a dangerous situation I created for myself. Once I got away from here, I started getting back on the right side of the law. I got work as a bodyguard and opened my own business. About two months ago, I met someone who left an impression on me. He made me realize family is the most important thing and I managed to throw mine away. So I decided it was time to come and round them up, repair some bridges and form new bonds.” Brody thought of Tony. “My dad’s gotten his life straightened out on his own, but I need to find Yancey.”
“I thought someone would come looking for Yancey.” Mrs. Romanos held out a piece of paper.
Brody took the paper, glancing between Juan and the lady. “What does this have to do with my brother?”
“He’s in Wyoming with my tio. He’s helping out on the ranch of a friend of mi tio’s.
Call him. You’ll be able to talk to Yancey as well.” Juan stood, his brown eyes sad as he looked at his aunt. “Mama wouldn’t talk to me. I tried, but I’m done beating my head against a wall. I talked to Tio Tony. He’s going to try and discuss with Mama about me living with him.”
“Maria always was a stubborn girl. It’s for the best, mijo. Your tio will take care of you.” Elena patted Juan’s cheek.
Brody stood as well. “Thank you for the number and the soda.”
“You’re welcome. Don’t disappoint your brother.” Mrs. Romanos gave him a fierce hug.
“I won’t,” Brody said as he waved good-bye and left the house.
As excited as he was to finally be close to talking to his brother, he waited until he got to his hotel before calling. He pulled off his shirt and shoes, settling on the bed to dial the number.
“Romanos.”
Images of a dark haired cowboy laughing at him with a wreath of cigarette smoke around his head flashed through his mind. He shook his head. There was no way it could be the same guy. It had to be the accent making him think he knew the man he was talking to.
“I’m looking for Yancey MacCafferty.”
“Who’s looking?”
The accent still brought images of naked skin to mind, but now the man’s voice held an edge.
“His brother.” He could play the hard ass game too.
“It’s damn time. What took you so fucking long? Shit. I thought he was wrong and you were dead.” Romanos didn’t sound happy Brody was calling about Yancey.
“Um…” Brody was at a loss. He never expected to get chewed out by a stranger, but there really was something familiar about the
