“Damn,” she said, staring at him.
He lowered his phone. “I think one of my favorite parts was the SERE training.”
“What is that?”
“It’s three weeks where we’re taught survival, resistance, evasion, and escape maneuvers. However, there’s also the Special Tactics training. It’s the longest segment, where we’re taught advanced weapons and demolition techniques, as well as how to operate all-terrain vehicles.”
Her grin widened. “Sounds like you really enjoyed it.”
“I did.”
“Then why come home?”
He thought about that for a moment and lifted one shoulder in a shrug. “For a long time, I was content with things. But as my tour was ending and my CO—my commanding officer—kept asking me to extend my time, I couldn’t stop thinking about home. Jace, Caleb, Brice, and I all kept in touch as much as we could. Brice’s tour ended first. He was already back here when I got word about Jace.”
“You mean when he was captured and held as a prisoner of war?”
Cooper nodded slowly. “Jace doesn’t talk about it. He acts like everything is fine, and some days I believe him. But other times, it’s obvious he still carries that around.”
“How long did they have him?”
“Two years. I extended my tour because of that. That’s how I met Cash, my PI friend. He was also with CCT as part of another special forces team called in to free Jace and two more of our men, also POWs.”
Marlee’s face crumpled. “I didn’t read that part in your military file.”
“Because it was left out. The mission was classified.”
“Ah. All the black ink I found on those papers. That was one of those missions.”
Cooper ran a hand down his face. “I’ve known Jace for so long. No matter what, he’ll always be able to come out ahead in any situation. He has the greatest attitude of anyone I know. Always positive, always lifting us up and telling us we can do whatever we want. I knew when we found him that he wasn’t going to look the same. After all, it wasn’t the first time I’d helped free our men from the enemy. But it was Jace. And the shell that I found that day was far from who he once was.”
“He was a prisoner. I wasn’t in the military, but I can guess what they did.”
“They nearly broke him. One of the men captured with him is in a psychiatric ward now because they fucked with his head so much. The second was killed within the first week of their capture. The doctors who examined Jace said they couldn’t believe that he’d held on for as long as he did. He has the scars to prove what happened to him.”
Marlee reached over and touched Cooper’s arm. “But it’s the scars Jace hides that worry you the most.”
“Yeah. As soon as Jace was located, I resigned my commission and accompanied him home. When we landed, his parents and my mom were there. But it took months before Jace could come home. He had so many injuries that it took time for the doctors to work on all of them. Some of his bones had to be rebroken so they could heal properly.”
“I’m guessing the doctors used the time to evaluate him mentally?”
Cooper set aside his phone. “They did. Thankfully, Jace didn’t pull away from the therapists. He found one he liked and had a couple of sessions a week with them. That went a long way to healing Jace. About a year after he came back, Caleb returned home. We had a big celebration, and the four of us began hanging out like we used to when we were in school. That’s when Jace met a girl.”
“Uh-oh. That doesn’t sound good,” Marlee said as she wrinkled her nose.
Cooper started the truck and turned around to head to their next location. “Let’s just say that he fell hard for her. Real hard, and real fast. He was still dealing with a lot, and when the relationship began to fall apart, he didn’t know what to do. Jace spiraled out of control pretty quick.”
“But all of you were there for him.”
“You bet your ass we were. We brought him back from the brink, but he’s never been the same.”
Marlee looked out the window. “That’s so sad. Jace seems like a good guy, and from what I discovered about him when I was investigating you, he’s a good guy on paper, as well.”
“He’s strong-willed, and he has us.”
“Then he’s very lucky.”
Cooper smiled as he glanced at her. He found it so easy to talk to her. The kind of natural that didn’t come along every day.
She went back to looking at the computer and entering the information for the next location. When he came to a four-way stop and looked in both directions, he happened to see a frown forming on Marlee’s brow.
“Everything okay?” he asked as he turned to the left.
“This next place looks interesting. It’s been rented by someone with a fake name.”
Cooper sat up. “Looks like we might have found our quarry.”
“How close can you get us?”
“Not as close as you’ll want.” Despite wanting to gun the truck to get there faster, he kept their speed regulated, though both of them were quiet as they drove.
He looked over when he heard Marlee’s fingers punching keys on the laptop. She glanced up and saw him, flashing him a quick smile.
“I’m trying to see if I can dig up this woman’s real name. No one comes out here with a fake name if they aren’t hiding something,” Marlee said.
Finally, they reached the house. It was set a ways off the road like most in the area. Unfortunately, Cooper couldn’t park the car there since it was too exposed.
“We have no cover,” Marlee pointed out.
Cooper shook his head and kept driving. “We’re going to have to come back when night falls. If we attempt anything right now, we’ll be spotted, and she could take off.”
“Agreed,” Marlee said, though her lips were tight.
He took one more look at the house in the rearview mirror. It was white with a dark green front door. One car was parked beneath the carport, but there was no sign of movement. Cooper turned his attention to the next address. For the next several hours, they crossed off every other location on the list, yet it still wasn’t dark.
Cooper called the others so they could meet up again. This time, they headed to the East Ranch, where Naomi, Audrey, her sister Maddy, and Abby had been cooking all afternoon. Cooper was used to the welcome they got, but Marlee took it all in stride. She cast him a glance before she went with the other women to coo over Nate and catch up.
Jace handed Cooper a beer. “How’d it go?”
“Did you find anything interesting?” Cooper asked.
“Nothing. You?”
“Maybe.”
Jace’s hazel eyes brightened. “Really? That’s good to hear.”
“What’s good to hear?” Brice asked as he walked up.
“Cooper and Marlee might have found something,” Jace told him.
That instantly quieted the girls. Cooper looked into the kitchen and met Marlee’s gaze.
Clayton, Danny, and Ryan walked out of Clayton’s office toward the kitchen. Clayton gave Abby a kiss before saying, “I don’t think this is going to wait until after dinner.”