“Now?” Lee asked.

“Now,” Willie answered.

“Text me, brother,” Lee told him.

“Got it,” Willie said and then disconnected.

Lee rolled back to Indy.

Before he could give her a kiss, she muttered drowsily as well as irritably, “Remind me again why I married you?”

“Multiple orgasms and we made two super fuckin’ cute kids,” he replied.

“Oh yeah, that’s why,” she said.

He grinned, aimed, touched his mouth to hers, then made certain the covers were still on top of her as he got out of bed.

By the time he returned, she’d be totally tangled up in them.

Which was good, he’d have to wake her to get her untangled, and him, Indy, two sleeping kids, two awake adults and a bed meant he’d get a fantastic welcome back.

He dressed, took keys, phone and a weapon with him to his car, got in and drove to where the text instructed: a dark corner of a parking lot at Mile High Stadium.

Eddie was already there.

Figured.

Lee parked next to Eddie’s truck, got out and moved to Eddie, who was leaning against his front bumper.

“Hank coming?” he asked.

“Since I didn’t know you were coming, no clue,” Eddie answered.

“Got a clue about this middle-of-the-night mystery?” Lee went on.

Eddie shook his head. “Nope.”

They heard it before they saw it.

A car approaching, headlights out.

Both put hands to their guns at hips and repositioned so Lee’s vehicle was between them and it.

It stopped and Willie could be seen in the driver’s seat.

It appeared there was a Black woman with short cropped hair in the seat beside him.

They both got out.

Lee didn’t take his eyes off the woman.

She was tall. Slender shoulders, round hips, dark skin, strong features.

She had confidence in her movements, so much, it was better described as power.

She stopped at the hood of the car and leaned against it, crossing her feet at the ankles, her arms on her chest.

Willie approached Lee and Eddie and got a lot closer.

He, too, stopped.

“Thought you boys might wanna meet Dynamite,” he said.

And then one side of his lips curled up in a smile.

*  *  *

Axl

It was only two days after he saw Hattie’s sculpture of them before it was delivered.

And this time, Elvira didn’t give any shit about it like she did when Boone got his.

Neither did any of the guys.

Now, when it happened, it was what it was.

He’d just returned to the office from being out in the field and it was sitting at the head of his workstation.

Light blue plastic, white words, slid into an aluminum stand.

Cheap.

Simple.

Everything.

The plaque said,

AXL PANTERA

“THEN AND NOW”

He got out his phone immediately and texted Hattie.

I love it.

Hattie texted back in less than a minute.

Good.

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