Read The Edge of Courage (Red Team) for Free Online Page A

kindness. I meant no insult by offering you a sandwich.”
    Dammit all, he was hungry. He’d kill for that sandwich, but he didn’t dare eat—not a full meal, anyway. He kept himself in a constant state of deprivation. The hunger pangs gnawing at his insides were the only real thing in his world. As long as he felt them, he knew he was conscious and not hallucinating. It was his only landmark in what had become the crazy jumble of his mind.
    And it wasn’t just food he craved. He yearned for wild, unfettered sex. For a life lived with intent. For anything and everything that was Kit’s sister. None of which could he experience until he had his son safely home with him. He took a step back. Glaring at her, he set his glass down and retrieved his hat, then made his way toward the tractor and the fields that needed mowing.

Chapter 5
    Mandy drew a ragged breath as she watched Rocco walk away. She closed her eyes, picturing him as he’d just been, seeing his dark, brown hair, dark brows—one that arched a little higher than the other, lips bracketed by creases, hollows in his cheeks, his eyes consuming her.
    She’d thought he was going to kiss her when he’d leaned forward. Her body still thrummed with anticipation. She forced more air into her lungs, then headed to the house, where she phoned Kit.
    “Hi, Em,” he answered. He’d called her by the first initial of her first name since their schooldays. There was something comforting in that old moniker. “How’s it going?”
    “You could have warned me.”
    The phone was silent awhile. “I didn’t want to scare you. He needs to be there, you know. He needs what you’re doing.”
    “He’s so angry.”
    “Well, you would be too if you went through what he went through.”
    “What happened to him?”
    “War, baby, in all its ugly, scarring wretchedness. Just work your magic on him, ok?”
    “I don’t think he’s eating. He looks so lean.”
    Kit sighed. “This is what I was afraid of. He’s as stubborn as an ass, Mandy, but he has to eat. How’s he sleeping?”
    “I don’t know. I don’t think he is. He works late into the night.”
    “Probably still having nightmares. All you can do is work on one thing at a time. Get him to eat first, then we’ll tackle the rest.”
    “I’ll see what I can do.”
    “How’s the construction? Anything new?”
    Mandy told him about the cigarette butts and Rocco’s concern over the paths in the back acreage.
    “That’s it. I’m coming out there,” Kit said with some finality.
    “There’s no need for that. What would you do that Rocco won’t? If there is something happening, he’ll figure it out.”
    “I don’t like it, Emmy. I want you to be safe.”
    “I am safe. Everything’s fine, or at least, it will be soon.”
    * * *
    That evening, Rocco took another tour of the property, looking for anything that jumped out at him, wondering if his instincts were misfiring or if something odd was really happening. Nothing seemed changed. No new cigarette butts had appeared.
    As he came out of the hills behind the ranch buildings, he saw Mandy step into Kitano’s pen. He watched from a distance, not wanting to distract her or alarm the horse. He had the advantage of being downwind from the corral, giving him the luxury of observing them unnoticed.
    She started to walk slowly in a clockwise direction, moving with the confidence of a seasoned trainer, her posture neither one of aggression nor timidity. The Paint was facing her. He stomped the ground in warning. She kept moving forward as if she were merely enjoying an evening stroll. Kitano tossed his head, then moved a few steps away from her. She continued forward. Kitano moved as she moved, walking in a circle, staying ahead of her. His pace quickened.
    Rocco’s nerves tightened. What the hell was she doing in there alone with a mad horse?
    Mandy stepped into the center of the corral. As Kitano moved in front of her, she raised her hand and made a few low,