"I'm really afraid for Lora's safety," Zach said, his anxious tone backing up his fears. "You know I wouldn't ask you to do this if I had any other choice."

"Yeah, I know." Joel tapped the end of his pen on the notepad. "Where can I find your sister?"

"About four years ago she moved from Springfield to Chicago. She's living in a small one-bedroom apartment by herself."

Joel jotted down the name of the complex Zach gave to him, along with Lora's home phone number, surprised to learn that she'd moved clear across the state and lived so close to him. Especially since he distinctly remembered from one of the letters she'd written to Zach during their time in the service that her boyfriend had proposed, and she'd accepted. So why was she living alone?

Curious, Joel said, "I thought she was engaged to get married."

"She left the jerk two years ago." Zach didn't offer details, and Joel didn't ask for them, since that personal information wasn't pertinent to the case. "She works full time during the day at the St. Claire Hotel as a masseuse and part time at night at The Electric Blue. Her best friend, Sydney, owns the place, and it's relatively new. Have you heard of it?"

"Yeah. Actually, I've been there…" Joel's voice trailed off as a sense of recognition washed over him. It had been months ago that he and his friends had gone to The Electric Blue to check out Chicago's hottest new bar, but what he remembered most about that night was how distracted he'd been by one of the bar waitresses that had looked so familiar to him. Not to mention the awareness that had been evident between the two of them at first glance.

At the time, he couldn't place where he'd seen her before. Now, as Joel thought back to the pictures Zach had shared with him of his sister, he knew. The woman he'd been intrigued by and attracted to had been Lora Marshall.

What a small world it was.

"Hey, Joel. Are you okay?"

Zach's urgent tone pulled Joel back to the present. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Look, I don't have much more time before I need to get off the phone," Zach said. "If I can't get the money, Mendoza's guys will probably come looking for Lora in about a week, which gives you plenty of time to insinuate yourself in her life in an inconspicuous way."

"In an inconspicuous way?" Joel repeated, not bothering to hide his irritation over Zach's suggestion. "What's wrong with the straightforward approach? Just tell her the truth and that I'll be around to protect her until you get your shit together?"

Silence reigned on the other end of the phone line, and Joel imagined that he'd made Zach cringe with his honest expression of the situation. Tough shit, he thought, and shoved his fingers once again through his hair in growing agitation. Zach had gotten himself into this mess, and Joel wasn't about to make any of this easy on him. His friend needed someone to give him a reality check about his addictions and how they were affecting not only his life, but now his sister's.

Finally, Zach spoke. "I know I royally fucked up, and I'm the worst kind of bastard for doing what I did. But I love my sister, and if you tell her the truth…"

Zach's voice cracked with raw emotion, and he cleared his throat before continuing. "This isn't the first time I've gotten myself into this kind of trouble, and if Lora finds out what I've done with her insurance policy, I'm afraid she'll never forgive me. Or worse, she'll disown me as her brother. She's the only family I've got, Joel."

The other man's sincere appeal struck Joel right where he was most susceptible, because family was one of the most important things in his life. The support. The camaraderie. And knowing you could count on someone for anything. His brothers and sister were close, along with their cousins, so Joel could understand why his friend didn't want to risk his relationship with his sister.

"Whatever you do, please promise me you won't tell her what I've done," Zach pleaded.

Blatantly deceiving someone went against Joel's character, yet there were many times when his profession as a security agent required him to take on a new or different persona in order to do his job. This case would have to be no different, because Joel knew he wouldn't, and couldn't, turn down his friend's request.

Resigned, Joel rubbed a hand along the stubble on his jaw. "I'll do it," he finally said.

"Thank you." The relief and gratitude in Zach's voice was palpable. "I owe you, buddy."

"You don't owe me anything." Especially since Zach had saved his ass in Baghdad. In comparison, this was a small favor to grant. "But I do need a promise from you in return."

"Anything," Zach said willingly. "Anything at all."

Joel stated the one thing weighing heavily on his mind. "You need professional help, Zach. You're out of control. When you start gambling with other people's lives, you've gone too far."

"I know." Zach turned somber. "I swear I'll put myself into a rehab program once this is over."

"I'm going to hold you to that." If there was one good thing that came out of this disaster, it would be finally getting Zach's life straightened out.

"Hey, I heard you went into business with Jon, Kevin, and Ben," Zach said, changing the subject for a moment. "Some kind of security firm, right?"

"Yeah, Elite Security Specialists," Joel said of the company he'd started with three of his fellow ex-marines and good friends. "We're doing pretty well."

"That's great to hear," Zach replied sincerely. "I know it's been years, but I've missed hanging out with you guys."

The melancholy in Zach's voice was unmistakable, and Joel couldn't help but wonder how lonely the past years must have been for his friend. He wondered, too, if Zach was still desperately trying to escape the horrors they'd lived through in the war.

Once their term in the Marines had ended, he and Zach had spent two weeks together living it up and trying to forget what they'd endured. They'd caroused and partied with a bevy of willing women, and made up for all the wild, frivolous fun they'd missed out on during their time in Iraq. Then they'd gone their separate ways. Zach had driven off to Atlantic City with his wallet filled with the savings he'd accumulated during his time in the service, and Joel headed back to Chicago, where he'd grown up, to figure out what he was going to do with his life now that he was no longer a part of the United States Marine Corps.

He'd spent nearly two years doing oddball jobs before going into business with three fellow ex-marines as security agents. They'd formed ESS Group, and were hired to do everything from setting up security at venues and special events to protecting high-profile clients to undercover work when it was warranted. In just a few years' time, the company was well on its way to becoming one of Chicago's top security firms.

Joel had managed to make a life for himself outside of the service with a job he enjoyed. Unfortunately, Zach hadn't been able to put his time in the Marines behind him and was still living like a nomad.

"You know where to find us, Zach," Joel said, extending an invitation he hoped his friend would someday accept. "By the way, where are you?"

"I'd rather not say. The less you know right now, the better."

"Fair enough," Joel conceded. "Is there a way I can at least get a hold of you if I need to?"

"My cell phone." Zach gave him the number, and Joel added it to his notes on the pad of paper.

"I've got to go," Zach said reluctantly. "Semper Fi, Wilde Man."

Joel couldn't help the smile that formed on his lips. It had been a long time since he'd heard the nickname the guys had given him in the service. "Semper fi." Always faithful. And that code applied to his fellow marine and friend.

"GOD, he's so hot, I'm about to melt into a puddle right here and now."

Lora Marshall smiled in amusement at her co-worker Monique as they waited at the end of the bar for their drink orders. Sydney, Lora's best friend and the owner of The Electric Blue, stood on the other side of the mahogany and brass bar, mixing an array of cocktails and popping the caps off chilled beer bottles with an ease and rhythm that came from years of experience. Despite how busy Sydney was, she didn't stop from joining in on the conversation.

"Who's hot?" she asked over the loud music. There were dozens of good-looking guys in the place, and she gave the crowded bar area a quick glance in search of the mystery man Monique seemed so enthralled with.

"Lora's guy," Monique said as she set two beers, a mai tai, and a cosmopolitan on her tray. "Table sixteen. The one dressed all in black."

Lora rolled her eyes. She didn't need to look in that direction to know who was sitting at the designated table, especially after hearing Monique's description. "He's not my guy." But she had to agree that he was definitely hot.

"Oh, yum." This bit of interest came from Sydney, who'd spied the dark-haired guy and found him to be just her type. "Well, I'll certainly take one of him."

"Sorry, boss." Monique added a pineapple wedge to the mai tai and pressed a lime into the long neck of a bottle of Corona. "He wants Lora. He always asks for Lora." With that, she picked up her loaded tray and made her way through the throng of customers to deliver her drinks.

Lora couldn't deny Monique's claim. Yes, he did always ask that she take his order. This was the third night he'd come into The Electric Blue, each time with a friend. If the past two evenings were any indication, he'd order one beer, maybe two, and nurse them for the next few hours until the place closed. Even though he didn't lack for female interest, he never danced with anyone, though his friends seemed to enjoy the singles scene.