by Layne, Ivy
First on my list was Knox. After Tsepov’s attack weeks ago he’d upgraded every aspect of his security. No one was getting near his place without him knowing. Everyone was safest there.
Knox’s voice was as clear and abrupt as if he’d been wide awake.
“I'm sending Alice and Petra to you,” I said, without preamble. I filled him in on the rest and hung up. Knox would take care of calling Axel and Evers.
Done with packing for Alice, I moved to Petra’s room. She was more complicated, and I didn’t have time to consider everything she’d need. Some clothes and pull-ups would get her through the next few days. Whatever I forgot we’d get later.
Next on my list was Riley Flynn. I needed him here to coordinate what remained of the team, then at Knox’s house watching the women and kids. My last call was to Lucas Jackson. He might be our resident hacker, but he was a one-man army, six feet, seven inches of deadly force.
“Forget Knox’s place,” he said the second I laid out my plan. “Take them to Winters House. I’ll call Aiden. He’ll want to know about your father and Griffen anyway. Tsepov’s men won’t think to look for them there, and Aiden never downgraded the added security we put in back when Annalise came home. Motion sensors, floodlights, it’s all still up.”
I was rattled or I would have thought of it myself. The Winters were as good as family, but they were also one of the wealthiest families in the country.
Winters House was less a house than an estate. The place was huge, in the center of ten acres, almost impossible for any of Tsepov’s men to sneak up on, especially after the way we’d jacked up their security when Annalise Winters had come home with her stalker on her heels.
On top of the location and the security, Gage Winters was former special forces. If he hadn’t gone to work for the family corporation I would have recruited him for my own team.
“Good idea. Call Aiden and set it up. Update Riley. We’ll meet you there.”
I sent a quick text to fill my brothers in on the change in plans and shoved my phone in my pocket, heading down the hall for Alice.
I opened the door to the storage room and froze, looking straight into the barrel of a Walther PK identical to the one I’d left on the floor of the kitchen.
Alice stood in a perfect stance, legs spread, arms raised, the weapon steady as a rock. Petra was curled up on the carpet behind her, fast asleep. I was so relieved to see my girls in one piece my chest hurt.
Without lowering her gun, Alice asked, “Everything okay?”
“Okay? No. But we’re safe. Agent Holley's here. I need to get to the hospital.”
Alice lowered her weapon as her eyes turned dark. “Who?”
“My father and Griffen.”
She swore under her breath.
“The FBI will take you and Petra to Winters House. Summer, Emma, and Lily will meet you there. I got your stuff together.”
I held up the duffel and she took it, face clouded with worry.
Taking the Walther, I set it in the gun safe before I cupped her face in my hands and kissed her. Just once, the briefest meeting of lips. There was never any time.
Later. I hoped there would be all the time in the world later. Time to tell her how I felt. What I needed. What I wanted. Time for everything.
Griffen and my father might already be dead.
I had to get to the hospital.
I let her go, cold settling around me as I moved away.
I said the only thing I could, the thing I'd said only once before.
“I love you, Alice.”
Then I turned and raced for my car.
Chapter Forty-Two
Alice
My lips were still warm from Cooper's as he took off down the hall. I stood there holding the duffel bag, staring after him like an idiot. I couldn’t catch up.
I love you, Alice.
He loved me? He’d said it when he locked us in, but I’d been so scared it hadn’t registered.
He loved me?
Even after I’d put Lacey in the hospital?
I’d think about that later. He’d said he loved me, but he hadn’t said anything about Griffen or Maxwell. They were injured, on their way to the hospital, but I had no clue what that meant. At that moment, I couldn’t make myself care about Maxwell.
Griffen was another story. I couldn’t stand the thought that he was seriously hurt. If anything happened to him, Maxwell had better hope he died because if he survived and Griffen didn’t, I’d murder Maxwell myself.
I’d worry about that later, too. Trying to distract myself with something I could control, I dropped to my knees and unzipped the duffel, checking everything Cooper had packed. He’d done a pretty good job.
Petra could show up at Winters House in her jammies, but there was no way in hell I was walking through the door of the grand estate for the first time in Cooper’s cut-off sweats and a threadbare T-shirt.
I didn’t want to leave the safe room, unsure what I would find in the rest of the apartment and unwilling to leave the sleeping Petra alone even for a few minutes. Making do, I pulled out a Kelly green dress Cooper had packed, a white crinoline, and my hairbrush, along with a pair of wedge flip-flops.
I had the dress over my head and zipped up in a blink, the crinoline beneath a second later. Good thing, because a quick double-knock hit the door just as I was pulling the brush through my hair.
Agent Holley pushed open the door without waiting for a response, his face strained and somber. A dark-haired man wearing a navy-blue FBI vest followed behind.
Angling his chin at the floor where Petra still slept, Agent Holley asked in a low voice, “This the sister?”
“This is Petra.” I smoothed my skirts and asked the question I wasn’t sure I wanted the answer to. “Griffen? Cooper didn’t say—”
“I think he’ll pull through. He took one in the shoulder. Looked like it nicked an artery, but Cooper got to him fast. He has a good chance.”
My stomach filled with lead. A good chance wasn’t He’ll be fine. I didn’t even bother to ask about Maxwell. I don’t think I cared. Griffen had been my friend since my first day at Sinclair Security. I refused to think we might lose him.
“Are you ready to go?”
“I just need my purse and phone from the kitchen.”
Holley nodded to the other agent who disappeared down the hall. “Agent Williams will get you to Winters House. Lucas Jackson is on the way there.”
I knelt by Petra and scooped her up, ignoring the pain in my bruised arm. She raised her head and blinked at me with bleary eyes before settling her cheek on my shoulder, bunny clutched in her hand.
A few minutes later we were whisked to the garage and off to Winters House in an FBI van. Winters House was deep in the heart of Buckhead, not far from the Sinclair Security offices. I’d seen pictures, both in the media and our own files as we updated security on the vast property.
I thought I was ready for Winters House.
I was wrong.
We turned off the main road onto a smooth, wide, asphalt drive, coming to a stop behind a Sinclair Security SUV, parked so it blocked the imposing black iron gate.
Lucas Jackson jumped out of the driver’s seat and came to the van. “ID,” he said brusquely before sending a concerned look my way. “You okay, Alice?”
“I’m fine.” I wanted to ask if he’d heard anything about Griffen, but it was too soon.
After calling in the agent’s badge number, he returned to his SUV and opened the gate. We followed him up the long, winding drive to the house. Lined by live oaks arching over us, every other tree lit with spotlights, even the driveway to Winters House was a little intimidating.
Winters House emerged out of the dark, the exterior lit by more spotlights. Built in a Mediterranean style, the mansion was all creamy stucco, tall arched
windows, and a distinctive red-tiled roof. Imposing and yet welcoming, it was a gorgeous home, even in the dark of night.
We came to a stop at a second gate, this one also black iron but more delicate, blocking the entrance to a porte-cochère. The gate swung open in front of Lucas’ vehicle and we rolled slowly into a spacious courtyard with a lit fountain at the center.
Designed in a square, Winters House surrounded the courtyard on all four sides. The section we’d driven through and those to my left and right were all one level, their arched windows looking out into the courtyard.
I got out of the FBI van slowly, taking it all in, and turned to face the largest section of Winters House. Two stories high, this part of the house loomed over me as we climbed the steps to the enormous, carved wooden double-door.
Aiden Winters swung open the door, exchanging low words with Lucas before nodding at the FBI agent as he stepped back to allow them to enter.
I got a warm smile. “Alice. Sorry to see you under these circumstances.”
“Me too. Thank you for opening your home in the middle of the night.” Aiden closed the door behind us and led me in through the foyer. I’d never seen him dressed in anything other than a business suit.
I’ve been head over heels for Cooper for more years than I’d like to admit, but I have eyes. With his auburn hair, warm brown eyes and gorgeous smile, Aiden Winters is hot in a suit. But like this? Sleep rumpled, his broad shoulders stretching an old Emory t-shirt? Wow. Hot doesn’t cover it.
Aiden gave a hint of that smile as he shook his head. “Cooper and his brothers are family. You know that.” With a gentle hand, he reached up to tuck a strand of hair off Petra’s cheek. She looked up at him with serious eyes. “This the new addition? With those eyes, she looks just like Cooper and Axel when they were kids.”
Petra looked to me. “Coop?”
I cuddled her closer. Already she was asking for Cooper instead of her father. Her father who was probably already dead. Aiden must have been thinking the same thing.
“Cooper will be here soon, honey,” he said. “In the meantime, Violet is in the library with coffee and tea. And cookies.”
He smiled as Petra’s eyes popped wide. “Cookies?”
“Cookies,” he confirmed. To me, he said, “I’m going to talk to Lucas and the FBI. We won’t let anyone get to you.”
“Thanks, Aiden. If you hear anything about Griffen?”
“I’ll let you know,” he promised.
I followed him to the library where a stunning woman sat in front of a loaded tea tray. She looked up with a cool smile, her eyes warming as they landed on Aiden. Her pale-blond hair was caught in a loose ponytail, and she wore shorts and a t-shirt, but despite the casual look, she was every inch the queen.
This must be Violet Westbrook, Aiden’s soon-to-be fiancée. According to the Sinclairs, he hadn’t proposed yet, but he would.
“Alice?” she asked. Not waiting for me to confirm, she rose and held out her hand. “I’m Violet. I’ve been dying to meet you. You’re a legend around here.”
Aiden withdrew, an affectionate smile curving his lips, and headed out to secure Winters House against any possible invasion.
“A legend? I like that, but I’m not sure what I’ve done to earn the title.” I sat on the leather couch opposite Violet, leaning forward to snag a cookie off the tray for Petra.
“Definitely a legend,” she said, her eyes twinkling, their color somewhere between lavender and periwinkle. They were arresting, especially combined with her poise and her ice-blond hair. This was a woman I could see with Aiden Winters.
Her queenly reserve melted under the warmth of her amusement. “An office full of bossy alpha guys and you run herd on all of them. Lucas and Riley say the place would fall apart without you.”
“Oh, that,” I said, reaching for my own cookie. “I am a legend for that,” I admitted. “They can be a handful. And the women on the team are just as bad. The job does not attract laid back people.”
“I bet,” Violet said with a smile. “Coffee? Tea? I’m not Mrs. W,” she said, referencing the family housekeeper, “but I threw together what we had. Fortunately, she keeps us stocked in shortbread. Charlie is in the kitchen making sandwiches. Aiden said Emma, Summer, and Lily are on the way. Sophie and Lise are still asleep. Gage and Riley didn’t want to wake them.”
Lise was Annalise, Aiden’s younger cousin. She was married to Riley. I’d met her a few times when she’d stopped by the office. I didn’t know Sophie, Gage’s wife, though I did know she’d come to Winters House as an employee. A nurse they’d hired to take care of their great-aunt Amelia, apparently, Gage had taken one look at her and swept her off her feet.
Charlie was a different story. We weren’t BFFs, but we hung out now and then. Younger than me, Charlie never sat still and didn’t take any shit. A girl after my own heart. She’d married Lucas Jackson a few years before, not long after he joined the company. The first time she’d strolled into the office I’d known we’d be friends.
On the surface, she and Lucas were an odd pair: The billionaire princess of the Winters clan and a scary, former black-ops hacker. They might have been odd, but they were one of my favorite couples.
Charlie was a spitfire and Lucas adored her just as much as he enjoyed watching her wreak havoc. Deep down, where it counted, they were a match made in heaven.
“I can get Petra juice,” Violet offered, proving gossip moved like wildfire between the Sinclairs and the Winters. She’d probably known about Petra only hours after the little girl had ended up at our door. Before I could answer, Charlie strode in with a second tray, this one piled with small sandwiches.
“I tried to channel Mrs. W, but I can’t promise these are any good,” she said, setting the tray beside the other and sitting next to me. Bumping my shoulder with hers, she said, “Why did I have to find out from Lucas that you moved in with Cooper?”
“Because it happened yesterday?” I asked, bumping her shoulder back.
“Aiden said it was about time,” Violet added, pouring a cup of coffee and setting it in front of me.
I slid Petra to the corner of the couch and handed her another piece of the buttery shortbread, quietly asking, “Do you want juice? Or just a cookie and a snuggle?”
“Cookie,” she whispered, hugging bunny to her chest and curling into the couch, her eyes already starting to droop.
“Okay, gumdrop,” I said, pressing a kiss to her forehead. I’d worry about sugar and proper nutrition later. Tonight, she needed cookies.
I was just grateful she hadn’t witnessed any of the violence that had erupted in our home. My heart squeezed. Cooper. She’d seen nothing because Cooper had protected us, been willing to die for us. Griffen still might. My heart squeezed again, and I rechecked my phone. Nothing.
“Everyone said it was about time,” Charlie agreed, bringing me back to the conversation. “Cooper’s been moping over Alice for years.”
“He has not,” I protested, still not used to the idea that Cooper had wanted me for so long.
“He totally has,” Charlie insisted. “Just ask Aiden. It was killing me to keep my mouth shut. Killing me! When you got divorced, Aiden was sure Cooper would pounce. Damn, that man is patient.” She leaned around me to wink at Petra. “Sorry. I should be used to watching my language with Rosie and Adam around.”
“I think she’s heard worse,” I said dryly, brushing her hair off her forehead. “Anyway, Cooper doesn’t pounce.”
“Really?” Violet raised one sleek, platinum eyebrow and took a sip of her coffee. “I saw him throw you over his shoulder at Evers’ engagement party. That’s close enough.”
Okay, she had a point. Then there was the time he’d tossed me on the bed…
Charlie laughed, a bold, happy sound that was welcome after the night we’d had. “Look at Alice blushing! Maybe Cooper didn
’t pounce before, but he does now.” More quietly, bumping my shoulder again, she said, “It’s nice to see him happy. He—”
Her mouth slammed shut as we all thought about what Charlie had said. It had been nice to see him happy, but with his mother in the hospital, his father probably dead, and his best friend clinging to life, happy wasn’t the best description of his current circumstances.
“I wish we knew what was going on with Griffen,” I said, annoyed at my fretful tone. “I know he’s in surgery, but I hate the waiting. I hate that he got hurt trying to protect us.”
Charlie closed her hand around mine and squeezed. “There was no way he would have been anywhere else. Griffen loves you guys. Cooper is like a brother to him.”
“This isn’t the first time one of the team has gotten hurt,” I said, trying to convince myself this was all business as usual. “It’s just that—”
“This isn’t work,” Violet finished gently. “This isn’t Griffen on a case, this is Griffen being your friend.”
“Poor Cooper,” I whispered, unable to stop myself. If it weren’t for Petra I would have followed him to the hospital. Would have been there for him. But I couldn’t leave the little girl curled into my side, devouring cookie after cookie. She needed me, and Cooper had his brothers. Considering I was responsible for putting their mother in the same hospital where their father was, I might not be welcome.
I would never have hurt Lacey if she hadn’t come after Petra. She’d been about to kill me. I’d done the right thing. Surely, they would understand that. I could only hope. I took a sip of coffee and another piece of shortbread, trying to chase the dark thoughts from my mind.
Breaking the mood, I pinned Charlie with a steely look. “So, you knew about Cooper? All this time?”
Chapter Forty-Three
Alice
Grown men squirm when I use that look, but Charlie only gave a sheepish squint. “I did,” she admitted. “He’s a lot older than me, but I’ve known him since birth. And I asked Aiden a while ago why he didn’t have a girlfriend. Aiden said he was interested in someone who wasn’t available, and the first time I saw you two together I knew it was you.”