“I’ll be fine.”
“Don’t let her sleep,” Kane said.
“Where’s Jack? Reynosa expected him to come after me. He paid ten million dollars—”
“Well, hell,” Kane said, “you’re worth more than me, Sis.”
Lucy cracked a smile, then winced.
“It was for Jack, he thought Jack was coming for me.”
“Jack’s with JT rescuing Gabriella and Dante from the compound.”
“I didn’t see Dante there.”
“It’s a long story.”
“I’m supposed to stay awake, right?” She paused, opened her eyes, and looked at Sean. Her vision was still blurry, but close up she could focus. “I love you.”
“Love you, princess. God.” He touched his head to hers. “Too close, Lucy. That was too damn close.”
“We have a fifteen-minute drive, keep her awake. The SEALs will have a medic,” Kane said.
“SEALs?” Lucy asked.
“I said it’s a long story,” Sean said. “And parts of it are kind of cool.” Or would have been if he hadn’t been frantic about Lucy. “Kane played the part of Han Solo and hid in a secret compartment on Dante’s plane…”
* * *
“Where is he?” Lucy asked Kane not for the first time. Kane was probably getting tired of her worries. “You said Jack would be here in fifteen minutes. It’s been twenty.”
Sean said, “We still have five minutes before the SEALs get here.”
“He’ll be here,” Kane said. “Sean, anything?”
Sean had been fixated on his tablet ever since they reached the field where the rescue Hawk would touch down.
“What is going on?” Lucy asked.
“You don’t need to worry about this,” Kane said.
“Tell me. It’s Jack, isn’t it? Is he in trouble? Is he hurt? Tell me!”
“Jack is fine,” Kane said. He turned to Sean. “You can tell her.”
Sean turned the tablet so Lucy could watch. She saw a live video feed of a wall in a relatively nice-looking library. “What is that?”
“Dante’s office,” Kane said. “I didn’t want you to have to take on another burden.”
“No secrets, Kane.”
Sean said, “Remember when I told you that Jasmine most likely wanted Dante Romero because of his files? She probably made a big play of wanting revenge and accusing him of setting up her family, but Dante is an information broker and he has valuable information that protects him from harm.”
“And you think Jasmine is going to steal it.”
“She’ll try,” Kane said. “But I have everything.” He glanced at a duffel bag that looked nondescript. “It Dante makes it out of this alive, he’s relocating and will have no use for the intel.”
The unspoken word was that RCK would benefit—or would Kane give it to the FBI? Lucy didn’t think so. The FBI couldn’t be involved in operations on foreign soil, except under very specific circumstances.
As Kane spoke, two people came into view of the camera. Lucy shivered, and Sean wrapped a hand around her waist. “She’ll never hurt you—or anyone—again.”
The man with Jasmine, her bodyguard—Lucy couldn’t remember his name, if Jasmine had ever said it—removed a large painting from the wall. Behind it was a safe. Jasmine took out a paper, handed it to the man, and he opened the safe.
There was no sound, but it was clear when Jasmine looked inside that she was furious. She reached in and picked up a small object.
That’s when Lucy saw Kane with two phones in his hand. He used one, autodialed a number. On the tablet, Jasmine stared at the phone. She answered it.
Kane said, “You fucked with the wrong people.”
Then he pressed an autodial number on the second phone.
The screen went blank. There was a faint, deep BOOM in the distance. On the horizon, they saw a ball of flames shoot into the air.
Lucy blinked. “You set explosives.”
“They will not stop going after the people I care about. Ever. Do not feel guilt.”
She didn’t. She’d just watched two people die and she didn’t feel anything about it. She’d watched Angelo Zapelli shot and killed and she hadn’t felt a thing. Maybe sadness. A deep sadness that the world had become such a terrible, awful place.
For the first time in her life since she had learned she couldn’t have children herself she thought that maybe that was a blessing in disguise. How could she bring children into such a violent, corrupt, horrible world? The thought made her eyes water.
Lucy turned to Kane. “No guilt.”
The heard the rescue Hawk approach. “Jack’s not here,” Lucy said. “Kane—where is he?”
“He’s coming.”
“You keep saying that, but how do you know?”
Kane took out his earpiece. He put it in Lucy’s ear. “Hear for yourself.”
She listened. She heard a vehicle moving. Then Jack’s voice: “Alpha One, I see the bird. ETA one minute.”
Tears streamed from her eyes. “He really is okay.”
“I told you.”
Then she heard the cry of a baby.
CHAPTER THIRTY-EIGHT
Twelve Hours Later
Sean stepped out of Lucy’s hospital room and leaned against the wall.
So much had happened in less than seventy-two hours, he could hardly process it all. Seeing Jesse Monday morning and convincing him to stay in witness protection. Coming home to learn that his brother and sister had kidnapped the woman he loved. Traveling to Guadalajara to rescue Lucy. Seeing her so beat up, so broken …
He’d been so close, too close, to never seeing her again.
“How is she?”
Sean looked up. Jack stood in the hall, unshaven but clean. Sean realized then that he’d been sitting outside Lucy’s door, on the linoleum floor, unable to focus on anything specific. But he didn’t want to leave her. The nurse had gone in to check her injuries and vitals and Sean had stepped out. The nurse had left, but Sean remained outside. Because he was feeling so lost.
He wanted to hit someone. He wanted to take out his anger on Liam, who had started this entire ordeal. But Liam was dead. Sean hadn’t seen him in years, he’d barely talked to him, and yet Liam had nearly destroyed his life.
Now he was dead. And Sean had no one to punish.
Jack squatted. “Sean. Lucy.”
“Sleeping. They want to keep her a couple of days, but I’m going to take her home in the morning. A cracked rib. Concussion. Bruises. Her vision is better now, but she needs to see a specialist. Her wrists … God, Jack.” His voice cracked. “They tied her up.”
Jack sat down next to him. “Don’t think about it. You can’t or it will tear you apart. We got her back. That’s all that matters.”
“I know.” But. There was so much more going on. Kane had tried to explain what Liam and Eden had done and why. Well, he had explained, but none of it made sense to Sean. They had endangered Lucy’s life because of money. The crassest, most basic of all greed. And some odd sense that Kane owed them? Sean didn’t know. He didn’t want to understand anymore.
As far as he was concerned, whatever mistakes Kane made with Liam and Eden six years ago were justified. When Sean really needed Kane, he was there. He risked his life to save Jesse last month and he risked his life to save Lucy yesterday. He was the most selfless person Sean knew. As Jesse said, he was a hero.
“I’m not leaving,” Sean said. “Rick said I should go back to your place, but I’m not leaving Lucy. I just needed to … She’s sleeping. I needed to get out of there. Looking at her … what if…”
“Don’t. That’s never good. By the way, it isn’t my place anymore. Kane’s moving in.”
“He’s been staying there a lot anyway.”
“He wants to be closer to you and Lucy, but he’s not one for the city.”
“I’m glad. He probably wants to be closer to Siobhan.”
“He didn’t say.”
They s
at there in silence for several minutes. Sean had been thinking of a way to ask Jack to participate in the wedding, but it had been awkward. But after this week, there was nothing awkward about their relationship.
“Jack, I’d like you to do something for me.”
“Anything.”
“I know your dad is giving Lucy away when she walks down the aisle, but I want you there, too. Lucy loves you so much, but I have two brothers—” Two brothers. Liam was no longer his brother. He hadn’t acted like a brother when he was alive, he didn’t deserve brotherhood in death.
Jack almost smiled. “I’m not hurt that you didn’t ask me to be an usher.”
“It’s not that—but your approval means everything to Lucy. And, honestly, to me.”
“Sean, you’ve always had my approval. From the very beginning.”
“You’re the only one,” Sean said. It was true. From the beginning, Jack had shown a quiet respect for Sean, and he didn’t always understand why. Not back then. Now? It was because Jack loved Lucy and he wanted her to be happy. Sean had always done whatever he needed to make Lucy happy, to keep a smile on her face.
Sean continued, “I’ve heard the ring bearer is supposed to be a little kid or something, but I think—I know—Lucy will consider it special if you hand us the rings. It would mean something to me, too.”
“Of course.” Jack cleared his throat. “Can I sit with Lucy for a while? I’ll stay until you get back. There’s a shower in the doctors’ lounge.”
“Is that a hint?”
“You stink, Sean.”
Sean laughed, otherwise he might have cried.
* * *
Jack stepped into the hospital room and stared at his baby sister. Her wrists were bandaged and all he could picture was Lucy eight years ago, battered and bruised, with her wrists bandaged in just the same way. But for different reasons.
He blinked back tears. He didn’t cry. But damn, he was close.
He sat in the chair next to her bed. Lucy opened her eyes.
“I didn’t mean to wake you.”
“You didn’t. I pretended to sleep so Sean would go get some rest.”
“You did good, kid.”
“I did nothing. I had to be rescued.”
“That wasn’t your fault.” He didn’t mean to sound so stern, but if Lucy took any of the blame for this he would throttle her.
“I know—I know. I just…” She took a deep breath. “I don’t think you’ll understand.”
“I do.”
“How?”
“Because I know you, Lucy. Better than you think. I don’t care where you are, what happens, whose fault it is—if you’re in trouble, I’ll be anywhere in the world for you. So will Sean, which is why he’s probably the only guy I’d ever be happy seeing you with.”
“I was so scared, Jack.”
“So was I.”
“If you died trying to save me I couldn’t—”
“What did I just say? Do you think I could have lived with myself if I didn’t find you? This entire situation was out of our control.”
“Kane blames himself.”
“I’ve talked to him. He’ll work through it. I just told Sean that Kane is permanently moving to Texas. He’s moving into my place after the wedding.”
“I’m glad. Kane needs to find peace.”
“He is. He’s not as broken as you might think he is. I’ve known Kane for a long time, and there’s no one I would rather partner with.” Jack changed the subject. “Where are you going for your honeymoon?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t?”
“Sean planned everything.” She yawned. “I let him.”
Jack leaned over and kissed her forehead, then took her hand. “I’m sure it’ll be exactly what you need. Sleep, okay? It’s nearly midnight. I’m going to sit right here until Sean comes back.”
“Aren’t visiting hours over? Sean should get some rest.”
“Haven’t you heard? You’re a Very Important Person.” Jack smiled. “Rick has a lot of sway, but if you want me to keep people out I will.”
“No—well, everyone but Sean. At least until I can think straight.”
“Sleep.”
“I will—but first tell me that the baby is okay.”
“The baby is okay.”
“You’re not just saying that.”
“Joshua is fine. He has a minor infection and is on antibiotics but is otherwise healthy.”
“Do you believe Danielle Morrison? That she didn’t know?”
“I think she didn’t want to know. But when she learned the truth, she couldn’t live with it.”
Jack didn’t know what happened to her or her husband. He had a theory—that she had killed her husband and left or killed her husband, then herself. But he couldn’t verify it. The only Flores who had survived was Jose. Jack hadn’t seen him in the house and feared he’d retaliate, but Gabriella assured Jack that there would be no retaliation.
“Jose was the best out of them. That doesn’t mean he was a good guy, just not a bad guy. He has a lot of friends. But revenge isn’t in him. If it weren’t for Jose, Dante and I would have been dead.”
Jack wanted to know how Gabriella could be so confident. She had pulled a note out of her pocket and shown it to Jack. It was written in Spanish, but he quickly translated.
G~
I love you enough to let you go. I know you didn’t love me in the same way, but you liked me. That can’t be faked.
~J
P.S. I didn’t tell Jasmine everything.
Jack assured Lucy that the Flores family was no longer a threat.
“Does that mean that Jesse can come out of witness protection?” Lucy asked.
Jack hesitated. “I, uh, that’s really not my expertise. From my understanding, Carson Spade is wanted by more than the Flores cartel. But … since they are all dead, and the government doesn’t have much of a case against Jose Flores, I don’t know what they’re going to do.”
“Sean wants to raise his son.”
“And?”
“And what?”
“What about you?”
“I can’t have children. For years that bothered me so much, but after the last two months, seeing all the despair and violence, I didn’t even want to bring a child into the world. I didn’t even think I wanted to adopt anymore.” She took a deep breath. “And then you handed me Joshua on the Black Hawk and I realized that children are the only hope in this world.”
“What’s going to happen to Joshua?” Jack asked. “Noah gave me a bunch of legal shit I didn’t care to understand.”
“He’ll be a ward of the court until someone adopts him is the simple answer. But there’s a lot that needs to happen.”
“What about you? You would make an amazing mother. And Sean—” Jack smiled.
Lucy didn’t. “I want to, Jack.” She paused and seemed to look beyond him. She was still troubled. His beautiful, brave little sister was so deeply troubled and it pained Jack that he couldn’t take away her anguish. “I delivered one of the babies last month. The mother had been used as a shield, shot in the neck, was dying—the baby nearly died. A girl.” Her voice cracked. “And I thought, ‘She’s mine.’ But she’s not mine. I desperately wanted her. But I’m not in a place where I can devote my time and energy to a child. I can love a child—I could love baby Lucia and Joshua and I hope someday…” She shook her head. “But I’m not ready to be a mother. I’ll know when I am.”
“You are the wisest woman I know.”
She squeezed his hand, then closed her eyes.
She was asleep two minutes later.
* * *
Sean had put on scrubs a nurse found for him, because his clothing was only fit for the incinerator. The shower worked wonders for him, and he could finally think clearly after being in a fog all day waiting for answers about Lucy.
He stepped out and ran into Rick Stockton. “Do you have a minute?”
“A
minute or two. Jack is sitting with Lucy.”
Rick motioned for Sean to follow him down the hall. “The doctors say she’s better, she’ll be released tomorrow.”
“I’m taking her home at the crack of dawn.” He looked at his watch. That was only eight hours from now. “We both hate hospitals.”
“Noah and I are transporting Eden to DC, where she’ll face charges. We’re trying to do this quietly, but she’s already said she won’t plead. She fucking asked for a lawyer.”
“Noah didn’t do anything wrong.”
“We know that. It’s complicated.”
“Fuck,” Sean muttered. “She thinks she can walk because no one wants on record what happened in Mexico.”
“That—and the fact that you had in your possession bearer bonds stolen from a Russian consulate six years ago. I don’t have to tell you that Eden is a compelling liar.”
“I can withstand the questioning.”
“So can Kane. And so can Jack and JT and everyone else at RCK. And so can Lucy. But I want Eden to plead because any public testimony is going to create untold problems for me, the FBI, and RCK.”
Then it clicked. Sean was definitely tired, because it took so long for him to catch on to what Rick wanted him to do.
“You want me to convince her.”
“You’re the only one who can. She wants to talk to you, I believe to apologize for what happened to Lucy and to explain why she did what she did.”
Sean didn’t want to see Eden, let alone talk to her.
But he didn’t want Noah to face scrutiny for being a federal agent in Mexico involved in a shooting death. It would cause international problems, not to mention problems for Rick and Noah. Lucy would be forced to testify about what happened to her … and what happened in the rescue. Now Sean understood why Kane had suggested she not be involved with the explosion Kane had rigged at Dante’s house. If anyone had questioned her on it, she would have to lie or admit to being an accessory after the fact. Jasmine Flores was an American citizen—yes, she was a wanted fugitive, a killer, a kidnapper, but she still deserved due process under the law.
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