by Aly Martinez
“Of course it is.” He laughed. “That ball-less son of a bitch has proven himself to be somewhat of a successful businessman. Trust me. I was just as shocked as you were.”
I remained silent as he began to pace the length of the bathroom.
“You know, when I paid that doctor to give me your egg, I lucked out that you resembled Clare. The truth is I picked you because I’d heard your husband was broke and worthless. I was doing you a goddamn favor.” He stopped and covered his heart with his gun. “I was brokenhearted to hear about our son’s passing.”
“No,” I croaked, acid burning in my stomach. “He wasn’t—”
“He was.” He grinned proudly. “I always wanted a son, you know?” Suddenly, he swung his gun wide and leveled it on me. “But I’ll settle for Tessa. Tell Light he has twenty-four hours to return my family or, the next time, I aim higher.”
“No. No. No!” I yelled, throwing a hand out as though I could stop him.
His sinister smile grew impossibly wide just before I felt the agonizing crush of my chest caving in.
The deafening sound of the gun’s explosion barely registered before the lights went out completely.
It could have been a second. It could have been a millennium. But, sometime later, I awoke to Roman’s pained roar.
“Elisabeth.”
Through slitted eyes, I saw him drop to his knees beside me. He then jostled my limp body until I was flat on my back.
“Call nine-one-one!” he screamed in a voice so agonizing that I didn’t even recognize it as my husband’s.
Though, as my sluggish eyes focused on his face, I didn’t recognize my strong man, either. His face was pale and contorted as though he were in the final stage of death.
“Are you okay?” I asked, raising a shaky hand to his jaw.
He frantically patted my neck and my chest down and then shoved my shirt up to do the same on my vest. “Oh, thank you, God,” he cried in relief as I heard the ping of something metal hit the tile. “Okay. Hang tight, baby. I’m going to get you out of here.”
“It was Noir,” I whispered. Even the simple act of talking was painful.
His wild gaze landed on mine. “I know. But I’ve got you now.”
“You need to get Tessa and Clare somewhere safe. He…he wants them back.”
“Okay, baby. Calm down and breathe. I’ll get word to Light.”
I closed my lids and forced the words from my throat. “He said Tripp was his.”
“Shhh. He was ours. Don’t worry about the rest of it right now. Just hold on. I’m gonna get you to a hospital.” He lifted my upper body and tucked my face into his neck.
The movement was unbearable, and the mixture of overwhelming pain and the comfort of knowing that he was there with me had me drifting into the darkness once again.
I perched on the edge of the bed as Heath paced a path in the carpet of his bedroom. His phone was at his ear, and a barrage of curse words streamed from his lips.
“And you decided using the APD to secure the movie theater was your best option?” he roared. “Jesus Christ, you might as well have just sent Noir an invitation.” He paused and raked an angry hand through his hair. “Bullshit. A man dying and Elisabeth Leblanc getting shot is absolutely my problem.”
My stomach rolled as a wave of nausea hit me.
Heath and I had been celebrating my latest Wheel of Fortune victory by cooking together. Tessa had crashed out hours earlier, and I had been admiring Heath’s bare feet and shirtless chest as he’d flipped pork chops in a frying pan when Alex and a swarm of DEA agents had stormed in and forced us upstairs.
I’d panicked, fearing the worst.
But I’d never expected that the worst could actually be worse than I feared.
Ethan was dead, and we were still waiting on an update with Elisabeth’s condition. The last thing we’d heard was that she was being rushed to the hospital with a possible gunshot wound in her chest.
Walt had finally come out of hiding.
And he was back with a vengeance.
At this news, I hadn’t fallen apart.
I hadn’t cried.
I hadn’t even gotten pissed.
They were all worthless emotions that would change nothing.
And, right then, I’d desperately needed someone to change everything.
So, with my ears ringing and numbness cloaking my body, I’d settled on the edge of the bed and tried to make sense of a senseless situation.
“Oh thank fuck!” Heath barked. “She was wearing the vest.”
I closed my eyes, my chin falling to my chest as a surge of relief inundated me.
“Clare? You hear me?”
“I heard you, honey,” I whispered, doing my best to keep it together. But, as my shoulders shook and my breath shuddered, I failed.
“Yeah. Have Leblanc call me when you can. I gotta go.”
The space beside me on the bed sank, Heath’s blanket of warmth surrounding me.
“It’s okay, babe. Let it out.”
“I hate him,” I told his chest as I face-planted against it.
“I know. I do, too.”
I perked my head up so I could see him. “No, Heath. I hate him. And I hate myself too, because if it weren’t for me, none of this would have happened.”
He frowned. “This isn’t your fault.”
“No. It’s not. But Elisabeth was only on his radar because of me.”
“Bullshit. Elisabeth was on his radar because he’s a whack-job who stole her eggs and played God so he could have a kid.”
I shot to my feet. “Because I couldn’t give him that!”
His eyebrows furrowed. “Do not go down this road. Do not take his actions on your conscience. You didn’t shoot them, Clare. And you know good and damn well not a single person involved in this situation blames you for any of it. So don’t fucking start.”
I aimed my gaze over his shoulder. He was right, and deep down, I knew that none of it was my fault, but guilt was a real bitch like that.
I opened my mouth to tell him that I hated his sensible answers, but his phone vibrated in his hand. He immediately put it to his ear while lifting a single finger in my direction.
“Roman? Shit. Yeah, we’re good. What the hell is going on over there?”
I leaned into his side to hear what Roman was saying, and Heath caught the hint and put him on speakerphone.
My heart ached as Roman painfully recounted finding Ethan in the hall then finding Elisabeth unconscious on the bathroom floor with a bullet hole in her shirt and blood covering her face and chest. The devastation in his voice was tangible, and it slashed through me.
Before I knew it, Heath had scooped me up and set me in his lap. His strong hand smoothed up and down my back.
My body was nearly vibrating as I struggled to hold my rage back.
There were no words to adequately express the loathing and detest I felt for Walt.
“So, is she okay?” Heath finally asked when Roman quieted.
“Doctors are gluing the gash on her nose. She’s got two cracked ribs from the bullet, but thank fuck she was wearing that vest.”
Heath grunted his approval then pressed his lips to my temple.
“Listen,” Roman started. “Can Clare hear me?”
Heath’s gaze bounced to mine. “Uh, yeah. She’s right here.”
“Take me off speaker.”
Heath’s finger went to the button, but I was done being a silent participant in this conversation—and, really, my entire life. I’d had no control over anything when I had been with Walt. And, most recently, I’d been sitting back and trusting Heath, Roman, and the DEA to take care of me, but I was finished being in the dark.
“Don’t you dare,” I hissed at Heath. “Do not cut me out of this. Roman, whatever you have to say to Heath, you can say it to me, too.”
“Clare,” Roman sighed. “I…ah…”
“I deserve to be involved in this. And I dare either one of yo
u to tell me I don’t. I have more than earned my place in this conversation.”
“Babe,” Heath warned.
“You know what? Fuck you both.” I climbed off Heath’s lap.
His astute gaze followed me as I began to pace.
“I spent seven fucking years being controlled by that maniac. I refuse to let you two decide what I can and can’t handle.” I crossed my arms over my chest and stopped to give Heath a pointed scowl.
His face was tight and his eyebrows pinched together, but when he opened his mouth, it was to say, “Talk, Roman.”
“Light, I don’t think—”
“Talk,” he demanded, his eyes locked on mine. The muscles in his jaw ticked as his traps swelled beneath his gray T-shirt.
Roman grumbled and reluctantly said, “He told her to give you a message. You got twenty-four hours to return Clare and Tessa or, next time, he aims higher.”
I sucked in a sharp breath, and my eyes fell shut. Walter’s menacing, green eyes danced on the backs of my eyelids while resentment and anger swirled within me.
But I wasn’t afraid.
My wounds had healed, and that included the bonds of his mental reign of terror over me.
“Clare, I won’t—” Heath started, but I cut him off.
With my eyes still closed, I confessed, “I want to move out.”
“No!” Roman said definitively.
My lids popped open, a new resolve settling over my shoulders.
“No offense, Roman. But you don’t get a say in this. You can’t make me stay here, and let’s be honest—you need me gone. He’ll come back for her.”
Heath was instantly on his feet and striding toward me.
I held my ground. “Don’t argue with me about this.”
“You’re not fucking leaving.”
“It’s not up to you, either,” I shot back.
His head snapped back as though I’d slapped him. “Excuse me?”
“I love you. I really do. But hiding out in this house is not doing anyone any good. He knows where we are. You yourself said he can’t get to me. And I believe you. But he can get to the people I love to get to me. I have to leave. Me and Tessa.”
“Absolutely fucking not,” Roman barked over the phone.
“Have you lost your mind?” Heath growled.
“Yes!” I threw my hands out to my sides. “I have lost my mind. I’ve lost everything. Walt is not in hiding. He’s biding his time. He’s cold and calculating and arrogant as hell. He’s playing this game and using us all as pawns. It’s what he gets off on. There’s a reason I slept with a knife under my mattress for seven years. And it wasn’t to keep him from killing me. There were a lot of nights where death would have been welcomed. It was because I knew he was going to torture me before he ever let me escape him. Physically. Mentally. Emotionally. Nothing is off-limits.”
“He won’t touch you,” Heath swore.
I laughed without humor. “Don’t you see? He is touching me. Right now. He’s in this room with us. But I’m sick and fucking tired of playing his games. He killed Ethan tonight…but not Elisabeth. Why?”
Heath planted his fists on his hips and sniped, “Because he’s a fucking psychopath.”
I adamantly shook my head. “It’s all part of his little game to punish us. Do you honestly think he believes that you’re going to give me and Tessa back to him? No. He’s not stupid. But, now, Elisabeth will always be looking over her shoulder. And Roman has to live knowing that Walt got to her right under his nose. He didn’t give a damn about terrorizing Ethan. And that’s exactly why he’s dead.”
Heath crossed his arms over his chest and glowered at me. “I think you give him entirely too much credit.”
“I don’t think you give him enough! He’s going to come for us. And this is not me being Debbie Doomsday. This is a fact. He’s going to send in his army of men and let them do the dirty work. They’ll slay the agents who try to stop them. Devon, Alex, Jude. All of them. Walt will be sitting at home, not caring about the outcome, because he just enjoys the show.”
“I’ll give him a fucking show!” Roman exclaimed across the line.
I stopped my rant and walked over to Heath. He had a white-knuckled grip on the phone, so I reached over and pressed the end button, severing our connection with Roman.
He continued his silent glower as I stood on my toes and pecked his lips. “He’s setting up his game. I can’t have him storming in here. Taking the lives of all of those people.”
“And what? You just expect me to let you go? Fuck, Clare. I love you.”
I smiled sadly. “And he hates you. You’ll be the target number one.”
“I can handle myself.”
I kissed him again, but his body remained stiff. “I know you can. And, if you are with us, it will draw him away from the Leblancs. I’m proposing that you let me and Tessa move in with you. It will piss Walter off and ruin whatever he’s been planning to do here for the last few weeks. I lived with that man for too long. I know him. He’s got too much pride to allow you to ride off into the sunset with his family. But he’s so cocky that he’ll want to teach you a lesson—personally. If we get the hell out of here, Walter will come after us, but he’ll leave the army at home.”
Careful consideration flashed in his radiant, blue eyes. He knew I was right. But making him put the protective caveman aside in lieu of a rational endgame was not going to be an easy sell.
Case in point: when he finally opened his mouth and boomed, “No fucking way!”
I’d seen Heath angry; it had just never been aimed at me. And, much to my surprise and delight, it didn’t faze me in the least.
“Tough shit,” I said, “because it’s happening. You either come with me or—”
His face contorted with outrage. “I swear to God, you finish that sentence, I’m going to lose my shit.”
“Then fucking lose it! Lord knows, I already have.” I slapped my thighs. “This sucks. But you’re going to have to trust me. You’ve done research on Walt, but you are not mentally insane. You do not know how that man thinks.” I hitched a thumb at my chest. “I do. I spent years learning how to read him and figure out his next move so I could make sure I wasn’t on the receiving end of his wrath. And I’m telling you we need to leave.”
He stared down at me as he crossed his arms over his chest. “And what? You just want to go back to my house? Set up camp and wait for him to arrive?”
My lips twitched as I fought a smile back. “Um. No.” I rested my hands on his forearms. “I want to go back to your house. Maybe set up an alarm or something. Take one of your fancy DEA agents with us. And, if I’m right and Walt decides to try to get to us, we cut him off before he ever has the chance. Confidence is not something he lacks, and he’s going to underestimate you. We are not going to do the same with him.”
His shoulders sagged as he dropped his arms and folded me into a hug. “Jesus Christ, Clare.”
“We’ll do this smart and safe,” I mumbled against his chest. “I trust you to handle that. And all I’m asking is that you trust me when I say we need to leave.”
“This is crazy.” He groaned and rested his chin on the top of my head. “Roman’s gonna flip his shit. And, as my new boss, that is not going to go over well for me.”
I craned my head back. “Roman’s your new boss?”
He swayed his head to the side. “Well, Tomlinson hasn’t fired me yet, but I assume when I tell him I’m moving you and Tessa in with me, it’s going to speed up the process.”
“I’m so sorry. I never—”
“Don’t. I couldn’t care less about my job, as long as I get you and your girl at the end of this.”
“But—”
“End of story,” he snapped.
I crinkled my nose and attempted a glare. He seemed immune.
Rolling my eyes, I gave up. “So, what are you going to be doing for Roman?”
“He offered me a job as the liaison to law enforcement a
t Leblanc Industries. It seems, after all of this mess, he’s decided to start a new division to ensure all officers of the law have access to Rubicon.” He grinned. “I made that man wear a Kevlar vest one time and I think it changed his life. I swear to God I saw him doing the sign of the cross.” He paused to chuckle. “He isn’t even Catholic.”
I giggled and snuggled closer into his arms. “So, we’re really going to do this?”
He sucked in a resigned breath. “I’m gonna see what I can come up with. I need to talk to Tomlinson. I have a security system at the house, but it’s not good enough for this shit. I’m not taking you and Tessa there until it’s one hundred percent. But yeah, Clare. I’m gonna try. I don’t necessarily agree with this move, but I see your point.”
“And you trust me,” I prompted.
He grinned down at me. “And I trust you.”
“And you love me.”
“And I love you.”
“And you’re going to take care of me and my girl.”
He bent forward and touched his lips to mine. “Always.”
I closed my eyes and nuzzled against his chest.
His breath breezed past my ear as he whispered, “But I’m gonna need you to throw at least one round of Wheel of Fortune so I can build my confidence back up for an operation of this magnitude.”
A bubble of laughter sprang from my throat. “Of course, Winter Woman. You want to kiss my watch too?”
“I wanna kiss you.”
I hadn’t been wrong about how Roman was going to react to Clare and Tessa’s moving out. He’d lost his fucking mind. We nearly came to blows after he accused me of thinking with my dick and not my head. He didn’t mean it, but that didn’t mean it didn’t piss me off. The worry was etched in his face, but like the miracle worker she was, Elisabeth somehow managed to talk him off the ledge of insanity. She was still recovering and in a lot of pain, but never underestimate the power of a good woman when it comes to her man.
Elisabeth wasn’t thrilled with losing everyday access to Tessa. But, after a private conversation with Clare, she put on a smile that did nothing to hide the fear in her eyes and acted supportive.