“I’m not asking you to. I am on my way now. She shouldn’t have ever been left alone.”
Nate’s house comes into view. I ease my Audi up next to the curb and park. Nate’s silver Porsche is parked in the driveway.
“I’m here, but I don’t have a visual on Charlotte,” I report through the phone.
“Do not engage until I get there. You’re too emotionally involved in all of this, Parker. This is not the time to be irrational. You’ve got to think with your head, not your heart. I won’t have Charlotte getting caught in the crossfire of this, do you understand?”
I grab my gun off the seat next to me. “He’s got the woman I love, Chester. I’m not waiting.”
“Goddamnit, Park—”
I end the call and step out of the car. Holding my gun to my side, I inch my way toward the house. When I reach his parked car, I notice a trail of footprints in the snow. Raising my weapon, I quickly follow the prints across the yard.
As I approach the corner of the house, I hear Charlotte pleading with him.
“Please, Nate. Don’t do this.”
“Keep begging, princess. You’re only making my cock harder,” he says, his voice tight with anger.
My blood boils, and it’s everything I can do to keep my rage in check. Chester was right. I’m too emotionally involved. I can’t risk Charlotte getting hurt because I’m not thinking clearly.
Swallowing down my anger, I place my side flush against the brick wall and carefully poke my head around the corner to check their location. I spot them just as they reach the edge of the pool house. Nate has a tight hold on Charlotte’s right arm, tugging her toward the back entrance of the mansion. And just like I had suspected, my smart, beautiful girl is fighting him every step of the way.
“Let her go, Christiansen,” I shout. Heart pounding, I step into view and align the crosshairs of my gun on Nate’s head.
They spin together, Nate shielding his body behind Charlotte. Her beautiful blue eyes, so full of terror and pleading for me to help, instantly lock to mine.
Hang on, baby.
I see a flash of silver as Nate reveals the Glock in his hand. When he presses the barrel against her head, panic and adrenaline spike my blood.
I hold my breath and wait for the perfect opportunity to pull the trigger. But with Charlotte writhing in his hold, I can’t risk taking the shot.
“Drop the gun, Parker, or I’ll put a bullet in her pretty little head.”
“Zane.” She whimpers, tears glistening in her eyes.
“He can’t help you, sweetheart. Not this time,” he sneers.
I clench my jaw. My whole body is coiled tight with rage. I breathe in and out slowly.
Stay focused.
Stay calm.
“It’s over, Nate. You’re surrounded,” I lie.
Where the hell is Chester?
As if Nate can read my thoughts, he twists his lips into a devious smile. “Do you seriously expect me to believe that? You’re here alone. A stupid move, I might add.”
“He’s not alone. Drop the weapon, Christiansen.” Chester steps out from the other side of the house, his gun aimed directly in Nate’s direction.
The sounds of screeching tires and approaching sirens echo from around the other side of the house. Within seconds, Nate’s entire head is covered in snipers’ red dots.
“Let. Her. Go,” I demand, my finger itching to pull the trigger. I need this sick fucker’s hands off my girl. Even more, I yearn to be the one who puts the bullet in his head.
Seconds that feel like minutes go by. Nate reluctantly lowers the gun, and the smallest measure of relief soothes my adrenaline spike. Except I don’t see regret or defeat in his eyes. They’re empty and dark as he releases her.
The instant she’s free, she runs in my direction. She stumbles at first and gets back on her feet. Tears stream her cheeks.
I take swift steps toward her, but then I freeze. Nate lifts his arm and points the gun straight ahead.
No.
I lunge forward, haul her to me, and turn to shield her body with mine. Shots hammer through the air and mingle with Charlotte’s terrified scream and shouting voices all around us. I grunt when a searing pain slices through my shoulder.
We fall to the icy ground below, my body covering hers. A few more shots ring out. Then silence.
“Parker!” I hear Chester shouting.
I look up slowly. Nate’s limp body lies on the ground several feet away. Blood saturates the snow all around him. The relief is dizzying. She’s safe. He’ll never get to her again. I push into the icy slush and roll myself off Charlotte, ignoring the pain thrumming in my shoulder.
“They got him, baby. You’re safe now.”
My breathing is ragged and my heart is pumping wildly. Charlotte doesn’t move or speak. She’s trembling. And covered in blood. It’s not mine.
More blood seeps out from beneath her. Her eyes are glassy, her lids heavy.
“Baby?” I scramble to my knees and rip open her jacket.
Her shirt has turned a deep red. I rip it down the middle to find the source of the bleeding. The wound puckers below her collarbone and gushes. The bullet that went through my shoulder must have hit her.
“No. No, no, no!” I place the heels of my hands on it, bearing down hard. I lift my head as Chester approaches. “She’s been shot. Get some help. Now!”
“The First Daughter has been shot. We need EMS immediately,” Chester reports into his earpiece.
The warm rush of liquid seems endless as it seeps through my fingers. Fuck, there’s so much blood, and I can’t get it to stop no matter how much pressure I apply. This isn’t happening. Terrified, I glance up at Chester’s face and see the fear mirrored in his eyes.
“Zane.” Charlotte’s voice is so weak that it comes out as a whisper. She’s so pale. Her body shakes from the shock.
“Shhh, baby. Don’t talk. Everything is going to be okay. Help is almost here.”
“I-I love you. I was too scared to tell you before.” A tear slips free just as her beautiful blue eyes begin to slowly shut.
Panic grips my chest painfully. I can’t live without her. Desperation unlike anything I’ve ever known overtakes me. She’s slipping away.
“No, no, no. Charlotte, stay with me!”
Then I’m being tugged backward.
“Stand back, sir. We need to get through,” the paramedic orders from over my shoulder.
The whirring of a helicopter landing nearby almost distracts me enough to pull back. But I can’t. I shake my head, unwilling to leave her side. I push harder against her wound. She can’t leave me. I have to tell her how much I love her.
Chester wraps his arms around me and forces me away. “Come on, son. Let them do their job.”
The next few minutes are a blur. The paramedics are all over her, obscuring her from my view. Then they’re lifting her onto a gurney and make a run toward the waiting helicopter.
Never in my life have I felt so helpless. So without hope. The helicopter lifts into the sky, taking her away from me.
She can’t leave me like this. I whisper her name over and over like a prayer that can keep her breathing. Hot tears course down my face. I drop to my knees and sink into the blood-soaked snow.
I was supposed to protect her.
But I’ve failed her.
Chapter Nine
Zane
I haven’t slept in forty-eight hours. Once upon a time, my body had been trained for sleep deprivation. Torture. Emotional duress.
Nothing could have prepared me for this.
Waiting is the worst torture.
No one has let me close to her…
My legs dangle like dead weight off the hospital bed as I wait for my discharge papers. I’d refused pain meds so I could keep my head clear. After everything that’s happened today, I’m still on high alert. As soon as the doctors let me out of here, I’m going to find her.
When Chester walks through the door,
I jump up and move toward him. I stumble and brace myself on the bed when my vision goes patchy black and then back to normal.
“Slow down there. You okay?”
I nod and remain on my feet. “I’m fine. I’ll be fine.” I hesitate and fresh worry creeps in. “How is she?”
His lips thin, and I think I might be sick. The throbbing in my shoulder can’t even distract me from the very real possibility that Charlotte could be dying right now. Or dead.
“We’ll know more soon,” he finally says.
I walk toward him, preparing to shake him until he tells me everything. “Chester, don’t placate me, goddamnit.”
“She’s got the top doctors in DC,” Chester says in his best soothing voice. The worry lines in his face ease slightly. “She lost a lot of blood, but she’s going to be fine, I promise you.”
I shake my head, adrenaline still spiking my veins hours after they’d patched me up. “You don’t know that. Where is she?”
“She’s in surgery. No one’s getting to her right now. Not even her family. Go home and get cleaned up. I’ll call you as soon as she’s out and we know more.”
I glance down at my hands. They’re still smeared with red. My clothes are a bloody mess. Charlotte’s blood mingled with mine. I ball my hands into angry fists. I want to fight my way to her, but I know deep down there’s nothing I can do. I had my chance to protect her. I’m powerless now.
Tears sting my eyes as I suck in a shaky breath.
Hell, I can’t remember the last time I cried. But I can’t remember ever feeling like my heart was being torn out either.
I was supposed to protect her. The shield of my body wasn’t enough. I swallow hard and relive the horror in my mind for the hundredth time. I should have seen it coming. I should have known Nate wasn’t going to give up.
Chester puts his hand on my arm and squeezes tightly, jolting me to the present. “I know you’re upset.”
I blink, but emotion clogs my throat. “I let her down, Chester. I failed her so completely. What if she doesn’t pull through? How am I supposed to live with that?”
“You can’t think like that,” he says gently. “Let the doctors do their work, Parker. Go home and get some rest.”
“Rest? You expect me to sleep while she’s in there fighting for her life?”
I point to the door, but she’s far beyond that threshold. She’s probably on another floor, protected by a wall of men who were hired to do what I failed to do today. I’ll never know where she is because Chester knows better than to tell me in my current state of mind. He’s right. But I can’t rationalize much of anything right now.
“I’m going to have one of the guys give you a ride home, all right? I’ll call you the second I hear anything.”
I nod, because my throat hurts so damn bad I’m not sure I could speak if I wanted to. All I can do is wait and pray there’s a God that can save her.
I stare at the counter where my phone sits. The creases of my hands are stained dark brown. I’m still a goddamn mess. I can’t wash her off. I can’t move until I know she’s okay.
I don’t bother putting on the news. Chester will know more before they do.
I resist the almost painful urge to call him for an update. I fold my hands together and drop my forehead against them.
She’s going to make it. She has to. God, please…
My chest tightens painfully. I can’t remember the last time I prayed. Not even when my parents passed. I was too hurt. My anger at having lost them too soon consumed me. Something is different now. I’m beyond angry. I’m devastated… I’m desperate.
Just as my thoughts begin to take me down a dangerous path, my phone rings. Chester’s number lights up the screen. My hands are shaking so badly I can barely answer it.
“Chester. Is she okay?”
“She just got out of surgery. She’s stable.”
I pinch the bridge of my nose and release a breath I feel like I’ve been holding for hours. “Thank God.”
“The bullet punctured her lung, but they’ve repaired it. She’s going to be okay.”
The relief hits me so hard I’m dizzy again.
“Parker… There’s something else.”
“What is it?”
Chester hesitates and my panic starts climbing again.
“They found some photos of you with Charlotte in Nate’s car. I don’t know all the details yet, but it doesn’t sound good.”
“Photos of us? What the hell does that mean? I’m her bodyguard. I’m with her all the time.”
“I haven’t seen them. I just know they’re damaging. You’re being placed on mandatory leave until things settle down.”
“Fuck.” I slam my fist onto the counter. “I need to see her, Chester. I need to apologize. Tell her how I feel. She almost died for Christ’s sake.”
He sighs on the other end of the line. “I hope you get your chance, Parker, but it’s out of my hands now. Get some rest tonight. Tomorrow you’ll need to come in and give a full report. I’m guessing you may have some hell to pay with her father too.”
Sitting across from the President of the United States in the Oval Office should be a thrill, but I’m anything but thrilled.
“Parker.” He offers a tight smile. “How’s your shoulder?”
“Fine, sir.”
“Good. I don’t have a lot of time, so we’ll make this brief.” He tosses an envelope across the desk. “Take a look at these.”
I open it and a stack of photos slides out. I riffle through them, preparing for the worst. I bite back a curse when I get to the last ones of Charlotte holding herself against the window. My figure is behind her, less clear but still obviously me. I knew the photos would be damaging, but I wasn’t sure what to expect. Between her nudity, our position, and the rapt expression on her face, there’s no doubt she’s in the throes of passion. I graze my thumb over the corner of the photo. Despite the awful position in which I now find myself, I can’t ignore how beautiful she is. I’d give anything to see her right now, but I worry the likelihood of that is dwindling with each passing minute.
These photos are beyond incriminating. And the threat of them being splashed across the tabloids has me in knots. One more fuck-up on the pile of mistakes I’ve made when it comes to her.
Slowly, I return the photos to the envelope and place them on the desk. I stay silent and wait for the verbal lashing I deserve.
“I’m not going to waste time lecturing you on the consequences of taking advantage of my daughter. I think we both know you compromised your career the second you stuck your dick in her.”
I blink hard at his crude remark but make every effort to school my features.
“What’s more concerning to me is that Nate Christiansen was in possession of these photos minutes before our people shot him to hell. You understand how that looks, right?”
I try to piece the day together with this new information. Nate would have used the photos to coerce Charlotte into sleeping with him. Deep down I know she wouldn’t, so he would have resorted to brute force, or the threat of a weapon.
“He threatened her numerous times. Your wife ignored her concerns and insisted that Charlotte go with him unprotected.”
The President slams his fist on the desk and rises. “You keep my wife out of this!” He takes a few ragged breaths and slowly lowers back down in his seat. “You’ve got one chance to tell me the whole truth. I need to know with absolute certainty that there was no foul play here, or I’m going to have the senator asking questions. Then I’m looking at a potentially career-ending scandal. Not to mention the end of Charlotte’s reputation, in case that’s anything you care about.”
Every muscle in my body is strung tight. I’m ready to go off on him, but I have to keep my cool. Charlotte’s reputation is tied to her father’s, and I need to keep her safe the only way I can now.
“I understand, Mr. President.”
The muscles in his jaw flex. He leans back and gestures f
or me to speak.
“Nate Christiansen tried to rape her at a house party a couple weeks ago. She was drunk. I intervened…aggressively. Not long after that, Charlotte and I”—I swallow hard, because I’m about to lay out all my transgressions to the most powerful man on earth—“began a sexual relationship. Nate continued threatening her. He assured her I wouldn’t always be there to save her. I can only assume he involved himself in the campus tour as the perfect opportunity to get her alone. He was obsessed with…” I close my eyes and exhale slowly, trying like hell to stay composed. “I believe having sex with Charlotte would have been the ultimate trophy for him, and being denied it repeatedly drove him to make some very poor decisions. As long as I’ve known him, he’s always acted above the law. I don’t think he realized in that split second when he pointed his gun at her that he would pay the ultimate price.” I look down at my hands, tracing the lines in my palms. “To be frank, he was a spoiled brat. Someone took away his toy and he threw a tantrum. I’m not sorry he’s dead, but I had no idea about the photos until after all this happened.”
I lift my head to meet his hard stare.
“And what about you, Parker? Was Charlotte a trophy for you too?”
I wince. “No, sir.”
He shakes his head slightly. “Doesn’t matter now anyway. Hopefully she’s learned a powerful lesson.” He leans in and slides his hand over the envelope containing the photos. “These will disappear. Senator Christiansen will never know about your affair with Charlotte so as not to confuse the issue. Nate will be painted as a jealous lover with mental instability. Something like that.” He drums his fingers. “Needless to say, Charlotte’s things will be moved out of View 17 as soon as she’s well. In the meantime, she’ll be recovering at the residence.”
A beat of silence passes, but I sense there’s more.
“I’m not happy about what you’ve done, Parker. I should discharge you immediately. But the fact remains that you took a bullet for my daughter. I’m willing to reassign you as long as we’re clear on my expectations.”
I wait for him to continue, but the dread in my gut tells me I’m not going to like his expectations.
Misadventures of the First Daughter (Misadventures Book 5) Page 13