Thorn's Redemption (Fated Lives Series Book 3)

by Kelly Moore

  “Taking care of his brother you threw in the ocean.”

  “Poor Sean. I do hope he survives.” She releases Fallon’s throat but keeps the gun in place. Fallon bends over, gasping for air. “See, he loves his brother more than he does his fiancé. Otherwise, he’d be here,” she hisses at Fallon.

  “Don’t listen to her bullshit.” I lift my hands in the air. “If you let her go, you can walk out of here alive,” I offer Nina.

  “You didn’t come here alone. As soon as your men see me, they’ll kill me.”

  “I’ll call them off, all you have to do is walk away.” I inch toward them.

  “Pretty boy thinks I’m stupid or that I didn’t predict their every move.” She yanks Fallon’s head back by the hair, and she winces.

  “Please, Nina. You and I’ve already made a deal. These men don’t have to die,” Fallon chokes out.

  Mad Dog storms through the door. “One down,” he growls.

  “You killed Maxim?” she yells and raises her gun in Mad Dog’s direction and fires. It hits him in the chest, knocking him outside the door onto the ground.

  An explosion goes off, and Remington comes running into the trailer. “We have to get out of here now! She’s rigged this place to blow.”

  “Get out of my way,” she snarls. She waves the gun for us to move to the back of the trailer. We do, and she walks with Fallon then pushes her in our direction, keeping the gun aimed at her.

  “Derrick should’ve been the one to save her,” she says. In slow motion, I see her move her finger to pull the trigger. I dive in front of Fallon, and she’s screaming “she won’t do it!” Her gun wavers at the last minute, and the bullet hits me square in the chest, knocking me to the floor. Nina runs out, and Fallon flies after her.

  “Stop!” she screams.

  I regain my breath and pull the bullet from my vest. I get up and go after both of them, snagging my gun before I do. Theo has his aim on Nina, and she’s frozen in place.

  “Please don’t kill her, Theo,” Fallon begs and steps in front of her, holding her arms out to her side.

  “Do it,” Nina taunts.

  I snatch the gun from Nina’s grasp, and Theo steps closer.

  “Please don’t, Theo, I’m begging you,” Fallon says.

  “She deserves to die for the things she’s done,” Theo snarls.

  “I know, you’re right, she does, but she’s my sister.”

  “What?” Theo cocks his head.

  “It’s true. She has the DNA reports to prove it.”

  “Just because she’s blood doesn’t make her your sister. That role was Josie’s, and because of her, she’s dead.” Theo keeps his aim strong.

  “Thorn, tell him not to kill her. She can live the rest of her days behind bars.” She tugs on my arm.

  “That didn’t work out so well last time,” Theo responds with anger.

  “Guys, we have about ten seconds before this place goes up in flames,” Remington interrupts.

  A hissing noise starts from behind us. Mad Dog grabs Nina’s arm and starts running. Sparks start flying, and everyone runs for safety. Theo rushes to Fallon and tucks her protectively into him. He takes cover with her in the woods. I watch as each trailer one by one blows up into flames as bombs go off. Debris flies through the air and Theo covers Fallon’s body with his. He stays over her until there are no more explosions. He rolls off and gets to his feet, helping her up.

  I move from behind the SUV that’s now on fire and head in their direction. “You okay?”

  “Thanks to you. I can’t believe she was really going to shoot me again.” Fallon’s expression is somber.

  “I wasn’t going to let that happen after the last hostage situation. Call it my redemption if you will.” I get on my radio. “Mad Dog, do you have her?”

  The radio hisses. “No.”

  “Where the fuck is she?” I want to crush the radio with my bare hands.

  Remington walks up beside us. “I thought you were taking care of the bombs.” Theo is in his face.

  “I could only disarm one of them with the equipment I had on hand. The others were set to explode if the first one was disarmed, and then they triggered one another on a timer. She knew we were coming after her.”

  Through the smoke, Mad Dog storms in our direction, and I hear the sound of a bike revving. A few seconds later, Nina peels out from behind the dumpster on a dirt bike. Theo takes off after her on foot with Mad Dog on his heels. She races by them, shooting them a bird. Theo runs down the hill, trying to cut her off before she can make it down the mountain. She shoots between trees, and he barely misses her as he leaps toward her. He rolls a few feet before he can get to his feet and watches her disappears down the mountain. Theo and Mad Dog, with their heads hung down in defeat, dredge toward us.

  I get on the horn with Rebel. “Sir, we lost Nina, but we have Fallon.”

  “Bring her home, and we’ll regroup to find Nina.” His voice is filled with relief and anger at the same time. “I’ll have Honor send a car to your location for extraction.”

  Within thirty minutes, a military jeep is barreling toward us. Before it even comes to a complete stop, I open the passenger's side door. “You didn’t happen to see anyone on a dirt bike?” I ask the driver, and he shakes his head.

  I climb in the passenger side, and Theo tucks Fallon in the backseat with him. “You okay?” I see Theo kiss her forehead in the side mirror.

  “I don’t know,” she says. “I don’t know if anything will ever be the same again.” She lays her head on his shoulder, and her body starts to shake with tears.

  “Let’s get you home where you belong,” he tells her.

  We pull out, and I see her glance over her shoulder, looking at the still-burning trailers. The fire trucks arrive as we pull out of the dirt road.

  She curls into Theo’s side. “Is Sean going to be okay?”

  “As good as can be expected. Rebel flew in a world-class neurosurgeon that Sean is friends with to operate on him. He did what he could, but he’s deaf.”

  She lays her head on Theo’s lap and cries. “I’m so sorry. This is all my fault.”

  “None of this is on you, Hazel.” He holds her and lets her cry until exhaustion takes over and she falls asleep.

  Chapter 15

  Rebel

  “How’s Fallon?” I sit beside my brother’s bed, holding his hand, talking to Thorn on the phone.

  “Physically, she’ll be okay. Nina told her about being her sister,” he adds in a hushed voice.

  “Let me talk to her.”

  “She just fell asleep, sir. I don’t want to wake her. She’s been through enough.”

  “How did Nina get away?” I want to yell but keep my voice low.

  “Mad Dog grabbed her when the explosions started. He got hit by flying debris, and it knocked him down. When he got to his feet, she was gone. She took off on a dirt bike.”

  I get up and walk into the hallway. “Why is she still alive? You should’ve killed her the minute you laid eyes on her?”

  “Because Fallon begged us not to, sir.”

  “This will never be over until she’s dead.” I run my hand through my hair. “Get back here, and we’ll go after her again.”

  “How’s your brother?” he asks after a long moment.

  I look back into Sean’s room. “He hasn’t woken up yet.”

  “We’re getting on a plane shortly. Do you want us to take Fallon to headquarters?”

  “No. Bring her to me. She’ll want to see Sean.”

  “Yes, sir.”

  Fallon runs into my arms when she sees me outside Sean’s room. “Thank god, you’re okay.” I place my hands on either side of her bruised-up face and softly kiss her lips. Her arms tuck around my waist, and she holds me tight.

  “I thought I’d never see any of you again.”

  “I’d never let that happen.” I kiss her face repeatedly.

  “Is Sean awake?” She looks up through her tears.


  “Not yet. He stirred a little bit but nothing yet.” I see Ashe heading down the long hallway, stopping when he reaches me.

  “This must be Fallon.” He smiles at her. “Do you want me to examine her?” he asks me.

  “How about you check out Sean first. I’m not ready to let her go.” I tuck her into my side, where she belongs.

  We walk into Sean’s room, and he pulls out a penlight and starts his examination. He shakes Sean’s shoulder, and his eyes blink open.

  “Where am I?” His voice is barely above a rasp.

  Ashe picks up a whiteboard beside his bed and starts scribbling on it, then shows it to Sean.

  “Why is no one talking?” he asks and tries to sit up when he sees Fallon. “You’re okay,” he says.

  She sits on the side of his bed and takes the board from Ashe and writes him a message. I see the word deaf on the board. Sean’s body starts to tremble as he reads the words she’s written. Fallon crawls in bed with him and holds him.

  Ashe places his hand on my shoulder and walks me into the hallway. “He’ll be okay. There are things that can be done to help him adapt. With some therapy, he’ll get use back in his leg, but it’s going to take some time. He’s alive and in one piece. That’s what matters.”

  “Thanks for everything you’ve done for him,” I say.

  “I’ll stick around until tomorrow just to make sure nothing else pops up unexpectedly, then I need to get home to my beautiful wife.”

  “You finally talked her into marrying you, huh?”

  He chuckles. “I still can’t believe it myself. I’m one lucky man after everything I put her through.” He slaps me on the back. “My advice to you is to put a ring on that lady's finger before she figures out what a pain in the ass you are.”

  “I couldn’t agree more,” I snort. “I’ll let things get back to normal first.”

  “I’m not sure the word normal is in the vocabulary of men like us.” He laughs.

  Thorn’s large body fills the hallway as he heads in my direction.

  “I’ll check on him later.” Ashe shakes my hand before he leaves.

  “Sir, we’re headed back to headquarters for debriefing.”

  “It can wait until tomorrow. I want all of you to get some rest first.” I sniff the air. “And maybe a shower.”

  Thorn smells his armpit. “Priorities,” he says. “I wanted you to know that all the local airfields and ports are shut down in Washington. Nina’s picture is plastered all over the news, and the police departments have been notified. The coast guard is on high alert too.”

  “None of that will stop her. She’s too damn smart and good at her own game.”

  “I’ll see you back at headquarters.” He marches back the same way he came in the hospital.

  Sean’s hand is shaking as he writes something to Fallon on the whiteboard. She reads it and quickly erases it. “I think we should go and let him rest,” she says, climbing out of his bed. She leans down and kisses his cheek.

  I walk over and take the board and write that I’ll be back in the morning to see him. He nods and places the board on his lap.

  I take Fallon’s hand and lead her to my truck, opening the door for her to get inside. She doesn’t scoot to the middle like she normally does. Instead, she rests her head on the window.

  I back out of the parking lot and head home. “You okay?”

  She indicates yes with her head.

  “Do you want to talk about it?”

  “Not really.” She lies down, placing her head in my lap.

  “I’m so sorry about everything that’s happened to you. I want nothing more than to keep you safe.”

  “She’s my sister,” she whispers, and I feel her tears soak through my pants.

  “I know. Tate found a journal with a letter inside.”

  She sits up. “Where’s the journal?”

  “Locked in the safe in my office.”

  “I want to read it.”

  “Okay, but it can wait until tomorrow. I want to get you home and hold you.”

  She lays her head back down and doesn’t speak for the rest of the ride. We take the elevator to our apartment, and as soon as we’re in the door, I hold her against me. “How about a hot shower and something to eat?”

  “I’m not hungry, but a shower sounds good.”

  I lead her to the bathroom and strip her out of her clothes.

  “Wait,” she says, picking her pants up off the floor. She pulls pictures out of her back pocket and lays them face down on the counter. “We can talk about it later,” she says, pressing her lips to mine. We step into the shower with our hands all over one another. She winces when I touch her side.

  “Sorry, baby.” I kneel down and place soft kisses on her wounds.

  “It’s okay, don’t stop,” she rasps and runs her hands through my hair.

  I gently and slowly make love to her. It’s hard to control myself, thinking that I was so close to losing her forever. I want to make her feel safe and loved in my arms. After I’ve touched every inch of her body, I lift her up and slide into her warmth. She moans and gives into me. I barely move inside her. I want to keep her right where she is as long as I can. We find our release together as the water starts to lose its heat.

  I quickly wash her body and get out, wrapping her snuggly in a towel. I dry her hair and brush it out. Her eyes look heavy, and her body looks exhausted. I pick her up and carry her to bed, crawling in next to her.

  “I love you, Fallon. I don’t know what I’d do without you,” I say, tucking her back into my chest.

  “I love you, too,” she whispers as she drifts off to sleep safely in my arms.

  When I wake up the next morning, the bed next to me is empty. “Fallon?” I slide into a pair of jeans and go looking for her. She’s not in the apartment. “Damn it,” I mutter and pull on a T-shirt, heading downstairs barefooted. “Have you seen Fallon?” I ask Honor, who’s sitting at her desk with a cup of coffee, and Lawson is in the chair across from her.

  “Hey, man. Glad everyone made it home safe,” he says as he stands.

  “Fallon. Have you seen her?” I ask again.

  “She’s in the war room,” Honor says.

  I pad down the hall and see her through the large window, talking on the phone. I stop in the doorway and listen.

  “I need as much information as you can find on Nina’s personal life. If you find any living relatives, I need to see them.” She hangs up the phone, looking more lost than the first day I met her.

  “Do you think that’s a good idea?” I ask, taking the seat next to her. I’m assuming she was talking to someone from the FBI.

  “I know Nina gave me the highlights of my real parents, but there has to be more to the story, and I need to find Nina. She and I have some unfinished business that needs to be handled.”

  I lean my elbows on the table. “Business about your family?”

  She bites the inside of her cheek. “Yes. I need to know more.”

  My gut tells me she’s hiding something. “I understand your need to learn more, but you can’t trust her to tell you the truth.”

  “May I have her journal?”

  “Yes, but I was hoping you’d take some time to recover first.”

  “I need answers, not time,” she snaps and stands abruptly.

  “Will you let me help you through this?”

  She lays her hand on my cheek. “I love you, but I want to work through this on my own. I need to make sure there’s nothing else she can hurt us with again.”

  “We’ll find her, and she’ll be locked away for life this time.”

  “When she is, I want to see her.”

  “I don’t want you anywhere near her ever again.” I join her on my feet.

  “She’s my sister.” She presses her lips together as if she’s choosing her words.

  “She had a piece of paper with DNA results. They could’ve been anyone's. We both know she’s capable of fabricating anyt
hing she wants to.”

  “I do, but I know she’s telling the truth. The timeline adds up. The only thing my parents told me was that I was found abandoned at a firehouse.” She turns her body toward me to look me in the eye. “You know it’s true too. Think about it. We have the same features and coloring. You’ve said so yourself.” She glances down, and I lift her chin.

  “That’s not what attracted me to you, and you know it. I hated her. If you reminded me of her, I wouldn’t have fallen in love with you.”

  “You fell in love with me over time. At first, you wanted nothing to do with me.”

  “I wanted nothing to do with women or love.” I kiss her lips. “But you saved me. You mended my broken heart and filled it with love for only you.”

  She sits and leans back in her chair. “I don’t know who I am anymore.” A tear slides down her cheek.

  “You’re the same person you’ve always been. Sweet, loving, tough as nails, Fallon.”

  She looks away, not wanting to believe me.

  “You need time to process everything you’ve been through. I don’t want to leave you alone today, but I have to go by the hospital this morning and meet with Ashe. He’s making one last assessment of Sean, and I want to know when I can bring him home.”

  “Okay, I want to be there too.”

  “I’d like to see you eat something first. You’ve lost weight.”

  “I don’t have an appetite after the things I’ve seen.”

  “I’m bringing in a temporary team psychiatrist while Dr. Ruth does some healing of her own. I’d really like for you to see him.”

  “I will, I promise, but not today.”

  Chapter 16

  Thorn

  I open the door to my apartment quietly in case Lauryn is still sleeping. I’m caught off guard when she’s sitting on the couch, sipping a cup of coffee, wearing one of my SEAL T-shirts.

  “You feeling better?” I ask while emptying my pockets.

  “Sore, but better.” She watches my every move.