Betrayal (Secrets, Lies, and Deception Book 2)

by Heather Walsh

  Somebody knocked on Alex’s front door, causing Kat to nearly jump out of her skin. She glanced up, but couldn’t see the door from the kitchen. As far as Kat knew, nobody knew about this place. Stephen and Alex exchanged a look while Alex took his gun from his holster, heading around the corner.

  “Stairs,” Jessica whispered. “Oh, God. What if he’s up there?”

  A basement. “Can you hear any movement? Creaking floorboards?”

  Jessica paused for so long, Kat thought she may have lost her. She glanced at her screen again. The call was still connected. She glanced at Xavier, who shook his head. They still didn’t have a location. And damn it, she needed to check that email.

  “Nothing,” Jess said eventually.

  “That doesn’t mean he’s not there, so try to stay as quiet as possible, okay?”

  “Okay.”

  “Can you see out any of the windows? Something you can climb on to look out?”

  “Not without making noise—wait. There’s a chair…” Silence again. Kat looked over at Xavier who was still shaking his head. And Kat was running out of questions, running out of ideas on how to keep her on the phone. Stephen moved over to Xavier, standing over his shoulder.

  “Take a look around the basement, look for anything you can as a weapon and try to hide,” Kat said and finally she couldn’t take it anymore. She clicked the icon for her email…

  And she nearly blacked out. The air rushed from her lungs as spots danced in front of her eyes, her head spinning.

  Stephen shoved a pieced of paper over her phone, blocking the images.

  You know this is BS, right?

  On autopilot, Kat nodded, trying to switch gears, focus on the phone call rather than the email. Of course she knew it was BS. But if they could get a lead on Jessica’s location, they’d be able to question her. Hopefully break her. Because, hell, something with this messed up case needed to break.

  “It’s a mess,” Jessica said, sounding a little calmer now. “I can find a spot.”

  “Okay. Good. You’re doing great, Jess. Just hang on a little bit longer until we can—”

  Xavier rushed her, ripping her phone from her hand, just as a gunshot blasted from the entry. Kat screamed as Xavier fell on top of her, crushing her face into the floor as Stephen ran from the room.

  “Alex!”

  Stephen’s voice. Tortured. Shocked. Then yelling. “Hands! Show me your hands, Ethan, or so help me, I’ll put a fucking bullet in your head!”

  No, no, no!

  Desperately, Kat tried to twist out from underneath Xavier, but he didn’t budge. He was too damn big, all of it muscle. Between her throbbing wrist and Xavier’s crushing weight, it was nearly impossible to breathe. He dragged them both behind the island before pulling his gun with his other hand, settling his weight more firmly on top of her. She twisted her head to the side, crushed between his chest and the tile floor. She felt him shift, propping his forearms on the tile, still pinning her so she couldn’t move.

  Taking aim.

  Kat tried to breathe, but it was nearly impossible, the thoughts going through her mind all too horrible to contemplate. She could only hear yelling, unable to decipher whose voice was whose. Just when she didn’t think she could take anymore, when it felt like she was on the verge of passing out, Xavier was off her, the air rushing into her lungs so fast it made her choke. Coughing, she rolled over, groaning in pain as she put weight on her wrist. Moisture leaked from her mouth, saliva or blood, she couldn’t be sure.

  Blood, she saw a second later as a drop landed on the tile floor. She ran her tongue over her teeth, making sure they were intact, relieved to find they were, but her jaw throbbed like a son of a bitch.

  More yelling. She scrambled to her feet, following Xavier into the entry, to a scene that made no sense, that terrified her more than she’d been a moment ago, though she hadn’t thought that possible.

  Xavier was on the floor, pressing against Alex’s chest, blood on his hands, while Stephen rose from beside Alex, aiming his gun at Ethan’s chest while blood dripped from his hand.

  “No!” Kat yelled, rushing between them, her worst nightmare being played out right before her eyes, each of them yelling simultaneously, yet not making out their individual words through the roaring in her head. Ethan raised his arm and for the briefest moment Kat thought he was raising his arms in surrender, but then he raised his right hand, the glint of steel impossible to miss.

  Stephen lunged, catching her around the waist, Ethan’s gun exploding as she fell, the wall inches from Ethan’s head splintering as Kat screamed. Stephen grunted as Ethan slid down the wall and a roar of pain erupted from somewhere behind her.

  She tried to whip around, find the source of that roar, but Stephen’s grip was too tight as he dragged her, pressing her into the corner, covering her completely with his body so she couldn’t see around him, even as she pounded on his back, her mind replaying Ethan sliding down the wall, her heart cracking, not knowing if he was dead or alive, if he’d shot at Stephen with her in between them. Oh God, Stephen!

  He hadn’t been shot, she realized seconds later, his body hard and alive against hers. But that didn’t lessen the terror crawling up her spine as she tried to make sense of what just happened, her mind spinning in circles.

  Stephen finally moved, shifting slightly, just enough for Kat to be able to peek around his side.

  Jessica Adams was sprawled on the floor, unmoving.

  ***

  “Slide the gun over, Ethan. Nice and slow.” Stephen held his gun steady, aiming directly at Ethan’s chest, fear and adrenalin coursing through him. As desperately as he needed to check on Alex or figure out who the dead woman behind him was, he refused to turn his back on Ethan, even for a second.

  He didn’t trust him, but damned if he’d shoot him. Kat would never forgive him.

  “Now!” Stephen roared, desperately fighting panic. He was giving Ethan the benefit of the doubt, because despite everything he’d just witnessed, instinct had him needing an explanation. As much as he despised Ethan right now, Stephen had never killed a man and honestly, he didn’t, wouldn’t have that on his conscience.

  Ethan slid the gun forward, pushed it further toward Stephen with his foot. “You can lower the gun, asshole. I didn’t shoot Alex and you damn well know it.”

  He didn’t know it. Not with one-hundred percent certainty. Finally, he was able to look past Ethan, toward Alex and Xavier. Xavier had his phone on speaker as he barked orders to 911. Even from this distance, he could see Alex’s chest rising and falling, the relief Stephen felt nearly weakening his knees.

  “You better start fucking explaining,” Stephen growled as he crept forward, slow and steady, gently shoving Ethan’s gun further away from him, toward Kat. But he didn’t dare look at her, couldn’t afford to relax his guard right now and he knew her expression would likely devastate him. Because sure as shit, he was enemy number one right now.

  Changing direction, he stepped back, slowly inching closer to the woman, needing to make sure she was dead, never taking his aim or his eyes away from Ethan. Kat was way too close. In one quick move, Ethan could be on his feet, grabbing her…

  His heart still pounded in his chest, ready to explode, too much going on at the same time. It was hard to push everything out of his head other than keeping them safe until police and emergency responders arrived.

  “I punched him. I didn’t shoot him.”

  Stephen glanced over at Alex. That explained the bloody nose, perhaps the unconsciousness, depending on how hard Ethan had hit him. And then as Stephen was looking at Alex, taking in his cut hair and shaved face, he glared back at Ethan. “You thought it was me.”

  “He answered the door with a fucking gun pointed at my chest,” Ethan growled. “I didn’t have time to think, only to react. I ducked, punched him in the gut. He backhanded me with the butt of the gun just before my fist connected with his face.”

  Stephen studied Ethan, looking
for the truth. “And the gunshot?”

  “I don’t fucking know,” Ethan roared. “At the time, I thought it was his gun that went off. At least until he collapsed. I was in the process of dragging him back inside when you came in. But it wasn’t his.” Ethan nodded at the gun that was still on the floor. “The safety was still on when I picked it up.”

  “That’s Alex’s gun?”

  “I don’t make a habit of carrying a weapon,” Ethan growled again with a pointed look at Stephen’s gun, which Stephen finally lowered, though he was still on edge, still ready to move. “So maybe you’d like to tell me what the fuck’s going on?”

  All that may be true, but… “You brought her in.”

  “I didn’t bring anybody fucking in.”

  “Then explain it,” Stephen roared. “You obviously tracked Kat! The woman followed you. You gonna fucking tell me you never saw headlights behind you. Or maybe tell me she must have been hiding in the bed of your truck and you didn’t see her? I wouldn’t buy that bullshit for a minute.”

  “I don’t even know who the hell she is!” Ethan roared back.

  “Jessica Adams,” Kat supplied, speaking for the first time, just as the first sirens could be heard in the distance. She turned, looking at Jessica’s body, her face pale, but she wouldn’t look at either him or Ethan. It was then he noticed the darkening bruise on her cheekbone, the protective way she hugged her arm to her stomach. Shit, had he done that in his rush to keep her safe?

  “But you already knew that, didn’t you?” And then she did look up at Ethan, sucking in a breath, her words barely audible as emergency personnel arrived in a cacophony of lights and sirens, betrayal thick in her voice. “She’s the one who drugged Karen Young. Your biological mother.”

  Chapter Thirty-Three

  “Police! Hands where we can see them!”

  Kat raised her left arm as she stared across the entry at Ethan, her right arm in too much pain. Ethan wasn’t looking at her. He wasn’t looking at anybody, his gaze focused on the floor. Or maybe his eyes were closed. Even as he kept his hands raised, she could see the slump in his shoulders. The slump of defeat. She wanted him to look at her, to explain, to tell her everything going through her head was wrong. A denial. Hell, even an admission. But he never looked up, and she wanted to shout at him as her heart shattered more painfully than she ever thought possible.

  Her best friend. Her hero.

  Betrayal cut like a knife, piercing and deep. So agonizing she wondered how her heart was still beating. Kat was barely aware of the police entering the house, followed closely by the paramedics. She was aware of voices and questions, both Stephen’s and Xavier’s, but her gaze never wavered from Ethan. Eventually somebody’s arms slid around her from behind, pulling her back.

  She tried to fight off the hands, every jolt of her upper body sending shooting fire through her arm, but that was still nothing compared the pain in her chest, the agony that seeped clear to her soul.

  Ethan finally looked up, his gaze instantly finding hers. And once again, she wished the floor would open up and swallow her whole, because anything, anything, would be better than facing the agony that was making it impossible to breathe. Once again, she tried to break free of the arms that held her, but the grip was too tight.

  A uniformed officer stepped in front of her, asking questions she couldn’t hear, blocking her view of Ethan even as she struggled to look around him. Then suddenly, she was on a chair, her body bent in half, her head shoved between her knees.

  “Breathe!”

  But it hurt too much to breathe, every breath causing a searing burn she couldn’t bear. And then, blessedly, nothing.

  ***

  “We need paramedics over here!” Stephen kept his gaze on Alex even as he held Kat’s limp body. Xavier stood next to him, both hovering as close as the paramedics would allow, only feet away from Alex, his head still spinning at Kat’s revelation, wondering how in hell she’d known, silently praying she hadn’t lied to him again.

  The uniformed officer had finally stopped asking questions when he hadn’t gotten any answers, but Stephen knew they’d be coming all too soon. Something he couldn’t deal with just yet, because he still wasn’t clear himself what had fucking happened, other than the fact that Ethan had shot Jessica Adams.

  But she’d fired at him, hadn’t she?

  Protecting himself?

  “You need to let go, sir.”

  Stephen looked up, relief at seeing the paramedic. He released his grip on Kat, letting him take her. “What happened?”

  “She passed out,” Stephen said at the same time Xavier said, “She’s in shock.”

  The paramedic laid her on the floor. “Possible concussion.”

  Stephen wasn’t sure if it was a question or a statement, wincing as he saw the bruise on her cheekbone again. He’d nearly forgotten.

  “Was she punched?”

  “Tackled,” Xavier said, tearing his gaze from Alex for the briefest moment. “I tackled her to the floor in the kitchen when I realized there was an intruder.” He looked at Stephen. “Jessica was tracing Kat’s phone as we were tracing hers.”

  Xavier sounded a hell of a lot calmer than Stephen felt. “Check her wrist. Right wrist. I think she hurt it.”

  She had. Stephen could tell by the swelling as soon as the paramedic gently lifted it, placing her arm across her stomach. More paramedics came through the door, one wheeling a stretcher.

  “We’ve got a pulse!”

  Stephen jerked his head up. Paramedics surrounded Jessica Adams as they knelt over her and Stephen prayed she’d make it. They needed fucking answers. Within minutes they had her on a stretcher and were wheeling her out, another stretcher making its way in as soon as the first one cleared the door. Two men lifted Alex, strapping him down. One of the paramedics looked back. “Albany Med?”

  “Yes,” Xavier answered.

  “He’ll be alright. Collapsed lung, broken rib or two. We’re taking him by ambulance. There’s room for one in the front seat.”

  No helicopter. A good sign, Stephen knew, though the relief he felt wasn’t much. Xavier looked at Stephen. He nodded.

  “We’ll be right behind you,” Stephen said. How he wasn’t losing it was beyond him. As calm as he sounded, panic roiled through him, making it difficult to breath.

  “Holy Christ. What the hell happened here?”

  Stephen’s gaze swung toward the door. Mary Robinson stood in the entrance, her expression horrified as she took in the carnage. Despite everything, he couldn’t help but follow Mary’s gaze as paramedics wheeled Alex out before finally resting on Kat. Eventually, Mary looked at Stephen, her expression hardening, her look of shock and horror gradually fading. Carefully, she walked toward him while she donned a pair of gloves. Pointless, Stephen thought. Any evidence had already been obliterated by the endless stream of paramedics and cops.

  Xavier barely acknowledged Mary’s presence. With a quick glance in her direction, he said, “We’ll be at Albany Med.” And then he was gone, following Alex through the door. Seconds later, Stephen heard the whoop-whoop of the ambulance as it pulled down the driveway.

  Finally, they had Kat on a stretcher. She remained unconscious as they strapped her down. Stephen moved to follow them as soon as they unlocked the wheels, but Mary grabbed his arm.

  “You need to tell me what happened.”

  “Jessica Adams called Kat, made up a story about being kidnapped to keep her on the line long enough to trace her. At the same time, Alex answered opened the door for Ethan. Alex was shot. Ethan said it wasn’t him. A few minutes later, Jessica must have come around to the back door. She fired and Ethan fired back.”

  “Ethan?” Mary asked, sucking in a breath. “Is he…”

  “She missed. Bullet’s in the wall.” Stephen said, pointing at it as he followed the paramedics, Mary in step beside him.

  “Where is he?” Mary asked, catching his arm just before he jumped into the back of the waiting
ambulance.

  “Sir, you’ll need to sit up front. We already have two of us back here.”

  Stephen nodded, backing away as the paramedic shut the door, running toward the front. Mary caught his arm again just before he opened the door. “Where is Ethan?”

  And Stephen stopped, glancing toward Alex’s house, a sick feeling in the pit of his stomach. The bastard had run.

  “If you’re coming, we gotta go,” the driver yelled.

  “Damn it, Stephen! You can’t just leave a crime scene without answering my questions.”

  But Stephen ignored her and opened the ambulance door. “You’re forcing me to arrest you, damn it!”

  Stephen whipped around, his control finally slipping. “Then fucking do it,” he said, speaking low enough that only she could hear him. “I have my brother in one ambulance and Kat in another. You need answers, follow me to the goddamned hospital and I’ll answer them there.”

  And after a moment of tense silence, Mary gave a single nod of her head, though he could tell by her expression she wasn’t happy about it. He owed her an apology. Later. Right now, all his concerns were focused on Kat and Alex.

  Stephen hopped into the ambulance. But just before he shut the door, he said, “Be careful, Mary. Ethan may have had other reasons for shooting Jessica Adams than just self-defense.”

  Chapter Thirty-Four

  Three days, Kat thought. It had been three long, horrible days since the night of the shooting. She’d woken in the ambulance on the way to the hospital, immediately panicked when she hadn’t seen Stephen, thinking he’d left her…

  And then he was there, the paramedic moving out of the way to make room for him. “You’re okay,” he’d repeated, but that wasn’t what had scared her.

  She’d told him about the email, told him she’d just gotten it before he slipped the paper over her phone…hadn’t had time to explain. And to her relief, Stephen had believed her, had stayed by her side until she’d been released in the wee hours of the morning, suffering only a sprained wrist and bruised face. Minor injuries, the doctor had said.