by Dani Jace
Jo shivered. “He’s going to be okay, isn’t he?”
Ray nodded. “I think so, but he’ll have to go the hospital. They’ll want to make sure he doesn’t go back into anaphylactic shock.” One of the EMTs motioned him over. A few seconds later, he returned. “He wants you, Jo.”
Propped up on a gurney in the ambulance, he didn’t resemble the hardcore guy she knew. “How are you? Hey, at least your lips are normal color again.”
“Black Widow,” he croaked.
She burst into laughter. “Come on. She didn’t mean it.”
“I’ll make sure the guys know.” His eyes narrowed, filled with a determination she didn’t doubt. “Will you drive my truck to the hospital? Get Ray to follow you.” He planted the keys in her hand and squeezed. “He really loves you, you know.”
“How do you know?” An EMT motioned to her it was time to go and she hopped from the back.
“I’ll tell you later.” He smiled.
* * * *
Jo followed Ray to the hospital in Harley’s truck. She badged her way into the ER and gave him his keys. “Call me if you need anything.”
“Thanks.” He puffed on his nebulizer.
She crawled into the Hummer where Ray waited dozing. She dialed Bobby, relaying the night’s events and let him know she wouldn’t need his chauffeur services.
The tires humming against the pavement hypnotized both of them. Near home, he took her hand. “I didn’t get Mom unloaded until three AM. At this point, I’m sleepwalking.”
“Where’s she staying?”
He put the windows down sounding unenthused. “In an efficiency until she can find something permanent.”
“Sorry we’re such high-maintenance.”
“At least with you I was getting something for my trouble.” He offered an amused eye roll then brushed her knuckles against his lips. “God, I’ve missed you, baby.”
She didn’t miss his downtrodden tone, but couldn’t resist the urge to tease. “I’m sure your sheets weren’t cold.”
He braked the truck to a stop in the driveway. A frown of indignation marred his handsome features. “Nine months in Iraq. I can survive without sex.” He unbuckled his seatbelt. “It’s making love to you that I can’t live without.”
Jesus, he knew her soft spots. “So if we stay in bed, we’ll never disagree.”
He swung open his door. The dome light emphasized his sexy glint. “Come on, I’ll walk you inside. Make sure the creep’s not stalking you.”
Shuddering, she reached inside her bra patting the small GPS transmitter and followed Ray up the stairs. She struck the key and opened the door. The new alarm toned waiting for the code to silence it.
He passed through the kitchen and around the bar and pulled open the blinds peeking onto the deck.
“Are you going to check the rest of the house, too?” Ask him to stay.
“Absolutely.” Returning from the deck, he turned on a lamp and walked along the hallway, flicking on lights as he went. “No Freddy or Jason. I’ll check the bathroom too.”
She almost dropped the coffee decanter as she filled it with water. Shit. She’d left the pregnancy test sitting on the sink.
He rounded back into the kitchen and dropped the empty box on the counter.
“Are you pregnant?” His tone mirrored judge, jury and executioner.
Words failed. She shook her head.
Ice blue shards burned through her. “You didn’t think I could handle the possibility?”
She clutched a hand to her chest, sure he heard her heart racing. At least he didn’t question who the father might be. “No, because you might think I was trying trap you.”
He glanced at the ceiling and exhaled. “Sometimes, I wonder if you know me at all.”
She hid he face in her hands. How many times would he have to save her from the world and herself before she’d believe in him?
He removed her hands and cupped her chin forcing her to meet him eye to eye. “What if there’d been a baby?”
She blinked several times then lost the battle. “I love you. I’d have loved your baby, too.”
He squeezed her tight and kissed her tears that fell like rain. “God, Jo, how could you believe I wouldn’t want our child because we argued?”
She loved him more than ever at this moment, but she’d state the truth. Her arms fell to her sides half-hearted. “You packed. You left. You accused me of fucking Harley. It was more than a fight, Ray.”
He stepped back and scrubbed a hand over his jaw. “I shouldn’t have let my issues with him come between us. It’s always been you―in my heart and my head. I love you more than anything.”
He swallowed hard. Unshed tears gathered in his eyes.
She took his hand. “I just meant when you left, I read that as your solution. To give up on us.”
“Never, baby.”
She rose on her toes and threw her arms around his neck. His firm lips softened as she pressed hers against them. Then took control of the kiss with a searching tongue.
He drugged her with an erotic mix of aroused male and aftershave. She ached to feel his skin against hers. The strength of him over her, behind her, and under her, giving her ultimate pleasure. Oh, yeah, he definitely spurred her fantasies in the naughty direction. “Will you stay? Keep my imaginary demons at bay?”
“I could be considered deviant,” he whispered with his chin against her ear.
“Can your bad boy charm conjure some coffee first?” She teased. “I seem to be out.” She stroked his cheek with trembling fingers.
“My powers are limited to summoning orgasms.” He winked. “But I’m going to need some caffeine in the morning before work. I’ll run to Dune Stop.”
She nibbled at his ear. “Afraid you’re not going to get any sleep tonight?”
“Counting on it, Dahlin’.” He started for the door and then turned. “Know this, I’d lay down my life for you baby, without a second thought. Don’t worry about your ex-boyfriend.”
After tonight, she had no doubt of his dedication. Finding out he’d snuck into her graduation and the waited for her at The Casino was enough, but his concern and total acceptance about her possibly being pregnant sealed the deal.
While he went for java, she changed into a slinky teddy, then pulled on some old jeans and her hoodie. He’d taken his when they split. She’d definitely work on snagging it back.
Back in the living room, she sank onto the sofa in the living room. The quiet house made her reach for the TV remote.
At the whishing of gushing water, she leapt to her feet.
Chapter 39
Immediately, she envisioned the old hot water tank below in the utility room spewing like a fire hydrant. He’d said they needed to replace the damned thing. Crap, no warm shower in the morning.
She stuffed her cell in her pocket. Her pistol lay on the coffee table. She felt like a pussy, but holstered it to her ankle as Harley had taught her. After rummaging under the kitchen sink, she found a flashlight and headed downstairs.
Inside the utility room, she located the water valve and switched it off. She scanned the water heater with the light. The had pipe burst or―
A sharp pain stabbed her skull. Specs of light danced in her vision. Her face slammed against the concrete floor. Grit abraded her lips sharpened by the metallic taste of blood. Dazed, she tried to stand.
She screamed as something wrenched her arm behind her back. A hard and cold object jabbed her ribs.
Reality dawned. Adrenaline flooded her veins, her heart nearly burst.
“Come now, Joanne. You’re not really surprised are you? We never did have a chance to say our goodbyes.” Vic’s scratchy voice lanced her ear.
Another scream died in her throat.
Fuck you! formed on her lips.
Common sense intervened. She needed to buy time. He would definitely kill her. Probably with his gun, but he could have knocked her unconscious. H
e wanted to play with his prey first.
She was so stupid. Always playing right into his hands.
“I didn’t know they gave you early parole.” She rounded her head, glaring at the demon who haunted her dreams.
His wicked, black stare made her gasp. His close-shaven prison cut made him appear more sinister.
At least now, she wouldn’t be waking in a cold sweat. She’d be dead. Her cynicism returned. “Did you rush right to OBX to tell me?”
“Naw, you know when I got out. I’m sure your hotshot lawyer called you the instant he got word. Thought I’d give you a few days. A chance to imagine what I planned for you. Did you come up with any unique ideas?” He snickered and tightened his grip.
“You never lacked imagination.” She stalled, trying to reach for the panic remote. “I’m having trouble breathing.”
“It’s musty in here. Come on. Let’s get some fresh air.”
Before she could trigger the unit, he yanked her upright. Thrust her ahead and rammed the gun in her back.
He kicked open the utility room door, and shoved her into the night. She stumbled and managed to activate the panic remote. She prayed for help, Bobby or nine-one-one. Stuck in the hospital ER, Harley definitely couldn’t save her now.
If only she’d called Ray before going downstairs. No, Vic would kill him and make her watch. Her stomach lurched.
Vic doggedly herded her across the dunes. Gunshot or drowning, she’d be fish food either way.
“Check this out, honey. It’s my special gift to you.” With a vice like grip, he spun her around to face the house and held out a small remote Laughing, he said, “Click, click.”
Fire, wood, and shingles shot skyward. A superheated wind scorched her face. The house was obliterated before her eyes. Flames licked high in the darkened sky as the deafening concussion nearly knocked her off her feet. Her knees gave way as she reached toward what had been her home.
Vic howled in victory.
Anguish tore at her soul. She sobbed while pinned in the clutches of the devil himself.
“You’ve just been cremated, bitch! And your stupid Hummer dude will tell the authorities you were inside when the house blew. They won’t even bother to look for your fucking teeth!”
His sarcasm jerked her back to reality. Pretending to remain in hysterics, she worked for her gun, holstered around her ankle. Before she could latch onto to the grip, he yanked her back against him. Patience, she reasoned with her building terror. He wouldn’t kill her on the beach. He wanted everyone to think she died in the house.
Charred pieces of the house crumbled and fell into the sand, igniting the surrounding vegetation. Her fire science training briefly overtook sentiment. She judged exposure and wind, concerned for arriving firefighters.
Vic was right. Ray would hear the call and return. She broke down again, as the psycho behind her delighted in her suffering.
“Aww, just when you thought you’d found someone. Southern hick, he’s probably as gullible as you.”
“Hardly.” While he continued his monologue, she pressed her panic unit a second time.
For the second time that night, sirens headed in her direction. Her heart ached for Ray and Bobby arriving on scene, and finding only charred remains.
Vic knelt behind her. “I don’t think they can save it. Do you? Hey, wasn’t your dad a fire captain? That’s so ironic.”
“You fucking bastard!” She leaned forward and then slammed her head back into his. It stunned him for a second, but not enough to free her from his grip.
“Careful.” He pinched her ribs with the barrel of his gun. “We still have some more partying to do, honey.”
“Well, if you’re not any better than you used to be―”
A glint of metal danced before her eyes. A sickening crack of her cheekbone splintering. White light painted her vision. She struggled against the welcoming abyss.
He shook her hard enough to rattle her teeth. “You’ll be praying for me to kill you, you fucking bitch!”
This time, she held her tongue. It was bloody anyway. If she wanted to live, she needed to get her gun now.
She imagined what she couldn’t see over the tall dunes. Firefighters racing to hook up hoses. Putting their lives in danger in hopes of containing what looked like a textbook movie explosion. The term hot as blazes suddenly held a new and extremely personal meaning. Vic truly didn’t know the real irony. The firefighters were her family.
He snatched her to her feet. She complied only to avoid a broken arm.
“I can’t wait to kill you, cunt.” He pressed his gun in her back and headed them for the neighboring convenience store parking lot.
Good thing The Post had been closed or Vic might have killed Ray returning with the coffee. She hated that he might live the rest of his life feeling guilty. Stumbling along in the soft sand, she prayed for a miracle. “Where are you taking me?”
“We’re going fishing. You’re going to be my shark bait, sweetheart.”
Cold sweat popped from every pore. Numbness spread. Blackness opened velvety arms. She pitched forward.
He clung to her, but her legs crumpled. “Get up bitch, or I swear―”
Vic’s hard grip slackened then released. He crumpled behind her as a shot rang out. The echo sounding over the raging blaze.
She bellied down in the sand and crawled from her captor while searching the shadows of the dunes for another gunman.
A dark form rushed her.
Chapter 40
Paralyzed, Jo stared into the hollow of a hoodie unable to comprehend what had happened.
“Are you hurt?” asked a breathless man.
His words didn’t register. His shadowed features remained anonymous against the backlight of the fire.
“Jo! Are you alright?” He shook her.
Cognitive reasoning returned to her oxygen-deprived brain. “Ray?”
“Are you okay, baby? Are you hit?” She listed as his arms shored her up.
“I don’t know.” Dark spots filled her vision.
* * * *
Ray clicked on the safety and stuffed his weapon in the waistband of his jeans. Lightly, he probed her body, checking for wounds. His fingers were numb, his body flooded with adrenaline.
She gazed over her shoulder. “Is he?”
“He’ll never hurt you again,” he said more harshly than he intended. After finishing his assessment, he helped her to feet. Then doubled checked to make sure the bastard wouldn’t get up and then carried her to the lit parking lot for a visual observation.
“How did you know? The fire? God, where did you get a gun? What is this sticky―” Her jabbering stopped.
“Whoa, Dahlin’.” He corralled her before she pitched face first. The feel of her warm body brought him out of fight mode. Relief nearly swamped him. He eased them onto the soft sand at the edge of the parking lot.
While getting coffee, he considered how long she’d worried she might be pregnant. He should have been there for her. She was alive now and in his arms. He clung to her as if he might never hold her again.
When the explosion rocked his truck, even before he arrived at the towering inferno, he automatically knew. He braked along the road near the house and stumbled from the Hummer, terror and heartbreak brought him to his knees. When his phone vibrated and her panic pager number displayed on the screen, he prayed harder than he’d ever prayed. Training forced him into action.
He kissed her nape and stroked her back in a calming rhythm. He wanted to take her home. To cocoon her with his body and ignore the world. Unfortunately, that would have to wait.
He retrieved his cell phone, pressed a key and waited.
“Bobby. Yeah. It’s Ray. Need you come to The Post’s parking lot. It’s Jo.”
“What’s going on?” Her brother’s voice held panic. “I got the page. I’m on the way.”
“She’s okay. Fucking psycho tried to…kill her
. The bastard is dead, but he torched the house. Jo’s alive. That’s all that matters.”
“Thank God. I’m only a minute or two out.”
“Hurry. I need to call nine-one-one, but wanted you to know first.”
He ended the call with Jo still in his arms. After composing himself, he keyed the numbers.
“Nine-one-one. What’s your emergency?”
“There’s been a shooting just off the beach road. Behind The Post store, on Route 12, near mile post―”
“Isn’t this the number that just called in a house fire?”
Jo squirmed when the operator mentioned the house.
“It’s been a rough night. We need an ambulance and the coroner.” The motherfucker would never bother her again.
“Is someone dead?”
“Yep, nine mil between the eyes.”
Jo bobbed.
“It’s okay, baby.” He cinched her with an arm around her waist and calmly finished the call.
“How did you find me?” Her small voice drifted up from his chest.
The night loomed large and imposing. The scent of charred wood and smoke enveloped him. “I heard the explosion when coming back. When I got closer―” He said in a strangled tone, “God, I thought you were dead, Jo.”
He squeezed her tightly never wanting to let go. The night was a waking nightmare. Worse than when trapped on the roof in Iraq. “There was nothing I could do. Everything was gone. The heat of the blaze forced me to the dunes.”
She laced her fingers in his shaking hands. Her wide, black pupils reminded him of a doe’s. Her face so pale and her cheek swelling by the second. “And?”
“The blaze looked like something from a movie.” He rubbed a hand across his forehead. “The engines and trucks hadn’t arrived yet. My phone vibrated. I figured Bobby had gotten the nine-one-one call about the house. Instead, the display showed the GPS position of the pager. I held onto hope.”
“Harley didn’t tell me he set you up.” She stared unblinking.
He smirked. “Did you really think I wouldn’t get involved?”
Her colorless lips managed a smile.
“I grabbed my gun from the truck and started for the beach. Praying he wanted you to see the house burn and hadn’t killed you or found the transmitter. The inferno lit the beach. I saw the gun he had on you. Taking cover in the sea oats, I bided my time. It was all I could do not to rush the fucker when he pistol-whipped you.”