by Kat Mizera
“She knows where she belongs,” Marco said quietly. “The time has come for her to accept it.”
“She doesn’t love you,” Toli said softly. “And kidnapping her isn’t going to help that.”
“She will learn to love me!” Marco shouted, setting his jaw.
“And if she doesn’t?”
“Then she will suffer the same fate as my mother—except hers will be a slow, painful death.”
“Are you listening to yourself?” Toli asked in frustration. “Forcing a woman to be with you? Making her love you? How is this healthy or natural?”
“It’s the way things need to be,” Marco said, taking slow breaths as he looked around the room. “Just as I need to do this.” He lifted his gun and pointed it in Toli’s direction.
A million thoughts flew through his mind in that moment and Toli knew in his gut Marco was going to kill him. Instinctively, he shoved Tessa down just as Marco fired.
Toli had never imagined the reality of being shot. As pain seared his shoulder, he fell backwards. It felt like slow motion when he landed on the ground and Tessa threw herself on top of him. Her initial cry was silenced as she gripped him tightly, her fingers growing sticky with his blood.
“Toli!” Her voice was a breathy whisper against his cheek.
He tried to tell her he was okay, but the fall had knocked the wind out of him and his shoulder hurt like a bitch. He realized he was still alive, though, and tried to focus on Tessa’s terrified face.
“Toli, please, talk to me.” She was pulling off the removable part of her dress and pressing it against his shoulder.
“I’m okay,” he rasped, taking a breath. “Stay quiet.”
“He shot you!” she cried softly, tears slipping down her cheeks.
“Shh.” He touched her cheek, trying to power through the pain for her sake. “Don’t let him hear you. Stay down. Stay quiet.” As he lay there, he wondered where the hell his security was and why extra help hadn’t come.
The next shot startled everyone and Tessa’s scream was followed by a scuffle. Then everything was silent except for Tessa’s soft sobs.
“No.” Tiff’s body went rigid as she realized that Toli had been shot. She moved but Zakk was too quick for her.
“No!” he hissed. “You getting yourself killed isn’t going to help anyone!”
“He won’t kill me!” she whispered desperately. “But I can stop him from hurting anyone else! You’ll find me again,” she said softly. “But you have to let me stop this.”
“No.” Zakk shook his head vehemently, holding her firmly.
“Yes,” Erin whispered in the semidarkness. “I need a diversion and Tiff is the only one who can provide one.”
“A diversion for what?!” Drake looked at her in alarm.
“If I can get a guard’s gun, I can take Marco out,” was all she said.
“What?! No!” Drake was shaking his head.
“We can’t just sit here!” Erin whispered harshly. “Listen to me—I’ve spent my entire adult life planning for something like this. It’s just a different form of terrorism, and this is who I am and what I do. If anyone can eliminate Marco, it’s me.”
“And what if one of his men kills you?” Drake whispered in a ragged breath.
“Someone has to do something,” she said, meeting his eyes. “And today it’s me. Another day it will be someone else, but right now, I’m the one who has to step up.”
“Text the other guys,” Karl said automatically. “I’m sure everyone who’s under a table has got their phones out. Tell them to be ready to help once Erin makes her move.”
“No,” Drake was holding her against his chest, unwilling to release her.
“I love you,” she whispered to him. “Take care of Shay if something goes wrong.”
“Erin!” He tenderly touched her face when he realized she was going to do it anyway; she pressed a quick kiss to his lips.
“Let me do what I do.” She met his gaze and after what was obviously an agonizing internal battle, he gently released his hold.
Erin looked at Tiff. “Call out to him and stand up slowly; then get to the other side of the room as quickly as you can. I need about 10 seconds to disarm the guy. Ten seconds is a lot longer than you think it is, so keep him talking as long as possible.”
Tiff nodded quickly.
“Tiff…” Zakk just stared at her, fear creeping up his spine like a jolt of electricity.
“It’s okay,” she whispered. “If he takes me away, you’ll find me again. I love you.” She briefly placed her lips on his and then slid out from under the table. “Marco! I’m here. Please stop this.” She stood up slowly, counting one-thousand-one, one-thousand-two in her head.
“Well, well.” He turned towards her with a smirk. A strange look crossed his face as he gazed at her. “What the fuck is that?!” he hissed, pointing at her.
She paused. One-thousand-four, one-thousand-five. “What?” she asked softly.
“Your stomach!” he hissed. “Are you fucking pregnant?!”
“What? No.” One-thousand-seven.
“You’re lying to me!” he screeched. “You let that stupid motherfucker put a baby in you?!” He fired his gun at the ceiling and Tiff let out a little squeak but she continued towards him, walking at an angle to keep his focus away from Erin.
One-thousand-nine.
“I’m not pregnant!” she protested easily as she sucked in her stomach. “I’ve put on a little weight, that’s all. I can diet.”
“Shut your fucking mouth!” he came towards her and backhanded her.
Tiff put her hand to her cheek, blinking away tears of fear and frustration. It had definitely been ten seconds. Where was Erin? She could still hear Tessa crying, but they were behind the table on the dais, so she couldn’t see anything, and now was doing everything she could not to panic.
“Where’s your little boyfriend, hmm?” Marco grabbed her arm. “Because he doesn’t walk away this time.”
“I’m right here, motherfucker.” When Zakk stood up, there was no mistaking the glint in his eyes. He’d taken off his jacket and rolled up his sleeves. Zakk knew they had to end this tonight, one way or another. He’d seen Erin reach the security guard and get his gun, but then she’d disappeared and he refused to cower under the table after he saw Marco hit the woman carrying his baby.
“Poor little farm boy,” Marco chuckled. “Falling in love with this whore was your only mistake.”
“You have the balls to say that to my face without a gun in your hand?” Zakk growled, knowing better than to make any quick movements.
“Why would I do that?” Marco laughed. “I know I can’t kick your ass. Why do you think I have the gun?”
Zakk saw at least three others with guns and wondered if they would shoot even after Marco was dead. Erin might be able to take out two of them, but at least one of the others would get off a shot before she could kill all of them.
“Marco, no.” Tiff tugged at his arm. “I’ll come with you. Let’s just go.”
“I learned my lesson last time,” he snorted derisively. “This time, I leave no one behind that might attempt to take you from me—when you leave with me this time, no one will stop us from being together forever.”
“I just want to understand,” Tiff said, trying to keep her voice from shaking as she attempted to stall him. “What is it about me? I loved Dave and now I love Zakk—you and I never even dated—what do you get by forcing me to be with you? There are probably thousands of women available to a rich, good-looking guy like you.”
He gripped her by the hair, pulling her forward. “You look just like her,” he rasped.
“Just like who?” She blinked in confusion.
“My mother,” he said in a heated whisper. “The long red hair, big breasts and small waist…and those long legs. When you wrap them around me it will be just like when she used to do it.”
“Y-your mother?” Tiff was trying to hide her revulsion at hi
s words.
“My father was unable to maintain an erection after he turned 40, and eventually Mother came to me. She taught me to be a man when I was 15.”
Swallowing her horror, Tiff tried to keep him talking. “What happened to her?”
“She wasn’t satisfied cheating on my father—she had to cheat on me as well. She had a revolving door of men, all older and bigger than I was. I had to make her understand that she couldn’t do that. So I told my father and he handled it.”
“Did he kill her?” Tiff asked in a quiet voice, her eyes never leaving his.
“We did it together. We used hemlock, just as I did with Dave, and we watched her die. It wasn’t until she was gone that I realized no one would ever replace her. Until I found you.” He ran a surprisingly tender finger down her cheek. “Now I have another chance, and you won’t deny me of it!”
“But I’m not her,” Tiff whispered, fear permeating her skin.
“Close enough.” He tugged a lock of her hair. “You will learn to obey me and then you will love and respect me. You will have the life she chose to throw away!”
“I don’t want to work in your club!” she protested, wondering again where Erin was. “I just want to be married and in love.”
“If you prove yourself to me,” he said in a voice that was almost loving, “I will allow you to stay home and take care of our children. Until then, you will do everything I say.”
“And if I don’t?”
“That isn’t an option,” he said, stepping back and narrowing his eyes. “You will do what you’re told or you will be punished. And there will be no one to help you.”
“Except me.” Erin stood up with a gun in each hand and fired twice, hitting Marco in the stomach and the guard closest to her in the chest. The other men with masks started to fire and Tiff screamed just as Zakk threw himself on top of her. The last thing she saw before Zakk covered her body with his was a pool of blood spreading across Erin’s beautiful pink dress. One last shot was fired just as members of the Sidewinders popped up from various spots, tackling the remaining men in masks as a slew of other security guards burst through the doors.
“Erin!” Drake’s cry broke the silence as chaos erupted.
Suddenly there were people everywhere, as police and security guards arrived and began shouting for everyone not to move.
“I need help!” Drake’s voice cracked as he called out.
“Over here!” Tessa was still sobbing and when she stood up, she was covered in blood too.
“Oh my God.” Tiff moved out from beneath Zakk and they watched as the team doctor moved towards Toli and a team trainer hurried to where Erin had fallen.
“Doc!” Jerry Malcolm, one of the team trainers that Toli was particularly close to was leaning over Erin. “She’s bad!” He had pulled a tablecloth free and was pressing it to Erin’s chest.
“Toli’s just got a shoulder wound,” the doctor said, running across the room to Erin. “Go work on his bleeding,” he told him as he dropped down beside Erin. He knew right away that it wasn’t good and he looked at Drake carefully.
“Doc, do something!” Drake whispered, holding his wife’s head in his lap.
“Drake, you need to let me lay her flat.” Doc Levine nudged the bigger man and they gently lowered Erin’s head to the ground. “I need paramedics!” he yelled out. “She’s bleeding out and I don’t know if I can stop it!”
People were huddled now, some watching with horror while others tried to calm the children. Anton had run towards his father the moment the police arrived and was kneeling at his side, his face white.
“Dad?”
“I’m okay.” Toli was pale, but he looked up at his son with a smile. “It’s just the shoulder.”
“I was so scared,” Anton whispered.
“Me, too,” Toli admitted. He looked at Tessa, who was still crying softly as she helped Jerry press cloth napkins to his shoulder. “I’m okay, sweetheart.”
She tried to smile but burst into tears all over again. Anton put his arm around her, awkwardly stroking her back. “It’s okay, Stepmom,” he said, lightly teasing. “He’s a tough old Russian.”
Tessa forced a smile and nodded. “I know.”
“I’m not an old Russian,” Toli protested.
“Tessa?” Tiff dropped down next to her.
“You’re okay?” Toli asked her, his eyes meeting hers with concern, despite the pain he was in.
“I’m fine,” she nodded, unable to stop her tears as she looked at the blood all over Tessa’s dress and Toli’s tuxedo. “I’m so sorry,” she whispered. “This is all my fault!”
“It’s not your fault!” Tessa leaned over and hugged her tightly. “Is Marco dead?”
“Yes, I think so. He hasn’t moved.” Tiff looked over to where police and paramedics were now covering the bodies with tarps. “But Erin…”
“Erin?” Tessa’s head snapped up. “What happened to Erin?”
“I’m sorry,” Tiff whispered, blinking away tears.
“Is she dead?!” Tessa had gotten even paler.
“I don’t know, but it looks bad.”
“No.” Toli struggled to sit up, his eyes misting over. “Where is she? What happened?”
“Toli, no, you’ll start bleeding again.” Jerry looked alarmed.
“I don’t care!” He pulled himself into a sitting position, despite the stinging pain in his left shoulder and arm. “Help me up, Anton!”
“Toli!” Tessa was crying again, getting on Toli’s left side as Anton slid his father’s right arm around his shoulder and put his left arm around Toli’s waist. Looking across the room, there was no mistaking where Erin was. Drake was covered in blood, kneeling beside her as the doctor and paramedics worked on her. Tessa’s hand flew to her mouth and she would have collapsed if Tiff hadn’t caught her.
“Zakk!” Tiff called his name, knowing she wouldn’t be able to hold Tessa long.
As always, Zakk appeared in an instant, gathering Tessa in his arms as she crumpled.
“I’m sorry, my love,” Toli whispered in frustration, hating that he couldn’t hold her.
“I need to see her!” Tessa was crying in Zakk’s shoulder.
He jumped off the dais and carried her across the room before putting her down. She knelt behind Drake and put a hand on his shoulder.
“We need the crash cart!” someone yelled and Tessa fell back against Zakk again, tears streaming down her face.
“Erin!” Kate’s anguished whisper was loud in the silence. No one in the room made a sound as the doctor put the paddles on Erin’s chest and yelled, “Clear!”
Karl wrapped his arms around his wife while she sobbed.
“No…” Tessa clapped a hand over her mouth and buried her face in Zakk’s chest. She felt Toli’s hand on her back.
“Clear!” the doctor yelled again and Tiff closed her eyes, knowing her legs were going to give out any second. With Zakk holding Tessa it was Dom who caught her as she started to slide down.
“Erin!” Kate pulled away from Karl and dropped to the ground beside her friend. “It’s not time, dammit! Don’t you dare give up on me! Erin, I swear to God I will follow you all the way to Hell and kick your ass right in front of the devil!”
“Harsh,” Erin whispered softly, her voice barely audible as she struggled to take a breath.
“Erin!” Drake leaned over, his hands on her face.
“I’m okay,” she said bravely before her eyes fluttered closed.
“We need to move her!” Dr. Levine stood up. “She needs surgery and blood, now!”
The paramedics worked swiftly, putting her on a gurney and starting to move towards the exit. Drake followed, swiping at the tears on his face.
Kate collapsed back against her husband, still sobbing, as he tried to soothe her. Toli was in a chair now, protesting when the paramedics tried to put him on a gurney.
“I’m fine,” he grunted.
“Toli, please.” Tessa was kn
eeling at his feet. “Go to the hospital. I don’t want anything to happen to you. Please!”
“Okay, sweetheart.” He got to his feet with a grimace. “But I’m not going in an ambulance. We’ll take the limo.”
“What?!” Tessa scowled at him.
“Do you want me to go to the hospital or not?” he joked, though the pain was evident in his eyes.
“I’m coming too,” Anton said, putting his arm around his father again.
“And me,” Jerry muttered.
“We’ll meet you there,” Dom said quietly.
“We’re going to need statements from everyone,” one of the police officers said.
“Can you do it at the hospital?” Zakk asked quietly. “We need to be there for Erin and Toli.”
“We’ll take care of everything here,” Brad Barnett, the team’s head coach, joined them. “You go on to the hospital. We’ve already called the team attorney, just in case, and there are 300 witnesses here to answer questions. You go ahead.” He leaned over to hug Tessa. “Andra and I will make sure all the gifts and everything are taken care of.”
She nodded numbly. “Thank you.” She hurried after Toli and Anton, motioning for Tiff and Zakk to follow. “We can fit about 12 in the limo, so let’s go together.”
The members of their inner circle followed: Karl and Kate, Dom and Molly, Tiff and Zakk. Tessa’s parents and sister hurried to catch them before they left, holding CJ’s and Raina’s hands.
“What do you need us to do?” Jean asked, her face pinched with concern.
“Can you just take them to our house?” Tessa asked numbly. “I can’t even think right now.”
“Of course,” Jean nodded.
“Thank you,” Suze whispered to her. “Cody and I will take our car to the hospital and we’ll let you know when we’ll be coming for him.”
“It’s no problem,” Ava said quietly. “Go do what you have to do. We’ll get them home and focused on something other than what happened here.”
“Thanks.” Tessa squeezed her sister’s hand before rushing after Toli and the others.
The hospital waiting room was full, with almost half of the Sidewinders team and their significant others milling about restlessly. Sergei and Tatiana took turns pushing their one-year-old son, Nikolai, in his stroller, until she got permission to scrub in to Toli’s surgery as an observer. Tatiana had been a successful surgeon in Russia and she’d been anxious to make sure Toli’s surgeon gave him the best chance possible to play hockey again. She’d had to pull some strings by calling a doctor she’d studied with in London, but somehow had managed to get permission to at least watch. Meanwhile, Toli and Erin were both in surgery, and though the doctors had promised that Toli would be out shortly, there was no word at all on Erin. She’d been shot in the chest and one of her lungs had filled with blood. Her heart had stopped again on the way to the hospital and now they had no news at all.