Avenging Kiss (Savage Security Book 2)
Page 18
34
Wednesday, 1:00 AM
Bella wanted to say so many things to Jack. She didn’t remember much, but she remembered the world going black as Eric’s hands crushed her throat. She knew Jack had saved her. He’d been the one at her side, begging her to come back. It was the sound of his voice that called to her as she awoke. She wanted to say thanks, but how do you thank someone for saving your life?
Jack sat in the hospital chair. It was clear that it had been designed for function rather than comfort. He rested one elbow on the wooden armrest and leaned forward so he could be close to her. He held her hand, not sure who that was helping more, him or her. He couldn’t believe how close he’d come to losing her. That wouldn’t happen again. He was going to let her know about his feelings whether Cole liked it or not. Cole would just have to deal with it.
“You’re doing great,” Jack said, stroking her hand. His gut clenched as he thought about what she’d been through. If he hadn’t shown up when he did she’d be dead. He knew the muscle in his jaw kept bulging as he gritted his teeth together. He’d stayed with her through the tests, but he’d been forced out of the room when the doctor did the routine rape examination. The doctors thought it would be a good idea since she’d been unconscious. They also collected samples of Eric’s DNA from under her nails to use against him once the police found him.
Jack wasn’t concerned that the police would find Eric. He was gone, put somewhere safe. This case would remain open with the attacker being lost in the wind. He was okay with that. He knew Eric would receive more than adequate attention where he was headed.
She forced her lips into a smile. Words couldn’t express how glad she was that Jack was there. Tears threatened to fall as her eyes puddled. She blinked a few times to clear the blurry vision, and the salty beads streaked down her face.
Watching her cry just made him madder. Guilt at his part in this nightmare ate at him. She’d been used and manipulated by a monster in order to get to him. She’d paid for his deeds.
Jack gently pressed his thumb to her cheek and wiped away the tears. He wasn’t sure what to say. He’d made his share of trips to hospitals around the world to support his injured friends. It was never easy, but sitting by Bella’s bedside was killing him. “I won’t leave you. You’re safe,” he promised. He forced his lips to curve into an encouraging smile.
He was thankful that the doctors gave her a healthy dose of pain medication. Her face, neck and chest were swollen and covered in bruises. She’d be asleep soon, then he would catch up with Cole and know what the hell was going on.
Bella’s eyelids were so heavy that she couldn’t keep them open. She decided not to fight the sleep and gave herself over to it.
A knock sounded on the hospital room door. Jack stood and silently crossed the linoleum to open the door.
“How is she?” Cole asked, stepping inside. He’d watched the recorded footage from the security cameras on his cell. The attack had been brutal. She was lucky to be alive.
“She’s out. She doesn’t seem to have any permanent damage. Her ribs are bruised.” Jack felt a little guilty about that, but doing the compressions had saved her life. “She doesn’t have any brain swelling, despite the fact that she took several good knocks to her head.” He’d seen the footage of Bella’s attack. He knew he’d never unsee that. The pain and fear in her face had torn out a piece of his heart. He’d live with that scar for the rest of his life. It was a good thing that Captain Wallace’s men had already taken Eric into custody, or Jack would be doling out his own form of retribution right now.
Cole stepped beside Bella’s bed. She looked so peaceful as she slept, but the bruises angered him. “She wasn’t the only one attacked tonight. Logan had a situation,” Cole stated.
“Logan?” Jack’s curiosity was piqued.
“Apparently his new girlfriend, Aditya Chopra, was the Black Widow.”
“Was?”
“She killed herself in his home office. The police took his statement. They were crawling all over his place when I called. Good thing Captain Wallace is on my speed dial. He’s sending over some of his own people to help Logan out. National Security and all.”
“That’s gonna piss off the cops. Is Logan okay?”
“As okay as a man can be after he watches the woman he cares about blow her brains out. I think it will hit him once everything settles down. Right now he’s in shock, but he did manage to delete the recording of Bella’s attack from the security footage.”
Jack wished he could delete it from him memory too, but it was good news that there was no record of what happened. The police needed to think that Eric fled the scene when Jack showed up. “What about the others? Is anything weird going on with anyone else?”
“I talked to everyone. Nothing weird. No new people in their lives who could be associated with Eric or Aditya.”
“Good.” That was encouraging, but they didn’t know if Eric or Aditya had other accomplices. Had they been part of a sleeper cell? Were they still under threat?
Cole looked at Bella again. She looked so helpless and tiny in that bed, but the security camera footage showed how strong she was. She’d kept her wits about her and fought against a man who outweighed her by a good seventy pounds. He respected that.
“You know I’m not letting her go,” Jack said, his gaze focused on Cole.
Cole saw the determination in Jack’s face. “Figured,” Cole replied. He wouldn’t be able to walk away either. “Just be careful. She’s vulnerable right now. Will be for a while.” He trusted Jack. He knew he’d do the right thing concerning Bella.
35
Bella blinked a few times and opened her eyes. Jack was still in the chair he’d been in when she’d fallen asleep. His head rested on the mattress with one arm acting as his pillow and his other hand covering hers. The sight made her want to cry. She didn’t think about Jack as being the lovey-dovey, touchy type, except for maybe when he was seducing a woman. But she would be eternally grateful that he hadn’t abandoned her in the night. He’d kept vigil on her.
As her hand slid from his grasp, he sat up. He worked the kink out of his back with a little stretch and neck roll. “Hey there, beautiful,” he said. He hated the bruises that covered her neck and darkened her face. But he had to give her credit, she’d put up a hell of a fight.
The sound of his deep voice saying that to her made her smile. She knew she wasn’t beautiful. She was in too much pain and knew that she was covered with too many bruises to even be in the ballpark of beautiful. In fact, it would probably be a good idea for her to not look into a mirror anytime soon. “Hey,” she rasped out and touched her throat.
“I know,” he said as he gave a quick nod. “Don’t talk.” He wanted to give it to her straight. She deserved that. “You’ll feel awful for a while, but then it will heal, and the pain will go away. No permanent damage.” He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. He needed some distance, or he’d put his hands back on her. “The doctor’s been in. He’s releasing you today. I’ll take you home.”
She nodded and tears filled her eyes. “Why me?”
Jack knew she needed to understand. He needed her to know that none of this was her fault. She’d been completely innocent, yet she’d been the one attacked. “Eric?” He shrugged. “He chose you because of us. He wanted revenge for a bombing that we participated in. You’ll never know how sorry I am that you got hurt.”
She did her best to smile, but her face hurt too much. In fact, everything hurt. “How?” she whispered. How did this happen?
Jack leaned forward and rested his elbow on the bed. Her arm was inches from his fingertips. He wanted to touch her, let her know how much he cared, but now wasn’t the time for that. She was already overloaded. “We’re still looking into him. But so far we’ve learned that he’d been raised in the States. He moved to Dubai to do an apprenticeship with a computer company. While he was there, it appears that he was drawn into drugs
and extremist Islamic thinking. He converted and changed his name, although not legally, to Hazeem Ali. From there, it appears that someone gave him a false identification and passport so he could travel between the States and the Middle East without creating a paper trail. They even erased his apprenticeship and transferred everything he’d done to the Hazeem cover. At first glance, it doesn’t even look like Eric spent any time in the Middle East. Everything looks legit. Whoever created his backstory was a real professional.” Jack hoped they’d learn a lot more from Eric during his interrogation. There had to be a sleeper cell in the area that supported him.
Bella moaned and her face twisted in pain as she shifted her shoulders. She inched her fingers over until they rested on Jack’s arm. “What’s wrong?” Jack asked. “Do you need more pain medication?”
She shook her head. “Glad you’re here,” she scratched out.
His heart nearly exploded from the joy at those words. “Nowhere else I want to be.” He stroked his thumb over the silky skin of her hand.
He would see her through this, and they’d never need to do another background check on another one of her suitors ever again. He would be filling the role of suitor for her from now on. He just needed to get her on board with that.
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About the Author
Karen Tjebben lives in central North Carolina with her encouraging and supportive husband, twin daughters, and two hamsters. When her girls left for kindergarten, Karen discovered that she needed to fill her days with something, and that was the beginning of her new career in writing. She loves to create worlds filled with unique characters that she hopes will delight and raise goose bumps on her readers. In her free time, she enjoys traveling with her husband and seeing the world through her daughters’ eyes.
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