“Okay, let’s go,” a paramedic said as they lifted the man onto a gurney and tried to keep his leg stable enough that the woman didn't slip and release his artery.
“I love you, Cyra,” he called to his wife. “I’ll be okay. I’m in really good hands!”
She watched him being wheeled away, and she hoped that he was right.
Ethan dropped his arm around her shoulder and pulled her against his side, reassuringly. “Callen’s going to drive you to the next town over and get you there as fast as possible.”
She kissed him on the cheek. “Thank you!”
As she raced out the door, he prayed his wife could keep hold of Chris’s life and keep her promise.
He didn't want to lose his friend or his wife’s soul.
~ Chapter Twenty One ~
To say that it was a stressful flight would be an understatement. It was hard to hold onto Chris’s life, as her hand and arm cramped painfully. Yet, she wasn’t letting go.
If she failed, his life would be forfeited, and on her shoulders for as long as she lived.
That she couldn’t, and wouldn’t, live with.
The entire time they were in the air, neither spoke. Chris stared into her eyes and she did the same. Nothing needed to be said between them.
This was the ultimate trust.
As the helicopter landed, they gingerly removed their patient from the cargo hold and raced towards the building. Once inside, the doctors waited.
As one quickly clamped off his artery, freeing her hand, she gave him a kiss in the center of his forehead and told him that they’d be waiting for him.
When they wheeled him away, her heart pounded in her chest, as she stood there watching him go.
As he approached the door on the gurney, Chris lifted his hand and saluted her. When the door closed behind him, the tears came.
For now, it was out of her hands.
Elizabeth had kept her promise and held on, but now it was all up to her friend.
One Hour Later
She had tried to clean up as best she could, but her friend’s blood had stained her clothes and hands. It wasn’t lost on her that if he died, her soul would be tainted as well, since she made her promise.
Waiting wasn’t her strong point, and as she asked the nurse behind the counter one more time for an update, she was just about ready to pull out her badge and slap her with it.
Okay, maybe she was just hungry and cranky.
At the vending machine, she grabbed some candy and a coffee. If the men in her life were there, they’d shit a proverbial brick at feeding the baby the high octane brew and sugar.
Yeah, well what was she supposed to do?
Walking back to the waiting room, she had just taken a bite of her candy bar when Cyra rushed through the doors with Callen right behind her.
When the woman saw Elizabeth, she raced towards her.
“Where is he?” she demanded.
“In surgery still,” she answered, sipping the coffee.
“You didn't…” How did she ask if Elizabeth let go?
Because she would have needed to know the same thing, she knew what Cyra was asking. “When we arrived, I was still holding onto him. He went in alive and clamped off.”
Her agent threw herself against her and hugged her. “I love you.”
That made her laugh. “I love you too.”
“I was dead serious. I’m naming our first born after you and making you the Godmother for any children that we bring into this world! Hell! Callen and Ethan can be the Godfathers too!”
Callen grinned as he pulled the coffee and candy bar from her hand. “You don’t need the sugar, your hands are shaking already,” he stated.
Cyra was just about to offer to buy her anything that she wanted, when a doctor entered the waiting room.
“Mrs. Leonard?”
At her name, she spun and raced over to the man. They spoke and she nodded. When she turned, her eyes were filled with tears.
Elizabeth didn't know if it was good news or bad.
Cyra walked towards them and planted a big wet kiss on her mouth. “You’re my new best friend,” she said laughing, and then hugging Elizabeth as she let the tears fall. “Forget the girlfriend code. You’ve been upgraded to saint in my book.”
Callen found the entire thing entertaining, especially since it seemed to catch his woman off guard.
Yeah, it was funny to see.
Elizabeth held onto her and gently patted her back. “When can you see him?” she asked, knowing the kind of relief that Cyra was feeling. When they finally let her see Ethan, after they had cleaned up his wounds, she had felt the same.
“He’s in recovery. They’re bringing him to a room. Will you come with me?” she asked, staring up into her friend’s eyes.
“I tell you what. We’ll stop in tomorrow before we head out. I think that you and Chris need to celebrate him pulling through together.”
She hugged her again. “I will never forget what you did for him,” she paused and corrected the sentence, “for us.”
It was all her pleasure.
Callen took her hand in his, as they watched Cyra walk away. “Elizabeth Blackhawk, you’re bad ass,” he said, dropping a kiss to her cheek.
She didn't have a comment.
“Want to go home?” he asked.
“Yeah, it’s tiring being a pregnant saint.”
Callen started laughing. “Oh, where to even go with that one,” he said.
She had no freaking clue.
* * *
Ethan was there when they pulled up. He watched from the front porch as the two people he loved most walked towards him. Callen shrugged as Elizabeth jogged up the stairs, not saying a word.
“She was quiet the entire way home,” Callen offered.
“This must have her really rattled.”
They both could sympathize with that. The outcome could have been vastly different.
Once inside, they didn't find her, but they could hear the water running upstairs in their bathroom. Obviously, she wanted to get clean and ready for bed.
“We’ll give her some time,” Callen stated. “Then she’ll pull through.”
Ethan hoped so.
When they both had popped the caps off their beers, they waited for her to join them. Getting lost in the conversation, they didn't hear Elizabeth at the top of the stairs. As she approached, they finally saw her and both of them stopped drinking.
“Are we going somewhere?” Ethan asked, as he noticed that she was dressed. Gone was the blood stained clothing and Elizabeth appeared to be going out.
“Yeah, if you don’t mind.”
If that would help her, both men would take one for the team, even if they were beyond tired.
“Where to, angel?” Callen asked.
“Well, tonight’s our last night here, right?”
Blackhawk nodded.
“Well, I thought that my two men could take me to the Spring Fling, and try and win me some ridiculous large stuffed animal. I want to eat cotton candy, and then when we’re done we could come home and have really hot cheerleader sex.
That had their attention.
“So, is it a date?” What she wanted to do was forget the entire week of stress. Elizabeth needed to let go of the loss of Doctor Trudeaux and almost losing Chris Leonard. For now, she needed to lean on the men in her life.
She needed to let go of it all.
Both men laughed, since she had them at fornication. Who in their right mind was going to turn that down? Then, add in the greasy fair food and it was a man’s night made in heaven.
“Are you kidding?” Callen asked, leaving the beer bottle on the counter. If their girl wanted a date, they were going on one.
“Besides, the baby is hungry and I want food.”
Blackhawk laughed. “I think that she’s using us for dinner.”
Elizabeth patted them both on the ass as she headed past them. “I’ll let you use me for sex later.”
When she was gone, Callen stared at his brother. “I love pregnancy hormones.”
“Amen.”
At The Hospital
Slowly, he began to pull away from the darkness. Everything around him was a little hazy. Then, from out of nowhere, he could smell her.
Chris didn't even have to open his eyes. His wife’s perfume filled the air and tickled his senses.
“Am I alive?” he asked, grinning.
Cyra jumped from the chair that she had been lounging in and began dropping kisses all over his face. “Holy shit, Christopher! You nearly killed me!”
Now, he could laugh, since he was with the living and not someone’s dinner.
“I’m okay, sweetheart,” he answered, pulling her down for a kiss. It was soft, gentle, and incredibly sweet.
When they broke apart, her eyes filled with tears. “I love you, Christopher.”
“I love you too, Cyra.”
Delicately, she fixed the spikes of hair that were sticking up on his head. “If you ever get taken again, I’m going to be pissed.”
Chris touched her cheek. “I’m sorry that you were scared,” he offered, knowing that it had to be hard for her.
“It’s okay. I forgive you.”
Sliding over in bed, he was careful to not move his leg. “What did the doctor say?” he asked, as she climbed in next to him.
“That you were incredibly lucky that someone was there to pinch off the bleeding. The belt that Elizabeth put on your leg and her holding that artery saved your life.”
He knew it. How he was ever going to repay that was beyond him. Because of her, Chris would have the rest of his life with Cyra.
“I knew that she wouldn’t let go.”
“I promised her that I would name our kids after her.”
That made him laugh. “I’m okay with naming a daughter after her. Elizabeth is a pretty name.”
“Um, I have bad news.”
“What?” he asked, looking down at her as she curled against his good side.
“I told her all of our kids, and she told me that she was going to hold me to it, just to make you nuts.”
That made him roar with laughter.
“Um, Chris. I also did something else.”
“What?”
“I may, or may not, have kissed her right on the mouth when I got to the hospital and found out that she didn't let you die.”
He grinned at the worry in her voice. “I would have kissed her too if the roles were reversed.”
Now, she laughed.
“Where is our heroine?”
Cyra told him.
“Great. I want to thank her tomorrow. I don’t know what I can possibly say that will follow up what she did, but I’ll come up with something.”
She didn't doubt it.
“I also need to tell you something else.”
“Yeah? What more could have possibly happened?” he asked, as the nurse came in and checked the pulse in his ankle. When she gave him the thumbs up and walked out, he waited for Cyra to continue.
“I’m done with the FBI. This was my last case. I decided that I’m going to be a wife, mother, and apparently your keeper.”
He relaxed and didn't mind in the least. “Perfect, how do you feel about playing nurse?”
“Will that entail some skimpy outfit and paper hat?” she asked, bringing his lips to hers in a warm kiss.
Yeah, he was so damn glad he was alive for this.
“It could, if you play your cards right, Nurse Cyra.”
“I hope you need a long recovery from this,” she purred in his ear.
The life that he feared was over began to blossom once more in his body.
Maybe he owed karma an apology.
A huge one...
* * *
When they arrived at the fair, Elizabeth was back to her normal vibrant self. She made the men take her on some rides that spun them around until they were dizzy, and nearly wanted to puke. Then, she forced them to eat copious amounts of sugary foods in celebration of life.
Both loves of her life, enjoyed every second of it. There was no doubt in their minds that this was her way of coming down off the adrenaline high of nearly losing a friend. Hey, if a carnival was the solution, they were game.
No one would ever say that they didn't try to distract her.
When they both tried to win her prizes by shooting over bottles with water guns, she laughed outrageously. This was what life should be all about, and the men were glad to be able to do it.
When Callen and Ethan both won, they handed her two stuffed pigs. Why not have mementos of the whole thing? They picked them because they were silly and one of her favorite food groups.
“How about we go get something that’s a real food?” Ethan suggested, dropping his arm over her shoulder as Callen went low around her waist.
“Hell yeah! It’s chili cook off day! I want some southern goodness!”
The men could smell it permeating the air and were good with that. At least with cheese on top, she was getting protein and some calcium.
As they meandered over to the stands, where the cooking was going on, there were people surrounding the one booth. There were smiling faces and happy patrons, devouring full bowls of chili.
Listening to the crowd sing of its praises, they moved closer. To their surprise, it was Justine’s booth.
She may have been gone, but obviously her meatless chili was a hit.
“You have to try this. It’s the most tender and juiciest chili that I’ve ever had,” one woman said, feeding a big spoonful to her husband. “It’s made from some secret non-meat ingredient.”
That set off alarm bells.
Elizabeth thought back to the conversation that she had with her agent. “Did we have the chili tested that Cyra found in Justine’s house?” she asked, as the hairs on the back of her neck began to stand up.
Ethan pulled out his cell phone and sent a text to his tech team. Immediately, they replies began coming back in. “Yeah, it wasn’t meat. It was soy based.”
Elizabeth watched as the woman’s employees dished out more and more chili. “If we confiscated it, where did they get that one?”
Neither man had an answer.
Something was creeping her out, and she needed to ask some serious questions. Walking up to the booth, she squeezed past the patrons, only to get angry comments and stares.
“Excuse me,” she said, pulling her badge. “Where did you get the chili?”
Brandon stared at her. “Our boss made it.”
“So, she delivered it before she went missing?”
He shook her head. “No. I swung over to her house and picked it up.”
“When?”
He answered her question, and Elizabeth knew that something was very wrong. “When you went, was she there?”
He had to think about it. “No, there was a note and two pots. It said ‘chili cook-off winner’, so I took it.”
Yeah, she felt like tossing her cookies.
“Stop serving the chili,” she warned.
“What? We’re going to kick ass in that competition. Everyone loves it, besides, it’s just about gone.”
“So you sold it all?” That horrified her beyond words. This was like some sick twisted story that didn't end well. If her suspicions were right, there was going to be one hell of a mess to clean up.
“Yeah. I wish Justine could see this.”
When the men reached her side, they had figured out what she was thinking.
“We need the rest of the chili,” Ethan said, pulling out his badge.
“Why?”
Elizabeth didn't want to start a stampede. “Just hand it over and close up the stand.”
Finally, Brandon did what he was told.
Using some paper napkins, she lifted the pot, being careful not to touch it. They were going to not only test the chili, but run it for fingerprints.
As they walked through the crowd, the people booed and
hissed at them, since they were taking the beloved pot of goodness. At their car, she held it on her lap.
“To the lab?”
“Yeah.”
Callen was a little sick to his stomach over all of it. “Do you really think…?”
The tech team was still checking the flesh that was found in Xavier’s freezer. Now, it looked like they would be checking this too.
“Yeah, I do.”
Blackhawk drove them there. “I don’t think I’ll ever eat chili again,” he said, horrified at the possibilities.
No one in that vehicle would.
That was for damn sure.
Tuesday Morning
After dropping off the sample, they waited for the tech team to check for fingerprints. What should be there, wasn’t. Since Justine was the one who supposedly prepared the chili, you would think her trace would be all over the pot.
They weren’t.
What they found were Xavier Jensen’s instead.
Yeah, that pretty much said it all.
The Feds had no doubt that they were going to find human remains cooked down and passed off as chili.
It looked like the sick bastard had got the last laugh after all, on the people of Salem.
Once they discovered this little horror, the rest of the night was shot to hell. How did you go home and have copious amounts of sex when you just found out that people at a fair had just eaten a person?
Did you tell them?
Cause a wide spread freak out?
What exactly were the proper protocols on this one?
Once at home, they called Gabe, and he told them to bury it. It wasn’t like they were shocked, but the FBI didn't want to get the blow back from not stopping it sooner, or any other mess that might come up. So, like good employees, they had the lab destroy the samples.
Was it the right thing to do?
Maybe.
They were pretty sure that if they accidentally ate someone, they wouldn’t want to know. How does one overcome that?
Consumed by Wrath: An FBI/Romance Thriller (An FBI/Romance Thriller ~ Book 8) Page 54