***
The moment Will’s cell had latched onto a tower signal, his phone blared. While maneuvering the town’s sleepy streets, Gary filled him in on Sharon’s suspicions and that she was checking out the safe house. His CUFF team had also been alerted and were already on the move to the area where the GPS showed Nicole’s Junker headed north toward the New York border.
Will’s gut rolled. There was no doubt in his mind this case was going to end tonight. He just hoped it didn’t end badly for anyone other than Gorgon.
He turned off his car’s lights, rounded the corner and rolled to a stop behind Sharon’s empty SUV. With his gun drawn, Will hopped from the car before the engine did its whine down. Most of the houses on the block still showed signs of activity within them, but not Nicole’s. The bungalow was dark.
He raced through the shadows toward the front door, watching for any sign of his best friend’s wife. As he crept along the house to the back, Max barked like a mad dog. The lights inside came on. A shadow crossed over the pulled kitchen drape and he froze. He heard kitchen drawers being yanked opened.
Adrenalin overload had his heart pumping faster than his veins could handle. Keeping low under the porch’s rail, he rushed to the back steps. With his Glock trained on the doorway, he climbed a step at a time.
The dog’s insane bark and deep throated growl scared the shit out of him as he reached for the door handle. Knowing whoever was inside, now knew he was there, he flung the door open and jumped inside along Max, ready to fire.
Empty.
The laundry room door stood open. Max loped around his legs and dashed off into the washroom. A bloody trail of footprints leading into the room caused Will’s stomach to roll.
“Get out,” Sharon yelled. “Hang on, hon. I’ve called for an ambulance.”
“Sharon.” Will skidded to a stop as his heart dropped to the floor. Nicole lay half inside Max’s cage. “Is she...” He couldn’t say the words.
Sharon looked up over her shoulder. “Will, thank God you’re here.” She sliced the rope holding Nicole’s hands together. Free, she wrapped a cloth around Nicole’s wrist and held her arm up in the air. “No, but…”
Blood marked Nicole’s face and arms, her shirt, and her jeans. Sharon knelt in a puddle. Her hands now coated red.
Nicole’s blue lips called to him.
“I called 911. They should be here any second. She’s in shock. Get a blanket. Over there.” Sharon nodded toward the shelf above the washer and dryer.
Will’s heart broke as he grabbed the blanket he and Nicole had lay upon that starry night in the back yard. She needed him to be strong. He pushed his horror away and dropped to his knees beside Sharon. Quickly, he covered the woman who had stolen his heart, tucking the blanket under her chin.
“Here hold her arm up.” Sharon instructed. “I’ll open the front door and put Max in the bedroom upstairs so he’s out of the way.”
Will changed places with Sharon and gingerly laced his fingers around the blood soaked cloth. “Luka? Is he here?”
Sharon shook her head while wiping her hands on another towel she grabbed from stack atop the washer. “Unless he’s hiding. Stay here. I’ll double check every nook.”
Will swallowed, staring at Nicole’s ashen face. Luka was only a child. Had he witnessed his mother’s attack?
He brushed his fingers across her cheek. Her skin was cold as the floor. Damn. He was supposed to protect her and he’d failed.
He leaned over and placed his forehead against hers. His tears marked the blood smearing her beautiful face. “I’m so sorry. I should’ve--” the words failed to pass by the emotions clogging his throat. “Please don’t leave me. There is so much I need to tell you.”
Eyelashes brushed against his cheek and he pulled back.
Nicole struggled to open her eyes. Her tongue peeked out between her thin lips. “Will.”
He couldn’t stop the burst of relief that escaped him. “I’m here. Did Gorgon do this?”
“Yes,” she spoke so soft he’d barely heard her. “Luka. He has Luka. Stop him. Promise me.” Her eyes drifted closed.
Will felt her pulse weaken.
~~
Chapter Forty
Will had pushed his car’s speed to the limit navigating the dark, winding, rolling Appalachian Mountains. He’d almost lost traction and careened off the side twice because the road was slick with wet leaves. He checked the digital clock as he rolled to a stop and jammed the car into park. It had taken him a little over thirty minutes to catch up with his men, and Gorgon.
Nicole’s blood stained his jeans. He checked his cell which hung silent on his hip. He had signal. Sharon said she’d text him the moment she had any news. Nicole had to be okay. He couldn’t imagine his life without her and Luka.
Will sprinted toward the gas station. A quick scan told him at least a dozen state police officers crouched in the shadows beyond the luminous circle lighting up the building located a half-mile south of the interstate. Beyond them, a deep forest with dangerous terrain filled with sink holes, sharp shale pits and murky quarries stretched for miles. The Pennsylvania State Troopers had barricades up, stopping traffic from both directions from coming into the area. Everything was quiet except for the occasional slap of a moth against the gas station’s overhead lights. There was nowhere for Gorgon to escape, except hell.
“Does everyone have their headsets on?” Will whispered into his mic.
“Roger that,” Chase’s voice crackled into his ear piece. “Including the state police.”
“Good.”
“Where are you?”
He could see Chase and Aden hunched behind the agency’s unmarked van parked next to the air pump station. Aden stared through a set of field glasses, peeking through the windows of the van. Chase had his weapon drawn and was also keeping guard on the building. “Coming up behind you now.”
Chase glanced over his shoulder and signaled for him to stay low as he approached.
“What’s the status?” Will cut the corner and rushed through the dry reeds to approach the van at a protected angle and took the position on Chase’s right, between him and Aden. He pulled his Glock and checked the clip.
Chase twisted his wrist and glanced at his watch. “Gorgon took the kid inside going on five minutes ago.”
Damn. Five minutes was too long. “He’s not going to stay in there forever. Once he’s out, we’re not going to stop him from getting in that car and driving off without blowing this place to hell.”
“According to the station’s diagrams, we’ve got two twenty-thousand gasoline tanks in ground,” Aden added, dropping his field glasses and locking onto his gaze. “One stray bullet and poof. We’ll have one big ass hole.”
“Fuck.” Will swallowed. They had their work cut out for them if everyone was going to go home in one piece. “How many civilians inside?”
“I spied seven. Cashier, a donut shop worker, a cleaning person and four customers.”
“With Luka that’s eight.” Will drew in a calming breath and stared toward the building, hoping to get a glimpse of the boy who had stolen part of his heart over the past four months. He had to keep a level head, if everyone was going to live.
“If we let him leave, we take the civilians out of the equation,” Aden whispered.
Will shook his head. “Everyone except Luka. Gorgon gets Luka in that car and my gut tells me he wouldn’t get out. No. We need to take him out here. Before he exits the building.”
“How?” Chase shifted in place. The kid’s adrenalin already cascaded through his veins.
“We’re going in.” Will started to step around his man, only to be stopped.
“Not without a vest. Here.” Chase reached under the van and grabbed a protective vest marked with the U.S. Marshal logo.
“I taught you well.”
“Yes, sir.” Chase winked.
Will donned and secured the vest in record time. “Can you see Luka anywhere, Aden?”
“Negative. They might be in the john.”
“Good. Gorgon isn’t suspecting anything. We’re going to walk in the front door, rush the civilians out and when he and Luka come out of the bathroom, we’ll take him out. Sound like a plan.”
“As good as any. Copy that, SP1. Hold fire.” Aden pressed his mike to this throat. “Safety net the civilians.”
“Roger that, CUFF.”
Will held Aden and Chase’s stares and nodded. “On three. One. Two. Three.” With weapons aimed, they moved out, rounding the van and heading toward the store’s entrance at different angles. There was no reason to lay out the game plan once they were inside. They’d worked as a team long enough to know exactly where each would take up position.
Will entered first, swinging the door wide and immediately put his finger to his mouth, quieting the cashier whose eyes rounded in surprise. “U.S. Marshals,” he said softly, signaling for the woman to move out from behind the counter while his men entered behind him and swung to the right and left and disappeared down the aisles.
“What’s going on?” The cashier asked in a hushed tone.
“A man with a young boy came in here. Where are they?”
“He asked to use the bathroom.” The woman’s hand trembled as she pointed to the rear of the store.
“Is there another way out of here?”
Gasps of surprise rose above the radio music floating from the ceiling speakers. His men were encountering civilians. In a few seconds, they’d rush toward the exit, hopefully quiet as not to alarm Gorgon of their presence.
“The back door,” the cashier’s wide eyes darted anxiously toward the back of the building. “It’s off the office. But it’s locked.”
The direction of the office was opposite the bathrooms. Gorgon was trapped. Will squeezed her hand firmly. “Good job. Now, I need you to lead these people off to that side of the building.” He pointed away from the bathroom side of the building in case Gorgon came out. He didn’t want to tip him off that something was amiss seeing people race away. Everything had to appear normal. “The state police are waiting to take to you to safety. Go.”
The woman nodded. She signaled for the customers to follow her and with a minimal amount of noise they cleared the building.
Biting down on the worry still bubbling up in him, Will swung around and noted that his men had turned the rounded mirrors reflecting the back aisles to the sides. Gorgon didn’t need any help locating them in such a small area.
“Let’s give him room to hang himself,” Will said into his mic as he made his way to the center of the store. “I don’t want him backing into the corner with the kid. Chase, you’ve got the back corner. Aden, cover the front. If the kid sees me, he might move away from Gorgon enough that we can take him out.”
“Roger that,” both men responded.
Before Will could blink again, he heard Luka’s voice.
“I want my mom.”
“Forget her,” Gorgon growled. “She doesn’t want to be with us.”
They were right on the other side of the aisle moving toward the break in the shelving. Hunched down, Will could only see the top of Gorgon’s head. His fingers tightened around his gun’s stock. After what Gorgon did to Nicole, he would love to stand up and put a cold bullet through the man’s temple, but he couldn’t with Luka right there. He’d take this piece of filth out legally.
“That’s not true,” Luka cried. “She doesn’t want to be with you. You hurt her. I saw her. You’re mean. I want my mom. I want to go home.”
“You’re going to live with me. Now, stop whining before—”
“No. I hate you.”
“Owww. Son of a bitch. I’ll teach you to bite me. Come back here.”
Will heard Luka’s scurry and rushed forward and came face to face with the boy as he rounded the aisle’s corner.
“Uncle Will.” Luka’s expression brightened.
Warmth encased Will’s heart. He grabbed Luka and pulled the boy behind him just as Gorgon rushed around the corner. Will leveled his gun at the Russian’s chest. “Don’t move, Gorgon. U.S. Marshals.”
Gorgon’s gaze bounced from him to Luka who clung to Will’s leg. The Russian’s black brows pulled together. “Uncle? Who are you?” His fingers inched up toward his belt buckle.
“Don’t do it, Gorgon.” Will’s finger tightened on the trigger. “It’s over. You’re surrounded.”
Gorgon’s dark glare flickered past him and Will knew Chase had his back.
“Get the kid out of here, Will,” Aden said, standing with a gun aimed at the man’s back a good fifteen feet behind Gorgon.
Gorgon smiled, bearing his teeth. His hand stayed in place. “So you’re the man who Katrina whored herself to.”
“He hurt mom, Uncle Will.” Luka clutched his leg. “She was crying and bleeding.”
He patted Luka’s back. “I know, kid. She’s okay. She’s waiting to see you.”
Hearing his words, Gorgon’s smile faded and between gritted teeth, he asked, “She lives?”
A smile threatened to lift the corners of Will’s mouth. He pressed his hand against Luka’s ear. “Yes. She lives, you bastard. She plans to put your ass in a dark cell for life.”
Watching Gorgon’s jaw clenched and his face turned a fire red, Will knew he had poked the guy’s ego too hard. His muscles tensed and he pushed Luka back.
“You will not have my family.” Gorgon’s hand darted inside his coat.
Will fired off a few quick rounds before turning and shoving Luka to the floor, landing on top of him.
Above, ammo whizzed through the air. Through a slit of eye he saw his men’s assault slamming into the son of a bitch, rocking him forward and backward. Blood pelted the goods on the shelves and splattered against the tan vinyl flooring.
Chase howled, “Mother Fucker.”
Then silence.
The glassy eyed Russian with his curses still lingering on his open lips crashed against the shelf, knocking can goods on top of Will’s legs. Then Gorgon face-panned the concrete floor with a thud.
The refrigeration unit’s whirl overtook the silence.
Sulfur filled the air and their lungs.
Aden kicked Gorgon’s gun aside and checked for life. He gave Will a thumbs up before heading to Chase, who held his chest.
“The fucker knocked the wind out of me.”
“He did more than that. Your arm is bleeding,” Aden said, kneeing next to his friend. “Lie still. Let me get a something to stop the blood flow.” Aden looked around, spied bandages and gauze, grabbed a box, tore one open and treated Chase’s wound.
Luka coughed and squirmed under Will. He pushed up on his elbows and met the boy’s wide eyes. “Are you okay?”
The kid swallowed. His dark eyes glistened with fright and remained latched onto his. Luka knew what had just happened.
Not wanting the boy in therapy for the rest of his life, Will said in a calm tone, “Okay. I want you to close your eyes and keep them closed. Promise me.”
Luka did as he was told while Will stood and scooped him off the floor.
“You two okay?”
“Yeah,” Chase said, presenting a thumb. “Get the boy out of here.
Will nodded, feeling gratitude for the men who had his back. Quickly, he carried the boy away from the sight of his father dead and left his team to clean up the scene.
What both he and Luka needed now was to see Nicole.
But damn, he hadn’t heard from Sharon.
***
There was a strong presence guarding her. Nicole’s eyelashes brushed against her cheeks as she fought to open her eyes.
“Nicole.” She heard the gentle voice calling to her.
“Will.” His face was the most beautiful sight she’d ever witnessed. She reached up and ran her fingers across the rough stubs covering his chin. “You look like hell.”
A throaty chuckle escaped him. His blue eyes twinkled as they traced her face, caressing he
r with warmth. “Well, you look beautiful.”
“I feel like shit. Where am I?”
“In the hospital?”
The memory of Gorgon’s hand on her and the fear in Luka’s eyes as Gorgon carried him away rushed back at her. Her wrist and her arm were bandaged with thick padding. An IV drip hung from the side of the bed and clear liquid ran through the tubing and into her left hand through a needle that pinched like hell. Using her elbows, she shifted up on the mattress. “Luka. Where’s Luka? Gorgon took him.”
Will eased her back onto the bed. “He’s okay. He’s waiting outside.”
She looked at the closed door and then back to him. “I want to see him.”
He smiled. “Don’t you trust me?”
“Of course I do. I just need to see him for myself.” She kicked her foot out from under the sheet intending to get out of bed, put Will stopped her and covered her again.
“Oh, no. You stay put. I’ll bring Luka in in a minute, sweetheart, but first I need to talk to you.”
Will’s gaze fell to the bed between them.
“What’s wrong?” She stroked the back of his hand.
“Nothing is wrong.” He shook his head. “Gorgon is dead.”
He stared at her. She knew he was searching for any sorrow on her part. After all, she had been Gorgon’s woman for seven years. But she only felt hatred for the man, nothing more, and she showed her relief. She relaxed against the mattress. “Are you sure?”
“I was there.”
“Luka. Did he…” She couldn’t imagine the sense of loss her little boy must feel.
“He was there, but he’s okay. He was trying to get away from Gorgon. He saw what Gorgon did to you and he didn’t want to go with him. He wanted you. He fought to get away and when he did, I was there.” He took her hand between his warm ones. “Gorgon knew about us.”
She nodded. “He overheard me talking to Sharon earlier.”
“Seeing me and having Luka choosing me over him, put Gorgon over the edge. He pulled a gun, but before he got off a shot, my team took him out.”
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