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“Crista!” Dawg’s voice screamed out her name. Then he was there, his arms coming around her, jerking her to the other side of the car, his hands running frantically over her. “Are you okay? Crista, baby, answer me. ” She stared up at him, dazed, feeling the blood racing through her head, pounding into her brain as shock began to shudder through her.
“Oh God,” she whispered, feeling the darkness edging around her. “I’m going to fucking faint. ”
His face swam in front of her vision as her lashes fluttered.
“You faint on me, and I swear to God I won’t fuck you for a week,” he snarled, his voice low, his expression violent. “Don’t you dare, Crista Ann. ”
Won’t fuck her for a week? Could she make it a week? Could she keep the darkness from spreading through her?
She smiled, feeling amusement thread through the darkness.
“It’s okay. Week works. ” And she gave in to it.
There were no wounds. The only blood on her was what had splattered from Bedsford. She was dusty, her arms scraped from throwing herself to the ground, and tears tracked her face.
She was pale, but she was breathing.
Dawg clasped her to him, burying his face in her hair as he realized he was shuddering and tears were escaping from between his lashes as he rocked her against his chest.
She was alive. Dear God, she was alive, she was safe. She was safe, and nothing else mattered.
He pulled her as close to his body as he could get her, feeling the silent sobs that racked his chest.
He had no idea how much he had loved her until he saw that gun leveling on her. Until he saw the moment that Johnny was actually going to pull the trigger. His world had narrowed down to one thing. To stopping it. No matter what it took. No matter how much blood Johnny shed or whether or not Cranston had his suspects.
Then the forest had exploded with gunfire.
“Dawg, man, is she okay?”
Alex? Dawg lifted his face from her hair and stared at the camouflage face paint, the fear in the other man’s gray eyes, and the savage contours of his expression.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” Dawg snarled, his hand pressing Crista’s head closer to his chest. “Where the hell were you when he was pointing the gun at her chest?”
Alex’s smile was tight as he sat back on his heels and indicated the four other similarly painted and dressed men around him. “Recording this little event for the authorities,” he stated. “Tyrell had point; he put one of the bullets in Grace’s head. I suspect Natches can take credit for the other one. Mark. ” He waved his hand to the hard-eyed soldier at his side. “Crista stayed with him and Ty in Virginia. When you called the emergency number, it went through Mark. He pulled in some friends while I ditched a mission in Afghanistan. We pulled in here at midnight last night after Mark managed to get the information on the op here and we followed Johnny in. ”
“You moved fast. ” Dawg inhaled roughly, his hand pressed at Crista’s back, feeling each breath.
“I had a feeling she was being pulled into something last time I talked to her. ” Alex sighed. “I had everything in place just in case. ”
“Everything but the emergency number,” Dawg snapped. “Son of a bitch, Alex, don’t you think she needed it?”
“If she had it, she wouldn’t have gone to you,” Alex told him then. “I wanted her where she needed to be. ”
“She didn’t come to me, you stupid bastard. ” Dawg was enraged. “She nearly got her ass killed in a warehouse during the attack we made on the buyers and sellers of those stupid fucking weapons.
Grace set her up, Alex. She almost died there. ”
Alex paled. “She didn’t call you?”
“Not even on a fucking dare. ” Fury was pounding through him now. “You’re a lucky bastard I managed to save her ass. Otherwise, I’d have to kill you now. ”
“Hell, I didn’t know she was that damned stubborn. ” Alex rubbed his hand over his face, smearing the face paint he wore as he stared around the clearing. “I’ll have to have a talk with her about that. ”
“The hell you will. ” Dawg gathered her closer as sirens wailed along the rough track leading into the cabin yard. “Tell me there’s a fucking medic here somewhere?”
“Ty. ” Alex turned to one of the two men standing behind him. “Get your pack and check her out.
Where’s Cranston?”
