“You’re a crooked cop who’s going down,” Ben told him, still holding his ground.
He hadn’t pulled out his own weapon and now wished like hell he had. If the gun were in his hand he’d shoot and damn the consequences.
“Just like before you don’t have any evidence, Donovan. You can’t prove anything,” Hall replied.
Trent pushed past Ben, “I can prove you were the one who went into the safe house and set off tear gas so you could take the witness out the back door. You’ve had her all this time, while steady deposits have been dumped into your account from Sal’s Pizzeria for some security alarm equipment, I know damned well you never delivered. You’re caught, jackass!”
Hall moved fast, like lightening as he streaked across the room, yelling some sort of battle cry before tackling Victoria to the ground and rolling over with his arm tight around her neck, the nose of his gun pointing squarely at her temple.
Ben didn’t think, only reacted.
His gun was in his back waistband. He reached for it and had it aimed straight between Hall’s eyes before the man could pull Victoria to a standing position.
“Let. Her. Go,” he stated slowly, his finger poised on the trigger of his Glock.
“I got him Ben, you don’t do anything stupid,” Dev said from behind.
Ben shook his head. “He’s the stupid one,” he said taking a step closer.
“Ben, no!” Victoria tried to scream but the bastard tightened his grip around her neck.
“Shut the hell up! All of you just drop your weapons or I swear I’ll shoot this bitch attorney. Then I’m going to kill that whiny whore who thought she was smarter than me taking my money, then trying to run away!”
Ben’s gut clenched, the sight of that gun touching Victoria’s temple making him want to wretch or leap forward and kill, probably both. Rage simmered inside, building to an intense heat as sweat prickled his brow. She couldn’t die. He just wouldn’t let her.
“You’re not going to kill her,” Ben told him, taking a step closer.
He could sense Dev moving behind him, ready to shoot the second Hall’s finger pulled the trigger. Well, Ben wasn’t going to let it go that far. He was ready to shoot now.
“I’m going to splatter her brains all over this cheap ass motel wall and there’s nothing you can do to stop me, rich boy!” Hall spat.
His gun hand shook. Ben saw it as they stood. He blinked rapidly, the pain from his broken nose probably kicking in. A millisecond later the lamp that had been sitting on the nightstand was smacked against the back of Hall’s head. Victorialurched forward just as he kept hold of his footing and aimed at her. Ben fired.
Dev fired.
Trent fired.
Officer Timothy Hall hit the floor with a sickening thud, his gun sliding a few feet away. Behind him Alayna stood shaking from head to toe, the lamp still in her hand. Ben took a step toward Victoria and while she’d been watching him, her eyes wide with fear, chest heaving, fingers clenching at her sides, she turned away from him and went to hug Alayna instead.
A clap to his back stopped Ben’s movement and he stood still, his gaze falling to the lifeless body of Officer Hall.
“You okay, man?” Trent asked coming to stand beside him.
Ben had lowered the hand holding his gun still a bit stunned that he’d actually fired on a human being.
“You didn’t have to shoot him,” Ben began. “You nor Dev,” he said quietly.
“You’re a suit-wearing justice man,” Dev said after he’d knelt beside Hall to check for a pulse. “No need in you carrying a death on your shoulders.”
“My bullet made contact,” Ben said moreso to confirm with himself than anything else.
Trent nodded. “And so did at least three others. We’ll never know which one killed him.” Trent still had his hand on Ben’s shoulder and he squeezed firmly. “You’ll never know if it was yours or not.”
Ben looked at his cousin seriously, gratefully. “So I’ll never carry the guilt of being a killer.”
Trent nodded once more, then tilted his head in the direction where Victoria was standing. “But you wear that hero thing pretty good. She looks a little shaken up.”
She did and Ben wanted nothing else but to go to her, but she looked like she had other things going on, namely a clearly hysterical Alayna.
