Of.
Them.
Once against his body, Chris did all he could to help fight the battle with Ethan.
“I’ve got you, EJ. You’re safe,” he admitted. “You can feel anything you need to here with me, and I’ll help you through it.”
Ethan stayed locked to Chris.
It was a death grip, too.
Quietly, he spoke, sharing with the man.
“I had to go behind her back, Chris. I have that sick feeling that she’s going to hate me for it. What was I supposed to do? He’s going to destroy her. I can feel it in my gut.”
Chris just listened, being a good partner.
Ethan kept going.
“We all know he’s sick and twisted. He’s going to know exactly what punches to land in order to break her. When he does, she’s going to be wrecked. I don’t know how to protect her from what I know is coming.”
He was aware.
One of the hardest things Ethan had to overcome was what he perceived as danger. As a profiler, he was always insomeone’s head, seeing the outcome. Now, he was seeing the possibilities of what could go down as it applied to them.
Chris tried his best to reassure the man, so he wasn’t so afraid.
“She will be okay. We’ll stand with her, and we’ll help hold her up. You have to focus on being her profiler. It’s always more difficult when she knows the killer. Now, she’s off her game and having to work it a different way.”
He was aware.
This would be a chase they would never forget. Blackhawk could feel it in his whole being.
“Sometimes, I think maybe, just maybe, her life would have been better if when Gene and I broke up, I did go back to the rez to stay there.”
Chris didn’t like that.
“Ethan.”
Only, he wasn’t done.
“Let’s face it. I’m a mess, Chris. I did this. When she was packed up to go back to DC so the whole family could resume its normal life, I told her I wasn’t leaving. I had hope she’d stay, but had we all gone home, maybe this nut wouldn’t have come at her yet.”
That wasn’t something they could control, and Chris knew it.
So, he stopped him by making Ethan stare him in the eyes. This was exactly the kind of thing that would derail them and give Devon the upper hand.
Self-sabotage was Ethan’s biggest enemy.
The family had to hold up so Elizabeth could hold up. That was the bottom line.
“Stop,” he said, gently.
At the words, Ethan did.
Chris took his face in his hands, so he had to stare into his eyes.
“Listen to me. She stayed because she loves you, and she knows we’re a family. We’re stronger as a whole. If you didn’t contactThe Hunters, I would have done it. If I didn’t, Callen would have. If Callen didn’t, Gene would have. That was the most logical thing to do. We want to protect her, and she knows it. Give her some grace and let her work this, but do the same for you. We’ll know when it’s time to step in. Have faith.”
