Page 110 of Cole

“I’ll do what you want, as long as she’s safe,” Cole called out finally. “I want my men to take her away before I kneel.”

Teddy scoffed. “You’re not in the position to be making demands!”

But Errol nodded. “That’s acceptable. Thoughtful. Baileys know how to take care of their women, and I respect that. No need to traumatize the girl any more. I’ll even let you say goodbye.” He waved toward me. “Go on now, honey, come over here.”

The man beside me lowered the gun from my cheek. I looked at Teddy and he jerked his head toward Cole.

“Hurry up, then, you slow bitch.”

I turned back to Cole.

He held his hand out to me, his eyes steady. “Come on, Goldilocks. Come here, nice and slow.”

I started to walk. The space between the two groups felt like a no-man’s-land. I walked slow and steady toward Cole’s outstretched hand.

When I got closer, I reached out. The moment our fingers touched, I felt like I had been saved. He pulled me close, kissing me hard.

“What are we going to do?” I whispered as soon as he pulled away.

He let out a long sigh, as though just touching me was a relief to him.

“You’re going to go with the guys, and get as far away from here as you can, as fast as you can."

"But what about you?" I panicked.

"Don’t worry about me. I’m not as dumb as I look.” Then he flashed a bittersweet grin that made my knees weak. “I need you to trust me. Will you trust me?”

Slowly I nodded, despite a hundred objections roaring in my mind.

“Good girl, for once,” he murmured, and gave me a kiss on the forehead before urging me to go.

I walked away, feeling like I was being torn in two. Then Maddox and Gage were there, taking me with them, pulling me back. A helmet went on my head, and then I was being put on the back of Gage’s bike.

He rolled forward and I took a moment to look back at Cole. Errol and Teddy were now standing over him.

Gage took off, Maddox following. Cole watched us until we were at the entrance to the shipyard, then turned back to the men who wanted to steal his life.

The last thing I saw was him sinking to his knees on the dirt before them.

thirty-nine

COLE

My knees hit the dirt. Errol nodded approvingly, while Teddy’s hand tightened on his gun. The fucker wanted to kill me so badly. Too bad he wasn’t going to get the chance. It started to rain. The kind that drizzled before turning into a downpour.

“We need to get this over with!” Teddy shouted. “The Lion’s shipments are just sitting here gathering fucking dust. It’s only a matter of time until the cops find them!” He wasn’t wrong. At any given time, shipments were moving in and out of this very shipyard and not just through Axel. The deal that had gone wrong the night of the shoot-out had only been a tiny part of it all. Errol had been sharing far too much with Teddy, clearly, and he couldn’t wait to get his hands on the steel. Too bad for him, he wasn’t the only person who wanted it.

And just like that, the air came alive with bullets.

Shots took out Teddy, one to each leg. He crumpled in a howl of pain. Iron Vultures ran for cover, trying to work out where to aim to return fire. They had no chance. If I knew Agent Sánchez’s methods, he’d have a few snipers placed just right, and wouldn’t be taking any chances. This would be the biggest illegal arms bust in Maine history.

Errol roared with anger and surprise. He jerked back when a bullet hit him in the side, and ran.

I got up, swiping Teddy’s fallen gun, and ran after him. The rain was really coming down now. Special agents were coming out of their hiding places and going after the Iron Vultures who tried to run.

I focused on Errol. That motherfucker had been planning all of this for years. Maybe he’d even coveted being Pres when my father was in power. Why he’d waited so long was obvious. He couldn’t do it on his own. He’d had to wait until Teddy had started to gain power in the Iron Vultures. He’d needed a more powerful ally. He’d been scared to make a move alone, with good reason.

Too bad for him, I was going to get him alone now, in the end. No matter what.