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“Dane’s right,” Kyle told me. “This is getting worse. And you’re stuck in the middle of it all. I just want to take you away from it, Ari. I want to put you in a car—if I could just get my fucking Rubicon back from the creek house—and drive you far, far away.”
My heart wrenched. “Kyle.”
“I love you, Ari.” The torment deepened. “But what the hell good does that do? What does it mean?” He stepped away once more, though I still felt his fury. “Not a goddamn thing.”
He turned and stormed off. The breath rushed from my lungs. My heart constricted. And more tears fell.
I loathed being the source of his agony. But it seemed inescapable.
How had one chance encounter between Dane, Kyle, myself, and a snake-tatted blond at a wedding nearly a year ago turned so twisted and mangled? So hazardous and painful?
If we survived this cyclone of evil, it certainly wouldn’t be unscathed. Physically or emotionally.
Not for any of us.
chapter 3
I did as Kyle had suggested and composed myself before visiting Dane, upon Dr. Forrester’s approval.
I entered the bedroom but halted just beyond the threshold when I got a good look at Dane, propped up against a mound of pillows, his left biceps and shoulder wrapped in white gauze and tape, his arm in a sling. He was much paler than usual. About as ticked off as I was used to seeing him. Still, I fought the gape.
“You look like hell,” I said, trying to keep my tone even.
“Well, I did just get shot,” he deadpanned. “And I’ve still got a mind to make Tom suffer more than a concussion.”
“I suspect that worrying about imminent imprisonment and the safety of his wife and daughter will be excruciating enough. Any word on them from the FBI?”
“No. And that’s not my concern.”
“Dane.” I knew he was just being ornery. Of course he wouldn’t want any harm to come to two innocent people. “Tom did what he had to—and his wife and daughter are going to pay the price?”
“Ari.” Dane sighed in frustration, because I pulled all the right strings. I knew him too well. With his good hand, he gestured for me to join him. “Are you expecting me to save the world?”
“No. I already told you that, because you’ve been the one to take on all the burden of an epic ordeal you didn’t even start.” Sitting gingerly on the bed, I asked, “There is something you can do, though, right? For Candace and Ruby?”
He gave me a look that clearly said he knew leaving that potentially fatal situation up to Tom wasn’t possible—if he wanted to please or pacify me.
“The FBI is searching for them. It’s out of my hands now, but I did give them some leads I thought might be useful. Amano had some ideas as well.” His head rolled back and forth against the pillow as he added, “Problem is, my network has been compromised, as we learned today. So I can’t pinpoint a specific direction in which to go with this. I don’t know who to trust at the moment.”
I inhaled deeply. Tried not to panic any more than I had been all morning. He didn’t need me crazed on top of everything else he dealt with—including his latest society-inflicted wound.
“How do you feel?” I asked. “Aside from wanting to rip the heads off of a hell of a lot of people?”
He snickered. “It’s a little hard to see past that at present.”
“I can believe that. But, Dane, you have to concentrate on healing.”
“That’s the doc’s job—why I pay him so damn much. All I can think of is how I’m going to get my revenge on Bryn Hilliard.”
I swept away some wayward strands from Dane’s forehead. He usually kept his dark hair shorter but still wore the mussed style perfectly, even though it was a bit longer than normal. Sexily rakish. “I don’t like you adding another layer to all of this.”
He crooked a brow at me.
“I know. I hear you without you even saying a word. At the same time, you agreed to legal retribution. Not bodily harm.”
His emerald gaze was a steely one. “You can’t even begin to imagine how furious I am. How much what just happened—what could have happened to you and our child—terrified the hell out of me.”
“Yes, I can.” I swallowed a lump of emotion. “Because you were in the line of fire, too. So was Kyle.” I fought the churning of my stomach. “There is nothing worse in my mind than losing you. Except—”
