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So the woman planned to impersonate her as she’d impersonated Norton. If Regina had her way, Mia wouldn’t leave this house alive. She had to do something or Regina would get away with murder. Hers, her father’s and, probably, her son’s.
Staring into Regina’s pitiless eyes, Mia felt her blood ignite. No way would she let this woman walk off as the sole beneficiary of the Graves estate, playing the part of a grieving widow.
“Go.” Regina waved the gun, motioning Mia out of the bedroom.
She backed up, deliberately bumping her shoulder and then the baby carrier into the door frame. Silas started to fuss. Setting the carrier down, she made an issue of rubbing her shoulder while soothing her son.
“You’re as clumsy as a cow,” Regina snapped. “Worse than before you were pregnant. Trust me, a bullet will hurt more than a door frame. Pick up the brat and move.”
Mia braced for the worst as she twisted around, but instead of picking up Silas, she grabbed a stone bust from the pedestal in the hallway. Only Regina would consider this cheap knockoff an artistic statement.
Swiveling around, she threw the bust at Regina. The woman screamed, squeezing the trigger as Mia wheeled back and tried to duck. The bullet hit the ceiling and dust rained down on them as Mia launched herself at Regina. But something caught her at the waist and hauled her back out into the hallway. Did Regina have help?
With a scream, she clawed at the thick forearm, desperate to escape with her baby.
Someone else shoved past her, shouting at Regina.
“Easy, Mia. Mia! It’s me.”
“Jarvis?” She slumped to her knees and he followed her to the floor. “What are you doing here?”
“Keeping Silas’s mother out of jail.”
Indignant, she looked around. “Where is he?”
“Spencer put him in the bathroom.”
Despite the sounds of an ongoing fight in her father’s bedroom, Mia jumped up and darted through the closed bathroom door across the hall. Jarvis’s voice followed her, warning her to wait, but she couldn’t possibly. Silas was awake and gurgling happily, flapping his arms. The car seat, safely in the center of the bathtub, rocked with his motions.
“Oh, my baby.” She couldn’t help herself—she had to hold him. Lifting him from the seat, she cradled his head to her shoulder, kissing his chubby cheek. “It’s all over now, my sweetheart.”
“He’s okay?”
“Perfect.” She twisted to find Jarvis staring at her. “It’s over, right?”
He nodded.
“Thank you.” She realized what a fool she’d been rushing out here alone. As her errors stuttered through her mind, she realized how she’d played right into Regina’s plans. If Jarvis hadn’t shown up, with police backup, there was no telling how badly this might have ended.
“Jarvis—”
He cut her off with a sharp look. “Why would you do this? You could’ve been killed.” His face was pale and she knew she had to find a way to reassure him. “I—I was only thinking of my dad. He asked for my help.”
Jarvis folded his arms. “You called but didn’t wait. You didn’t give me much chance to help you.”
“And yet you showed up in time. Thank you,” she said again.
But timing wasn’t the point. She saw the pain in his eyes and realized how her lapse in judgment, how putting herself and the baby at risk, hurt him. This man had gone above and beyond for her and she’d returned his kindnesses by being cruel, forcing him to worry that another person he cared for would be injured. Or worse.
“I’m sorry, Jarvis.” He turned away, as if he couldn’t bear to look at her. “You would’ve told me it was a trap.”
“It was!” He hitched a shoulder, shuffling his feet. His brother called for him and he stepped into the hallway. A moment later he returned. “Regina’s in cuffs,” he told her, his voice flat. “I’ve called an ambulance.”
Of course he had.
“They should be here any minute. Wait in the bedroom with your dad. All three of you are safe now.” He held her gaze for a long moment, then his eyes shifted to her son, lingered there. “I’ll see you around, Mia. Be well.”
She stood there, feelings and words a logjam in her throat. He couldn’t be walking away. Yet, this wasn’t the time or place to demand he uphold his promise.
