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Tires squeal, and a familiar engine roars on the floors below us. Sirens aren’t too far behind. Luke’s car screeches to a halt, perpendicular across the empty parking spaces. He jumps out and takes in the scene. Our gazes lock and I let go. Tears well and spill over as he runs to me and wraps me up in his comforting arms.
His hand cradles my head as I sob into his shoulder. I can’t put on a brave face for Luke. “Are you ok?” he asks, stepping back so he can look me over for injuries. He stops short at the blood on my shirt. I nod, too choked up to speak. “I’m so sorry, baby,” he whispers and pulls me against his chest again.
John arrives minutes later with two other police cars, and I’ll never forget the distraught look on his face that rivals Luke’s.
“I’m ok. I promise. You should see the other guy,” I say, trying to lighten the mood. Luke releases me and John scoops me up in a bear hug and doesn’t let go for a full minute.
The other officers tell Mark to drop his weapon. He lowers it to the ground while other officers approach the thugs. John talks to them and Mark leans against my car, wincing as he lowers to the ground. Luke kneels next to him.
“Where are you hurt?” he asks, putting a supportive hand on his shoulder.
“Everywhere. I just need a minute,” Mark says, his voice strained.
Gratitude fills me as I watch him recover. I can’t imagine what would have happened if he wasn’t here. I kneel in front of him and grip his forearm. “Thank you, Mark.”
He grunts and leans his head back against the car, but his eyes stay on me. “She head butted the bastard,” Mark says, a grin playing on his lips. Luke looks over at me with a soft smile. He swallows and squeezes my hand.
We move out of the way when a paramedic approaches and tends to Mark.
I’m checked out too, but other than a bruise on my forehead and arm, I’m ok. The ambulances leave carrying the thugs. The one without a bullet wound gets put in the back of a police cruiser. Mark talks to the officers for a while, holding an ice pack to his bruised face. John listens as he tells them about Scotty and describes what happened. Mark stands when he’s finished and John returns his weapon to him.
I provide my statement to the officers next, and Luke pulls me into his arms the second I’m finished. They take Mark to the hospital to make sure he’s ok. Then Luke and I head home. John follows in his police SUV.
When we get to the condo, everyone is waiting for us. More tears well when I meet their concerned gazes. Jackson is the first to pull me into a hug, and I wrap my arms around him as I struggle to hold back another sob.
“Told you I’d get you to hug me someday,” he says, and I huff out a laugh and squeeze him tight. He releases me with a smile and I hug Brando next, then Jordy and Skye at the same time. Vera wraps herself around me like an octopus and doesn’t let go. “I’m so glad you’re ok,” she says before releasing me.
We move to the living room and Vera hands me a glass of water. Luke hands me a tissue and sits next to me, and they all listen as he gives them the short version of what happened. When he gets to the part where I head butted Scotty, they all turn to face me. The guys have soft smiles and a look I can’t describe. Then it hits me. They’re all proud of me. The feeling wraps around me and settles with a glow in my heart. I’m no longer the whimpering girl Luke found in the alleyway. And it’s because of my training and the support of every person in the room, plus Mark. They’re my family.
“Liv, say the word and I’ll take you home, away from all of this,” John says, his voice soft. He’s not trying to rile me up, despite his suggestion.
Luke’s eyebrows pinch together as he looks at John, then at me. He doesn’t have to say it. Leaving would kill him just as much as it would kill me. He doesn’t want me to go. And I don’t want to.
I rest my hand on the side of his face. “I already told you. We’re doing this. I’m not going anywhere.”
He sighs in relief and kisses me.
“What you’re doing isn’t working. We need an alternative plan,” John says, his tone harder.
Luke meets John’s gaze. I can tell he’s contemplating something. He turns to me. “Do you trust me?”
“Of course,” I say without hesitation as I swipe away the last remnants of my tears. He grabs my hand and places a kiss on my knuckles. “Go pack a large suitcase with anything you need for the next few weeks. Don’t worry about forgetting anything. We can buy it if we need to.”
He waits for my response, knowing I would ask a thousand questions with a request like that, but he asked me to trust him, and I wasn’t lying when I said I did. I take a deep breath, nod, and make my way to our bedroom.
“We leave as soon as Mark gets cleared.” Luke’s authoritative voice follows me down the hall as he talks to the guys. He’s in Timberwolf mode and he’s going to get things done. I trust him to do just that.
