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“And they overtook you?” Elias asked.
“Hit us before I even knew what was coming. They took out the guys on the street and then the guys at the front. I took Paulette and the baby to the back of the house, hoping to make a stand.”
“Armed?” Elias tilted his head and leaned in, fully engaged with every word Erik said, every movement he made.
“Not well enough. No guns in the house,” he said.
“That’s my fault,” I whispered. “I wouldn’t allow it.”
Elias looked at me, his expression telling me nothing, before he focused on Erik again.
“Then tell me what happened,” Elias said.
I looked at Davit, and at first glance, one would think that he was showing no emotion.
But I knew that wasn’t true.
I could see the way his jaw flexed and knew it was probably best that Elias was handling these questions. Davit was as close to the edge as I was.
One wrong word and he would rip Erik limb from limb.
I would too.
Him or anyone else if it came to that.
But right now, we needed answers, and Erik was the only one who could give us any.
“Like I said, they came in heavy. The attack was surgical. I tried to protect Paulette, but…” Erik trailed off, what looked like pure regret on his face.
“Yet somehow you managed to get stabbed without them hitting any vital organs,” Elias said, clearly uncaring of how Erik appeared to feel.
“It wasn’t luck that saved me,” Erik said, the first flash of anger I’d seen since we arrived crossing his face.
“Meaning?” Davit asked.
The single word he spoke was gruff, almost unintelligible, and it betrayed how close to the edge he was. I just wasn’t sure if that was intentional.
Erik started to shrug but flinched, the way he held his body telling me his pain was genuine. “Clearly, I’m the fall guy. They had me trapped. Even baby Crystal could have finished me off.”
He frowned, deep lines settling in his face and forehead after he said her name. But then he pushed on. “Whoever planned this kept me alive, so it looked like I was in on it. How much have they asked for?”
“There’s been no contact yet,” Davit said.
Erik looked surprised. “Still,” he said, again trying for a shrug but then grimaced.
“So it’s convenient for us to believe that you were in on it. We get distracted taking care of you and thus buying them more time,” Elias said.
“That’s how I would do it,” Erik said.
“What would you do if you were me?” Davit asked.
Erik didn’t answer immediately and instead considered his words.
Then he met Davit’s eyes. “I never had the honor of becoming a father, so I can’t imagine how you feel. But if I were in your shoes, this would be my last minute on earth. And I wouldn’t blame you at all if this is mine.”
I could seeDavit’s jaw flexing as though he was considering just that.
“No. I don’t think it will be,” Davit finally said.
