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Caleb clenched his fists repeatedly. “You stole from me, Stuart. Not the other way around.”
“Well, now I’m going to take away everyone you love. Like you took away everyone I loved. Starting with this bitch.” He moved his arms up and wrapped them around her neck.
Tiera gasped as she felt her windpipe being cut off. “Stop,” she struggled to get free.
Stuart held onto her neck tight as he dragged her to his car. “She’s going with me.”
“I’ll die before I let you take her.” Caleb ran over to Stuart.
“Come closer, and I’ll break her windpipe.”
Caleb’s expression asked me to forgive him for what he was about to do. He lunged toward Stuart. Tiera felt herself getting weaker and weaker. If he squeezed any tighter, she would slump in his arms. Death would be next. Was this her fate?
She was flung to the ground and immediately began gasping for air. Caleb rushed Stuart and started throwing blows. They fought like it was to the death. The mace was clearly affecting Stuart’s vision. When he wiped his eyes, Caleb punched him in the stomach and landed an uppercut, making him stumble backward. When he rushed toward him, prepared to hit him again, Stuart unsheathed a knife and sliced it into Caleb’s stomach.
Tiera watched Caleb’s eyes widen after he was struck by the knife. He slumped, holding his stomach. The gut-wrenching scream that came out of Tiera’s mouth could be heard a block over.
Even with a clear shot, the front door guard remained frozen with his shaking gun pointed at Stuart. The man clearly didn’t need a job where he might be required to use a gun.
Unbeknownst to any of them, Dimir had gotten up and got into a position to take Stuart down. He tackled him from behind and brought him down hard on the pavement.
Stuart cried like a bitch when his face smashed into the cement. “Ow, that fucking hurts.”
Dimir gave Stuart’s head one more good slam to the ground for good measure.
Caleb sat down on the sidewalk, guarding his stomach.
Tiera couldn’t hold back her tears as she went to Caleb’s aid. “Hold on, baby. Someone call an ambulance,” she yelled. “Someone call a fucking ambulance. Right now! Please.”
Years of friendship, years of him being her secret crush, years of what-ifs flashed before her eyes. She couldn’t lose him out here on this dirty, public pavement. She couldn’t lose him before she had the chance to tell him that what they shared wasn’t research.
She ugly cried when she heard the blaring sound of emergency medical and police approaching. Thankfully, someone had already called for help for Dimir’s two guards. Help was on the way.
“You better not leave me. I’d hate to call Rita and tell her you’ve been stabbed. It would ruin the rest of her cruise.”
“Leave my Mom out of this.”
“Only if you promise you’re going to make it.”
He reached up and touched the side of her face. “I’m going to make it.”
CHAPTER 10
Caleb
“This is Roxanne Miller from Channel Nine News. We’re getting reports that Stuart Braswell, a former employee of Fitzgerald and Wright, has been arrested for criminal harassment and attempted abduction of shareholder Tiera Wright. Tiera’s attempted abduction was thwarted by Caleb Fitzgerald and his security team. Caleb had learned through his private investigator that Stuart was planning to kidnap an unknown person close to him and hold them for ransom. Turns out that person was Tiera Wright. This is a huge fall from grace for Braswell, who once was considered an up-and-coming financial consultant. His financial misconduct includes convincing investors to invest their life savings in a shell company with no financial value and skimming money off the top of projects at Fitzgerald and Wright. Now, Braswell has allegedly committed criminal harassment and abduction. We are told by a reliable source Braswell has been living out of his car around the city since his bank accounts were frozen by authorities as he awaits trial for the Ponzi scheme. We are glad he is in custody and that Tiera Wright, Caleb Fitzgerald and the rest of their team are safe. We will report more on this story as it develops.”
Caleb clicked off the TV and let out a sigh. He was glad this mess with Stuart was over. He wanted his life back. More than that, he wanted to start a life with Tiera. He wouldn’t be doing that until he got out of this hospital bed and far away from beeping machines and around-the-clock temperature and blood pressure checks.
Soft taps drew his attention to the door. He hoped those taps belonged to her.
He coughed to clear his throat. “Come in.”
Tiera walked in, bringing a ray of sunshine with her. She strode over to his bed and set a bouquet of lilacs on his bedside table. She’d brought him flowers. That was definitely a sign that things were moving in the right direction for them.
He didn’t fault his father for warning him against getting seriously involved with a woman when he was young. However, following that advice had deprived him of many precious moments with her. He was determined to make up that missed time.
“Hey, how are you, Caleb?” she asked.
