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And, finally, I saw how Jock died.
That mattered less than the aftermath of watching Lia go into shock, stumbling back and sinking to the floor, shaking from head to toe. Agony tore through me at how she held herself but at the same time, warm, glorious relief poured over me.
“She’s alive,” I said. “Oh my god, Lia—”
Something moved out of the corner of my eye, and I looked up, expecting Daniel.
Only, it was Lia who stepped out of the shadows of the hallway. Her eyes were huge in her face, and she was pale, but she wasn’t shaking. Moving around the island, I took her in slowly, running my eyes over her and checking for injuries.
There were bruises on her jaw along with a thin cut on her cheek and a nasty one on her arm, but otherwise, she looked okay.
“Holy shit,” I said on a ragged exhale and, suddenly, she was in my arms. I inhaled the scent of her sweet, golden hair, and felt her soft, lithe body press against mine. It told me she was here, that we were both okay somehow. I still asked, “You’re here, right? I’m not fucking dreaming?”
“I’m here,” Lia said in a soft voice. There was a pause, and then she tried to joke, “You dream about me?”
“Lia,” I said and stepped back, cupping her face. My eyes went to the cut on her face. “That was from that bastard throwing the blade at you — holy shit, did you hold your own!” Images from her fighting flashed through my mind. “Baby girl, I’m so proud of you.”
“But, I…” Shadows, not tears, filled her eyes. “You saw what happened, didn’t you?”
“You defended yourself,” I said in a rough voice. “Jock would havemurderedyou. He’s done more fucked up shit than you can imagine, Lia. No mercy, no humanity, he kills women, kids, whole families, and…” I stopped. She didn’t need to hear about Jock Hendrix’s horror rap sheet. Instead, I pulled her against me again. “Don’t even think about that bastard.”
I don’t even want to think about what I would’ve done to him for hurting you.
“Are you okay, Ty?” Lia asked and that warm feeling pulsed through me again. “Should you be up, walking around? How are you even awake?”
“I’m awake and breathing right now because of you, Lia Goldin,” I said and held her even tighter. “You saved my life. You saved all of our lives.”
It hit me then that Daniel had brought smelling salts, which meant that he’d brought his medical kit. Now, I recalled the way my cousin had been so tense, how he’d struggled to hide his emotions from me.
Poor Daniel had been expecting the worst when he’d seen the power had gone out here. And he’d hauled ass all the way from South Shore on his night off. God, my cousin… I owed him everything.
And I owed Lia.
“Thank you,” I whispered. “We all owe you.”
“It’s okay,” Lia whispered.
“At some point, you’re gonna tell me where you learned to kick ass like that,” I said. “But not now.” I ran a hand over her hair. “Let me take care of you and check your wounds.”
Lia nodded. I couldn’t help it; I hugged her tighter.
“I promise that you will never go through anything like this again,” I whispered into her hair. “I’m so sorry. This fuck-up is on me.” I paused for several seconds. “But from here on out, I’ve got you. I’ve always got you.” A shaky breath exuded out of me. “I’m glad you’re alive.”
To my surprise, Lia hugged me back just as tight and whispered, “Right back at you.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT
Ty
Istood in the doorway of the guard room, eyes on the empty chairs and the bank of lifeless monitors on the wall. The windows were open, letting in the cool, heavy scent of a rainy winter dawn. But even the frigid air did little to get rid of the scent of bleach and the bitter tang of blood underneath.
Closing my eyes, I turned my head and pressed my aching eyes into my arm.I’m so tired of this shit. None of my guys deserved to go out like this.
While we’d been able to get the backup power source on, the security cameras were a mess. And no one, rightly, wanted to be in the guard room where our brothers-in-arms had died.
Stepping out, I shut the door behind me and tried not to think of finding the guards outside gunned down as well. Right now,I had no one watching the house. Instead, most of my guys were combing the streets for answers. Everyone was on edge and packing heat — and out for blood.
Hendrix’s thirst for power was bringing us closer and closer to an all-out gang war.
