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Actually, it seems like he’s her go-to guy for everything. For a moment there, when I saw him on the bed, her bed, I thought they’d been sleeping together.
Allie shrugs. “He is. Maybe I’ll do that as a last resort, but I’ve already asked a lot of him.”
I say nothing.
“Isn’t that great, though?” she says. “We got the shooter. I mean, you did.”
“It doesn’t mean they won’t send another,” I tell her honestly.
She frowns but nods. “Right. That’s why it’s important to find out who gave Nero his orders and go after them. They’re the real monsters.”
I narrow my eyes at her. “Didn’t you say before that hired killers were the worst? Worse than the men who pay them?”
Allie throws me her own curious gaze. “And didn’t you say that you were investigating the man who tried to shoot me? It seems you’ve caught him, so isn’t your job done?”
I’d forgotten that’s what I told her.
“He’s not the one I was asked to investigate,” I tell her. “I thought it was him, but I was wrong. He doesn’t look anything like the picture I was given.”
“Oh,” Allie says. “So are you going to do your own investigation now?”
“No. I know the guy I’m after works for the Bianchis.”
If Sergio Bianchi orchestrated that tragic night and that ginger-head was a part of it, they could very well know each other.
“That’s good.” Allie nods. “I mean, it’s bad he wasn’t the one you were looking for, but it’s good that… I mean, we’re still on the right track, right?”
“I think so.”
We didn’t really learn anything new about Sergio Bianchi tonight, but the shooter was there, and so was that ginger-haired ghost.
Ghost. I guess that’s what I’m calling him now since he practically came back from the dead.
“There.” Allie finishes bandaging my arm. “How does that feel?”
I lift my arm. “Good.”
“What about your other…?”
She touches my arm and I jerk it away. She gives me a puzzled look.
“Sorry,” I tell her as I rub my arm. “It’s still a little sore.”
“You were holding on to it earlier,” Allie recalls. “Sure it’s not broken?”
“No,” I answer. “It just gets painful and weak if it gets hit. I got shot before and the bullet damaged some nerves.”
Allie’s eyebrows go up. “You mean in battle?”
I guess it counts as a battle so I nod.
“I see.” Allie frowns. “I’m sorry to hear about that.”
“It’s fine. It doesn’t bother me anymore, except when it gets punched.”
A fact which Nero knew, which still puzzles me. If only I could go question him myself.
“What about your leg?” Allie asks as she looks at the hole in my thigh.
“I’ll take care of it.” I take the first aid kit from her and stand up. “It’s not that deep anyway.”
Allie nods.
I go to the bathroom to disinfect and bandage the wound, taking off my pants and then putting them back on. When I get out, I find Allie still awake. She’s lying on the edge of the bed facing the window. She hasn’t changed either, still in her black jeans and her maroon top with the cutout sleeves. As I approach her, I see the anxiety on her face and I frown.
Maybe I shouldn’t have told her about the shooter. Maybe I shouldn’t have said there could be more.
I place a hand on her shoulder. “You should rest. You’re safe now.”
Allie looks at me and shakes her head. “I wasn’t thinking about me. What happened earlier scares me, yes, but not because somebody was there to kill me. It scares me because when I remember it, I remember you in a fight, you getting hurt. That scared me.”
I see.
“It’s over now, though,” I tell her. “I’m fine. You…”
She stands up and puts her arms around me. Come to think of it, she did this earlier, too.
“You were nearly killed because of me,” she mutters against my shoulder.
I pull away and place my hands on her cheeks as I look into her eyes.
“Allie, look at me. I’m alive. I’m fine.”
“But you could have died.” Genuine worry gleams in her blue eyes. “I wasn’t able to do anything to help you.”
I stroke her cheek. “I heard your voice. That was enough.”
It distracted me for a moment, yes, but it also gave me strength, and it helped calm me down when I was about to kill a man.
Allie’s lips curve into a smile. A smile I’ve never seen before. Then she places her hands over mine and lifts her face to kiss me. The press of her tender lips sends ripples of heat down my spine.
I pull my mouth and my hands away. When Allie opens her eyes, I see warmth in them.
“Allie…”
“I know you’re hurt.” Her hands stroke my cheeks this time. “And you’re tired. So let me do this for you. Let me.”
I wasn’t thinking about that, actually. I was going to say that we shouldn’t be having any more sex because we’re not right for each other. But as I gaze into Allie’s eyes, I start to forget why.
