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Lyla jolted awake, mouth open on a scream. She clapped a hand over her mouth and lay in bed, shaking. Gavin slept with his back to her. Beau padded out of the darkness, and nudged her arm with his nose. Lyla slid out of bed, sagged to her knees, wrapped her arms around him and wept silently. She felt as if she lost Manny all over again.
When she got a hold of herself, she kissed his muzzle and went to pee. Her reflection showed haunted, bloodshot eyes, pale complexion and colorless lips. Lyla grabbed a jacket and put it on over her tank top and tights before she left the cabin with Beau. It was still dark out. Lyla settled on a deck chair with Beau between her legs, keeping her feet warm as the cool ocean breeze swirled around her.
That had been some dream. How could her mind create something so realistic? The beginning had been good, but the end was a nightmare.Keep Nora safe.Lyla wrapped her arms around her stomach. Manny was right. The sadist who stabbed her never intended for her to live. He would come back to finish the job.
Lyla clung to the good parts of the dream, but the bad refused to be ignored. Grief rose so strong, she could barely contain it. Like Carmen, she lost someone she loved more than herself. There was no coping mechanism except to focus on little tasks and keep putting one foot in front of the other. Her heart and mind still couldn’t accept that Manny was gone. Nora would grow up never knowing Manny or understanding Gavin’s overprotectiveness. Lyla refused to allow Nora to feel a modicum of the terror and horror she endured because of the underworld.
On a sudden surge of anger, she went into the cabin and retrieved her gun from her purse. Gavin was trying to lose himself in her and the baby to calm his inner beast. It must be torture to know that the man who killed his cousin and father was still out there.
“Ma’am?”
Lyla blinked up at the crewmember.
“Do you want me to take the dog to shore?”
“Uh, yeah, I’ll come too,” Lyla said, wiping her face and sticking the gun in her pants.
Lyla climbed into a smaller boat with the crewmember and Beau. They walked along the shore as the sun came up. Beau raced along the beach before rounding back to her and then taking off again to do his business. There was no one around and the isolation soothed her. She dug her feet into the cold, wet sand and eyed the yacht that bobbed just outside of the cove. After the dry desert air, the ocean breeze felt like heaven. She knotted the arms of her jacket around her neck as she strolled.
On the trip back to the yacht, Lyla silently groaned when she saw Blade and Gavin waiting with their arms crossed. Gavin put his hands on her as soon as he could.
“You’re not making this easy on me, are you?” Gavin asked as he hauled her onboard.
“Beau had to do his business.”
“You should have woke me up.”
“I have my gun.” She brandished it, which made the crew members scatter.
Blade snatched the gun, but of course the safety was on.
“You shouldn’t be handling this unless it’s an emergency, especially in your condition,” Blade said.
Lyla ignored him and poured water into Beau’s doggy bowl.
“Breakfast is ready,” Gavin said and gestured to a beautiful spread on the deck.
Blade made a plate and retreated inside after shooting a nasty look at Lyla. Apparently, Gavin passed the time waiting for her return by chewing him out. Lyla piled her plate high. Despite her unease, she was starved.
“Your eyes are swollen.”
Lyla ignored Gavin’s quiet observation.
“Are you okay?”
Lyla nodded and continued stuffing her face, hoping he would take the hint. Gavin snatched a Danish out of her hand.
“Lyla, talk to me.”
“I’m fine,” she said and reached for another Danish, which he took from her as well. “Damn it, Gavin, I’m fine!”
“You’re not fine. Normally you don’t carry your gun. Something spooked you. What?”
Obviously, he wasn’t going to let this slide. “I had a nightmare.”
His eyes searched hers intently. “About Dad?”
Lyla’s eyes burned. “Yeah.” The silence stretched and she said, “He warned me that this guy wouldn’t stop until he finished the job.”
