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“Did they find out how the hell they found us?”
Landry gives a dark chuckle that holds no humor. “Best guess, the one who was a detective traced her phone before it died. He was either shitty at his job or he didn’t care what traces of his crime he left behind. Him or the other one. A cousin. Stupidity must run in that family.”
Now that the pieces are falling in place I’m not all that surprised. “What a piece of work.”
Landry’s sharp gaze sweeps over to mine. “Yep. He snagged a cop uniform for his cousin and they cooked up the plan of kidnapping the governor’s daughter for some fast cash.”
“That blew up in their faces.”
“When our girl landed on their radar, it looks like they thought a double ransom payout was better than one.” Austin’s shoulder hikes up. “Who knows for sure? The detectives aren’t done and the fuckwads aren’t doing much talking from the morgue.”
I feel the muscles along my spine relax from the tight dread clamping around it. “Good.” I have respect for the dead. But not them. “They can’t hurt anyone where they’re at.”
Both men nod. “Amen to that, brother.”
“How much longer for my discharge papers? I’m not staying here another night. One more meal of slimy green Jell-O and shitty coffee and I might do something that lands me in jail,” I say flatly, needing to find Honor in the worst way after hearing all that shit.
“I hear the food is better.”
We all three whirl around to see Honor standing in the door to my hospital room. My head is spinning and I have to close one eye to gain my bearings, but the angel I see gracing my hospital room makes up for the throbbing pain.
Her eyes immediately find the bandage on my shoulder and the second wrapped around my head. I took a nasty hit from a large well-aimed rock barreling through the dark that put me under for the count.
Tears well in her eyes, and I feel their anguish deep inside me as if our souls are connected.
She’s wringing her hands and biting her lip in a way that has me worried she’s going to do what we did three years ago and walk. Her father must have worked her over good with the guilt and bullshit he pulled on us.
I hold out an arm, and she crosses the room to me.
“I’m so sorry,” she whispers into my neck and I close my eyes, thanking God she’s alive and I have the chance to feel her warm and safe in my arms. Fuck, if my heart doesn’t tear out of my chest and fall to the floor, I’ll count it as a win. I tighten my arm around her and inhale her sweet scent. Fire burns in my shoulders, but I shove it aside.
I guess I’m just as lucky to be taking up space. Another inch or so and the heart would have taken the bullet instead.
“Sorry? What the hell for, baby?”
“I feel so guilty for everything.”
“You have nothing to feel guilty about. We failed you in that regard when you needed us the most. Will you forgive us? Can you?”
She turns to look at all of us. “I talked with my father. He told me everything. He regretted it the second you guys left but didn’t know how to fix it.”
“So he saw this as the perfect opportunity. Two birds one stone.”
She nods. “But that’s not why I’m so mad I can’t think straight. Now, there’s another problem.”
Austin stands and guides her to a chair next to Landry then moves to close the door.
She’s on her feet and across the room before she can settle into the chair. “It’s because of me you have blood on your hands. You had to kill those men because of me. Because I always bring trouble to people’s lives. My mother’s, my father’s. Yours. Not once but twice.” Her eyes are like saucers. “And now you’re in the hospital. I’m bad for people.” Her tone has a sharp undertone of dread. Tears are streaming down her face now, and I throw the blankets off and move to stand.
She’s wearing a pair of jeans over those dreamy legs and a sparkly pink shirt that dips low to reveal the top swell of her breasts that are rising and falling erratically. She looks perfect, tears and all. Feminine and soft.
She’s by my side in a heartbeat and I spread my legs, creating the perfect place for her to fit. I cup her cheek and angle her head until her pretty brown eyes are on mine.
“Protecting you is our life. You are our life. It’s been that way from the day we walked into your life when you were eighteen and it never stopped. We knew what we signed up for then, and we knew it this time around. We might not have been by your side every hour, but we watched from afar.” I drop my head to hers. “I’m just sorry we weren’t there in the first place that put you into this mess.”
She cups my face. “There’s no guarantee anything could have prevented me from being in that back alley. I’m just grateful you were there to catch me when I fell.”
I know what she means.
