Total pages in book: 141
Estimated words: 143382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 717(@200wpm)___ 574(@250wpm)___ 478(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 143382 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 717(@200wpm)___ 574(@250wpm)___ 478(@300wpm)
I reconsidered it more when we both angled in the Denali and Eric wasn’t even breathing heavy, but I was, and added to that, I had a wicked stitch in my side.
He didn’t fuck around getting to the police station.
Once there, I was forced to explore the depths of my patience when I was relegated to a chair in a waiting room, and Eric disappeared into the bowels of the station accompanied by a uniform.
I wasn’t sure why he was allowed in and I was not, but asking that question might be detrimental to exploring the depths of my patience, so I decided to keep my mouth shut.
About seven hours later (okay, it was probably maybe ten minutes), Roam strolled out from where Eric had sauntered in.
Even in the current circumstances, I took the needed moment to recover from how fine he was (as with all these men, he was just that fine) while he made his approach to me.
He sat down beside me and turned my way.
“Your brother and Montoya are being released,” he announced.
I let out the breath I could have sworn I’d been holding since I heard Jeff’s voice on my phone.
“They weren’t arrested,” Roam continued. “They were taken in for questioning because they brought two males who’d sustained gunshot wounds to an ER.”
My heart stuttered to a halt.
“Gunshot wounds?” I whispered.
Roam’s lips thinned before he shared, “One was DOA.”
That was when my heart twisted.
“One of Javi’s men?” I asked, my voice stretched tight.
He nodded.
Oh God.
Poor Jeff.
Poor Javi.
Poor unknown Shadow Soldier.
I put my elbows to my knees and dropped my head in my hands.
Roam rubbed my back, not invasive, not expansive, just right.
It felt nice.
Seriously, these were such good guys.
Then it hit me, and I sat up abruptly.
“What about the other guy?”
I didn’t like the look that came over Roam’s face, even before he explained it.
“He’s in surgery. We don’t know.” He paused, studying me closely, then from whatever he read he made a decision and carried on, “But it’s not looking good because he was shot seven times.”
Seven times?
Seven?
“Fucking fuck,” I bit off.
At this point, we both sensed motion to our sides.
We looked that way, and I saw Eric and Mace with a handsome Latino dude who wore a more-official-than-just-normally-official uniform coming our way.
The handsome Latino dude, who I’d never seen in my life, caught sight of me and then let out a visibly massive sigh like I worked his last nerves.
I didn’t get that, but I also didn’t have time to consider it.
Because with them were Javi and Jeff.
I stood, feeling both heartbroken and nervous, because I hadn’t left things in a very good place with my brother, and now I knew he was suffering.
I should have known not to be nervous.
We’d had spats before.
We got over it.
We’d had one doozie of a spat, the worst ever.
And in that moment, my brother didn’t hesitate to walk right up to me and wrap his arms around me.
I returned the gesture.
“I’m so sorry, honey,” I whispered in his ear, my eyes on Javi’s face, noting how his male beauty had turned to stone in his grief.
At my words, Jeff said nothing, but his arms did.
They got tight.
I let him leech what he needed from me for a while before I pulled a bit away. He lifted his head, I peered in his eyes, and I whispered, “Let’s get to the hospital.”
There was maybe one good reason to go to a hospital. That being because you were having a baby. All the rest, it was known by all and sundry, were clearly not fun and games.
I could confirm, of the variety of reasons you went to the hospital, the reason we did it sucked huge.
The news we received upon making it there sucked exponentially huger.
Javi’s other soldier died on the operating table.
I wasn’t sure how the men corralled Javi and Jeff into a Denali and to the Nightingale Investigations & Security offices (along with me).
I just knew, a half an hour after Javi and Jeff were dealt that second blow, we were there, in Mace’s office, and Cap and Raye, Roam, Knox, Brady and Gabe were all there too.
And, obviously, Eric.
Raye and I sat on a couch in the back of Mace’s super slick office.
She held my hand.
I couldn’t tear my eyes from Jeff, who was sitting in a chair in front of Mace’s desk, leaned forward, both of his hands wrapped around the back of his neck.
Javi was pacing.
No one said anything, and they were giving Javi loads of room, something I understood because the vibe he was emitting was terrifying.
Eventually, Mace decided it was time. I wasn’t sure he was right, but I didn’t have a choice.
Because he remarked to Javi, “I think you understand it’s time we debrief.”
Jeff shot straight, but I got wired when Javi suddenly stopped pacing and faced off against Mace.