The Soul of Archer

by Michelle Kee

  Ian stopped and turned, his own gun out and ready. “You think you can take me? Huh? You have no idea who I am.”

  “I know you’re finished. Drop the gun. Now!” Lance ordered.

  Lance’s breathing was slow and steady as he waited for Ian to make his move. He saw it the split-second Ian made his choice. Before Ian’s trigger finger had fully squeezed, Lance fired three rounds, all hitting center mass. Slowly, Lance approached the fallen Ian and saw he was no longer a member of the land of the living. Sighing, Lance pushed the .45 from Ian’s hand with the toe of his boot and holstered his own weapon. He turned and returned to his teammates. The gunfight was over and all Malconi’s men were dead.

  “Ian Malconi?” Danny asked.

  “Dead.” Lance answered.

  “What about Sam?” Gage questioned.

  “He’s not here.” Jimmy called out.

  The quiet was disturbed by a single gunshot from inside. Lance’s heart stopped as he remembered Alora was in there with Annabelle. He sprinted for the building and through the doors. He skidded to a stop at what he saw. Alora stood over a very dead Annabelle Malconi, Annabelle’s pistol in her hand. Lance took first one step, then another. Alora turned, dropped the gun and started walking toward him. They met in the middle of the room and Lance pulled her into his arms, holding her fiercely.

  “Thank god. Are you alright?”

  “I’m fine Lance. I warned her that she’d better pray for you to get to her first. She should have listened.” Alora sighed, her eyes closing as she breathed in Lance.

  Movement behind Lance made Alora open her eyes. It was Sam. Not even thinking, she gripped Lance and somehow twisted, so their positions were reversed just as Sam fired.

  Pain. White hot and sharp shot through her shoulder as a scream escaped her throat. Her vision went blinding white, tunneled then was back to normal as she landed on top of Lance.

  A second shot rang out, but who shot it and who had been hit didn’t matter to her. Lance was over her, cupping her face. She could see his lips moving but for some reason, her ears weren’t working. Oh shit, her vision was tunneling again as the pain grew more intense. The last thing she saw before her world went black, was Lance’s face.

  Chapter 23

  Lance sat in the waiting room, his head buried in his hands. It had been three hours since he had rushed Alora to the hospital. She had been immediately been taken up to surgery. Now, he and his team were waiting to see if she would be alright. He prayed to god that she would be. He needed her, he couldn’t lose her. Not now, not like this. He looked up when a hand rested on his shoulder. Ethan.

  “I…I can’t lose her Ethan. I just can’t.”

  “I know brother, I know. She’s going to pull through.” Ethan promised.

  Ethan watched as once more Lance buried his face in his hands. He had entered the building just as Sam had fired. Ethan had fired his own gun and before Sam hit the deck, he was at Lance’s side. Alora had taken a bullet meant for Lance to the upper chest, just below her left shoulder. Ethan and Lance had gotten her into the SUV. Danny had driven and sped toward the hospital. Half an hour later the rest of Blackout had arrived saying Jimmy and Cain were handling the scene. Ethan felt helpless, as did the others, in how to help Lance. When the waiting room doors opened, Lance’s head jerked up and he shot to his feet.

  “Alora St. James’s family?” the doctor asked.

  “I’m her husband.” Lance blurted out before he could think about it. “How is she? Is she alive?”

  “Your wife is a lucky young woman. Had the bullet been a quarter inch to either side it would have nicked her heart. Having said that, there was significant tissue damage to the lower shoulder region. She’s looking at several months’ worth of physical therapy to get the shoulder and its surrounding muscles back up to working order. May I ask, does she work?” The doctor explained.

  “She’s…um, she’s a baker in Austin. Her specialty is cakes.” Lance stammered, as the doctor’s words sank in.

  “She won’t be doing anything like that for a while. She’s being moved to her room now. Once she’s settled, the nurse will come down and take you to her. For now, I would only recommend one or two visitors at a time. She’s going to be groggy from the anesthesia and in pain. However, if everything is healing nicely, I would feel comfortable releasing her in about a week or so.” The doctor smiled gently.

  Lance reached out and took the man’s hand. “Thank you doctor. Thank you for… for saving her.”

  “It’s my job, and my pleasure.”

  With a nod, the doctor turned and walked away while Lance’s teammates gathered around him. Ethan spoke first, “Hawk, after the nurse comes down we’ll head back to Austin. You stay here and take care of her. We’ll swing by tomorrow afternoon. I know Kris will want to see her.”

  “Okay. Could you call my folks and tell them she’s going to be okay? I called them after she was taken in to surgery.” Lance requested.

  “You got it.” Ethan agreed.

  ***

  Alora groaned as her eyes blinked open. The evening light was just beginning to filter into the room. A room that wasn’t hers. She frowned in confusion for a moment before the events that morning came back to her. She remembered seeing Sam raise the gun, twisting her and Lance around then there was the pain. When Alora tried to sit up, she cried out in pain and fell back against the pillow.

  “Hey, hey. Easy baby.”

  “Lance?” she sighed.

  “Yeah, I’m here Tigress. I’m here.”

  Turning her head, she took in his handsome face. He was handsome as ever but looked worried now. “Are you alright?”

  “Thanks to you. Of course, I should paddle your ass. You scared the ever lovin’ fuck out me woman.”

  “I scared me too. I just reacted Lance. I saw Sam with the gun and…I couldn’t let him hurt you.”

  Lance leaned over and kissed her lovingly. “I thought I was supposed to protect you?”

  Alora smiled a little, “I think we’re supposed to protect each other.”

  Lance couldn’t seem to find an argument to that logic. They did seem to make a good team. When he saw her licking her lips and swallowing frequently, he reached over for the water cup and straw. He placed the straw to her lips and watched as she drank slow and deep. She pulled back and lay her head against the pillow on a satisfied sigh. She turned to face him again, took a slow breath then spoke.

  “So, what happened?”

  “We don’t have to…”

  “Lance, humor me. Okay? I want to know what happened.”

  Sighing, he pulled the chair closer to the bed. “After Malconi called me and told me where to meet him, Ethan came up with a plan. He and the guys, along with Jimmy and Cain were in the eight crates I brought. When they confirmed I had eight crates, they popped out guns ready. Seems Malconi was ready too and nearly a dozen men showed up. I’m sure you could hear the gun fight inside.”

  Alora nodded. “Yeah, and the second it started Annabelle turned away from me. I charged her and tackled her to the ground. We fought, both trying to get that damned gun.”

  “I took out Ian Malconi. He ran, I followed. When he tried to shoot me, I shot first.”

  “I’m glad you killed him. I didn’t want to shoot her, but she gave me no choice.”

  Lance reached out and laid his hand over her left hand, which barely stuck out of the sling. Alora took a slow breath, even though her chest burned, but she supposed it was time to ask. “How bad off am I?”

  Lance licked his lips before answering, “The doc said you’re looking at several months of therapy. The bullet damaged the muscles of your lower shoulder. He also said no cake decorating for a while.” Lance placed a finger to her lips when she started to speak. “He’ll be by in the morning and you can talk to him then. Right now, you just sleep baby. Okay. Are you in pain?”

  “A little, but I don’t think I need anything just yet. Except for you to hold me.”

&
nbsp; Now how the hell was he supposed to argue with that? Toeing off his boots, Lance rounded the bed and very carefully, eased himself beside her and cradled her against him. She let out a contented sigh as her eyes drifted closed. In moments, her breathing leveled as she fell asleep. He lay there holding his life in his arms, thanking God that she was alive and that she would be okay.

  ***

  Lance awoke when the door to Alora’s room opened, it was the doctor. “Morning, Mr. Archer, not St. James.”

  Lance felt his shoulder’s sag. Yep, he was busted. “Guess you figured it out.”

  “I knew yesterday, but I could tell by how you reacted when you carried her in that she was very important. I’m Dr. Lomax by the way.” Lomax chuckled.

  Lance started to speak, but Alora was stirring. He shifted a little as her eyes opened. “Baby, this is Dr. Lomax. He’s the surgeon who took care of you yesterday.”

  “Oh, hi.” Alora greeted.

  “Good morning Ms. St. James. You look much better than when I saw you yesterday.” Lomax smiled.

  “I feel a bit better. My chest still hurts like a bitch, but since I’m still breathing I can’t complain, right?” Alora grinned slightly.

  “A very positive view.”

  She tried to sit up but hissed in pain. Lance moved so he was sitting and gently propped her against him. “Baby steps Tigress.”

  “He’s right. You need to take it slow over the next few weeks especially. Once you’re released from here, I want you to have a follow up with your personal doctor, Dr. Tinedale.” At Alora’s lifted brow, he elaborated. “Your friend in Houston called and gave us your medical information. I know Dr. Tinedale and called him yesterday and told him what happened. His office will be expecting your call once you’re back home.”

  “Then, I’ll call once I’m back home.” Alora said. Licking her lips, she hesitantly spoke again, “Um, Lance told me…well, what I want to know is, what about my bakery? I’m not just a decorator, I own it. I have nearly two dozen people who depend on me…”

  Lomax lifted his hand to silence her. “I understand. While it will be some time before you’re actually doing any decorating, lifting anything or actually baking, I think you could return to work in a strictly observation and desk work capacity in say about a month. Now, Tinedale may say different and he will have the final say there. But, I want to stress to you not to push yourself too fast too soon. You are an extremely lucky young lady, in that the bullet completely missed your heart and major arteries. You also just had major surgery on top of being shot. Your body needs time to recover and that’s not something you can rush.”

  “Yes sir. I just don’t want my employees to not be taken care of.” Alora sighed.

  An idea suddenly hit Lance. He would make that call later when the others came to visit. He just hoped it would pay off. Lance eased off the bed and stood to the side as Lomax examined the stitches from the previous day’s surgery. Lance bit back a gasp when he saw first-hand the evidence of what Sam Malconi had done. A six-inch scar ran diagonal from the bottom of her left shoulder to top of her breast. There would now be a scar, a permanent reminder of what happened. Lance clutched his fist and wished Sam was still alive so that he could rip the fucker apart with his bare hands.

  “Looks good. If you keep healing this well, you should be able to head home in about a week. I’m a firm believer that patients often heal better and a little faster in their homes than in stuffy hospitals.” Lomax grinned.

  “My dad used to say the same thing when he was alive. He had his gallbladder removed and wanted to recover at home saying he would get batter faster there. I think his doctor agreed just to shut my dad up, but damned if not two days after coming home, dad was much stronger and healed faster than the hospital said he would.” Alora chuckled, then groaned.

  Lance was at her side in a flash. “You have to try not to laugh right now baby.”

  “I know, it’s freakin’ hurts.” She groaned.

  “That will pass in a few days.” Lomax assured her. “I’ll leave you to rest and be by to check in with you tomorrow.”

  Alora and Lance waved bye and once alone again, Lance eased back into the bed pulling her to him. He held her as once again she drifted off to sleep. The nurse yesterday had told him that she would be drowsy and sleep frequently over the next two days and that he was to let her. This was her body’s way of healing itself and the antibiotics doing their job. Lance didn’t care if she slept for twelve hours a day, just as long as she got better and stayed healthy.

  ***

  Alora sighed as Lance closed the door behind them. Home. She was finally home. Just as Dr. Lomax had predicted, she was in the hospital only a week before being discharged that morning. While she had been in the hospital the guys from Blackout had come to visit her. So had Krista and her girlfriends, Danny, Jimmy, Cain, Debbie and Nick. Yes, Alora had appreciated it, but all she wanted was to go home with Lance. Ryan and Jacquie had wanted to come visit, but she told them to hold off till she got back home and checked out by Dr. Tinedale. She smiled when she spotted the fresh cut wildflowers sitting on the entryway table.

  “That your doing?” she questioned.

  “Maybe.” Lance winked, slipping his arm around her and steering her toward the kitchen. “Coffee?”

  “God yes please. The coffee in that place was awful.” Alora complained.

  She eased onto a stool at the island while Lance went to work on the coffee. Yes, her left arm was still in a sling and it sucked, but she was feeling much better than she had a week ago. It didn’t hurt to breath anymore and only hurt if she laughed too hard. Cupping her chin with her right hand, she studied Lance. Ethan had told her that he called himself her husband when the doctor had come out after her surgery. This had made Alora smile, as she recalled a few weeks ago she had done the same thing when Lance had been in the hospital. However, the thought of Lance as her husband made her stomach flutter. But a part of her decided it was just wishful thinking on her part. She smiled when Lance placed the steaming cup of coffee in front of her.

  “Here you go Tigress.”

  “Thank you so much.”

  Alora picked up the mug with her good hand and practically moaned as the first hot sip slid down her throat. Liquid gold. That’s all coffee was, liquid gold. She simply flipped Lance off when he laughed at her reaction. She sighed when she felt his hand against the back of her neck and massage it. Alora had told him once before she had never thought herself one of those women who wanted to be pampered, but when it was Lance taking care of her, it made her rethink that. But only if it was Lance doing the pampering.

  “Feeling better baby?”

  “Much.” She sighed and sat her mug down. “I’m still trying to figure out how I’m going to take care of my employees and my shop. Yes, I know Frank can take care of things, but it’s a lot of work to be a boss, decorate and manage the everyday activities of that place.”

  Lance shifted her so that she was now facing him. “That’s something I wanted to talk to you about. Now, if I’ve overstepped her I’m sorry but I’m only trying to help you. I called both my mom and sister. They will be here tomorrow, and they will step in to help you out at your bakery. Mom said she can handle the payroll, inventory, ordering and anything paperwork related, and Jessi said she would work with Frank on the decorating and baking end.”

  Alora was floored. He had gone out of his way to make sure that not only was she okay and comfortable, but now he had stepped up to make sure her employees and shop would be taken care of until she herself could go back. She felt tears well up in her eyes at the gesture. Leaning forward, Alora wrapped her right arm around his neck and kissed him. This man, this wonderful, strong, amazing warrior of a man had done more for her than just protect her.

  “Lance…I can’t… I can’t even begin to thank you and your family for this. Why? Why would you, your sister and your mom help me? I mean I’m just someone you met a month ago.”

  This was
the moment. Lance didn’t even hesitate. He slid off the stool and dropped to one knee, holding her free hand in both of his. “Do you want to know why Alora? I’ll tell you why. I, we, do this because we love you. To hell with how long we’ve known each other. I know one thing and one thing only. I love you Alora St. James and I want you to marry me. I want you by my side today, tomorrow, the rest of my life. I want to go to sleep and wake up with you in my bed, my arms. If it’s meant to be, I want you to be the mother of my children. We’ll have as many as you want. If you don’t want kids, as long as I have you I don’t care. Marry me Alora.”

  She could only think of one answer. “Yes!”

  The smile Lance gave her was blinding. He stood, gently wrapped his arms around her and kissed her. The kiss was full of passion, love, adoration and every other damned emotion the man was feeling. It all flowed from him and into her. What she had thought was wishful thinking only moments ago was not becoming reality. He would be her husband and she would be his wife. They would belong to each other and only each other. Lance broke the kiss and just stood there holding her, her head against his heart, the steady beat the sweetest sound she had ever heard.

  “And before you ask about the ring, my mom is bringing it. When I graduated boot camp, my grandma gave me her engagement ring. She said when I met the perfect woman I was to give it to her. And no, it’s not the ring I gave Tegan. I never even considered giving her that ring. I guess looking back, that should have been the first clue she wasn’t my other half. You however are. You are my other half Alora and I’ll make sure you know it, that the damned world knows it for the rest of our lives.” Lance declared.

  “I never believed in destiny or fate, or karma, but I do now. We made our own the day you saved me from that car and I told the doctors I was your wife. Guess fate decided we were meant to be. I love you Lance Archer.” Alora smiled tearfully.