by Lexi Blake
Fire licked across Armie’s shoulder, but he stayed on his feet and took a shot of his own. He was a professional. He didn’t miss. Donny’s body jumped as the bullet entered his chest. He let go of his pistol and slipped toward the concrete, his eyes going dead before he ever hit the ground.
Bobby stared down at his brother’s body, his face going pale.
“Drop your weapon.” His shoulder was on fire, but he couldn’t care about that now. He needed to get Bobby Petrie under control so he could get Lila out of that damn building.
“You killed my brother.” Bobby’s eyes came up. “You killed him.”
Bobby turned and ran back into the clinic.
The instant Bobby moved, Armie shot again, but he was already inside.
He cursed inwardly. “Come on out, Petrie. There’s no getting away at this point.”
His left shoulder screamed in pain, but he kept his weapon up as he followed Bobby. The back of the clinic wasn’t bad. Smoke was just starting to billow through, but up ahead he could see the plumes of black and gray starting to rush around. How long had the fire been going? How much smoke had she already inhaled?
He reached over and flipped on the lights. At least they were working. Bobby was nowhere to be seen. He searched his memory, trying to count the number of rooms the clinic contained. He was in the back where they stored supplies. Up ahead there was a break room to the left, Lila’s office ahead of it. To the right were two exam rooms. He wanted nothing more than to rush past all of them to get to the reception area.
Please let her be alive. He couldn’t have lost his chance with her. He would give up his own life if only she got out of this. His daughter would be safe with Lila. She wouldn’t let Noelle down.
“Sheriff.” Roxie stepped up next to him. She had her sidearm in place and took her cues from him. “How many are we dealing with?”
That was his deputy. Cool under pressure. “I think it’s just Bobby Petrie. He slipped in here before I could take him out.”
“You can’t say the same for his brother. Where’s Mabel and the doc?”
“I don’t know, but they must have disabled the sprinklers. This fire is going to move and fast. We need to get Bobby and find Lila and Mabel. I have no idea how much smoke they’ve already inhaled.”
They moved cautiously, clearing the room before moving to the hall.
The smoke was getting thicker and thicker the closer they came to the front of the clinic.
“Major is working the problem from the front, and Joe and the boys should be here in ten,” Roxie said, her voice low.
From here he could hear the crackling of the fire, feel the heat. How much time did they have? The fire department would be here soon, but they might have only minutes before the fire got to Lila. Where was she?
He had to take the chance. “I’m going to the front. From what I overheard, Donny knocked them out and left them. I think they’ll be close to the fire.”
“I’ll watch your back, but be careful. He could be anywhere in here.”
This wasn’t how he should do it, but he couldn’t care. He had a damn bullet in his shoulder, but he wasn’t about to stop. She was somewhere in here and she needed him. He couldn’t let her down. Not again.
In the distance he heard the sound of sirens. They would be here soon.
He strode down the hall, being as careful as he could, but more worried about Lila and Mabel than getting shot again. It would be far easier to get shot than to know she was gone.
He stepped out of the hall and into the reception area. He could barely breathe.
Something banged against the walls, the sound louder than the crackling of the flames that had completely overtaken the reception desk.
Major was trying to get the doors open. Armie could find the fire extinguisher, but it was too out of control.
“Sheriff.” Roxie was behind him. “There are oxygen tanks in the back. We need to move fast.”
He hadn’t even thought about that. Where was she?
He waved a hand in front of his face and finally saw a body. He rushed to get to the still form on the floor. She wore scrubs but she was smaller and lighter than his love. Mabel. He checked her wrist and sure enough, she was alive.
If those tanks blew, the whole block might go up. “Roxie, get Mabel out of here and then come back for those tanks if it’s safe.”
“I can’t leave you,” she argued.
“You have to. Start getting those tanks out or we’re going to have more than this building to worry about.”
“He’s in here somewhere,” Roxie insisted.
He couldn’t worry about that now. “I gave you an order, Deputy. I have to find Lila. Get out and have Major help set up a perimeter.”
He moved on as Roxie holstered her weapon and picked up Mabel, getting her over her shoulder in a fireman’s hold. He glanced back and saw her running toward the door. She wouldn’t stay away for long. His orders wouldn’t keep her from putting herself on the line to try to save him.
Some of the smoke cleared and he saw her. Lila was lying on the ground facedown, her arm reaching toward him as if she’d known he was coming.
Unfortunately, she wasn’t alone. Bobby stood over her, the flames illuminating his body and the way he pointed his gun at Lila’s head.
“If I can’t be happy, why should you?” Bobby asked.
Armie lifted his weapon but he knew he would be far too late.
A flame from the couch licked up and struck like a snake. Bobby’s shirt caught fire and he jerked as he pulled the trigger, launching the bullet away from Lila, but toward another target. Armie felt the bullet hit his gut and the pain flashed through him. Bobby screamed as the fire engulfed him.
The sounds would haunt him, but he couldn’t give in to the horror. Lila was too close to that fire, and Bobby could still take her out if he fell on her. He thrashed and tried to drop to the floor, but it was too late.
Armie gripped Lila’s hand and dragged her back. The pain was starting to get to him, but he couldn’t falter. He forced his body to work, holstering his weapon. If another bullet was coming his way, there would be nothing to do but take it. He leaned down and lifted her up even as Bobby’s screams shook the building.
He had to get her out, get her breathing. Was she breathing?
Every step was agony, but he made it to the hall. The fire chased him and he knew there wouldn’t be a way to get those tanks out in time. Roxie met him halfway.
“Joe’s coming in,” she shouted.
He shook his head. “Tell everyone to get back. Those tanks are going to blow.”
She turned and shouted to the men starting to come into the building.
He ran, knowing their time was almost done. Lila hadn’t moved at all. She was dead weight in his arms, but he would stay with her. He would get her out or go with her.
He hit the back door running.
Then the world exploded. He held her close and prayed he could stay with her forever.
chapter nineteen
The world was a foggy mess as Armie came to some semblance of consciousness. His whole body felt heavy. Voices pierced the veil of his haze.
“The doctor said it could be a few weeks before he’s on his feet again.”
“I doubt that, hon. That father of yours will be up and irritable as a bear in no time at all,” a familiar voice said. “I’m more worried about how he’s going to handle what happened to Lila.”
Lila. It all came rushing back. They’d been in a fire. They’d nearly died. He’d had her in his arms when the oxygen tanks had exploded.
What had happened to Lila?
“It’s such a shame.” That was Dixie’s voice. She’d been there.
“I know.” His daughter was here, too. “Dad’s going to be so upset.”
He was going to b
e sick. The fog was all around him and he had to fight his way out of it. Lila. What had happened to her?
He couldn’t have lost her. They’d been so close. They’d come so close to making it out and having the future he’d dreamed about.
“Lila.” The word was mumbled.
“Dad?”
He felt someone touch his hand. Noelle. He opened his eyes and her face came into focus. “Where’s Lila?”
“Dad, are you okay? Dixie?”
“I’ll be back.” She rushed out of the room.
Noelle squeezed his hand. “Dad, you’ve been in surgery. You had a bullet in your shoulder and another one in your gut. You need to stay still.”
He couldn’t. Not until he’d found Lila. She should be here. She should be with them. It was where she belonged, and he’d screwed everything up. He hadn’t even told her he loved her. He started to try to push himself up.
“Oh, you are a stubborn man. Lie back down, Sheriff.” Lila’s pretty face loomed over him. “If you pull your stitches and have to go back to the OR, I’ll be very upset.”
Her voice was husky but that seemed to be the only side effect. She looked gorgeous, like the best present the universe could have given him.
She took his wrist in her hand and felt for his pulse. “You’re in the hospital. You took two bullets, one to your left shoulder. It didn’t hit your scapula, so you’ll heal fairly quickly from that. The bullet to your abdomen was worse. The doctor managed to save your spleen, but it was a close thing. You need to rest for a couple of days.”
“Love you.” He wasn’t going to waste another moment.
She stilled over him and finally looked down. “I love you, too. But, Armie . . .”
He knew what she would say. She would give him all the reasons they didn’t work. He’d done that to her because the truth of the matter was they worked beautifully together. “Love you. Want to marry you.”
“Noelle, could I have a minute?”
Noelle looked up at Lila. “Okay, but don’t forget what I told you.”
Lila nodded and Noelle wheeled herself out. She turned back to him. “Armie, you’ve been through something traumatic.”
She was going that way, was she? His faculties were coming back to him and it was easier to focus. He turned his hand over, catching hers. “Yes, and the whole time all I cared about was getting you back in my arms. I was wrong. I was scared of things changing. You are the best thing to happen to me and Noelle.”
“I want to believe you, but when things got rough . . .”
“I faltered and I won’t do it again. I will never let you down again. I know who you are now, Lila Daley, and you are a woman I want to spend the rest of my life with. You’re the woman I’ve been waiting all my life for.”
There was still uncertainty on her face. “You think you know me so well?”
“I do. I know that you never back down from a fight. I know that even after everything you just went through the next time a woman walks into your clinic and she needs help, you’ll give it to her. You’ll do it every single time. You won’t ever stop. And that’s why we need to build a women’s shelter, one you can oversee. I don’t want us to have to drive two hours to protect our vulnerable citizens.”
Tears made her eyes shimmer. “Armie, that could be dangerous.”
“Life is dangerous. I’ll go you one better. Noelle is going to want to help you and I will not stop her. I want her to be every bit as brave as her stepmom.”
Her hand squeezed his. “Please be sure. I don’t know if I’d be able to stand it if you changed your mind.”
“I never changed my mind,” he promised. “I never stopped loving you. I made a bad call as a father. I didn’t see what Noelle needed, but I know now. She needs what I need. She needs you.”
“The clinic is gone,” she said.
That was what Dixie and Noelle had been talking about. “Then we’ll rebuild it.”
“I don’t have any money left. I don’t know what insurance is going to do. This wasn’t an accident.”
“I’ll find the money. Otis and I will produce a speed trap unlike anything this town has ever seen. I’ll let Roxie arrest Zep as often as she likes. Those two things alone will bring in more than enough revenue.” He had to make her understand that this was her home, and he would do anything to make it right for her.
“You can’t build my clinic with traffic tickets.” But she was smiling.
“Watch me.”
“Be sure,” she said, her fingers tangling around his. “Be sure you want me.”
“I’ve never wanted anything more. Stay with me. Be with me. Build a family with me.”
“But you . . .”
“Am being brave like my wife.”
She stood up and leaned over, pressing her lips to his. “I love you, Armie. I would be so proud to be your wife.”
“Oh, thank god,” a feminine voice said from just outside the door of his room.
“Noelle,” he admonished.
“Well, the waiting was killing me.” She pushed the door open slightly. “And you won’t have any problem rebuilding the clinic. Rene already pledged to do it. I think he’ll pay for the women’s shelter, too, if you play your cards right.”
“She’s not playing any cards with Rene at all.” Even through the pain, he could find a way to be jealous. He might always have this problem because his wife was stunning and sexy, and there would always be men attracted to her intelligence and complexity.
But he would also remember that she’d chosen him.
She wrinkled her nose his way. “He’s just doing it because I saved his life.”
Noelle shook her head. “Nope. According to everyone in town, he’s mad crazy in love with you and wants to marry you.”
He was going to kill Major. Or Quaid. One of the two had been talking. Hell, maybe it had been Remy. He wouldn’t put it past Lila’s brother-in-law to try to shake him to his senses. He didn’t need it, though. “Rene is going to have to find his own city-slicker bride.”
“Is that right?” Lila asked, her lips curled up.
“Damn straight.” His body was in pain, but his soul had finally found some peace. “But, chérie, you’re going to have to take care of our honeymoon. I’m an injured man.”
“Eww,” Noelle said, and she turned and started out of the room. “Too much information.”
“Payback can be hell, baby girl,” he managed to shout.
The door closed and he was alone with Lila. With his love, his almost wife.
She leaned over to kiss him and it was more than enough.
One month later
Lila looked at the clinic with its shining countertops and all that glorious brand-new medical equipment sitting in boxes. Turned out there was plenty of money for her brand-spanking-new, top-of-the-line clinic. Doc Hamet hadn’t seen the point in applying for state or national funds. Lila didn’t mind. She’d had plenty of time while the clinic was being rebuilt to fill out a whole lot of paperwork. Between two large grants, Rene’s donation, and the shocking number of tickets Armie could write, the Papillon Parish Clinic would be open for business soon.
“It’s looking pretty good, huh?” She glanced down at her constant companion. Peanut liked coming up to the clinic. He’d kind of become their mascot.
The big dog thumped his tail and gave her one of those doggy smiles that always made her lips curl up. Even when she was in the worst of moods, that dog could make her smile. Not that she had many bad moods.
Well, except when she’d had to go out to the island and pronounce the last of the Petrie family dead. Lorna Petrie had been found dead in her small home, a week after her sons had been killed. The cause of death had been an opioid overdose. Lila had no idea where she’d gotten the pills. There was no record of her ever coming into the clinic. Doc Hamet certa
inly hadn’t written a prescription, but that was a mystery for another day. She wanted to settle into her new clinic and enjoy her life for a change.
“The phone lines work and I’ve got the schedule for our first week,” a chipper feminine voice said.
Lila looked up at the newest member of her staff. Carrie was standing behind the reception desk. Even though they weren’t open for business yet, she’d embraced scrubs as workwear. “How’s it looking?”
There was something confident in the younger woman, something peaceful that hadn’t existed before she’d made the decision to fight for herself. Lila rather thought being welcomed back in her hometown with open arms and apologies had done wonders for Carrie, too. She’d been surprised when Carrie had shown up on her doorstep asking for a job, but Carrie had told her this was her home and where she wanted to raise her baby.
“We’re going to have a full week,” Carrie replied. “Also I scheduled some extra time because Gene is due for a colonoscopy and you’re going to have to explain that.”
Lord. She would need a good argument for why the government didn’t need to probe his colon for information. “I’m going to give it some thought.”
“Or we could just sneak up on that old man, give him a nice dose of sleepytime drugs, and haul him in.” Mabel joined Carrie at the desk. The pair had become a formidable twosome. Mabel had taken the younger woman under her wing. Carrie’s baby wouldn’t lack for a grandmother. “When you think about it, it plays into all of Gene’s crazy conspiracy theories. It’s a gift to him.”
Gene wouldn’t see it that way. She would likely spend some time in that jail cell. Of course, then the sheriff would have to perform a search to make sure she didn’t have any weapons, and that might go really well for her.
“Hey, pretty lady.”
She hadn’t heard the doors open, but oh she knew that voice. For a big man, Armie moved so quietly. He could sneak up on her, but he was always a good surprise. She sighed and leaned back against her man, breathing him in. Armie wrapped her up and kissed her cheek. “Hey, babe,” she greeted him. “I’m ready to go. You said you wanted to take me somewhere.”
