"All respect, honey, but I don't see how you can stop me."
Nothing, literally nothing was keeping me from charging in there and getting her out.
"Do you think we need a fucking bloodbath?" she asked, her fingers curling tighter around my bicep, hard enough for there to be bruises the next day. "We've stayed under the radar because we keep our wits about us."
"So you kept your wits about you when charging into V's compound, guns blazing? And Janie had her wits about her when she blew the fuck out of Lex's place? And Cash had his wits about him when he blinded the fuck who put his hands on you?"
Lo exhaled a breath, knowing I had a point. "Look, I get it, Shoot. But you're not going in there."
"And, again, I don't see how you can stop..."
Then I did see how she could stop me. Because her hand dropped from my arm and she waved it in a small circle and two sets of arms grabbed both of mine. Fucking Hailstorm.
"Sorry, Shoot, but we need to do this smart. Me, Cash, Breaker, Wolf, and two of my guys will go in and get her out. I'll bring her right to you."
With that, she did another hand wave and all the men just fell into step behind her. I watched them move around the corner and disappear, Breaker giving me a shrug before he was gone. I yanked at my arms uselessly. If there was one thing Lo and Hailstorm knew how to do, it was train and the men holding me were solid walls of muscle.
There was a small, feminine sigh from my side and my head turned to see a slight, dark haired, blue-eyed, tatted girl in black jeans and a black tank walking up. Janie. She was Wolf's woman. She was also Lo's protege and the best tactical mind that Hailstorm had to offer. "Hey Shoot," she said, stopping in front of the guy on my left, her gaze toward the apartment building. "You know..." she said as if she was having a casual conversation, but I could tell from her pursed lips that she was trying to get a point across, "the top of that Chinese food place has a direct view into the fifth floor of that apartment building."
"Fifth floor," I repeated, back straightening.
"Can see right in through one of those broken windows. Know what else is interesting?"
"No, kitten, what?" I asked, smile tugging at my lips.
"Someone left some kind of abandoned sniper rifle up there. Careless, that. Don't you think?"
The smile was no longer tugging, but full. "Yeah, careless. Who would do such a thing?
"Who indeed?" she asked, turning to face the three of us.
"Janie..." the guard on my left started, his voice a warning.
"One two three," she counted way too fast for me to gauge her plan before the guy to my left was flying back a foot. I didn't stop to see what she was doing to him, just wrangled free of the other guard, slammed him backward and tore off down the street toward the Chinese restaurant in question, my heart seemingly wedged up into my throat and I realized that Lo was right; I was too hot to go in there. If I went in there, the cops would be finding entrails, blood spattered across the walls like a horror movie. But I was never too hot to handle a gun. In fact, as I jumped up and pulled down the ladder to the fire escape, I felt a strange calm sweeping over me.
By the time I got on top of the building and found the gun nestled up against the edge of the wall, I knew that Lo and the rest were likely breaching the bottom floor, working on taking out the three guards Luis had with him. I lifted the gun, positioning against the wall and bending down to look through the scope. It took all of two seconds for my eyes to find Amelia. She was standing, arms bound around a brick support beam, the side of her face busted, drops of blood running down her arms from rubbing against the sharp bricks. Luis was halfway across the room, saying something to Amelia that made her straighten, her face twisting in horror as she muttered one word I couldn't make out. Luis responded, still on the move across the room.
Then Amelia wasn't looking horrified, she was looking livid. And then whatever control she had on her temper snapped, her face twisting up as she started yelling something at Luis, something that had him moving like a whip, turning and flying across the room back at her. He was a blur before he stopped, his hand raised, curling around Amelia's throat. And I could tell by the way her body jolted and her mouth fell open that he wasn't doing it just to scare her, he was hurting her.
My finger rose to the trigger as Luis started to say something. It took me a second to make sure the shot was right before I squeezed. Even from the distance, I could see the red explode, could see the horror overtake Amy's beautiful features as Luis' body wobbled then fell right at her feet. Her gaze flew toward the window, her eyes huge, her body starting to shake slightly from shock, or fear, or disgust, or all three. And though I knew she couldn't see me, she was looking right at me and she knew I was there.
Two seconds later, the room exploded with Lo, Cash, Wolf, and Breaker. The Hailstorm guys were missing. Lo went right to Amelia, slicing through the ropes at her arms and Amelia collapsed against her. Even from a distance, I could see her body start jolting with sobs. Lo looked over at Wolf who walked over, peeling Amelia out of Lo's arms and picking her up like she weighed nothing more than a down pillow, cradling her to his chest and moving out of the building.
I grabbed the shell, threw the strap of the gun around my back, and flew back down the fire escape, my heart slamming in my chest as I tore down the streets, oblivious to whether or not I was seen, and not fucking caring if I was.
I had just rounded the building when a hand slammed into the center of my chest, knocking out my air and stopping me mid-stride. "Gun and shell," Janie's no-nonsense voice demanded and, seeing as I owed her for the opportunity to take out the bastard who put his hands on what was mine, I dropped the shell into her hand and ripped the gun off my back, before running away from her toward the building where Wolf was walking out with Amelia in his arms, her arms around him, her face buried in his neck.
"Angel," I heard myself say and Amelia jolted, her head lifting and looking for me. Then she was squirming, wiggling in Wolf's arms until he walked up to me and deposited her in my arms.
"Woman," he said, nodding at her, then moving back over toward Lo.
"Get her in the car," Breaker said at my side. "She needs to go to the hospital," he said when I didn't respond. "Look at her head," he pressed. "She needs to get checked out."
"I have a headache," she grumbled up at me, making my heart seize in my chest.
How the fuck was I supposed to let her go?
I leaned down and kissed her between her brows, making the lines there settle and disappear.
I didn't know how.
But I knew I had to.
"Let's go get you some feel-good medicine then," I said, carrying her toward my car and settling her into the passenger side. She was silent when I belted her, her hand covering her eyes, trying to simultaneously block out the sun and ease the pounding there. "Coupla minutes, angelface," I promised her as I got behind the wheel and turned in the direction of the hospital.
I had just parked when her voice filled the car. "You killed him," she said. It wasn't an accusation. It wasn't anything but a recollection of events. There was an unusual emptiness in her tone that I didn't like, a emptiness I knew I put there. Because she knew that part of me existed, but she never got to see it. All she saw was the light, the fun and teasing, the good, the pretty. I had exposed her to my ugly and there was no going back.
"Yeah, baby," I agreed, turning to look at her, waiting for what I knew as coming next.
But she didn't say anything. She nodded tightly, unbuckled, then opened her door. I ran around the car, putting an arm around her, and leading her inside. We were admitted and stashed into a little room off of the emergency room and left there to wait for the doctor. I stood beside the bed that she sat off the side of, her head ducked, her shoulders up by her ears, flinching at any noise around us.
Finally, not able to take the silence anymore, I started, "Amelia..."
But the door opened and the doctor walked in, middle aged and portly, h
is glasses low on his nose. "Miss. Alvarado," he said, looking up at her. "How'd you get that nasty cut?" he asked, trying to sound casual but I could feel his eyes searching me, trying to determine if I was the girlfriend-abusing type, as if there was a type.
I opened my mouth to answer, skirting the actual facts, but keeping it as honest as possible when Amy's head popped up, she looked the doctor dead in the eye, then lied better than most criminals I knew. "I was mugged."
The doctor's head jerked. "In broad daylight?"
"I'm not from around here," she said, letting a little more Southern twang slip into her words and one look at the doc, I could see the sweetness of it was melting him. "I didn't know it was a bad area and I was walking down the street and I heard someone behind me and I freaked and went down the next side street, but it wasn't a side street, it was an alley and they..."
The doctor's eyes slid to me, "Can we have a minute?"
"No."
"It's okay," Amelia said, shaking her head. "He can stay. They didn't..." she swallowed hard and it looked like it hurt, the bruises starting to darken around her throat, "rape me. They just grabbed my neck then stole my purse and, um, slammed me against the wall."
The doctor exhaled a breath, his body visibly slackening. "Okay," he said, grabbing a rolling stool and moving toward Amy. He grabbed gloves and sat down, reaching out toward her face. "Let's just take a look at this, shall we?" he asked, pressing around the gashes. "This could use a couple stitches, but you shouldn't have much of a scar. We're going to want to do a CAT scan to see if you have a concussion and we'll get your arms wrapped up." He scooted back on his stool, snapping off his gloves and jotting something into a chart.
Outside the door, I could see the outline of Lo and Breaker talking to the lady at the desk who was shaking her head at them.
"Alright, hold tight, Amelia," the doctor said. "I am going to send a nurse in to clean you up real quick and then you'll be taken down for your scan."
The doctor left and the silence in the room was deafening. I needed to do it. I needed to get it over with. I knew that, but the piercing in my chest was drawing all of my attention. That was until I felt her delicate hand wrap around my wrist. "Johnnie..."
Fuck her voice was sweet. I could listen to it saying my name until the end of time.
But I couldn't.
Because that was selfish.
I had to get it over with. I had to let her go.
My gaze went to hers and she saw something there, her head starting to shake. "No..."
"I can't do this to you, angel. You don't belong in this life. It's no good for you. You deserve better."
"Johnnie... no..." she said, her voice getting thick as the tears pooled in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, honey. I'm so sorry," I said, my own voice a little thick as I pulled my wrist from her grasp and moved toward the door.
"Johnnie, don't..." she called and the effect of those words was physical, a blow right to the center and I swear I could have doubled over from it. But I sucked in a breath and I walked out, closing the door behind me.
I stood outside the door for a second, my gaze moving up and finding Breaker's who took one look and pulled away from Lo.
"Fuck," he said, moving toward me.
Lo's gaze snapped up at Break's voice, eyes landing on me and sighing.
"Seriously?" she asked, looking annoyed. "After all that, you're walking away?"
"She deserves better," I said simply, moving past her.
"That's not your place to decide," she countered, sounding angry.
"It's done. Let it go, sugar," I said, taking off out the door and making my way to my car.
It felt like the swirling hollowness in my chest was spreading.
That's what leaving Amy felt like - like the darkness was going to swallow me whole.
TWENTY
Amelia
I cried through the nurse swabbing the blood off my face and arms, through her numbing and stitching my face, through her wrapping up my arms. I laid as still as possible through the CAT scan that did, in fact, prove that I had a slight concussion. Then I cried while I waited for the pain medicine to kick in and dull the jackhammering in my brain.
A while later, sitting there, trying to figure out what I was supposed to do since Johnnie made it clear I couldn't go back to his place, the door slid open. There was a surge of hope that welled up inside despite my better judgment before my eyes landed on a middle aged man with a hangover of a waistline in moss-green colored slacks and a cream dress shirt with a badge on his belt. Great. Cops. Just what I needed.
"Miss. Alvarado, I am Detective Collings. I know you're not feeling so great right about now, but I have a few quick questions about your... mugging earlier today." He said 'mugging' like he knew it was a lie, but nothing about his presence seemed the least bit threatening. Besides, the pain medicine was making me feel nicely numb inside and I didn't really care if he was going to be a jerk.
"Okay, shoot," I said and a strange smile pulled at his lips.
"Shoot, huh?" he asked, pressing his lips together as he reached for a pad and pen. The way he said "Shoot" made it sound like he knew exactly what went down that afternoon. I felt myself stiffen, my defenses slipping into place. "So, Miss. Alvarado, can you tell me exactly what happened this afternoon?"
"I was walking down the street," I started, realizing what I was doing; I was lying to the cops. I didn't do that. I had never been in the position where that was necessary before. But instead of the sinking, swirling sensation I expected to feel, I felt nothing. I was empty. "I'm not familiar with your areas around here, Detective. I had no idea that it wasn't a safe place to be..."
"Down by Madison?" Collings asked, looking up at me from under his lashes.
"I guess. I wasn't really paying much attention to the street signs," I lied, remembering how I had been trying to memorize them. "Then, someone was behind me and I ran down this street." That, at least, was true. "But it wasn't a street; it was an alley and there was no way out. I got slammed up against the wall," I said, gesturing toward my head. "Then one of the men choked me." Again, not a lie.
"And your arms, Miss. Alvarado?" he asked, his keen eyes landing on the gauze wrapping them.
"The, um, the wall was brick. The... mortar scratched me."
Collings let out an exhale that sounded a bit like defeat as he scribbled away. "Did you know a man was shot in a building right around the area you were mugged today, Miss. Alvarado?"
"Wow. How unfortunate, Collings," a female voice that was vaguely familiar said, making a wry smile tug at Collings' lips. I looked over to see the woman from earlier; the one who had got me free and hugged me, whispering things in my ear to try to calm me down. She was gorgeous in her badass kind of way: tall and all hips, legs, boobs, and ass in a pair of army green shorts and a tan tank top. Her long blond hair was tucked slightly behind her ears, her brown eyes on me, giving me a small wink, before looking back at Collings.
"Lo," he said, shaking his head at her. "You know Miss. Alvarado here?"
"Oh, me and Amy... we're old pals," she said, moving to stand next to where I was sitting off the side of the bed, and putting an arm around her shoulders.
"Old pals," he nodded, putting his pad away. "So I guess we are done here, then?"
Why was he asking her? Wasn't he supposed to be the one in charge or whatever?
"I think Amelia has been through enough today with those... muggers and all," she said, smiling flatout at the lie that, apparently, they both knew was a lie.
"I can imagine," he nodded at her.
"If you have more questions for her, she will be at Hailstorm recouping."
At this, Collings actually chuckled. "Of course she will. Well," he said, looking over at me again, "you feel better, Miss. Alvarado. I'm sorry about your ordeal," he said, nodding at Lo, then disappearing.
When the door clicked closed, I couldn't help it. "What the heck was that?" I asked, not even trying to hide
my confusion.
"Collings has been around for a while. He knows how things work around here. He's not crying over some big time H dealer with a hole in his head or his missing minions."
"Missing?" I asked, jerking slightly as she pulled away. I guess I had figured they would have killed them all.
"Oh yeah," Lo said, giving me a smile. "Crazy thing. Just up and disappeared like that," she said, snapping her fingers but the wicked smile she had suggested she knew exactly where they were. I had the sneaking suspicion that one or more of them might actually be at this Hailstorm place everyone kept talking about. "So did you get the all-clear?" she asked, meaning to leave.
"Yeah. I got a prescription and some paperwork on how to deal with a concussion."
Lo waved a hand. "We have a medical team at Hailstorm. We'll keep an eye on you. No worries."
"Um, not to sound, um, ungrateful or anything, but why do you think I am going to Hailstorm?"
"Honey..." she said, giving me a sad smile that said it all. She knew. She knew Johnnie was done with me. She knew I had nowhere to go. She knew I couldn't exactly drive back to Alabama with a concussion and hopped up on pain pills.
"Right," I said tightly, pushing off the bed and reaching for the paperwork I had mentioned. "Well, I mean... I can stay at a hotel until I'm better. It's nice of you to offer to put me up, but I don't think..."
"Amelia," she said, her voice a little firm. "I know you really just want to be alone right now. You got knocked around and had the life scared out of you and the guy you have feelings for just trampled all over you. You're dealing with all that, but please, can I say from experience, the absolute worst way to do that is to do it alone. Besides," she went on, "we aren't exactly sure things are all that safe for you yet. Word will get around about Luis' and his men. We need to make sure that whatever blows, blows over your head. Then we can let you get back to your life. We won't stand in the way of that, I promise. If you want to go back to Alabama and..."
"I am going back to Alabama," I said firmly, lifting my chin a little. "There's nothing for me here. I guess there never really was." I brushed past her, not particularly caring that my tone held a lot more bitter than was smart to express. But, well, she was right. I was going through some stuff. And I, apparently, wasn't allowed to do that alone. I wasn't exactly in the mood to put on a happy face.
Savages Boxed Set Page 43
