“Watch me.”
“You’d be killing your bargaining chip. You need her alive if you have any hope of escaping.” Shelby walked over to Helen and removed the straps. She sat up, rubbing the places on her wrists and ankles where the restraints had been the tightest.
“Kill him, Bear,” she whispered. “Kill him.”
Darkmore laughed. “You think I’m going to let you all walk out of here? After all you’ve done?”
“You keep acting like you’re holding the cards,” Shelby said. “You may want to reevaluate the situation.”
“I have the only bargaining chip that matters: your daughter. You said so yourself.”
“You’re pissing me off, Darkmore.”
“That makes us even, then.”
“Oh, not hardly. I’m assuming you’re not a father, Darkmore. At least, not that you know of. Let me assure you that seeing my pregnant daughter lying on a table with your goon’s pistol to her head is pissing me off to a level I’ve never even dreamed possible. And I’ve been pretty pissed off before. If you hurt her, I will travel through space and time to get my hands around your neck.”
“How touching.”
“Go ahead, Darkmore. Push me a little more.”
“I’ll do you one better. Malone, kill the girl.”
Malone hesitated.
“Didn’t you hear what I said? Kill her. Then kill that self-righteous imbecile next.”
Water exploded from the ceiling. Jimmy! He must have been watching the entire exchange on the monitors and set off the sprinkler system. Helen screamed, Darkmore swore, Malone closed his eyes against the downpour…and his gun went off.
Shelby didn’t remember running across the room, slipping on the wet tiles, skidding around Leslie’s table and bringing Malone to the floor in one chaotic chain of events. He vaguely remembered ripping Malone’s weapon from his grip and how Malone had attempted to mount a defense against the furious barrage of blows raining down. He partly remembered the blood running from Malone’s head and streaming toward the drain in the middle of the floor. He mostly remembered Darkmore running to the far side of the room, pulling a lever concealed behind a rack of instruments, and disappearing through a hidden door. And he clearly remembered the roar of utter fury that ripped from his throat as he realized his main quarry had escaped his grasp.
Epilogue
Jimmy Holstine snapped awake. He sat bolt upright, his heart pounding, his eyes straining to see in the darkness. He scanned the perimeter, searching for anything out of place. There was his dresser, piled high with clothes. To the right of the dresser was his guitar and amp. Next to the amp was the closet door. It was slightly open, but Jimmy thought he remembered leaving it that way. After the closet should have been a space of empty wall, followed by the bedroom door. But the empty space was not empty. As Jimmy noticed this, a dark shape detached from the wall and moved forward. Jimmy scooted backward on the bed, but the form—a man, he could now see—was already across the room. A hand closed on Jimmy’s throat and something hard and cold—a gun barrel—smashed through his lips and teeth. Jimmy gagged as the weapon’s muzzle jammed against the back of his throat. He tried to speak, but was unable to utter more than a rasping, gurgling sound.
“Shut up,” the man said.
Jimmy recognized the man’s voice—and he knew the man was here to kill him.
“Did you really think you could walk away after destroying everything I’d built over the years?” Darkmore pressed the gun barrel harder. His face was close now, and Jimmy saw it was twisted with rage and hatred. “Everything—gone. The house overrun by feds. My collections, everything inside, confiscated. And worse, all the records and evidence they need to send me away for the rest of several lifetimes. I’m back on the run, James. And it’s all because of you. I’m going to kill you. And then I’m going to kill your little posse of friends, starting with that backwoods boxer. Oh, it may take a while; I have a lot to do in the meantime to repair some of the damage you caused and make sure I’m protected. You ruined my identity as well, after all—but I’ll get him. I’m a patient man, James. But there’s one thing I couldn’t delay. And that’s killing you.”
Jimmy was mildly surprised at how little fear he felt. There was an uncertainty about what came next, life after death and all that, but there was also a measure of peace. As if he’d finished life on a high note. He was proud of what he’d done, and if given the chance, he would do it again. The images of Helen and Leslie being freed from the kill room were enough. He’d done his part and, hopefully, redeemed himself in the eyes of whoever awaited him on the other side.
He closed his eyes.
Shelby pointed his old Jeep north and cranked the radio. He felt both immeasurably tired and unspeakably happy. After weeks away from his northern refuge, he was on his way home. His arms were still warm from holding his granddaughter.
“Shelby Lynn Alexander,” he murmured, unable to keep a grin from spreading across his stubbled face.
The feisty little bundle had held off long enough and, after some time in the NICU, was now home with her mother and grandmother. Helen had been right: grandmothers did get first dibs on hugs, but he’d had his chance. As he’d looked in those tiny eyes, still little more than slits and blinking against the bright light of a brand-new world, he’d found himself overcome with a new sense of purpose and the unfamiliar feeling of renewal. He hadn’t even tried to keep the tears back.
“Oh, Bear,” Helen had said, giving him a gentle hug around the squeaking bundle he held. “You’re nothing but an old softy after all.”
“Got something in my eye,” he’d choked.
“It’s called love, Daddy,” Leslie said. “You know, feelings?”
Shelby ignored their teasing and reveled in the atmosphere of acceptance and, yes, love. In that moment, for perhaps only a moment, everything they’d been through as a family was swept away, and he felt whole again for the first time in…he couldn’t even remember when.
He wouldn’t be back in Serenity for a couple of hours, but perhaps this was the start of a new life, one that might reflect the name of the town for once. The broad grin turned to a rueful smile. He’d moved to northern Michigan for some peace and quiet; there hadn’t been much of that. He looked forward to taking his granddaughter fishing and showing her the wonders of the forests and lakes; over Helen’s objections, he felt certain she’d prefer that to dolls and pretend teatime.
Things felt different. Perhaps life would slow down and he could take a few deep breaths of clean northern air without worrying about someone taking a shot at him. Shelby settled back in the car seat and turned his music a little louder.
It would be good to be home.
Serenity Avenged Page 13
