by C. M. Steele
“Ms. Russell, he’s improving. They say he’s going to be fine. It was a huge scare.” I broke out in tears, feeling overwhelmed with joy.
“See baby, he’s going to be alright.” I hugged onto Duke even tighter. I loved him and his support.
“Thanks for that fellas. Thanks for everything.”
“It’s what we get paid to do, miss.” It was the end of the discussion. The men didn’t care for praise and I didn’t think Duke liked the smiles I gave the guys. I was about to snap on him because it was genuine thanks, no flirting involved, but then I remembered my reaction on the plane was a thousand times worse. I damn near punched that blonde Russian bitch.
“I’m not flirting,” I whispered. “You don’t need to get all territorial, but I understand.”
“I wasn’t.” I gave him a look that said he was full of shit, so he confessed, “I admit I was a little jealous. I love being your hero.”
“Well, you are. You’re a woman’s fantasy. Strong, silent, brooding, and sexy.”
“Yet, you resisted me at every turn,” he argued back. He had a point, but just barely. Duke had no idea how much I struggled to not melt in his presence.
“It was harder than you know.” That was all I was going to say in the car with the ears in the front. Besides, we were just pulling into the hospital entrance and I was ready to see my parents and hug my dad.
We were escorted up the stairs and into the room. My father had this big, giant smile on his face. “You made it,” he said, opening his arms wide for me to jump into. Of course I didn’t, but I did hug him tight.
“So did you,” I cried. My tears were pouring down my face so I couldn’t even see out of them. Duke handed me some tissues.
“Thank you,” I replied to Duke, but still hugging my dad.
“Yes, thank you, Mr. Wyatt.”
“It’s Duke, sir. And I didn’t do anything that you needed to thank me for. I’d move mountains for her.”
“That’s what I’m thanking you for. Thanks for not letting me push you away. Weaker men have tried and failed.”
“Dad,” I complained. Now Duke was going to go all caveman.
“I’ll need a list of names,” Duke replied.
“No, son. I can’t do that. That would make me an accomplice. I’m still the district attorney.”
“Not for long if I get my way,” my mom hissed from the other side of the bed. “Do I get a hug by chance or am I going to have to hug my handsome son-in-law.”
“Hell no, you don’t, woman,” my dad warned her.
“I’m sorry, mama.” I hugged her super tight.
“You did good, baby. Follow your heart, always. Even if it’s for man like him,” she whispered, tilting her head toward my father.
“I heard that,” my dad said.
“Me, too. But that’s all good. So how are you holding up?”
“I’m getting released tomorrow, but it hasn’t been made public and your men and the Feds want it that way.”
“I don’t think anyone outside this room should know that you’re being released tomorrow.”
It took him a minute for it to register Duke’s meaning. My parents weren’t made aware of what was going on. My father was so damn strong willed he might go after his staff on his own. “So, you think someone close is after me and Miranda?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know who?”
“Not yet, but we believe that we’ve cleared the ADA.”
“Believe you cleared him?”
“Well, I can’t be one hundred percent sure until I check a few things personally. It’s been a fast three days.”
“I’ve never had an issue with Lowell. In fact, there would be no reason to kill me since he knew I was retiring in the next year and he would be the new district attorney.”
“I didn’t know you were retiring,” I said. Why wouldn’t he have told me? Does every think I can’t keep a secret?
“Honey, I see that look in your eyes. It’s that look you get when you’re upset and have a question that you’re not sure you should ask. I didn’t tell you because I didn’t want it to affect your decision to finish your degree. I didn’t want you to think I was bailing on you just as you were getting started.”
“Oh, I wouldn’t have thought that.”
“Pumpkin, if you want to be a good lawyer you’re going to need to learn to lie a bit. You’ve have a terrible poker face. I love you, but I knew two years ago that you didn’t want to be a district attorney. I knew that you loved the law and wanted to be a lawyer, but you didn’t want it all and I understand. I just didn’t want you to make a rash emotional decision to quit before you got started.”
“I don’t make rash decisions.”
“No? Didn’t you leave to go out of town with Duke because you were mad at me?”
“No, I didn’t. I didn’t like the idea of not spending time with Duke. I was going to miss him too much. Being mad at you gave me the excuse I needed.” It was a confession I had to make, but it wasn’t like Duke didn’t already know how nuts I’ve been about him. He was waiting for me to admit it.
“Before we get back to the unpleasantness of the bomber, there’s something else I believe we need to discuss. I heard that there was somewhere we were supposed to be in a few days. Did either of you like to fill us in?”
“Duke asked me to marry him.”
“I can see,” my mom said, grabbing my hand to stare at my three carat solitaire. It was really gorgeous and I would admire it any time Duke wasn’t in the room. I was embarrassed. As much wealth and treasures I had growing up, this ring topped them all. It was beauty and love mixed together.
“Well, like I said before we left. I wasn’t giving her back, so I was planning a small wedding in Maine at the Blake family residence.”
“But, thanks to me, it’s been cancelled?” my dad said a bit disheartened.
“No, it’ll just have to be rescheduled within the next month I’d say. That’s how long I think it should be until you can fly again.”
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. Having a heart attack is a legitimate excuse to stall a wedding, but I’m still marrying her within a month.”
“And I will be there.”
Duke’s phone buzzed just then, so he took it out of his pocket and looked at the number. “Excuse me, but I really have to take this.” He left the room, and my parents and I got to chatting about everything that happened in the past few days. Well not everything…
Chapter 13
I left her father’s room because my mom was calling, and I tried to always answer for her. “Hi Mom.”
“Don’t ‘hi Mom’ me. What is this that someone tried to kill you the other day? Why wouldn’t you tell me? I thought you said your job was safe.”
“I am safe mother. And it wasn’t my job that this happened with. Miranda has some crazy coming after her father and tried to get to him by trying to off Miranda. I was just in the wrong place at the right time.”
“Isn’t it ‘the wrong time’?”
“No, if I wasn’t there, Miranda would be dead. So please, Mom…I promise I’m fine.”
“Oh. Please don’t scare me like that again.”
“Who told you?”
“You aren’t going to get on anyone’s ass for this Duke. You know very well I have my ways.” There was no arguing with her so I wouldn’t. I knew she could have found out by reading online.
“Yes, you do. So please continue planning the wedding. There isn’t a date because of her dad yet, but it will be in the next month.”
“Okay, I’ll get on that.” Something about the way she said it sounded off.
“Mom, I’m going to have to call you later. I have to get back to Miranda.”
I walked back into the room and they were laughing like they did the first time we met.
“Is everything okay?” Miranda asked.
“Yes, doll. It was just my mom. She wanted to yell at me for almost getting
blown up and not telling her.”
“Your mom is just finding out?!” Miranda’s mom asked in shock. “No wonder why she’s upset. I would be, too.”
There was a knock at the door and I got it. It was Paul, the other intern that got the job Miranda and he were fighting over. I already didn’t like him because he got her job, but something about him just annoyed me.
“Can I help you?”
“I wanted to see how the boss was doing.”
“Well he’s with his daughter right now and not up for visitors. I’ll walk you out.”
“Miranda’s in there?” he asked in a pathetically anxious voice. So he was another one of Miranda’s many admirers. I growled.
“Did you just growl?” he asked snottily.
“Yes, I did,” I admitted through gritted teeth. I knew there was a reason I didn’t like this guy on first sight. He wanted what was mine. I dragged him to the waiting room area and gave him a nice threat. “Miranda’s off limits. She’s mine and there’s no way you’ll take her from me.”
“We’ll see, you Neanderthal,” he snarled back. He had a lot of balls for a scrawny, preppy motherfucker. He stormed away and angrily tossed a paper bag with a gift probably for Russell just as I got a surprise visitor of my own. I was going to have that bag tested when I got a moment to check it out.
"Hey man, how are you doing?" Milo asked, walking into the waiting room with his hand securely locked onto his wife April's hand. Behind them was his brother Mike and his wife Zoey.
"What are you all doing here?" I asked. I knew that they were all busy with work and their kids.
"We're not the all,” Milo added with a crooked grin. When I first met him he had a whole host of issues and was a bastard to deal with. Now he fucking never stopped smiling. April changed his world just like all our women did.
"If you're as nuts as us, she's bound to be pregnant soon and since you were rushing the wedding it seemed we were right. With her dad in here, we thought we'd bring the wedding to you,” Mike said. He married Jackson’s little sister and she was the toughest cookie out of all the women in our little circle. Well, that was until Miranda. No one was as strong as my girl. She could put me in my place with a simple command. Then again, I was hers to do with what she pleased.
"Wait. It's not safe to be here."
"Fuck that. We're here to support you. We've been through hell and back. There's no way we'd leave you hanging."
“Zoey, baby. What’s wrong?” Mike asked her. She kept looking at the waiting room door and like she was on the verge of vomiting. Zoey was already five months pregnant and I knew she was getting sick all the time. “That guy smelled funny to me. It’s making me nauseated. Excuse me.” She started to get sick and ran to the garbage can where Paul had just tossed the bag. Zoey’s vomiting got worse.
She stood up quickly and rushed away from the garbage like a bat out of hell. “Shit. Zo tell me.” Mike was freaking out and I hoped to fuck I wasn’t nutty like that when my woman had morning sickness.
“There’s a bomb in there,” she said, her voice cracking. “We need to get out of here.” Her face was white as a ghost. Fuck. Paul just threw something in there.
“Fuck, get everyone out as fast as you can. I’m calling the bomb squad.”
“Wait, don’t call it in yet, let’s evacuate the floor first. What if he’s listening to the police scanners?”
“Shit, you’re right. Get everyone to safety. We’ll split up and empty the floor before sounding the alarm,” Mike said, before hurrying her out of the room. Milo followed with April, cautiously avoiding the can.
I immediately rushed into the room and shouted, “Let’s go now. There’s a bomb in the waiting room. Get up.” I helped her father and Miranda walked quickly with her mother. At this point we were the closest to the blast. We needed to get out of here before it went off. There was an exit door just before you got to the nurses’ station. We rushed there as fast as we could and made it to the stairwell. Thankfully they exited the floor as quickly and as quietly as possible. Unfortunately, our exit door had the emergency alarm on it. The moment we hit it, the whole floor was buzzing with sirens. Just as we closed the door to the stairwell the bomb exploded. Screams erupted all through the building as the smoke alarms blared and the sprinkler systems kicked on. We had to go down five flights of stairs, but her father just had a fucking heart attack. Miranda’s father was coughing and I was worried we wouldn’t make it down there before he had a relapse. So Romeo rushed my woman and her mother down the stairwell, while I flipped DA Russell over my shoulder and carried him. Before we got down to the bottom level the stairs filled with smoke. Fuck, I hoped everyone else made it out okay.
With his gun primed, Romeo stepped out first into the lobby. Fire engines could be heard coming closer. People were scattered all around full of panic. I set her father down on one of the lobby chairs and my men came around and circled him for protection. Immediately, I pulled Miranda into my arms. There was no way I was letting her go. She was shaking and worked up. If I wasn’t used to crazy situations, I would be, too. Scanning the room, I wondered if he was still hanging around. He must have waited for a perfect moment to strike. He was off again, but I won’t let him get a third chance. I didn’t see him anywhere, but I saw Milo and Mike and they gave me a thumbs up. I knew who was the bomber, but I had no idea where the fucker cut out to or why he was after them.
“It was the intern,” I told Romeo in a hushed whisper. Soon this place was going to be swamped with authorities so I made a call to my detectives before Paul got any further.
“We heard about the bombing. Please tell me the DA’s safe.”
“Yes, I hope everyone got off the floor in time, but I know who did it. It was the intern Paul. I don’t know his last name.”
“Peters,” Miranda answered. I gave her a protective squeeze. We were going to get him.
“Peters. Yes, he was on our list to interview next. He made excuses about his first interview. We’ll put out a BOLO for him. Are you certain it was him?”
“Yes, I am. I don’t have time to explain it now, but I watch him toss a bag into the trash.”
“We’ll find him.”
“Thanks. I’ll inform the police here.”
“Go ahead. I’ll send you his photo to share.”
“Okay.” I hung up and looked for the first officers on the scene.
I found them as they were evacuating everyone into the parking lot. “Hello, I’m Duke Wyatt and am a part of the DA’s security team. The explosion occurred on the fifth floor about a hundred feet from the DA’s room. I witnessed the bomber drop a bag into the trash. This is a picture the FBI has on him. If you see this guy approach cautiously.”
“Thanks, Mr. Wyatt. Do you know if he’s planted anymore bombs in the area?”
“No, I don’t. This is his second attempt on the DA’s daughter’s life and my own. I want him found and alive if possible.” I continued to scan the area for him. My eyes trained on the parking lot to the left where the large light was beaming down on and there he was.
“He’s near A1,” I muttered next to the officer I’d just finished speaking to.
He hit his radio on his shoulder, “Subject is wearing a grey suit and standing under A1 parking sign. Consider armed and extremely dangerous.” He took off seconds later. I couldn’t leave Miranda. It worried me that he’d have another bomb somewhere. We were in this together.
They gave chase, but he was smarted and detonated another bomb under a parked car before peeling out of the parking lot in a gold Toyota Camry. Fuck, the bastard had a plan in place. I wondered if he planned to kill just those in Russell’s hospital room. I was certain that it was a small gift with a bomb inside. It would make it easy for him to get away and explode it, but he didn’t expect me to stop from seeing Miranda and her father.
I cringed thinking that had I still been on the phone he would have had his chance. If fucking Mike’s version of a bloodhound wasn’t there. W
e’d all be dead. What the fuck? Luck and fate wanted Miranda and I to make it.
The wedding is still going on at the end of the week. I refused to be held back by a monster. The next four hours were a chaotic nightmare. We were questioned by the local police, the ATF, and the FBI back at the Russell family home. My men swept searched and staked out the property the entire time Peters had been on the run.
“Mr. Russell, are you going to be alright?” I asked because he’d just had a heart attack then had to run for his life. The bastard was strong as hell and it explained where Miranda got it from.
“Yes, Duke. I’m going to be fine. The heart attack was a big scare, but the medicines they gave me have dealt with my primary issue. Being home feels the safest for me and my family.”
“Daddy, are you sure?” She rubbed his shoulder and arm. I knew she was worried, but her expression said she could handle anything. That was my girl, strong and confident. I loved her so much.
He clutched her hand, halting the movement of her hand. He looked into her eyes with a smile and said, “Yes, pumpkin. I’ll be okay as soon as the catch Paul.”
The love there was unmistakable. There was no doubt in my mind about the DA. She was his little girl and he’d do anything to see her succeed. My phone rang and everyone turned to me. “It’s Agent Smith,” I said before answering the call.
I snarled into the phone, “Tell me you have something to tell me.”
“Paul Peters is dead.” It was a shock to hear, but not something that was impossible. I saw him as a weak person who used distance and timing to deal with his enemies. Going toe to toe with the police didn’t seem to be in his repertoire, but then again the police may not have given him a choice.
“No, he can’t be. How did it happen?”
“Turn on the news it’s everywhere. We’re wrapping it up on the scene. I’ll call you back with more information later.”
I grabbed the remote in the family room where we were all sitting and told everyone. “Paul is dead. The agents said it’s on the news.” I hit the button and there it was. It wasn’t even a news channel. “For those of you just tuning in there was an explosion at the St. Joseph’s Medical center. Injuries were at a minimum and we believe that everyone has been accounted for. We have learned that the suspect fled in a gold Camry and the police gave chase. Let’s see what Gena Howard, our correspondent on the scene has to tell us.” The screen jumped to the reporter on the side of I-10. “Gena, can you tell us what’s happening?”
