Forever Guarded

by Kathleen Brooks

  “Doctor,” Nash corrected as Piper rolled her eyes. She didn’t care about being called Doctor. She never had. And right now she didn’t even feel worthy of her degree. And that made her cry even more. She was in full self-pity mode, and she didn’t know how to turn it off. All these months she had stayed strong. She just couldn’t do it anymore.

  “No one can help me,” Piper sniffled as an EMT shoved a clean gauze square in her hand for her to wipe her eyes.

  “Let’s get you to the hospital,” one of them said from behind her. Piper shook her head.

  “I think I’m okay. I’ll have my own doctor look me over when I get home.”

  “I’ll have Dr. Emma meet us there,” Nash said, feeling a little more confident now that Piper’s tears were drying.

  “No, have it be Ava,” she said of Dr. Emma’s daughter. Ava had just graduated from medical school and Piper had been friends with her their whole lives. And there was a smaller chance of Dr. Ava calling Piper’s parents.

  “I need to finish taking your statement,” Officer Edsel said kindly as he helped her move to stand.

  Piper nodded her head. “Tomorrow?”

  Officer Edsel didn’t look pleased but agreed anyway after Nash promised to bring her back to Lexington to meet at the police station.

  Nash slipped his arm around her as Piper wobbled. Damn, her head felt as if it had been scrambled. “Do you need anything before we leave?”

  “Can you get a picture of the note? I’ll put it with the rest of the notes I’ve received. And my purse is in my office.”

  Nash helped her to the couch and went to ask Officer Edsel for a picture of the evidence. Too soon, Nash had her strapped into the small helicopter, and they were flying over the dark rolling hills of the bluegrass back to Keeneston. Back to her family. Back to her friends. And back to questions she couldn’t answer.

  2

  Piper didn’t have to wonder where her house was as Nash flew the helicopter back to Keeneston. It was the house with cars completely lining the driveway and a steady stream of headlights heading that way like a big neon arrow.

  Nash cleared his throat and tried to distract her from the fact half of the town was either at her house or on the way to her house. “Keep flying,” Piper told Nash. “Or better yet, take me back to Lexington and I’ll stay at a hotel.”

  “Sophie said it was just your cousins and they’re worried about you.”

  “I’ll remember this. You’re supposed to be this big soldier who can keep his mouth shut and do what needs to be done and here you blabbed my situation to everyone! I was handling this, Nash. I don’t want to talk about it five hundred times. I don’t want to hear Ryan offer FBI assistance or for Sophie to hand me weapons. I don’t want Deacon offering to investigate, and I don’t want Matt making Cody sit in his sheriff’s deputy car outside my house all night. And I don’t want Layne telling me I could have beaten this guy up if only I’d worked out with her more.” Piper was becoming hysterical. Tears pressed against her eyes as her throat tightened.

  Yes, she was part of a big family. She was the oldest of four children, soon to be five children as her mother accidentally got pregnant when she thought she was in menopause. And she loved her family. The second-oldest was Dylan, and if she wanted anyone’s help it would be his. He did something secretive that involved plenty of danger. That’s all she knew. But Dylan never judged. He never commented on what she should or shouldn’t be doing. He was the steady presence in her life who called every birthday just to tell her he loved her. And right now that’s all she could handle. She didn’t want to be judged for failing when she was supposed to be so brilliant. The youngest, Cassidy, would do that and not even realize it.

  Cassidy was sweet as pie, but her mouth could sometimes run away from her—in multiple languages. Luckily, Cassidy was away at college, but Jace wasn’t. Jace was similarly kind, but he’d seen the bad that people had to offer too. He’d spent a couple years traveling to countries that needed help and building schools. Now he was in medical school and, like Cassidy, was going through that I know everything stage. And they didn’t. Heck, Piper had a Ph.D. and right now she felt like she knew nothing.

  But that wasn’t all of her family. No, she had more cousins than she could shake a stick at. And they would all be there because, for better or worse, privacy wanted or not, they were family. It’s what she both loved and hated about her family. Her other cousins were more outgoing. They loved girls’ trips to Nashville and so on, but Piper was never comfortable in larger crowds. She’d rather host dinner for her cousins at home and sit in the living room drinking wine all night than dance in a packed bar on Broadway in Nashville. And now, when all she wanted was to be left alone, she would be smothered with love.

  “Are you hurt?” Nash asked. “You groaned.”

  “No, I just realized I was being unkind wanting to be alone. They’re all here because they love me.”

  “We all do. But I understand. I’m a lot like you. I prefer to work alone. If it gets too smothering, then I’ll fly you out. Deal?”

  Piper winced when she tried to smile. Everything hurt. But Nash was a good friend. Her cousin Sophie was very lucky to be married to him. Nash landed the helicopter in her backyard and before they even touched the ground, the backdoor to her house opened and her cousins and siblings flooded out. At least her parents weren’t there, or her aunts and uncles. Maybe there was hope that it hadn’t gotten all around town yet.

  “Piper!” Jace called out as he rushed toward her. Two brothers had never looked so different. Dylan was tall, with thick muscles and dark brown hair. His face and his body screamed, don’t mess with me. Jace, on the other hand, was narrow-hipped, broad-shouldered, with light brown hair and a face that said he cared. While Piper was sure both Dylan and Jace helped people, Jace healed to protect people when Dylan probably killed in order to protect others.

  “What are you doing here? You should be at school,” Piper said when she met up with Jace. He had spent the summer in Chicago helping in the free clinic until fall term had started.

  “Piper, you’re more important than school. You need family, and right now I’m the only sibling around. Dylan is who knows where and Cassidy’s school is a lot farther away than Lexington.” Jace reached up and helped her from the helicopter. “Oh, sis. You need a doctor. Ah, that’s why Ava is here.”

  And just like that, Ava was by her side. She was in scrubs with her curly hair pulled back and there were dark circles under her eyes. “You look worse than I do, and I just came off a thirty-hour shift.”

  With Jace on one side and Ava on the other, they escorted her through her cousins all standing with worried looks on their faces. Reagan, who had just been married a month before to her childhood friend, Carter Ashton, nibbled on her lower lip. Reagan had had a secret herself. She’d been secretly dating Carter and had known something was going on with Piper when she’d caught Piper receiving a threatening call. Ever since then, Reagan had been extra protective. By the crushed look on her face, Piper could tell Reagan felt responsible, even if she shouldn’t.

  “Piper—” Reagan’s hazel eyes, like most of the Davies cousins, were filled with guilt—“I wish I had known. I . . . I . . . I could have done something to help.”

  Piper took a deep breath as she saw everyone had the same look. “It’s not your fault. I’m fine now, really. I wanted to handle this myself. I should have said more. I thought I was doing the responsible thing by upgrading my security. I thought that would solve everything, but I was wrong.”

  Sophie’s eyes went wide before she narrowed them at her husband. “You knew and didn’t tell me?”

  Nash shook his head. “Let’s not forget, not all of you have turned to each other for help. Reagan and Carter had their secret relationship. Riley,” he said, looking at Reagan’s twin sister, “with your political killer. Ryan and Sienna with a murderer after her. Sydney and Deacon with finding those missing girls. Layne and the mysteries surround
ing Walker. And last but not least, me. I didn’t let any of you know where I was when I was undercover. Just like it took time for Sophie to ask when she was in danger. But we turn to each other when we’re ready. And when we do, everyone is ready to help. Until then, it’s private.”

  Piper looked gratefully at Nash as her cousins mumbled their agreement to what he was saying. It was both the blessing and the curse of a small town. And right now Piper finally felt able to take a breath.

  “Let’s look you over and then you can tell us however much you want,” Ava said with a very professional smile. “Jace, can you grab my bag from the living room and meet me in Piper’s bedroom?”

  A path cleared as her cousins made room for her to walk into the house. Ava angled her into the bedroom and closed the door. Taking a deep breath, she turned and looked Piper over with a medical eye. “Take off your shirt, please. Let’s see what damage there is.”

  With fingers that still shook, Piper pulled off her top. “Ouch,” Ava said, taking in Piper’s bruised chest and stomach. She looked around and saw another bruise on her back.

  Piper hissed when Ava touched her stomach. “Any chance you’re pregnant?” Ava asked as she examined the contusions.

  “She better not be. Having Mom pregnant is bad enough. I can’t imagine what our father would do.”

  “Jace,” Piper said, rolling her eyes as her brother stepped into the room with Ava’s medical bag. Piper noticed that Jace gave her a quick glance, his jaw tightening when he saw the bruises before dropping his eyes to the floor. Seeing his sister in her bra wasn’t something either of them wanted to deal with.

  “It’s a medically necessary question,” Ava told her as she pulled out her stethoscope and a pair of latex gloves.

  “No. There’s no chance I’m pregnant.”

  “Thank goodness,” Jace murmured as Ava continued her exam.

  “I’ll be done in a second. Why don’t you make some tea for Piper, and we’ll meet you all in the living room,” Ava said nicely to Jace, but Piper didn’t miss the command in her voice.

  Jace escaped and Piper let out a breath she was holding as Ava cleaned her up. “There will be no lasting damage. Put vitamin E cream on your face and try to rest for a few days. Are you ready to face the firing squad?”

  Piper wasn’t, but it was time. There was no hiding her failure now.

  3

  “Can you fix it?” Jace asked as everyone stood or sat quietly around Piper’s living room while she told them what was happening.

  “Of course she can. She’s the smartest person I know,” Wyatt Davies said with a confidence Piper didn’t feel. Wyatt’s sister, Sydney, and her husband, Deacon, nodded their agreement. In fact, when Piper looked around the room, everyone was nodding.

  “I don’t know,” Piper finally confessed.

  “What if you have more time to work on it?” Layne asked.

  “Yeah, I could keep you safe while you worked on it,” Walker, Layne’s husband and former Navy SEAL, offered.

  “I don’t want to put you in danger. You’ve already been through so much. And then there’s also the building of the Davies Training Center for the military and law enforcement. I know you’re actively involved in that. And if you suddenly have to watch me, all the aunts and uncles will know what’s going on, too,” Piper said with a sigh. The idea of them smothering her was sending her into a panic attack already.

  “Some things are more important than our parents knowing what we’re doing,” Reagan admitted. “Plus, Pierce and Tammy are way cooler than my dad. They never put GPS trackers on you. They support you no matter what.”

  Carter shook his head at his new bride. “Cy supports us. He’s just overly involved. But it’s done with love. At least that’s what I tell myself.”

  Reagan smacked her new husband as everyone snickered. Cy was overprotective to the nth degree and then some. But he’d turned a corner with Carter when he took a bullet for Reagan and was now trying to be BFFs with his two sons-in-law, Carter and Matt. It turns out the friendship angle was even scarier for the two than when Cy was threatening them with bodily harm.

  “Then I’ll hang out with you,” Layne offered. “I’m sure Sophie can spare some time, too.”

  “I can as well,” Nash offered as everyone murmured their agreement to this plan, but Piper shook her head.

  “No, I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if something happened to y’all. And all y’all have lives of your own to lead. I refuse to have any of my family or friends in danger because of me. I’ll run away in the dead of the night and face it on my own if I have to. It’s bad enough I’m being pitied now, but I won’t have the people I love hurt.”

  Piper jumped as the front door was flung open and Aniyah ran in on her spiked heels. Sweat glistened off her dark brown skin. Her normally perfect swooped hair fell over her forehead as she bent at the waist and sucked in air.

  “Thank Jesus! I made it in time,” she said between deep breaths. “Your momma is on her way with a look on her face I ain’t never seen before. I was at the Blossom Café when John Wolfe told your momma and dad about the attack. I didn’t know a woman nine months pregnant could move that fast. She waddled out of the café, leaving your father behind a trail of knocked-over chairs and an upended table.”

  “I’m surprised DeAndre didn’t spill the beans. He’s slacking,” Sydney said as she tried to joke.

  “Oh no,” Aniyah said, standing upright again and putting her hands on her ample, perfectly curved hips. “My Sugarbear knew all about it, but he also knew Piper wouldn’t want anyone talking about it. She’s shy like that.”

  Piper felt herself blush, but then the moment was lost when the sound of squealing tires was heard. Aniyah looked out the door as her eyes got wide. “I didn’t know a minivan could take a corner on two wheels.”

  Dread filled Piper as all the cousins began to inch closer to the back door. The cowards! “Your mom is so sweet. You’re lucky, your father doesn’t put GPS trackers on you,” they’d all said growing up. But the second her mom turns into this mom that Piper knew very well, they were looking to escape.

  “We better get home and check on the puppies. Robyn’s been a wonderful mom, but they’re up and about now—” Sydney shrugged as she and Deacon darted out the back door.

  “Sis, I love you and all, but if Mom . . . Uh-oh. Too late,” Jace said as he tried to duck behind Piper.

  Tammy didn’t so much storm through the door as she waddled, pregnant belly first, with enough force to shake the pictures on the wall. Her mother was barely over five feet tall, but right now, Piper felt all of two feet tall when her mother did that glare thing she did so well. After all, someone so small had to have a powerful glare to keep four kids in line, especially with Dylan as one of those kids.

  “How dare you not call me? How can you not tell your own mother you are in danger? Do you know what you’re doing to me? You’re killing me! Your father is so close to death he was praying to God the whole drive over here.” Her mother had been pushed too far. She’d snapped. Her blonde, pixie-cut hair stuck out in all directions, her blue eyes flashed, and her normally porcelain cheeks were bright red as she ranted. “Do you know how it feels to find out from John Wolfe that your daughter was attacked in her lab? What is going on, Piper?” Tammy stomped her foot and a picture fell from the wall.

  “Honey,” Pierce started, trying to calm his wife, whose hands had stopped flailing in the air to rest on her large stomach. “You need to calm down. At your old age, your blood pressure is already high. And if you have a tizzy, the baby might just fall out. You have to remember, it’s been twenty years since you’ve been pregnant. Things, lots of things, have changed on your body since then. You better sit down. I better sit down. Why don’t we all sit down?”

  “Take cover, she’s going to blow,” Jace whispered. Piper agreed as everyone still in the room took a giant step back.

  Aniyah made the sign of the cross and lifted her hands up to
God. “Dear Lord, please forgive this man as he doesn’t know what an idiot he is.”

  Tammy’s lips twitched and some of the anger faded. Piper’s father was no longer in danger. Instead, Tammy let out a huff and plopped, with no grace, onto the nearest chair. “Now that we have a smaller crowd,” she said as Piper noticed most of her cousins had run away. Only Sophie, Nash, Wyatt, Jace, Aniyah, and Walker were left. Tammy turned to Walker, “Bless your heart, your wife left you.”

  Walker grinned and Piper would have sworn her mother blushed. “That’s okay. Now I get to spend time with the prettiest woman in Keeneston. You’re glowing, Mrs. D.”

  “Damn, he’s good,” Jace whispered and Piper had to nod her agreement. Her mother was preening under the sexy SEAL’s smile.

  “Is this about your project?” Pierce asked as her mother’s glow faded and she shot her husband a glare.

  “You know what this is about and didn’t tell me?”

  Aniyah held up her hands again to the sky. “Dear Lord, please forgive this man. He knows not what a fool he is by keeping things from his wife.”

  “He better start praying and fast because I’m going to kill him if he doesn’t start talking,” Tammy ground out between clenched teeth.

  “Piper was having some trouble with a project. It was a very delicate situation. In the wrong hands, it could do a lot of harm. She asked me for help, and we set up a lab here in Keeneston to keep it safe while she fixed it. That’s all I know,” Pierce swore to his wife.

  “See, the nanoparticles—” Piper began, but her mother’s glare glazed over as she absently nodded. Even her father got a little lost as she realized she was already beyond their understanding.

  “And we offered to look out for her, but she doesn’t want someone she knows. She couldn’t live with herself if they got hurt,” Walker filled in after Piper finished.