by Apryl Baker
“Kade, I need to tell you something.” She tried to sit up, but he pushed her back down.
“Don’t try to move around. You’ve been through enough for one day.”
“Emilio was here.”
“Who?” Kade cocked his head—his thinking stance.
“He’s from Los Muertos. I remembered him. He used to hang out at the house a lot. Peter warned me to stay away from him.”
“I’m not sure I met him.” Kade sat back but kept a tight grip on her hand.
“He’s hard to forget.” Angel could still see him, staring into her eyes, gun aimed at her head. “Gorgeous, with a scar that runs from his temple to his cheek.”
“Gorgeous?” Kade quirked a brow at her.
“Yes.” Gorgeous wasn’t the right word for him. Kade was handsome, but Emilio was in an entire league of his own. “That’s not the point, Kade. He showed me pictures of the little boy I saw yesterday. He said he was ours, that Matthew didn’t die.”
She expected Kade to be shocked, to deny it, but he didn’t. Instead, he looked down at their linked hands, refusing to meet her eyes.
“Kade?”
“I know.”
“What do you mean you know?” Angel did sit up this time, ignoring the slight dizziness.
“You need to stay calm and lie down.” He tried to get her to do just that, but she was having none of it. He was going to explain himself.
“No, what I need for you to do is tell me what you meant. Are you really saying you knew our son was alive and you didn’t tell me?”
“Sweetheart…”
“Don’t sweetheart me, Kincaid. Tell me the truth. We’ve had enough lies in this marriage to last three lifetimes. Don’t add our son to that list.”
Kade took a deep breath. Fuckity, fuck, fuck, fuck. He should have told her last night. He knew he should have. He’d been too worried about her.
“I don’t know for certain.” He scooted the chair closer to the bed. “I sent Dylan to look into it, hoping if we could show you who his parents were, it would help you. Instead of what he thought he’d find, he found Juan Ramirez, a hitman for Los Muertos.”
Angel sucked in a breath and interrupted him. “That’s what Emilio told me. Matthew is being raised to become a murderer for the cartel.”
Kade searched his memory again, but for the life of him, he couldn’t place anyone named Emilio. Not that he hadn’t met the man, he just didn’t remember him. It irked him that Angel did. Not only his gorgeous face, but his name. He must have made quite an impression on his wife.
“Dylan knows the guy who runs the concierge desk. He let him in the vacated room before housekeeping got to it. Dylan was able to collect some DNA samples. We sent it off to the lab last night with a few strands of my hair and a cheek swab. We should know soon if the boy is ours.”
“He is ours.” All the anger and fear she’d barely been holding at bay poured out. “The bastards have our son, have had our son from the day he was born. We have to go get him.”
“We’ll get him. I’ve already got the boys working on it. Dylan flew down last night, and Max should already be in the air. Viktor swears there’s not a person on earth who can hide from Max. Says he’s the best tracker he’s ever met.”
“No, we have to go. Tonight.”
Kade saw the glint of steel flash like wildfire through her eyes and knew she meant what she said.
“Angel, you are in the hospital suffering from a serious concussion on top of shock. You aren’t leaving until the doctor clears you.”
“I can’t just sit here while they have my baby.” A single tear leaked out of the corner of her eye and rolled down her cheek.
Kade reached up and wiped it away. “Hush, moye serdste. We will get our son back, I swear it, but we can’t right this minute. You need to stay put, not just for you, but for our new little nugget. We can’t risk him.”
He saw the fight drain out of her at the mention of the baby. He’d been half afraid she’d ignore the danger to their unborn baby and rush headfirst into danger for the son who was flesh and blood, but he should have known better. Angel might be a hothead, but she’d never risk her child.
“I will wait until the doctor clears me, and then we are getting on the first flight out. That’s all the time I’m willing to give you.”
It was better than nothing, he supposed. He couldn’t fault her. All he wanted to do himself was jump a plane and find his boy, but that wasn’t going to happen tonight. He might as well take his own advice and try to calm down. Conner would be here soon, and they could devise a plan. He just had to get through the next few hours.
“Nik got you some food, but he might have eaten most of it.” Kade looked over to where the bag sat on the little hospital rolling cart thing the nurses put food trays on. He had no clue what it was actually called. “Do you think you can eat?”
She nodded, rubbing her stomach absently. He remembered when she used to do that with Matthew. He stood and collected the food. They’d added plastic utensils. His girl would eat what was left of Nik’s food if her stomach cooperated.
“You’re not nauseated, are you?” He set the bag down beside her. “If you are and you eat, I’m not sure we can make it to the bathroom.”
“I’m a little dizzy, but my stomach is behaving. His name’s Mateo. I don’t know if we should change it or not when we get him back.”
Mateo? It sounded close to Matthew. “I don’t know, honey. We’ll have to consult a child psychologist. God only knows what he’s been through.” And that was putting it mildly. If Juan Ramirez raised him, the kid had to have seen countless murders, with the possibility of torture. Hell, the psycho may have even had Matthew participate in them. What kind of damage had been done, and could it be corrected?
“I’m afraid, Kade.” Angel opened her large container of lasagna. “What if he’s so broken we can’t fix him? You didn’t see the look on his face. It was so empty. No empathy. What if they turned our baby into a monster?”
“He’s six years old, Angel. Kids are resilient. We will give him all the love and support he needs. He’s going to be okay. I swear it.”
If only he believed it himself. But he was going to do everything in his power to show Matthew how much he was loved and that all the bad things were in the past.
“You’re right. I’m borrowing trouble. Even if he is a little monster, he’s ours, and we will fix him.”
Kade’s smile was a little forced, and he hoped his wife couldn’t tell. He sat with her while she ate and told him everything she remembered about Matthew from yesterday. She drifted off to sleep talking about their son, her hand still pressed to her stomach.
Please, God, he prayed, please take care of our son and help us help him when we get him back.
It was all he could do until his brother arrived.
The hours ticked by. Kade nearly lost his mind waiting for his brother to show up. Between worrying about Matthew and trying to keep Angel from checking herself out, he was near his breaking point. She’d agreed to stay until the doctor cleared her. At first. Then her mother instincts kicked in, and it had been all he could do to keep her here. She was finally sleeping. Thank God for small miracles.
He also had to contend with the nurses freaking out over one of their own being murdered. It was all they could talk about. He’d already had to warn them to keep their voices down. He refused to let Angel get more upset than she already was. Reliving what she’d been through was not on the menu for the night, even if the nurses were determined to keep talking about it. The hospital had also called in extra security, but it did little to alleviate the fear or the tension running rampant among the staff.
The gasps he heard from the nurses’ station pulled his attention away from his phone and toward the desk. His brother was striding toward him. He could understand the women’s reaction. Conner was a good-looking motherfucker. Tall, hair darker than Kade’s, and smoldering black eyes. Women loved that smoldering look. So d
id men, for that matter. Conner was bisexual. His brothers knew, but their parents did not. They were Catholics, and Conner feared what they’d think of him. Kade thought they wouldn’t care because they loved him, but none of them pushed Conner on it.
That wasn’t what put the darkness in his eyes though. He’d stayed in the Marines when Viktor decided to not enlist for a second tour. Conner had been part of some kind of special ops team that did shit he wasn’t allowed to talk about. He came back damaged with a darkness that ate away at the man he’d been.
Hell, Conner had been the happiest, most carefree of them all. Always smiling, joking, and being straight-up fun. Kade hadn’t seen him crack a real smile since he’d come back a year ago. He’d been released early, not finishing his four-year tour. Conner refused to talk about it. Kade hoped one day he’d open up about what happened to him in Afghanistan. He wanted to help his brother come back from the dark hole he was in.
But not right now.
It was selfish. He knew it, but right now he needed the badass motherfucker standing in front of him.
“Nikoli said to give this to you.” He handed Kade an envelope. “Said you were waiting for it.”
“Where is he?” Kade accepted the envelope and tore into it. DNA results. He scanned it, and that tight band that had been constricting his airways since last night expanded and released its grip. The kid was his. He’d known it, but he hadn’t let himself believe it until this moment. His son really was alive.
“DNA results?” Conner dropped his duffle bag and leaned against the nurses’ station, completely ignoring all the women staring at him.
Kade nodded. “He’s mine.”
Conner simply nodded, accepting it. “Let’s go somewhere we can talk.”
Kade led him into Angel’s room and closed the door, leaving Watkins on duty. Fucker had better not let one more person slip past him. Kade was so furious it was all he could do to not beat the shit out of him. The only thing that stopped him was Angel. She was fond of the asshole.
Conner walked over to the bed and gazed at the now sleeping Angel. “You forgot you were married to this looker, brat?” He snickered. “How drunk have you been the last six years?”
Kade shook his head. The fact he’d forgotten he was married was a running joke among his brothers. They never let him forget it. It wasn’t that he’d forgotten so much as he’d not let himself think about it and bring back all the painful memories that came with remembering his Angel.
Kade pulled his wallet out and removed the folded photo he’d stuck in there last night. “This is your nephew.”
Conner walked over and took the photo, studying it. “This kid has seen some shit.”
That was what Kade was afraid of.
“He’s yours, though. No denying that.” Conner dropped into one of the empty chairs, keeping his voice down so as not to disturb Angel. “How do you want to get our kid back? Legal or a snatch and grab?”
Kade smiled at the way Conner simply accepted he had a new nephew and called him our kid. God, he loved his family. “Legal is the best way. Nik pointed out it was going to be hard to explain how we suddenly just ‘found’ Matthew.”
“We can do legal, but I have a plan B.” He pointed to his duffel bag.
“We might need a plan B after what happened this afternoon.” He filled his brother in on the attempted hit on Angel.
“Motherfucker.”
Conner swore so loudly it woke Angel. She came awake, sitting straight up and staring wild-eyed around the room.
“Shit, I didn’t mean to wake her up.” Conner stood and walked over to the bed, pulling Angel into a bear hug. “Welcome to the family, sestra.”
“Angel, this is Conner.” Kade laughed when she squeaked. Conner sometimes didn’t know his own strength. “Let her breathe, brat.”
“If this fucker forgets he’s married again, you let me know, and I’ll beat his ass.” Conner kissed her on the forehead before releasing her.
“If he forgets he’s married again, you’ll have to get in line behind me. I’ll just shoot his ass.”
“I like her.” Conner ruffled her hair. “It is good to meet you, sestra.”
Angel took a deep breath, trying to calm herself. She’d woken up from a nightmare, only to stare into the face of a man who scared her. It wasn’t just the expression in his onyx eyes. It was everything about him. His entire demeanor said “killer.” This man was a hardened killer. He’d been a soldier, and she knew Kade worried about him. Seeing him in person, she wasn’t sure he was wrong to worry. This man could do serious damage and walk away without giving a damn about the carnage he left behind.
Emilio had scared her when he’d pressed a gun to her head, but Kade’s brother terrified her without doing anything.
“It’s good to meet you too, Conner.” He might look like Viktor, but they were as different as daylight was to dark. Viktor inspired trust; Conner inspired a flight instinct.
“Now, tell me about this fucker who touched you.” She jumped at the venom in his voice.
“I…” She cleared her throat. “It was an old friend of my brother’s. He used to come over to the house a lot before Kade started hanging out.”
“I need a name, sestra.” Conner’s hands clenched, and she shrank away from the anger vibrating off him.
“I think you’re scaring her.” Kade came over and sat on the bed, taking her hand in his. “Is he scaring you?”
Angel nodded, gripping Kade’s hand so tightly she was surprised he didn’t wince.
Conner relaxed so fast, if she’d blinked, she’d have missed it. He even slouched a bit. It was amazing and terrifying.
“I’m a scary motherfucker. I know it.” He sat in the chair Kade had vacated and took her other hand. His touch was gentle despite the coldness seeping out of his eyes. “You will never have need to fear me. You’re my sister, my family, and I will protect you with every breath I have. I’m sorry I scared you, but the thought of that bastard…” He stopped and took a deep breath. “I will make them suffer for taking your son and for threatening you. I swear it.”
Angel knew he was telling the truth, but it didn’t stop the unease from taking hold. This man was dangerous, but maybe that was what they needed to get Matthew back. She would trust him because Kade did, but she’d never fully be comfortable with him. It was a simple truth. The darkness in him scared her too much.
“Now, we need to get this show on the road. Kade, you might want to call your contacts in the FBI. Sometimes it’s easier to deal with the feds than it is the local police force. You said you already had men on the ground?”
“Yes, Dylan went down last night, and our best tracker should be landing shortly.”
“Will she be safe here for a few hours by herself?”
Angel bristled. They wanted to leave her behind? Oh, hell no. Before she could even open her mouth, Conner shushed her.
“We’re not leaving you behind, sestra. You deserve to be there when we make the bastards pay for taking our boy from you. I need to visit some friends and collect our arsenal. I need someone to watch my back.”
“You get my husband killed, and you better hope God can hide you where I can’t find you.” Despite how much Conner scared her, he better damn well protect the man she loved more than anyone except her children.
Conner didn’t even crack a smile. He nodded curtly. “I won’t get him killed.”
Kade told him to go on and he’d follow him in a few minutes.
Angel let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding when he left. “I don’t like this, Kade. Not one little bit.”
“Conner knows what he’s doing. We have to be prepared in case shit goes sideways. We aren’t coming home without our child.” Kade took her face in his hands and kissed her softly. He looked her in the eyes, his forehead pressed against hers. “I promise.”
“I love you, Kade Kincaid.” She pressed her lips to his again. “Come home to me. If you die, I will kill you.
”
He chuckled and pulled away. “I love you too, moye serdste.”
She remembered the first time he’d told her she was his heart. They’d just made love, and he thought she was sound asleep. He’d whispered moye serdste and pulled her close. She’d used Google Translate the next day and found he’d called her his heart. It was the moment she’d started to fall in love with him.
“I’ll be back soon. Watkins is right outside, and I have more men throughout the hospital.” He gave her another quick kiss and left before she could stop him.
What would she tell the nineteen-year-old girl who’d looked up into those laughing black eyes on the beach all those years ago? Would she tell her to run and never look back, or to hold on tight because the ending was worth all the pain they both suffered?
She would tell her to hold on tight and never give up hope, even when it felt like she was drowning and would never come back up for air. The end was worth all the pain.
Angel hoped her happily ever after would be just that, though. It had to be. She couldn’t lose everything again. She wouldn’t survive it.
God had better not let her down.
***
Kade tried hard not to show any reaction when Conner drove them down a back alley that looked like something out of a horror movie. He was ninety-nine percent positive they were about to get murdered and chopped up, the pieces strewn throughout the dumpsters that littered the city. Where in fuck’s sake were they going?
“You sure you know where you’re going?” Kade gripped the oh-shit handle, as he called it, when they narrowly missed hitting two guys huddled together against the wall of a crumbling, abandoned building. He was pretty sure they were sharing needles, but he didn’t look too long.
“Would I be going this way if I didn’t?”
“How the hell do I know?” Kade tensed when they started to slow down. Crack house. That was his first impression of the building with two very built black guys standing at the entrance. Several people of various ethnicities roamed around the front of the building looking very much like strung-out junkies.
