by Sienna Mynx
Liam’s mind blinked to consciousness, to action. He snatched Mackenzie close to him. Not hard, but purposefully.
“Daddy what’s wrong? You sweating. What’s the matter?”
He couldn’t catch his breath, but he managed to speak calmly. “Go…go get Uncle Tony.” He turned her to face the area they’d left. Liam’s mind went singular. He grabbed his cane and scanned the arcade for the man. “Go now, Mac!” he yelled at her. She turned and ran toward Vasquez and Liam charged in the direction he knew the enemy had to have fled. From his viewpoint, there was no escape. The bastard would definitely be trapped and he’d have his hands on him soon enough. Liam shoved others who got in his way and limped hard and fast in pursuit. Unfortunately, his breathing worked against him. He couldn’t pull enough air into his lungs. He staggered and half-ran wildly, scanning face after face. The room spun with confused, frowning faces but none of the enemy. He wheezed, gripping his cane tighter, and knocked a mother in pursuit of her kids aside when she stepped unknowingly in his path.
The enemy is here. Civilians, close quarters. Possible collateral damage. Mission must not be compromised. Eradicate the threat. Stop by any means necessary. Make it quick. Daughter. Daughter? My daughter is here? Change of plans. Kill. Swift. Save. Save Daughter.
The back of the arcade turned into a dead end. Kids were lined against the skee ball game in rows, each waiting for their turn. But the enemy had slipped past. Where? How the fuck could he have gotten past me? Children’s heads turned. Small, frightened faces looked up at him. Liam heard himself yell. He yelled for everyone to run….
“Liam! Liam!”
The voice pounded at his skull until he blinked and his vision cleared. Vasquez had him pinned to the wall. “You with me, brother? Look at me.”
“What?” Confused, he shook his head, trying to make it clear.
“Do you hear me?”
“Yeah, I hear you. Let me go.” He shoved back.
Vasquez looked around at someone, then to him. He released him. “He’s okay. Can you give us a minute?”
Who is he speaking to?
He watched as the other man behind Vasquez, wearing a purple and green Fun World shirt, nodded and backed out of a small office. That’s when he took in his surroundings. The office had signs of a struggle, a turned-over chair and knocked-over desk. “What the hell is going on?”
Vasquez panted. He looked flushed. His hands clenched into fists and his nostrils flared. “Drink this.” He turned to a water tank and filled a paper cone, then forced it on him.
Liam accepted the cup. His kept his eyes trained on Vasquez as he paced. “Talk to me.”
“You lost it, man. Scared the shit out of these people.”
“No. I didn’t.”
“You fucking did!” Vasquez shouted at him. “Fuck! Maybe they were right. Maybe we should get you back in.”
“No. Ant, wait. Wait. I’m cool. I saw someone. He looked familiar. He watched me, um, I followed, and dammit, I saw someone…”
“There was no one. Just you yelling at the top of your lungs and swinging that damn cane!” Vasquez shouted back.
“Mac? Where’s Mac. Shit!”
“She’s fine. She and the twins are out front playing. I got it under control. Luckily she came and got me when she did.”
“Jesus.” Liam righted the chair. He couldn’t remember much of anything.
“Liam, I have to say it.”
“Don’t. I’m good. I swear. I just. It’s been weird, and I’ve been weird.”
“Well, I’m taking Mac back to Kennedy. You need—”
“Bro, wait! Please!” He grabbed his arm. “Hear me out. I’m cool. My trigger, it was just the noise and the place. Okay? I am good now. I swear it. You tell Kennedy, or take Mac from me, and I’ll lose them. Please, brother. Trust me. Please.”
Vasquez looked at him doubtfully. “You’ve been through a lot, Liam. You need help.”
“I’ll get it. Listen, I got Eric on it. He found a doctor. And this evening he’s hooking me and Kay up to work our stuff out. We’ll spend time together. I just got to get this right, before I lose my chance. I’m okay. Fuck, man, one more chance. I swear. I won’t lose it again. You know me. You know I can do this.”
He saw Vasquez waver for a moment. He exhaled. “I can fix this. Please.”
“Let’s get out of here.”
Liam nodded. He and Vasquez fixed the desk and he was handed his cane. He saw the tremors in his hand and tried to cover them. First the explosion in front of Kennedy and now this. He had to get himself under control. Fast.
***
Phil ran the zipper along the seam of his bag. “So that’s it. The rest of my things I can send for.”
Kennedy rose from the bed with a push of her hands. She walked over to him. He’d avoided looking her in the eye since they agreed to part as friends. Four long hours of tears and honesty between them led them both to the same conclusion. They’d only hurt each other if they didn’t face the reality of their marriage and let go.
“Phil.” She touched the side of his face. “Look at me, please.”
“I can’t Kennedy. I—”
“Look at me,” she said, taking both sides of his face into her hands. “You are a wonderful man. My hero. Your friendship and love saved my life. You made my daughter whole. I will forever love you because of it. Please tell me that you understand?”
“What can I say? It hurts so fucking much. I can’t give up any more of my pride.” He tried to break away.
“Then just say goodbye to me. To us. This is where we say goodbye.”
He drew her into his arms and kissed her. She wrapped her arms around his neck and returned the kiss, a final parting between them. It felt different than all other kisses she shared with him in their marriage. There was so much sadness and regret in their exchange. The kiss grew deeper, lasting, then ended. Kennedy dropped her face to his shirt and hugged him. She inhaled his rich cologne, felt the hard strength of his chest and his strong arms closing around her. She never thought she could care for a man other than Liam. She did care for Phil. She would miss their friendship, their talks, and even some parts of their life together. But mostly, she was relieved she had found the strength to be honest with him. Baby or no baby, their journey ended here.
“Can I take you to the doctor?” he asked, still holding her.
“No. I’ll go alone.” She released him. “I’ll call you and let you know, okay?”
He grabbed the suitcase and another bag. Kennedy led him out of the bedroom, down the stairs to the front door. She did a peek first to make sure the news vans weren’t back. “Looks like the coast is clear.”
She opened the door. When she turned, she saw Phil staring at the Christmas tree. “We talked about this. Come back tomorrow. You and Mac can decorate it. She looks forward to it.”
“And Liam? Will he now move in?”
“This is your house. I’ll start looking for a place.”
“No. This is Mackenzie’s house. We’ll work it out.” Phil smiled. He looked past her to the open door. She knew this was hard for him. She couldn’t know how hard. If Liam had chosen another over her, Kennedy wouldn’t want to live. She couldn’t compare Phil’s feelings for her to the ones she had for Liam, of course. In her mind they didn’t have that kind of history. But Kennedy had always been a strong believer in the heart, and she could attest to the fact that it wants what it wants.
“I don’t want the news over the phone about the baby. After you know, let’s have dinner. We can work out some of the financial things, house, car, bank accounts. All of it. I mean it, Kennedy. I want us to remain friends.”
“I’m sorry Phil. I can’t. I have to focus on Mackenzie and Liam. I can’t…if I meet with you…. I want him to know that I’m serious about my commitment to him. I explained this. We’ll work out the visits with Mac. As far as the baby, I’ll call you and, well, I just don’t think we should see each other…outside of—”
<
br /> “Lunch, Kennedy. If I’m a father or not let me hear the news face to face. Please.”
“Okay, Phil. Of course.”
He walked out. Kennedy closed the door softly behind him. She let go a deep breath. She looked around her and relaxed. Now all that was left was to talk to Liam. “Today is the first day of the rest of my life.”
***
“Hello?” Eric passed off his keys to the valet.
“Hey, it’s me.” Harper’s voice sang in his ear.
He had to smile. He had left her a message that morning and patiently waited for her return call. Eric strolled through the restaurant doors eyeing the patrons. Harper’s beauty pushed up to the front of his mind. Her flawless brown skin, almond-shaped eyes and heart-shaped lips. Add to the mix her fresh mouth and flirty ways and Eric was a goner.
“Hi, you. So you got my message?”
“I sure did. You know I’m all down for operation get-those-fools-back-together.” She giggled.
“Okay, well I will be at Kennedy’s in about two hours. A plan?”
“Eric, um, maybe we can have dinner tonight.”
“That might not be wise, Harper.”
“Oh c’mon. I’m eighteen. Totally legal. Besides I haven’t seen you since my birthday.”
Eric wiped his hand down his face. He spotted his lunch date seated to the back of the restaurant. Harper’s crush was cute at sixteen, and dangerously tempting when she came on to him at her eighteenth birthday party that Kennedy insisted he fly back into town for. But even he knew better than to go there. “Can’t make it, Harper. I’ll see you this evening, beautiful.”
“Eric wait—”
“Bye.” He hung up before she could tempt him further with her sweet voice. He made his way over to the table. Alexa lifted her glass of water to her lips and gave him a hard glance when he approached. Eric sighed, drawing out the chair and taking a seat. “Why couldn’t we meet on base?”
“I was hungry.” She held her palms up on either side of the entrée she’d already been served, and smiled.
The waiter immediately darted over to their table, proffering a menu. Eric waved him off. He had no intentions of sitting through lunch with her. He wasn’t in the mood. “Okay. So what is this about?”
“You’ve been a busy bee, haven’t you? I heard about the issuance of hazard pay to Liam. Now that wasn’t exactly protocol.”
“He had it coming. The man needed to be on his feet,” replied Eric.
“And we plan to take care of him. I can’t have you going around my office to disrupt those plans. You of all people know I won’t put up with it.”
“What is it exactly you expect me to do? The media is circling, the president has already proclaimed him a hero, but he’s holed up in one shitty room at the Marriott.”
“That’s enough, Eric.” Alexa hissed. “Don’t play me dumb. You’re trying to get him to set down roots.”
“I’m his friend. And he already has roots.”
“And I’m your superior. I told you. Step aside, and stay out of my way. That’s your final warning.”
Eric rose.
“Sit down,” Alexa stated dryly.
His jaw clenched. Her smile was a borderline sneer. “Do you need me to make it an order?” She took a sip of ice water. “Sit down.”
Eric did as he was told. Alexa picked up her fork and knife. She took her time slicing into her halibut and lifting a bite to her mouth. He watched her chew it down to an appropriate swallow. “Now. I’m moving you.”
“You’re what?”
“We need you in Jakarta. There’s a situation there. I would say the assignment will be for a year. You ship out in two days. Safe travels.” Alexa flipped her eyes up with a smirk.
“I got leave. I was taking a month to handle personal affairs.”
“Sucks to be you.” Alexa continued to slice and nibble on her fish.
Eric let go a deep sigh. She did outrank him, but he had a few friends of his own. She hadn’t gotten those promotions by accident; she must be conspiring with Capitol Hill to keep the failures of the war concealed from the public. He also knew Senator Clayton wanted Liam contained, something Alexa was only too happy to support. He would need to work fast to stop the wheels of injustice from grinding his boy to dust. So he tried another tactic.
“He’s in a lot of pain, Alex.”
Alexa kept eating as if she didn’t hear him.
“He’s suffering from PTSD.”
“I know that. Why do you think I want him brought in?”
“You know him. Us. We don’t respond to force. He’s been held hostage for five years. He needs to be his own man. If you care about him, cut him some slack. Don’t back him into a corner and—” The light dawned for Eric. “That’s it, isn’t it? You want to strip him of everything so he breaks. Then what?”
Alexa glared.
Eric lowered his voice. “You don’t know his limits. I’m telling you, if you push him too far we could all lose him. The man doesn’t know why Operation Scorpion cost him his life. None of us knew what was on that rock when we dropped in. There is nothing in his head but a lot of bullshit pain. He’s a brother to us all. We owe him his life and our own.”
“I’m the only person that understands Liam. I know what I’m doing. Besides, his marriage is over.” She sighed as if bored with the topic.
“You wish.”
Her eyes flashed cold rage and narrowed on him. “It’s over when he learns the truth.”
“What truth?”
Alexa relaxed. She had that fat-cat look on her face. That smugness he’d seen over the years as she steadily climbed ahead of him in the ranks. “His precious Kennedy is pregnant. What do you think that news will do to him?”
Eric frowned. “That’s bullshit. How the hell would you know?”
Alexa smiled. “There’s nothing I don’t know. But apparently there are some things you don’t. Now, don’t you have some packing to do?”
Eric bit hard on his lip. He wondered if he’d be court-martialed and shot for grabbing her by the throat. The temptation eased. He gave her a mocking salute then rose and walked briskly to the front of the restaurant. “Two days my ass, you sick bitch. I won’t let you get away with this,” he mumbled, stalking toward the valet.
***
“Kennedy?”
Her gaze swung upward. The doctor walked in with her file folder. His name was Clark Kent. An ongoing joke for most when they met him, considering he looked nothing like the superhero. He was short with a protruding belly and receding hairline. He wore his glasses on his nose, which added more of drawl to his nasal speech. He was the doctor who'd saved Kennedy’s life. The one she went to about fertility and getting off the Pill. The one man she really wanted to be Superman in disguise. She needed a miracle.
“How are we feeling today?”
“Okay. I um, I’m sorry for being so insistent. I had to see you.”
He waved it off. “I completely understand. I’ve seen the news.”
Kennedy blushed. “Yes, so you know my life is in an upheaval now.”
“I had them rush on the exam. We have the results.”
“It’s been seven days. Is that too soon?”
The doctor chuckled. “I’d prefer twelve. It can take that long to detect HCG in your blood. However, if you are looking for an answer today, I have one.”
“Okay?”
“It’s negative.”
“It is.” Kennedy sighed.
“I still think you should see me next week. One more test to be sure. But at this time, the test shows no qualitative traces of HCG hormone in your system.”
Kennedy leapt from the exam bed and threw her arms around the doctor. “Thank you. Thank you so much!”
“Ah, well, again, let’s do this in five days. To make sure you have the all-clear.”
“Yes! Yes. Thank you. Thank you!” she grabbed her purse. He said something else but she was out the door. She dialed Angelina first. Sh
e had to share the news.
Chapter Sixteen
“How am I doing, daddy?”
Liam had gotten down on all fours, sandwiched between the tree and the wall. The final strand of lights barely reached the plug. He would need to turn the stand, which proved difficult, considering the tree’s height and weight.
“Daddy? Where you at? Look at what I done.”‘
“Give me a minute, princess.” Liam pressed a hand to the wall for support, and pushed himself up with his good leg. Vasquez had cut him a break. A small one. He'd kept his eyes on him throughout the day. Even came over for a few, until he’d been convinced that he and Mac would be okay. Still, he called and checked in with him twice to ensure he remained cool. Liam refused to think on the incident in the arcade. What he thought he saw. He was better now. He'd just had a moment.
Mackenzie danced around the tree and giggled with excitement. She started leap-frogging over to him.
“See! See what I did!”
Her hair had come undone from her bows after the excitement of the day. One ponytail was free and crinkly. Liam tried to clamp it back on but failed and gave up. When the trip to Fun World ended, so had Mackenzie’s enthusiasm for a day with daddy from heaven. He was then introduced to whiny, cranky Mackenzie.
Liam had been hit with a barrage of questions. Where’s mama? Are you taking me to mama? Does mama know where I am? Will mama come to get me soon? Liam tried to play up the adventure. A day belonging just to them. His four-year-old's round eyes pooled with tears. He hated to see her cry. He almost broke and called Kennedy, but he gave it one more try. The mention of a surprise party for mommy and the decoration of a Christmas tree did the trick. That and a bag of gummy bears at a gas station stop.
Liam made it around the tree to see his daughter’s handiwork. How did it look indeed! At three feet tall, his baby-girl was a master decorator. Liam stepped back to survey her work. The colored bulbs were lined from the bottom of tree to as far as she could reach, in a well-placed order. Blue and silver bulbs were all in one area. The reds were grouped together, greens as well. He crossed his arms and studied the tree as if giving her work serious thought. “You know, I think quite possibly this is the best tree daddy has ever seen.”
