Beautiful Bounty (The Bounty Hunters: The Marino Bros. Book 1)

by Nightingale, MJ

  “Whoa, whoa,” he kept repeating trying to control her thrashing. “Cut this shit out, Ronnie, or I’ll leave right now, and walk out. Then you’ll be on your own.”

  “Don’t you fucking dare walk out on me again, holding the bag, you fucking asshole. I loved you. Gary, you know those drugs were yours. And I know those drugs were yours. You did drugs before. And, I have pictures. You smoking pot,” she lied. “Passed out. I was going to go to trial, thinking there couldn’t possibly be enough evidence to put me away. But just in case, I had those pictures stashed if it didn’t go my way. I was going to use them last minute only if I had to. But just maybe I need to get them to the press. You have ruined me. And god dammit, I won’t stand for it.” She continued to twist and try to get her wrists free.

  “You fucking cunt,” Gary hissed. “This was your plan all along. You have been playing me all along. Now you are trying to blame me. Bitch,” he released her pushing her away from him, and then his hand came out like a snake. He slapped her hard, and she fell to the sofa behind her. It stung, and shocked her, and she reached for her flaming face.

  Gio had to hold Nikko down to stop him from jumping and going to her rescue. He nodded no, forcing Nikko to see him and stay put. Gio knew Ronnie had to be close to getting him to slip. The guy was angry now and that’s when they made mistakes. Nikko knew this too, but he wasn’t thinking with his head right now, he was only thinking with his heart. Gio saw the fury in his little brother’s eyes, and couldn’t blame him. No man should ever hit a woman. It was one of his biggest taboos from when he had been on the force. He’d seen too many woman brutalized and it sickened him. For Nikko, who loved Ronnie, this moment had to be so incredibly enraging. In his mind, Gary was no man. He was a coward; he used and hit women. Gio wanted to throttle him too. But in just two minutes it could all be over. Keeping his arms around his brother, he let him know with his eyes to just hang on a bit longer.

  “You slut,” Gary continued standing over her. He was unsnapping his jeans. You do want me to go down with you, and well, that ain’t happening baby. “I’m going to fuck you one last time, for old times’ sake, and then I’m . . .”

  “Going to what?” Ronnie snapped, still holding her bruised cheek too dizzy to get up.

  Gary just laughed as he pulled the gun out of his pants before he let them drop to the floor.

  “You’ve got a gun,” Ronnie whispered, suddenly terrified. Nikko almost leapt down upon them, but again Gio held him like iron.

  “One more minute,” he mouthed to Nikko.

  “Yes, so no more fucking smart talk from you. But, I’m not going to use it on you Ronnie. Not yet, anyway. Although I should because of your little attempt to blackmail me here. But, that’s not going to happen. So what, I’ve smoked pot. I’m not worried about any fucking pictures. But you on the other hand, with that mouth of yours. Well, that worries me. So, I’m going to tell you the truth now, have my way with you, and then I’m afraid it’s gotta be lights out, Ronnie. I can’t have you fucking shit up for me. Such a shame,” he muttered, looking down at her cleavage. “I always loved your tits.”

  Nikko nodded at Gio who again held up one finger. They were going to get the information they needed. They watched as Gary put the gun on the filing cabinet out of Ronnie’s reach.

  Gary grabbed Ronnie’s hands with one of his and held them like steel above her head. He fondled her breasts roughly with the other. She was still too weak to fight back, but she felt her strength returning in her fear. She winced in pain as he pinched her nipple hard, and he laughed.

  “You were just a great piece of ass from the wrong side of the tracks to me after our break up,” he sneered while he kicked off his shoes. He still stood before her, and then smacked her one more time across the face with the back of his hand. While she was stunned, he quickly slipped down his jeans and pulled out his cock. “A piece of ass I liked to fuck, but you ruined it with that break up, and then when you came back, well, it wasn’t the same. You acted all holier than thou, and you watched my every move like you were my god damned watchdog or my parents. I stuck with you to get through school. You thought you were so god damn smart, but . . .” He got closer, put his face right in front of hers and laughed. “But I’ll tell you this bitch, cause I am going to kill you when I am through fucking you. You were right. Those were my drugs. I have been dealing for a long time, and I got myself my own nice little stash. I don’t need you bitch, and I don’t need my parents. I didn’t mean for you to get caught, but shit happens. And it couldn’t happen to a sweeter bitch than you.” Gary reached for her shirt. He was going to tear it off of her, but instead all hell broke loose.

  That’s when Ronnie heard Nikko roar, and she felt a cool rush of air descend from the rafters. “Fucking bastard!” he screamed. “Get your god damned hands off my woman!”

  Gary was stunned; he whipped around and reached for the gun he left on the old filing cabinet. He got his hands on it just as Nikko, who landed like a cat, jumped up and smashed his fist into Gary’s face sending him flying through the plate glass window of the office. Nikko quickly recovered from the fall and gave chase bursting through what remained of the door frame to go after him.

  Gio was there too, and Ronnie tried to get to her feet. Gio helped her, pulling her up as she saw Nikko round the corner into the massive expanse of the warehouse after Gary who was lying in a pile of broken glass attempting to rise from the concrete floor while also pulling up his pants. But it was too late. He was cornered. The door to the outside flew open.

  Turning her head, which still ached from the head spinning slaps Gary had delivered, she saw the other two Marinos running in, guns aimed. She looked back to where Gary had been, where Nikko had gone, and noticed that he too had been distracted by the opening of the door for just a moment. Like a wild animal Gary lifted his gun. Her heart almost burst out of her chest, when she saw he had the gun pointed at Nikko.

  “No!” she yelled for all she was worth. Ronnie tried to tear herself out of Gio’s grasp, and yelled again to warn Nikko at the same time. “Nikko!” she screamed and the gun fired.

  Nikko fell to the side and hit the cement. He wasn’t moving. She saw something that looked like oil seep out from the side of his body and she knew it was blood. She continued to scream until her world went black.

  Ronnie woke up in an ambulance on the way to the hospital. Gio was with her sitting beside the gurney. His face looked grim and he didn’t even notice when her eyes fluttered open. He was watching the road ahead.

  She cleared her throat. He looked at her strangely as she tried to sit up in her panic. “Where is he? Nikko?” He pushed her back down firmly, eyes revealing her worst fear.

  “He’s in the other ambulance on the way to the hospital. He lost a lot of blood, baby girl, but it was a clean shot through the shoulder. No vital organs,” he told her.

  He’d been shot. She hadn’t dreamt it all. Her stomach churned. Despite Gio’s assurances, his face revealed he was just as fearful and worried as she.

  “Is he going to be okay?” she asked again needing more.

  “Ronnie,” he started and faltered.

  She could tell from his tone he was trying to be patient with her. He’d probably rather be in the other ambulance with his brother, but someone had to ride with her.

  “I’m not going to lie. He lost a lot of blood, but the paramedics are with him now, and they are giving him IV fluids to increase the blood volume. We’ll know more. . .” he stopped short and glanced towards the front of the ambulance. “We’re almost there,” he patted her hand. He looked tired and twice his age of thirty-one.

  She knew he must be incredibly worried about his brother, but she was too. Yes, this was his brother, but she loved him. Sudden guilt overwhelmed her and the tears came, silent but they came.

  “I should have told him I loved him,” she choked out, feeling like her whole world dropped out from under her.

  “Yes, you should have,” he agree
d and dropped her hand suddenly.

  Ronnie felt lost. If something happened to Nikko she didn’t think she could take it.

  The ambulance continued on for another interminable minute. The siren, the only sound, blaring above them as it sped towards the hospital, and Nikko.

  She couldn’t keep quiet any longer. “Andreas? Blaze?” she asked wanting to know if they were okay.

  “Andreas is in the other ambulance with Nikko. They left a minute or so before we did. And Blaze was with the cops who were picking up Gary. He’ll drive to the hospital with the rental when they are done questioning him. There will be cops at the hospital Ronnie, for you. They’ll probably take you in until we get this all cleared up.”

  “Take me in? But I want to be with Nikko,” she winced as she tried to sit up again. He pushed her back done once more. Tears started to form in her eyes. She couldn’t go to jail, not without knowing Nikko would pull through. “Please, can you convince the police to let me stay until we know something?” she begged, grasping for his hand.

  He sighed, but gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “I’ll try, but I can’t make any promises.” He was looking toward the front of the ambulance again and he let her hand drop. “We’re here,” he announced. Her stomach felt like she swallowed lead.

  “Gio let me sit up, please, just to see if I can see him being wheeled in. Please!” He looked at her more kindly this time, but she couldn’t blame his earlier looks of disapproval. He, hell, all the brothers, probably blamed her for this. Nikko would never have been in this situation if it hadn’t been for her.

  He shrugged and relented. She sat up quickly and her head swam with the sudden movement, but she was just able to get a glimpse of Nikko being wheeled into the double bay doors. She noticed his arm, the one with the IV tubes in it giving him precious fluids to keep his heart pumping, and that was her last sight of him. Again, she felt woozy and had to lie back down. Her opportunity to have it all seemed lost, and this time it was her fault. Her biggest regret was not telling Nikko she loved him too.

  ***

  It felt like he had cotton in his mouth, and his head pounded like someone hit it with a sledge hammer. He winced and slowly opened his eyes, quickly shutting them at the glare of overhead lights, bright. Too bright. He winced and let out a groan.

  “Nicky?” He heard Andreas and felt something on his right shoulder, and opened his eyes just a crack, revealing his brother blocking out the painful light.

  “Yeah,” he muttered past the cotton.

  “So glad you’re awake little brother.” He heard Andreas, and his voice sounded thick.

  “What happened?” he muttered trying to get up, and felt a shooting pain in his left shoulder.

  “Don’t move, Nikko,” Andreas cautioned. “That bastard, Gary, shot you. You got out of surgery an hour ago. You lost a lot of blood, so you don’t want to open that up.”

  Andreas had been beside himself with worry. He couldn’t take losing another family member. He’d lost his parents, the woman he was going to marry, and now this. He had been relieved as hell when the doctors came out of surgery and announced what the paramedics reported. A clean shot. The orthopedic surgeon on call put in a few pins to help the healing process, but with some therapy he would regain use of his arm and shoulder. Then, finally they’d let him come into the recovery room to see for himself.

  “Ronnie?” Nikko asked through parched lips. His first thoughts were of her. He hoped nothing else had gone wrong after he passed out.

  “She’s okay, upstairs I think. She fainted and passed out after you were shot. A nasty concussion where she hit her head. So they are keeping her overnight. But they got a guard on her.”

  “A guard. Why? I want to see her,” he winced again and tried to move.

  “They still got to hear the tapes and get in touch with the Florida prosecutors. And, don’t move,” Andreas’s tone commanded, reminding him not to open up his stitches. “I’ll try to arrange it,” he promised as Nikko continued to struggle.

  “Please,” Nikko looked up at him feeling suddenly tired and groggy.

  Andreas saw his brother’s eyes fading. “Rest,” he told him softly brushing the hair out of his eyes. “I’ll make it happen.” But, Nikko hadn’t heard that. He had passed out once more.

  ***

  Ronnie was in a room. A police man stood outside. She had been told by a nurse they would be keeping her overnight, and was relieved. She had to see Nikko, tell him she loved him before she was carted off to jail. She saw Gio pass by her room. He was talking to a man in a black suit. The detective maybe. She watched the door, hoping he would turn and she could catch his eye, maybe get some news about Nikko. It had been hours since he’d been wheeled into surgery.

  Then she saw Blaze appear, and then both men tore out of her line of vision. Fear penetrated her soul. She got up quickly, and the IV the nurse fastened to her hand tore at her. “Fuck,” she winced at the pain, and stopped a moment to regain her composure. She turned her legs to the other side of the bed grabbing the IV pole as she stood more carefully this time.

  “Not so fast, Miss Sears. Get right back into bed,” a voice bellowed from the door way. She turned to see the man who had been talking to Gio earlier.

  “I have to see Nikko. And who are you?” she asked, refusing to sit at his command.

  “I’m Detective Alexander. I have a few questions for you. So, let me repeat myself which is something I don’t like to do. Sit,” he commanded.

  She didn’t move. She glared at him eyes narrowing. “I’ll sit,” she said, “And I’ll answer your questions, if you’ll answer mine first.” She needed to find out why the brothers had taken off like that. She needed some news about Nikko.

  The detective glared at this little blonde hellion. Nikko sure had his hands full with this one, and he wasn’t just talking about the chicks breasts. Shit, and those were a handful. “What’s your question, Miss Sears?” he asked crossing his hands over his chest blocking her view of the hallway. It didn’t mean he would answer it, but he was curious.

  “Where did Gio and Blaze go? They rushed away so quickly. Is Nikko okay?” she spit out in a rush.

  “That’s two questions,” he looked at her with a wry, amused expression.

  “So what!” she stomped. “Just tell me, where did they go and is Nikko okay?” She began to round the bed determined to find out for herself if this detective was going to be a dickhead. She’d get past him somehow even though his massive frame blocked the exit.

  He wasn’t going to budge and she obviously couldn’t move him. Could she? She glanced at his feet in police issue shoes. She wished she wasn’t barefoot, and had her hiking boots on. She’d get him out of her way in a hurry. He noticed the direction of her eyes, and knew what she was thinking. Oh yes, Nikko would have fun with this one. “Okay little lady, back in bed and no funny business. Your boyfriend was out of surgery an hour ago, just woke up, and is headed to recovery. He’ll be in a room down the hall in about an hour. Now, get into bed.” He began to move toward her forcing her to back up or be pushed.

  The tension she had been feeling for the last three hours began to slip away. He was in recovery. He was going to be in a room down the hall. Her heart began to beat.

  Her shoulders slumped in relief, and she turned and headed back to her bed, being extra careful to hold her hospital gown shut. She didn’t want this beast of a man getting his thrills by feasting his eyes on her backside.

  The cop had to chuckle at her feeble attempts to maneuver the bulky awkward IV pole while clutching her gown closed. “I’ll turn around.”

  “Good!” she barked.

  “Just for a second though,” he laughed. “So make it quick.”

  Frigging idiot ass cop, Ronnie grumbled to herself. But she moved quickly and got into bed, pulling the covers over her legs discreetly as he turned back around.

  “Okay Miss Sears,” he approached the bed and pulled out a little black notepad from his insi
de breast pocket. “Now, it’s my turn for some questions.”

  “Shoot,” she said, looking away from the beast of a man. He looked like he lifted trucks instead of weights. Why in the hell did men think women found juice heads attractive? The man was built like a Mac truck.

  He snickered at her attempts to avoid his gaze.

  “I usually like suspects and witnesses to look at me when I’m questioning them. It kind of helps me to determine if they are being honest with me,” he added patiently.

  “For crying out loud,” she turned her head. “Just ask your dumb questions.” The sooner she got this out of the way, the sooner she could see Nikko. She crossed her arms. Cooperate, she reminded herself. She was still in some serious trouble, but her worries over Nikko made her push everything else to the way side. The sooner she cooperated, the sooner the bear would get the hell out of there. Then, she wouldn’t have to see him until he picked her up tomorrow to cart her to jail.

  “So, first question. Gary Campbell admitted putting the drugs in your equipment in Tampa?” he asked.

  “Yes! We have it on tape.” He just nodded and took his time writing it down in his little notebook. He even licked the tip of his pencil. She rolled her eyes. Obviously this guy was going to torture her with his methodical interrogation.

  “Okay. Thank you.” He turned and began to exit the room.

  “Wait?” she called after him totally confused. Was this a joke?

  “What?” he turned, hand on the door.

  “That’s it?” she asked eyes widening in surprise.

  “Yep, we got the tape, and it is being sent to analysis now in Bangor, and we’ve recorded Gary’s voice. I’ve got statements from both Gio, and Blaze. I’ve got to talk to Andreas, and Nikko. If the tapes are good. We will know in a couple of hours, then it’s a wrap.”