Lucky Like Us

by Jennifer Ryan

  She’s dead. I shot her. She’s dead.

  He didn’t have any other options. It’s what the other agents would have done. He thought maybe he’d be lucky enough to just wound her, but all that ominous blood confirmed he’d killed her.

  Someone spoke behind him, a muffled sound layered behind the echo of emptiness consuming him. His whole world tunneled in on him, his focus on Elizabeth. An agent put something over her and tried to stop the bleeding. She lay on her side facing him, both arms flung over her head. Barely able to make out her face, the blood oozed down from her temple, covering her eye and cheek.

  “Sam! She’ll be okay. Give me your gun.” Tyler had seen and heard everything. Sam didn’t have a choice. He had to take the shot or risk losing Elizabeth. The wound to her side wasn’t bad, but Sam was in shock and clearly not thinking straight.

  Sam’s eyes remained clouded over. He wasn’t really seeing Tyler standing in front of him. His flat voice chilled Tyler to the bone.

  “I shot her. I shot her again.”

  He held his gun up to his head, scratching it as if trying to figure things out. “She actually yelled at me to shoot her. I love her, and I shot her. How can this be? How does someone shoot the woman they love?”

  Tyler didn’t like seeing Sam with the gun held up to his head. Jack came toward them, and Tyler hoped maybe Sam’s brother could help.

  “You didn’t have a choice. He was going to kill her. The only way to stop him was to shoot him in the heart. You did. It was a clean shot. She’ll be okay.”

  Tyler hoped he was right. Elizabeth moved just in time to save herself from serious injury. The shot sliced open a huge gash in her side, right along her right breast and into Robert Chainy’s heart. He’d dropped like a stone, but not before he’d squeezed the trigger and fired his gun. Elizabeth’s head had been right next to the barrel and the bullet opened a large wound at her temple. The concussion from the shot could do serious damage to her brain, and Tyler hoped she would be okay for her sake, as well as Sam’s.

  “Give me your gun,” Jack pleaded, waiting until Sam really saw him. “Give it to me.” He held out his hand, but Sam made no move to hand it over.

  “I shot her. She’s dead.” He backed up until he hit the wall nearby and slid down with his knees up and put his hands, gun and all, to his face. He sat there holding on to the gun he’d used to shoot the woman he loved. He smelled the gunpowder and felt the hot metal against his forehead.

  He never told her he loved her. How much he wanted to have a life with her, make babies with her, and have a real home together, like his brother and sister had in Colorado with their families.

  “Sam, please don’t do this. Give me the gun. She’s not dead. She’s unconscious. Let’s take her to the hospital. You have to go with her.”

  Jack hunched down in front of Sam. His mirror image, Jack would understand how he felt. “She’s dead.” His despair laced in his voice, a single, lonely tear sliding down his face.

  “No. She’s not. Look at me.” Sam’s eyes cleared, allowing him to actually focus on Jack. “She’s alive,” Jack said, but Sam knew he lied. “We have to take her to the hospital. Give me the gun,” Jack pleaded.

  Sam dismissed the gun in his hand and his brother’s request, focusing on Elizabeth. She didn’t look like the beautiful woman he remembered seeing not ten minutes ago. Her blood stained the gorgeous white gown.

  Paramedics rushed down the hall. He didn’t want them to take her away from him.

  “Sam. Give me the gun. Now!” Jack’s voice penetrated the hollowness in Sam’s ears.

  Jack’s eyes were fierce, his mouth drawn into a sharp line. He turned the gun over without a word, rushing to Elizabeth’s side. He pushed several people out of his way, grabbing Elizabeth and holding her to him. Rocking her back and forth, he looked down at her bloody face.

  “I’m sorry, sweetheart. I’m so sorry. I never meant to hurt you. I never meant to kill you.”

  He kept a tight hold on her and couldn’t hear anything around him. The world had closed up to him and Elizabeth. As far as he could see, hear, and feel it was only the two of them. No one would take her away. He used his left hand to brush away the blood from her cheek, smearing it more than anything. He ran his hand over her hair.

  “Sweetheart, I’m so sorry. I never meant to kill you. I love you so much.”

  “I love you too. Let me go,” she said weakly.

  He held her close, his strong arms around her and hearing him say he loved her filled her heart and soul with such warmth, it burned bright just for him. He rocked her and with each beat back and forth her head pounded. A scorching pain seared through her side, and for a moment she thought she’d been stabbed again. His arm pressed on whatever burned and throbbed like a hot poker. She wanted him to let her go so the pain would stop. On the other hand, she wanted him to hold her for the rest of her life and tell her he loved her. They were the sweetest words she’d ever heard. Barely able to keep herself above the black ooze, she fought to open her eyes and see the man she loved.

  “I’ll never let you go.” Sam rocked and held her tight. He was losing it. He’d killed her, and now her ghost pleaded for him to let her go. He couldn’t do it. They’d take her away, and he’d never see her again.

  “Sam. Let her go, man. You’re hurting her. They have to take her to the hospital.” Jack crouched behind Elizabeth and put a hand on Sam’s shoulder. “Sam, she’s awake. Talk to her. Let her go before you hurt her.”

  Sam focused on his brother. “Hurt her?” How could he hurt her if she was dead?

  “Sam, look at her. She’s alive. We have to get her to the hospital.”

  “No more hospitals.” Her words came out barely above a whisper. Her eyes fluttered open, looking into Sam’s. “I want to go home. I love you so much. Take me home, Sam.”

  “You’re alive.” He couldn’t believe it. Everything rushed back to him, and the world around him that had once enclosed just him and Elizabeth now exploded into reality. His brother, Tyler, the paramedics who wanted to get to Elizabeth, and about twenty other agents all came into focus. Robert Chainy dead, blood running down his chest and pooling on the floor. His eyes were open, but the life inside them had extinguished.

  “Sam, let her go. Give her over to the paramedics. She’ll be okay.”

  This time Sam heard and understood. He placed a kiss on Elizabeth’s forehead, and as gently as if lying down a sleeping baby, he set her on the floor. Unconscious again, but at least she’d gotten through to him. Tyler thought the way he touched her, and the way he stood not even a foot away from her with that tender look in his eyes, spoke volumes about how much he loved her. He couldn’t imagine the many emotions going on inside Sam after shooting Elizabeth for a second time.

  Tyler would have to speak with Jack and make sure they kept an eye on Sam a little longer. Elizabeth’s head wound was serious. A large gash across her temple swelled to an egg shape, opening the gash even more and spilling more of her blood over her face. The wound under her arm and across her ribcage had a padded bandage over it and the paramedic applied pressure to stop the bleeding.

  The paramedics lifted her onto the gurney. Sam stepped forward once they strapped her in and kissed her forehead again. He held her hand and followed alongside to the waiting ambulance.

  Tyler grabbed Jack and Jenna and they followed behind the ambulance. The entire Hamilton family waited outside, desperate to get a look at Elizabeth before they took her away. Tyler had no doubt they’d give him and Sam a tongue lashing when they got to the hospital. He hoped he wouldn’t have to be the one to tell them this had all been Elizabeth’s idea.

  Chapter Thirty-Seven

  * * *

  Saturday, 8:07 A.M.

  SHE BARELY SLEPT through the night, even with the painkillers. She woke up several times from nightmares and the sound of gunshots in her head. Each time she opened her eyes, Sam was with her, holding her hand, telling her she was safe and he loved
her.

  Caught in the same dream again, she tried to tell herself it wasn’t real. Robert Chainy had a gun to her head, Sam stood in front of them, his gun trained on Robert. The awful pop of gunfire exploded, and the searing pain burned her head and side. She woke up with a start. Her eyes flew open only to see Jack sitting in the chair beside her bed instead of Sam.

  “Where’s Sam?”

  Jack smiled. “Most people can’t tell us apart, but here you are half out of your head with pain, and you knew immediately I wasn’t Sam.” Shaking his head, he sat forward. “We sent him home. Jenna came and got him about an hour ago. She’ll bring him back once he’s cleaned up, and she’s made sure he’s eaten a decent meal. I promised I’d stay in his place. I thought if you woke up, you’d see him and go back to sleep.”

  “You aren’t him.” She couldn’t hide her disappointment, sure Jack understood she needed Sam. “I’m glad you’re here though. Is he okay?”

  “He’s getting there. We haven’t left him alone. He stayed by your side the whole night. Tyler stayed with him until I came a few hours ago to take a shift. He won’t be satisfied until he hears you say you’re okay and you don’t blame him for shooting you. Had it been anybody else he had to shoot, it would have been easier for him to accept.

  “He loves you, and hurting you on purpose is a weight he can’t bear. Everyone knows he didn’t have a choice. Chainy would have killed you. Sam took the shot to save you.”

  “He needs to stop blaming himself when it isn’t his fault,” Elizabeth agreed.

  “I think it would do him a world of good to hear you say it.”

  “Oh, he’ll hear from me.”

  She put a hand to her head, still pounding away like the cadence of a marching band. She had stitches across her temple and a goose egg to boot. The bullet wound along her ribs next to her breast had been stitched closed. She looked terrible. Her hair was in tangles and half the pins were missing or falling out. Her gown was completely ruined, she was sure. Her eye was all puffy and probably black and blue. The entire right side of her face hurt.

  Jack leaned forward and held her gaze. “Don’t be too hard on him. He thought you were dead. He thought he killed you last night. Tyler and I had to talk him into giving up his gun. It took some doing, but he finally gave it to me. He picked you up from the floor and rocked you while he told you how sorry he was for killing you. We couldn’t convince him you were alive until you spoke to him.”

  That sank into the depths of her soul and filled her with overwhelming sadness. Poor Sam. She hadn’t been hurt as badly as she could have been, because she’d trusted Sam to take the shot and do as little damage to her while still killing Chainy. She was proud of him. She’d been right to trust him. He’d saved her life.

  He’d taken shooting her the first time so hard, and now he’d actually thought he’d killed her.

  “I had no idea he thought he killed me. I’ll take care of him. I’ll make sure he knows I’m okay, and I don’t blame him. I’ll have to thank him too. One murderer down, and a stalker to go,” she said with a sigh. Already getting tired, the pain radiated through her head and side. Maybe she’d take another nap, and then, with or without permission from her doctor, she was going home.

  “You should look at this.” Jack handed over the newspaper he’d been reading. “My wife knows a lot of people. She had a reporter talk with Deputy Director Davies last night about Sam’s operations the last two days. He’s a hero, thanks to you. Again, that is.”

  She took the paper and read through one eye the front page headline:

  ELIZABETH HAMILTON SAVED BY FBI—TWICE

  She covered her open mouth with her fingers, her eyes wide with surprise.

  “Read the story. It’s quite remarkable. You know about last night, but I bet you don’t know where he went the night Tyler stayed with you.”

  She read the story through once and glanced up at Jack, who’d been watching her intently. Then she read the story again, unable to believe the unbelievable.

  In addition to what happened with Chainy the night before, the night Sam had left her with Tyler, he’d gone after Jarred and arrested him for stalking and attempted kidnapping. Apparently Sam and Tyler, in conjunction with local police, had discovered Jarred was in dire financial trouble. Set to kidnap Elizabeth the night Sam arrested him, he intended to ransom her to her family for millions.

  They found him at her house armed with a gun, rope, duct tape, a hunting knife, rubber gloves, and a ransom note he’d pasted together using letters from magazines and newspapers. The most ominous discovery: a receipt for a storage locker at a local storage yard paid in full for five years. When they searched the storage locker, they found a crudely fashioned pine box coffin lined in plastic and a hammer and nails to seal the lid. She wondered fleetingly if he’d meant to seal her in that box alive or dead.

  Ill, she remembered Jarred coming to the door and giving her that menacing kiss. He might have taken her then, but John and Tyler showed up. A chill ran up the length of her spine and the hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. She’d come so close to death three times. Each time she’d survived.

  In the midst of all that had happened, she’d fallen in love with Sam, and he loved her. One thought rang in her head, she was one lucky woman.

  “When will he be back? I need to see him,” she said on a yawn.

  She closed her heavy eyelids for what she thought was a few seconds. When she opened them again, Sam stood in Jack’s place. She closed her eyes and opened them again. Sure enough, Sam stood before her, his face marred with frown lines and dark circles under his eyes.

  “Some fake fiancé you are. It’s not nice to play tricks on someone with a concussion. I may be seeing double, but I know the difference between you and Jack. You can’t leave a copy of yourself and hope to pass it off as the real thing.” She smiled and held out her arms, waiting for him to come to her and hold her. He didn’t move. She dropped her arms, disappointed.

  Carefully, she sat up in bed and waited for the room to stop spinning. Her focus restored, she took a good look at him. Clean-shaven, his hair still damp from his shower, he wore blue jeans, a dark gray T-shirt, and his black leather jacket. She couldn’t figure out what was wrong with the way he looked. Of course he was as handsome as ever, but something in his appearance wasn’t quite right. It hit her all at once. She’d never seen him without his badge and gun strapped to his belt. The solemn look in his eyes disturbed her even more.

  “Aren’t you going to say anything?” He’d never used that harsh tone with her.

  “I did say something. I really would have rather woken up and seen you sitting by my bed. I know you were here with me all night. Every time I woke up, I felt better just knowing you were beside me. You look tired.”

  “I look tired. That’s all you have to say. I look tired.”

  “Sam, calm down. That isn’t all I have to say.” She wanted to tell him how much she loved him. He wasn’t ready to listen. She’d start with last night and work her way toward the rest of their lives. “Where are your gun and badge?” His eyes flashed with some emotion she couldn’t identify. Anger, frustration, maybe resignation.

  “Deputy Director Davies has them. I gave them to him last night. Well, Jack gave him my gun. I turned over the badge myself.”

  “Did you quit your job?” Please, Sam. Don’t quit your job. You love it.

  “Let’s talk about something else. Are you in pain? You look like you’re in pain. I can get the doctor if you need something.”

  About to lose it, she snapped, “Did you quit your job?” She hadn’t meant to raise her voice, but she couldn’t allow him to give up his life’s work. Pressing the heel of her hand to her head, she glared at him until he answered.

  “Yes, damnit. I can’t do it anymore.” Sam turned his back on her, crossing his arms over his chest, shutting her out.

  Deputy Director Davies and Tyler walked into the room. Their expressions turned grim when
they felt the heavy tension in the room too. She intended to clear things up for everyone, especially Sam. Right this minute.

  “Deputy Director Davies, I’m glad you’re here. I believe you’d like to take my statement about what happened last night.”

  Sam kept his back to all of them, staring out the window. His shoulders and spine completely rigid. Even though her head throbbed, she had to make this right so she and Sam could move on with their lives.

  She set her jaw and determination filled her eyes. Davies remembered the last time he’d come to take her statement about the first shooting. She’d given quite a performance that day, and he expected nothing less today. She’d put Sam in his place. He knew it. She looked pointedly at his coat pocket. The woman didn’t miss anything.

  “Why don’t you start with when you met with Chainy in the ballroom, and he walked you out to the hallway? We have the recording of his confession that he was responsible for the insurance murders, as well as the attempted murder of you and Agent Turner. I’d like to hear about what happened when Sam caught up with you two in front of the emergency exit.”

  Davies knew she wanted to start here. It would be difficult for her to recount, but she’d put things into perspective for Sam. He was too close to her. His emotions made it impossible for him to think rationally. Elizabeth had a knack for sorting things out and putting them into a logical order. She’d done it before, and he had no doubt she’d do it again. He was counting on it, in fact, because he didn’t want to lose one of his best agents.

  She eyed Sam’s back and turned to both Deputy Director Davies and Agent Reed. She nodded to Davies and began.

  “Let’s keep this simple. Chainy had his arm around my throat, choking me. I could barely breathe.” She touched her fingers to her sore throat. Taking a shaky breath, she went on determined to get it out and get Sam back. “He dragged me against him. With his head right next to mine, he held a gun pointed at my temple. He said he’d kill me, and we all know he meant to, whether in that hallway or once he got me through those doors and away from the hotel. Agent Turner”—she used his last name to let him know she took this seriously—“ordered Chainy to drop his weapon and let me go. Chainy wasn’t about to comply and wanted Agent Turner and the other agents to drop their weapons. Agent Turner followed protocol by identifying himself as an FBI agent, ordered Chainy to drop his weapon again, and with no other alternative but to kill Chainy, he shot him.”