by Aliyah Burke
“I’ve got him.”
Razor’s calm tone spurred him on. With a lunge he left the man and crouched by Riz’s body. Blood streamed from the cut on her head and soaked her shirt by her stomach.
Shit.
“Riz?” Muttering a prayer, he yanked the bedspread toward them, her blood staining the cream cotton.
His gut clenched as he dialed emergency services with one hand, sticky with her blood. Razor took the phone from him, allowing him to apply pressure to both injuries. Continuing with his litany of prayer, Lucifer, wished that Albany was with them right now. She would be able to do a hell of a lot more than he could. But the doctor had stopped working so much with Tungsten and had gone to Cameroon to work at her clinic over there. He couldn’t fault her for that, but it didn’t stop him wishing she was there. Or Harrier’s wife who was also a doctor.
He trusted the man at his back to handle everything else, phone, emergency services, and the guy on the floor. Sirens neared and moments later two men crowded beside him. “Sir, you need to move away and let us do our job. We’ll take it from here.”
He didn’t want to move but she was unresponsive and Ralston wasn’t ready to lose her forever. He gave them enough room to do what they could. He rose with them as they lifted her and prepared to roll the stretcher out.
“Go, I got this.”
While he appreciated Razor giving him a go, truth be told he was going with her anyway. Apparently the fuckers were taking exception to what happened in South America.
He jogged out after the paramedics. “Luc!”
Pausing, he wheeled back and caught his phone as Razor tossed it. Then back by the ambulance, he leapt up.
“Sir, you can’t—”
“Husband and I’ll be damned if I let her go alone. Quit arguing and move.”
The vehicle lurched forward before smoothing out and racing toward the hospital. The phone he’d reattached to his hip buzzed but he ignored it, keeping his attention on the woman still lying without moving. He sank out of the man’s way, gathered Riz’s hand in one of his and used his other to brush the bloody hair from her temple.
Anger continued to pump through him. How had he allowed danger to get this close to her again? How hadn’t he figured they would have gotten her information?
Because we killed the bastards. And had been foolish to assume they’d not shared any information with people outside the embassy.
His mistake—a foolish, rookie one that nearly cost Riz her life.
A flurry of beeping stalled his heart as the paramedic grabbed the defibrillator, cut the rest of her shirt, and placed the pads on her skin.
“Clear.”
He released her hand as the man shocked her. Her body contorted and his heart wrenched. Christ, how did people watch this happen to those they loved?
He loved her. It wouldn’t do to call it infatuation for it went far beyond that. Faced with the undeniable fact he could lose her any second as she fought for her life while he prayed for her survival, it was love. Since he’d betrayed her trust and left her life he’d done a great job of convincing himself monitoring her moves were just a morbid curiosity. The numerous background checks were a precursory deterrent so she would be safe.
Lies. All of it.
He had fallen in love with her while they were together, just didn’t want to accept the fact.
“Clear!”
He prayed harder as she bounced on the bed. Come on Riz!
The man rattled off stats to the hospital but it was all a blur. He acknowledged he would recall it later, but right now he poured his energy into willing this vibrant woman—his woman—back from teetering on the brink of death.
His hand was on his sidearm when the doors flew open. He hopped out and trailed the staff in the loud hospital.
“What’s her name?” A young man asked.
“Riz.”
“Riz. Good. Riz? Can you hear me? Riz? Can you open your eyes for me please?”
His heart lurched as her lids fluttered up to the look wide-eyed and unfocused around her.
A brief smidgen of jealousy slammed him that she’d responded to the doctor. Ignoring this, he kept pace as they hurried down the white hallway.
“Sir, you have to wait here.”
“I’m not waiting anywhere. I go where she goes. I’m her bodyguard.”
“Thought you were her husband,” the doctor stated, one black brow lifted.
“Both.”
“I won’t have you in surgery with her. I’ll send out updates but while you’re waiting, I need to have someone patch you up as well or you’re not going to be any good to her.” He gestured to someone behind Ralston. “Take care of his injury. I’d prefer you leave that pistol holstered while you’re in my hospital. And before we continue down this road of arguing, the more time I’m here with you, the less I have to work on your wife.” He whirled around and vanished behind a door that had a red sign warning of only authorized personnel beyond that point.
“This way sir, we’ll get you fixed up.”
He trailed a nurse and listened as she had him remove his shirt so she could sew him up. “She’ll be fine, Dr. Mason is amazing.”
He grunted and ignored his phone once more. She’d finished tying off the final suture and he reached for his shirt when the curtain zipped open and two uniformed police stood in the opening. Beyond them stood Razor who had two men on either side of him as well.
“We need a word with you, sir.” One of the officers gestured him forward.
Slicing his gaze to Razor, he kept his tone civil when he responded, “Sure.”
The phone at his side buzzed once more but he again, never once reached for it, keeping his focus on the two men watching him.
“We’d like to know what’s going on and we also need to see the license you have to carry the firearm.”
“I’m a bodyguard and my license is in my wallet.” He reached for it and handed it over along with his Tungsten card. Razor put his phone to his ear and gestured in his direction. Lucifer unclipped his phone and looked at the screen. All his missed calls were from Tungsten.
“Did you know the assailant?”
“No,” he replied, shooting them a text letting them know what was going on, even though Razor was on the phone and he was ninety-eight percent sure he was on with his employer.
The cops were there for an hour, as they checked out his story and what was going on. Each time the door opened, he zeroed in on it, desperate for news of Riz. None was forthcoming. When the badges left, he slumped down in a chair, wincing slightly over the sting of his injury. Razor settled beside him.
“They’re tracking to see who else has ties to that organization and who among those are currently in the States, more specifically here. I also had a new door put on her apartment.”
“She’s not going back there, Razor. She’s coming with me.”
“From what I’ve heard of her from Cole and Mac, she’s not doing anything just because you state it.” He crossed his arms. “Not my business but she can go home again.”
“The fuck she can. I’m not letting her out of my sight again.” Christ, just thinking about losing her set his heart rate back up to a sprinter’s pace.
“Good luck with that. I’m headed back to take a look at some of the leads they discovered, I take it you’re staying here for a while.”
“Not leaving her.”
Razor stood and patted him once on the shoulder. “Call if you want me to spell you. I’m staying at her place.”
Ralston didn’t take his eyes from the woman lying on the bed. Normally, it may have bothered him to have another man staying at her place but this was Razor. He could crash there anytime. Besides, nothing was taking him personally from her bedside.
Chapter Five
A steady beeping infiltrated her cloudy world. Riz struggled to both follow the sound and open her eyes. Neither an easy feat and she stopped pushing, continuing on at a pace that didn’t exhaust her
. She cracked her lids with slow—deliberately slow—motions.
Light penetrated her dark surroundings. Stark white walls, offset by a few bright nylon balloons with different get well phrases. Interesting. Pain owned her and she moved little as possible. Moving down the balloon strings, she found vases busting with vibrant collages of colors along with plants.
Riz flexed her fingers only to find her movement hampered by someone’s grip. She rotated her head and found a red-haired man there. His thick locks were tousled and he didn’t move.
Her heart picked up speed. Lucifer. Ralston. It didn’t matter what name he went by, he was the man who’d captured her heart and subsequently ripped it from the confines of her chest. She moved her fingers once more and just like that her line of sight was blocked his intense green gaze.
“Riz.”
Lord have mercy, his sleep-laden, sexy, rasping voice made her forget the pain in both her abdomen and head.
“How are you feeling?” He brushed a kiss along the back of her hand as he sat up in the chair, setting her palm against the blanket.
She licked her lips and tried to get some moisture in her mouth. “Tired.” Her word fell from busted lips. Even that took a lot from her but she wanted some answers. “What happened?”
The gentleness in his gaze poofed away like fog beneath the sun’s rays. “Bastard followed you from French Guinea.”
“How do you know that?”
He pushed seamlessly to his feet and kicked the chair back toward the wall. Large. Imposing. Making her think items she had no business thinking currently.
“The fucker was from there. Looked like the others.”
She narrowed her eyes at him. “You can’t lump him in with that group because he looked like them. Racial profiling mean anything to you?”
He braced his hands on either side of her and put his face close with the rich scent of his mixture—outdoors and virile male.
Did virile male have a scent? In her mind yes and it was the man who had the call sign Lucifer.
“It was.”
Such determination in his words sent chills along her skin. “Is he dead?”
“No.”
She searched his face, recognizing the subtle nuances. “You want him dead.” His gaze slashed from her eyes down her covered body and back. Riz shook her head. “It wasn’t a question. I already know the answer.”
“He almost killed you.”
Yeah, not a reminder she needed. She shrugged and closed her eyes. “I’m a bit tired.” Not a full lie but she needed some distance. From the memories—both of the incident and Ralston.
“I’ll get the doc.”
She didn’t reply and listened to his footsteps fade. When she woke there were two people in the room. The overhead light highlighted her doctor and a woman she didn’t recognize. They both glanced at her and she yawned figuring they would tell her who the unknown female was when they were ready. The woman had a thick braid over her left shoulder. The deep red slashed through the pale gray shirt covering her torso. Dark green eyes pinned her.
Where’s Ralston?
The doctor approached and checked her over, making a few muttered comments under his breath before he gave her a small smile and strolled out.
Okay, so who is this person? Color her suspicious but she was captured on her trip and attacked the moment she got back home. Not knowing a person didn’t help her any in terms of being calm and relaxed.
“I’m Ralston’s brother. Ruth.” She spoke with calm assurance as she approached the bed.
She adjusted up a bit more. “And you’re here for what reason?” Riz just didn’t feel good enough to play at being nice.
“He asked me to sit with you while he went to fix up your place.”
“And you live here in Tennessee? And just happened to be right here to swing by?”
“No.” If Ruth was at all put out by her attitude she didn’t show it. “I’m actually from Utah.”
She moved the bed up this time. “So why are you here? He doesn’t live in Tennessee either?”
Ruth stopped at the edge of the bed. “Are you hard of hearing? Pretty sure I just told you what I was doing here. Perhaps I should get the doctor back in here to check your hearing.”
“Perhaps you and your sanctimonious self should get the fuck out of my room and tell your fucking brother to leave me alone.”
“That’s how you thank the man who saved your life?”
“My reasons for wanting him out of my life are mine. I don’t know you.”
“Which brings us back to why I’m here. I’m a therapist.”
She narrowed her eyes. “I don’t need one.”
“Sure.” She hooked her foot around the chair and dragged it closer, seating herself. “Why don’t you feel you need one?”
Riz shut her eyes and huffed. “I’m not talking to you, you may as well leave so it doesn’t get ugly.”
“You’ve been through a horrendous experience, feeling this way is normal.”
The tone rubbed her wrong and she longed to jump from the bed and snap at her. Or was that snap her head back on her neck. Anger pulsed through Riz and she bit the inside of her cheek willing herself to remain calm. She truly shouldn’t be upset. It was a nice gesture, it just wasn’t something she wanted to deal with. Not now and definitely not ever. So, ignoring her inner self’s determination to release her temper, she merely closed her eyes and breathed deep.
“Closing your eyes isn’t going to make me disappear.”
I’m going to kill him when I see him next. She rolled to her right side away from the woman.
“Neither is rolling to the side. You need to talk about this.”
“Perhaps you’re right but it won’t be with you.”
“I can wait.”
She opened her eyes and faced the redhead. “So you’re going to be here until I talk to you?”
“Yes. Or rather until my brother comes back. But I’ll still be around.”
Great. She struggled to move her legs to the floor. Weak and lightheaded, the room spun and she yanked the IV from her arm then put her soles on the cold tile. “Then I’ll leave.”
“What are you doing?” Ruth snapped, hurrying to her side and reaching out to support her.
“Getting away from you.”
“I don’t think this is going to help you heal.” She slid her arm around Riz’s waist, positioning herself so she couldn’t make it by her to the door. “You need to get back into bed.”
“I don’t give a fuck what you think is going to help me. You pretending you know me or what my circumstance is sure as fuck isn’t. I don’t want to talk to you, even less so because he sent you.” Despite her words, she didn’t fight the assistance back into the narrow hospital bed. Her heart thundered in her chest and she needed something to drink.
A nurse stepped in and cocked her head to the side, then approached. “You tore out your IV.”
Riz cocked a brow at her, doing her damnedest to keep the snark contained. It wasn’t an easy task. She allowed the older woman to put it back in and help get her settled, even offered her something to drink. Then she departed leaving Riz alone with his sister.
Ruth placed that green gaze back on her, head angled to the left. “Will you stay put if I leave off the psych hat?”
“I’d prefer to be left alone.”
“Sorry, my brother is worried someone may still be after you and wants someone with you at all times.”
Irritation swelled. “I don’t care what he wants. He lost the right to say anything dealing with my life when he left me years ago.”
“So his rescuing you didn’t earn him any forgiveness?”
“No.” The sharpness nearly cut her. “I’m grateful he was there but one has nothing to do with the other.”
She crossed her arms. “Do you really believe that? Or am I correct in thinking you’re not an idiot and realize he came after you because he still loves you?”
“He doesn’t k
now how to love and if that was the case, he could have looked me up years ago and I don’t know, apologized for the shit he put me through.”
His sister arched an eyebrow at her and Riz didn’t back down. This woman wanted a confrontation well, congratulations, now she’d found one.
“It was hard on him too, he’d fallen for you.”
“What exactly was hard?” Her words fell from her mouth coated in enough ice to offset global warming. “The fact his family didn’t speak to him anymore. That he was cut off from those he loved and had hoped to have as support when I was out of his life? The issue that he was issued a threat that if he ever showed his face again, he’d be killed? No? Why was that? Oh, that’s right, because that happened to me not your holier than thou brother. Get out of my room.”
Her eyes widened slightly and Riz pounced.
“That’s right, it was more than him using me to get to his target, there were consequences to his actions which I’m sure he didn’t give a mother fucking damn about at the time he did them, so no, he isn’t forgiven because he materialized back into my life.” Her heart pounded and the machine hooked up to her blood pressure beeped faster and louder.
Two nurses hurried in and glanced between them. “You need to leave,” one said to Ruth. “Last time I saw you she’d pulled out her IV, so whoever you are, you’re making her agitated and I won’t have my patient that way.”
Ruth looked like she wanted to argue but faced with a woman whose stance imparted that in no way would she back down, gave in and stepped out into the hall.
“Alright, sweetie, I need you to calm down.” Her tone was gentle yet firm as she turned her piercing brown eyes to Riz. “You’re in here to recover not have setbacks.” Both nurses checked her over and ensured she was fine before they left. “I’ll not let her back in, you get some rest.”
“Thank you,” Riz said before the women walked away, shutting out the rest of the hospital behind them.
Riz wanted her bed. Then again, the thought of going back there didn’t set the best with her. She needed to find somewhere else to go until she could make some plans. She flexed her fingers along the blanket covering her and prayed all this would pass swiftly and she would be able to move on.
