by AJ Nuest
Chapter 22
Eden blocked the door with her briefcase and hightailed for the opposite end of the room. Dipping her head, she double-checked the tiny green light hidden inside the supply room lock remained lit, indicating the video feed was still streaming. Perfect.
A thump disrupted the quiet, and she pivoted in time to see Adrian kick her briefcase aside. He stepped into the office, the door hissing shut behind him, and lifted his head.
She jolted at the direct eye contact, but it wasn’t the hatred in his bloodshot gaze that threw her off balance. After waiting eleven years to parade the grand finale of everything he’d worked for in her face, it was a given he’d despise her.
His thick black hair was slicked back from his forehead, trimmed to just above his collar like any other urban professional. Past the hem of his tan trench coat, dark suit pants covered his legs, flawlessly creased down to his spiffy wingtip shoes.
But even those things weren’t any big shocker. It made sense he’d opt to dress so he would blend in—just another executive rushing along Chicago’s busy sidewalks to make an afternoon meeting.
His size is what seemed odd. Sure, it was plausible he’d beefed up in prison. He’d only been in his early twenties when he’d gone to jail. But his shoulders and chest seemed disproportionate to the rest of his body. Like a linebacker who’d forgotten to remove his shoulder pads before changing into his street clothes.
“It’s nice to see you again, Eden.” He shook his hand inside the slash pocket of his coat and the bottom slapped his pant leg as he untangled a revolver from the opening. A thirty-eight snub nose from the looks of it. Light weight. High pressure load. Easy to conceal.
It also had a three-yard sight radius and a hard trigger pull. Lucky her.
She frowned, slowly lifting her hands in a show of surrender. “You don’t need the gun, Adrian. I’m fully prepared to go wherever you want.” But the bigger question was why he chose that particular weapon at all. Wasn’t a knife more his speed? Hell, he’d tried using it on her once already. “Besides, if you shoot me, just think of the fun you’ll be missing.”
For him to deviate from his prior MO in such a drastic way was not good. In her experience, that meant more surprises were coming.
His laughter started slow, building in force and volume until he tossed his head back, his Adam’s Apple bobbing in this throat. “You think you’re so fucking smart.”
He grinned and Eden swallowed the urge to gag. The caps on his teeth were too white. Too wide and perfect against his swollen gums. Instead of coming off as attractive, his smile mimicked a circus clown that had gone off its meds. “That’s the trouble with you, Eden. You always did think you could outsmart me. You and that stupid cock tease, Vivian.”
Anger jabbed her stomach, and she clenched her jaw. The asshole would think of Viv that way.
“So you killed her.” As long he’d opened the subject, she may as well go straight for the jugular. Whatever would get them on opposite sides of a barbed-wire topped fence the quickest.
“That bitch got what she deserved!” He lurched forward and Eden shifted a step left, her focus tight on his trigger finger.
Dammit, she’d almost had him. But he hadn’t outright confessed to killing Viv, and pissing him off was like walking a tightrope in a tornado. Not that she had much choice. She needed to get more from him than one or two threats with a gun or he could be out again in under five years.
“You taught me that, Eden.” He jerked the barrel and she inched another step left, hoping for enough leeway in case he squeezed one off in her direction. “Going to prison made me realize you were right. Revenge is the only thing that’s worthwhile. And when it comes to fruition?” His eyes softened near the reddened corners, and he shook his head. “The feeling can be incredibly fulfilling, don’t you think?”
Yeah, only one problem there. She was pretty darn confident his version of “fulfilling” was light years apart from hers. “Like when you murdered Malcolm?”
Adrian’s eyes grew hard. The hate returned. “Malcolm Smith was nothing but a pathetic old man.” He spat the words. “He told me everything I wanted to know and spent the last few minutes of his life blubbering like a baby.”
A visual of Malcolm dying on that blood-soaked mattress slammed into her head, and Eden gritted her teeth.
So that’s how Adrian had found her. He’d taken the help Malcolm had given her, the way he’d stood by her during the trial and bastardized it. Used it against Malcolm and twisted everything around so she’d view his cooperation as a betrayal.
Well, that wasn’t happening. She was the one who’d forced Viv to press charges. Eden was the one who’d begged Malcolm for help. She wasn’t about to lay the blame for her behavior at his grave. And she sure as shit wasn’t about to buy into Adrian’s crap that she or Viv or Malcolm had done anything wrong.
“And that led you to me.” The entire reason she stood in this room was because of him and him alone. “Well, you caught me, Adrian. Good job. Now, where are we going?”
He had to know their conversation was being monitored. He had to realize if he killed her here he’d never make it out of the building alive.
“Oh, you’re a special case, Eden.” Lowering his chin, he grinned at her from under his brows. Her stomach seized at the maniacal twist of his mouth, the glint of resignation in his gaze. He was crazy, all right, but something more was going on. A surprise he’d saved just for her. “Unfortunately, you’re not looking at the big picture.”
The emphasis he put on those two words wracked his body so hard, several chunks of his hair fell forward. He jerked on his coat belt to loosen the buckle and slipped the buttons…and everything in her world splintered and slipped through her fingers as the sides of his coat fell open. “We’re not going anywhere. Not ever again.”
Jesus. No!
She retreated a step, shaking her head. Christ in Heaven, the vest of explosives he’d strapped to his chest looked like enough C-4 to level the top half of the building.
“Adrian, what are you doing?” She shoved one hand forward. “Stop. You don’t need to do this!”
A flick of the red switch cover centered over his heart, and he jammed the toggle left.
The lighted display flashed two minutes and ticked down the seconds.
Eden pressed her hand to her forehead, scrambling for something to say, something to do to stop this nightmare from happening. Adrian had never planned on kidnapping her. He wasn’t looking to finish her off someplace private so he could try and escape.
One minute, fifty seconds.
A glance at her face, and he tossed his head back with a demented laugh.
As long as he took her with him, he’d be happy.
He was willing to die to get his revenge.
“It’s cold, isn’t it, Eden?” He sighed and closed his eyes. “It’s cold and clear and beautiful.”
My God, Kelly! She spun toward the camera. Tanner, Mocha and all the innocent people who might get hurt or worse. “Evacuate the building!” One minute, thirty-five seconds. “Get everyone out and pull back as far as you can!”
Glass shattered on her right, and Eden dove for the floor as a shot exploded through the window. Adrian stumbled back, spun and fired several rounds toward the opposite building.
Jagged shards flew through the room. Bullets pinged, and she curled her body into a tight ball, covering her head with her hands.
Had they gotten him? Shoving to her knees, she scrambled for cover alongside her desk. If so, her only chance was to try and get close. Cut the wire. Deactivate the bomb.
Goddamn it, there was no time!
Reaching up, she tore her middle desk drawer off the track and the contents scattered over the back credenza. Her scissors clattered against the edge. Bounced to the carpet. She lunged onto her stomach and stretched for the handle.
“Your friends are really starting to piss me off.” Adrian growled
over her right shoulder and her head was wrenched back.
He dragged her to standing by the hair. She drove her elbow into his stomach, pitched against him and stomped on his feet. His hiss washed past her ear, and he yanked her left.
Using her as a shield, he unloaded two more rounds through the window. “You’re not leaving here and neither am I!”
Maybe not, but she’d do everything in her power to make damn sure she was the only one he took with her.
She grabbed his wrist and shoved his arm toward the ceiling. Adrian cursed, grappling for control. His grip on her hair went slack and she spun, jammed her elbow into his bicep and wrenched the gun from his fingers.
Fifty-two seconds.
She aimed for his left knee and pulled the trigger. The chamber clicked over without firing, and she squeezed again.
Empty. Six rounds, and he’d fired them all.
Forty-three…forty-two.
Blood oozed from his shoulder. The left sleeve of his coat was soaked to black. He backed away and hit the wall beside her credenza. Red streaked the beige paint as he slid to the floor.
“You’ve got less than a minute left, Eden.” He yanked the wires from the charger, but the countdown continued. A chuckle wheezed from his chest and pink bubbles frothed at the corner of his mouth. “How are you going to use it?”
She lowered the gun. Stepped for the door. She could make a run for it. A glance at the countdown, and her shoulders fell. There wasn’t enough time to make a difference. She’d be blown to smithereens either way.
Releasing her fingers, she let the snub nose drop to the floor with a dull thud.
Adrian was right. At least about how she chose to spend her final moments. But he’d been wrong about everything else. And the truly funny thing? She almost laughed.
So had she.
Revenge wasn’t the only thing that was worthwhile. Not after knowing a man like Kelly.
A lonely ache filled her chest as she thought about how he was probably right outside, watching this entire scene unfold on a monitor. It was because of him she’d learned the value of trust. Of sacrifice. The definition of loyalty, bravery and the importance of having someone stick.
When it came to worthwhile things, revenge ranked low on the list in comparison. When it came to him, every ideal she’d held for the past ten years amounted to a miniscule speck in a sea of peace and profound understanding.
Twenty-nine…twenty-eight.
So was this the moment she was supposed to review her life? To sort through the list of regrets and mistakes and, if given another chance, determine what she would change?
Tears filled her eyes, but she smiled. Kelly would most likely choose for things to have gone smoother between them. But, truth be told, she wouldn’t change one damn thing.
She’d still argue with him. Still fight him every step of the way. She’d still come up with an exasperating plan to drive him nuts and lose herself in the tender moments she’d found in his arms.
Seventeen…sixteen.
Moving forward, though. Now there was the difference.
If God or Fate or whatever supreme being controlled the universe had decided to keep her around a little longer, she would’ve done her best not to be so guarded with him. She wouldn’t have automatically assumed the worst or second guessed him every time he suggested they were meant to be together.
She would’ve given the two of them a chance no matter how much it scared her.
She would’ve loved him—a watery laugh caught in her throat—or not loved him, regardless of whether or not he loved her back.
Pivoting toward the camera, she fought to come up with something meaningful. Something that would explain the terrible emptiness that made her shake at the thought of saying goodbye.
Had she done okay? Hell, had she made him proud?
The light in the room refracted in a kaleidoscope of color through her tears. The tiny red light on the lock to the adjoining office glared in her vision like a laser beam, and she froze.
Stepped forward.
Ten…nine.
The refrigerated room. The industrial grade walk-in freezer inside.
Sprinting for the door, she shouted over her shoulder toward the camera. “The code is four, six, seven, five!” There’d be over eight inches of titanium-reinforced walls between her and the blast radius. Several layers of insulation and two solid steel doors. But would it be enough? Dear God in Heaven, please let it be enough! “Did you hear me? Four, six, seven, five!”
Keying in the numbers, she shoved against the door and raced for the freezer on the opposite end of the room.
* * * *
The digital display on Pratt’s timer flashed three zeroes, and Kelly lunged from the surveillance van parked outside Eden’s building. The six uniforms D’Avella had ordered to keep him contained spun away from the van, following his gaze to the nineteenth floor.
An absence of sound filled his ears. A vacuum of silence as if the entire city collectively held its breath.
The next second, Kelly was slammed onto his side. Heat scorched his cheeks. Stars crackled behind his eyelids as his skull connected with the pavement. A high-pitched whine drilled into his head, and he rolled to his knees as the ground heaved from the deafening force of the explosion.
No! He shoved with both arms and tipped back. His ass dropped to his heels, and he drove his hands into his hair. Jesus Christ! There was no way she’d survived a blast that size.
Chunks of mortar and steaming bricks crash-landed like falling asteroids. Everything sharp. In high-def focus. He fisted his hands and pain radiated along his scalp. Windshields shattered. Hoods dented on impact. Car alarms shrieked and tires bounced.
The stream of office employees pouring from the front door scattered, screaming as they were directed away from the scene by emergency personnel.
A deep rumbling shook his thighs and the top few floors on the building’s east side collapsed in a mushroom cloud of gray dust. Papers fluttered from the gaping hole, flapping and twirling like seagulls.
No, Goddamn it! Grief boiled up from the pit of his stomach and he rose to his knees, releasing a deafening roar into the dark sky. He hadn’t lost her! Another roar blistered the back of his throat as he shook his fists in the air. She’d been everything he had. Every last part of him.
Cinders floated down, singeing his sleeves and the exposed skin of his wrists. A frigid wind gusted in off the lake, and he sank to his heels, lowering his chin to his chest.
He wasn’t leaving. He’d made Eden a promise and he wasn’t leaving. Not until he’d cradled her in his arms, kissed her one last time. Not until he’d apologized for failing her when she’d needed him most.
The smoke drifted off at an angle as he lifted his head, blinking through the ash. The west side of the building was still intact, swaying like a house of cards, standing on a wish and a prayer.
Son of a bitch! He lurched to his feet and tore past the waiting squads toward the entrance. She might still be alive. Buried under the rubble. If there was the smallest chance she’d survived—
A thick shoulder rammed his stomach, and Kelly grunted as Archer tackled him around the waist. “You can’t go in there!”
Pushing with both legs, Kelly gritted his teeth, vying for another step as his boots slid over the loose gravel. “Get the fuck off me! I’m going in!”
He already hated himself for not being with her at the end. For not punching out the lights of every cop who’d stood in his way. Well, never again. No one was stopping him and nothing was getting in his way if he had to tear the place apart with his bare hands.
“Search and Rescue is already inside. We told them exactly where she was and you’ll only slow them down.” Archer wrestled for a better hold and Kelly was jostled backward another step. “If she’s alive, she wouldn’t want you hurt. Now back off and let them do their damn job!”
“I don’t give a flying fuck wha
t they do!” Kelly jammed his knee into Archer’s gut and he oophed, dropping to his knees.
The only thing that mattered was Eden. Finding out if she was safe, unharmed, and getting her back in his arms. Once she was…if he got that damned lucky…he was never letting her go again.
A shout came from the surveillance van. Several loud whistles, and Kelly spun toward the noise. Several uniforms waved their arms, flagging him down, and he raced over.
“They found the freezer.” Ramirez bobbed her chin. “It fell several floors and is pretty banged up, but still in one piece.” Sweet Jesus. Kelly’s knees gave, and he hobbled a step left. “They need to torch it open. Just hold tight.”
Right. That should be easy enough. Somewhere on the level of yanking the veins from his body.
Turning back toward the building, he paced, continuously raking his hands through his hair. Trying to breathe though his lungs refused to cooperate. No one approached him to deliver any news, and he had no fucking clue of that was good or bad.
After what seemed an eternity, movement finally appeared near the front door, and the bottom dropped out of his god damned world as Eden stumbled out over a pile of bricks, a firefighter’s arm steadying her around the waist. A layer of sparkling white frost covered her from head to toe, and she limped.
Kelly took off at a dead run, hurdled a police barricade and kept moving. The second he hit the sidewalk, he scooped her into his arms and lifted her off her feet. “Baby, you’re all right. You’re all right. I got you.”
But whether the words were more for her or him, he didn’t know.
And he didn’t really care.
She held on tight, arms around his shoulders and fingers tugging his air. Her entire body shook, the back of her coat stiff and frozen to a solid plank. “God, that sucked. Remind me to never, ever take on another serial killer.”
He huffed, cinching her closer, squeezed his eyes shut and palmed her frostbitten hair. “I thought I’d lost you. Jesus, Eden, don’t ever scare me like that again.”
“Hopping into that freezer saved her life.” The firefighter draped a Mylar blanket over her shoulders and Kelly held it in place between her shoulder blades. “The outer refrigerated room absorbed most of the blast, and the insulation and thickness of those steel walls kept her protected when the floor gave out. She’s a smart woman.”
