by Teagan Kade
“Bitch,” he spits back.
“That’s right. Stick to the one-syllable statements. It must be real hard on that marble-sized brain of yours to put too many words together at once. Besides, you should probably save the energy for meeting with your defense attorney.”
He makes to argue back, but one of the other men kicks him and he hushes up. They all do. I’d almost prefer trading insults to their tense silence, but the important thing is we get out of here and get them into proper custody.
Deric takes up the lead position and I take up the rear. We walk together in a line, hiking through the woods back to the campground.
Dale, the loyal hound, trails beside his owner. Every little while he licks at the guy’s dirty hand and whines, clearly sensing something wrong. Poor dog. It’s not his fault his owner is a jerk, but that’s love for you. It defies logic and is rarely in our best interest.
My gaze is focused on the men in front of me, watching for any sign they might try to overtake us. They’re all still sluggish. I know the particular tranquilizer they used will still be in their system for several hours, but that doesn’t mean they’re not stupid and ballsy enough to try something.
Even as we march, and I keep a hand at my hip floating just above my holster, my mind is busy processing all the implications of today. This case under my belt will pretty much guarantee I can negotiate a reassignment. I could probably ask to go anywhere.
But do I want to leave now?
I can’t believe I’m even reconsidering. Three weeks ago I wouldn’t have hesitated… Heck, even a few days ago, I didn’t think there was anything here to stick around for.
And yet, one incident doesn’t undo a lifetime’s worth of accumulated experience to the contrary.
So Deric said he trusted me, so he didn’t stop me from taking the group on, so he said he cared about me… How do I know he means any of it?
Come on, stop being a willful idiot!.
Okay, so he seemed genuine. Still, it’s not just about what he feels. What do I feel?
I try to look inward, to examine my feelings, but I… I just can’t. If I do, if I acknowledge what I suspect I’ll find, then there’s no turning back. Maybe if I ignore it, it’ll go away and everything will go back to the way it was before.
I swallow down any further internal argument and try to return my thoughts to the case. There are still figures at play I need to identify. The investigation isn’t over yet.
“We’re back at Devil’s Trap.” Deric calls back to me and I spot the shanty outhouse ahead with some relief.
It’s been an hour at least. My muscles are tired and I can’t wait to sink into a hot bath. We make our way to the parking lot. I pull out my cell phone to check for service.
None.
Damn it!
“Agent Ness!” I hear a man’s voice call out and look to see the young couple climb out of their trashed little sedan.
He looks wearily at the group between Deric and me and looks back at the car, raising a hand and gesturing for the woman with him to stay there.
“You made it out! We did as you told us to and called the police. They said it would be a little while because no one was in the area so we’ve been waiting here.” He hazards a nervous glance at the men.
“That’s a good idea. Go ahead and stay in the car. We’ve got this covered. You guys just focus on each other,” I nod in the direction of his girlfriend. “Here, keep this on you too, just in case.” I hand him a flare gun and he thanks me, retreating with an obvious sigh of relief.
“Yeah, boy, go run and hide,” Brody mocks.
“Can it, Brody, you smelly curd of cockcheese,” Deric glares at him. “I’m dying for an excuse to beat the shit out of you at this point. I wouldn’t push it if I were you.”
Technically, Brody is in my custody and I can’t let Deric hurt him, but I see no need in letting Brody know that.
The sound of crunching gravel and a diesel engine hits my ears. I perk up, looking to the end of the parking lot just in time to see a dark green US Fish & Wildlife SUV pull up.
“Shit, shit, shit!” One of the men says. I relax a little with relief to finally have some back up.
The SUV pulls up in front of us and I see my supervisor, Ken Fishback’s perfectly groomed crewcut pop above the line of the door as he climbs out.
“Boy am I happy to see you.” I smile, walking towards him.
He takes off his mirrored aviators. The thick, full line of his mustache straightens into a serious line. “Caught yourself a bunch of worthless shitbags, did you, Ness?”
I’m surprised by his language, but I agree. “Yes, sir. What happened was—”
He raises a hand to interrupt me. “I think I can piece this together.”
“Oh, okay… so should we handcuff them, sir? Or should we wait for deputies to arrive?” I watch as he walks the line in front of the men, surveying each of them and shaking his head in disgust.
To my surprise, none of them are meeting his eye.
“Worthless, fucking losers. What are we going to do with them, hmm?” He stops in front of Brody, glaring with fiery intensity.
“Well, I’ll be happy to recommend charges—” I start to say, confused by his question.
Brody starts to shake his head. “It wasn’t m-my fault, Fish, you don’t und-derstand.”
“Is that so?” Ken quirks a brow.
Brody is stammering and I’m a little surprised by the sudden flip of his attitude, but my eyes are drawn to Deric’s expression.
Something in his posture has shifted and his eyes are big, sending me a warning I can’t understand.
“You know Brody, I think I understand perfectly. I think I shouldn’t have trusted a worthless piece of backwoods trash like you and your boys to handle a job like this. This could have been the start of something big, but now look at the position I’m in.”
“Ken?” My voice sounds hollow to my ears.
He turns to me with a cold expression. “Ah, Ness. I almost forgot about our eager little girl scout. You really should have just taken your orders and left well enough alone. Don’t worry, everyone will remember you as a hero. You wanted peer recognition? Ain’t no better way to get that than going down in the line of duty.”
That’s when the first shot is fired… and then another and another. I instinctively move to unholster my own gun, but as I do I see the custodies falling in quick succession to the ground.
“Edie!” Deric is running towards me.
I raise my handgun, but the chamber jams and nothing happens. The last thing I see before everything goes black is Deric’s body hurling itself towards me. And then…
Bang!
My vision fades to nothing. There’s something wet and warm on my stomach.
This is it… I’m about to die.
Except I don’t.
I press my hands forward and realize Deric’s body is on top of mine. I can’t see anything because his arm is covering my face. I sit up quickly and see the blood everywhere. But it’s not coming from me. It’s coming from Deric… from his stomach.
He blinks up at me. “Shit. So that’s what it feels like?” The color drains from his face and I can tell he’s going into shock.
“No! Noooo! Deric! Stay with me! Come on, don’t do this! Damn you! Why’d you do that?” Tears spill over my cheeks as I tap his cheek, trying to keep his eyes open. “Wake up, Deric, please. Pleeeease, wake up!”
“Ah, well ain’t that sweet. I’ll be sure to include your little love story in my report,” Ken laughs and raises his gun to my head. I close my eyes and lace my fingers with Deric’s.
Bang!
Plop.
I open my eyes to see Ken on the ground and brilliant red sparks flying everywhere. I look up in shock to see the hiker standing with the flare gun still in front of him. His eyes are huge. He’s trembling.
“Call the police again and tell them we need a helicopter—quick,” I tell him quickly, before returnin
g my attentions to Deric.
I press fabric to the wound in his stomach and keep talking, trying to keep him with me.
“You had to interfere, didn’t you? That bullet was meant for me…” I croak.
His eyelids flutter open. “Maybe I just like getting chewed out by you.”
I laugh through the tears. “Then you better stick around, because I’m going to rip you a new one over this.”
“Mmm, I love it when you talk dirty, sweetheart...” He smiles, even though his eyes are closed and his voice is quieter.
The fabric I’ve pressed to his stomach is soaked through. Panic rises.
“Deric, please, you have to stay with me! Damn you!” I mutter angrily, shaking him more firmly. “No! This is not how this works! Deric! Deric! I love you, okay? I didn’t want to, I still don’t, but damn it, I do! Deric? Deric?”
Nothing.
I feel his pulse. It’s still there, but it’s faint. I feel my own limbs go cold. My heart is pumping blood, I know, but it feels like it’s stopped working.
People are moving around me suddenly—wrapping me in blankets, putting Deric on a stretcher, putting paddles to his chest. Everything blends into a grey haze.
*
“Ness?” The deputy’s voice clicks and I take a breath. The first in what feels like in hours. “So, you go to the parking lot and then what?”
I’ve been going over everything that’s happened for the last few hours. I don’t remember it really. It feels like I watched a movie playing out, like it wasn’t me going through the motions.
I hear myself robotically finish the story and the Deputy thanks me, “Why don’t you get home and get some rest. You look like hell.”
I nod, wordlessly, mechanically. My feet move and I make my way out of the tiny police station.
“Where’s a slip of a thing like you going by yourself?” I hear a dry, cracking voice and I turn towards it instinctively.
The haze starts to lift as I blink to attention, registering Deric’s face. But… but… my mind struggles to catch up.
“Deric?” I whisper.
He shrugs and winces at the same time. “In the flesh, or most of it anyway. I think maybe I left some behind out there in the woods.”
“But, why…” Disbelief robs me of words.
“Why am I not at the hospital? It was just a flesh wound. A few stitches and a blood transfusion and I’m good as… well, maybe not new, but I’m good enough for a quickie, or two… maybe a couple of thousand.”
I’m shaking my head in confusion, tears falling again as I run towards him and wrapping my arms around him, kissing him.
“I thought you were… I thought I’d lost you.” I confess between the kisses I’m pressing to his cheeks, his forehead, his neck, his lips.
“No such luck.” He grins. “Besides, something you should know about me, I like having the last word.”
I look up at him in confusion. “What are you talking about?”
His hand is cupping my cheek. I relax against it. “I’m talking about the fact I didn’t get to say I love you too.”
“But I nearly got you killed… like, a lot of times,” I hear myself arguing. I don’t know why, but it suddenly feels important that I protect him from me.
“No, I nearly got myself killed, by getting in your way, because I was too afraid to trust you.” He sighs and swallows. “I’ve spent a long time living in fear of losing the people I care about, so I decided the only way to prevent that was to maintain a very strategic distance and control. But then you stumbled into my life and I couldn’t stay detached, and I sure as hell couldn’t stay in control. I wanted you to need me so badly I couldn’t see that it was me who needed you, I needed someone to make me realize I couldn’t keep living this way.”
“I can’t be who you need me to be, though…”
“The only person I need you to be is you. Impulsive, brave, resourceful, stubborn, bold, adventurous, dedicated… I love you. You, Edie. I’m not going to get in your way or try to hold you back. I don’t ever want to tie you down. All I ask is that when you fly off and do these incredible things, you let me come on that ride with you.”
“But I got you shot!” I cling to that last defense, even as my resistance melts away.
He smiles and presses his forehead to mine, his lips a breath away from mine. “Even with the bullet holes in me, I feel more whole than I ever did before I met you. I love you, Edie.”
It’s the most reckless thing I’ve ever done and the most exciting. I close my eyes and let the last pieces of that wall crumble down.
“I love you too.”
“Good… Now, about those chocolate panties,” he teases, nipping at my neck.
Note From Edie:
Thanks for reading our story, guys. Have you read Dean and Ava’s in Teagan’s first Hells Bitters book, Feral? If not, click HERE to check it out. Teagan’s also included a couple of her most action-packed books for you to enjoy. Have fun (but, like, not too much…).
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About Teagan Kade:
Teagan Kade thinks talking about yourself in the third person is silly, just like her collection of snow globes and rare manga. When she’s not being silly, she’s hanging out with her own Brock and two children in the south of Australia, dreaming of new characters and torturous ways they can get themselves into trouble. Teagan loves hearing from her readers, all of whom are as dear to her heart as salted caramel cookies. Shoot her an email at: [email protected]. She doesn’t bite.
www.teagankade.com
Also by Teagan Kade:
Feral: A Bad Boy Romance
You can’t tame a beast that’s truly wild.
She’s my best friend’s sister.
But I don’t see ‘off limits’. I see a challenge.
Little Ava’s come home with curves in all the right places and a sassy mouth to match.
She’s forbidden forest fruit ripe for the ravaging.
I should stay away. I know that. I’d be betraying my best friend’s trust if I did anything else.
Her family always had the perfect house, the perfect lives.
Hell, they were the descendants of the guy who founded the damn town for f*ck’s sake.
Me? I was just some latchkey kid with a dead dad and anger problems who hung around her brother, getting him into trouble.
I had no place hanging around her back then and I sure as hell don’t have any business doing so now.
But what felt like a craving before, a desire to taste, has suddenly turned into starvation.
There’s no use avoiding or denying it.
I want her.
And I’ll have her.
But I’m going to take her body before I take her heart.
Adagio: A Bad Boy Billionaire Romance
One dirty Russian, coming right up.
I’m a billionaire virtuoso.
My hands are magical on and off the stage.
That’s to say nothing of the finely tuned instrument between my legs.
Life’s easy when you’ve got more money than God.
A new girl every day of the week.
Endless, panty-dropping charm.
Until Little Miss Innocent walked through my office door.
She’s my new personal assistant, untouched and unconquered.
I want to be her first, her everything.
To make her sing.
There’s just one problem...
She’s not who she says she is
And the truth’s going to break more than her heart.
Brute: A Bad Boy Small Town Romance
I’m gonna be h
er first and her last.
I’m bringing more than a big wallet to this small town.
I bought the local auto shop—lube jobs are on the house.
Until the heavenly slice of country pie that is Jeanie.
With her wide eyes and sugar sweet body, she’s a picture of innocence.
She says she needs my help with a ‘personal project’.
And I’m more than happy to oblige.
Provided I can keep her as*hole ex-boyfriend at arm’s length.
He wants to be first to pop her cherry.
But I don’t do second place.
Never have.
Never will.
It’s going to be perfect.
Just as long as she doesn't find out what I'm running from…
Loaded: A Bad Boy Sports Romance
He’s got the biggest bat on campus… and he knows how to use it.
Asher Slade, AKA ‘Slugger’. Hellcats captain, shameless womanizer, and grade A as*hole.
I can’t stand his kind, so imagine my joy when I’m tasked with babysitting Sir C*ck-A-Lot during his college-imposed community service. He thinks I’m easy, that I’m going to fall to my knees the same way his opponents do.
But he’s wrong.
I have dreams. I’m going places. The last thing I need is a walking hard-on getting in my way. Problem is, I’m already picturing him… between my sheets, my legs, his dirty mouth doing dirty things.
I should be running a mile, so why can’t I stop thinking about those coral eyes and cut body?
I’m not going to fall for him.
Promise.
So why does it feel like my bases are already loaded?
Striker: A Bad Boy Sports Romance
She’s the perfect score. I’m a dirty player. It’s complicated.
JENSEN
Scarlet's always been a stunner. There was a time we could have been together, but then came the soccer, the fans, the fame... I lost her to my twin brother, Josh.
