by Maddie Wade
“Don’t say that, you’ll live or I’ll kick your ass.”
“Time to move,” Waggs said as a stretcher appeared beside him between Alex and Blake.
Waggs and Mitch lifted Allen onto the stretcher and carried him to the private ambulance that was waiting outside. Allen was loaded in, and the two doctors on the Eidolon payroll took over. Mitch stepped back, his hands falling to his sides before Autumn slipped under his arm, and he held her tight, watching as the ambulance drove away. It was doubtful Allen would make it, and even if he did, he faced years in prison for the crimes he’d committed.
Turning his back on the pain he knew would come later, he faced Autumn. “Are you sure you’re both all right?”
“Yes, he treated us okay. He has so much regret it’s hard not to feel for him. How is Aubrey?”
“Fine, just a flesh wound, although Will wants Allen’s heart on a spit for it.”
“The others?” she asked as they walked towards the house where Jack was organising the clean-up like the chief he was.
“Anton killed Terrell. He set up the chemical weapons deal, and Hench and Midas were in on it. They didn’t like what they saw as Allen’s weakness or the fact it would hurt their profits.”
“Money and power.” Her voice held sadness but not shock at his words.
He took Maggie from her arms, kissing her and taking the baby softness of her body as she settled into his hold with trust. His other arm around Autumn, he pulled her close. “I thought I’d lost you. Thought I’d missed my chance to tell you how much I love you.” Autumn went still as they stopped walking a little way out from the noise of the now active crime scene. He looked at her as her bottom lip wobbled and a tear slid down her face. “I never thought I could love like this, but I do. I love you so damn much I can hardly breathe sometimes.”
Her hand rested on his chest, her touch steadying him, even as he felt the slow burn of need seep through his skin at her touch. “I love you too, Mitch. You came into my life like a hurricane, and swept away all my doubts, took away all my problems, and left me with a feeling of being cherished and adored. You gave me back something that the man who should’ve loved me and Maggie took away. You gave me back my worth.”
“Oh, sweetheart, you’re priceless to me. Nothing in this world is more important to me than you, Maggie, and any other children we might have.”
Her perfectly arched brows rose in surprise. “You want children with me?”
Mitch bent to catch her mouth in a slow chaste kiss that was somehow more intimate than anything he’d felt with anyone else. “Honey, I want lots of babies with you. I want to fill a football stadium with little Autumns.”
“I want that too, although not a football stadium.”
He kissed her again then, and something that had broken inside him when his friend died healed. It was over, and the only way forward held beauty beyond his ability to comprehend.
Jack stood over the bed of the man who had shot his sister-in-law, a woman he loved like a sister, was family to him, and held out the piece of paper. “If you accept this your old life is gone, you’ll be dead, and anyone you know will believe that to be the case. Your money, your contacts, family, friends all gone, but you’ll be free.”
Allen looked back at him, his cold stare full of intelligence and regret, the weight of his actions so heavy on his soul that Jack wasn’t sure he’d ever be whole again. “What do you get out of this?”
Jack respected the question. This man was barely alive, only the quick thinking of the surgeons had saved him, and yet he still questioned the hand that offered him a way out. That was just the kind of careful, suspicious, dangerous man he needed inside the network he was building.
Jack had realised in the last year that having good men inside Eidolon wasn’t enough. He needed people inside the underbelly of the criminal world—men and women who could blend in as Bás did.
Rykov Anatolievich had been the first person he’d approached for this mutually beneficial alliance. When they’d first met five years ago, he’d been rising through the ranks of the Russian Bratva, now he was the man giving the orders. Rykov was cruel, deadly, and swift to punish anyone who even questioned his word. But he was also smart, and he knew having Eidolon as an enemy would cost him more than a tentative peace treaty would.
Eidolon would stay out of his way as long as Jack never had cause to doubt his promise to stay away from the UK with his illegal business dealings and Rykov would pass them information when needed. Now Jack had forged similar relationships with other networks around the globe.
“I get eyes and ears in places only the lost live.”
“If I refuse?”
“Then you’ll go to a maximum-security prison for the rest of your life for the crimes you’ve committed.” Jack was a matter of fact, but he wanted this.
Allen would be an excellent asset to have despite his wrongdoings and the blood that soaked his hands. That Will had suggested it, despite the fact that this man had hurt Aubrey, showed the importance of this deal, but Jack wouldn’t show his hand.
“Not much of a choice really.”
Jack shrugged. “Not my concern.”
“What about Mitch? Will he know?”
“My men are not pawns. They’re the lifeblood of Eidolon and secrets have a way of poisoning that, so yes he’ll know, they all will.”
“I want Mitch as my contact inside Eidolon.”
“No.” Jack knew his play was to manipulate, and he’d never put Mitch in danger like that. “I won’t have Mitch compromised.”
“Then who?”
“Whoever I see fit.” Jack wouldn’t allow him to call the shots on this. He was either in or out. He handed Allen a card with just a handwritten number on it, turned, and headed for the door. “The offer expires at midnight.”
Jack drove the short way back to the office to wait for his answer.
At five minutes to midnight, the call came to confirm Linton Allen was dead and a new asset now worked for Eidolon.
Epilogue
Autumn watched her husband as he carried their daughter on his strong shoulders. The sound of her giggles, the way he protected her and showered with so much love, melted her heart every single time she saw it, which was often.
Mitch was an amazing father to Maggie, as she knew he’d be to the child that grew in her belly. She’d never regret the day she met him and second to giving birth to Maggie, her wedding six months ago had been the happiest day of her life.
With just their families and friends, it had been a celebration of the love they shared, choosing the place where she’d first realised she loved him for the wedding. Ava and Zack had graciously offered the Estate and Mimi and Helen had done the flowers for her.
Her friendships with Evelyn, Pax, Callie, Taamira, Skye, and Ava had been one of the multitudes of bounty she’d been blessed with when she’d married Mitch Quinn. But Bebe and Aubrey were like sisters to her, and she loved them as such.
“Stop day-dreaming, Mrs Quinn.” Mitch hooked an arm around her waist as he held Maggie on his shoulder with one big hand on her back.
Autumn wrinkled her nose as she grinned at him. “I’m just remembering our wedding day.”
His eyes went warm with love for her as he bent to kiss her lips, it still made her heart quicken with desire and excitement. “Best day of my life.” He swung Maggie down in front of him, allowing her to toddle in front of them on sturdy legs.
Mitch swung an arm over her shoulders and bent to touch a palm to her rounded belly, at twenty weeks, they’d just found out they were having a son. Neither of them had wanted to wait, too impatient to know the gender of the child she carried. Autumn couldn’t wait to see Mitch hold their son in his arms.
His brow furrowed and she lifted a hand to stroke the bristled cheek. “You feeling good?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
He smirked, knowing her too well. “Nervous?”
“A little. This has been a dream for so long, and to be he
re now is amazing.” The truth was her belly was alight with nerves and joy. To exhibit her garden design at the Royal Horticultural Society’s Chelsea Flower Show was surreal.
They stopped beside the garden she’d designed with the help of Mimi, David, Reg, Colin, and Ava. Her gardening club buddies had encouraged her when she’d told them her dream had always been to go to the Chelsea Flower Show with her design. She’d filled in the form with her details and forgotten about it until she got the invite to exhibit.
Mitch had supported her one hundred percent, fetching and carrying, shovelling and allowing their home to become overrun with tiny seedlings which she’d nurtured into healthy plants. They had stayed in the house where her life had begun, but now the top floor was one big apartment instead of two.
Maggie liked having her aunty Bebe and uncle Waggs close, and Autumn had wanted that too. She and Maggie had been parted from family and knew what it was to be alone but now she was surrounded by love.
Autumn blinked twice as she saw the gold rosette on the stand next to her name and that of her garden.
Looking up at Mitch with wonder, she gasped. “I won. Oh my god, Mitch. We won.” Autumn jumped up and down with pure delight as she threw her arms around the man who owned her heart.
“I’m so damn proud of you, honey.” His voice was gruff with love as he bent and kissed her as if it were his job, not caring that everyone could see, not holding anything back. The cheers from their friends and family who’d all come out to support her dimmed when she was in his arms, nothing else mattered when he kissed her.
Autumn kissed him back just as hard, her tongue tasting his love and her body shivering as she thought of the nights ahead with this man.
He released her slowly, and she caught the giggle of Ava and Zack’s son, Riley, who Maggie was looking up at with absolute adoration in her little girl’s eyes.
Mitch followed her gaze, her chest rumbling with a growl, which made Autumn laugh.
“Easy tiger, they’re only kids.”
“Yeah, now they are, but one day they won’t be.”
“And you will have to deal with it.”
He bent to pick his daughter up and blew a kiss into her neck, making her giggle. “No boys ever.”
“Or girls?” Autumn said with a tilt of her head and grin.
Mitch frowned. “No relationships ever. She’s my baby, aren’t you, Maggie?”
Maggie laughed and said her new favourite word as she patted Mitch on his head. “Dadadadad.”
Looking at the two of them together was her favourite thing in the world to do, and she knew it always would be.
Autumn looked at the people who’d come out to support her, seeing Will and Aubrey and Alex and Evelyn, who had the tiniest baby bump. They’d started trying on their honeymoon and were due three months after she was. Her mum and dad and Rion, Mitch’s mother and step-father who she adored. Even Jack had taken the time out from being a workaholic to come and support her.
He walked to her and kissed her cheek. “Congratulations, Autumn.”
“Thanks, boss.”
Jack chuckled at her use of the term. “So, are you gonna leave us and become a famous gardener now?”
Autumn twisted the silver bangle on her arm and shook her head. “And leave my favourite guys without any order or direction? Never.”
Jack held a hand over his belly. “Thank god.”
Autumn laughed at his antics. “But I’m taking time off when the baby comes so you need to see if you can get someone to cover me.”
“I’ll sort it.”
“When does Val start?” Autumn asked of their new dog handler.
“Monday morning. The dogs will still be in quarantine, but she wants to get everything set up.”
“It’ll be nice to have some more estrogen in the building.”
Mitch chuckled and guided her back through the garden she’d created, his hand in hers. She leaned into him and sighed with pleasure.
The English country garden, with box hedging, beds of lavender, foxglove, hollyhock, and roses meandered through a pea gravel path. A tranquil Japanese inspired pergola sat at the back with wisteria hanging over it while honeysuckle climbed up the trellis. A nearby stream running through to a statue of cupid on the left had been recreated from her mind and was now a living garden.
He pulled her to sit under the pergola and wrapped her in his arms. “Happy?”
She pulled away, turning to look at him with a quizzical expression, before reaching to run her thumb over his full lips. “I didn’t know I could be this happy?”
His face lifted into a beaming smile. “When Devon is born, I want us to take a trip to Jamaica so the kids can see where their grandparents were born. I want them to have a sense of where they’re from, of who they are.”
Autumn’s eyes prickled with tears at his words; this man was too much at times. He knew how important it was to her that Maggie and Devon knew where they came from, and he was making it happen.
“I love that idea. Do you think we should ask our parents if they want to come?” That both their mothers had been born in Jamaica had been a surprise. That they were from the same town of Albert an even bigger one. Her mum Shanice, being so much younger had never known Mitch’s mum, Vea but now the two women were family through the grandchildren they shared.
His warm chuckle had her body seizing with desire, and she clenched her thighs together. “You want to take our parents on our honeymoon?”
“Think of the babysitting and the long walks along the beach—alone.”
“Fine, you’ve convinced me.”
“Good, now let’s go home and I can show you how much I love you.”
Mitch’s lips found hers, and she knew as long as she had his love, her life would be full of beauty.
Sneak Peek: Scarred Sunrise
Smithy and Lizzie
He watched from afar as she alighted the vintage Rolls Royce outside St Marys Church. She looked like a vision in froths of satin and lace, the ivory colour only enhancing the radiance of colour in her cheeks. She turned as if sensing him and their eyes locked, and for just a moment he wanted to run to her, sweep her off her feet and take her away. Beg her not to do this, not to marry another man when he loved her with every breath in his body.
The wind blew her veil across her face and the connection was lost and so was the moment. When she lifted her hand to pull the lace away from her features, he saw her falter and knew he was wrong for coming here. He’d wanted to see her one more time before she belonged to another man. It had been selfish, and he could see by the tremble in her lip he’d once again hurt the woman he loved.
As her sister approached her with a bouquet of pink flowers, he stepped back into the shadows. Lizzie looked for him and he saw the wistful longing on her face before she lifted her head, straightened her shoulders, and took her father’s arm. Smithy watched until she was inside before he moved down the alley, walking until he found himself outside the Pool Centre.
He looked at the old signs with fondness as he remembered a time when all that mattered was a game with his friends and catching a sneaky snog with whatever girl he was with at the time. Anything to get away from the life he’d lived at home.
Now his life had changed, he’d left the depressing, day in day out slog of caring for a person more intent on their next fix than being a parent to him. He’d closed the door on the woman he loved and would never be good enough for and followed his best friends into the army. Now he had a brotherhood, a family of sorts. A job he excelled at and loved, and a determination to make the best of himself.
He’d walked away to let Lizzie live the life she deserved with a man worthy of her, who’d give her everything good in life. Not a man like him who had nothing to offer except his body and his heart, because that wasn’t enough for her.
Smithy sighed and tipped his head to the sun on this day in June when everything changed and the future he’d wanted, craved, disappeared into dust. He stro
lled past the busy shops; the soles of his military boots silent on the pavement. Taking no heed of the people around him except to ensure they weren’t a threat to him, the heat of the mid-afternoon sun making him sweat in his military fatigues.
The car was waiting when he turned the corner to his home, and he felt a calm come over him as he slid in the back seat and the man in the front lifted his gaze to him. The older man wore a plain black suit, his face held an expression as unreadable as a blank sheet of paper. “Smith, are you ready?”
“Yes, sir.” He was ready and yet he wasn’t because he was leaving half his soul and all of his heart in St Marys Church.
“You know nothing will be the same after this mission, don’t you, son?”
Smithy lifted his gaze from the window where the scenery was speeding past the car. “Sir?” Smithy cocked his head in question.
“This life, it changes you in a fundamental way and the mission you’re about to take on isn’t one that will leave you without scars.”
“I understand, sir.”
The man looked at him with speculation on his face. Smithy held his gaze not wanting to be taken off this op. It was what he needed; a focus so complete that it would drive all other thoughts from his head. Especially how beautiful his Lizzie had looked today and how, by now, she was a married woman.
“I don’t think you have any clue, but you will.”
Smithy kept silent as the car drove him towards a future that was uncertain and filled with mystery. He’d embrace this life and make it his own. On this thought he smiled, he finally had a chance to shine, to prove to all those that had doubted him, had looked down on him, that he was worthy. That he could make a difference in this world and not end up a strung out junkie or serve time for petty crimes that would lead to bigger ones.
He wouldn’t become a statistic in this world. He may have been born poor and weak but now he was strong, and he had enough money to keep him in what he needed.
The car slid to a stop and he saw two men standing beside a small aircraft that would take them to an unknown location. He recognised Fitz, a man from his unit, and hid his shock as he alighted the vehicle and pulled his Bergen from the boot.
