Nice Guys Collection With Added Bonus Material

by Kindle Alexander

  The freedom of shoving the doors was fleeting when he came face to face with a wall. He could go right or left, with no direction as to what was down either long hall. Mitch stood there a minute before sticking his head back through the swinging door.

  “Did you see if they went right or left?” Mitch asked.

  “Left,” the guard said, fighting back a grin.

  Mitch was off, going left. Several missed doors and wrong turns later, he found a back entrance into the recovery area. He walked in on what had to be ten people lined against a wall. There was a security guard stationed by this door, a nurses station in the distance, and rows of curtains to his right. Mitch nodded at the guard by the door and looked the people over who stood to his left. They all stared at him. After a quick assessment, he guessed some of these were the Turner siblings. Every other one was blond. Mitch could pick out some of Cody’s features in everyone with blond hair.

  Sheila stepped out from around the curtain and caught sight of him. “Mitch, come in. He’s here,” she said, ushering him around the curtain as the rest watched. Cody lay in bed, his eyes closed, with his mother and father on either side of him. Cody’s mom was crying, and Mitch had no idea what that meant. She held on to Cody’s hand.

  “Has he woken yet?” Mitch asked quietly, staring at Cody. His hair was a mess, his skin very pale, and he was bandaged around the shoulder and chest. He breathed evenly, and his eyes were closed, but moving. Mitch thought he was beautiful.

  The overwhelming relief was staggering, and he wondered how many more times his heart could go through the high and lows of today and still continue to beat. He walked to the end of the bed, rested a hand on Cody’s foot, and squeezed.

  I love you, he mentally told Cody.

  “They haven’t said anything else. The nurse is going to let him sleep a little while longer, then wake him up,” Mrs. Turner said.

  “I’m gonna have to head back to DC,” Mitch started.

  “Did they find the person who did this?” Mrs. Turner looked up at him, her eyes full of hope.

  Right when Mitch was going to have to say he couldn’t discuss the case, her husband stepped in.

  “Connie, it’s an open investigation. He can’t tell us anything,” Mr. Turner advised his wife.

  “I’m sorry,” Mitch added, not entirely certain why he apologized, but he did with the crestfallen look she gave him.

  “Mom, Dad, can we give Mitch a minute alone with Cody?” Sheila asked. “I think Cody would want that.” Mitch looked up, surprised, and cut his eyes between the three of them, until his mother finally nodded. She kissed Cody on the forehead and squeezed his hand before leaving the small room. Cody’s dad followed along after them.

  “Take your time, but we can hear everything you say. The curtains don’t provide much buffer,” Sheila warned him before she left. Mitch turned back to Cody, and his heart seized a bit in his chest. He hated seeing him in this condition. And then the guilt that had been lingering on the outer surface of his frantic thoughts finally came crashing down on him.

  Cody wouldn’t have been here had it not been for Mitch.

  “We know who it is. He’s not gonna hurt you again,” Mitch whispered as he reached out the palm of his hand, stroking Cody’s cheek, and he leaned farther down to Cody’s ear. “I’m sorry I let this happen. I haven’t been able to see well enough on this case. I should have anticipated this.”

  Mitch kissed Cody’s cheek, and then kissed his lips. He let the tears he’d been holding back, fall freely. “I love you. You do everything the doctors say to do. Don’t be stubborn. I’ll be back as soon as I can. You’re protected, Cody, you don’t have to worry about another attack.”

  Cody’s eyes fluttered before they slowly slid open. Mitch kept caressing Cody’s face with his palm. He sniffled and wiped at his nose as Cody’s eyes focused in on him.

  “You’re crying,” Cody barely whispered. The sound of Mitch’s voice must have alarmed Cody who tried to move, but the bed just jerked a bit.

  “Be still. You just came out of surgery; they removed a bullet from your shoulder,” Mitch said, staying as close to Cody as he possibly could, assessing everything he knew to look at. Cody’s eyes were focusing, and the color to his skin was coming back. His voice was weak.

  “Why are you crying?”

  “I’m relieved, that’s all.” Emotion crossed over Cody’s face and then something changed.

  “He’s CIA. The badge was real. He’s tall, lean…”

  “The surgeon told me. I’m going after him now. I was just telling you goodbye.”

  “He’s part of a hate crime group,” Cody replied.

  “I know. I was on the phone still. I heard him, I heard everything.” Mitch slid his hand in Cody’s.

  “The phone saved me.” Cody smiled.

  “I know. I’ll be thanking Apple soon enough. Your whole family’s out there,” Mitch nodded toward the door and squeezed Cody’s hand.

  “When are you coming back?”

  “As soon as I can. My dad’s coming here. He’s on his way. He’s a physician and knows his shit and everybody to call. He’s gonna watch out for you while I’m gone. You don’t have to make this decision now, but I’m gonna want you to go back home with him. Get you outta here.”

  Cody stayed quiet, just staring up at him then closed his eyes again. Mitch could tell he tried to fight to stay awake, but lost the battle and kept his eyes closed.

  “You need to sleep. I love you,” Mitch whispered quietly and kissed Cody’s hand and then his lips before he rose. He took some paper towels from a drawer dispenser and rubbed them across his eyes and nose before discarding them in the trash. He stepped out from behind the curtain. Cody’s family was all right there, but so was Kreed.

  “He woke up, but he’s back asleep.” Mitch smiled at Cody’s parents as he walked to Kreed and stuck out his hand. “Thank you for coming.”

  “I’m heading back with you,” Kreed informed him, very no-nonsense.

  “I got this—” Mitch started, but Kreed stopped him.

  “He attacked you. Enough said.” All of a sudden he felt like such a teenage girl. He had to fight to keep the emotion of his partner’s words at bay.

  “I need to get security in there with him. Hang on.” Mitch went to the FBI agent guarding the door and brought him inside Cody’s room.

  “Stay here. You go where he goes. Got it?” Mitch waited for the yes sir from the kid before he continued on. “And get someone else on the door. Your replacement stays with him too, twenty-four seven. Got it?” he asked the suit that he’d placed in the corner of Cody’s little room.

  “Got it,” the guy said. This time, Cody’s mom was back in place beside the bed. Probably a sister was in the room. Cody was awake, his eyes following Mitch, actually all eyes were on Mitch but Cody’s were the only ones that mattered.

  “I’ll call you tonight.” Mitch struggled right then, but fought it and leaned in to kiss Cody’s lips again. “Promise me to do everything they asked of you.”

  Cody nodded and whispered softly to him, “Be safe.”

  “You worry about getting your strength back. Nothing else.” Mitch squeezed his hand, then forced himself from the bed. He didn’t acknowledge anyone but Cody’s father and motioned for him to follow him out.

  “Mr. Turner, I’ve arranged federal security for Cody and your family. You need to call my director. Here’s his number.” Mitch stood to the side of the elevator, scribbling Skinner’s number on his business card. “My father’s a world-renowned surgeon, and he’s on his way. Not to take over anything, but to be a second set of eyes. He’ll be looking for you to go over things and give his thoughts. He’ll give a good opinion on things for you.”

  “Thank you,” Mr. Turner said.

  “I’m very sorry this happened. I should’ve been more prepared.”

  “Come on, man. The elevator’s here,” Kreed said, holding the door.

  “I’ll be back in touch t
onight.” Mitch was on the elevator, his eyes on Mr. Turner as the doors closed.

  “It’s not hard to see what Cody’s gonna look like when he gets older,” Kreed smiled.

  “Yeah, he looks just like his dad,” Mitch agreed.

  “Did the cell phone really stop the bullet?” Kreed asked, sounding amazed.

  “Yeah, that’s what they’re saying. I haven’t seen it for myself yet,” Mitch answered.

  “Holy fuck, he sure must have an angel watching over him.”

  “Fucking A,” Mitch mumbled and gave a halfhearted fist bump to Kreed’s raised hand. Things were just too close to home on this one. If everything went okay from Connors’s end, he had approximately six hours until he was face to face with the fucker who shot Cody. Just the thought had him chomping at the bit. He had to get some sort of confession out of the guy. Something to tie him to the others before morning. Before the politics of DC took over.

  Chapter 48

  Cody rested with his eyes closed, wishing everyone inside his room would leave. His entire family packed into the hospital room, making the large area seem much smaller. He slowly and carefully breathed in and out through his nose, ignoring the throbbing in his shoulder as well as the discomfort from his chest. His cell phone had done a bang up job at stopping the bullet by lodging bits of the protective case and phone cover into his skin. The impact had his chest so sore, he could barely breathe without wincing. He should be thankful for the pain, it meant he was alive, but right now his mood was deteriorating by the second.

  Another couple of minutes passed before the general sounds in the room began to quiet. Cody hoped they’d gotten the hint that he needed peace. Right when he truly thought the whispered voices were preparing to leave, the door to his room opened. Things got too quiet too quickly for his loud family to have left the room so fast. Surely his sisters would be over here kissing his cheeks like they had done about a million times since he’d been assigned a room.

  Cody cracked an eye open and then turned his head as a well-dressed, older man walked into the room. He wasn’t well-dressed as much as he just looked like he had money. Lots of money. He wore a New York Panthers collared shirt, pressed blue jeans—the kind that showed they’d probably never seen a day of manual labor in their existence.

  For some reason, he knew he should know this man, but he couldn’t place him in his fumbled brain.

  “Hello, I’m Dr. Knox,” he said, coming to stop in the middle of the room among all of his family. Cody looked closer at the doctor, associating the name, but nothing about the man resembled Mitch.

  “I’m Johnny Turner, thank you for coming all this way.” Cody watched his dad shake the doctor’s hand.

  “It’s not a problem at all. Is this our patient?” Dr. Knox asked. Cody’s heart stirred as the doctor looked his way. Mitch had his eyes. Dr. Knox then gave him a small smile and there were those dimples.

  Cody tried to adjust himself in the bed. He lifted his good arm to check his hair, but exhaustion had him dropping it in mid-motion.

  “This is Cody. He’s our youngest. This is my wife, Connie, and the rest of our crew.” Dr. Knox extended a hand to his mom and looked at the rest of his family, but walked toward the bed, that special smile still in place.

  “It’s very nice to meet you,” Dr. Knox reached out to take his hand. Cody tried to give a formal shake, but the medicine made him weak. Dr. Knox changed the hold as he gripped Cody and held on as he stood over him. “I wish this were under better circumstances.”

  “You live in New York,” Cody responded. Dr. Knox’s smile broadened.

  “I do. Mitch asked me to come and look at the care you’re getting. I wanted to stop in and make sure you’re comfortable with his idea before I introduce myself to your doctors.”

  “Yes, sir, but I don’t wanna put you out. I don’t think it’s as bad as it could’ve been,” Cody stated.

  “You got lucky. No question there,” Dr. Knox agreed. “Since you’re good with me being here, I’ll head down to the nurses’ station, get in touch with your doctors, and give any opinions I think necessary. Is there anything you need before I go?”

  “Just sleep.” Cody glanced over at his family. Dr. Knox followed his gaze to see his entire family watching them.

  “We have a crew like this back home. Drives Mitch a little crazy. I’ll see what I can do,” he laughed. He didn’t lower his voice, speaking loud enough for everyone to hear. “You get some rest. Mitch has this place locked down as if the president himself was in this hospital. If you need me, I’ll leave my phone number at the nurses’ station. Buzz them and they can get a hold of me.” Dr. Knox released Cody’s hand to straighten his blankets.

  “Thank you for coming.” Cody was touched by Mitch’s father’s actions. “I’m sorry you came all this way. I think I’m fine.” Cody’s eyes drooped, the medication making him drowsy.

  “Mitch never asks anything of anyone. He’s worried. I’ll be his eyes here to alleviate that worry for him,” Dr. Knox said, and Cody had no idea how to respond so he didn’t. Dr. Knox patted his legs and turned to his family. “Can I talk with you outside?”

  It was crazy how much Cody appreciated that gesture. When his family left the room, a security guard came inside and stationed himself at the door, but never made eye contact with him. He didn’t even care and fell asleep within minutes of having an empty room.

  Patience never came easy for Mitch, but this plane ride from Austin to DC had just about killed him. Sitting for hours, after so much drama, had Mitch fighting off moments of serious panic. First and foremost, he worried about Cody. Leaving that man had been about the hardest thing he’d ever done, and he wasn’t certain he would have left if Kreed hadn’t shown up.

  Kreed was the voice of reason. Something he never considered about the guy before. Kreed also had a clue as to what Mitch was feeling for Cody which was just weird to him. He’d known Kreed ten plus years and never had the guy given any clue that he’d had someone important in his life.

  Neither Kreed nor Mitch had their laptops. Mitch had left his in the airport security truck. Who knew where it was now. Kreed had left DC without his. About halfway through the flight, Kreed got internet on his phone, but text and signal were still impossible. The lack of communication hadn’t helped Mitch’s mental state at all.

  When they landed, both their phones went nuts. They were ushered off the plane first. Actually he and Kreed stood by the door, phones in hand, before the flight attendants were even unbuckled. Mitch ignored the looks as Kreed glanced over his shoulder.

  “Are you calling Connors or the hospital?” Kreed asked.

  “My dad sent me a text. I need to call him,” Mitch answered, wondering why in the hell he was putting the call to his father before finding out if Agent Langley had actually been apprehended.

  “Cool, I’ll call Connors.” The doors opened, and they ate up the distance to the gate. By the time they hit the terminal, Kreed gave him a thumb’s up and slapped him a high-five. Mitch participated, but listened only to his father talk about Cody’s condition.

  “He’s good, Son. I can’t find anything I’d change or recommend that they aren’t doing. I’ve heard some rumbling that the Austin PD wants to be more involved. They don’t like being pushed out, but that’s the only conflict. Only family members are allowed in his area.”

  “They aren’t supposed to release any information on his condition until we get this done on our end,” Mitch informed his dad, following Kreed through the airport with a finger stuck inside his other ear.

  “Pieces are getting out. Lots of speculation, but his medical team here is very solid.”

  “When can he leave?” Mitch asked.

  “Probably in the next day or two,” his father answered.

  “Can he travel?” He had to dodge two women who were huffing and puffing, slowly pulling their oversized suitcases behind them.

  “With some pain, yes, but you’ll have to talk to him about that.
I think there may be some resistance to that idea,” his father answered.

  “From him?”

  “No, just everyone here wants to take care of him.” Mitch let that settle in. He was glad Cody had a community wanting him well, but he wanted Cody out of there, hidden. Tucked away from anyone that could hurt him.

  “What’s he doing now?”

  “When I left his room, he was sleeping.”

  “All right. When you see him again, tell him I’m thinking about him. I’ll call him tonight when I get a chance. If you can get him alone, tell him we got the guy, but only if he’s alone.”

  “Good work, Son.” His dad seemed proud.

  “Thanks, but we should have had him before now.” Mitch could see the exit just a few feet away. God, he wanted to talk to that son-of-a-bitch that shot Cody.

  “Don’t do that to yourself, Son. No one’s more dedicated to this case than you,” his dad said. Mitch was silent as he followed Kreed to an unmarked car parked in the front of the airport, a driver waiting inside.

  “Dad, tell him I’ll call him tonight. Thank you for being there.”

  “I will. I won’t leave the hospital until we talk again,” his father promised.

  “Thank you.” Mitch disconnected the call as they headed to the detainment center.

  “He was arrested without incident. Skinner had the place swarming with our guys. He walked off the flight, picked up what was happening, and surrendered to them. They’re holding him on-site until we get done with him. He’ll be booked and taken to Petersburg in the morning. That gives us about twelve hours to get what we can,” Kreed informed.

  “Have they talked to him at all?” Mitch asked.

  “Minimal. They’re waiting. Connors is holding everyone off. He’s kind of being a little badass. Barking orders ‘cause he’s got the highest clearance on-site right now.”

  “Thank god it’s Sunday.” Mitch sat back in his seat and prayed the drive would go quickly.

  “Yeah, thank god or we wouldn’t get this chance with him. So, you got a plan?” Kreed asked, and Mitch turned and looked his way.