Her Two Wilde Billionaire Bad Boys [Wilde, Nevada 3] (Siren Publishing Ménage Everlasting)

by Chloe Lang

  Miguel’s eyes narrowed. “Three.”

  Suddenly, Lance and Chuck appeared in the doorway, their weapons drawn.

  Miguel saw them, too, and aimed his pistol their direction.

  She screamed.

  Before Miguel got off a shot, Lance and Chuck fired their guns, hitting the bastard in the chest and gut.

  Miguel’s eyes widened and his lips parted just before he crashed to the floor.

  Chapter Thirteen

  Lance checked Miguel’s pulse. The fucker who had tried to kill Danielle was dead.

  She bent down next to Michael. “Call for an ambulance. He’s been shot.”

  “Check on Harry,” Michael choked out. “We heard shots before that fucker came in here.”

  His face was pale. He’d lost a lot of blood.

  “I’ll look for Harry.” Chuck ran out the door.

  Lance brought out his cell. “You okay, baby?”

  She nodded, pressing her hand on Michael’s wound, trying to stop the bleeding.

  Lance’s heart still thudded in his chest. He’d almost lost her, the woman who he wanted to spend the rest of his life with, the woman he loved with all his heart.

  “We need an ambulance at Michael Chamberlain’s home.” He told the dispatcher what had happened, and she promised aide would be there shortly.

  “Did you find my mother, Lance?”

  “We got your text before we made it to your house. We got a message off to Sheriff Champion. The sheriff, Justin, and Austin were headed to your place to see if your mother was there. Your book is safe and still with us.” Lance had left it on the table in the foyer. He picked up his phone again and called the sheriff.

  “Sheriff Champion here.”

  “It’s Lance.”

  “Austin and I are on our way. Just got word from dispatch about the shooting,” the sheriff said. “ETA is five minutes. Was it Soto?”

  “Yes. He’s dead. What about Danielle’s mother? Did you get a chance to go inside?”

  “The lights were off, so Justin went around back to check things out. I was about to knock on the door when I got the call about what had happened at Michael’s. I just spoke with Justin before you called. He’s going to check inside. I should hear from him shortly.”

  “I found Harry,” Chuck yelled from upstairs. “He’s awake and breathing. The bastard got him in the chest.”

  Michael closed his eyes. “Oh my God. I’ve got to go to him.”

  “You’re not moving, buddy.” He knew the best course of action was to keep Michael right where he was. “Not until the EMTs get here. Chuck will make sure Harry is taken care of until then.”

  “Damn it, Lance. I love him. No one is stopping me. Not even you.”

  Lance looked at Danielle. He understood why Michael was demanding to go to Harry. “Okay. Let me help you, though.”

  “His wrist is broken, Lance.” Danielle was still a little shaken, but he could see her strength shining in her eyes. She was a survivor, after all. “He also might have a concussion. Miguel kicked him in the head.”

  Michael sat up, clenching his teeth.

  The guy was a tough son of a bitch. He helped his friend to his feet, and they all went up the stairs together. Danielle took one side and he took the other. Michael grimaced against the pain.

  “Where are you, Chuck?” Danielle called out.

  “The master bedroom.”

  “The second door on the left,” Michael whispered.

  “Lean against me, buddy. I got you.”

  As they walked into the bedroom, sirens could be heard approaching.

  Harry looked up, his eyes revealing the pain he was experiencing. Chuck compressed the wound in his chest.

  Lance and Danielle helped Michael to his fiancé’s side.

  “I’m here, sweetheart.” Michael grabbed Harry’s hand. “I’m here.”

  Lance put his arm around Danielle, who was trembling. “Honey, you and I will go downstairs and wait for the EMTs to arrive.” He wanted to get her away from this scene to allow her a moment to catch her breath.

  She nodded and they headed downstairs.

  He opened the front door and saw the ambulance and the sheriff’s patrol car pull up in the driveway.

  “Michael and Harry took bullets for me.”

  “They are heroes in my eyes, baby.”

  “Yes, and so are you and Chuck in mine.”

  They told the EMTs where Harry and Michael were just as Austin ran in.

  “Danielle, I just got word from Justin,” the sheriff said. “He found your mother. She’s alive.”

  * * * *

  Holding the book Pauline had given her, Danielle stared at the door with the big red sign that read “Surgery-Hospital Staff Only.” Chuck and Lance sat on either side of her in the waiting room.

  They weren’t alone. Michael’s injury wasn’t life threatening, but Harry’s was. The room was packed with people concerned for Harry.

  Carlotta and Deuce had come to give their support. Mackenzie and her two husbands, Wyatt and Wade, walked in carrying coffee for everyone.

  Austin held his eight-month-old daughter, Carol, who was asleep in his arms. His four brothers sat around the room, too.

  The Wilde brothers’ wife, Jessie, was in Michael’s room. No wonder, since Jessie had known him since they were children. Although Michael had been sedated, the medication wasn’t working well. The nurse had told them that his anxiety about Harry was impeding the shot from working fully. Jessie had decided to remain with him until Dr. Champion came out of surgery with news.

  “Quite a crowd,” Lance said.

  “That’s why I love this place.” Wilde had taken her in. She’d been nothing more than a castaway, a lost soul. This was her town now. “People here genuinely care about one another.”

  “I’m glad this wing was completed earlier than expected.” Charly, whose baby was due to arrive in less than a month, was the driving force behind Wilde getting the new hospital. “The trip to Elko would’ve been too far and too long.”

  The Strong brothers, all six of them married to Charly, sat with her.

  Sitting next to Brandon, Shelby looked up from the magazine she’d been reading. “Charly, you might consider speeding it up on the maternity wing, too. With our luck, your baby will come late and mine will come early. Our due dates are only three days apart as it is.”

  “Yeah, I hear our men have a wager on who will deliver first.”

  “Actually the whole town heard about the bet, and everyone has gotten in on it. The Champions have an advantage,” Tobias said. “They’ve got Alex on their side.”

  “Justin and I have just as good a chance as our brother does in guessing the exact time our baby will come.” Brandon grinned.

  Sheriff Champion held his wife’s hand. “We’re going to be grandparents.”

  She, Lance, and Chuck had given their statements about the events at Michael’s house to him moments ago.

  “Alex is going to deliver both babies?” Austin asked.

  Both mothers-to-be nodded.

  Danielle knew all the small talk was just an attempt to keep everyone’s mind from worrying about what was going on in the surgery room. But it wasn’t working. They were all concerned about Harry.

  Her mind was still whirling from everything that had happened. “Sheriff, is Justin still with my mother?”

  “He is. She’s giving her statement to him at my office.”

  “Do you want to go see her?” Chuck asked. “Who knows how long the surgery will last. We could run over there and be back in no time at all.”

  “No. I’m not leaving until I know Harry is okay.”

  Alex came through the doors with a smile on his face. “I just left Michael’s room where I gave him the good news. The surgery was a success. Harry is doing fine.”

  Danielle felt tears of happiness well up in her eyes as the entire group cheered.

  * * * *

  Following Sheriff Champion and h
is wife, Danielle walked between Lance and Chuck to his office. She was so nervous. She hadn’t seen her mother in ten years, and hadn’t really thought about her much for quite some time. She had moved on. Now, she was headed straight to the woman she’d run away from, the woman who had deserted her emotionally long before that.

  “How are you feeling?” Chuck asked.

  “I’m not feeling much.” Inside, Danielle felt detached from her own self. Ten years. “My mother hasn’t been in my life for a very long time.”

  They walked up the steps, and Danielle steadied her breathing. Had her mother changed? Or was she the same woman who’d allowed Miguel to beat Danielle? The same woman who’d refused to save her when the monster shoved her in that closet. The same woman who had married the man who killed Pauline and had nearly killed her, Michael, and Harry today.

  If I don’t feel anything, why am I coming to see her then? Because the truth was, she still remembered the woman who had tucked her in at night when her dad was still alive, the woman who had read bedtime stories to her to help her fall asleep. She missed that woman. Would she find the mother she’d once known inside the sheriff’s office? That was only a childish dream.

  Still, like it or not, Merle was her mother.

  Danielle stepped into the sheriff’s office and saw Merle sitting in a chair. Her mother’s face was bruised, but she was still as beautiful as she’d remembered.

  Merle jumped up and rushed to her, tears streaming down her cheeks.

  “My baby girl.” Her mother sobbed, hugging her.

  Danielle didn’t know how to react, and she felt her entire body stiffen.

  “I’m so sorry, Danielle.” Her mother stepped back, wiping her eyes. “I’m so sorry.”

  “Let’s give the ladies a moment, gentlemen,” Chuck said softly.

  Sheriff Champion nodded. “Let’s clear the room.”

  Danielle wasn’t sure she wanted to be left alone with her mother. What would she say to Merle? What did she want to say?

  After the door closed, she came face-to-face with the past she’d been running from for so long. The hurt she’d suffered came bubbling to the surface like the lava from a volcano, hot and deadly. “You say you’re sorry. Are you sorry for allowing me to be beaten by that madman? Are you sorry for stealing from all those poor people? Are you sorry for the hell you put me through after daddy died? Are you sorry for being the worst mother on the planet? What? What are you sorry for, Merle?”

  Her mother sobbed, but it didn’t move her. Not one bit.

  “I’m sorry, baby. I’m so sorry. I tried to find you. I swear. I never stopped looking. You’re my baby girl. I was a horrible mother. You deserve so much better than me.”

  “Tell me why you let him hit me? Why didn’t you leave him and take me out of that hell?”

  “He threatened to kill you, Danielle. I tried to leave. Don’t you remember? He found me packing a bag. He beat me and broke my arm.”

  A memory from long ago floated to the surface of her mind. “You wore a cast for a few months. I remember that. Why didn’t you try to leave again?” she asked, though the hardness in her heart was beginning to melt.

  “I was terrified, baby. I only wanted to keep you safe. I thought if I could make Miguel happy, he would leave you alone. I cringed every time he beat you. In the beginning, I would always attack him. Every time I did, he beat me and would beat you even more. The last time I tried to stop him, he slammed my face into the floor and he told me if I ever tried to stop him again, he would kill us both. I knew he would.”

  “I had no idea.”

  “I kept it from you, baby. Your life was hard enough. You were only a child.”

  The pieces were coming together. Back then, her mother had told her to obey every word Miguel gave her, to keep quiet and out of his way. Until Miguel had hit Pauline over the head with the lamp, she’d known he was cruel but she’d never dreamed he was capable of murder.

  “I even talked to the bastard about giving you away. I thought it was the only way to stop him from beating you, though I knew I would die without you.”

  Danielle let out a long sigh of pain. “I overheard you talking with him about it.”

  “Oh my God, baby. I didn’t know.”

  “I honestly thought you wanted to give me away, but you were only trying to protect me.”

  “I lied to him, Danielle. Those words I told him were lies.”

  She remembered them as if it were yesterday. “I thought you hated me.”

  Her mother shook her head. “I love you. I’ve never stopped loving you. Miguel knew I was lying and refused to let you go. Every bruise he gave you crushed my heart, but I remained quiet, praying for a way to escape the monster one day. I had no money, no friends, no family. Miguel made sure it stayed that way. I only had you. Many of Miguel’s family members were powerful drug dealers. Still are. Miguel could turn to them whenever he needed. If I ran away with you, they would find us. I couldn’t stand up to such evil men by myself. I was alone. I wish I could’ve been brave like you, Danielle. I never was. Ever. After your daddy died, I went crazy. He was my rock. Without him, I have been lost. I hope you can someday forgive me for all I’ve done to ruin your life.”

  “I want you to know that my life isn’t ruined.” She knew two amazing men who loved her were standing on the other side of the door. “My life is just fine. Everything you told me is opposite of what I believed was true. I need time to process all of this.”

  “I understand, Danielle.”

  She was seeing her mom in a different light. Could they rebuild their relationship? Was it even possible after everything that had happened? For the first time in a very long time, Danielle wanted to try. “You say you weren’t brave, but I think you’re wrong. We were in that hell together.”

  “When you ran away my heart broke, but I was glad you were free of Miguel. His family tried to find you, but they never did. I prayed every night you would be kept safe because you were only twelve years old when you left.”

  “Where do we go from here, Mother?”

  “I have agreed to be a witness against the Rio Grande cartel. I have many sins to make right, but I want to start living a better life.”

  “What do you know about the cartel?”

  “I was the prisoner of its leader, Miguel’s cousin, Ricardo Delgado. After Miguel went to prison, Ricardo came to me and told me he wanted to take care of me because I was family. I was such a fool to believe him. I moved in with Ricardo, and I soon realized my mistake. The bastard used me any way he saw fit. He believed he could control Miguel once he got out of the pen. I knew better.”

  “No one can trust the cartel. They don’t even trust each other.”

  Her mother nodded. “The other day, Miguel came to Ricardo and mentioned your name in front of me. I had no idea that Ricardo had already found you. I had to see you, so I snuck out. I told no one, but one of the cartel’s men caught me and took me to Miguel. I begged him to let me go. When Miguel told me he knew where you were, I asked him to take me to you. That was just one more mistake of mine to add to the pile. After we arrived at your house, he broke in and made me his prisoner. Miguel is dead, but Ricardo is just as evil. Whatever I can do to make sure he goes away for good, I will do. I want to make things right.”

  “Mother, you need to forgive yourself. Miguel was the monster, not you. He was the one who beat me. He was the one who threatened to kill you and me. He was the one who murdered Pauline.”

  “What? Pauline isn’t dead, Danielle.”

  Her jaw dropped. “I saw Miguel hit her over the head and she fell to the floor.”

  “Baby, that did happen but she survived. As Miguel cleaned out the place, I was able to call 911 without him knowing it. When we heard the sirens, he thought you had called the police. We left poor Pauline on the floor and rushed back to our apartment.”

  “That doesn’t mean Pauline survived, mother. Didn’t Miguel go to prison for her murder?”

&
nbsp; “Not for her murder but for another.” Her mother sighed. “Miguel was trying to move up in the cartel and to impress his father, who was a general in the organization. Long after you ran away, Miguel took me to Ruidoso, New Mexico. At a bar, Miguel bumped into a guy who he knew owed the cartel money. Right in front of me and several other witnesses, Miguel shot the man in cold blood. That’s why the bastard went to prison. I was shocked that he got out so early, but I shouldn’t have been. Miguel’s family is known for their bribes to judges and elected officials. I’m sure they got him out early on a technicality.”

  She wondered what other horrors her mother had suffered because of that fucker. “I had no idea.”

  “Pauline did survive, Danielle. I called the hospital and lied, saying I was her daughter from out of state and wanted to know her condition. Without Pauline’s knowledge, I’ve kept tabs on her ever since.”

  Danielle felt tears well up in her eyes. “She’s really alive?”

  “She lives in Arizona in a retirement community.”

  “I have to see her, mother.”

  Chapter Fourteen

  In less than an hour, the guys’ jet would be landing in Phoenix. The book Pauline had given Danielle was in her lap. She couldn’t wait to see the dear lady who had been like a grandmother to her. They’d called the retirement home but Pauline had been sleeping. The staff had assured them they would tell Pauline that visitors were coming.

  I hope she remembers me. The woman was the best part of her past. Pauline was family.

  Lance and Chuck were making this trip possible, and she loved them all the more for it.

  “I can’t get over how beautiful your plane is.” Danielle loved every inch of it. She let her fingers squeeze the soft leather of the arms of the plush chair she was in. “I sometimes forget how rich you two are.”

  Sitting next to her, Lance raised one eyebrow. “Is that a problem?”

  “Not at all. Rich or poor, I’m yours. Trust me, even if you had turned out to be the vagrants Carlotta thought you were, I would still have chosen to be with you.”