Breaking Out (Military Romantic Suspense) (SEAL Team Heartbreakers Book 6)

by Teresa Reasor

  “Sure.”

  “When you get there, I need you to lock yourself in the guest room with the dogs. Act like you’re getting ready for bed. Make sure you turn the kitchen and living room lights off and just lock yourself in.”

  She fell silent.

  *

  Piper felt her heart beat in her throat and wrists, and a tremor struck her. “What’s going on, Zach?”

  “I wanted to be there so I could explain in person.”

  “Maybe you’d better do it now.”

  “Lester’s been tracking David Henderlight for the last three weeks. Keeping an eye on him. Henderlight’s in a new, black Cadillac Escalade following you. And Lester’s behind him.”

  “You sicced Lester on him?”

  “Yeah. He needed to atone for what he did to you, Piper, so I came up with a way for him to do it that would benefit you. I’ve been trying to keep you safe.”

  Piper’s arms shook and her knee bounced as she put pressure on the brake to stop behind the car in front of her. Her muscles had turned to water.

  “Why don’t we just call the police now?”

  “And tell them what, honey? That it appears he was following you in bumper-to-bumper traffic? We need to catch him doing something so he’ll break his parole and be sent back to prison.”

  What he said made sense until she thought of being in the same room with the man who’d raped her. “Detective Sherman told me they’d monitor him.”

  “When did he say that?”

  “The morning they brought my car back.” She attempted to control the shaking of her limbs. “He was telling me he was out and I…just erased it from my mind—didn’t want to hear it.”

  “I should have told you. I just wanted you to have a little time, Piper. Lester says he hasn’t been close.”

  “The dogs have been barking at night lately. What if he’s been there and Lester didn’t know? He couldn’t watch him twenty-four hours a day.” Her skin crawled at the thought. She checked the door locks and glanced at her side mirror to try to see if a large black SUV followed her. She turned onto her street and followed the winding curves in the road.

  “If he was, he didn’t come inside the house, Piper. Don’t focus on what might have been, just on what is.”

  How could he be so calm?

  “I’m almost to the house,” he soothed.

  “I’m here.” She pulled into the driveway and shut off the car. She slung her purse over her shoulder, grabbed her phone in one hand, and the pepper spray in the other. She’d left a light on over the front door. Cut the bushes back, away from the windows, so there’d be nowhere for a prowler to hide. She had locks on the windows and a stop on each one to make them hard to raise. She’d gotten a dog.

  But she hadn’t bought a gun. Why hadn’t she asked Zach to teach her how to shoot? Why had she given in to her fear, and let it keep her from learning to protect herself?

  How was she supposed to unlock the door and hold her phone and the pepper spray?

  “I’m going to come in from the back so he won’t know I’m here.” Zach’s voice remained calm.

  “I have to put the phone in my purse.”

  “Leave it on, Piper.”

  She scanned the yard for moving shadows, and, seeing none, shoved open the car door. Every shaking nerve in her body seemed to rise to the surface of her skin. The soft, moisture-laden breeze carried the smell of freshly cut grass and the fragrant white clematis that grew up a trellis in the neighbor’s yard. She rushed to the front door, key in one hand, pepper spray in the other.

  She heard one of the dogs barking, but not just inside the door as they normally would. Maybe Zach had already gotten inside from the back door. Her hands shook so she could barely get the key in the lock and turn it. She stumbled inside the entrance and twisted the deadbolt to lock it behind her.

  She fished for her phone. “I’m in the house with the door locked.” Where were the dogs? The muffled sound of a whine came from down the hall. “Trouble?” If someone was hurting him or Gracie…

  She dropped her purse by the door and flipped on the overhead light. A large, masculine form stepped out from the hall. She staggered back against the door.

  Chapter 45

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  The insistent call waiting tone sounded on Zach’s phone again and again. He was a block away from the house. “Hold on, Piper, I think Lester’s trying to call me again.”

  “It isn’t him driving. It’s his vehicle but it isn’t him driving.” Lester’s panicked tone came over the line so loud Zach jerked the phone away from his ear. “Jesus, is she okay?”

  Such a surge of fear raced through Zach that for several seconds he couldn’t breathe. “She’s locked inside the house.”

  “He might be inside waiting for her.”

  “Call nine-one-one. I’m going in.”

  Zach twisted the wheel, sending his SUV to the curb two doors down. He tore his seat belt free and leapt out, leaving the door standing open. Adrenaline surged through his system. He pushed himself into a full-out run. His hands shook as he stabbed the key into the back door deadbolt and turned it. He drew his weapon, chambered a round.

  He paused for a second, reaching for control. Piper’s life might depend on it. He touched his fingertips to the face of the door and pushed gently, easing it open an inch at a time. He slid through the gap into the kitchen. Gracie’s frantic barking came from somewhere deep in the tiny house. But closer voices were distinguishable. A man’s voice and Piper’s. Placing each foot as though walking on eggshells, he eased toward the door leading into the living room.

  *

  David had changed. His face was fuller, his body, bigger, broader, more muscular. His red hair glinted with copper, instead of the rich, dark reds in Zach’s. His hazel eyes held a gleam as he ran his gaze over her body then back up.

  Piper shuddered.

  “Hello, Piper. You look good.” He’d wrapped Trouble’s leash around his hand. He had threaded the clip end of the inch-wide strip through the loop handle and pulled it tight around Trouble’s throat. The dog was cowed, his tail down, his entire posture one of fear and pain.

  The bastard had abused her dog. Her loving, gentle, friendly dog, who had never harmed anyone, ever. Rage burned away her fear, and a tear of outrage ran down her cheek. Where was Gracie? She could hear her frantic barking from somewhere in the house. He hadn’t dealt with her as easily. There was a bandage wrapped around his left arm with spots of blood darkening it.

  “You always liked animals more than people, didn’t you?”

  “No. Not always.” Not until you. Her hand tightened around the palm-sized pepper spray canister, and she had to remind herself not to press the trigger, not yet. She turned her body, hiding any hint of the weapon. “Why are you here, David?”

  “We have some unfinished business.” His bicep bulged as he pulled up on the leash, forcing Trouble’s bent head up and nearly raising him off the ground. The dog coughed and twisted against the pressure.

  How many times had he done to him? She spoke quickly, hoping to appeal to him. “He’s just a harmless dog. Please don’t hurt him.”

  David lowered the leash, placing Trouble’s feet on the floor. The dog gasped and wheezed as he tried to catch his breath, then gagged. His throat might be swelling from the abuse, and he could choke to death. Fear, cloying and clammy, crept up her spine at David’s dispassionate expression while he watched the retriever suffer.

  “The statute of limitations has already passed. I can’t bring charges against you.”

  “It’s never so easy Piper. Prison has taught me that.”

  Piper motioned toward Trouble. “Is that what you did to your mother’s poodle?”

  He smiled as though the question evoked pleasant memories. “You remember Clara? Mom thought she’d been hit by a car. It was actually a hammer.”

  God, he truly was a psychopath. “I didn’t call the police and report you.” While Trouble continued to strugg
le, Piper edged closer, wary, yet determined. If she could get within five feet of him she’d spray the bastard.

  “Your father did, though. I read the newspaper article in yesterday’s paper.” His features tightened. “It brought back some not-so-good memories.”

  “Had you left me alone, he wouldn’t have had any reason to report you, David. I didn’t tell them.”

  “Had your roommates not interfered, I’d have had my fill of you, and it would be over.”

  Her stomach rolled and nausea hit her. “And I would be as dead as Clara.”

  David cocked his head. “I didn’t want to kill you, Piper. I wanted to… possess you.” He said the word as though savoring it.

  “Like your car.”

  “Much more than that.” Her skin crawled at the intensity lighting his eyes. “I’m here to see if reality can match the memory. I’ve never been as hard as I was while I had you. Never come as hard.” He reached toward his waistband behind him and drew out a large knife. It had come from her kitchen. A gift from one of the chefs who worked in the restaurant. It was sharp as her scalpels, and would be deadly.

  *

  Zach closed his eyes against the images of Piper helpless, trapped beneath that monster. Anger fired his skin and nearly choked him. He could not allow his emotions to distract him. It could get her killed. He had to hold it together. Wait for an opportunity.

  Listening to their voices, he could tell Piper was to the left, just inside the room from the direction of the door. Henderlight was in the hall, or just in front of it.

  Trouble’s choking and gasping was growing more disturbing by the moment. He had to distance himself from his concern for her and the dog. He couldn’t think about how much he loved them. But he trembled with it.

  *

  David knelt and gripped Trouble’s jaw, forcing his head up.

  “No. Please don’t hurt him.” The need to protect the dog overruled everything else. He was her companion, her child, and he loved and trusted her to protect him.

  “Come to me and I won’t have to.” He flicked the knife and golden brown hair floated down onto the hardwood flooring.

  Piper took two large steps toward him. He started to rise, the knife held out to the side. Piper threw up her hand and pressed the pepper spray trigger. A cloud of spray hit him in the face and he roared and threw up an arm rubbing at his eyes. Piper grabbed Trouble’s leash and pulled with all her strength, but it was looped tight around David’s hand. He swung the knife at her and she dodged.

  Zach pivoted into the room from the kitchen, a gun raised in a two-handed grip. “Get down, Piper.”

  A sharp, piercing pain struck her shoulder and trailed like fire down her back. She cried out in shock and pain, twisting away from it, and tumbled on top of Trouble.

  Two loud, ear-jarring pops sounded in quick succession. David fell to the floor next to her and lay still.

  *

  Zach holstered his weapon. He’d fired too late. She was hurt. Blood spread across the back of her shirt even as she scrambled to her knees and struggled one-handed to remove the leash from around Trouble’s neck. He reached around her and got the leash off, but it took both hands and some strength. The dog lay still, panting weakly. He tried to examine her injury and she jerked away.

  Lester ran into the room from the kitchen, a gun in his hand. The distant scream of sirens came closer. “Go outside and tell them what the situation is so they don’t come in here with guns blazing. We need EMTs and emergency transport for an injured dog to the vet’s office. Hurry.”

  Lester rushed to the front door, unlocked it, and ran out.

  “I’m okay. We have to take care of him first. He’s going into shock, Zach. Get a blanket from the bedroom.” She ignored her own injuries to stroke Trouble and murmur reassurances to him while she examined his neck. His tongue looked swollen and protruded from his mouth, and his poor face was swollen, too. How long had Henderlight been in the house and tortured her precious dog?

  “Call Ryan.” Piper said. “He may be an asshole, but he’ll go to the office and meet the transport. I trust him to take care of Trouble.”

  Zach tugged his cell phone free of his pocket and keyed in the number she dictated. While he spoke to the vet and filled him in on what had gone down, he rushed into the bedroom and jerked the quilt off of Piper’s bed, then went into the bathroom for towels. Gracie’s barking in the guest room grew more frantic. He paused to speak to her through the door. She quieted, listening, then began to whine. “I’ll come back for you, baby.”

  How had Henderlight gotten past her? He hurried to the living room and dropped the quilt over Trouble. With a quick tug he lengthened the rip in her shirt to expose the knife wound.

  He took a relieved breath. It was long and thin, and ran from the top of her shoulder down her shoulder blade, but it wasn’t deep. It wasn’t from lack of the asshole’s trying. Partially blinded by pepper spray and enraged, he’d meant to kill her. Her tug on the leash had allowed him to home right in on her. It was a miracle he hadn’t killed her.

  Zach folded a hand towel and placed it over Piper’s wound. He slipped an arm around her to hold her and put pressure on the bandage. “I’m sorry, Piper. I couldn’t find an opening until you sprayed him.” Tears blurred his vision and streamed down his face. He could no longer fight back the rush of emotion.

  She gripped the arm around her waist. She half turned to look up into his face. Seeing his tears, her composure broke and tears coursed down her cheeks. “We’re okay.” She leaned into him. “He was going to kill Trouble and me, probably Gracie, too. You stopped him.”

  Police sirens wound to a crescendo outside.

  He glanced at the dead man. Yeah, he’d stopped him.

  Chapter 46

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  Zach tilted his head back and closed his eyes, breathing in the late evening breeze with its briny scent, allowing the sound of the waves to wash over him. He had forgotten how noisy these family deals were. It had been a good distraction for the two of them, since they were both wound up about the deployment. He raised the beer to his lips and took a deep swig.

  He scanned the back patio and beach. Piper’s sister Teresa sat under the protection of a beach umbrella watching her children play in the surf. She was the toughest nut to crack. The rest of the Bertinelli family had been ready to meet Piper and attempt a reconciliation. Teresa still clung stubbornly to her resentment.

  Tom, Teresa’s husband came up beside him. “I understand you’re leaving tomorrow?”

  “Yeah.”

  “You okay with that?”

  Zach studied the beer in his hand, his throat tight. “You’re never okay leaving the people you love. But there are innocents we need to protect. And I’m needed there. My men need me, and this is who I am, what I’m called to do.”

  He straightened and looked Tom in the eye. “She needs her family around her. She needs backup…just in case.” In case she needed a shoulder to cry on, or an emergency arose. In case something happened to him while he was gone. He didn’t want her to be alone.

  Tom nodded. “We’ll look after her while you’re gone. I’ll make sure of it.”

  “Thanks.” Zach offered his hand. The two men shook.

  “I think Teresa’s had enough for the day. Even though she’s finished her chemo, her energy level still isn’t back to normal.”

  “I hope she continues to do well.”

  Tom remained silent a moment. “Thanks. It’s always a sacrifice and a blessing, loving someone in peril.”

  He thought about seeing the knife come down at Piper, hearing her cry of pain. “I know.”

  “I guess you do. Everything okay with the police? No repercussions from the shooting?”

  “No. He broke in to the house, stabbed her, and I took him down. It was justified.” A fresh wave of rage and pain swamped him every time he thought about David Henderlight. “Piper doesn’t know, and I don’t want her to, but he’d brought a rape kit with
him. Duct tape, rope, devices. He’d fine-tuned his skills and his appetites while he was in prison, preying on some of the other prisoners.”

  “Jesus!” Tom’s expression hardened. “I’m glad to know my hatred for the bastard is well-deserved.”

  He’d learned it was a waste of time to hate a dead man. It was easier to love and protect the living. He looked around for Piper. She’d gone inside with her mother and little Armando and hadn’t come back out. Maybe the two women were hashing things out. Things were still strained, but they were trying.

  “I’m going to gather my crew and clear out so you and Piper can have some time alone.”

  Zach smiled. “I appreciate it.”

  Tom laughed. “If you need anything…”

  He nodded. “Thanks.”

  Tom walked down the beach to his wife.

  Zach wandered over to where Master Chief Flynn sat in the shade, Gracie lying alongside his chair. Piper’s family had embraced the older man. Her brothers had sat around talking to him for some time, listening to his war stories and stories about the dogs. Benito, Lorenzo, Dante, and their dates had already left.

  Armando sat in a lounge chair, his very pregnant wife between his thighs, leaning back against him.

  Zach remembered how he had done that very thing with Piper on their first weekend together. He took a hasty swig of beer to wash the knot out of his throat.

  He lowered himself into a lawn chair next to the master chief. “How you doing, M.C.?”

  “I’m good.”

  “Want another beer?”

  “Naw. I think I better stick with just the one. They may not like it if I’m weaving on my feet any more than usual when I get back.”

  Zach chuckled at his attempt at humor. But he knew the master chief was enjoying the rehab much more than the hospital. “When you’re ready to go, Piper’s mom is going to give you a ride back to the rehab facility.”