The Soldier's Wife

by Sirena N. Robinson

  Caleb switched positions with Murphy. “I understand the concern. We could wait until Malatoa is in there, then one of us goes to the front entrance, one to the back, you stay up here and we call the cops.”

  Murphy nodded sharply. “I like that one. Let Clint clean it up, and we stop them if they run. Get down here, baby brother, and check to see if you can get clear sight lines on the main room and the bedroom from this ledge. This is the best view you’re going to get, so if it won’t work, we need to figure something else out.”

  Jax slid down the slope and laid on his belly, pressing the scope to his eye and moving the barrel of the gun. “I have a clean view of the door and the main room. I could get them from here if I had to.”

  Caleb smiled grimly. “Let’s hope you don’t have to.”

  Chapter 31

  The squeal of tires and spraying gravel alerted Beckett that there was a problem. Her face drained of color, and she looked at Ryan with panic in her eyes. He offered a grim smile.

  “Looks like your little sham didn’t last too long. Let’s hope my brothers are ready.” He tossed the keys as far as he could, then kicked them with his foot to propel them toward the closet, hoping they were out of sight. “I have enough of a dent in this tape that I can snap it when I need to, so stick close and follow my lead. I’ll do my best not to let them hurt you.”

  Beckett closed her eyes and took several deep breaths to calm herself down. “I wish I could believe you about that, Ryan, but at this point, I think my only shot at getting out of here alive is your brothers.”

  Ryan looked at her seriously. “Do you really think I’d sit back and watch them kill you and not even try to do anything?”

  Her expression grim, she shook her head. “Right now, the only thing I believe you’re capable of doing is looking out for yourself. I hope to hell I’m wrong, but so far I haven’t gotten anything out of you other than empty promises and lies.”

  The door opened before Ryan could respond. Raul stormed in, anger evident in his face. He bent down and grabbed Beckett by the hair, dragging her from the bedroom and into the main area, ignoring her squeals of protest. Tossing her unceremoniously into the floor, he drew a pistol from his waistband and levelled the barrel at her, his finger steady on the trigger.

  “You have thirty seconds. If you don’t tell me where my fucking money is in the next thirty seconds, I will assume you don’t know, and I will start poking holes.” He crouched so he was at her level. “I’ll start with your knees. Once I’ve blown both them out, I’ll shoot you in the shoulders. Then, once you’re in so much pain you don’t know how to breathe, I’m going to shoot you in the gut and watch you bleed out on this floor right here at my feet.”

  Beckett looked up at him defiantly. “I thought you didn’t torture people.”

  “I make an exception for people who lie to me.” He tapped her cheek with the gun. “Your time starts now.”

  Her mind racing and heart pounding, Beckett tried to think of something, anything to buy herself some more time. Opening her mouth, she gawked at the man in front of her, nothing other than a desperate squeak escaping her throat. Sighing, Raul stood and aimed the gun at her.

  “I suggest you make peace with whatever God you believe in.”

  Beckett braced for the sensation of a bullet slamming into her skull. The shot never came. A horn began blaring outside the cabin and lights flooded in through the window. Raul looked at Jason.

  “Get out there and deal with whatever that is.”

  Jason yanked back the curtains. “It’s some redneck asshole spinning donuts in the parking lot. Probably drunk.”

  “Go run them off. We don’t need an audience for this, and I can’t shoot this bitch until they’re gone.”

  Jason grabbed his shotgun and threw open the door, striding outside into the swirling December snow.

  ****

  Savi climbed the hill toward where Jax was, still wearing the painted-on dress she’d worn to the bar. She’d traded the heels for a pair of work boots, and had yanked on a coat she’d found in the car. As she pushed through the brush, she saw Jax lying on his stomach, his eye pressed to the sight of his father’s rifle. He jumped when she stepped on a twig, looking over his shoulder, relaxing when he saw it was her. She crouched, brushing twigs and leaves from her hair, frowning when she saw her hands were covered in angry scratches.

  “What’re you doing here?”

  “Caleb and Murphy sent me up. They didn’t want me waiting on the road by myself. Like traipsing through the woods at night by myself with nothing more than the light on my phone is any better.” She hunkered down next to him, not even glancing down when she smeared her dress with mud. “What’s going on?”

  “Caleb’s driving. He’s spinning donuts, blaring the horn, and squealing the tires to try to get their attention. I saw someone at the window a minute ago, so it looks like it’s worked. We were going to try and sneak up on them, but that Malatoa asshole came back quick and looked pissed. We were scared he was heading in there to kill one of them, so we reverted to Plan B, as shitty as it is.”

  Savi watched with bated breath as the door opened and Jason Robbins strode out, waving his gun. The sounds of yelling barely reached them. Jax’s hands were steady on the weapon and he tracked Robbins the same way he would have a buck.

  “Are you going to shoot him?”

  “Only if I have to. I don’t want anyone to die here tonight.” He offered her a grim look. “I’ve never hurt anyone, and I’d prefer not to start now, but that’s going to be up to them. If they go for Beck, I’ll drop them.”

  Savi’s hand lifted to her throat and nervously tugged on a lock of hair. “I hope it doesn’t come to that.”

  “Go ahead and call Clint, if you would. This’ll be over in a few minutes either way. They need to be on their way before anything goes down.”

  Savi dialed her phone, waiting until the sheriff picked up, she put it on speaker so Jax could hear. “Clint? This is Savannah Montgomery. I’m out at the Crystal Lake Cabins in the reserve. Raul Malatoa and Jason Robbins have Beckett. They’ve taken her out here. I’m with Jax, Caleb, and Murphy. They’ve got guns.”

  Clint’s voice was sharp. “Don’t do anything. I’ll call the FBI and get my officers en route.”

  Savi’s voice shook. “Malatoa is pointing a gun at Beckett. Jax has Allen’s rifle. What should we do?”

  Clint swore. “Fuck, fuck, fuck. Any chance this won’t go south in the next fifteen minutes? It’ll take me that long to get anyone from Harbor Police out there, and double that for me to get to you.”

  “I don’t think so.”

  “Let me talk to Jax.”

  Jax glanced over his shoulder. “I’m here, Clint. Go ahead.”

  “Son, I don’t want you to do anything stupid. Where are your brothers?”

  “Dealing with Robbins. We don’t want anyone to get hurt, but they have my sister in there. Brother, too, if you count biology.”

  “Ryan’s there?”

  “Yes, sir. These assholes have both of them. Savi and I are up on the ridge above the cabins. If Robbins and Malatoa cooperate, no one will get hurt. It’s not my goal to fire this gun, but I will if I have to.”

  “If you fire your weapon, there’s going to be an investigation.” The slam of a car door punctuated Clint’s words and he continued, his voice terse. “I don’t want to have to arrest you, son.”

  “You won’t have to. I’m not going to do anything stupid.”

  “Why the hell didn’t you call me earlier?”

  “We’re quieter and sneakier than a platoon full of cops. Besides, we needed to know exactly where they were and what was going down before we called it in. We thought we could handle it.”

  “Do I even want to know why Ryan is there with Beckett?”

  Jax’s voice was mild. “That’s a story for another time, Sheriff.” He hung up and handed the phone back to Savi. “Whatever you see here tonight, I don’t want you thin
king any of the three of us are like whatever jerk it is who hurt you before.” Turning back to the rifle, he continued. “You can deny it all you want, but I know someone who’s been hurt when I see them. I might shoot someone here tonight, and my brothers might beat someone senseless, but none of us would ever put a hand on someone out of anger or violence. Only to protect.”

  Savi didn’t answer. Her eyes were wet and her hands trembled as she watched the scene unfolding below them. Turning back to the scope, Jax watched Robbins stride up to the car, a shotgun anchored to his shoulder. Robbins shouted at Malatoa in the house, and fired three shots at the truck, taking out two of the tires and spraying the side with buckshot. He approached the truck, his face pressed to the stock. Jax shook his head.

  “Don’t do it. Don’t do it. Don’t do it.” He placed his finger on the trigger and adjusted his grip. “I do not want to shoot you, but I will not let you hurt my brothers. Put the gun down. Drop it.”

  Savi saw the window lower on the truck, imagined Caleb and Murphy inside grappling with the seat belt, pistol, and steering wheel, maybe already sprayed with any buckshot that had managed to penetrate the door. Robbins was shouting at them to leave the truck, threatening to shoot.

  “Don’t do it, you fucker. Drop the gun. Come on Caleb. Do something, dude.”

  Savi jumped when Robbins fired a shot into the hood of the truck, then jerked the barrel back at the cab. When he started to tighten his finger on the trigger, Jax pulled the trigger on the rifle, Savi watching through her fingers as the back of Robbins’s head exploded and his body crumpled to the ground.

  ****

  Raul yanked Beckett to her feet, dragging her toward the door. With a shout, Ryan barreled from the bedroom, his shoulder down as he charged the other man. With a glance backward, Raul discharged his pistol, knocking Ryan to the ground with a gunshot wound to his stomach. Beckett screamed and went limp, tears streaking down her cheeks. Mercilessly, Raul dragged her outside, hauling her up against him, the gun pressed to her temple.

  “You boys get out of the truck now, and whoever you have in those woods needs to get their ass down here. You have sixty seconds to come down off that ridge before I blow her brains out. Your brother’s already dead—for real this time. You don’t want this one to have to follow him.”

  The door to the truck opened, and Caleb emerged. Murphy slid out of the other side, cradling his arm against his side. Raul nodded toward the driveway.

  “Come on over here and get on your knees. I don’t want you thinking you can go running off.” He looked back up the ridge. “I don’t hear anyone coming down. You’re down to thirty seconds.”

  Jax carefully loaded a shell into the rifle he held and pressed his eye to the sight. Behind him, Savi had tears running down her cheeks as she watched the scene unfolding.

  “Can you make the shot? Can you shoot him without shooting Beckett? Jax!”

  Sharply, Jax silenced her. “I can’t concentrate with you talking to me.” He pressed his eye back to the gun. “This was supposed to be easy. Now I’m up here acting like a fucking sniper when until two minutes ago the best shot I’d ever made was hitting a buck at two hundred yards.”

  He lifted the gun slightly, making several small adjustments to his aim and the way he held the rifle. Savi watched with bated breath, taking in the scene and praying Jax was able to make what looked like an impossible shot. Beckett was shorter than Malatoa by four or so inches, leaving the top half of his head exposed. He had her held with his left arm, so she was off center by another three inches, leaving him a six-inch square of head he could hit without taking out a chunk of Beckett. His heart pounding in his chest and blood roaring in his ears, Jax prepared to take the shot.

  “Ten. Nine. Eight. Seven.” Raul cocked the gun in his hand. “Better start scrambling. Five, four, three, two—”

  A shot rang out in the night and a bullet propelled itself into Raul Malatoa’s head, ending his sentence and killing him instantly. As he dropped, Beckett pitched forward into the rocks, a scream ripping itself from her as she fell.

  Chapter 32

  “Mom!”

  Beckett raced down the sidewalk and dropped to her knees, embracing her children as they barreled toward her. With one arm around Harlow and the other around Rhys, she breathed in the glorious scent of her children and crushed them to her, tears rolling unchecked down her face at the joy of having her babies safely in her arms.

  Murphy came down the steps, his arm in a sling and Beckett’s coat in his good hand. Savi’s car pulled up to the curb, and she leaped out, racing for Lyla and gathering the girl close, holding her as tightly as Beckett did the other two.

  Forcing herself to let them go, Beckett stood and embraced first Cassie, then Alan.

  “Thank you for keeping them safe. Thank you for keeping them happy.”

  Cassie brushed her hands over her face. “It was our pleasure.” She gripped Beckett’s hand firmly. “I’m so glad to see you in one piece. We were so worried.”

  Murphy chuckled as he hugged his parents. “Not too much. Kidnapping, assault, and dramatic rescue complete with one of the heroes tumbling down a hill, losing his gun, and breaking his damn arm.” He looked at the sling. “Then the second hero’s gun jammed, leaving their baby brother as the only hope. Luckily, said baby brother is one hell of a shot.”

  Allen looked around. “Where are Caleb and Jackson?”

  Beckett began ushering everyone into her house. “Jax just went to the hospital. The sheriff has a guard on Ryan, but the boys don’t trust him not to get away unless one of them is with him.”

  Rhys beamed up at his mother. “We got all the Christmas presents. They were awesome. We got you something, too, but it’s in Grandma’s suitcase.” He took Beckett’s hand and studied the ring. “Does this mean Uncle Murphy is going to be our dad now?”

  Cassie’s eyes filled with tears again as she realized what had happened. “Oh!” She grabbed Beckett’s hand. “Oh, it’s lovely.” Dragging the younger woman in for another hug, she crushed Beckett to herself. “I’m so glad you found each other, even in all of this. We’ll have a wonderful wedding. The right one this time.”

  Murphy perched on the couch and drew the two kids in, placing Harlow in his lap and tucking Rhys against his side. “Look, here’s the deal. Rhys, you and I talked about this a while back, and everything I said still stands. I love being your uncle, and I’ll always be your uncle. I love the two of you like you’re mine, and I’m going to marry the two of you as much as I’m marrying your mom, so we’ll be our own sort of family, but I won’t ask you to call me Dad unless you want to.”

  Beckett sat down on the coffee table, waited until Savi had sat with Lyla, then spoke. “I don’t know how to tell you guys this, so I’m just going to say it. Your daddy, well, he’s not dead like we thought.” When Rhys’ eyes widened, she laid her hand on her son’s leg. “Daddy did some bad things. He made us all think he was dead so he wouldn’t get in trouble. But Daddy came back when he realized the bad people wanted to hurt us, and now he’s going to tell the police everything and try to make some of it right.” She took a deep breath, the words searing her throat as she spoke them. “He might have to go to jail for a little while, but I wanted you both to know he’s alive and for you two to decide whether or not you want to see him.”

  Savi looked at Lyla. “I know he’s your dad, Lyla-bug, but I think we should hold off on seeing him until we know what’s going to happen and whether he’s going to stick around. The last thing I want is for you to get hurt.”

  Rhys set his jaw. “I don’t want him. I want Uncle Murphy.” He turned to Murphy. “You never left us. You took me to school and taught me to ride a bike. Uncle Caleb taught me how to throw a football. Uncle Jax taught me how to fish. That’s all stuff dads are supposed to do. I don’t need my real dad.”

  “I want to see him.” Harlow’s voice was small when she spoke, her eyes bright with hope. She beamed up at Murphy. “I’ve never h
ad a daddy. I think I’d want one if it was you, though.”

  Murphy hugged Harlow, pressing a kiss to her hair. “I want you, too, little one. With all my heart.”

  Rhys was defiant. “I want Uncle Murphy. All legal-like and everything you promised.”

  Murphy sighed deeply. “Rhys, buddy, when I said that, I thought your dad was dead. I still want you, all legal-like and everything, but your dad gets a say in everything now. Even if he won’t let it happen, I will love you the same and nothing will be different between us.”

  Beckett nodded. “Let’s go see him. Rhys, you can stay with Savi or Grandma and Grandpa if you don’t want to go.”

  Rhys wavered, finally shaking his head. “I’ll go just to tell him I don’t want him.”

  Murphy’s voice was soft and stern when he spoke. “I don’t want you to say that to your father if you’re just worried about me being mad at you. If you want to see your dad and talk to him and be a part of his life, I will not be mad at you, and it won’t change a thing between us. You don’t have to pick.”

  “He left us once. He’ll leave us again.”

  “Maybe.” Beckett tread lightly. “He might. Or he might have learned and want to be a part of your lives. I’m not going to be with your dad again. I’m marrying Murphy. This doesn’t affect that at all. If you want to have a relationship with him, it’s just extra.”

  Rhys capitulated. “He’s gonna have to say sorry and really, really, really mean it.”

  Beckett’s mouth turned up into a sad smile. “I guess we’ll see what happens, then.”

  ****

  As she walked down the hallway to the hospital with one child tucked close on either side, Beckett wondered if she’d ever done anything harder in her entire life. Her heart constricted in her chest. Every cell in her body urged her to snatch her children up and hide them from the man who’d sired them.

  But Ryan was their father. If she kept them from him, she knew they’d blame her for it later. They deserved to know him and to have whatever relationship with him they wanted. Even if it killed her to do it.