by C. A. Harms
“Josh, you’re scaring me. Please, will someone tell me what in the hell is going on?” I stood from the barstool and took a step toward him as he turned around to face me. He pulled me into his arms and held me tightly.
“Grey, get me a sketch artist. We finally have a face to go with the name,” Josh said through gritted teeth.
In that moment I realized the man who had tried to insinuate himself into my life could have had been the one to end it. The thought sickened me.
“Baby, Roman Kovalsky is the man we’ve all been after. He’s the man responsible for a lot of death and despair,” Josh whispered, and my knees grew weak, but he held me up. “I’ve got you, sweetheart. I promise to keep you safe.”
Chapter 19
Josh
I paced the living room as Gabby gave detail after detail of the man who had terrorized so many in this city. A man who worked his way into our lives and had gotten entirely too close to the woman I love. That made me sick to my stomach. I knew the things he was capable of, the things he’d done to innocent women and children.
We had spent months trying to find this man when he was right under our noses terrorizing Gabby. She may not look at it that way, but I knew how he worked, and terrorizing her was exactly what he was doing.
Trevor called in a guy he knew to sketch for us. The waiting was killing me, but sitting on the couch bouncing around and popping my knuckles was only making Gabby nervous. So I paced the room instead. It didn’t stop the death glares Brook and Audrey kept shooting me, but fuck, I felt like I was losing my mind waiting.
“You need a breather, man.” I looked up at Mike as he leaned against the doorframe. “I know all this is pretty fucked up, but you need to take it down a notch.”
My body hummed with a mixture of anger and fear as I stepped closer to him and tried to keep my voice down. “He was alone with her. Roman could have taken her at any moment. He could have hurt her and there wouldn’t have been a damn thing I could have done about it. You know how ruthless he is and the things he thrives on. We’ve seen what he does to women. The idea Gabby could have been one of his victims is fucking eating me alive.”
“I know,” he replied with a look that told me he honestly did. “But after this sketch, maybe we’ll be able to bring this to an end.”
Neither of us were able to say more before the living room plunged into chaos.
“Is that all?” Merle, the sketch artist, asked Gabby, and she nodded. Greyson and Trevor stepped up to Merle’s sides, and the looks on their faces told me they knew something immediately.
“Fuck,” Greyson growled.
“No fucking way,” Trevor said.
I knew this couldn’t be good. “Josh, you gotta see this,” Greyson added as he stared at the picture, looking lost and completely shocked.
I took in a deep breath, and Mike and I made our way to the living room. Gabby looked up at me in sympathy. She obviously had picked up on the fact the man she had just described was someone we all knew well. When she reached her hand out to me, I placed my hand over hers, pulled her from the couch, and held her securely against my side. Closing my eyes tightly, I took in one last deep breath before looking at the sketch. I knew once I looked, things would never be the same.
As I opened my eyes, I felt like the floor beneath me had crumbled away. A man I had considered a friend, someone I had looked up to and aspired to be like stared back at me. My heart rate picked up, and my head fucking pounded.
“Motherfucker,” I mumbled, catching the attention of everyone in the room.
“I take it you all know him?” Brook asked.
Greyson was the one to answer. “Yeah, babe, we know him. We know him well.” There was a long pause as all of us stared at the sketch. My stomach rolled as I thought of all the times this man and I had discussed this case, the times he had led us on our next operation, bringing in information we would use to “catch our target” when all fucking along he was our true target.
“This man is our boss,” Mike whispered in disbelief. Just like the rest of us, he couldn’t accept the fact that Frank could be responsible for all the horror we had been trying to bring to an end.
“What do we do now, Josh?” Grey asked, and I looked up to meet his gaze. We both stared at one another, torn over our discovery. “Who do we trust?”
“Sheppard,” Audrey spoke for the first time. “If there is anything you allow me to contribute, please let it be this. Sheppard may come off as an asshole at times, but I can guarantee he is the most loyal man I have ever met. We can trust him.”
***
Fourteen hours later, thanks to the work of a whole lot of men, we had finally brought in Frank.
I stood outside the interrogation room trying to pull myself together. I had to get my head on straight before I walked into the room that held Frank. During those fourteen hours, I had gone through a lot of different emotions, but right now I was stuck in a state of disbelief. I had convinced myself there must be some kind of explanation for this entire thing.
“Can you do this?” Grey asked from my side, and I nodded. “Are you sure, man? I know how close the two of you were.”
“I got it, Grey,” I assured him as I took a step toward the door and twisted the handle.
Once Frank came into view, my heart beat faster than it ever had before.
“Hello, Josh,” Frank said with a smile, and I wondered what in the fuck he actually thought he had to smile about. We were about to end his life as he knew it.
Without responding, I continued to just look at him. Only a few feet away sat a man I had learned to rely on, trust, and love as if he were a father.
“I will never understand how you could be capable of all the things you have done. All the lives you destroyed,” I said, my stomach rolling as the faces of some of the women who weren’t so lucky to survive the hands of Roman and his men flashed in my head.
“We all have a means of survival, Josh,” he offered as a reason for all the abuse.
“You led us around like your fucking dogs, training us to see only what you wanted us to see. Leaving us blind to the real monster. You.” My disbelief was slowing turning to anger as I thought of all the time he had taken from me. “All these weeks of keeping me hidden and offering false leads. It was all a fucking game to you.” I took in a calming breath. I knew if I lost my shit, they’d pull him out of the room.
“What was all the talk about finding Roman’s son?” I asked, my throat burning.
“I had to throw you off,” he said, “just needed to buy a little time.”
A strong urge to leap over the table that separated us and wrap my hands around his throat hit me. Motherfucker was one sadistic son of a bitch.
“You killed your own son, didn’t you?” I asked in disgust. This had to be some fucked-up dream. As bad as he was, Frank couldn’t have been capable of that.
“I tried to control the situation. I tried to convince him that if we were a team, no one could stop us.” Frank shook his head, and bile rose in my throat as he continued, “But he was too much like his mother in that sense. Their consciences won’t allow them to put themselves first, regardless of those who may be hurt in the process. So when he grew a little too bold, I had to protect myself. You understand.”
“I will never understand how you could kill your own son. How you could take him from Marie and face her every day knowing that you put a fucking bullet between his eyes?” I said in disgust. “You are inhuman.”
He nodded as if he agreed. Then a small smile spread out over his lips. “I find this entire situation quite humorous, Josh.”
I leaned forward, placing my hands on the table and glared back at him as he lifted his head, and our eyes locked. “And why’s that?”
“Because you have all wasted so much time on Roman,” he said the name with a smirk, “but in reality, there were two monsters corrupting this city. The thing that amazes me is that you all think I was the biggest threat. I can assure you t
hat Leo is the man who will make you all regret your actions. He played me for years, as if he was on my side. But all this time he was only building a force that outwitted all of us. And in the end, he’ll make you all regret focusing so much time on me.”
My heart sank. Leo was still out there, and Frank was right. With all our energy invested in bringing in the so-called boss, we had all allowed the biggest threat to slip through our fingers.
“If you think my presence in Gabby’s life was bad, wait until Leo seeks revenge. He’ll make me look like a saint.” Frank leaned back against his chair.
“Don’t fucking mention her name again. You don’t get the privilege of speaking about her. She is pure and innocent. She will never have a part of this world.” I was barely hanging on to my self-control now.
He laughed, and it only fueled my anger. “She is a very attractive woman, Josh. And that smile…” He shook his head and closed his eyes as if envisioning her, and I saw red.
I grabbed the collar of his shirt just as I heard the door open and someone rushing into the room behind me.
“Josh, let go. Come on, man.” Mike grabbed me and tried to pull me back, but I twisted my hand in Frank’s shirt and pulled him closer until our faces were only inches apart. “If you touch her, reach out for her in any way, I will fucking kill you with my own two hands. I will fucking beat you within an inch of your life and leave you to suffer. I would love to watch you die a slow, agonizing death. You don’t deserve to live.”
I let go with a shove, and Frank’s chair wobbled from the push, nearly tipping over. I allowed Mike to back me out of the room, but just before the door shut, Frank hollered out words that only infused my anger. “Tell that sweet woman of yours that I miss her.”
I struggled against Mike’s hold as the door to the interrogation room closed. I wanted to hear Frank’s screams. I wanted to make him pay for all the pain he had caused over the years. I wanted to seek revenge for Marie and the son she’d lost at the hands of his own sick father.
“We got him,” Greyson said as he stepped in front of me, blocking my view of the door. “I know you want to beat the hell out of him—fuck, Josh, I do too. But we have to play this out right.”
I looked to my left and found Sheppard and Audrey staring at me. They had been outside, and I knew they all witnessed my entire interaction with Frank.
“He played us all, son.” Sheppard was the first one to speak. “I never imagined he’d be the one behind all this.”
From the moment I met him, I hadn’t liked the man. But then again, he was the one who thought up the idea of me faking my death. I guess anyone would hate the person responsible for taking away their entire life, even with the best of intentions.
“He was like a father to me,” I confessed, feeling defeated. I felt like I’d been robbed of a father, and I felt even worse for Marie. No one deserved what she had been handed.
Chapter 20
Gabriella
“I’m worried about him,” I said in a hushed whisper.
Brook looked over toward the couch where Josh slept. He had been up for hours going through all the acts Roman, now known as Frank, had committed.
“He’s having a rough time with all this,” I added, and Brook nodded in agreement.
“Yeah, Greyson is worried about him too.” Her comment caught my attention, and I raised my eyebrows in interest. She caught me staring and smiled. “What? We talked last night.”
“Talked?” I knew it was more than just two friends having a conversation.
“He’s nice, Gabby. I know you think he’s a man-whore, and I’m not denying that he most likely is. But he treats me different than any other guy I’ve ever talked to. He actually listens to what I say without making me feel stupid.” She shrugged and walked over to the coffeepot to fill her cup. “I’m not saying it will lead to anything, but getting to know him is something I’m enjoying.”
“Just be careful, Brook. I don’t want to see you get hurt.” I’d heard stories about Greyson. He wasn’t the type to settle down.
“I’m fine,” she assured me. “Besides, I think you have other things besides me to worry about.” She pointed toward the couch, and I followed her gesture with my eyes. Josh was beginning to stir.
“I’m gonna go take a shower and give you a little time alone with each other,” Brook said just before she disappeared down the hallway.
I stood up, grabbed a mug from the cabinet, and filled it with coffee. I then made my way toward the living room and sat it down on the table just as Josh was sitting up.
“Thanks,” he mumbled sleepily.
“You’re welcome.” I stood in front of him as he reached up and placed his hands on my hips. “I’m worried about you,” I confessed, and his face shifted into a look of sadness.
He pulled me toward him, and I went gladly, straddling his lap. “Baby, don’t worry about me. I’m fine.”
I placed my hands on his shoulders and leaned in to rest my forehead against his. “You’re not fine. I know this is taking a toll on your emotions. This was a huge shock, Josh, and I can see how it’s affecting you.”
He reached up and placed his hands on my face, forcing me back just enough so he could bring his lips to mine. It was a gentle kiss, but it held so much promise. I know he was doing his best to assure me that he would be okay.
“I love you, Gabby, and I don’t want you to worry.” He pressed his lips to mine once more. “I won’t lie to you and say this isn’t hitting me hard. Frank was like a second father to me. He was someone I felt I could go to with anything. Hell, sweetheart, I went to him about us, about how much I was falling for you. Do you know what he said?”
“No,” I whispered as I trailed my thumb along his jawline. It was now smooth, missing the beard it had only days ago. I loved that his strong jaw was no longer hidden.
“He told me to let you go, to walk away.” He wrapped his arms around my waist, and I moved in closer to him without hesitation. “But I was already too wrapped up in you. I felt something for you the moment you kissed me. It was like it woke something up inside of me. It may have only been your way of rescuing me from the date from hell, but to me it was so much more.”
“It was supposed to be something simple and out of character for me. But I agree it was hard to forget,” I said with a smile.
He rubbed his hands over my lower back soothingly. “I worry about you getting sucked into this fucked-up world, and now our child.”
“Hey,” I whispered, “nothing is gonna keep us apart. I went over three months thinking I had lost you. That was one the worst things I ever had to face. I love you, Josh, and I know you’re doing everything to keep me sheltered from this, but I need you to understand I’m here for you.” He closed his eyes tightly, but I refused to let him shut me out. “If you need to cry or be angry or if you need to just have someone sit beside you and hold you close, I’ll do whatever you need. But the one thing I will not do is allow you to hide from me or push me away. I’ve gone long enough without you, and I’ll never do that again.”
He leaned in and placed his face into the crook of my neck. His breath was hot on my neck as he just breathed me in. I just held him in silence, allowing him time.
He kissed my neck and lifted his head to look at me once more. “When is your next appointment?”
I smiled at him because honestly that was my reaction every single time I thought about the child growing inside me. I had a piece of Josh, and soon we would have something we created out of love to keep us both grounded.
“Two days,” I replied. “I was sixteen weeks on Sunday.”
“If it wasn’t for you and this baby,” he said as he placed his hand against my stomach, “I think I would have gone crazy by now. You hold me together, sweetheart.”
***
“Is that the heartbeat?” I looked up at Josh through teary eyes and nodded. “That’s amazing,” he whispered as he focused solely on the sound. For the first time in days, a genuin
e smile graced his beautiful features.
“At your next appointment, we’ll do another sonogram. We should be able to find out the sex of the baby, if you want to know,” Dr. Bali said as he looked between Josh and me.
I looked to my left to see Josh smiling brightly. He obviously loved the idea of seeing our baby and loved the idea of finding out what the sex was even more.
“We’ll want to know,” I whispered, and Josh noticed I was looking at him. His infectious smile grew even wider.
Without warning, he leaned over and placed his lips against mine. “I love you so much,” he whispered as he pulled back, looking at me as if I was the only person in the world.
Despite all the ugliness and disastrous events that happened recently, we had moments of pure joy like these to keep us going. Our child would be the light at the end of all this darkness.
Chapter 21
Josh
“We found two of Frank’s houses,” Mike said as he placed his gun on the table. We had started meeting at the Bureau again. After Frank was brought in, the guys from Washington, D.C. sent in two men to investigate. Burton Chadwick, a man Sheppard swore by, had taken over for Frank, and we were now reporting to him. He had been with the Bureau for over twenty years and was at the top of his field.
“We don’t know how many men he has inside these locations,” Burton said. “But we do know a number of women and even teenage girls that have been held against their will at both.”
My stomach rolled at the idea of just what these women and young girls had gone through.
“We have four teams, five guys on each. We’ll be entering on the west and east sides of the buildings. Each one appears to have only two floors, but be advised there could be an attic we’re unaware of.” Burton stood and began loading his weapons onto his belt. “We don’t know what we’re walking into, but I can guarantee you nothing about it will be easy to accept.”
