Unexpected Hero (Skyline Trilogy Book 1)

by Willow Summers

  She nodded, focusing on him. The words were almost meaningless, but his competency rang through.

  An older man from Team Orange bumped into Karen, apologized, and stepped lightly around her. “Sure is bee-yoo-tiful, huh, Sandy?” He caught sight of Dale’s body, probably thinking it was a sunbather, and stepped forward to smile down on him.

  Karen slowly moved her hand to block him. There was no weight behind it. No urgency. Karen stared, wide-eyed and gaping.

  The man realized the magnitude of the situation. His mouth went into an O while the rest of the group filed around Karen to get to the lake.

  “Hurry,” Josh said, pushing Jenna along.

  Screaming erupted through the trees, everyone on the bank realizing what had happened.

  “Karen,” Josh said urgently, keeping himself and Jenna in cover.

  “Charlie?” she asked, looking around with wide eyes.

  “Karen, get everyone off the bank. Get them out of sight.” He looked out and up again. Then back out at the bank. His face cleared. He stared at Jenna for a moment, and she saw traces of fear deep in his eyes.

  “Karen,” he tried again. “One shooter, six minutes ago. I don’t know who his target was initially, but he hit Dale with two slugs. Lewis got a glance, but I doubt it’s serious. I am going to check it out now. Should I call this in or will you?”

  “What?” Her brain was not computing.

  “You pull rank. Request to call for aid.”

  She sat down heavily.

  Josh’s hand slid to Jenna’s chest as he took a step out and surveyed the bank. As he came back to her, frustration overcame his features. He pinned her with a hard stare. “You stay right here. In this exact spot. Do not move, not even to take a look around. Clear?”

  “Okay.”

  “I will be back in one second.”

  “Okay.”

  Josh was gone in a flash. He picked Karen up and threw her over his wide shoulder. Next he was speaking to a woman that was standing near the body, the only one not white-faced and terrified. Jenna heard the word “nurse” before the woman was calmly ushering everyone toward the trees.

  A moment later, a hand grabbed Jenna’s arm.

  She screamed and yanked away, only to be pulled into Josh’s hard body. “It’s okay. It’s just me.”

  “Where did you come from?” She blinked, stupidly. Nothing looked right. Time wasn’t moving correctly.

  “C’mon, let’s move.” Josh hastened her in a big arc, staying to the trees and cover. On the other side of the bank from where they had started, they found the other architects, quiet or softly crying.

  Erika rushed forward and clutched Jenna as soon as they were close. Jenna hugged her fiercely.

  “Are you okay?” Erika asked, looking at the red covering Jenna’s body.

  “Not hurt. Dazed.”

  “Me too,” Erika whispered.

  Tugging Jenna along behind him with Erika in tow, Josh approached Lewis, who was sitting and staring at nothing, his hand to his arm, his fingers coated red. Josh bent to the wound.

  “Who would do this?” Jenna asked in a weak voice. Her mind was trying to push through all the fog to function, but it was moving slowly.

  Ada sat ten feet off, crumpled in a heap. It looked like her legs had given out and she didn’t care to get comfortable. Her once elegantly styled hair was matted with dirt. Mud and tears made tracks down her face, interrupted by a few splotches of blood. No one from her tennis club would recognize her.

  Mike stood off to the side, surveying the scene on the bank. He was the only one still firing on all cylinders. His brain was probably only half up and running, like hers, but he was clearly trying to override the shock that must be encroaching on his thoughts.

  She should be doing the same. She’d allowed herself to lean too heavily on Josh. She needed to pull her weight.

  A sharp pain brought her around, her teeth cutting her lip. She sank into the feeling, trying to bat away the fog.

  “Mike,” Jenna said as she stood next to him under a large, bushy tree. The shooter would have to have been on ground level across the bank in order to shoot them. As Josh had been over there, and hadn’t seen or heard anything, it was unlikely they were in danger at that moment.

  She gave Mike an appraising look. He was good in a bind.

  “Jenna.” His voice was monotone.

  “Thoughts?”

  “Yeah, what the fuck?”

  “Did you see it happen?”

  He wiped his fingers across his face. “I saw it, but my brain didn’t register it. I’ve been trying to go back over it.” He used his finger to tap a spot in the air. “I was at the water’s edge, coming out, when I saw you and Dale get into it. I was thinking what a disgusting shit he was—” His voice hitched and he cut off.

  “He was a complete asshole, Mike. If anyone had to go, I’m glad it was him. It’s okay to think those thoughts. You can cherish his memory and feel all the guilt you want later.”

  Mike took a big breath. “You’re right. I’ve just never seen someone die. Never even seen a body. It’s a lot to take in. My brain keeps trying to shut down.”

  “I know, Mike,” Jenna said quietly. And she did. Too well. “We need to eat some sugar. I think I have some chocolate in my pack. I’ll grab some in a bit—I don’t trust moving around in the open quite yet.”

  “Probably wise.” He took another breath. “I saw you two, but I didn’t stop. I was heading for my towel. Then there was this, like…mist. Red mist or something. I thought I was seeing things. Lewis screamed, and I remember looking at him and he had blood on his shoulder. Then Dale just kinda…fell.”

  Mike balled his fists and breathed heavily. He was barely holding it together. “I heard Chuck screaming to take cover, get down. That got me moving, and I went for the trees.” He shook his head and bowed a little. “I should’ve helped someone. I should’ve helped Ada or Lewis. I just bolted. Like a scared rabbit. I just bolted into the trees without a thought for anyone but myself.”

  Mike blinked quickly, like he was desperately trying not to cry. Jenna put her hand on his shoulder, and then her arms around him when he leaned in.

  Wasn’t it the girls that were supposed to be held? She felt very manly.

  “You can’t help how you reacted,” she said softly, patting his back. “You had survival in mind and you listened to direction that got you to safety. If Jos—Chuck had told you to grab someone and head for the trees, you probably would have. It isn’t your fault.”

  She felt him nod against her neck.

  Erika shuffled closer, wanting comfort as well.

  What was Jenna, the cuddles dispenser?

  “Here.” She grabbed Erika by the arm and tugged her over. Stepping back from Mike, she pushed the two at each other. Maybe Mike just needed more direction. “Erika is in shock. She needs to be kept warm and comforted. Maybe you can make up for earlier by—”

  Mike grabbed her and squeezed. Apparently he was eager for redemption; he just needed a damsel in distress.

  Jenna felt even more manly. Perhaps this was why she couldn’t keep a boyfriend.

  Giving direction cleared her head a little more. Shivering, because the cold from the shock hadn’t worn away yet, she moved to Ada next to offer some encouraging words. With every movement she made, she saw Josh look up, finding her position, and then looking all around. It seemed she was on an invisible leash. For now, she did not mind that.

  Screaming made Ada clutch Jenna. Another group had wandered onto the bank. The nurse from earlier ran out and grabbed the guide, quickly moving everyone back to the trees. God bless nurses.

  “Jenna.” Josh lightly tugged her arm and pulled her directly into his side. He walked her back to Mike and Erika. “I need to check out the body. I want you to stay here. If anything happens, you stay under cover, and you head away from the shot fired, do you hear me?”

  “What do you mean—you can’t go into the open!” Panic flared de
ep inside Jenna. “You can’t go back out there.”

  “Listen.” Josh took both her arms and stared into her eyes. “I’m not the target. And as there have been multiple opportunities to take another one, I don’t think whoever did this is looking for a random. It looks like a focused attack, but I need to be sure. I’m not in danger. But if something should happen, you need to stay safe, do you hear me? Use that sixth sense of yours, use your head, and stay safe. Help is on the way.”

  “Okay.” She put her hand over his heart. “Just…be careful, okay?”

  “Always.”

  “Who is that guy?” Mike asked in a wispy tone.

  “I think he’s overqualified for a woods guide job.” Erika watched Josh with a slack face.

  Josh bent to the body without touching, scanning it and then the ground. He looked back to where Lewis was shot, and then slid over to where something had hit the ground when Jenna was tackled.

  Then he looked directly at her.

  For reasons she couldn’t explain, defensiveness straightened her back and cleared away the rest of the cobwebs. She braced her hands on her hips and raised her chin. Her past rose up, reminding her of all the pity—all the people feeling sorry for her. She hadn’t needed pity; she’d needed help.

  Not anymore. When everyone had drifted away, she’d gotten herself through it. She’d found her strength, and she’d moved on. This was just a stop on the crazy train of her life story. She had taken care of herself through worse.

  Josh turned away and spoke into the radio.

  Jenna took that as a cue to wander away. With Josh on the scene and Erika looked after, she wasn’t needed. She checked for snakes before she crawled into some shrubbery and hugged her knees to her chest. Closing her eyes, she quickly wiped away the perfect image of her mother’s death, the horror of that day stored in a time capsule on a never-ending loop. Focusing hard, she called up a lovely little cottage in the south of France. Vineyards dotted the hill as the setting sun flared through the sky. Insects buzzed and birds chirped in the warm air. She took a deep breath, sinking into the memory, the same one she called up every time life got out of hand. She hadn’t seen it for a while.

  Chances were she’d see it a lot more in the coming weeks.

  She felt a hand lightly touch the back of her neck and jumped. Josh was crouched next to her, his eyes soft. “Can I come in?”

  She moved over a fraction. He slid in next to her and put an arm around her shoulders. She leaned into his solid warmth. Finally she got to be the girl. She needed to find a man like Josh in Manhattan.

  She snorted at herself. Fat chance. Manhattan was the land of the metrosexual. A man like Josh existed here, in the woods. A girl like her didn’t. Two different worlds. Apples and tomatoes. Dare to dream.

  “What’s up?” he asked.

  “Oh, I was just thinking I needed to find a man like you at home. It’s nice to feel like a girl instead of a tomboy, Amazon warrior woman.”

  “And that was funny?”

  “Yes. Hard women are easy to find in New York. Hard men? Hardheaded, maybe.”

  He squeezed her. “How are you coping?”

  “All good. Rough in the beginning, but I’m getting back to reality now. I don’t feel remorse about him being dead. Probably sounds bad, but there it is. Someone upstairs did us a favor by picking him to be the fall guy.”

  “You’re still in shock. It will hit you.”

  “It has hit me. Dale got shot and died on me. He was scum. My brain is processing it. Slowly and thickly, but enough to keep me going.”

  “Jenna…” His voice was so soft. He moved her so she was sitting between his legs, her back to his chest, his long arms wrapped around her. “Someone got shot in the woods while you were on vacation. Someone you know. Regardless of your relationship with him…you can feel, you know. You don’t have to be hard all the time. You don’t have to be tough.”

  She wanted to let go. She wanted to let her world crumble around her just like it was trying to do. But it wasn’t about the death and shooting today. That was a reminder of worse demons. If she fell down now, she might never get up. There was still surviving to do.

  “Why did this happen?” she asked, avoiding his concern.

  “It wasn’t your fault. You did nothing wrong.”

  “Josh, I am not in shock. Well, I may be a little, but not enough to make me incoherent like Ada over there. I know it wasn’t my fault. If I arranged a hit, I wouldn’t do it where the shooter almost got me in the process. So why was someone shooting at us? I can’t believe it was a hunter.”

  “No civilian is this hard. Jenna, let go.”

  Jenna calmly sat forward, feeling Josh’s arms constrict around her.

  “You let go. Of me.” He did.

  He got up with her, apparently ready for the flood of tears. She faced him, making her face just as hard as his. “Did I ever tell you that my mother died?”

  He nodded.

  “Did I mention that she was murdered in front of me?” Jenna’s voice was devoid of emotion. She could have been a computer for all the inflection in her words. She’d been in and out of therapy most of her life. It hadn’t cured her, but it had helped. In a way.

  As expected, Josh went still.

  “That she was shot, much like Dale was? She didn’t fall on me, though. She fell to the ground. There was blood for days. My mother’s blood. She was shot because my father got some kiddy raper off. He’s a top defense lawyer and generally keeps the worst of society on the street to keep murdering and killing and selling drugs.

  “Well, the kid’s father lost his mind. You see, he lost his daughter—rape and murder—and his wife had died a few years before of cancer. He thought he would get even with my father by killing someone close to him. Apparently he couldn’t stomach killing a kid—me—so he went after my mom instead. It made no logical sense. None at all. Why her? Why not my dad? Or why not the man that killed his kid? But then, insanity doesn’t usually make sense. My mom got shot, then the man shot himself. I saw the whole thing.”

  Josh’s face was back to his stone mask, and this time, Jenna was thankful she couldn’t tell what he was thinking. “So, Josh, some civilians are this hard. They have to be. Survival is a daily struggle for some. The horror of my adolescence was nothing compared to the horror of watching my mother’s eyes dull as they looked at me. As they looked through me. Dale bleeding on me? It was nothing to my mother’s blood touching my brand-new ballet slippers.

  “So don’t you tell me to let go, Josh. I don’t let go. There are too many horrors waiting for me when I do. That day will come eventually, maybe, but I hope it is on my deathbed. Better Dale than me, I say, because if I couldn’t take the bullet for my mom, who was an angel, I sure as hell won’t take one for a disgusting pig.”

  Josh’s eyes bored into her. “Not dead, can’t quit,” he said softly.

  “Ain’t that the truth. I ask you again, why did this happen?”

  “You are a remarkable woman, Jenna Anderson. A remarkable woman.” Josh rubbed the back of his neck. “As to that question, I was hoping you would know. It isn’t deer season, but it was a rifle. He was targeting the mark, but the shooting was sloppy. It’s someone who isn’t afraid to kill, so he’s probably experienced, but not getting off clean shots and trying a couple times means he’s not a professional.

  “The question remains: who specifically was he targeting, and why? We are in the middle of the woods. It’s clear you are architects—I’ve heard you talk and debate the last three days. None of you seem to be masking another identity. So why would someone want to kill you?”

  “I can understand why someone would want to kill Dale.”

  “Yes, but track him through the middle of the woods to do so? Why not wait until he was on his way home? Something is missing.”

  “Here’s another question: are they done shooting?”

  Josh looked at her carefully. “Truth?”

  “I’m pretty sure I
can handle it.” Lie.

  He nodded. “I doubt it. I’m not sure Dale was the target. If not, they aren’t leaving until they finish the job, or are caught trying.”

  “You aren’t seriously thinking we are going to finish the woods tour, are you?”

  “No, but leaving the woods makes killing easier.”

  “But not as faceless. Easier to catch the guy.”

  “That is not exactly true. A man with a scope and some balls can pick off a target and disappear in a city, easy. In the woods, these woods, they would have to get out somehow. Not easy to get cars around here, and anyone driving would be noticed and stopped by rangers. They couldn’t set up a post and wait because there are too many trees, especially if the guide knows what he’s doing, and the path isn’t marked. If they are on foot, they won’t hide from me for long.”

  Josh’s eyes flashed with a fierceness that contradicted the deadly calm of his body. The hairs on the back of Jenna’s neck stood up. She didn’t know what he was capable of, but she had the feeling he wouldn’t shy away from killing someone. She wasn’t scared of death, but she was terrified of Josh. He was every bit the monster under her bed. Or maybe in her bed. It was like making a date with the devil and trying to keep possession of one’s soul. Wicked sinning never sounded so good. Or dangerous.

  “And you think I might be the target?” Jenna asked.

  Josh hesitated.

  “Truth,” Jenna reminded him, even though she really didn’t want to hear the answer.

  “There were three shots initially. The first two were fired in quick succession. One went way wide, which skimmed off Lewis’s shoulder. The other hit Dale’s shoulder, closest to Lewis. The next came a second later, so the gunman was trying to sight a little better. Or maybe gearing himself for the recoil. It hit Dale center mast. A fourth shot came later. It missed.”

  “So the bullets were going from right to left. But they were coming from behind Dale. Why would they be trying to hit me over him? Doesn’t make sense.”

  “Judging by the angle, he had a clear shot at you. The shooter was positioned in a way that the recoil made the gun swing right, which is why I think he wasn’t a professional. At least not with a rifle. At that distance, a tiny movement is all it would take to make the bullet miss by those couple feet.”