FRACTURE: Hearts of Stone Book Six

by Woodward, Kaya

  “Why did you come back, Merc? I would have thought you’d stay with your mates at MI-6 and that would be the end of it?” I ask.

  “I couldn’t just leave, without a few final words, I guess. I needed to know that at least one person in the world hasn’t betrayed me,” Merc says darkly.

  I want to ask him about Evan. I think that Evan’s never betrayed him, but stop myself. I guess, in some way, Evan did.

  In any case, that ship has passed, this is not about the three of us.

  “You know I’m always here if you need a friend,” I tell him.

  “I’ll always know that,” he says, the pain in his voice evident.

  “You came to say goodbye, didn’t you?” I ask.

  There’s no time for Merc to answer.

  In the distance, I hear motors.

  Merc whips his head up, and around, facing the sea.

  The waves crash against the rocks far below.

  “Shit! They’ve found you!” he shouts.

  He leaps up, grabbing me by the hand and yanking me to my feet.

  “Run! Leigha, run for the safe house and get down in the panic room! Evan will show you!” he shouts, dragging me along.

  As we approach the hangar, I see men running around, and two of the helicopters beginning to spin their blades.

  There is a whooshing sound in my ears and an explosion near the hangar. Men start firing their guns at the approaching aircraft. Merc lets go of my hand, pushing me down on the ground as another explosion rips the landscape, the sheep running madly about, bleating in terror.

  “Go! Go! Find Evan!” Merc shouts.

  He peels off, running for the hangar.

  I get to my feet, running for the house as the sounds of battle intensify.

  Nearing the door, I see Evan running into the kitchen.

  He shouts my name.

  “Evan! What is it?” I scream over the increasing noise.

  “Get below. The safehouse has a panic room! Isaac and the others are there! Go, now!” he yells.

  “What are you doing?” I scream, suddenly terrified of what his answer will be.

  He grabs me and kisses my lips hard.

  “I’m doing what any Stone does. I’m fighting for what is mine!” he says, and runs off towards Merc and the others.

  I watch, as the choppers increase their fire, and the explosions get closer.

  Turning, I see Evan, and Merc jumping into the two helicopters, rising into the air like dragons.

  42

  Evan

  February 18, 2019

  “Merc! You take chopper one. I’ll take two!” I shout as I jump into the pilot’s seat.

  Three of our guards get in behind me, one holding an RPG, and the other two armed with assault weapons. I check the ammo counter on my instrument panel. There are five hundred rounds of 20mm and four rockets. I’m hoping Merc is armed as well.

  “Chopper SV-2, executing emergency evac maneuver!” I say into my headset.

  One of our other choppers takes a rocket and blows up, the men falling out, on fire, screaming in agony.

  It’s not Merc, thank god.

  “I count five hostiles! Repeat, five hostiles, bearing one-two-two!” I say into the microphone.

  “Roger that, Ev. Lifting off now will attack on reverse heading of two-seven-eight!” Merc responds.

  “Merc, wait for me, dammit!” I yell.

  All of a sudden, I am thrown back in time. It’s the Afghanistan flight, again.

  Damn him!

  I shake my head clear of the memories.

  “Merc, wait!” I repeat.

  Another explosion, this time a propane tank shatters, pieces arcing out towards the safehouse. Luckily, they fall short.

  Five of our security team are firing at the incoming helicopters, which strafe them with small-arms fire. Two men are cut down, as I lift off. I spin my chopper around on its axis, rising and following the culprit.

  I tilt the fuselage, pull hard collective, and mash the cyclic. The engine whines in protest, but I trade altitude for speed, dipping low enough that my passengers are swearing at me. The ground kisses my left landing strut, but I have enough speed now.

  The enemy chopper is lined up, and I fire two rockets. They arc out, leaving white smoke trails that intercept the cockpit of the chopper ahead of me. It blows apart, the men inside falling into the ocean three hundred or more feet below.

  I spin around, the helicopter making a shrieking sound, as the metal is stressed near its limit. The men behind me are trying not to get airsick, as I level off and follow after Merc.

  “For fuck’s sake, man! Try to keep it less acrobatic, okay!” I hear in my headset.

  “Don’t be pussies!” I laugh, but the feeling in my stomach tells me I need to back it off a little.

  Another rocket whooshes by, only feet away, as I bank hard left, then right.

  “Jesus fucking Christ, dude!” another man says, and I hear him throwing up.

  Gunfire from behind me as the security men are shooting out the open door.

  A chopper near us is stitched by their gunfire, holes appearing in a ragged line from the tail to the motors. Smoke and flames gush out, and the pilot autorotates the craft as the engine fails. I bank around it, and my team shoots it down, hitting the pilot. It crashes on the ground, whirling around like a pinwheel before finally stopping.

  Merc is still ahead, and there are two choppers after him. He’s in hot pursuit of the helicopter that killed ours. I push the throttle, banking and taking a wide arc over to the battle. Coming in from above, I angle the aircraft to give my men a clear shot. I hear their rifles firing, but we are too far away.

  “Wait until we’re close! Don’t shoot until you can see the rivets!” I warn them.

  Several grunts and a few choice curses fill my ears. I grin, shoving the yoke over, and we’re within range.

  “Now!” I command, and this time, the bullets find their mark.

  Merc shoots two rockets at his target, and both his and my enemy choppers are destroyed within seconds of each other.

  Merc whirls about, hovering, as the last two choppers overshoot his position and race past him. One pulls up, but Merc has spun with it, and his previous two rockets blast it out of the sky.

  But the last chopper pulls a maneuver I’d only seen twice before in combat. And, the last time was when Merc was shot down!

  It makes a full loop, and Merc is suddenly in front of it.

  “Merc! Dive! Get away!” I yell, my balls shrinking into my body.

  I get a sense of déjà vu, as I watch Merc’s chopper rising above the blue waters, trying to outrace destiny.

  “Hold on!” I yell at my crew, and viciously turn the cyclic all the way, as my chopper shoots almost vertically up, and then I bank over and barrel-roll, hoping the men in the back are strapped into their seats. The chopper fights me, and I can feel the blades fluttering like mad from the aerodynamic forces as I flip it over on its belly and dive out of the sun towards the chopper behind Merc.

  Merc is diving as well, finally seeing a path to freedom, as a cleft in the face of the cliff opens.

  “Fuck!” “Holy shit, man!” “God damn it!” comes over my headset, as I jerk the chopper level, flipping it upright and closing the distance.

  I am almost within range!

  “Hold on!” I shout.

  “Merc! Go for the cliff!” I yell.

  “Thanks, Evan. Tell Leigha I love her!” he responds.

  I am just in range and fire all my remaining rockets.

  In slow motion, I watch as the white contrails flow together into a single deadly point, intersecting on the tail of the enemy chopper, as it fires its rockets at Merc.

  I see the blossoming flames from my rockets, watch the chopper being blown into pieces, see the men falling hundreds of feet to their deaths.

  I can see two explosions, the farthest of them only tens of feet above the ocean, and when the smoke and debris has fallen, Merc i
s gone.

  43

  Leigha

  February 18, 2019

  From the door of the house, I see two explosions, the farthest of them only tens of feet above the ocean. Was one of those Evan? Or Merc?

  My heart is pounding as I race towards the hangar. With all the maneuvers, I couldn’t tell which of the aircraft were ours. They flew out so very far.

  I grab one of the security team, frantically trying to understand what is going on.

  “What just happened?” I scream.

  The rest of the men are putting out fires and securing the area.

  “Are there more?” I yell.

  The man is trying to listen to his headset, and he escorts me into the hangar, and then into an office. He closes the door, then doffs his earpiece and puts his weapon on the table. He sits down across from me.

  “Mrs. Stone, I am afraid I have bad news,” he says seriously.

  “Evan!” I cry out, my heart feeling as if a knife is sticking into it.

  “Is fine, Mrs. Stone. He’s on the way back to the hangar, and should arrive momentarily,” he says, and then there is a pregnant pause as the realization hits me.

  “I am sorry about your friend,” the man says, slowly.

  “I have to assist the others, so please excuse me. Mr. Stone will be landing in two minutes. Please watch the rotor blades,” he finishes.

  He puts his earpiece back in, then retrieves his weapon and leaves me to mourn Merc.

  * * *

  I am looking out the window through my tears, as Evan’s helicopter touches down, and several men, looking very green, leap out onto the ground.

  Evan disembarks and speaks to the man who informed me about Merc. The man points in my direction, and Evan comes running.

  Evan enters the room, and I leap to him, hugging him tightly while crying hot tears.

  Merc is gone!

  After a while, I calm down.

  “We’ve got to get the others and speak with Noah, to find out what our next steps are,” Evan whispers.

  I nod, sniffing away my tears. I feel hollow inside.

  Death comes so quickly.

  * * *

  Evan and I walk to the house, and the rest are already gathered in the living room, except for Levi and Lucius, who have gone to help the security team.

  “Noah has sent another contingent of men to guard the compound, Evan,” Isaac tells us.

  Evan nods.

  “Has he told you anything else?” he asks.

  Isaac takes a deep breath.

  “You might not believe this, but he and Tinsley are going to marry next week officially. He announced it on the news media, and apparently, they had secretly been preparing for the past three months. It’s a go!” he smiles.

  Vic, Grace and I all squeal with happiness for her, but it’s leavened by the knowledge that Merc gave his life to save all of us.

  Elizabeth is holding Ethan and has a smile on her face.

  We all hug and cry together.

  Evan excuses himself to go search for Levi and Lucius.

  * * *

  A short while later, we are making dinner.

  Evan and Levi are sitting at the table, drinking whiskey, while Lucius nurses a beer. The rest of them are drinking wine, but I am sipping Perrier. There is a background of small talk when Levi’s phone rings. He answers it, then puts it on speaker for the rest of us to hear.

  “It’s Noah, and Tinsley,” he smiles.

  Noah’s voice comes booming out.

  “Well, I suppose you have all heard the news! It’s official! Next Wednesday is the date! Tinsley and I are to be married, and it’s about time!” he says. I can tell he’s beaming.

  “I want you all to be there, and, even though this is short notice, I’d like for Leigha to be my matron of honor, and Athena, Vic, and Grace to be my bridesmaids! We can get your dresses fitted, and everything will be good to go from there! Evan, would you do me the honor of giving me away?” Tinsley asks.

  “It would be my greatest pleasure, Tinsley!” Evan replies.

  Vic has tears in her eyes, and Grace is looking misty as she glances at Isaac.

  “Lucius, I’d like you, Aiden, Levi, and Isaac to be my groomsmen. If you don’t mind?” Noah asks.

  The men all respond enthusiastically.

  “Will there be time for a bachelor party, then?” Lucius asks mischievously.

  “Certainly. And the girls can have theirs as well. We can have one the night before!” Noah responds.

  “Is that wise, dear?” Elizabeth asks. She looks around at all of us.

  “What am I thinking? Of course, you will all party. I must be getting old!” she murmurs, shaking her head.

  “It’s settled then. I will have our men transport everyone back to the Stone Estate, and we’ll go on from there. Expect them to arrive this evening,” Noah concludes.

  Levi closes the phone.

  “What about Olivia?” asks Grace.

  The mood changes instantly. She looks abashed.

  “She’s not invited,” Elizabeth says, deadpan.

  Levi laughs loudly, and then Evan and Lucius join in as well. Soon, the entire group is laughing, releasing the tension of the past few hours.

  We sit to eat and enjoy the proximity of being with our friends and family.

  Life is short.

  It’s time to celebrate it.

  “A toast to Mercutio Torelli!” Evan says, standing.

  Everyone raises their glass. Even Ethan gets into the act with his bottle.

  Vic giggles and tickles the boy, and we all toast Merc.

  44

  The Wedding of the Century

  May 11, 2019

  “I’m Aurora Caivano, and we’re back from commercial break for our coverage today of America’s own, Royal Wedding, as Tinsley Whittaker is minutes away from walking down the aisle, to the luckiest man in the world and former business scion, Noah Stone. In just minutes the limos carrying Tinsley Whittaker and her bridal party will finish their procession down Fifth Avenue and pull up in front of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, back to you down below Addison,” the news report’s voice is filled with excitement as the broadcast bounces back down to the crowds lining Fifth Avenue for a glimpse of the soon to be princess.

  “Thank you, Aurora! As you can see, the crowds are lined up along Fifth in record numbers,” Addison begins but is drowned out by the roar of the crowds as a series of limos and black sedans pull up in front of the Cathedral.

  There is a heavy police presence, and undoubtedly, many plainclothes officers are in the crowds to make sure nothing goes off without a hitch.

  “Back to you, Aurora!” Addison screams over the sound of the crowds.

  “Thanks, Addison! As you can see, the door of the first limo is opening and Ava Winthrop-Stone, and Victoire Bishop begin to exit with the children. Tinsley broke with tradition and selected several children from one of the various Stone charities for Orphans as her ring bearers and flower girls. Of course, Ava is with her twin boys, Landon and Greyson, my they are adorable,” Aurora coos.

  Greyson and Sebastian are indeed adorable, in little matching tuxes. Ethan has already been zoomed in on several times inside the church, while Sebastian, is at the altar with Levi minding him.

  “Aren’t they beautiful in their dresses, Mark?” Aurora asks.

  Mark Halston audibly sighs into his microphone next to Aurora.

  “Gorgeous Aurora, why don’t you tell us about them?” he asks.

  Aurora laughs nervously and smacks Mark.

  “Of course, Mark, the berry pink tulle dresses being worn by her bridesmaids are custom Galia Lahav haute couture gowns. Beautiful the way these dresses look in the breeze!” Aurora gushes.

  “And what a perfect New York city day as Evan Stone, son of Noah Stone steps out onto the street and the crowd loves him! We can see his wife, Leigha, getting out of the limo behind him. Now there’s been some stirrings in the tabloids about a feud between Leigha
and the mother of Evan’s son, Victoire,” Aurora continues.

  “But as we can see today, everyone is all smiles. Leigha is eighteen weeks pregnant now, isn’t she Aurora?” Mark turns the broadcast around.

  “Well- “Aurora begins.

  “Is that an engagement ring I spy on Victoire’s hand?” Mark deflects.

  “Not to be distracted too soon, here is Tinsley, coming out of the limo as Leigha and Athena help with her train, while the others make their way inside the Cathedral. She’s holding a beautiful bouquet,” Mark continues.

  “Oh, and look at that veil! It’s so long and gorgeous, sparkling in the sunlight! The intricacy of her dress by Birenzweig is not be missed, with a full off the shoulder sleeve and that beautiful “V” in the back, showing just enough skin! She does, indeed, genuinely look like a princess with the beautiful Fife Tiara on her head, her hair styled into an elegant bun,” Aurora says.

  There’s silence on the broadcast as Tinsley, and the rest of the bridal party make their way inside the Cathedral. The camera switches to a view of inside the chapel as the music begins to play.

  Victoire and Ava make their way down the aisle with the children, Ava holding the hands of Greyson and Landon. There’s a long pause before, Athena, and then eventually Leigha begins to make her way down the aisle, as Tinsley’s maid of honor.

  Then the music changes, everyone stands, and Tinsley and Evan make their grand entrance.

  The smile on Tinsley’s face outshines everything about her dress, tiara, and veil, which floats behind her for several meters. It’s a long trip down the aisle of St. Patrick’s Cathedral, and everyone is clearly in awe of the bride, a hush falling over the crowd as she reaches Noah.

  Evan places Tinsley’s hand in Noah’s and takes his place as the best man.