by L. E. Bross
I yank his hair and he laughs, then buries his face in my neck. His arms pull me tight against him again and he lets out a contented sigh.
“Next time I swear I’ll take my time.”
“It was perfect,” I tell him.
“If I had any doubt,” he says against my skin, “I don’t anymore. You, Ever Darlington, are my home.”
I’m so choked up I can’t reply, but I hold him extra tight until the urge to cry subsides. We will have many more of these moments. I have to believe that.
After we shower, I pull on the t-shirt he tossed aside and climb into bed next to him. Already half asleep, he reaches out and pulls me against his chest, then curls his arm around me.
In no time the sound of his deep, even breaths fill the room.
I’m exhausted, but I force myself to stay awake, catalog every touch, every feeling that fills me right now. At some point I hear the door open and then the bed dips.
I know it’s Riot even before he eases me out of X’s hold and pulls me against his chest. Now my butt pushes against X and he turns so that he’s spooning me, arm draped over my thigh.
I press my lips to Riot’s chest and he kisses my temple.
“This is not naked cuddling,” he whispers to me.
“‘S too,” comes X’s mumbled reply from behind me and I can’t keep the contented giggle inside.
I wish the sun would never come up tomorrow and we could stay right here, locked away from the world, wrapped up in each other where nothing bad can touch us.
That’s the thing about wishes though.
They can be twisted in a way that you get what you want and still lose everything.
∞∞∞
In the morning I coax the boys out to the beach with me.
I even manage to drag Baz away from his computer, since there’s really nothing he can do now but wait for his programs to run.
Since this is our last day here, we get to spend it together. I want to make memories that I never got to have. Things that normal people do.
Baz even talks me into walking out, knees deep into the ocean.
Of course I clutch his hand the whole time, so tight he complains that it’s broken, but a kiss on each knuckle makes it better. When he heads back inside, X and Riot build me the best sandcastle I’ve ever seen, and even if the turret is a little crooked, it’s perfect.
I make them pose next to it and snap dozens of pictures. The fact that they have on board shorts and no shirts is just a bonus. X makes me take a bunch of selfies with him and Ry. I barely notice my scar in the pictures anymore. Funny because it used to be all I saw when I looked at myself.
They’ve changed me so much.
We eat lunch on the balcony and then I talk them into mini golf at the place next door. They complain like little kids, but then end up in the most insane mini golf death match I’ve ever witnessed. When we finish, they’re both tied for first. I do okay because they accidentally on purpose knock my ball in the hole every time.
I take a hundred more pictures, just in case, and when they both disappear near the windmill, an impromptu game of hide and seek ensues. It’s the best day I can ever remember having.
We’re walking back to the hotel when my phone buzzes. My heart leaps into my throat. This is it. Baz’s time is up.
Belle wanted to thank you for the gift. She loves it.
I exhale in relief, then open the attached picture. When I see what it is, I stumble against X. It’s a picture of Belle wearing a necklace. A locket shaped like a watch, and when I look closer, I see that it’s an exact replica of the one I stole from Hook.
It’s a reminder.
My fingers shake when I reply.
I’m glad. I’ll see you tomorrow.
“You okay?” X asks, nudging my shoulder.
“Yeah, just Belle reminding me about tomorrow.”
He keeps his gaze locked with mine a few seconds longer than necessary, and it feels like he’s looking past my lies to the ugly truth. I force a smile and walk a few steps ahead.
I’m scared.
“You’ll be there, sweetheart. Don’t worry.”
But I do.
When we get back to the room Baz is still at the computer.
“Anything?” I ask warily.
He looks at Riot, then X, then back at me. His eyebrows pull down.
“I think it’s close,” he says finally. It’s not a yes, but our time is about to run out.
“I’m going to take a nap. All that fresh air you know.” I force another smile and head to my bedroom. None of them offer to come with me, so I must look as tired as I feel. My exhaustion has little to do with what we did today and more to do with what I have to do tonight.
In order to save the people I love, I have to give the chip to Peter.
This is the beginning of the end.
Chapter Fourteen
My room is quiet when I pull on my clothes and tiptoe out.
The guys aren’t in the living room and I wish that I could give them one more hug before I have to do this.
Black leggings hug my legs and the black tank top clings tightly to my chest. I look like a ninja. Too bad I didn’t have the moves like one. I grab the black hoodie that Baz left out and adjust it until everything is perfect.
The last thing I do before I leave is pop the chip out of the reader.
My hand shakes. Such a tiny thing, holding the fates of so many people.
I tuck it into a clean contact case and then into my pocket.
With a deep breath and one last look around, I move to the door. My boots are there waiting and I put them on and tie them tight.
The hallway is quiet when I slip out the door. We’re four floors up and instead of taking the elevator, I use the stairs. No one will see me this way. No one takes the stairs anymore.
The clerk behind the desk doesn’t even look up when I move past. You’d think a figure dressed all in black, leaving right before midnight, would cause at least a little curiosity.
Not so much.
I didn’t want to leave the safety of having the guys near, just in case, so I told Peter to meet me at the mini golf course next to the hotel. I know where the breaks in the hedges are,so if I need to duck away, I’ll be able to get back to the room quickly.
My feet are loud on the pavement, but quiet when I get to the mulch.
I pause at the entrance and tilt my head, listening for a sign that he’s here. There are people talking down at the beach, but too far away to see anything. Their presence gives me a little comfort. I’m not completely alone.
The windmill is obstacle seven. It’s where I told Peter to meet me. I thought it was ironic and really, I need all the luck I can get. When I get closer a shadow detaches from the right and Peter steps into the faint glow coming from the parking lot lights.
He’s wearing a dark suit and if I wasn’t so nervous, I’d laugh. Always the douche. Who wears a custom tailored suit to a clandestine meeting at midnight.
Peter Panchard that’s who.
“Right on time.” He tugs at his cuffs and then straightens his jacket.
I fight the urge to roll my eyes. There’s no one here to impress except the faded gnome staring at him from across the putting green.
“You have it?”
I nod. Did he think I’d come out here without it?
“Did Baz figure out how to decrypt it?” His voice is casual, but I see the tension around his eyes.
“No,” I grind out. “But you knew he wouldn’t. Whatever you used, it was way beyond anything he could break through. He didn’t have a chance.”
He puffs out his chest in self-importance and arrogance pride shines from his eyes.
“Of course it was, I wrote it myself. No one’s smart enough to crack it. It’s why I’m the best, why my company is the leader in world security.”
I fist the contact case in my pocket and take a step closer.
“At the expense of your family.” It’s no use
arguing with him because he clearly doesn't care, but I have to say it anyway. “What the hell is so important that it’s worth the lives of the people you’re supposed to care about? Your wife. Your sons. The people you vowed to protect. Is a stupid computer chip worth losing all that.”
He bares his teeth at me, his composure slipping.
“That computer chip means more to me than anyone on this planet. I wrote a program so sophisticated that it can locate anyone in the world in a matter of minutes. So brilliant that it can find informants embedded in terrorist cells. People in witness protection. International spies. People who are supposed to be hidden from everything, my program can find. I did that.”
Specks of spittle sit on his bottom lip. His eyes glow with maniacal fire.
An icy chill moves over my skin. “That would have to endanger thousands of people. Why would you do that?”
The fire burns brighter, turns to excitement.
“Who better to hire to combat an attack on the world’s security than the top security firm. I will get paid to create the chaos, and paid to fix it. I will be the most important person in the world. It’s what people will talk about a hundred years from now. I’ll be in every history book, on the tongues of scholars. That is what makes me a genius, Ms. Darlington, the ability to be the problem and the solution.”
Holy shit. Did Baz know about this? That this chip could be the potential cause of catastrophic loss of life. How can I turn it over now, knowing what it can do. Is one person more important than hundreds.
Sourness crawls up the back of my throat and I take a step back, away from him. My gaze darts to the left, where the hedges are thickest. There’s a spot where I can slip through.
He watches me, seems to see the change happening, because he sobers. His eyes narrow.
“I’ll take my chip now.”
I shake my head and back up even further, almost to the edge of the putting green. “I can't let you do this. I won’t let you hurt all those people.”
Peter lets out a real laugh. I can hear the amusement in his voice.
“The thing is, Ever, people like you and your sister are disposable. You have no one. You are no one. You are one girl, stupid enough to come here alone. You will be just another Jane Doe.”
“No.” I lift my chin. If he thinks I’ll cower, that I’ll give him control of my fear, he’s wrong. Because I know something he doesn’t.
Something he forgot to take into account.
I feel them at my back before they appear next to me like vengeful wraiths, emerging from the shadows.
My guys.
My Lost Boys.
“See the thing is, you’re wrong. I’m not alone. Not anymore. We’re stronger together and this ends now. It’s over.”
Peter sneers. “You think a few boys will make me cower? I’ll chew you all up and spit you out. When I’m done with you, no one will believe a word any of you say. I made it so Wendi couldn’t tell anyone what I was doing, I’ll do the same to you.”
I take a step forward and the boys move with me, close enough that I know they’re there, but giving me space. Because they trust me even when they don’t know what I’m going to do.
“That’s the thing about egomaniacs. You love to fucking talk.” I lift up the sweatshirt Baz gave me. The wires running under it are obvious even in the dim light. “It’s not our word against yours, Peter. It’s your words admitting what you planned to do. What you’ve already done.”
For the first time since I met him, I see real fear in Peter’s eyes.
“Okay, let’s negotiate. I’ll give you Wendi for the wiretap.”
Riot growls. “Wendi isn’t a fucking chess piece you get to move around when it suits you.”
Peter looks more confident now. In his mind, he’s already three steps ahead, where he calls tonight a victory. He thinks he’s won.
“If you ever want to see her again, make the deal. Can you live with yourselves knowing that you had the power to save her and you didn’t use it?”
Baz makes a noise in his throat and drops his head.
“No I couldn’t.”
Peter all but crows.
My lips twitch.
“Which is why I hacked your program and used it to find her two days ago,” Baz says lifting his head. A wicked smile plays on his lips. I love that he’s enjoying this moment of revenge. “And it’s also how I found the list of bidders for the chip and turned it over to Homeland Security. And just because I hate your fucking guts, because you used Ever and hurt Wendi, I made sure to drop a few anonymous tips on the dark web that you were the one who turned on the buyers. That you gave the information to the feds.”
A strangled sound comes from Peter. “They’ll kill me.”
X moves to my side. “Only if the feds don’t find them first. Maybe you should let them use your software?”
A chuckle slips past my lips. Smartass.
Peter lets out a feral growl and charges at us. At me. Three very pissed off, protective boys block his path. Ry lands a punch to Peter jaw that snaps his head back. X kicks his legs out from under him and he goes down hard on his back.
“Do not fucking move,” Ry grits out. “You’re done.”
“Not yet,” I say, moving to where Peter is on the ground cradling his chin. I crouch down and take the contact case from my pocket, then pop it open and tip the chip into my hands.
Desperation floods his eyes when he sees it and he claws at the ground trying to sit up.
“I can make you rich. Powerful. Anything you want. Name your price.”
“The thing is, I already have everything I want.” I pinch the chip between my fingers and hold it up to the light. “There’s nothing you can give me I don’t already have. But there is one more thing I can take away from you.”
X hands me a pair of needle nose pliers and Baz digs the handheld butane torch out of his pocket. The chef at the hotel was generous enough to let us borrow it for an hour.
Baz told me earlier that they planned on destroying the chip and the program on it. No one should have that much power, not even the good guys. When I asked if I could do it, they didn’t hesitate.
I push the button on the torch and a flame erupts.
Peter lunges, but Riot’s boot in his chest pushes him back down and holds him there.
"You fucking lay there and listen to her."
“You threatened my sister,” I grit out, bringing the flame to where the chip sits between the teeth of the pliers now. Baz told me that I needed to burn it for two minutes to destroy everything on it.
Listening to Peter beg and plead for one hundred and twenty seconds will sweet fucking music to my ears.
“That is a lifetime of work you’re destroying,” he screams. He looks at Baz. "You know the value of what's on there. You have to stop her."
Baz leans down. "I don't have to do anything but stand at her side while she burns down the fucking world."
"You're making a huge mistake. You'll regret this, I promise."
This time it's X who looks down at him. "The only thing I think I'll regret is not letting Ever stuff the chip down your throat and set you on fire like she wanted to."
Peter looks up at me wide-eyed. "You're crazy."
Riot pulls me close and slams his lips down over mine, then yanks his head back. "Fuck yeah she is. And we love it."
Sirens sounds in the distance and flashing blue lights bounce off the hedges. By the time men in SWAT vests swarm around us, the chip is useless. Baz wraps it in a napkin and puts it in his pocket. He’s going to make sure there’s nothing left to salvage.
The police drag Peter to his feet and yank his hands behind his back.
“You’ll pay for this,” he snarls at me, snapping like a rabid dog.
The violence radiating from his eyes might have scared me once, but as the guys close in around me, I’m surrounded by a cocoon of warmth and safety.
It hits me that it’s really over. All the plans we made, all the
scenarios we talked about, have paid off.
We did it. Together.
Wendi is safe. Belle is safe. We are safe.
I have no idea where we go from here, I just know that we get to choose the direction now. The future is ours for the taking.
I look Peter in the eyes and smile.
“I guess you’re not the smartest person in the world after all.”
Epilogue
Three weeks later
“Ever Darlington.”
I get up and walk up to the stage, then climb the steps with confidence. I didn’t wear the strappy heels Meri tried to talk me into. They might be sexy, but for this moment I needed something more.
Something me.
My old black biker boots have seen me through a lot of shit, but this is their final trek. After today, I’m retiring them. They’re officially part of my old life.
We still have a long road ahead of us. The charges against Peter keep stacking up. Turns out he’s been selling classified information to terrorist organizations for years. I’ve given my testimony to the prosecuting attorneys. They know everything I did, from the moment I broke into Panchard Enterprises to when Peter tried to implicate me as his accomplice.
