by Juno Rushdan
Her blood turned to ice, heartbeat thrumming sickeningly in her ears.
“Thought you could hunt me. That a wig would make you invisible. Like I couldn’t draw you out.” He cocked his fist, bringing his elbow way back, preparing to hurt her. Hurt her until there was only darkness.
She had to fight, act now. Charlie brought a knee up between his legs hard enough to jolt him forward and threw a punch up into his throat.
Then he was the one gasping.
He rolled off her, and she clambered to her feet.
Staggering away, she needed to get distance from him. She reached into her shirt to draw her weapon when a hand closed around her ankle. He yanked her back with such force that she had to throw out both hands in front of her to break the fall.
He was climbing on her, with her belly to the floor.
Facedown, she wouldn’t stand a chance.
Charlie swung her elbow back and up, using the added rotation of her body to drive it hard into the side of Devlin’s head. Her bone struck his face. He grunted and his weight lifted.
Without hesitation, she scrambled forward on her hands and knees. Pushed up from the floor to her feet.
Devlin growled. A shuffling sound told her that he was in motion behind her. A bullet bit into the wall near her head.
She bolted for the stairs. Her brain spun. Dread pooled in her stomach. Faster and faster she ran.
“Charlie!” Aiden’s panicked voice in her ear reset her senses.
She spotted a sign that said Second Floor: Shark Discovery.
The new shark and stingray touch-pool exhibit was under construction. She grabbed the knob and jerked it. Locked. Her heart felt ready to explode in her chest.
“Don’t go there. It’s locked,” Aiden said.
With a desperate curse, she drew her weapon.
Devlin pounded up the steps. His vile, evil energy was a force in itself, breathing down on her.
She shot the lock and kicked it open. Devlin charged toward her, taking aim. She threw the door wide open, punched holes into the other and ran into the construction zone.
Before she could get her bearings, he was barreling down on her.
She spun and fired but tripped on a cord and missed.
As he raised his gun, she was close enough to grab his right wrist and keep her head out of the line of fire, but he snatched her gun hand, as well.
They wrestled, struggling in a furious whirl to gain control or to break free. Both squeezing off shots, trying to nail the other with a bullet.
His gun clicked first. Empty.
Two more shots, and hers did the same.
The moment of decision froze between them, and their eyes locked.
One bloody lesson she’d learned in the group home as a teenager—hesitation could be fatal. Letting a fight unfold always gave your opponent the advantage.
She threw a headbutt to his face, slamming her skull down on the bridge of his nose, and nearly broke free of his hold. But he was tough. Unrelenting.
Devlin punched her, a quick jab that sent her to the floor and had blood pooling in her mouth.
Think! She inched away. Determination fired in her blood.
Think, or this man is going to kill you.
She’d never given much thought to dying, had never spent much time wondering what came after. But right then, all she cared about was living and breathing and having a life with Aiden. She wasn’t going to let this bastard take that away from her.
He stalked closer, violence etching harsh lines on his face.
Charlie shoved her hand in her pocket and gathered a handful of sand. Hold, she told herself. Pulse racing. Breath sawing from her mouth. Wait for him to get closer.
He reached down to grab her by the hair, and she threw the sand in his eyes.
Pitching away from her, he wiped at his face with his forearm.
She threw a boot heel to his groin.
Jumping to her feet, she drew the tactical knife from its sheath and lunged for him. The matte black blade slid into the sweet spot—the jugular notch right above the sternum.
A gurgling noise came from Devlin. He stumbled back, dropped to one knee as if still struggling to stand, to keep fighting out of sheer malice, but he toppled to the floor.
His lifeless eyes open. Blood pouring from his dead body on the floor.
She sucked in a deep breath and swallowed hard, her hands shaking. Her heart quivering.
Aiden stormed inside. His gaze fell to Devlin and lifted to her. The heated look in his eyes knocked her back a step. She saw the anger, the worry, the shadows of fear.
In a blink, he had her wrapped in his arms.
Relief rose like the sun inside her. They’d both survived. Together. She held him tight, pressed her cheek to his.
Then she remembered. Pulling away, she asked, “Where’s Albatross?”
“He ran with the money. Walsh went after him.”
She stared at him, her mouth hanging open. “Why aren’t you chasing them?”
He ran his hand over her hair and caressed her jaw. “I had to make sure you were all right.”
Shock left her speechless. The depth of his love was staggering. Blinding.
“You’ll always come first,” he said. “Before duty, before country. Before anything.”
With a lump forming in her throat, she slid her hands up his chest and he enveloped her in his arms. She soaked in his warmth, his comfort. His love.
The distinct sound of helicopter blades cutting through the air outside quieted them.
They ran out of the room.
From the window, they saw a police helicopter hovering in the front of the aquarium.
They exchanged a glance and ran down the stairs, racing to the main entrance.
Beyond the doors, Walsh stood with his arm around Edgar’s throat and a gun to his head. A hundred feet away, Special Agent Garcia had her weapon drawn alongside several other agents and had them surrounded.
Aiden took a step toward the doors with his gun raised.
“What are you doing?” Charlie grabbed his arm. “If you go out there, they might shoot you. They think we’re fugitives.”
Aiden considered what she’d said for a moment, pulled the cell from his pocket and called the burner he’d given Garcia.
What if she didn’t answer?
She might not even be able to hear it with the helicopter overhead.
But Garcia patted her pocket and pulled out the phone.
“We’re inside the aquarium,” Aiden said. “We have a clean shot. But I need you to let us take it.” He listened for a minute and hung up. “She’s ordering everyone to hold their fire. The shot is ours.”
Trepidation rippled through Charlie. It could be a trick, to get them to expose themselves, but Garcia wanted Walsh and to protect Albatross, a witness, as much as they did.
“I’ll hold the door,” Charlie said. “You take the shot.”
Aiden was a better marksman. Not by much, but enough to wound Walsh and save Edgar’s life. She couldn’t guarantee the same. Shooting to kill was more her style.
They crept up to the entrance, waving back frightened employees, urging them to stay low.
Charlie grabbed a door handle, took a breath to stop nerves from rolling her stomach and waited for Aiden’s signal.
With a two-handed grip for increased stability and accuracy, he raised the weapon, lining up his sights.
When he gave a sharp nod, she flung the door open.
Aiden squeezed the trigger once.
The bullet struck Walsh in the shoulder, causing the gun to jerk forward without discharging. Aiden fired again, hitting his hand. The weapon dropped to the ground.
FBI agents swept in and circled the two men.
Charlie and Aiden lowered th
eir guns to the ground and put their hands up behind their heads, assuming the standard position.
Cuffs were slapped on Walsh. “I’m going to tell them!” Walsh said. “About how you murdered my sister. Say goodbye to your immunity. I might be going to prison, but you’ll be right there beside me!”
Edgar shuddered as agents took the briefcase and escorted him away.
“You can lower your hands,” Garcia said, approaching them. “You’ve been cleared of charges.”
“How?” Charlie and Aiden asked in unison.
“I’ve got Walsh and Devlin on tape. Devlin admitted to framing you. When I called your San Diego field office to let your boss, Will Draper, know, he informed me that Albatross’s wife came out of her coma this morning. She told the police what really happened. Apparently, Draper had marshals providing protection for her around the clock, in case you two decided to...well.” She stopped, not voicing the vile implication. “It was a good thing, too. A local cop tried to kill her.”
“What?” Charlie asked.
“The cop was Devlin’s buddy who’d provided his cover story for being out in San Diego.”
Devlin was trying to tie up loose ends, including her and Aiden. Edgar Plinski was saved for last.
“Thank you for contacting our superior,” Aiden said. “And for not shooting us.”
Garcia smiled. “Glad I could help.”
“What’s going to happen to Albatross?” Charlie asked.
“We’ll keep him safe in custody while we investigate Mr. Walsh’s allegations. If they’re true, Albatross will lose immunity and be sent to prison.”
It made sense that he’d kept quiet about Walsh in order to protect himself from a murder charge.
“When are you going to get Enzo Romero?” Aiden asked.
“We heard he made a big power play today,” Garcia said.
Charlie and Aiden exchanged a glance but said nothing.
“Thanks to the information you gave us,” Garcia continued, “we’re going to get a warrant and bring him in. After I get some rest.”
“Thank you again for your help,” Charlie said, shaking her hand.
Aiden did likewise. “There are four more inside. The dirty SWAT cops that ambushed us. Two are dead, including Devlin.”
Garcia nodded. “This is proof that interagency cooperation works.” She stepped past them inside.
“What now?” Charlie asked Aiden.
He circled his arm around her shoulders, and they started walking away from the hubbub of the scene. “Now we go back to our rented room in time for dinner. Henri’s serving blue crab gumbo. We shower, make love and talk about my job offer at Camp Beauregard.”
Being an instructor someday was always Aiden’s goal. She couldn’t give him children, but she could make sure he accepted his dream job. No way in the world would she take that away from him.
“There’s nothing to talk about,” Charlie said. “You’re taking the job. End of discussion.”
“Not so fast.” He kissed her head. “If I take the job, we’ve got to talk about how to get you out there, too.”
“Me?” She looked up at him, confused. “They’re not going to make me an instructor and I’m not quitting.”
He crushed his mouth down on hers, his palms sliding up and down her body, his strong arms pulling her against him so tightly she could scarcely breathe, and the worries swimming in her head dissolved.
Drawing his lips back, he smiled at her. “Where there’s a will, there’s a way, and when we’re together, anything is possible. Have a little faith. In us.”
Epilogue
The sun was setting, taking the natural light with it. Charlie grabbed another box from the back of the portable moving container that had been shipped from San Diego, and strode out into the steamy Louisiana air. The day had been long and hot and muggy, and the air-conditioning in their new house was on the fritz. An HVAC repairman wouldn’t be able to come out for two days, and every time she turned around, it seemed like something else in the place had broken.
She’d be happier once the temperature dropped and Aiden came home from the Special Operations Group Tactical Center at Camp Beauregard.
Her new position there as a full-time SOG member assigned to one of the special teams didn’t start for another two weeks. But she had a month of unused leave.
This was giving them a chance to settle in and find their baseline before his twelve-hour training days started and she deployed on a mission. Thankfully, Aiden hadn’t fed into her worst fears and turned into a Neanderthal, demanding she not go out in the field without him. No, he was the best kind of man, a friend and partner. He trusted her to take care of herself.
Landing her a position so that they could be together had taken some finagling. Aiden told his supervisor that she was his fiancée, and since he didn’t want to be a liar, he had popped the question.
For Charlie, she didn’t need a ring or marriage or a piece of paper making things legal. She just needed Aiden. If going the traditional route kept them together, then she wasn’t going to argue over a piece of jewelry and signing a license.
A car door slammed, and she spun around on the stairs leading up to the wraparound porch.
Aiden climbed out of his SUV with a bright smile on his face, and every single awful thing about the day melted away. As he hustled over to her, she set the box of dishes down on the porch. He reached out for her and she fell into his arms.
She kissed him, hungry and impatient. Ready to take his clothes off and lose herself in the feel of him. In his breath, the taste of him, the smell of him. While unpacking, she’d thought of nothing but undressing him and christening another room in the house.
To her surprise, she heard a motorcycle drawing closer. A single beam of light sliced through the trees lining the driveway, and a motorcycle coasted around the corner. Not one that was fast enough to race a Ducati, but it sure did look cool. And as bikes went, it was quiet on the gravel driveway. The guy parked behind Aiden’s car, eased the kickstand in the down position and killed the engine.
“You didn’t tell me we were having company,” she said.
“It was a last-minute thing. I tried to call, but you didn’t answer.”
Her cell phone was in the kitchen on the counter, with music blasting. She must’ve been in the moving container when he called, and she hadn’t thought to check for any missed messages.
The little things didn’t come naturally, but Aiden cut her a lot of slack and encouraged her to do the same for herself.
They were in this together and would create rules that suited them. No need to talk of a wedding date until they were both ready. There wasn’t even pressure to buy a dog.
But checking her phone for missed calls would have to be added to the list of rules.
The man took off his helmet and raked a hand through close-cropped light brown hair.
Clean-shaven with a streamlined, muscular physique and tattoos running the length of his arms, he had a thuggish vibe that spelled trouble. In Charlie’s previous life, he would’ve been the perfect type for a one-night stand.
“Charlie, this is Horatio Haas. He works on one of the special teams.”
“Please, call me Dutch,” he said with an accent. Maybe from Chicago. He extended his hand.
Charlie shook it. “Why Dutch?” she asked.
“Why not when I’ve been saddled with a name like Horatio?” he said, and Charlie and Aiden both laughed. “In school, all the kids wanted to make fun of it, but once I started working out and calling myself Dutch, nobody tried to kick my butt.”
He had a formidable presence. Not the kind of guy you’d want to mess with unless you wanted a broken jaw.
“I can see why you brought him by,” Charlie said to Aiden.
“It’s not just for my sparkling personality,” Dutch said.
Aiden tightened his arm around her. “Your start date has been bumped up. You’re replacing Dutch on the Fugitive Apprehension Response Team day after tomorrow.”
Charlie was taken aback. Part of her was eager to get back to work, but the other part enjoyed these languid evenings with Aiden, neither of them on call, neither in any danger. “Why so suddenly?”
“I leave tomorrow,” Dutch said. “Special assignment undercover. I’ve read the file on the high-priority asset, but I have some questions that the file can’t answer. I was hoping you two could.”
“What does that have to do with us?” Charlie asked.
“It’s regarding the data breach in San Diego,” Dutch said. “We think we’ve found a way to possibly recover the Department of Justice hard drive that was stolen and prevent the sale of any more sensitive information. They want me to get close to the niece of the Los Chacales cartel leader. But I’ll be working for your old boss, Will Draper. What can you tell me about him?”
Charlie rolled her eyes and blew out a harsh breath. “Nothing good. The only person Draper cares about is Draper. Rely on your own judgment, not his.”
Aiden nodded. “This conversation is best done over drinks.”
Lots and lots of drinks. “And dinner. I’m not much of a cook,” Charlie said, “but I’m an expert at ordering good takeout.”
“Were you told why you have to rush off so quickly?” Aiden asked.
“They said this is high priority and time sensitive. Apparently, there’s a concern that the new identities of all the witnesses and the personal information of the marshals and their families in your region are going to be auctioned off to the highest bidder.”
A chill ran down Charlie’s spine. They knew the fallout of the data breach would far exceed Edgar Plinski, who was now in jail for the murder of Irene Guillory.
But no one would’ve imagined such sensitive information being auctioned off.
“Let’s go inside. If there’s anything we can tell you that might help you do your job, we’re happy to share it,” Charlie said, ushering Dutch in ahead of them.
She wrapped her arm around Aiden’s waist, loving the feel of his immediate response to bring her closer, hold her tighter.
