Back was the angry, crazy, evil woman I had been experiencing since she’d kidnapped me. “Don’t fucking move.”
Lena raised the gun I’d seen in her hand and pointed it straight at me. Bodie wrapped his arms around me a little tighter and brought his ear a little closer to mine. “If I push and say move, swing off me and roll to the side. Stay low to the ground. I don’t want to hurt you but I can’t risk losing you.”
While he was commanding, his old military training kicking in, I still heard the small waiver in his voice. Neither of us had time to say more before Lena started in again.
I’d wasted precious time blubbering and they’d let me because Bodie didn’t want to hurt me. And probably because I’d been falling apart in his arms.
Now it was too late.
“It looks as if I won’t be seeing that money that is mine but that doesn’t mean one of the outcomes I had planned can’t happen.” Lena cast a quick glance at Paxton. “You should have stayed out of this. I was doing it as much for you as I was for myself. He owed us.”
Paxton looked pained and my heart broke for him there on the spot.
“Please listen to me, mom. You’re not taking your meds and you’re not thinking clearly. This isn’t Gemma’s fault.”
Lena’s eyes flashed with annoyance at her son. Then her gaze landed back on mine. “You!” she screamed, waving the gun wildly around in my direction. “You turned my own son against me!”
Just then I heard feet pounding heavily in our direction and I tensed.
“Get ready,” I heard Bodie say as I watched Lena’s eyes widen in surprise.
She steadied the gun. “You're not getting out of this, you bitch!”
I felt my body being pushed to the side and did as Bodie said but cried out for my husband who was a sitting duck.
Paxton yelled, “No!”
The deafening bang of the gun going off echoed in the room, a grunt rang out, and the sound of footsteps and bodies hitting the floor crashed into my ears all at once. I’d been scared out of my mind when I’d woken up in the cold, dark room, listening to Lena’s crazy babble. But it didn’t compare to the fear I felt knowing Bodie might have been hit protecting me.
Men were shouting and I didn’t know what had happened. I caught Bodie scrambling to my side.
He was okay.
I frantically ran my hands all over him as he did the same thing to me. He kissed me hard with a desperation that I felt too. Then he pulled back gazing into my eyes. “I was so scared I’d lose you. But we’re okay.” He took a deep breath. “Believe me when I tell you he’ll be too.”
He who?
My eyes scanned the room and took in the rest of the scene.
Braxton had Lena pinned to the ground, while Gyth and Kace knelt around a body.
“Paxton,” I cried out.
Oh my God, Paxton couldn’t die because of me. He was the brother I wished for when I was little and never had. He was my family and I’d just found him. She, his mother couldn’t take him away from me now.
“H-how? What happened?” I screamed.
Bodie wrapped his arms around me from behind and held me close, my back to his chest as I sat on the floor between his legs, tears falling like fat raindrops down my cheeks.
“He took the bullet to make sure we didn’t,” Bodie said.
Kace was tying something around the top of my brother's thigh as Gyth barked into the phone to get an ambulance and police to our location. Lena was screaming as she fought to get away from Braxton who held her in place with no problem.
“He’s okay, sweetheart. Your brother is tough and his leg will heal.” Bodie ran his hand softly up and down my arm.
All of a sudden my brother's head turned and his gaze met mine. I could see the pain shining in his eyes but then he smiled and I knew in my heart he’d be okay.
“I love you, big brother,” I whispered.
