The sirens were faint, in the distance, but Gio readied himself. Cookie was at his side, reminding Gio to steady his breathing despite his heart pounding. “You’re going to have to get through me,” Gio said through his teeth, lifting the heavy statue. “Come on, tough guy.”
Angelo lunged, and so did Chip. Gio swung with everything he had. The fuck this asshole was going to hurt his family. Whatever happened, Gio would go down fighting.
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
Ugh,these fucking meds. They made him so groggy. Joker groaned and opened his eyes. Fuck, what time was it? Had he been asleep all day? Slowly, he pulled the covers aside and sat up on the edge of the bed. He let out a low growl. Damn it. He hated being out of it.
Running a hand through his hair, he stood and grabbed his phone off the nightstand when he heard Cookie bark, followed by a yelp.Chip. What the fuck? He knew every sound his boys made and why. Those were Chip’s takedown-a-threat snarls and Cookie’s danger alert barks.
Joker moved too quickly, and the dizziness hit him so hard he almost fell over. “Fuck you!” He didn’t know who he was cursing out, but he was pissed. Something was going on downstairs. He could hear it,feelit. The hairs on the back of his neck stood on end, and he felt sick to his stomach. His family needed him, and he was moving like molasses.
“Fuck this shit.” Joker hurried to the door, grabbing onto the doorframe as more dizziness his him. “Nope. Get it together, Sacha,” he growled. He used the banister to get down to the second floor. Joker was terrified. There was shit shattering left and right, loud thumps against the wall, Chip snarling, andCookie barking. Someone was in their home. He inhaled deeply and hurried down the last flight of stairs, holding onto the banister with both hands.
Joker’s blood turned to ice, and he sucked in a sharp breath at the sight of Gio pinned against the wall by a huge man, his beefy hands around Gio’s neck. Chip limped forward, then lunged at the guy, latching onto his leg, and Cookie stood on his hind legs, barking and trying to shove himself between the guy and Gio.
Fuck, he forgot to grab his gun from his nightstand, and his backup was in the gun safe in Gio’s office.Kitchen!Joker removed his phone from his pocket and hit their family’s emergency button. Slipping it back into his pajama bottoms, he held onto his side and gritted his teeth as he moved toward the kitchen as fast as his body would allow, which was way too fucking slow.
Joker pulled open one of the drawers, snagged a couple of the black heavy-duty zip ties, and two knives out of the knife block. Turning, he grinned when Gio managed to grab a souvenir off one of the tables and smash it against the guy’s temple, sending him reeling sideways. The guy tripped over Chip, who tugged and jerked at the guy’s pants, and caused him to hit the floor hard. Before the asshole had a chance to get up, Gio kicked him in the ribs. He was out of breath, but the fierce look on his face was one Joker had never seen before. It was the look of a man defending what he loved.
The guy caught Gio’s leg, and Chip was all over him, snapping at the guy’s arm. A roar filled the air as Chip sank his teeth into the man’s flesh. Fucker was done. He had a Malinois attached to him, and Chip wasn’t about to let go. Joker headed to Gio, whose head shot up.
“Sacha! Go back upstairs!”
“You’re adorable,” Sacha growled, like he was going anywhere while his family was in danger. “Catch.” He flung one of the zip ties, the movement pulling on his side and sending pain shooting through him, making him cry out.Fuck that hurt!Gio stepped toward him, but Joker threw out a hand and shook his head.
Gio spun just as the guy tried to get up, Chip still attached. Joker gave Chip the German command to release, and Chip let go and jumped back, one paw up. The asshole was a bloody mess and in agony, but he pushed himself to sit up.
“Gio, get back,” Sacha ordered, as he threw one of the knives. It plunged into the wooden coffee table next to the guy’s head. “You fucking move, and the next one goes in your heart.”
“Asshole,” Gio breathed, grabbing the guy’s uninjured arm and rolling him onto his stomach, ignoring the man’s cries as Gio zip-tied his wrists. He was panting and sweaty, bloody in a few places, but didn’t look like he’d been wounded. He brushed his hair away from his face and slowly stood.
The front door slammed open, and Joker readied himself to keep fighting. Relief washed over him, and he stood down at the sight of Jack and the rest of the Kings.
“Are you two hurt?” King asked, heading straight for the bloodied man on the floor. Jack ran over to Joker.
“I’m a little banged up, but okay. I need to check on Sacha and Chip is limping,” Gio replied, taking a step forward when his face went pale. Cookie booped Gio’s leg, and Joker cursed under his breath.
“Red, he’s gonna pass out,” Joker said quickly. Red darted over, catching Gio just as he crumbled toward the floor. He lifted Gio and carefully laid him on the couch, then checked him over. “He’s got some cuts on his arm, but he’s not seriously wounded.” Checking Gio’s pulse, Red nodded. “He should wake up any minute. I’ll get his pills and my bag to clean up that arm.”
“Thanks,” Joker replied, amazed by his beautiful man. He turned and called Chip, who hopped over to him, one paw lifted. “Jack, I need to make sure they’re okay. Help me down.”
Ace joined Jack, and together they helped Joker get on his knees. Joker sat back on his heels and checked Chip first, running his hands all over him, and inspecting him to make sure he didn’t have any cuts or open wounds. He held out a hand. “Paw.”
Chip whined but gave Joker his paw, and Joker assessed it. He’d learned canine first aid back when he’d served and had Echo. He kept up with it, knowing whatever he did in the future would probably involve dogs, and it was a lifesaver when he started training dogs. He sighed with relief. “We’ll get a vet to confirm, but I’m pretty sure he just pulled a muscle. Nothing’s broken and I don’t see any cuts.” Joker kissed Chip’s head. “Such a good boy. My brave boy.” He looked at Cookie. “Come here, fluffy butt.”
Cookie happily trotted over, and Joker did the same as he’d done with Chip, but a little slower since Cookie was much floofier than Chip.
“You’re okay. Such a good boy. I’m so proud of you.” Joker gave him love, then held out an arm. “Okay. Lift me back up.”
Ace and Jack helped him to his feet. Fuck, he was going to pay for all this movement. They helped him to the couch, and Gio woke up just before the police arrived. They took Gio’s statement and read the attacker his rights before removing the zip ties to cuff him, then leading him away. After the statements were taken and the police were gone, Ace and Jack started putting the furniture to rights and sweeping up the glass and souvenir pieces scattered across the floor, while Red bandaged Chip’s paw.
“Who the hell was that guy?” Lucky asked, shaking his head in disbelief at the state of things. “Holy shit, Gio. You did this?”He looked at Joker, eyes wide. “Remind me never to piss off your fiancé.”
Gio sighed, wincing as he touched his bandaged arm. He thanked Red for the first aid. “That was Angelo Valeris.” He told them all about a young woman from a small port city in Greece that he and his charity had helped a few years ago, only to have her bastard mercenary of a brother show up to use her business to move drugs for his boss, in the end getting her killed in the crossfire.
“And he blamedyou?” Ace frowned and shook his head. “If he hadn’t gotten his sister mixed up in his criminal activities, she might still be alive. Unbelievable.”
“Well, looks like his actions have finally caught up with him. He’s going away for a list of crimes, including at least two counts of attempted murder,” King growled. He met Gio’s gaze. “By the time your lawyers are done with him, I’m sure he’ll be looking at life without parole.”
