Vanessa saw the best sides of him. The man beneath the monster he’d once been. He wanted to be the man she deserved.
With a jerk, he yanked Landon up, bringing them nose to nose.
“Go.” The growl that rumbled from deep in his chest made Landon’s eyes blow wider. “Go and never come back. Don’t touch her, don’t contact her, don’t think about her.” He tightened his grip, making Landon squeak. “If you do, you will die. Next time there will be no mercy.” He spun Landon toward the exit and released him so forcefully that he stumbled back. “Go!” Jordan roared.
He wouldn’t get farther than a few feet. An army of police, led by Dex, was waiting in that stairwell. Landon would never be free again.
He watched as Landon crab-walked backward so panic-stricken, he hoped the man would piss himself before the police grabbed him on the other side of the door.
When the metal door shut behind Landon, he spun to Vanessa, but she was already there, throwing herself in his arms with a sob. She was freezing, so cold her skin was like ice.
He tore his jacket off and wrapped it around her shoulders. “You did so good baby. It’s over now, let’s get you back inside and warm you up.”
She collapsed against him, sobbing. “Jordan, I, I?—”
“It’s okay, honey. I’ve got you.” He shifted to scoop her up, but pain ripped through his lower back, a deafening shot cracked through the air, and he lost his balance.
Vanessa’s scream shattered the night, triggering his instinct. He drew his weapon, turned, caught a split-second sight of his target. Fired.
Then everything went black.
CHAPTER FIFTY-SEVEN
Fighting through the dark was like swimming upward from the depths of the ocean with chains around his ankles. He’d never experienced drowning before, but he imagined this was what it was like. Thick and heavy, achingly slow.
Wetness filled his throat. Pain burned like a fire. His brain begged for the mercy of unconsciousness, but his instinct battled for Vanessa. Everything in his bones forced him to stay conscious, to find her and make sure she was okay.
He heard her shout his name from a distance, but when he opened his eyes, she was right there. Tears streaked her cheeks, blood splattered her face.
Why was there so much blood?
He struggled to sit upright, to find where she was hurt, to get her to safety. Pain ricocheted through his body like lightning bolts. He tried to call for her, but the taste of warm copper filled his mouth.
Everything slowed, the darkness descended again, and apanic seized him as realization hit. The blood was his. He was dying. He’d never see her again. This was it.
Fluid was thick in his mouth when he tried to speak. The coughing fit that ensued quieted his words. “I love you.”
“No,” she chanted over and over, her tears falling onto his cheeks, warming them.
Fuck, every part of him was cold.
“Don’t go. Don’t leave me. You can’t leave me.” She sounded a thousand miles away.
He wished he could hold her one last time, but his limbs were like lead. He’d never felt so fucking weak. “I’ll find you,” he promised.
How lucky had he been to know her? To love her?
And the last thing he saw before the inky darkness took him, were her beautiful broken eyes.
CHAPTER FIFTY-EIGHT
He wasn’t dead. Not yet anyway. A shadow of pain tugged at his chest, like he should be overwhelmed by it, but it was skirting his senses. His bones were heavy, glued to the ground. Useless. His mind kept blanking out. He’d have moments of absolute clarity, wide awake in the godforsaken darkness, then nothing.
It was like a single lightbulb turning on for a moment, only to switch off again, drowning him in black.
He heard voices all around, snippets thrown at him like comic strip speech bubbles, but none of them connected, none made sense.
“He shot him! Somebody help me, please. He’s hurt!”
