That was the first thing she noticed once the adrenaline receded enough for her brain to catch up.
They were steady, braced on her knees as she crouched beside the curb, lungs pulling in air that tasted of burned rubber and fear.Sirens wailed in the distance, closer now, threading through the chaos left behind.Someone was crying.Someone else was swearing.The world had slipped half an inch off its axis, and reality itself was still buffering.
But her hands were steady.
She swallowed hard.Anja had worried about this moment more than she’d ever admitted.The sound of gunfire.That split second where instinct had to outrun memory.The fear that her body might betray her and lock up, hesitate, and replay the worst day of her life instead of responding to the present one.
The fear that she’d be back there instead of here.
But it hadn’t.
The crack of the shot had hit her ears, and her body had moved before thought even formed.Tackle, cover, and shield.She didn’t freeze or second-guess, didn’t hesitate.
Leo.
Her fear hadn’t been about the gun.It had been about him.
She glanced over at him now.He sat on the curb a few feet away, one knee up, elbow braced on it, trying to look normal in a situation that was anything but.His face was pale beneath his tan, mouth clenched tight and blue eyes tracking everything at once in that intelligent, lawyerly way of his.He was trying to regain control through observation, the same way she always did.
Leo was alive and unhurt.Relief slid through her so fast it made her dizzy.Then it left her hollow in its wake.
She hadn’t frozen.
She’d protected him.
Whatever else she was feeling, whatever complicated, inconvenient thing had flared in her heart when she’d slammed into him, could wait.She shoved it into a locked mental drawer and turned the key.Feelings were a liability.She’d learned that lesson the hard way.
Later, Johansen.Deal with it later.
“Ma’am?”a police officer said gently, crouching near her.“I need to get your statement.”
Anja nodded, already switching gears.She was professional and composed.This was familiar territory, even if the roles had shifted.She gave them a timeline, positions, angles, the shooter’s likely elevation, and the sound signature.She spoke clearly and precisely, as if she hadn’t just thrown herself in front of a bullet meant for someone else.
Anja watched the officers exchange looks that said the same thing she was thinking.It was a clean shot, meticulously planned, then the shooter was gone.
They canvassed the area anyway, knocking on doors, pulling store footage, and questioning shaken witnesses.No weapon was recovered.No suspect was detained.Just shell casings and fear and a whole lot of unanswered questions.
Kayne returned once the ambulance pulled away, blood smeared on his hands, eyes dark with fury he was holding on a tight leash.Chloe was still in the vehicle with the door open, arms wrapped around herself, her gaze locked on Leo.Anja thought she needed to keep him in sight to breathe.
Anja crossed to Leo before anyone else could stop her.
“You okay?”she asked quietly.
He looked up at her, something raw flickering behind the usual charm.“I think you saved my life.”
She shrugged, aiming for casual.“That’s my job.”
He didn’t argue.
The police wrapped up what they could at the scene, promises of follow-up already sounding hollow.One officer returned with an update, voice clipped and serious.
“We traced the stolen Range Rover,” he said.“It’s currently parked in a garage around the corner.No visual on the driver yet.”
Anja felt the familiar click in her head as pieces began sliding into place.The shooter hadn’t wanted the car for resale or transport.He’d wanted movement and distraction.Control.
She looked at Leo again, at the man who’d nearly died because someone wanted to watch the ripple effect.The shooter wanted to see who would react, and how fast.
Fear nudged at the edges of her consciousness, quieter now and manageable.
