I want to hug him. I would, if my arms weren’t numb. “But,” I manage throughmy shock, “you’re…Stars and Bars. Not Superman.”
He laughs, snaps the plastic around my ankles, and nods toward the window. “Maybe just for today, Superman won’t mind sharing the secret identity.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO
Leo
No matterhow many times you’ve done it, staring down the barrel of a gun is enough to make a man’s balls crawl back inside his body. For a split second, I wonder if everything is about to go to shit.
The shot should be louder. I almost laugh at the thought. But I did just set off six feet of det cordanda flash-bang grenade. My hearing might be fucked.
“Take him!” Agent Balboa shouts, and I watch as a swarm of National Police converge on Sergio Munoz. Blood stains his side. One of the officers leans down and grabs the pistol Sergio dropped when he was shot, and tucks it into his pocket.
“Mr. Basher.” Agent Balboa holsters his weapon and offers me his hand. “I don’t know how you pulled this off, but the Vice President is in your debt.”
Cortez tries to get the rest of his detail to let him up, but they ignore his orders.
“ThePresident-Electcan thank me later. I have somewhere I have to be.”
Balboa could still have me detained. Vandalizing a polling place is a serious crime, but he merely nods and ushers me to the side door. “Expect a call this evening, Mr. Basher. And stay available.”
We’ll see about that.
“Target location,” I demand as I toss the fake cast in the gutter and take off at a run. Every step sends shooting pains down my right leg, but I don’t care how much it hurts. Austin confirmed she was safe, but I won’t believe it until she’s in my arms.
“Atrium,” Austin says. “Front door’s wide open and we’re waiting for you.”
The sidewalks are too crowded. People running from the explosion, locals pouring from buildings to see what all the commotion is about.
I give up fighting my way through and veer into the street. Dodging cars is a dangerous game, but there are fewer of them.
The apartment building comes into view, the first story nothing but glass walls from floor to ceiling.
And then I see her.
Domina sits on a stack of pallets, shoulders hunched, arms wrapped tightly around herself. Austin stands next to her, one hand on her shoulder, the other at his side—holding his Sig Sauer.
I skid to a stop in the doorway, suddenly afraid to touch her. I don’t know a damn thing about what she’s been through the past twenty-four hours. But her gaze locks onto mine, and the desperate need churning in her red-rimmed eyes…I can’t wait another second to have her in my arms.
“Leo,” she whimpers and tries to get to her feet. But she wobbles, and I catch her when she falls. “I thought…I heard the shots. Austin said you were okay, but…” Sobs wrack her body. Domina buries her face against the curve of my neck, and her tears soak into the collar of my shirt.
“I know, baby. But I’m here now. You’re safe. It’s over.”
She stiffens. “It’s not. Muñoz is behind all of this.” Trembling fingers skim the back of my neck, but she doesn’t raise her head. “His son…he’s the one who took me. He and the man who broke into my apartment.”
“Shhh. I know. Sergio is in custody. And…” I glance over her shoulder at my watch, “his father is about to find out how much pain a Navy SEAL can cause with just his thumbs.”
* * *
Domina
Nothing seems real. Not Leo’s arm around me. Not the plush, smooth ride of the SUV, not the banter coming from the front seat. Trevor and Austin relive the past few hours like they were some sort of video game, and all I want is to sleep.
The car rolls to a gentle stop, and I lift my head from Leo’s shoulder. “Where are we?” Even that simple question takes more energy than I have, but I don’t recognize the area. We’re nowhere near our apartment building.
“The Five Points Hotel,” Leo says and presses a kiss to the top of my head. “We’re going in the service entrance, then straight up to the penthouse suite.”
“The penthouse? Why can’t we go home?”
