“Police are on the way. They may reach the buildin’ before we do. Don’t make any sudden moves. They have yer description but they’re lookin’ for a perpetrator who looks just like you, mo mhuirnín.”
I wasn’t sure if it was the Gaelic words for dear or the fact that it was Patsy who’d said them, but the warmth spreading through me had a calming effect on me almost immediately. “Okay, Patsy.”
“Two minutes, Wes. Almost there.”
I smiled. “I’ll be waiting.”
“Hang on.”
“Just keep talking to me.”
“Ya were at Rami and Raj’s shop?”
“I went for a walk and stopped in there this morning. I helped them in the storeroom for a few hours.” I remembered the promise of coffee and a sandwich I hadn’t gotten, and really,reallyhoped I’d make it through this alive so that I could cook those steaks for Patsy.
“One minute out, Wes. Almost there.”
I looked up, searching the sky for an approaching helicopter. Off to the southeast, I spotted a tiny dot in the sky and my heart raced for a whole other reason as my chest filled with hope.
It was shattered a second later when the door to the roof suddenly slammed open. “They’re here!” I whispered, pulling the phone away from my ear so I could hear steps approaching as I held my breath. The buzz of several people talking reached my ears, but I couldn’t make out how many there were and didn’t dare poke my head around the AC unit. I kept my eye on the approaching helicopter as it got closer and closer. When gravel suddenly crunched under foot, my heart was like a piston in my chest. They were out on the roof.
The helicopter was still more than a minute away. I debated showing myself, trying to reason with them, but my lizard brain reminded me it was safer to stay hidden until Patsy got here. I held my breath as steps approached.
“Check behind the electrical box and that AC unit!” One of the men barked orders.
“Yeah, check yourself. You ain’t the boss o’me,” came the gruff reply.
Boss o’me?I slapped a hand over my mouth to stop myself from laughing out loud at the juvenile outburst. The sound of helicopter rotors got louder.
“What’s that?” one of the men said.
“It’s a chopper, idiot! What do you think it is?”
“It’s coming right toward us.”
I watched Patsy’s helicopter approaching, picking up the wail of sirens at the same time.
“What the fuck?” one of the men shouted.
“Cops! We need to get the fuck out of here!” The crunch of retreating feet on gravel rang in my ears, sounding better than anything I’d ever heard. Squealing door hinges sounded assomeone yanked it open and when it slammed shut, I closed my eyes, and felt like passing out.
I lifted the phone to my ear. “They took off, Patsy.”
I looked up at the helicopter and realized the side door was open and someone was seated inside holding a long rifle in their lap. I couldn’t make out the figure but knew he was taller than Patsy. That’s when I spotted my man. He was standing behind the seated agent, wearing some kind of harness as he held the phone to his ear.
“I see ya, luv.”
I grinned, hearing only one word in that sentence…luv.
The helicopter flew overhead, and I stood to my full height as the pilot made a tight circle and came back. A cloud of dust and dirt suddenly swirled up into the air, and I was forced to take cover on the other side of the unit, covering my head with the jacket.
The whirring of the helicopter rotors roared directly above me, but it was the vague sound of crunching on gravel that suddenly got my attention.
I lowered the jacket and peered around the AC unit. Patsy had rappelled to the roof and stood swaying beneath the hovering helicopter as he fumbled with his harness. It fell away and the second it did, he looked up at me and grinned. I bolted from my hiding place and ran straight at him, crossing the distance between us in record time. Patsy held out his arms and a moment later, I’d thrown my arms around him and yanked him to my chest, exhaling with relief when his strong arms surrounded me.
“Yer safe now, Wes.”
I shut my eyes and squeezed him hard as I nodded against his shoulder. “Thank you, Patsy. Thank you.” The feel of his palm rubbing up and down my back soothed me like nothing I’d ever felt. I knew I was safe in his arms. Safe with my Patsy.
