Whoever had pulled that trigger today and hurt his woman had just made themselves Pierce’s problem.
He had spent years training for threats in foreign countries. However, never expected one to show up on his doorstep.
In the kitchen, everyone was gathered around the table like they had done a thousand times before. Only tonight the mood was different. There were no jokes. No trash talk. Just a heavy, deliberate quiet that said everyone understood this wasn’t a normal “hang at Pierce’s place” kind of night.
Ray sat at the head of the table, elbows braced on the wood. Jessica was beside him, posture straight but eyes tired. Seth leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, watching everything without looking like he was watching. Cole’s fingers drummed lightly against the table in restless rhythm. Zane sat quieter than the rest, gaze shifting from Pierce to the doorway to the hallway like he expected another shoe to drop.
Jessica was the first to speak when Pierce stepped in. “How is she?” Her voice was gentle, but there was steel under it too. Pierce knew that Jessica was very protective of Charley.
Pierce slowed near the table, bracing a hand on the back of a chair but not sitting. He wasn’t sure he could. His body had been running on adrenaline since Ray pulled him off the grinder. Now that he was home, with Charley safe behind a locked door, everything inside him felt like it might finally catch up.
“I don’t know how to answer that,” he admitted, rubbing a hand over his jaw. “Physically? She’s okay. A little sore.” His voice tightened slightly. “But she’s quiet. Like she’s not all the way here. She hasn’t really said much since we left the hospital.”
“That’s completely normal,” Jessica said, as if she had been expecting that answer. “She’s in shock, Pierce. It’ll hit her in waves. Give her time.”
Ray nodded once. “She’s a fighter. But this was a lot.”
Pierce exhaled, the tension in his shoulders not easing, just shifting. “I know. I just—” He stopped himself before the sentence became something rawer.I just want to fix it.But he couldn’t.
Jessica leaned forward slightly. “Also,” she added, “we called her aunt and uncle. Told them what happened and where she was. They were scared, obviously, but they’re on their way over. They should be here soon.”
Pierce’s chest tightened again, but this time it wasn’t fear. It was relief. Charley adored them. Having them here would steady her in a way none of them could.
“Good,” he said quietly. “She’ll appreciate that.”
Ray shifted in his chair and lifted his chin toward Pierce, business sliding into place like armor. “Jess and I stopped by the station on the way back,” he said. “I met with Chief Donnelly.”
Pierce looked at him. “Your friend.”
Ray nodded. “Yeah. Unfortunately, I have more bad news.”
Pierce just stared at his friend. “Can this situation get any worse?”
Ray tilted his head. “Well, let’s just say that this news doesn’t help things.”
“What happened?”
“Dr. Marwood—the one Colonel Reed was talking about.”
“Yeah. What about him?”
“He was found dead in his penthouse in San Francisco.”
Pierce went still, a hard jolt of shock and unease hitting him at once as the full weight of Ray’s words settled in.
“I’m guessing he was murdered.”
Ray nodded. “Bullet to the head. His housekeeper found him yesterday in his office.”
“Suspects?” Pierce asked, though he already knew the answer.
“No.”
A beat of silence settled over the table.
Then Pierce’s phone rang. The sound sliced through the room, sharp and jarring. Pierce’s gaze dropped to the screen.
Ace.
