Chapter 9
CHAPTER NINE
Their small group hurried down the corridor together. Vander stayed right beside Brynn.
“The stairs are this way,” she said.
She was here.
Vander didn’t like that she was in danger, but having her beside him soothed something in his soul. Like it always did.
He was gratified to see she was wearing the ballistic vest that he’d packed for her. He was also damn glad to have a weapon back in his hand. Brynn had given him his Glock. His grip tightened on the handgun. Yeah, he felt much better now.
They turned a corner, and more of Navarro’s guards were running at them, weapons raised.
He and Brynn lifted their guns at the same time and fired.
Stepping over the bodies, they kept moving.
“There,” she said. “Those are the stairs.”
They were halfway to the stairs when guards rushed out of a side door. They were too close to fire on.
He and Brynn moved in unison. They switched their weapons to their left hands. She ducked low, while he stayed high. He punched a man in the chest, while she struck low and knocked the man’s legs out from under him.
He cried out and fell.
Brynn and Vander both spun, attacking smoothly. She crunched her boot into a guard’s foot then dropped to a knee, and landed a blow between his legs. He doubled over with a grunt and Vander kicked him in the back. He landed heavily, face first on the floor, with a deep groan.
Vander held out a hand. Brynn grabbed it and he hauled her up.
She grinned at him.
She’d never looked more beautiful.
This was them.
This was who they were. What they were good at. In their own ways, they protected and fought the bad guys.
She saw him—all of him. What was good, what was dark. What was strong and what was broken. She loved all of him. Not despite of it, but because of it.
She accepted him as he was.
And he loved her as she was. He didn’t want to change her, even if he feared for her safety sometimes.
They would never drive a minivan, never have a white-picket fence, never have 9-to-5 office jobs.
But they were making a family together and they’d live their life, their way.
They reached the stairs.
“You okay?” she asked.
“Yeah.” He ran his fingers along her jaw. “I am.”
She smiled. “Let’s get back to our villa and celebrate being alive.”
He saw the heat in her gaze, felt it in his cock. “Let’s do that.”
He took the lead, heading quietly up the stairs.
Soon, they’d dispatched a few more guards and reached the ground floor of the villa. He heard shouting outside. Navarro’s men were gathering to stop them.
Looking back, he saw Rhys leaning into Justin, his face pale.
Vander frowned. “Rhys, you hanging in there?”
“I’m fine. Got a headache.”
Brynn looked worried. He likely had a concussion.
“I’ve got him,” Justin assured them.
There were more shouts. Guards were coming.
Rhys couldn’t fight or move fast in his state. Vander’s mouth firmed, plans rapidly formulating in his head.
“Brynn and I will cause a distraction and lead Navarro’s men away. Justin, get Rhys out of here.”
His friend nodded.
“No,” Rhys said. “We’re not leaving you here.”
“That’s an order.” Vander kept his tone firm. The tone he used in the field with his team. “We’ll be right behind you. Don’t worry, I’m getting my wife out of here.”
Brynn made a sound. “She’s getting you out of here.” Her voice was tart.
God, he loved her. “Go.” Vander gripped his brother’s arm. “Get out.”
“Haven will be waiting for you,” Brynn added. “Comms are jammed, so she’ll be worried.”
Rhys finally nodded. “Be careful, you two.”
“Careful’s my middle name,” Vander said.
Brynn cocked a brow, Rhys snorted, and Justin gave a low chuckle.
“Just go,” he clipped.
“Here.” Justin ripped open the Velcro on his vest and slipped it off. He handed it to Vander. “This is yours.”
With a nod, Vander pulled it over his head. Then he and Brynn watched both men disappear down the hall and into a room.
Vander reloaded. “Well, Detective Norcross, are you ready to have some fun?”
“I am, Mr. Norcross.” She lifted her gun. “Let’s dance.”
They both strode forward.
Guards burst through the doors.
Vander fired, and Brynn did the same.
Still firing, he saw her grab something off her belt and toss it.
It hit the floor and rolled.
Smoke grenade.
Bang. Smoke billowed into the room.
A guard charged out of the gray and a knife hit him in the shoulder. He clutched his arm and spun away.
Vander glanced at his wife and saw her hand still up from throwing the blade.
God, he loved his woman.
They raced out the French doors and across the paved terrace. The cool night air hit Brynn in the face, and she took a deep breath of it. The sounds of pursuit clattered from inside the house, and the two of them picked up their pace.
She still took a second to appreciate her husband’s fine ass as he ran ahead of her.
What could she say? She was good at multitasking.
“Come on.” He grabbed her free hand, and they leaped off the low terrace. He pulled her into the olive grove. “We need to head in the opposite direction and give Justin and Rhys time to get out.”
It was dark, and she tried to move as quietly as he did. She knew he had exceptional night vision and was grateful, because she could barely see a thing.
They hadn’t gone far when she heard a sound that chilled her.
The excited yipping and barking of dogs.
“Fuck,” Vander muttered.
They slowed and looked back. The villa was all lit up, every interior light ablaze. She saw the shadows of lots of men milling around, heard more barking.
They were setting dogs on them.
“We need to keep moving,” he said.
They jogged through the trees. Twigs snapped underfoot and she heard things rustling nearby.
“Do you think Justin and Rhys made it out?” she asked.
“Yes.” There was no hesitation in his voice.
“Should we contact Haven?” They’d hopefully be outside the jamming range now.
“We can’t risk that Navarro might have a way to trace the signal.”
Damn, he was right.
“Keep running.”
They picked up speed, racing through the trees. Finally, in the distance ahead, she saw the shadow of some outbuildings. The olive trees gave way to long rows of grapevines. They ran out of the trees and down a row of vines. She knew they didn’t want to get trapped in here.
The sound of dogs barking filled the night.
They were getting closer.
“Vander…”
“I have an idea.” He pulled her forward and she saw they’d reached the end of the row of vines.
Her gaze fell on the large pond glinting in the starlight. Probably water to irrigate the grapes.
On the other side of it, there was a long stone building.
Vander walked to the edge of the pond.
She groaned. “Don’t tell me you want to go in there?”
“The dogs will lose our scent.”
Crap. She tucked the gun in the waistband of her trousers and sighed. “Fine.” She pulled her boots off. “This was not the vacation swimming I had planned.”
“I’ll make it up to you.” He took her boots and tied the laces together. They both shrugged out of their vests, and he stashed them under a vine. Then he hung her boots around his neck and waded into the pond.
She followed and sucked in a breath. The water wasn’t freezing, but it was still fresh.
She pushed off. Vander was an excellent swimmer and moved through the water with powerful strokes.
Following, Brynn just focused on getting to the other side.
“We’re going to climb onto the roof,” he said. “That way, we won’t leave a scent trail on the ground.”
She nodded.
When they reached the building, she watched him grab the wooden railing of a deck, then climb up the side of the building.
She hauled herself up and followed. She clambered up far less skillfully than he had. When she got close to the roof line, he reached down and hauled her up onto the tiled roof.
“We need to stay low.” He gestured for her to lie on her stomach.
She shivered as the cool night air hit her wet clothes. Lying flat beside her, he wrapped an arm over her, his big body warm. She leaned into him.
They stayed silent and still, and waited.
A group of men with two dogs appeared in the vineyard. She watched them come closer, circling around the building, yelling at each other. One of the dogs barked, but then moved on.
“They’re inside,” Vander murmured.
It took them fifteen minutes to clear the building. She saw the men talking and gesturing, then they turned and led the dogs back into the grapevines.
She released a slow breath and shivered. Now she was just wet and cold.
“Come on.” Vander climbed down and then helped her.
Wrapping her arms around herself, she watched Vander check the door to the outbuilding. It wasn’t locked. Inside was dark, but she could make out the shape of lots of large, oak barrels. The sharp scent of fermenting grapes filled the air.
It was the winery.
“Come on.” He towed her deeper into the building. “We’ll hide in here and get dry. Once we’re in the clear, we’ll head for the boundary wall and get out of here.”
She followed him and he slid in behind some barrels. There was a small space in one corner with more than enough room for them.
“Stay here,” he ordered.
He disappeared, and Brynn leaned back against the wall, fighting back her shivers.
He wasn’t gone long and returned with a blanket and some bottled water.
“I found an office and kitchen. Get your wet gear off, baby.”
She pulled off her wet shirt. He wrapped the blanket around her. It smelled musty, but she didn’t care. She unscrewed the cap on a water bottle and drank.
Then she watched as he pulled his wet T-shirt off.
Instantly, her gaze landed on the bloody gash on his arm. She sucked in a breath. “You got shot!”
“It’s just a graze.”
She growled. “Norcross—”
Then he stepped closer, framed her face with his hands, and kissed her.
The taste and heat of him swamped her.
“It’s not even worth worrying about,” he murmured against her lips.
She knew the injury wasn’t bad, but she hated any time he got hurt or shot at. She leaned into his hard, hot body, and felt his strength, the power of his life force.
She loved that he was bigger than her, stronger. Whenever he was at her side, whenever his arms closed around her, she felt protected.
Hers.
Always hers.
She opened her mouth and kissed him back.