The Plan (The Hillers of Barratt County #4)

Chapter 30

30

There were hard hands pulling George up and off Felner. Someone had kicked the gun away from the judge’s hand. Veronica and Giavonna were still calling his name. His shoulder burned, probably where he’d landed hard on the tile floor. George pulled in a deep breath.

And looked for her. He would always look for her. She was there, all wide-eyed and afraid still, but she was safe. Giavonna had her arms around Veronica, almost holding her up. Veronica was saying George’s name, repeatedly. He tried to stand, to go to her. But well…the air had been knocked out of him. It might take him a minute.

But there were male voices now. And Felner…sitting on the floor, bawling like a baby. George would admit it, he didn’t hate the guy. Mostly, he just pitied him.

But there were men there, flooding his office. George looked up.

At two of the three blond men he had been hoping to never see again. Or at least not see until he had married their sister and had her in his lair where she belonged. “Lakes. Great. What in the hell are the two of you doing here?”

“Saving your ass,” Snarly had to say. “Just stay down, man. Save your strength. We’ll finish cleaning up your mess here.”

“Georgie!” Then Veronica was there, kneeling next to him. “You’re bleeding. What were you thinking? He could have killed you. Anthony, fix him!”

“I’m trying. Your precious Georgie won’t hold still,” Scooby said.

“I was thinking that asshole had a gun, pointed at the woman I love, and my little sister. He wasn’t going to hurt my family. No matter what I had to do.” George looked at Scooby. The other man—the biggest, quietest of Veronica’s brothers—pressed something against George’s shoulder. That’s when it sank in. “I’ve been shot. Shit. This completely messes up my plans for tonight.”

He looked at the blood. Then back at her. “I’m okay, Veronica. I promise. Just a scratch.”

“More like a through and through,” Scooby said. “I don’t think it hit anything important. Keep the pressure on it, while I take a look at your sister.”

George jerked around until he could see Giavonna. She was with Hendricks now; the man was holding a wad of paper towels to Giavonna’s arm. “Gia? You were hit? Honey, how bad?”

“Just a graze.” His sister looked over her shoulder to the wall. “I’ll be okay. Where’s Genny?”

George followed her gaze.

There was a hole in the plaster too damned close to where Giavonna had been standing. And blood. There was blood on the wall.

That bastard had shot George’s sister.

Every bit of pity he’d felt for the man evaporated in an instant.

George would never forget. Or forgive. He looked at Felner. “You’re going to talk. To tell everything you know. Or I swear I’ll call in every favor I can, get you charged with attempted murder for this. That’s my little sister, and she’s just a kid, you asshole. I should tear you apart right now.”

Snarly was all that kept him from doing just that.

There were people coming from everywhere. They pulled George to his feet. He looked into a familiar face. Hudson Hanan—Greer’s best friend Hala’s older brother and a good friend of Gene’s—he was pulling Veronica to her feet. Helping her steady herself. “Hiller, what in the hell happened here?”

“Felner and Atkins are crooked.” Hudson worked with Atkins. This was going to shake up the prosecutor’s office, too.

“Everyone out,” Snarly said. “You are contaminating my crime scene here.”

Scooby had Veronica closer now. “We’re going to get George and his sister to the hospital now. They have both been shot. Let’s roll.”

“Wait!” Giovanna said, holding up her good hand. “He said… Judge Felner said there were others, too. Deputy Ward was the man in charge. It’s a foreclosure land scheme. They want the mines beneath Jim Tolben’s ranch. And…he said Brian Atkins and?—”

“Sheriff Barton. The sheriff is in on Ward’s land grab scheme,” Veronica said. “It’s a corruption ring, Murdoch. You need to call Cam. Tell him what’s going on. Judge Felner gave me four cases to start with.”

“We’ll take care of this,” her brother said, pulling her close to hug her. “You just take care of your precious Georgie now. We’ll handle the rest.”

And then George and Giavonna were being led to Scooby’s big blue truck, Veronica right between them both. Hendricks was filling everyone in on exactly what had happened, based on what he knew. Someone—it looked like Clay Addy—was yanking Judge Holland Felner to his feet and leading him out in handcuffs.

In front of the entire town.

That’s when George remembered. “Shit!”

“What?” Veronica asked. “What? Are you hurting worse?”

“ Genesis. I forgot Genesis. Where exactly is Genesis now?”

“Last I saw her, your sister was in the diner, with a very redheaded teenager around your sisters’ ages, and her parents,” Scooby said. “They were taking care of your sister just fine.”

“You just worry about taking care of yourself, Georgiano Maxwell Hiller. I’ll handle everything else. Including finding Genny.”

George just used his good hand and pulled the woman he loved closer. “I love you forever. And I am never letting you go.”

“Doesn’t really matter much if you are going to get yourself shot protecting me.” Then Veronica was crying. And George just held her close.

He was never letting her go. This woman was his everything.

If he lost her, he would never recover.