Chapter 19 #2
He examined her with his gaze, surely taking in her trembling limbs and wild appearance.
“You’ve got blood on you.” His thumb touched her cheekbone.
“Not mine.” The statement made his lips firm. Appreciation softened the skin around his eyes. Realization dawned on her. “H-His body. I need to do something—”
“I’ll handle it. Get in the truck. I’ll get your things.”
He steered her toward the passenger side. After opening the door, he stood between her and the outside like a wall of armor until she was settled.
She watched him retrieve her bags from her car and load them in the back seat of his truck. Then he grabbed her keys from the ignition, and the abrupt beep , beep , beep of her vehicle being locked sounded.
Someone had come close to killing her... yet she hadn’t felt this safe in years.
***
Ghost vibrated from head to toe.
Hunter was a dead sonofabitch. He couldn’t wrap his head around how to go forward. He also hadn’t let the guys know that plans had changed.
“I’ve gotta make a call. You need anything?” he asked, as he stopped at a red light.
She shook her head. “I’m okay.”
Her face was pale, her braid mussed and tangled. Droplets of blood splattered her face. She was anything but fucking okay. He needed the full story, needed to check her out, but first he had to get her secured and handle his team.
He called Rami, and the line rang over the speaker.
“We’re on I-95,” Rami said. “Should be cruising by your place in five. August and Zain are with me. Taschen and Brick are at the office in case we need backup.”
“I’ve got a situation.” The light changed to green and he accelerated. “Mila’s with me. She was attacked in her apartment.”
Rami cursed. “How do they know you’re already back in town?”
“No clue. She—”
“Neo,” Mila said.
He frowned. “What do you mean?”
“He called after I got to my building. I answered right as I was walking into my apartment. He tried to warn me. I think”—she cleared her throat—“I think they got to him first.”
“Well, that answers that,” Rami said. “What’s the plan now?”
“I dunno. But I’m not leaving her alone.”
Silence stretched.
“You could take her to my place,” Zain said. “It’s not too far. Dana’s there.”
The idea of dropping her off didn’t sit well with Ghost, but what choice did he have? Mila’s life had been threatened, and he wouldn’t stand around and let Hunter try again.
Ghost slid his gaze her way. “That all right with you?” he asked, keeping his voice low.
“Yeah, that’s fine. If Dana doesn’t mind.”
“She’ll be fine with it,” Zain said. “I’ll call her now.”
Ghost thanked him. “One more thing,” he added. “Rami, I need a cleanup crew at Mila’s.” He gave him the address and Rami promised to take care of it.
Ghost ended the call and covered Mila’s hand with his. He didn’t need to be sensitive to know meeting new people couldn’t be easy for her. Hell, seeing people he knew wasn’t usually something he looked forward to. “Dana’s great. You’ll love her.”
She squeezed his fingers. “Don’t worry about me. You do whatever you need to do. If it gets too late, I’ll take a cab to a hotel and—”
“No.” He brought their joined hands to rest on his thigh. He flicked a serious gaze her way then looked back at the road. “No way. You’ll stay with Dana until I get back. Having you go to a goddamn hotel defeats the purpose of me trying to keep you safe.”
“All right,” she said, dragging out the syllables. “Hopefully I’m not intruding.”
“You’re not. Zain wouldn’t have suggested it if having you there would put Dana out.”
She didn’t respond, but he took her silence as agreement. He veered off on the next exit and drove along the road leading into Zain and Dana’s subdivision. A few minutes later, he pulled into the driveway.
Turning in his seat, he focused on her strained blue eyes. “Before I take you in, I need to hear what happened. Everything.”
She lowered her lashes and tucked her chin. “He came at me as soon as I got in the door.”
“What’d he do?”
A shuddering breath shook her shoulders. “Shoved me against the wall and tried to slit my throat.” Slowly, her eyes lifted. “I fought back.”
He nodded. “I see that.”
She glanced down at her stained fingers. “I tried to wash them, but...”
He caught her chin. “Tell me more.”
“He got the upper hand for a minute. Then I got the knife and slit his throat.” She whispered the words as if she was fucking scared he’d judge her.
A flash fire exploded inside him. He should’ve been there. Shouldn’t have fucking left her. His instinct had told him to drive her to his place, but he’d let the urgency to kill Hunter take over and she’d almost died because of it.
Because of him.
“I’m proud of you,” he said. “Don’t ever think I’m scared of what you’re capable of, all right? I fucking love how skilled you are. Means I can worry a little less.” He didn’t hide the smile because he figured she needed to see it.
Her expression softened. “Thank you.”
He kissed her lips, then swept his thumb beneath her mouth. “Dana’s a pro. Not like us, but she was FBI. None of this will shock her, but you don’t need to tell her anything. I’ll handle it.”
Mila nodded.
He got out of the truck and retrieved her bags. One silver lining: Mila was back with him.
Where he’d keep her safe.