26. Eric
ERIC
“ E ric.” Dax called my name, and I turned away from the intensity of Ambrose’s glare.
“Let him keep you safe.” There seemed to be more to what he was saying.
He held my gaze like he was willing me to understand.
Ambrose was close to his breaking point.
Was that what he meant? I looked back at the man I’d fallen for harder than I ever imagined, and I knew that was it.
Ambrose had seen too much carnage and been afraid for me for too long.
“All right.” I held my hand out to Ambrose. “Let’s go.”
“You stay behind me and be ready for anything. Carlotti could be close by.”
“I’m not going to let my guard down, even though I know how capable you are.”
We made it to my truck, and once again, Ambrose insisted on driving. This time, I didn’t argue. I wasn’t sure where we were going, and we didn’t have time for Ambrose to give me directions.
I watched the sides of the road carefully as we drove through the wilderness, looking for any sign of a parked vehicle or of Carlotti himself.
Ambrose drove into the bayou, taking us down roads that were barely walking paths. When he pulled up at his cabin, I frowned. “Do you think we’re safer here than at the house?”
Ambrose nodded. “I’m better prepared to defend this place.”
“Do you think Carlotti will gather more people and come here?”
“No, I don’t think anyone can find us here, but I believe in always being prepared, even for the impossible.”
Once we were inside, I sank onto the couch, leaned back, and ran my hands through my hair. “What happens now?”
“You get some sleep and I keep watch. We trust Dax and Lance to find Carlotti and kill him along with the fucking assholes who helped him escape.”
I exhaled and tried not to think about that too closely. “I’m getting way too comfortable with murder.”
“It’s justice.”
I agreed with him, but that unsettled me too.
I was going to have to reconcile my feelings if I was going to stay with Ambrose.
I hoped that wasn’t going to be as hard as I thought, but whatever it took, we’d work through it, because the one thing worse than losing my sense of right and wrong would be losing Ambrose.
I slept fitfully, and sometime after dawn, I gave up and left the bedroom.
“Your turn,” I said to Ambrose, but he shook his head. “I’m not sleeping until I know Carlotti is dead.”
I didn’t bother arguing with him because I could tell I wasn’t going to win, so I walked over to the small kitchen area. “Are you hungry?” I knew I should be, and it would be best for me to eat at least a little something.
Ambrose shook his head.
“Thirsty?”
“I’d like to drown myself in moonshine, but I should probably drink some damn water.”
I tried to figure out how to work the pump on the sink that connected to a well he’d probably dug himself.
Ambrose placed his hands on my waist and moved me to the side. “Let me do it.”
He handed me a cup of water, then downed his own. I made myself a peanut butter sandwich and returned to the couch. When I finished eating, Ambrose was pacing the small room. He’d yet to sit down since we’d gotten there. I was feeling more tense just watching him.
“You meant what you said about Carlotti not being able to find us here, right?”
“Yes, but I don’t like knowing he’s out there. I need to know it’s over.”
Hours passed and we still hadn’t heard from the other Theriots. Ambrose had eaten some peanut butter straight from the jar but nothing else. I wished I could think of something to soothe him.
“Why don’t we go feed Gerard?” We’d be trading one sense of danger for another, but I thought that might distract him.
He considered my question for a few moments. “We’re much safer here, but I need to do something. Let me see if I have another chicken. We’ll just walk there, feed him, and come right back. As much as I’d like to wander through the bayou, I want you tucked in safely before it starts to get dark.”
We heard something just as we reached the area where Ambrose had called Gerard to him before.
“Get behind me,” Ambrose ordered.
I pulled out my gun and did as he said. If we needed to make our way through the bayou quickly, Ambrose should be in the lead.
A moment later, Carlotti stumbled out of the woods. His suit was torn and dirty. One of the sleeves had ripped away from the shoulder seam, and his face and hands were scratched to hell. He looked as wild and crazy as he had to be to pursue us through the swamp.
“Why the hell do you live in this godforsaken place?” he asked.
Neither of us answered. It was probably a rhetorical question.
“I wish I could kill you twice for making me walk all this way. I’ve ruined this suit. It was my favorite.”
It seemed like the fact that he’d killed most of his supporters was more significant, but I chose not to mention that.
“You’ve lost, Carlotti,” Ambrose said. “It’s over. Accept that and put the gun down.”
“You’ll kill me.”
“If you shoot one or both of us, your death is going to be long, drawn out, and extremely painful. You’ll be begging for it to end, but it won’t, not for a long time. Set that gun down and you won’t feel a thing.”
“No. I’m going to rebuild everything. Once I’ve taken care of you and the scum you call family, I’ll find people who understand loyalty.”
Ambrose took a few steps to the side, and I moved with him.
I knew he wouldn’t make a move without purpose, but I wasn’t sure what his objective was. Then I saw it, something that looked like a bumpy log in the water moving closer to the shore. It was Gerard. He must have heard our voices and thought we’d come to feed him.
I knew what Ambrose was doing. He was putting Carlotti between the water and us. He was hoping we were going to feed the alligator an evil criminal. Would the creature know we were offering him Carlotti?
“Put the gun down,” Ambrose said again. Carlotti’s hands shook. He was barely holding onto the weapon.
“Which one of you will mourn the other more?” Carlotti asked, looking back and forth between us.
His eyes grew even wilder. Ambrose had said Carlotti was insane, but he seemed to be getting worse.
I wasn’t even sure he knew what he was doing anymore, and that meant he was more dangerous than before.
We needed to get the gun away from him because, even if Gerard came for him, he could still shoot while being dragged to the water.
“That’s an interesting question,” I said.
Ambrose glanced at me and shook his head. I ignored him and kept pressing. Ambrose had a pet alligator, and I had a plan.
“Here’s another interesting thought. What if we all put our guns down and fight this out hand to hand? Do you think you could take us? Do you think you could kill me with your bare hands and make Ambrose watch?”
Carlotti began to laugh. He sounded like the maniac he clearly was. “You really think I’m going to fall for that?”
“You really think you aren’t man enough to take one of us? I’ve got cuffs on me. We could put them on Ambrose, and you could fight me, and he wouldn’t be able to do anything about it.”
Carlotti glanced between the two of us. “No way. It’s a fucking trap.”
Gerard had started to rise out of the water. We only had a few seconds to get the gun away from Carlotti, assuming the alligator didn’t decide to eat me instead.
“If you don’t like getting your hands dirty, we could do knives instead. At least that takes a bit more skill. You could really prove yourself then.”
Carlotti growled. “Fine. I’d be happy to stab you through the heart.”
I glanced at Ambrose. The last thing he needed was to be lost to the memories of the horrible day that had ruined his military career.
Carlotti pulled a wicked knife from an ankle sheath and stuck his gun in his pocket. As soon as the gun was out of his hand, Ambrose whistled using the same sound he’d used to call Gerard before.
The beast charged. When his jaws clamped around Carlotti’s legs, the man screamed, and I knew I would never forget the sound. It was horrible. The gator dragged him toward the water, and he begged us to help him. We stood still and watched until he disappeared under the surface.
I glanced at Ambrose and reached for his hand. “Are you okay?”
“I… Yeah.”
Shit. I heard someone else coming toward us through the trees. We drew our guns, shifting position to use the trees for cover.
A familiar voice yelled, “Ambrose? Is that you? Are you all right?”
It was Dax. He and Lance appeared, weapons in hand.
“We’re here.” Ambrose and I stepped out into the open.
“Thank God.” Dax was much too pale. He’d clearly been terrified.
“I told you the scream was Carlotti,” Lance said. Tony was sitting on his shoulder and chattered his agreement.
Dax pulled Ambrose into his arms. “We found the bastards who helped him escape and took care of them. One of them was already dead. Apparently, he hadn’t been quite loyal enough. When we realized Carlotti was headed here, we tried to call, but neither of our phones had service.”
“How many times have I told you to get a satellite phone?” Ambrose asked. “You can’t be bound by fucking service areas.”
Dax ignored him. “What happened to Carlotti?”
Ambrose and I both looked at the water.
“Oh my God,” Lance said. “You’re kidding.”
Dax grinned. “I told you he had a pet alligator.”
“He’s not a pet. He’s a colleague.”
As we were talking, Gerard emerged once again.
Tony jumped down from Lance’s shoulder and snagged a bag of mango slices from his pocket before scrambling to the ground.
“No!” Lance shouted.
The little monkey would hardly qualify as a snack for the gator, but I wasn’t sure that would stop Gerard from snatching him up.
We all called Tony, but he continued toward the huge beast. When he was a few feet from Gerard, Tony jumped up and down excitedly, then tossed several mango slices toward the gator.
Gerard seized one in his teeth, and I would swear he nodded at Tony before turning around to head back into the water.
“Thank you,” Ambrose called, and the rest of us responded with the same as the alligator slipped under the surface and disappeared.
“Was Tony really thanking Gerard?” I asked.
“Of course. Didn’t you want to thank him?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I did.”