Chapter 23
Stash
Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop!
My reaction to the beautiful woman close to hysteria and falling into my arms was done out of training.
I fired off several shots, immediately pulling back into the shadows with her protected behind me.
Who would dare attack her?
An instant sweep of possessiveness erupted along with weeks of intense training. Without thinking, I dragged her against the wall inside my house, shielding her body with mine, and sprayed several bullets from one side of my yard to another.
I saw movement and fired off three additional shots.
The asshole used the layout of my property as an advantage, hiding behind the thick layer of trees surrounding my house.
While my security system had sent an alarm to my phone, if I’d been in bed, I certainly wouldn’t have been able to react so quickly. That had likely saved her life.
Certainly not something I was interested in sharing. At least right now.
Questions rushed through the back of my mind, but all that mattered was hunting and killing the fucker.
“Stay down,” I hissed, backing away just as the perpetrator fired several shots.
I did the same.
Pop! Pop!
My aim was off because of my need to protect Saige.
Whoever the assailant was, he backed into the shadows, getting away. Damn it. Did the fucker honestly believe he could kill someone in this neighborhood, even using the cloak of darkness?
Was it possible he had no clue who owned property here?
Her soft whimpers brought me back inside the house to the woman in my hold, clinging to me while shaking violently.
“Are you okay?” I hovered in the darkness, keeping her protected while using the outside light to search for any injuries. She appeared unharmed, just terrified.
“I’m fine. He followed me.”
At this point, particulars didn’t matter. I had no intention of allowing him to walk away.
My security system was such that even before she reached the driveway, I’d known someone had been approaching on foot, doing so quickly. That had allowed me to grab my weapon and head to the door. Hearing her voice wasn’t the only reason I’d thrown it open.
“I’m going to hunt him down. You need to stay here.” I pulled the door in front of us, the unusually thick slab of exotic wood providing limited protection. But if the asshole wanted to kill her, he’d need to go through me first.
“No!” she moaned. “Don’t go. He’s out there. He chased me. He killed her. I know he was the one who killed her.”
“Whoa. Hold on. Killed who? Who are you talking about?” I realized I was shaking her. She was in a full panic whether she realized it or not.
Saige tugged on my sleeve. “He’s not finished. He saw me.”
“Is he alone?”
“I think so.”
“What was he driving?”
“Um,” she murmured. “Black SUV. Tinted glass, but I was able to see inside when he was sitting under a streetlight. He’s wearing all black, including a baseball hat. He was there. He was there when I saw her and…”
She was calm in her recollection, reciting what she’d memorized as if taught to do so. Whatever she’d seen was close to driving her into shock.
“Good girl. You stay inside this house and do not open the door until you know it’s me. Understood?” How in the hell had she known where I lived?
From the office. From breaking into my files.
Clever girl and I should be upset with her, only I had a distinct feeling her insistence on learning more about me had saved her life. Now the question was why was someone actively trying to kill her?
She nodded several times and with the exterior light streaming in through the open door, I was clearly able to see both terror and the usual anger spiraling in her system.
I didn’t waste any additional time, flicking a switch on the security system. The outside was pitched into darkness, the motion lights shut down until I turned them back on.
Her breathing remained ragged. “Don’t forget to come back.” Her whisper was full of trepidation, but she closed the door, the lock clicking into place immediately.
I moved quickly toward the trees surrounding the property, creating almost no noise. Crouching down, I remained silent, listening for any sounds. While I didn’t live near the highway or a commercial area, there was always noise.
I’d learned to weed out traffic noise and dogs barking, neighbors who might be up at this time of night and even someone returning home after spending a night out on the town.
There was nothing indicating that the perpetrator remained close. Then a single sound, a slight mistake by the perpetrator stepping on a twig.
I knew where he was but wouldn’t risk firing a weapon until I was certain of the origin of the sound. With a split second to catch a glimpse, I knew the man was dressed in all black. Whoever he was, she’d been his intended target.
There was no discounting the rage furrowing inside of me. Whoever the motherfucker was, he wasn’t going to make it off this street. I swung around, moving through the trees toward the sound.
He obviously realized he was being followed, moving more quickly. When he broke through the trees onto the street, I was only yards behind him.
As soon as I burst through the last line of trees, a shadow jumped from the side. I was clocked on the side of the head and knocked down. The asshole managed to drive his foot into my stomach before I could react, lunging toward him.
He tried to avoid the attack, swinging his arm. I issued a hard blow to his face, pitching him backward by several feet. Before I could fire off a shot, he spun in a circle, kicking me again. Well, goddamn it. He’d knocked my glasses off.
Sure, I could see. I did it all the time when fighting. However, in the dark my depth perception was fucked.
But I noticed he was grinning, believing he had an advantage.
His martial arts training had come in handy, enough to knock the weapon from my hand.
The bastard had no idea what type of training I’d put myself through, grunting in shock when I kicked him in the face twice, tossing him to the ground. Being involved with the MMA world had opened an entirely new method of engaging in a physical fight.
When he tried to fire off his weapon, I threw another punch, the weapon flying from his hand into the darkness. Things took a darker turn at that point. I managed to pin him down with my legs wrapped around his neck, but the asshole knew how to get himself free.
His brutal push was followed by another maneuver indicating he’d had the same damn training. While that didn’t necessarily indicate he was involved in the Irish world of fighting, the coincidence was one I couldn’t shove aside.
I kneed him in the groin, almost breaking his arm before he smashed the heel of his hand under my chin. The connection broken, I was pitched backward, his brutal backhand jarring as fuck.
But he was in as much pain as I was, struggling to stand at the same time, falling on his ass twice.
After we both fought to get to our feet, he made a surprising move, kicking my legs out from under me and dropping me to the ground.
Fuck that.
One savage punch turned into four in rapid succession, the last coming with a loud crack then crunch. I’d crushed his damn nose.
I pinned him to the dirt, issuing one brutal punch after another. His backhand was strong and as he pushed me off him, I tasted blood while stars destroyed my vision for a few seconds.
His grunts were from pain and I took advantage, throwing another three punches, two to the kidney. When he fell to his knees, I wrapped my arm around his neck, dragging him backward, squeezing.
He wasn’t done yet, a hard elbow to the gut loosening my hold. A savage push and I was driven into the trees, my head snapping against the hard bark. Dazed but enraged, I lunged forward again, both of us slipping to the ground where we wrestled, our bodies pitched back and forth.
The slender stream of moonlight captured one of the weapons and he threw himself toward it. I yanked him back by his leg, but he smashed his other foot into my face.
We tumbled and rolled, both struggling to reach the weapon. I managed to get him in a strangle hold again, coming close to snapping his neck.
But he managed to plant his feet, tossing me over him to the ground. Winded, I watched as he rushed toward the weapon, falling on it as if doing so to a sword.
The same light provided me with clarity for a brief second. One foot managed to make it onto the ground and I threw myself forward by several feet, grabbing my weapon and pitching myself onto my back.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
With a deep breath, I remained in the same position, the weapon pointed at his face.
Very slowly, he dropped to his knees, falling face first into the dirt.
Fuck. Fuck.
Every fucking muscle in my body was on fire. Even my bones hurt. I was getting way too old for this shit.
With a hiss, I rose to my feet, taking a few seconds to fill my lungs with air. The strip of moonlight was shining perfectly over my glasses. I snatched them off the ground, grimacing as soon as I slipped them onto my face.
Agitated as hell, I ran toward him and grabbed his weapon before rolling him over. Crouching over, I pressed two fingers against his neck, checking for a pulse. He was dead. If he wasn’t, I’d spend time breaking every goddamn bone in his body.
Backing away, I moved toward one of the trees, leaning against it as I pulled out my phone.
My lip was split, there was a cut above my eye, and the asshole had bruised my ribs. As I dialed the number, I tried to figure out who he was.
“Working late, boss?” Roman said, his voice cracking from sleep.
“Yeah, well, work never ceases. I need a cleaning crew to my house.”
“Your house? What the hell?”
“A straggler. I need some men here. Make it happen.”
“Yes, sir.”
“There’s a black SUV somewhere close. Find it.”
He chuckled, eager for the hunt. “You got it, sir.”
As I shoved the phone into my pocket, I placed the weapon on the ground and patted down the perpetrator. It was obvious he hadn’t walked here, which meant he had a vehicle somewhere. I’d find it but not right now.