Chapter 20 #2
Kendall loosened the tension on her arm a degree. Knox shoved the contract into Fernando's chest. Fernando clutched it and started walking toward Kendall. She could hear Nash walking up behind them.
"We're good to go, sir," he said, as if nothing dramatic was happening on the helipad. Cool as a cucumber, this guy.
When Fernando reached her and Kendall, Kendall shifted his weight, and she realized he was holstering his gun so that he could take the contract from Fernando. Fernando handed Kendall the contract and hopped into the helicopter.
Kendall glanced over the contract one-handed without losing his grip on Allie.
She saw him fumble for the last page to make sure Drakos's signature was on it.
He turned around and handed the contract into the helicopter to Fernando, then he grabbed the side of the helicopter and started to pull Allie inside.
Allie and Knox both yelled at the same time. Kendall's gun reappeared by Allie's side. Knox was running up to the helicopter but froze when he saw the gun.
The helicopter was ready to take off, and the rotor wash was whipping her hair in every direction.
Kendall yelled over the roar of the rotors.
"I need her. To make sure you don't shoot us out of the sky.
I don't trust you. But you don't want any harm to come to this chopper as long as she's inside. "
He lumbered his large form into the helicopter, trying to drag her in with him while pointing his gun at Knox.
She hadn't given him any resistance until now, and she knew he still underestimated her.
She needed to take advantage of that, and it was now or never.
When he twisted his body to get into the helicopter, he could only keep a grip on her left arm, but her right arm was now free.
She didn't hesitate. Jabbing her fist as hard as she could straight into his wound, she heard his painful howl over the whirl of the rotors.
His grip loosened just enough for her to pull free.
The second she was free, Knox was at her side. He slammed Kendall's arm against the side of the chopper, causing him to drop his gun. He kicked the weapon across the helipad, and she heard Kendall roaring for the pilot to take off.
Knox pulled her to the door as the skids lifted from the helipad, and practically shoved her inside the building. She knew he was probably worried Kendall had a second weapon and wouldn't hesitate firing at them from the lifting chopper.
But all she heard was the thunderous whir of the helicopter fading away.
Knox cracked the door open, and his shoulders relaxed.
"Are they gone?" she asked.
He finally turned to her. "Yes. Are you OK?"
All she could do was nod. He searched her face for about two seconds, then he enveloped her in his arms and held her tight against his chest.
She felt the tension seep out of his muscles. She wasn't sure her heart rate was going down yet, but she knew for the first time that day she felt completely safe, and she didn't want to leave the safety of his arms any time soon.
But a sudden thought caused her to push back. "You're sure that was Nash flying the helicopter?"
"Yes, absolutely. We've met before. That was him. He'll handle this. He's good."
She almost didn't want to ask her next question. "And Rowan? How's Rowan?"
Knox held up his hands in a don't-worry gesture.
"Just a flesh wound in his arm. Jason wanted it to sound more serious than it was so that Kendall would be convinced he was leaving with Rowan, needing to save his life.
Jason initially planned to circle around and try to get a shot at Kendall, but then he had an idea.
He decided to work with Drakos to produce a convincing-looking yet fabricated contract. "
Allie felt her mouth drop open. All this time she thought they'd given up, and that Drakos had signed over The Mandeville. "The contract wasn't real?"
The corner of his mouth quirked up. "Nope.
The first page is the same, but Jason said he changed some things in the middle.
Drakos signed it, but it doesn't give Byron any legal right to any of Drakos's properties.
That doesn't solve everything if the FBI doesn't take Kendall and Fernando into custody today.
But I trust Nash. He'll get the job done.
" His eyebrows rose with an air of amusement. "And guess what I learned."
"What?"
He grinned. "Fernando is Kendall's boss's brother."
"Fernando's brother is the head of Byron?"
"Yep. And the FBI is gonna love that."
Her brain tried to process the whirlwind of information while her extended adrenaline spike waned.
Her arms and legs trembled. She felt her mind spinning and her body weakening from the adrenaline crash.
She still had so many questions, but right now she just needed to be grateful Knox was alive. She was alive.
"Allie," he cupped her face in his hands and pulled his thumbs across her cheeks. "I love you."
Oh. Wow. She didn't expect that. Not right there in the stairwell anyway. Happy tears stung her eyes. "I—"
He shook his head, still cradling her face.
"You don't have to say anything. Not until you're ready.
But I had to say it. I've never been so sure of something in my life.
Nearly losing you today . . ." he swallowed.
"Nearly losing you crystallized what I already knew.
I prayed I'd have the chance to tell you. So I had to tell you."
A beautiful, exciting peace—if exciting peace were a thing—filled her heart until it felt like it would burst. This wasn't the flutter-in-her-chest feeling she had when he kissed her earlier.
This was a bone-deep love for a man she would trust and cherish as long as she lived.
She pushed the words through the emotion in her throat.
"I love you too, Knox. No doubts. No doubts at all. "