Chapter 25
Bonnie felt sick. Not because a nurse was putting stitches in her arm. Or because she’d just had to fight for her life at the shelter. She felt sick for Zane. Because the man who’d tried to destroy his life a year ago was out of prison. Not just out…he was almost certainly here, in Amber Ridge.
She shifted her gaze from the nurse to him.
He stood less than a foot from the bed, but he didn’t need to be any closer for her to feel the tornado of emotions inside him.
At the top of those emotions was fear. And in all the time she’d known Zane, she’d rarely seen fear on him. It looked strange and out of place.
Then there was the way his muscles were tense, his eyes trained on the door, like he was waiting for someone to crash into the room. Like he was ready to go to war to protect them.
“All done.” The nurse stepped back. “You’ll need to come back in a week to get the stitches removed. If you get any redness or swelling before then, please come see us.”
Bonnie nodded. “I will. Thank you.”
The nurse stepped out and the room felt too quiet. But the tension… God, it was so thick she could almost feel it.
“Zane—”
The door opened and Noah stepped in, his gaze going right to Bonnie. He was across the room in a second, his hands on her sides. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine. The bullet grazed my arm.”
Her brother growled before tugging her against his chest.
“How’s it looking out there?” Zane asked, when Noah stepped back.
“It’s a mess.” Noah’s jaw clenched. “People are scared. Jesse and his deputies are trying to get the word out that only absolutely necessary outings should be taken. There’s a curfew.
The state police are just arriving, and so is the Department of Corrections.
You’d think they’d have gotten the hell out of town, but crimes have already been committed.
Businesses and homes have been broken into.
Assaults and thefts are actively happening. ”
Jesus. This was really bad.
Zane scrubbed a hand through his hair, like he was internally blaming himself. “There’s something you need to know.”
Bonnie’s stomach cramped.
“What?” Noah asked with a frown.
“Monty Cruz is one of the guys who escaped. I was the reason he was put away, and I’m pretty sure he’s the cause of all this.”
For a moment Noah was quiet, like he couldn’t quite wrap his head around what Zane had just said. “So this is about you? Some asshole wants revenge?”
“Yeah, I think so.” The muscles in Zane’s arms visibly flexed. “He has a shitload of money from his career in the UFC. He has the means to pull this off. And the motive.”
“We need to tell Jesse,” Noah said quickly.
Zane nodded. “I plan to do that.”
There was a pause before Noah shifted his gaze to her. “And you can’t stay with him.”
She straightened. “I am staying with him.”
“Bonnie, this asshole pulled off an entire damn prison escape to get to Zane. He’s dangerous, and Zane’s his target.”
Her stomach twisted. Because there was no way she was leaving Zane alone to deal with this. It wasn’t just about the physical danger. It was about the mental toll this was taking on him. He shouldn’t be alone. “No. We’re not separating.”
Noah cursed under his breath before looking at Zane.
Then she looked at Zane. At the frown on his face…the uncertainty…and it made new fear flutter in her belly.
Back me up, she whispered in her head. Tell my brother that we’re in this together.
But he didn’t. He just stood there, looking at her like he was actually considering it.
No.
She stood. “Zane. Tell him I’m not going anywhere.”
“Noah’s right. I’m a target for a dangerous man. You have a brother who can protect you just as well as I can. It would be safer for you to go with him.”
“I don’t care about me. I care about you. You shouldn’t be alone.”
“I can protect myself.”
She shook her head. “No. I’m not talking about that. I want to be with you.” She pressed a palm to his chest.
“Bonnie—” Noah started.
“I need a few minutes with Zane,” she said, without looking at her brother.
For a second there was silence. Then Noah sighed. “I’ll wait in the hall.”
The second he stepped out, Bonnie inched closer to Zane. “Let me stay with you.”
“You’ll have Noah and your cousins to protect you. It’s the smart decision.”
“You shouldn’t be by yourself.”
“Bonnie—”
“We’re not separating.” She turned and moved toward her bag, only to stop at the strong fingers on her arm.
“I don’t want you out of my sight either,” he whispered in her ear. “But if anything happened to you because of me, I’d never forgive myself.”
Tears of frustration built in her eyes. And anger. Because Zane had been through enough. They’d both been through enough.
He lowered his head to the crook of her neck. “I’m going to find him. And I’m going to end him. I promise.”
“No.” Hell no. “You leave that to Jesse and his deputies.”
“Bonnie—”
“He’s dangerous, Zane.”
“So am I.”
Fear crept beneath her skin. “I can’t lose you.”
“You won’t.”
It didn’t feel that way. It felt like he was sand slipping between her fingers.
Unexpected tears gathered in her eyes. “Things just keep pulling us apart.”
He lowered his forehead to hers. “It won’t be forever.”
A tear trailed down her cheek. He lowered his head and kissed it away. Then his lips found hers. The kiss was long and slow. It was emotional and hungry and filled with underlying yearning. A yearning to be together. To love each other without interruption or fear.
But that wasn’t going to happen…not until Monty was gone.
It took a lot to walk away from Bonnie. So much willpower that he wasn’t even sure how he managed.
And the second he was in the hall, all he wanted to do was turn around and go back to her. There was a fucking prisoner outbreak, for Christ’s sake. The need to be close to her, to protect her, ran so deep it was in his bones.
He pulled the door shut, looking at her brother.
Noah was right. He had a target on his back.
Even if Monty already knew about her, being away from her would be an extra layer of protection.
She had people who could protect her, and putting her in the line of fire just to keep her by his side would be too fucking selfish.
He couldn’t afford to be selfish. He had too much to lose.
“You protect her with your life,” Zane said, the words damn hard to get out. “You hear me?”
“Of course I will.”
He turned and stormed down the hall, anger almost choking him. Pounding at his ribs like a fist.
He’d expected Monty to retaliate, but this? This was so much worse than he could have ever anticipated. It was smart of him to release a van full of convicts. It meant they took the attention off him.
And the difference between Monty a year ago and now was that he had nothing to lose. He was already a man with a life sentence against his name, which meant he wasn’t bound by consequences. It made him more dangerous than anyone else.
He shoved outside, scanning the parking lot. There were already state police outside the hospital doors. Men in uniforms, also with their hands by their weapons, waiting for trouble.
This would be the new normal…for the moment, at least.
Zane didn’t have his car but he wasn’t going back to his apartment. The station wasn’t far. Walking distance.
He’d just reached it when a patrol car pulled up out front. Jesse and a deputy climbed out. They pulled a shirtless guy in jeans from the back seat. His wrists were cuffed, and he had splatters of blood on his chest.
The guy growled as he was yanked forward. “Get the fuck off me! I’m not doing more time for this. That asshole threatened my family if I left Amber Ridge. He—” He fell silent when he saw Zane, his brows tugging together. “You.”
Jesse frowned. “You know him?”
“You live here?” the guy asked, ignoring Jesse—then throwing back his head and laughing. “That’s why he did it. You’re a dead man. You know that, right?”
“Shut up.” Jesse pulled him inside, and Zane followed. When another deputy came out of a hallway, Jesse handed the guy over. Then he moved to the door of an office before turning to Zane. “In.”
Zane stepped inside but didn’t sit. He couldn’t. He needed to pace. To move. To breathe without feeling caged.
The door clicked shut behind Jesse. “I’m gonna be honest, Zane.
I’ve had a bad fucking day. My town is under threat.
My family is out there doing a job that’s not theirs to do.
One dead and two arrested means if all those convicts came our way, I still have another six on the loose.
” He stepped around his desk looking pissed.
“So I need you to tell me what the hell that guy was talking about—and do it fast.”
“Monty Cruz is one of the felons. He’s that guy who tried to get away with murder in Billings. He’s my cousin. And I’m the reason he was found guilty.”
“This is about you?” Jesse asked, disbelief in his tone.
“Yeah. I didn’t need confirmation from that guy to know that. These other convicts are just distractions. A means to keep you and your deputies busy.”
Jesse laughed but there was no humor behind the sound. “They’re doing that.”
“Cruz has money, and he uses that money to buy the help he needs. I’m sure that’s how the guy breached the shelter today and knew his wife and kid were there.”
“I’ve got all the bios and mug shots, so knowing that this Cruz guy is the ringleader will help.”
“I need to know the second you have information on him.” Zane stepped closer. “And I’m going to scour this town until I find him. I’m not leaving a stone unturned. I need you to keep me in the loop. I need this to be over.”
“You and me both.” Jesse’s jaw clenched. “I’ll keep you in the loop. But you need to do the same for me. Keeping this town safe is my responsibility and my priority.”
“I know. We’ll get things back to how it’s supposed to be.”
“Of course we will.”
Zane nodded and turned toward the door.
“Zane.”
He stopped, hand on the knob, before looking over his shoulder at Jesse. “Yeah?”
“Watch your back.”
“You too. Monty’s smart. And he doesn’t fight fair.”
In the parking lot, Zane headed straight toward Ethan, who was leaning against his truck.
“Ready?”
“Let’s go.” Zane slid into the passenger seat.
Ethan pulled out of the parking lot. “I’ve booked a cabin under another name. We’ll head there. Make a list of places he could be staying.”
“He could be anywhere.”
“Yeah, but we’re better than him. He can’t hide from us for long.”
They were better. But Monty had time on his side. He’d no doubt been planning this since the judge passed down his sentence.
Ethan shot him a look. “Bonnie’s with her brother?”
Her name, the sheer fucking sound of it, made his lungs restrict. “Yes.”
“You know he probably already knows about her.”
“Yeah, but I’m hoping I’m at the top of his hit list and she’s safe with her family.”
Ethan nodded. “We’re gonna find him, Zane. And when we do—”
“We end him.”