Carter: The Sinner Saints #1 (16 page)

Carter propped his arms against the shower wall and let the warm water cascade down his head and back. Not that it was doing any good. Every muscle in his body was still strung tight.

He’d fought all kinds of battles, ones where the enemy was both known and unknown. He’d spent weeks in hostile surroundings, uncertain if each step he took would be his last. He’d been caught unaware, outnumbered and outgunned, but nothing had ever affected him the way this fight had.

And it wasn’t hard to guess why. None of those battles had ever been personal. It was one cause against another. Beliefs, dogmas, ideologies. Flags against flags, and they just happened to be the players in their parts.

But this…

This felt personal. Fuller was going after everything Carter cared about. The company he had built from nothing. The people that depended on him for their livelihoods.

And Ally.

There was no way Fuller could know how much she’d come to mean to him. Hell, even Carter wasn’t even so certain that he knew himself. But he did know she was important….special.

And no one was going to wrench her away from him. Carter would tear Fuller apart with his own hands before he let that happen.

Carter’s head snapped up as the hinge to the bathroom door creaked. He swiped at the fog on the shower door…and saw Ally step into the room with only a fluffy white towel wrapped around her.

“Mind if I join you?”

He slowly shook his head. “Not at all.”

She let the towel drop to the floor.

Carter turned as she stepped into the shower. A playful smile danced on her lips. “I figured since I needed to shower anyway that we could conserve water.”

“I like the way you think,” he said.

Steam rose up between their naked bodies as she took a hesitant step toward him and into the spray. Heat rose up inside him as he watched the droplets cascade down her breasts and long legs.

Dear God, she was beautiful.

And so ridiculously tempting. When that unsure blush lit up her cheeks, she was downright irresistible.

So he stopped trying.

He snaked his arm around her waist and pulled her close. He kissed her hard. Ally didn’t waste any time kissing him back. He dipped his head and let his lips trail down the long column of her neck.

She breathed a soft moan against his ear, and desire ripped through him.

He lifted his head, and slid his hand down her thigh, lifting it up to his hip. Ally wrapped her arms around him for support. He angled his hips between her legs, and pressed up. His hard cock slid home in one stroke.

Ally’s eyes went wide. Her mouth fell open. Then, slowly he started to move.

Her eyes closed. Her head fell back. He slipped his free hand down to where their bodies met, his fingers going to work on her sensitive clit.

Her breath sped. Her body growing tight around him, until he felt her shudder. He clenched his teeth, holding back, desperate not to join her in ecstasy.

Once he felt the last of the aftershocks drain from her body, he guided her leg back to the floor.

Ally’s eyes slowly opened. She leaned in to kiss him long and deep.

“I don’t think we’re getting any cleaner,” she said, her voice far away and dreamy.

Carter smiled. “We’re not done yet.”

He spun her around so her back was to him.

She propped her hands on the shower wall as he moved up behind her. She moaned again as he slid inside her.

Dear God, he’d never tire of that sweet sound. He wanted to hear more of it. He sped up the tempo. Her moans filled the shower and his passion grew with each one.

She felt so damn good he thought he might lose control, but he couldn’t. Not yet. His body neared the edge of release, but he wanted more. He held it at bay with the pure force of his will, needing just another few seconds of being in heaven inside her.

He never wanted to leave. Never wanted it to end.

His body tensed as pleasure overtook him.

He pulled out just in time. Carter propped a hand on the cold wet tiles next to him as he struggled to catch his breath.

Ally was right. They weren’t any cleaner.

Chapter Thirteen

Ally didn’t look away from the computer screen in front of her as she picked up the turkey sandwich from the plate and took a bite.

It was amazing what a full belly could do for a person’s concentration.

Of course, a little stress relief hadn’t hurt either.

She’d been back in the saddle for an hour now and her mind still felt clear and her eyes fresh. And, even better, she was finally beginning to feel like she was making some progress.

Mason had given her a starting place, and it turned out that was all she needed. After that, all she had to do was obey the first rule—follow the money.

And, oh the places it had led her.

It wasn’t just the matching amounts in the earnings projections and the failed appropriations bills. There were other strange coincidences. Large deposits from foreign sources. Secret offshore accounts that appeared to be tied to Fuller and Allied Dynamics. Deposits that could be traced back to known terror organizations.

Slowly the picture was coming together.

She hadn’t figured out what connection any of this had to the files from the Department of Defense yet. But she would. It might take her a little more time but she would get there. She just had to dig a little deeper. Work a little harder.

Ally took one more bite of the sandwich before putting it on the plate. She leaned in closer to the screen.

She had hoped that the quiet environment of the barn would have made it easier to concentrate, but the truth was, she wasn’t used to working in such dead silence.

She was used to a busy newsroom, or a crowded cafe. Even in her little apartment she could hear the rush of the city—the speeding cars or the neighbors’ conversations.

Out here in the middle of the country, the silence was profound.

Even Carter was being quiet. He had been sitting on the couch lost in thought for the past hour. Occasionally, he’d pull out his phone and look at something, but that was it.

And turning on the television was dead out. There was no way she could take the stress of seeing any news coverage about her
abduction
. Ally just knew the first shot she saw of one of her sisters, or, God forbid, her mother crying in front of news cameras, she was going to lose it.

The only way she was going to get through the stress and get any work done was by letting denial open up its jaws and swallow her whole. So, she’d just have to suffer through the silence.

Ally took a deep breath before letting her eyes refocus on the tiny words on the screen. Slowly, she let the air rush out between her lips.

Snap
.

Ally’s chin jerked up. She looked straight ahead at the door where the sound had come from. She couldn’t find the will to draw in another breath.

Which was silly. It was probably nothing. An animal walking by, a dog or a cat. A branch falling to the ground. There were a hundred non-threatening reasons for a snapping sound outside the front door.

None of which she could make herself believe.

Ally risked a glance behind her to where Carter was sitting on the couch and found that he was sitting at attention, his eyes focused on the door.

So, she wasn’t the only one. She wasn’t sure if that was reassuring or not.

Carter’s hand slowly slid to the butt of the gun at his side as he stood up. He didn’t look over at Ally as he made a silent gesture for her to get on the floor.

Okay, definitely not.

Ally pulled the zip drive from the computer and tucked it into her pocket before crouching down into the hollow beneath the desk. She’d just tucked her legs up against her body when she heard a soft click at the back door.

She couldn’t blame that sound on an animal. Someone was testing the lock. And she was willing to bet it wasn’t the Garcia family back from the store.

Carter glanced toward the back door, but kept moving toward the main entrance. He held his gun out in front of him, arms stiff, back straight. He moved silently into position, his back flat against the wall next to the door.

He glanced to his side and pulled a heavy-looking hardback from the bookcase and tossed it on the floor. It hit the floor with a heavy thump that resounded through the house.

In an instant, both doors of the barn swung open violently, crashing against the walls, and two men dressed in head to toe black barged in, holding the most frightening rifles Ally had ever seen.

Carter was ready for the attack. He didn’t flinch. His aim stayed steady on the man that was now in the kitchen. A fraction of a second later, the intruder’s gaze locked on Carter and he swept the barrel of his gun in his direction.

Ally instinctively clenched her eyes shut and tucked herself into the tightest ball she could manage—as if that could save her—and waited helplessly for the barrage of gunfire that would cut Carter down.

But the onslaught didn’t come.

There was a single loud blast. Even though Ally was expecting the deafening roar, she still started hard enough that her head banged against the top of her hidey-hole.

Ally’s eyes popped open and she let out a sigh of relief to see that Carter was still standing. The man in the kitchen, on the other hand, was not. His body was laid out, still and limp on the cold tile.

But the danger wasn’t over yet. There was still the other man at the front door, and they’d used up the element of surprise.

The second intruder took another step inside the barn and swiveled toward Carter. The barrel of the rifle smacked against Carter’s hand, knocking his gun to the floor.

Carter grabbed the bottom of the man’s gun and twisted hard, pointing the muzzle up toward the ceiling. The man pulled the trigger and half a dozen shots emptied into the ceiling.

Ally watched as Carter muscled the gun around, twisting the strap around the man’s shoulder and tying up his hands. But the intruder didn’t lose his grip. And he wasn’t showing any sign of giving up.

The attacker kicked his leg out. His boot landed hard on the soft underside of Carter’s knee.

Ally winced as Carter faltered, landing hard on his shins, but he didn’t lose his hold on the gun. He jerked down hard on his end, causing the butt to fly up and hit the intruder under the chin. Ally winced as a spray of blood flew from his mouth.

The man in black didn’t stumble though. If anything, he fought back harder, using all his strength to try to push Carter all the way down.

Ally knew she had to do something. But what? She had no idea how to fight a physical battle. A battle of wills, sure thing. But a gunfight? She feared she’d do more harm than good.

But she still had to try.

Staying as close to the ground as she could manage, Ally shuffled into the kitchen on her hands and knees.

She scrambled toward the man on the floor, reaching out with her hand to grab the gun that still laid in his limp hand. Even though there was no rise and fall in his chest, she couldn’t help the fear that he was going to miraculously find breath, sit up, and empty the damn clip right into her as soon as she grabbed his rifle.

But somehow she found the courage to reach for it anyway. She wrapped her fingers around the end and pulled, but the gun didn’t give. She tried again, harder this time, but still, nothing.

Ally looked up at the man’s slack face. The strap was still slung around his neck.

Well, damn. Even in death these guys were proving to be a massive pain in her ass.

Pushing down a shudder, Ally slid right up against the dead man, close enough that she could cradle his weapon in her hand.

The weight of the man’s head hung below her arm, making it hard for her to position the gun. Not that it mattered. The attacker was far too close to Carter for Ally to try to hit him. She’d only end up killing them both.

Hell, with a weapon this large and unwieldy she’d be lucky if she didn’t end up losing control and shooting herself.

Still, she had to do something.

Ally lifted the barrel to the ceiling and pulled the trigger. Shots went off, fast and hard, shaking Ally’s whole body with their force.

But fortunately, the jarring noise did the trick.

The attacker lifted his head toward Ally, taking his attention off Carter for just a second. It was all the opportunity Carter needed.

Carter kicked up hard, landing a blow to the man’s stomach, and was on his feet in the blink of an eye. He went at the intruder hard, rushing the man and burying his shoulder deep into the pit of the man’s stomach and gaining leverage on the rifle that still hung between them.

Ally flinched as the attacker landed several hard punches into Carter’s side fighting for control of the weapon. But Carter stood firm. His teeth were bared as he strained to push the barrel of the gun until it pointed straight down. He continued to take one hell of a beating as his hand slid up until his finger curled around the trigger.

Three loud shots echoed off the walls.

The man attacking Carter crumpled to the floor, his foot spewing blood. Ally reflexively turned her head away at the sight. Her stomach churned, but she forced herself to turn back and peek out of one eye.

Carter stood above the man, pinning his gun hand with his foot. The man writhed underneath Carter’s shoe, snarling up at him, but Carter just stared coldly at the man.

“How did you know we were here?” Carter shouted.

Ally held her breath as the man bared his teeth and grunted. “Go to hell.”

Carter crouched down, twisting his foot on the man’s wrist as he descended. “I’m not the one who needs be concerned with heaven and hell right now.”

Ally had never heard Carter sound so vicious. Never. She swallowed past the lump that formed in her throat. Sure, the man on the floor had come here with one goal—to kill her. Maybe Carter too, but definitely her. Still, Ally had to fight back the surge of compassion for the man.

Carter obviously wasn’t having the same trouble. He twisted his heel on the man’s wrist and Ally heard a sickening crack. The man screamed out, his wail filling the empty space in the barn.

“Carter,” Ally said, her small voice breaking.

He didn’t look at her. His eyes were focused intently on the man beneath him. The one he’d just been engaged in a life or death struggle with. And the truth was, she wasn’t entirely sure it was over yet.

“Tell me,” Carter said, his voice vibrating with intensity. He leaned down closer to the man’s face. She recognized the savage look in Carter’s eyes from where she stood several feet away…and it scared the hell out of her.

“P-phone,” the man finally said, his voice faint. The pain had to be getting to him. God knew, it was getting to Ally, and she was just watching it. “We hacked the satellite then traced the outgoing call from your office.”

Carter’s jaw tightened as Ally’s dropped. The cops in the Macmillan offices. One of them had to be working for Fuller and managed to get to Mason’s phone. He had said they had been everywhere.

Apparently that wasn’t an exaggeration.

Fuller’s men had traced them here, which meant that the Garcias were also in danger. They had to get out of here and warn them, before anyone else came looking.

“Carter,” Ally tried again, louder this time.

His focus didn’t waver. It was like he had tuned her out. Like he wasn’t listening at all.

“Your bitch is calling,” the man spat up at him.

Ally flinched.

“Say that again.” Carter’s lips pulled back from his teeth in a tight, grim smile. Carter’s body was practically vibrating with anger. “I dare you.”

But Ally had the terrible feeling that was the man’s plan all along.

His free hand started sliding down the far side of his body toward his hip. Toward a black holster that blended in with the rest of his uniform.

“Carter,” Ally screamed, truly panicked this time. “He’s going for a gun.”

It turned out that Carter was listening to her after all. The man flicked back the strap that held the handgun in place at his side, but Carter was too fast. He stood up and pulled back his free foot. A swift kick landed against the side of the man’s neck.

Ally clenched her eyes shut as a sharp snap echoed through the house. This time she really didn’t want to open her eyes. Staring into the face of one dead body per lifetime was enough for her.

A second later, Carter’s hands were on her shoulders. She risked peeking out of one eye, and found that he was standing to her side with a wary look on his face.

“What?” she asked, suddenly afraid that they weren’t done yet. That he’d heard more of them out there. That they were surrounded. It seemed there was no end to the dangers that her imagination could come up with.

“Do you want to put the gun down?”

Ally looked down at the massive rifle still cradled in her hands. The gun. Of course. She’d forgotten that she even had it.

“Yeah, of course.” As carefully as she could, Ally slipped it back down onto the floor.

Carter lifted her up off the floor and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close.