Guardian Cougar (Finding Fatherhood Book 2) (10 page)

BOOK: Guardian Cougar (Finding Fatherhood Book 2)
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He nodded his agreement. “We’ll grab Starbucks and hit the road. The honeymoon can wait.”

She nodded, reluctantly accepting the wedding night would definitely have to wait until she had her first checkup with the obstetrician. Even without a stirring round of sex to seal the deal, she felt completely bonded with and married to Jackson. They were almost a family now completely, and as soon as Killian came home from the hospital, they’d all be together.

Chapter Eleven

Thirteen days later, at twenty-four days old, Killian was released from the hospital. He was still small and fragile, but other than the brain bleed, he’d had remarkably few complications for his age. They settled into a routine as Hannah and Jackson slowly figured out their parenting role. It was difficult, and there wasn’t enough sleep to go around, but less than a week after bringing him home, Hannah realized she’d never been happier.

It was after nine o’clock when the doorbell rang. She was nursing Killian and looked over to Jackson beside her, with his arm draped behind her shoulders. “Are you expecting someone?”

He shook his head. “No, and it’s kind of late for salespeople. It might be Mrs. Henning.” He mock shuddered.

She laughed at that, though she tended to agree. Mrs. Henning was the neighbor two apartments down, and since they’d brought home Killian, the woman had complained at least five times about the baby’s crying. She and Jackson were already discussing moving into a house, but she really didn’t want to deal with more of Henning’s complaints tonight, especially since Killian hadn’t uttered a peep in the last hour or so.

As Jackson reached the front door, it suddenly burst open, crashing inward and colliding with him. He fell backward, landing on his butt with a grunt. Before Hannah could grasp exactly what had happened, two familiar faces entered the apartment. She started to tremble when she recognized Sharp and Owens, both goons who’d worked for Theo Cromwell as his personal bodyguards. If they were here, he had to be here as well.

She let out a small scream when Sharp removed a gun from his pocket holster and shot Jackson in the chest. She started to get up and run to him, but remembering she held Killian, she kept the urge in check. Instead, she carefully removed him from her breast and laid him on the floor, figuring it was the safest place for him.

She righted her top as she looked at Jackson, her heart thundering with fear. He’d slumped to the floor, and there was enough blood surrounding him to make her certain he had died from the impact. She whimpered at the thought, her heart tearing in two at the idea of losing her husband.

When Cromwell stepped into the apartment, her grief took a backseat to rage. She couldn’t even feel fear for a moment as she stared at the loathsome face of the architect of so much suffering. She wanted to hurl herself across the room and beat him with her fists, but she forced herself to remain still. His goons had guns, and she didn’t, but she vowed to herself if she had the opportunity, she would kill Cromwell herself.

He stepped over Jackson’s body with disdain, his lip curled in disgust. “Honestly, Hannah, you left me for that?” He sounded bewildered, and his eyes sparkled with anger that promised retribution for her escape.

“I left you because I was never with you by my choice. You’re a kidnapping psychopath. I just happened to luck out and find Jackson when I escaped from you.”

He stiffened, his anger clearly growing. His fingers moved to his waist, caressing his leather belt in a threatening fashion.  “You clearly need a reminder about respect and your place.”

The memory of his belt across her back made her flinch, but she stood her ground. She couldn’t afford to back down or submit. It wasn’t just her she had to think about now. She had Killian to protect from this monster, and if Jackson survived, she had him to live for as well. She wouldn’t allow him to take her back to the yacht and keep her as his prisoner. She didn’t reply, but she squared her shoulders as he came closer, bracing herself for the moment when he was within touching distance.

She expected him to slap her, but instead, he lifted his hand and cupped her cheek. Air hissed from between her teeth, and she reared back. “Don’t touch me.”

He scowled. “You definitely need a lesson. You were such a good girl, but look what you’ve become.”

His words bolstered her courage, underscoring how different she was from the scared young woman she had been when he first kidnapped her. She was braver now, and she had far more to lose by submitting to Cromwell. Part of her bravery came from the urge to protect her baby, and part of it was simply determination not to yield to him.

His eyes flickered, but his expression betrayed nothing as he stared at her. “Where’s my son?”

She stiffened as she realized he knew the baby’s gender. The time she had seen the doctor in Italy, she doubted she had been far enough along for the sonogram to reveal the gender, so that indicated he’d been keeping track of her, or had at least looked into her recent past before trying to snatch her back. “He’s not your son. He’s mine and Jackson’s.”

Theo’s face filled with blood as he flushed from anger, and he clenched his fist at his sides. “Your Jackson is nothing now, and he certainly isn’t the father of my child. Give me my son, and stop this misbehavior. You already have enough to pay for. I’m certain you’d like to walk in a matter of days rather than weeks when I’m through with you.”

She edged closer to him, using her body to block his view of Killian, who slept quietly on the floor, unaware of his and his mother’s fate hanging in the balance and dependent on what happened in the next few minutes. Squaring off with Theo, she was startled to realize she really didn’t fear him any longer. She was afraid of his goons’ guns, but the man himself had diminished greatly in her eyes.

She saw him for what he really was—a selfish bully, who took whatever he wanted regardless of the cost or consequences for others. He could be violent and mean, but there was no true strength in him. What strength he projected came from his power funded by money and provided by others. He was a phony.

She stared at him, certain she would never be afraid of him again. She might be frightened if he lifted his hands against her or tried to beat her, but she wouldn’t be frightened of the man himself. Part of his ability to control her before had hinged on her terror of Theo, but now she saw all his weaknesses instead of the façade of strength he had hidden behind.

“Sharp, get the kid, and Owens, grab my woman. If she gives you any trouble, subdue her. Don’t kill her, but feel free to remind her who’s in charge.”

She actually laughed at that. “Yes, we all know who’s in charge. You’re the one giving the orders, while hiding behind your bodyguards and their guns. You’re such a strong, powerful man.” Her words dripped with sarcasm.

He stiffened, rage distorting his features. When he drew back his hand to strike her, she braced herself, determined to try to defend herself, but preparing for the pain if she failed.

Instead of striking her, he turned at the sound of anguish coming from one of his goons. He cursed softly, and a shudder ran through him.

Hannah glanced over his shoulder, eyes wide when she saw the cougar clinging to Owens’ back as he slashed his claws across the big man’s neck before jumping off. Her gaze strayed to where Jackson had lain in the hallway, and the only thing remaining was a pool of blood and a misshapen bullet.

Cromwell cursed again as he turned his gaze to Sharp. “Shoot the damn thing.”

Before Sharp had a chance to do so, Jackson was on him, knocking the other man to the floor. His body obscured her vision of what he was doing to the goon, and she was thankful for that as she heard a sharp scream a couple of times before Sharp emitted a gurgling sound.

Jackson got to his feet then, stalking toward Cromwell. Hannah was gratified to see the other man trembling in fear. She recalled he never carried a weapon, relying on his goons to protect him and declaring weapons distasteful for a man of his status. She’d bet he wished now he had a gun, though she doubted a weapon would have done anything to stop Jackson. He’d clearly had been able to heal when he transformed from his human form to the cougar. There wasn’t a mark on the cougar’s chest, though there was blood smeared in its fur.

Cromwell was so preoccupied with staring at the cougar that he had turned all attention from her. Seizing the opportunity, she lunged for the lamp on the end table, wielding it like a baseball bat as she jerked the plug from the wall and swung as hard as she could.

Theo looked over at the last moment, his gaze widening as he realized what was coming his way, but not having enough time to block it. The lamp collided with his head with a satisfying thud before cracking, and he let out a hoarse groaned as he collapsed halfway on the floor and halfway on the coffee table, a still form.

She sat down the lamp and looked at Jackson, who was transforming back to his human form. There was a slight wound on his chest, but nothing to indicate he’d been shot at close range.

His arms came around her, and she slumped against him for a moment, reassured by his touch. It felt good to let him hold her, and she didn’t feel the slightest bit weak as she drew strength from him. She finally knew her own inner strength, and she was simply allowing Jackson to bolster it. “I thought I’d lost you,” she said as she turned her face from his chest to look up at him.

He gave her a tight nod. “I thought you had for a minute too. If I hadn’t been able to get my senses together enough to transform, I would have bled out and died.”

She touched his chest, careful to avoid the remainder of the wound, but unconcerned about the blood on his skin. She didn’t care if it got on her hands. She just needed to touch him. “Is this something to do with your shifter ability? I mean how quickly you healed?”

“Yes. When I transform, it usually heals all but the most serious wounds. One or two more transformations, and I’ll be completely healed.”

She said with relief. “That’ll come in handy, since we have to explain this mess to the police.”

“That won’t be a problem. We have a contact in the department, and she’s a shifter. She’ll help us remove any red flags from the official report.”

She glanced over at the two thugs. “Are they dead?” At his nod, his expression remaining neutral, she said, “I wonder what your friend will do about the claw marks? People are going to know a cougar was involved.”

“We’ll deal with that as it arises.”

She couldn’t be so accepting and go with the flow. Her brain scrambled for an angle, and an idea blossomed. “We can say Cromwell had a pet cougar that he kept on the yacht. I’ll tell them I was always nice to it, and it was affectionate with me. He brought it with him, and it attacked his goons when it realized I was being threatened.”

His eyes shone with approval. “That’s a good idea, but I think we need some witnesses.”

She frowned. “What do you mean?”

He glared down at Cromwell for a moment. “If this piece of crap is still alive, and unfortunately, he probably is, he’ll be able to refute that. He’ll have a harder time convincing everyone he’s not just lying to cover his ass for keeping an illegal pet if other people see a cougar running through the building and on the street. I’m going to take a quick jog and make sure as many people see me as possible. I’ll be back in a few minutes.”

As he spoke, he moved to Sharp, kneeling down to take the gun that had fallen from the bodyguard’s hand. He brought it back and handed it to Hannah. “If he so much as moves, I mean if his eyelids even twitch, you shoot that bastard.”

She nodded. “Can I shoot him anyway?”

Jackson laughed. “Personally, I wouldn’t care, and you’d probably get away with it, but you don’t need to deal with being investigated before they clear you. So only shoot him if you have to.”

“Fine. Stay safe, and while you’re letting people see you, don’t let any of the wrong people see you, like a police officer with a gun.” She leaned closer to him, pressing her lips to his for a soft kiss. “I couldn’t bear to lose you.”

“It’s the same for me. You and Killian are my whole world.” He stepped back, moving away from the tight area between the coffee table and the couch as he stepped over Cromwell’s form before turning into the cougar. He went running through the broken door, and she let out a startled laugh when she heard Mrs. Henning shouting. She hoped he’d given the old bat the startle of her life.

She bent down to pick up Killian, holding him carefully in one arm while keeping the gun pointed at Theo as she took a seat in the armchair positioned at the perfect angle to allow her to shoot the other man if he moved. He seemed solidly unconscious, and she clung to the hope that maybe he had severe brain trauma and would die from the injury.

She probably wasn’t that lucky, because she’d only hit him the one time, and though it had been with all her strength, that probably wasn’t enough to kill him. If he died, she’d have no remorse or regrets. She’d feel safer knowing he was in the ground rather than in prison, but after the things he’d done, she was certain even with his money, he wouldn’t be able to buy his way out of trouble.

Jackson returned less than ten minutes later, slipping into the apartment in his human form, stark naked. She grinned at that. “Did you startle Mrs. Henning again with your nakedness?”

He shook his head. “She’s hiding in her apartment as far as I know. You wouldn’t believe how people freak out when there’s a cougar running through the apartment building and in downtown San Diego.” He chuckled.

“Now what?”

He moved to the phone, lifting it in one hand as he answered. “Now I call Brandon and Mariah. We deal with the aftermath, Cromwell goes to the hospital and then hopefully to prison, and we get on with our lives.”

She nodded in satisfaction. “That sounds like the perfect plan to me.”

BOOK: Guardian Cougar (Finding Fatherhood Book 2)
9.9Mb size Format: txt, pdf, ePub
ads

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