No One's Hero (Chadwell Hearts) (25 page)

“You know, you’re handsome even when you’re mad,” Lexi tells me, a slight slur to her words as I buckle her in the truck. It’s all I can do not to lean down and kiss her.

“I’m not mad,” I say lightly.

“Liar.” Her lip pouts out a bit as she says it, and her eyelids are droopy. God, she’s cute even drugged up. She and I need to have a very serious conversation about us—and yes, I think there’s got to be an us—but it needs to wait until she’s not doped up.

Lexi falls asleep before we’re back to the apartment, and I use the opportunity to glance over at her, watching her sleep. Her face has settled into a peaceful expression, and the knots of tension that have been tightening in my chest since she ran off hours ago finally begin to unfurl. She doesn’t stir as I lift her out of the SUV and carry her to bed, but she lets out a little sigh as she sinks into the pillow. My own heart is in my throat as I pull the covers up to her shoulder, tucking her in.

I leave the door cracked, wanting to be sure I can hear her if she calls for me, then head to the living room to begin working through the list of calls I need to make. First I call Axel.

“Tell me everything,” he says as soon as we’re connected. Which is odd, because he has a rule about that. I specifically know not to tell him everything, so that he can deny what he needs to deny, should it ever come to it. Axel knows I walk a fine line when it comes to getting things done. It’s what makes me better than most at my job. I know that it’s worth doing whatever it takes, whatever the cost to protect those that matter. He may not know all the ins and outs of the whys, but he knows I learned that lesson the hard way, and I’ll never forget it. The thing is, the punk who gave the information about Nuri to the Taliban, I could have stopped him the week before. I knew he was going to betray us, but I couldn’t punish him for future crimes.

Now? I’m not so moral. Bad people do bad things, and sometimes good people have to do things that seem bad to stop them.

“I don’t think you really want me to do that.” He doesn’t want to hear how I tracked the GPS implant in Lexi’s charm bracelet to the club and forced my way through the front door. He doesn’t want to hear that the lone fool who was guarding the front door will probably never walk again. Or that the coward who pointed me in Lexi’s direction should consider himself lucky that he got off with only a broken nose. And he definitely doesn’t want to hear about the sound the asswipe I found on the floor of the storeroom made when I tied him to the chair that Lexi’s sister was tied to in the ransom photo, making sure to knock into his head wound a few times for good measure.

Maybe I should tell him about the sorrow in Lexi’s eyes as she watched me shoot Megan in the hand. Maybe Megan wouldn’t have pulled the trigger—Lexi didn’t seem to think so, anyway. Me? I couldn’t take the chance.

Axel sighs. “Probably not.”

So I tell Axel the only thing that’s important. “Lexi’s safe. She’s got a broken arm and is currently sleeping with the help of some painkillers.”

“And the girl? Was it really Lexi’s sister?”

“It sure looks that way. I don’t have any confirmation yet, but I’m assuming you want me to look into it.”

“Absolutely. Her family has been through hell. I don’t want someone scammer impersonating their dead daughter.”

“Understood.”

My phone beeps, alerting me to another call trying to come through. I glance at the screen and see Agent O’Brien’s contact info. “Axel, O’ Brien is on the other line. I need to take this, and I’ll call you back.” I swipe my finger across the screen, disconnecting Axel and answering the FBI agent in charge of Lexi’s case’s call. “Hello.”

“You’re answering the phone like a normal person. You really must have had a long day.”

“Nope. Dead roommates and a witness with a death wish who runs into the kidnapper’s den are completely ordinary.”

O’ Brien laughs. I’ve liked him since I met him, and I trust him as much as it’s possible for someone like me to trust someone with the ability to lock me away for the rest of my life. “Well, let me give you a bit of good news to top your night off. Matt Conner is currently in an interview room at Quantico and he’s talking freely, hoping for a deal. With what he’s given us, we’ve got Nick Guatieri on a clear case of witness tampering. I called the boys out in Tucson, who had a nice chat with Mr. Guatieri, and with the wealth of new evidence staring him in the face, he’s accepted a plea deal.”

All the air in my lungs escapes in one quick rush. It’s a far better outcome than I ever expected. “So Lexi won’t have to testify?”

“Nothing is set in stone yet, but it appears that way.”

It may not be set in stone, but even if it’s just likely, I know it means there will never be a trial. The cartel will take Nick out before they risk him turning on them as part of a plea. I won’t be surprised if Nick is dead before they get him back to the cell. So why don’t I feel more relieved? “Thanks for letting me know.”

“Hey, cheer up. That means you’re just about done babysitting, right? Will you be headed out west?”

It hits me with such intensity I have to lean a hand against a nearby wall to steady myself. Lexi’s so much more to me now. The job just doesn’t matter anymore, but that means I’m floundering in the unknown. “I don’t know. Listen, I need to run, but thanks for calling.” I hit the end button just as footsteps catch my attention. I look up from my phone to find Lexi framed in the doorway. “You should be in bed,” I tell her with a smile.

“You should take me there.” She licks her lips invitingly, and I immediately fantasize about nibbling on her lower lip, making her moan. But she’s obviously not in her right mind; I can still see the fogginess in her expression. So I can’t.

“Not tonight, sweet girl.” Her lips pucker into a pout. “I do have good news though,” I offer in an attempt to lessen the blow. “Agent O’ Brien called, and it looks like you and Tess won’t have to testify. Nick took a plea after Matt turned over evidence against him.”

Her face instantly falls. “So I guess that means I’m not your job anymore.”

I grin, because she’s right. That’s one less complication keeping us apart. “That’s right. We probably won’t be completely sure for a few days, but I don’t think you’ll be needing me as a bodyguard anymore.”

Her eyes grow clouded and when she gazes up at me again, a mask has draped across her expression, making it hard to read. “Look, let’s just make this easy. I don’t want you to feel like you have to stick around just because we had sex. I never had any delusions that I’d be anything more than a job, so don’t bother wasting time with feeling guilty. It’s cool, I get it, and I’m fine with it. Really it’s probably better this way. I’ve got school, and you’ll be traveling for whatever job you’ve gotta do next, so it’s fine.”

Her words hit me square in the gut. It almost sounds like she
wants
me to go. I thought I’d started to mean something to her, the way she definitely means something to me. I swallow what’s left of my pride and force a nod. “Yeah, fine.”

But I’m so not fine.

—-♥—-

L
exi

When I wake up in the morning, my head is foggy from the medicine and my eyes are puffy from crying. I can tell myself I did the right thing over and over, but it doesn’t make it hurt any less. I know I pushed Kevin into being with me yesterday, and that long term wasn’t what he had in mind. But he’s such a good guy, he would have felt obligated to stick around. I don’t want to be his handicap. I sniffle, then reach to the bedside stand for a tissue.

There’s a torn square of paper resting on the oak stand beside my phone, with just two words:
Call me,
in a masculine block print.

I guess that means he’s already gone. I can’t believe he didn’t even wait to say goodbye, but maybe it will be easier this way. Better.

A soft knock comes from the other side of the door and the weight in my chest momentarily lifts. Is he still here? I run my fingers hastily through my tangled mat of hair, then give up. There’s no way I’m going to be able to fake presentable this morning, at least not until I’ve gotten a shower. And this stupid cast is going to make that difficult.

At my invitation, Angel pokes her head into the room. “Hey, you’re awake. How are you feeling?”

I groan and sink back into the pile of pillows behind me.

Angel takes one look at me and her eyes fill with concern. “Hold on, I’ll be right back.”

While she’s gone, I stare longingly at my phone. I could call him, heck, he told me to call him. And if I asked him to come back to me, he would. Or maybe he’s just out doing errands and wants to know if I need him to pick me up anything. Even as I concoct possibilities in my head, I know I’m wrong. I saw the acceptance written all across his face last night. I set him free and he jumped at the chance. And maybe it was stupid of me, but I didn’t want to think he stayed because he had to. That didn’t mean I didn’t hope he’d choose to stay because he wanted to. I was foolishly hoping that I would be enough, that he’d willingly choose me, rather than going back to trying to chase away his memories.

When Angel returns, she’s got a carton of chocolate ice-cream and two spoons in her hand. “You look like you need this.” She settles on the side of the bed and hands me a spoon.

“Ice cream can’t fix a broken heart.”

“No, but it can dull the pain.”

I tentatively take a chocolately spoonful and then decide she’s right. “He’s gone, isn’t he?”

Angel sighs and stares at the wall, avoiding my gaze for a bit. When she turns back to face me, confirmation is clear in her eyes. “Arion has him checking into Annalise—Amelia. He wants to make sure she is who we think she is, and of course he wants to find out how this happened in this first place.”

That means he’s still close by, because Amelia has lived locally. And I get why Axel is suspicious, it’s awfully coincidental that my long lost twin just happens to live near the college I picked to attend. But sometimes, things really are just a coincidence. “I guess that makes sense. I still don’t know how I’m going to tell my parents about her.”

“Arion talked to your dad, and he’s flying down tomorrow. Maybe hold off a bit, until we see what Kevin finds out. Right now we’d just be giving them more questions than answers. Oh, but speaking of Amelia, she spoke with the director of the equine program this morning and confessed that she’s been the one tampering with things at the barn, not you. You’ve been cleared of all suspicion.”

“I bet Director Gleason loved that. I think that woman hates me.”

Angel smiles. “Perhaps she does, but I meant the new director, appointed last night at an emergency meeting of the board. Which Axel attended, of course, in exchange for a hefty donation to the program.”

“Who is the new director?”

“Mrs. Blessing, who seems to see a lot of promise in you.”

“It’s hard to really believe so much has happened the last few days. Apparently Amelia was being blackmailed by Stephanie.” Yesterday, I hated my roommate. Now I just feel pity. I guess she was right to not want me as a roommate. It ended up getting her killed.

“You can’t blame yourself,” Angel warns. “I mean it. Matt did that, not you. You’re not responsible for his choices.”

“I really know how to pick friends, huh? Megan’s brother, working for Nick all along. Megan helping him.”

“Yeah, but from what Arion said when he got done talking to O’ Brien last night, Megan wasn’t really a willing participant. That’s why Matt wouldn’t let her come back to school. Once she found out that he’d had you followed and nearly run off the road when he had her help arrange for Tanner to get you away from Kevin, she freaked. He was afraid she’d spill and tell you everything. She honestly likes you, and she was caught between a rock and a hard place.”

“Maybe.” I’m still skeptical, and don’t know how I could ever trust in her friendship again. And I can’t really blame Kevin for shooting her. He did his job and neutralized the threat. But I’m going to have a hard time forgetting how vulnerable she looked. Just like I’m going to have a hard time forgetting that she betrayed me.

After Angel leaves, taking the empty carton of ice cream with her, I get out of bed just long enough to get a cup of water from the bathroom and swallow another of my pain pills. I toss a last look at my phone before burrowing under the covers, giving myself over to the lull of oblivion. Part of me knows I should call him, but my heart can’t take it. There’s nothing left to say except goodbye, and that’s not something I’m in a hurry to do.

—-♥—-

L
exi

Two Months Later - Thanksgiving Break

I pull my shiny but practical new car into an empty spot next to Angel’s Mustang in front of the barn at Chadwell Farm. I finally gave in and retired my dented rust bucket of a sedan and got something newer. I don’t love it as much, because I didn’t have to work hard to buy it on my own, but I’m getting used to it. Apparently there was a reward attached for information or something about Matt and Felix and the rest of their band of thugs. To be honest I didn’t really understand when Agent O’ Brien tried to explain it to me. Nevertheless, I put the money to good use, buying myself a car and a new wardrobe. I never did manage to bring myself to go back to my dorm room. I just couldn’t get the mental image of Stephanie lying there dead out of my mind. Her parents boxed all of our stuff up after her memorial service and donated it to charity.

The gravel drive here at the farm is full, and I can’t help wondering what I’ve gotten myself into. It looks like there are a ton of people here, and I’m worried that it will be overwhelming. Not just for me, but for my mom. She came home from the clinical trial last week and dad says she’s doing great. Of course I’m not sure how much of that is attributed to the trial, and how much of it is due to Annalise, but either way it’s good news.

I heard through Axel that Kevin found Anna to be exactly who she said she was. From what he was able to learn, Anna’s mother was a nurse at the hospital where we were born. She’d recently suffered a miscarriage, and in her grief, she convinced herself it would be okay to take Anna from the nursery. After all, how was it fair that my mother got two, when she got none? Shortly afterward, she was fired from the hospital, and she moved away, paranoid someone would realize what she’d done. Unfortunately, even taking Anna from the nursery didn’t alleviate her crippling grief, and she attempted suicide on the tenth anniversary of her miscarriage. Anna was then sent to foster home after foster home, while her mother was put into a mental ward, no one knowing she actually had another mother and father who desperately missed her. It’s all sort of tragic when you think about it.