Redemption (Bennett Sisters Book 5) (17 page)

Lydia
turned in place looking down at all of the unconscious men laying around her feet. People were still shouting in the distance, yet no one threatened her. She felt as light as air, as if gravity ceased to exist. All of the heaviness that had been on her shoulders had lifted. She’d found a peaceful place like where she went to find her zen. It didn’t make sense.
Lydia
shook her head and let her head fall forward. Her prone body lay unmoving at her feet. “You’ve got to be kidding me?”

She watched as Briggs started pumping on her chest. He shook his head.

“You. Are. Not. Going. To. Die. On. Me.”

He leaned down, plugged her nose, and blew into her mouth. His ear went to her still unmoving chest.  Brody pushed him out of the way and laid his hand on her chest. The electrical current he sent through her lifeless body lifted her body off the ground. Briggs again started pressing against her chest and breathing puffs of breath into her mouth. On the next set of pumps, he hollered at Brody, who disappeared down the hall and out of sight. 

She lifted her see-through hand up to her face and twisted it. “What the hell?”

Behind her, someone cleared their throat
.
An unknown voice filled her ears. “No,
Lydia
, this isn’t hell.”

Lydia
spun toward the voice. A woman she’d never seen before stood in front of her. Her long flowing pants and shirt reached the floor. She looked as if she’d just stepped out of a garden, as if she was ready for some iced tea. She could be anyone’s grandmother, a vision that emitted peace and safety. A comforting sensation washed over her.  “Who are you?”

“Emma calls me Momma Mae.”

Lydia
would have fainted if it were possible. She’d been told about Momma Mae from her sisters. Momma Mae was a ghost that only Emma and Jake could see. She was not only real, but a freakin’ ghost. That wasn’t a good sign.

For once she couldn’t feel any sliver of electricity in the air. There was no apprehension, no butterflies. This place was peaceful. No threats, no visions. Damn, her visions had failed her this time. She’d have thought if anyone would have seen her own death coming, she should have seen it herself.
Lydia
turned in place not understanding any of this. She was still standing in the corridor. She’d thought when they died that there would be pearly gates, or at least a field covered with flowers to great her, heck even a light at the end of the tunnel would have sufficed. “Where are we?”

Momma Mae shrugged one of her petite shoulders and pointed at
Lydia
’s lifeless body. “I call it Limbo. It’s a place where all souls who have unfinished business go.”

Lydia
bit the inside of her lip. “I know what mine is, but why are you still here? What’s your unfinished business?”

Momma Mae floated over to
Lydia
. Her lips tilted up at the corners. “You are,
Lydia
. Now it’s time for you to go back.”

Lydia
felt her consciousness being pulled into a strange void. Her eyes were heavy and closed. She was no longer standing outside her body. She felt trapped in the shell that she’d left. A heavy pressure was on her chest.
Lydia
opened her eyes and gasped for air.

Briggs rolled her on her side and whispered in her ear, “We need to get you out of here.”

Lydia
whispered, her voice foreign and raspy to her own ears, “Rick.”

Briggs shook his head. “Brody’s got him. Just close your eyes and let me do the rest.”

Lydia
let her eyes fall closed as she was pulled into the deepest sleep she’d ever been in before.

Chapter 18

The gentle breeze rolled over
Lydia
’s exposed shoulders. The warmth from the sun caressed her face, reminding her of times at the beach with her aunt.
Lydia
blinked her eyes open and glanced around the unfamiliar room. She felt renewed and refreshed, like she’d drunk three carafes full of coffee.
Lydia
lifted her arms over her head and stretched. She didn’t feel in danger, and she’d trusted Briggs to get her out alive. If there was one thing she was certain of about the silent giant, she was sure he’d succeeded.

“Welcome back to the land of the living.” A female’s voice broke through
Lydia
’s relaxed silence.
Lydia
turned her head toward the voice and pushed to a sitting position.
Abby.
“I’ve been told those words have been said a lot to you lately. Do you care to explain?”

The youngest of the Bennett sisters was lounging in a chair beside her bed.

“Why are you here? And where is here?”
Lydia
asked, confused as she glanced around the unfamiliar room. A mauve-and-tan comforter lay strewn across the bed and tangled around her legs. The solid oak dresser held pictures of Abby that she’d never seen before.

“You’re at the beach house.” Abby stood and poured a glass of water and handed it to
Lydia
. “You know, it took Mike all he had not to beat the crap out of several people at the base. The only thing that stopped him was
Elizabeth
.”

Lydia
’s sip of water turned into gulps. She hadn’t realized how parched her throat was until she’d downed the whole cup. “What are you talking about?”

Abby sat next to her on the bed. “Emma called, and she was hysterical, something about Momma Mae, and she said you were in trouble. We used the GPS on your watch to track you and then took the jet to go rescue you.”

Lydia
shook her head to clear the cobwebs. “Why? You guys should have stayed away. It wasn’t safe for any of you there.”

“You’re our sister, and you were in trouble. That’s what we do when family is in trouble.”

Lydia
let her head fall forward. If the asshole that had taken Rick found out about her family, she was screwed. The psycho would want to use all of them, just like they’d used Rick.
Lydia
raised her gaze. “Did they get Rick out?”

Abby patted her leg and pushed from the bed then walked to the door. “Yep, they got him out. And I have to warn you he’s not very happy that we brought you here. Something about the security not being strong enough. Kind of struck a nerve with Jake.”

“Why did you bring me here? Why not just stay with me at the base if you were worried?”

Abby paused with her hand on the doorknob. She glanced back over her shoulder. “We almost lost you.” Abby sighed as if trying to choose her words.  “Why don’t you go ahead and take a shower and I’ll fix you some coffee. If you’re anything like me, you can’t function without it. Then we can all sit down and you can tell us all about your resurrection from the dead.”

Abby walked out and pulled the door closed behind her, leaving
Lydia
to ponder how she was going to explain her near-death experience.
Lydia
slid her legs off the side of the bed. A shower did sound refreshing, but the first chance she got she wanted to check in on Rick. She needed to see him with her own eyes. She wouldn’t be able to rest until she was sure he was safe.  

Lydia
walked into the sparkling clean bathroom. A pair of her blue jeans and her emerald top hung on the back of the bathroom door. Briggs or one of her sisters had thought to bring her clothes.
Lydia
grinned. Her heart felt full. No matter how annoyed she was that her family had whisked her away at such an important time, she was just glad that she had family that cared.
Lydia
ran her fingers through her knotted hair as she started the shower. She stripped and stepped underneath the spray of the warm water and closed her eyes.

She was thankful this nightmare was over; at least she hoped it was over. She’d find out if Rick was all right, and she’d send him packing. Just being associated with her tended to put people in danger. The psycho would use him as a bargaining chip, something she was no longer willing to take a chance on. No matter how fabulous their sex was or how much he’d come to mean to her, she wouldn’t risk his life again. It had been selfish of her that she’d kept him around as long as she had.
Lydia
hurried through her shower and dressed. She pulled open the door to her room, and her mouth dropped open. “Rick?”

“Alive and in the flesh, thanks to you.” Rick pulled
Lydia
into his arms and pressed his lips to hers. He kissed a path from her lips across her cheek to her neck.
Lydia
  leaned into him as if pulled by an invisible force. She tilted her head, giving him better access for his sensual caresses. He had a way of making her melt in his arms. It was one of the things she would miss most. “Next time, you need to let the other guys handle it. You could have gotten yourself killed.”

Rick’s comment brought
Lydia
out of the sexual haze she’d felt herself falling into it.
Lydia
tapped on Rick’s chest and stepped out of his embrace. “I think you’re right.”
Lydia
sidestepped him and turned in the hall toward what she hoped was the kitchen. “I think you need to leave.”

Rick came up behind her and stopped her in her tracks. He pulled her back against his solid chest. “You don’t mean that, Red.”

He pushed aside her auburn hair and placed a kiss on her neck. “You need me as much as I need you.”

Lydia
wiggled out of his hold. “You’re wrong.”

She knew what she had to do. It was just going to kill her to do it. She needed to make sure he understood there was no chance for them. She could barely protect herself, much less anyone else, and the longer he was around her, the more danger he was in. She needed to convince him that being together wasn’t a good idea.

She turned toward Rick. “The only people I need are my family and the team.” She waved her hand between them. “There is no more us. It’s better that way.”

“You don’t mean it.” Rick took a step toward her, and she put up her hand, halting his advance. “I think you should leave.”

Rick took her hand in his. “I’m not leaving you to deal with that psycho alone. You don’t know what he’s capable of, and he won’t stop until he has you.”

Lydia
felt her pulse quicken, not sure if it was from Rick’s touch or the threat. She knew he spoke the truth. “I know. That’s why you need to leave. It isn’t safe for you
either
.”

Lydia
pulled her hand from his and spun around to find the kitchen. She needed that cup of coffee now more than ever.

Rick followed on her heels as she turned the corner and found her sisters and Mike sitting around the bar of the kitchen. “You can’t be serious.”

Mike stood. “Serious about what?”

Lydia
glanced over her shoulder and narrowed her eyes before she turned back to her siblings. “I told him he needed to leave.” 

Abby walked over to her and handed her a cup of coffee.
Lydia
took a sip of the steaming brew and pulled out a chair at the table.

The fine lines on Claire’s forehead creased. “Why would you want him to leave?”

Butch walked up behind Claire and rubbed her shoulders. “It’s okay, angel. We’ll figure all of this out, and if Rick did something to upset her, then we’ll all kick his ass.”

Lydia
cupped her coffee mug in her hands and leaned against the table. “Slow down, Butch. He didn’t do anything wrong. It’s my fault.”

Mike pulled out a chair at the table and sat. “I doubt it, sis. You just need to tell us what happened.”

Lydia
let her head fall forward. She didn’t want to do this in front of her family. She’d meant to have this conversation with Rick in private. It wasn’t anyone’s business but hers and Rick’s. Mike crossed his arms over his chest. “If you don’t want Claire to read your mind, I suggest you start talking.”

Lydia
glanced over to Claire. She shook her head “I wouldn’t dare. Don’t believe everything Mike tells you,
Lydia
.”

Lydia
glanced around the room. The pressure in the air was thick.
Lydia
hesitated as she studied the questioning looks from her sisters’ stares. She pushed from the table. “Is there somewhere Rick and I can talk in private?”

Emma replied as she walked into the room, holding a squirming toddler in her arms. Her husband, Jake, followed dutifully behind, making faces at the toddler. “You can go on out on the deck. It’s nice and peaceful out there.”

Mike glared at Emma.

“What? She wants privacy, and I think after everything she’s been through that we should give her some.”

Rick smiled at Emma. “Thanks.”

He took
Lydia
’s hand in his and walked out through the double doors to the deck. The sun was just starting to set over the horizon. It was a beautiful sight, and after her near-death experience, she was going to appreciate it.
Lydia
dropped Rick’s hand, walked over to the railing, and leaned against it. “It’s beautiful, isn’t it?”