RunningScaredBN (34 page)

The instant he was loose, Justin bent down and checked Dimitri for a pulse. “He’s dead. I wish I’d been the one to do the deed, but if anyone had the right, it was yours.”
 

“I didn’t want him to die.” Her voice was dull, unemotional as she continued to stare down at the body of her abuser.

“Why?”

“He turned me into so many things. I didn’t want him to make me a killer, too.”
 

Her answer didn’t surprise him, but it did break his heart. And it pissed him off.

“Bullshit, Ingram. A killer has a choice. You didn’t. Do you doubt he would have shot you or me if given the chance?”

“No, I know he would have. I saw it in his eyes. He would have killed both of us.”

“And if this had been any other op, would you have made a different decision?”

“No.”

“Remember that. It was either him or us. You made the only choice you could have.”
 

“You’re right.”

As if she were coming out of a trance, she shook her head swiftly and went into action. Grabbing the shirt she’d taken off, she held it out to him. “This probably fits you better than it does me. There are clothes in the bedroom closet I can wear.”

No way in hell was she going to wear anything that piece of shit had bought for her. “You wear the shirt. I’ll find something else.”

Without a word, she shrugged into the shirt, and then her eyes swept over him. “We need to get you to a doctor.”

“The cuts aren’t deep.” He nodded at the blood on her hands and knees. “How’d you get so bloody?”

A fleeting look of pain entered her haunted eyes. “It doesn’t matter.”

“Yes, it does, Ingram.”

“I broke out of the box.”

He closed his eyes briefly. “I’m sorry. I should have—”

Holding up a bloody hand, she backed away from him, her head shaking in denial. “Don’t you dare apologize to me. I’m the one who brought us here. I’m responsible for all of this.”

He moved toward her, held out his hand. “Come here.”

“No. He’s got more guards. We need to get out of here.”

“And we will. But right now, we both need this more.”

She took his hand, allowing him to draw her into his arms. Yeah, they were both bloody. He was naked, she was barely clothed. And they had a dead maniac lying only a few feet away. But he couldn’t think of anything more important than this right now.

She pressed her head against his chest. “I was so frightened. I was prepared to deal with him on my own. Putting you in danger…” She shook her head. “I’m so very sorry.”

“I’m not. And you need to start putting the guilt where it belongs.”

“You’re right.”
 

She pulled out of his arms and looked up at him, his blood now on her face. Using the shirt she wore, he swiped at it, making it look worse. “We’re both a mess.”

 
The smile she tried for barely lifted her lips, didn’t reach her eyes. “Let’s get this over with and get out of here.”

“We make a good team, Ingram.”

“Yes, we did.”

Before it registered with him that she had used past tense, the door burst open. McCall, along with Fox and Thorne, rushed inside.

McCall skidded to a halt. “You guys okay?”
 

“Yeah,” Justin said. He looked down at his bloody, naked self. “Anybody bring an extra pair of underwear?”

Fox grinned. “I did.”

Justin barked out a laugh. “Thanks. I’ll pass.”

McCall nodded at the body on the floor. “He dead?”

“Yes,” Justin answered.
 

“Well, hell,” Thorne drawled. “Didn’t you guys leave us anything to do?”

“There are probably a dozen guards or more who need their asses kicked.”

“Not anymore,” Fox said. “We had a little help from some new friends.”
 

McCall’s gaze went from Riley’s to Justin’s, his eyes full of questions. He had obviously picked up on the tension, said only, “Fox, see if you can find Kelly and Ingram some clothes. Thorne, see to their injuries and then get them on the plane.”

“Where are you going?” Justin asked.

Giving a grim smile, McCall muttered as he walked away, “To play politics.”

***

An hour later, they were sitting on the LCR jet, waiting for Noah to arrive. Riley had been cleaned up and bandaged, none the worse for wear. A doctor had to be called for Justin, as he’d needed more than two dozen stitches. Aidan had offered to do the deed, but laughingly admitted his sewing skills were a little rusty.

Even though Justin had acted like every stitch the doctor made was no big deal, Riley had winced in shared pain. It felt like the needle was going through her own skin. This was all her fault. She had put her own selfish needs above the safety of others. If there was one concrete rule at LCR, it was that revenge had no place in their work. Beyond their goal of rescuing, they always sought justice. However, it could never get in the way of their real purpose. For the first time in her career, she had put herself before others.

Anna sat down beside her and put her head on Riley’s shoulder for a quick hug. “You’re sure you’re okay? You look kind of shell-shocked.”

“I’m fine.” She considered trying for a smile but was too tired to make the effort. “Just exhausted. Can’t believe it’s over. The bastard is really dead.”

“How do you feel about that?”

How did she feel? Beneath the guilt she felt for almost getting her partner killed as well as the exhaustion, she recognized an immense relief. An evil had been eliminated. She couldn’t say she was happy that she had ended a life but neither did she feel guilt. Justin was right. Dimitri had given her no choice.
 

“Relieved. Angry.” She searched through her emotions, shrugged, and said, “Tired.”

“You’ve been through a lot these past few weeks.”

“I’ll be fine. Just need some sleep.”

“Why don’t you and Justin lie down in the bedroom? When Noah arrives, I’ll let you know.”

Riley shifted her gaze to Justin, and then her eyes skittered away when he looked at her. “I’m fine here. Besides, I doubt that Justin wants to be near me right now.”

“Why would you think that?”

“He’s angry with me. Rightfully so.”

“Hmm. Doesn’t seem angry to me. In fact, he looks pretty doggone happy.”

“If he isn’t angry, he should be. I put his life in jeopardy.”

“He’s a big boy,” Anna said dryly. “I think Justin can make his own decisions.”

“But I’m responsible for—”

She cut off when Noah walked onto the plane. The grim set to his mouth and his weary, bloodshot eyes told her he’d had a rough few hours. “Let’s get the hell out of here.”

“How’d it go?” Justin asked.

“The official news story is Dimitri Soukis’s estate was attacked. His security guards were disabled, and Soukis was abducted. His body was discovered in a ravine ten miles from his mansion. A former business rival, already in prison, apparently ordered the hit.”
 

“Sounds quite slick,” Justin said. “Who came up with the story?”

“As the saying goes, politics make for strange bedfellows. President Kopsas and his rival, Aletha Villas, arrived at this together. I don’t know what promises were made between them. I don’t want to know. But as far as they’re concerned, LCR was never even here.”

Riley received the information with immense relief. At least her screw-up wouldn’t cause Noah or LCR any problems. And now she felt hollow, empty. A huge chapter in her life had ended. As she looked around at the faces of the people she worked with and admired, she accepted that another chapter needed to close as well.

Chapter Thirty-two

LCR Headquarters

Alexandria, Virginia

Riley sat across from Noah. She figured he’d been waiting for her to rest and recover before calling her in. She had decided to save him the trouble and came in on her own. If there was one thing she’d learned in her life, being proactive saved not only time but also heartache.
 

“It’s only been a day. You’re sure you’re fully recovered?” Noah asked.
 

“Yes. Feeling fine.”

His dark eyes searched hers, concern in their depths.

“I was going to wait until both you and Kelly recovered before we did an official debrief. Especially since things are still happening.”

She gave a nod of acknowledgment. Arrests were still being made throughout the country. Larson and his people were still being questioned. The man had been in the human-trafficking business for decades. There were victims going back twenty years or more. It would take the authorities months, if not years, to uncover the garbage that had been William Larson aka Lloyd King’s life.

“Lorraine King is being transferred to a jail in Anaheim tomorrow.”

Noah left it at that. Riley knew he wouldn’t ask her if she would go see Lorraine. He would leave that up to her. He had been kind enough to rush through DNA testing. Confirming that the woman had been her birth mother had been vital for her to know. Once the results came, she accepted it as fact. What more could she do?

She had thought about and rejected going to see the woman who had given her life and then betrayed her, to ask her why she had done something so heinous. Then she had decided it didn’t matter. Whatever the woman’s reason, it would never be enough. There could be no justification for her actions, so what was the point in hearing what she had to say?

“Larson is singing like the proverbial bird. When this is over, it’s going to bring families together again and closure to those looking for answers.”

He seemed to expect an answer, so she gave him one. “Good.”

“Really? You don’t look too happy about it. I’ve seen you get more satisfaction out of a practice session with a dummy than you’re exhibiting right now.” He waited a beat and then added, “It was a successful mission, Ingram.”

“We both know it wasn’t perfect.”

“No mission is. But when we save lives, then we damn well call it successful.”

No longer able to sit here and listen to his praise, she blurted out, “I screwed up.”

“How so?”

She stared at him as if he’d lost his mind. “You know how, Noah. I put my need for revenge over the safety of my team. Over the safety of my partner. It was only by sheer luck that Justin wasn’t killed.”

“Luck? Divine intervention maybe. I’m not a big believer in luck. The reason you and Kelly weren’t killed was because you’re both trained professionals.”

“A trained professional who put her own self-interest ahead of her team.”

“Ingram, if you’re looking for censure, you’ve come to the wrong person. There’s not a person on this earth who would blame you for wanting to punish the man who repeatedly brutalized you for three years.”

“Maybe not, but I should have waited.”

“Waited for what?”

“To see if Larson would talk. Or his bodyguards.”

“You think this would have had a better outcome?”

“I don’t know.”

“We do what we can. Using our best judgment. That’s what you did.”

“Is it?”

“Does the fact that you had to take Dimitri out bother you?”

She’d thought long and hard about this last night. “It bothers me, but not in the way you might think. I didn’t have a choice. Dimitri would have killed both Justin and me if I hadn’t taken him down.

“If this had been any other op, I would have made the same decision. Dimitri is dead because of his actions, not because of anything I did wrong.”

“I’m glad you understand that.” His eyes narrowing, he said, “So what is this meeting really about, Ingram?”

She took a breath, expelled it, and said, “I’m resigning my position as an LCR Elite operative. Effective immediately.”

***

Justin pounded on the door, fury and worry creating a morass of emotions. For the last three days, he’d been trying to get her to answer her door or her phone. She had told him she needed time to herself. He had agreed to that at first, sure that she just needed to sort out some things. Instead, what did she do? She quit her freaking job. And did she bother to tell him? Hell no. McCall was the one who’d given him the news.

“Ingram, I know you’re in there. Now open the damn door before I knock it down and your neighbors call the police.”

Nothing but silence.

He raised his hand, about to pound again, when a quivery voice called out, “Are you looking for Riley?”

Turning, he saw a weathered-faced elderly man with a head full of white and gray hair standing at the door of an apartment down the hallway.

“Yes. Do you know Riley?”

“I do. Not well, though. She’s a little shy, but she picks up my medicine from the pharmacy sometimes and feeds my cat when I’m visiting my daughter. She’s a good girl.”

“Yes, she is. Have you seen her lately?”