Total pages in book: 206
Estimated words: 192184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 961(@200wpm)___ 769(@250wpm)___ 641(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 192184 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 961(@200wpm)___ 769(@250wpm)___ 641(@300wpm)
“This is further blowback from Mexico. There was a relative of Castillo that’s local. We thought we got him but that was a decoy. He’s the one who arranged the shootout in the house the day we came home from here last time. Jimmy was shot last night; he’s in the hospital in intensive care.”
“No.” My heart sank.
“We had the security footage checked and some chick at the gate coaxed our guys to open the gate and then two other guys showed up and abducted them. I got us out of there just in time. Another few minutes and we’d have been shot up in our sleep. Someone cloned Eddy’s phone after he left it on the bar at the restaurant, and so they texted me like Luc was in labor. They were just trying to get us all to the hospital, planning a shoot out there, since they didn’t get me at home and couldn’t get into Pop’s. They got into Dare’s apartment but he shot their guy. He, Tessa, and the boys are fine. But…” Tommy took a deep breath, “Pop and Lisa, they were asleep when the text came through but Lisa’s phone was dead and Pop never checked his voicemail or texts. She got the texts this morning and they drove to the hospital before talking to anyone. Pop got shot twice in the hospital parking lot. Once in the shoulder; once in the gut.”
I gasped.
“He’s in surgery.”
I put my arms around him and squeezed. He hugged me back.
“My two guys watching our house last night, found dead. Jim in ICU, Pop in surgery right now, my sister and her kids in hiding. Pop’s wife beside herself. We got her with Tessa and the kids.”
“Luc and Eddy?” I asked.
“Eddy got them out of town at his folks’ cabin. He’s trying to keep my sister calm. He’s bringing her to Tess and Lisa today.”
“Shit.”
“Yeah, it has hit the fucking fan. I’ve got a few of our guys dealing with things. Dare and I have cleanup in progress.”
“What does that mean?”
“It means we’re safe here and that I won’t bring you home until it’s safe.”
“Okay.”
“Tia?”
“Yeah?”
“Your father was moving drugs for someone affiliated with these guys, owed them a lot of money.”
My hand came up and covered my mouth.
“Your father has hours, days at most. He might already be gone.”
I pulled away from him, ran to the bathroom, and promptly hurled my omelet into the toilet. After I finished brushing my teeth I heard Tommy’s phone ringing.
When I came out, he wasn’t here. I looked out the screened-in doorway and he was outside by the pond again, talking on the phone, pacing. He looked up at me and jerked his chin in a “You all right?” kind of way. I wiggled my fingers in a wave and blew him a kiss.
He walked toward the barn, so I sat on the sofa. He was with me a minute later.
“How’s everything?” I asked.
“Same,” he answered. “I feel fucking helpless right now. Sitting around waiting is not something I do well.”
“Tommy.”
“What?”
“Can you please hold me?”
He grabbed me and held me tight, then took me to the bed and we got under the covers and cuddled close for a long time. His phone rang after a while and I saw it had Dario’s name on the screen as he lifted it to his ear, swiping the screen with his thumb.
I got up and filled the kettle and turned it on to make tea.
“Fuck. Okay,” I heard him say, “Fuck! Yep.”
He got to his feet, “Do you drive?”
“Drive?”
“Do you know how to drive a car?”
“I only have my learner’s permit, but I can drive, yeah.”
“Okay, I’m taking the Harley. I’m leaving you the Jeep keys and I’m leaving you a gun.”
“No.”
“Yes. Here.”
He showed me how to take the safety off and lifted the screen on the back wall of the loft and then pointed the gun out the back doors and taught me how to shoot.
Afterwards, he put the gun down on the table and took me by the shoulders.
“Jimmy didn’t make it,” he said.
My hand covered my mouth.
“I have to go deal. I want you to stay here. Here’s a phone, it’s a burner. Don’t turn your iPhone on.” He reached into the knapsack from the storage garage, “I’ll program burner numbers for me, my brother, and Nino.” He looked at the flip phone in his hand and started hitting buttons on the new flip phone. If you need them ‘cuz you can’t get me, call one of them. I should be back tonight. If I’m not back by tomorrow morning I want you to call my brother for instructions and he’ll get you with the other girls. Don’t turn on your regular phone until I tell you it’s okay. It’s over there with the card pulled.” He motioned to the counter, “And don’t use your computer online with either phone as a hot spot or anything. I don’t know if anyone is tracking your social media accounts to try to figure out where you’re logging in from.”