Jonas opened the car door, then thought of something else. “What about Dean?”
“He may not be trained, but that’s Deanna in there. No force on earth will be able to stop him from attempting to protect her.”
“Just keep him from getting her shot, goddamn it.”
“Focus on getting Deanna out of there,” Wade ordered. “Let me worry about the rest.”
“I won’t let anything happen to her. You have my word.”
“I know,” Wade said.
They severed the connection, and Jonas took off across the yard. With Ray in the front of the house concentrating on Valdez, Jonas knew his best chance of getting in without incident was through the back door. He covered the last two hundred feet, then stepped onto the porch. He looked in a window to the right of the door. The kitchen was dark with no one in sight. Satisfied, Jonas turned the knob. Locked, but the alarm wasn’t activated. He took out his kit and went to work picking it. Friggin’ thing seemed to take light-years to open.
Once inside, Jonas silently made his way to the living room. He spotted Deanna on the couch, her hands folded in her lap. When she saw him, she nearly jumped up. Jonas held a finger to his lips and she stayed seated.
“You’ve destroyed my son,” Ray shouted as he pistol-whipped Valdez. “Why the hell should you live?”
“Please,” Valdez moaned as he clutched his chest. “I need a doctor.”
Ray laughed, and Jonas couldn’t believe the sound came from the same man he’d embraced just hours earlier. By all appearances, Ray had completely lost his grasp on reality. Jonas knew this was his only chance.
“Ray,” Jonas said in a low, calm voice as he stepped out into the open.
Ray swung the gun around, his eyes wide with fear and rage. When he saw Jonas, he frowned. “Jonas?”
“Yeah, buddy, it’s me,” Jonas said as he held his hands out to his sides. “I need you to put the gun down now.”
“Are you serious? This piece of shit nearly killed Cade!”
“I’m not saying Valdez deserves to live, but you’re scaring my girl there.” Without taking his gaze off Ray and the gun, Jonas pointed to Deanna.
Ray’s gaze darted her way, then back to him. “You know her?”
“That’s Wade’s little sister, Ray, and the woman I plan to marry.” He stretched out a hand. “I need you to take a deep breath and give me the gun.”
Ray paled and started visibly shaking as he looked back at Deanna. “I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”
“She knows that,” Jonas said, directing Ray’s attention back at him. “But if you don’t give me the gun, then we can’t fix this. And Cade needs you—now more than ever.”
Ray swiped his forearm over his eyes. “He told me he was sorry. That he loved me and didn’t want to die.” His eyes, so full of anguish, locked onto Jonas’s. “Do you know what that does to a man?”
Jonas shook his head. “No, because I’m not a father, but I don’t think Cade would want you to do this, do you? He already lost his mother. Don’t let him lose you too.”
Ray looked down at Valdez and shook his head. “He’ll get away with it.” He bit the words out, contempt filling his tone. “He always does. He doesn’t deserve mercy.”
“Maybe not,” Jonas conceded. “But your boy deserves at least one parent to see him through high school. Don’t let him down, not after everything you’ve been through together.”
Valdez moaned again. Christ Almighty! Jonas wished he’d shut the hell up before he got them all killed. “Karen never would have let this happen,” Ray said. “She held all of us together. I miss her so much, Jonas.”
“I know you do. It hurts that she’s gone, but Cade is still here. He’s still very much alive and he needs his dad.”
“Oh, God, what have I done?” Ray mumbled as he dropped the gun and fell to his knees, all the fight simply evaporating at once.
Wade and Dean rushed into the room as Jonas closed the distance to pick up the gun. Wade took hold of Ray and brought him outside as Dean went to Deanna. Jonas watched the pair embrace and knew they needed a moment. After tucking the gun into his waistband, Jonas went to check on Valdez. He was still moaning, but Jonas could tell by the position of the bullet wound that he was going to live.
“If you don’t stop your blubbering, I swear to God I’ll shoot you myself and give you something to really cry about.”
It didn’t shut him up, but Jonas noticed Valdez’s wailing wasn’t quite as loud. When Jonas got to his feet and looked over at Deanna, her head lifted. Their gazes held. Jonas opened his arms, and Deanna stepped away from Dean and ran to him. Jonas wrapped her in his embrace, holding her tight. Dean sent him a nod, then went out the front where Wade and Ray were waiting.