“What do you want?” His tone had filled with fury, and he was practically vibrating it.
“You sign a confession and promise you and your dad will stay away from the girls. Not even in the same state. As long as you hold up your end, the confession will stay in my possession, got it?”
“What guarantee do I have that you won’t go to the cops anyway?”
“Just my word,” I answered, my voice dripping with disdain. “Which is worth a fuck of a lot more than yours. And that’s why I’ll always be holding that confession and evidence over your head. If I get even a whiff that you are suspected of mistreating another woman, everything I have gets leaked to the press. Now, what’s it going to be, asshole?”
David’s face turned bright red. “You bitch!” he screamed. His eyes were fixated just beyond my shoulder, and the look on his face had me pulling my gun.
He whipped up his shirt and grabbed his weapon, then pointed it at the same spot where he was staring, obviously aiming for Lucy. I wasn’t about to wait and see what he did next. I raised my arm, and he was dead half a second later. He flew backward from the force of the bullet that hit his skull before dropping to the ground in a heap.
Lucy and Paisley had both let out a scream, but when I whirled around to check on them, they were hugging, and the expressions on their faces were a little shocked, but also full of relief. I ran my hand over Lucy’s hair, and she released Paisley only to throw herself into my arms. Breaker and Hack had come running at the sound of shots, and when I saw Hack making a beeline for Paisley, I halted his steps by grabbing his arm before he could pass by me.
“Breaker, take Paisley home and do whatever she needs to make her feel safe.”
Hack growled and looked at me with eyes so full of rage, they were almost feral. But I held my ground, keeping him away from the scared, shaken girl. She looked at Lucy, who smiled and nodded. “We’d all trust him with our lives. Try to get some rest, and I’ll call you tomorrow.” Paisley responded with a small smile and let Breaker lead her to the exit.
“You got a fucking death wish, Lazar?” Hack snarled.
I released Lucy before facing Hack, keeping my death grip on his arm. “This was a lot for her, man. And you running in like the possessive, overbearing assholes we are when we meet our women wouldn’t have helped your cause right now. You’d have scared the fuck out of her and sent her running in the opposite direction.”
His anger was clearly making it difficult for him to digest what I was telling him, but eventually, he started to calm down. He wrenched away from me, and I let him go this time. “Logically, I know you’re right, but I don’t seem to have any fucking sense around her.”
I nodded. “Been there. But I still need you here right now. We gotta clean up this mess, and then make sure this motherfucker’s daddy doesn’t cause any problems.”
Hack took several deep breaths and when his eyes wandered over to the dead body, he finally seemed to calm and focus back on the now. “I’ll get Rider and Dash to take care of the body. Let’s go and get this shit over with.”
That plan was fine by me, so I curled my arm around my girl and took her out the back exit to the truck so she didn’t have to walk near the body. Once I had her seated, I cupped her face with my hands and searched her expression. “Alright, little doll?” So far, she’d seemed to be handling everything, but I was worried that once it all sank in, she wouldn’t be able to accept the fact that I’d just killed a man. Even if it was for her protection.
Her mouth curved slightly, and she placed her hands over mine. “I’m good. I’m glad we’re all okay and that he’ll never be able to hurt anyone else.”
It was on the tip of my tongue to tell her I loved her, but it wasn’t the right time, so I swallowed the urge and gently kissed her lips instead. Hack arrived at the truck and wordlessly climbed into the back. After securing Lucy in her seat, I jogged around to the driver’s side and got in. “Where to?” I asked as I drove through the deserted parking lot and out onto the road.
Hack gave me an address, and in less than twenty minutes, we pulled into the parking lot of a police station. “Breaker sent him a text from the kid’s phone telling him to meet in the parking lot. He should be walking out any minute.”