Page 64 of Without Fail

Holding it up to his ear, Ryker listened as it rang.

“Syn?” Marshal’s voice was filled with worry. “What’s the matter?”

“Where are you?” Ryker said, his voice scratchy and raw sounding.

“Ryker…” Marshal breathed out his name.

“I woke up and you’re not here.” He hated the wispy, needy words, but they wouldn’t remain unspoken.

“I had a meeting.” Marshal’s rasping voice was filled with regret.

“I see…” He wavered, unsure of everything.

Hadn’t they shared a moment during the home invasion? Or had that been his imagination? Words spoken over the phone in the middle of panic couldn’t be taken seriously, could they?

Could those words erase the words Marshal had spoken to Bishop?

Ryker turned his head away from the phone, but Syn followed with the press of it back to his ear.

“Wait for me, I’ll be right there.”

The growly words sent a shiver down his spine and a warm wash of heat into his belly.

“K,” he whispered and gave Syn a watery smile.

Syn waggled his eyebrows, hung up the phone, and tucked it away before resuming his seat. Lifting one of his hands, Syn pressed a kiss to his cold fingers.

“How’s my face?” he rasped, not able to shake off sounding like a frog.

“The doctors said there’s no lasting damage.”

“You mean other than the scars,” he said flatly.

“Yes, other than the scars. Now, tell me who hit you?”

He stared at Syn, his mind returning to his father’s office. Only three other people had been in the room. His father, Marshal, and another bodyguard he knew went by the name of Felix.

Nobody else knew that his father had hit him.

Why was Marshal keeping it quiet? It had to be Marshal, right? That guy, Felix, would only keep quiet if ordered. And Ryker was pretty damned sure that his own father would never want it to get out that he hit him like that.

“I don’t remember.” He glanced away because lying to Syn wasn’t something he liked doing.

“There are rumors that it was one of the gunmen,” Syn murmured, rubbing his cold fingers with both warm hands. He’d been terrified getting the information that Ryker had been admitted to the hospital after an attack. “Why the hell didn’t you hide?” Syn snarled.

Ryker gave a soft huff. Syn knew of the secret access panels throughout the house.

“I couldn’t.”

“Why?” Syn sounded so choked up that it brought a sting to his eyes.

“Because…that’s not me.”

“You’re too damned reckless!” Syn sniffled.

“I agree,” Jennifer said from the small sofa, her voice filled with sleep. “You could have been killed.”

“But I wasn’t,” Ryker said, giving them both a small smile.

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