Page 65 of Protecting the Newborn

“You’re the one who blew our covers,” Ruston snapped. “How did you even know we were cops?”

Devin shrugged as if that were nothing. No big deal that Gracelyn and he had nearly died. “I make a habit of using a hacker to check out anyone and everyone I do business with. A hacker who breaks many rules to tap into things like police databases and such.” He narrowed his eyes at them. “If you two had died then and there, I wouldn’t have to be going through this mess right now.”

Ruston was already fuming, but that only added to the flames. He glanced around for something, anything, he could use to fight back. There wasn’t anything, which meant he was going to have to do this with his bare hands. He was gearing up to ram his elbow into the thug’s gut when there was a flash of headlights. They cut through the darkness at the end of the road and then disappeared.

Both Devin and the thug glanced in that direction.

And Ruston made his move.

With the thug’s slight shift of his body, Ruston went for a more direct attack. He turned and slammed his fist into the guy’s face. He heard the satisfying sound of cartilage breaking. Blood spewed, and the man howled.

From the corner of his eye, Ruston saw Gracelyn dive toward Devin’s legs, tackling him and knocking him back against the building. Ruston cursed, though, when he saw that Devin had managed to hang on to both his guns, but the disadvantage of that was it didn’t free up his hands to fight back. Then again, he wouldn’t need to actually fight if he could get off a shot.

He did.

The blast tore through the air, the sound tearing through Ruston, and he was terrified that Gracelyn had just been shot. He latched on to the still-howling, still-bleeding thug and dragged him in front of him.

Just in time.

Because there was another shot, and Devin had aimed this one at Ruston. But the bullet meant for him slammed into the thug’s chest. He dropped like a stone, giving Devin a clear path to shoot Ruston.

But Gracelyn stopped that from happening.

She kicked the gun from Devin’s right hand and sent it flying. Devin pulled the trigger of the second gun, but it was a wild shot that didn’t come anywhere near Ruston or her. Thank God. However, Devin immediately tried to shift the weapon to his right hand.

And worse.

During the shift, he bashed Gracelyn on the head, knocking her away from him.

Everything seemed to shift to slow motion. Even the sound of Gracelyn’s voice yelling to him, “Get down.”

Ruston did get down. He dived to the ground, scooping up the thug’s gun, and the second he had hold of it, he took aim. Even though she was clearly dazed from the blow, Gracelyn scurried away from Devin, giving Ruston a clear shot.

Which he took.

It seemed as if Devin and he pulled the triggers in that same heartbeat of time. Devin missed.

Ruston didn’t.

He double tapped the trigger and sent two shots directly into Devin’s chest. Devin froze, the shock registering on his face as his gun slid from his hand. Then he flashed that cocky smile one last time before he took in his dying breath.

Gracelyn’s gaze connected with Ruston’s. For just a second. And they moved. She toward the thug and Ruston toward Devin. Both of them checked to make sure killer and henchman were truly finished.

“He’s dead,” Ruston verified after touching his fingers to Devin’s neck.

“He is, too,” Gracelyn confirmed. She stared down at the goon, and her face tightened. She cursed the dead monster.

“Are you all right?” someone called out.

Ruston automatically took aim a split second before he realized it was Duncan. He was on foot, and he was running up the road toward them.

“We’re alive,” Ruston settled for saying. “But Devin and his hired gun aren’t.”

Ruston considered calling that in, but it appeared Duncan was already doing that. Instead, Ruston focused on Gracelyn. In addition to the blood on the side of her head, she had a nasty bruise on her face from where Devin had hit her.

Seeing that made him want to go after Devin all over again, but he pulled her into his arms. And held her.

“They were going after Abigail,” she muttered. “They were going to kill us and go after her.”

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