Page 55 of Absolution

“Okay.” She fell to her knees on the other side of Bennett, holding back tears as she took the bloodied cloth from Tucker’s hands. “Is he going to be all right?” Dismay danced in her eyes as she pressed the cloth against Bennett’s chest and looked up at Tucker.

“He needs an ambulance.” Tucker reached for his phone and dialed the emergency services quickly. “Here.” He switched the device to speaker and placed it on the floor beside her. “Tell them he’s been shot and ask them to track my phone. He needs help as soon as possible.”

Her strangled gasp rose as the dialing tone rang out, but he tried not to focus on Ella’s upset. There would be time to console her later. Time for autopsy and introspection, but at that moment, he had to deal with Collins. Had to know if the man Kenner had paid to kill him still posed a threat.

“What’s your emergency?”

The woman’s voice splintered the strained silence as Tucker approached Collins. His body appeared lifeless, the gun he’d been holding cast away by his left hand, but Tucker didn’t trust the slimy bastard as far as he could throw him. Perhaps Collins was only playing dead to lull him and Ella into a false sense of security. He was there to do a job, and Tucker didn’t doubt he’d shoot them all given half a chance.

“We need an ambulance to this location.”

Ella’s voice conveyed her understandable stress, but Tucker resisted the urge to look back at her. She’d be okay. She was capable. She’d just proven that when she’d fired at Collins. He had to ensure they were safe before he moved to offer help.

“My dad has been shot.”

“Okay,” came the reply as Tucker rounded Collins’ body. “Stay on the line, and I’ll get one dispatched to you. Where is the gunshot wound?”

It was difficult to see if Collins was breathing in the half-light, but he needed to be certain. Moving closer, he kicked the gun away toward the window and slowly lowered over Collins’ body.

“In his chest.” Ella choked back tears. “I’m applying pressure, but he’s losing a lot of blood.”

“Don’t worry.”

The first responder’s voice droned on in the background as Tucker crouched before his foe. There was still little evidence of breathing, and the growing stream of blood around Collins suggested the bullets Ella fired had hit their target.

“Help is on its way. Is the patient breathing?”

Tucker reached his palm out over Collins’ mouth, trying to detect any sign of air from his mouth or nose. Time stretched on as he waited on his verdict, his body tensing at the possibility that Collins could leap up and attack him. He could never be sure with a cretin like Collins. He’d screwed Tucker over before and had demonstrated clear intent to doso again. Hell, not only had he accepted Kenner’s paycheck to assassinate him, but he’d even boasted about it to Bennett!

Nothing.

The judgment echoed in Tucker’s head, although still, he didn’t trust it.

He’s not breathing.

“Yes, he’s breathing.”

Tucker turned at Ella’s desperate tone, finally content that Collins’ wasn’t about to lurch back to life.

“But he’s not talking anymore.” She shook her head. “I’m not sure he’s going to last.”

Tucker rose and tried not to slip in the pool of Collins’ blood by his feet. Even in the shadows, his once-perfect kitchen looked like a war zone, and God knew he’d seen more than his fair share of similar scenes.

“He’ll be okay, little girl.” Tucker crept over to her and sank down to examine Bennett. His old sparring partner wasn’t in great shape, yet Tucker believed he’d pull through. Bennett was a stubborn fucker, and he’d only taken one bullet. If the ambulance arrived fast, the paramedics could save him. As though the woman on the other end of the phone had read his mind, her reply burst into the dark space.

“The ambulance is just arriving, but the paramedics aren’t sure where to go. Is there someone there who can direct them?”

“I’ll go.” Tucker was on his feet again in a heartbeat. “You stay with him.”

“Thank you.” Ella threw him a grateful smile as she sniffed back her tears and spoke to the speaker. “Someone’s going to help them now.”

***

An hour later, the apartment was filled with emergency responders. Power had been restored to the place soon after the paramedics’ arrival, which explained the perpetual smell of brewing coffee that had permeated the air ever since, and both he and his little girl had identified some clothes to wear.

Police flitted around his kitchen like flies, crawling over Collins’ corpse before interviewing him and Ella. Tucker had already called his lawyer, Sanderson, who, as his hourly rate suggested, had arrived within thirty minutes to act on their behalf. Meanwhile, the paramedics managed to stabilize Bennett and took him to a nearby hospital.

So far, everything was going as well as could be expected, but he worried about how Ella would handle the next few hours. Her father was still gravely ill, and she hadn’t even started to come to terms with the fact she’d shot someone dead. Not that he could blame her for that. He still recalled the face of every bastard he’d taken down, but he had hoped to protect her from a life of such heavy conscience. That ambition hadn’t gone well.

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