Page 18 of Lyon

“Niki, that’s nonsense, and you know it. You’re one of their best agents,” Mom said, walking in with coffee. She even brought one for Max.

“When are you leaving?”

“Right now. I’ll take my coffee with me.” I looked at Max, who was grinning. I knew why—because I had a date with Lyon on Friday. “Goodbye, Max. Take care of yourself. Did you tell the parents you’re planning to retire?” I grinned as I walked out.

The flight home felt endless. Once home, I called Joseph. “Hello, I just got back. Do I still have a job?”

“Of course you do. How are you?”

I’m good. I found Max; he’s in a hospital in Germany.” Why don’t you take the rest of the week off and come in on Monday? An old friend called and told me what happened.” “That sounds good. Who was the old friend? Was it Raeann O’Riley?” “No, itwasn’t your mom. See you Monday. Niki, I’m glad you found Max and are home safe. Rest; I’m sure you need it.” “Thanks, Joseph. See you Monday.”

Okay, Niki, you have five days to do nothing. Maybe I’ll paint the house. I’ve wanted to do that for a while, and this is the perfect time. I walked out to the barn, talked to my horses, and cleaned the stalls as I chatted. Before I knew it, the sun was setting. I finished with the horses and headed inside, straight to the shower.

I ate a can of soup and cleaned the fridge, deciding to throw everything out and go shopping tomorrow. Thirty minutes later, I fell asleep. I woke at three to the sound of my horses. Without turning on a light, I grabbed my gun, slung the holster over my shoulder, and then grabbed the rifle on the way out.

I saw a flashlight and, stepping outside, spotted three men trying to steal my horses. I cocked my rifle, and they froze.“Back away from my horses before I kill all of you.”

“What about me?” said a voice behind me. I turned and kicked him in the neck; he went down, but his gun went off, grazing my arm. I knew these men would kill me if I didn’t act first. I aimed and shot the first man I saw. Suddenly, bullets were flying. I hit the ground—they had an AK-47. They came here to kill.

My horses were going wild. “If you don’t put the gun down, I’ll mow these horses down,” one of them shouted.

I didn’t say anything. I moved to the side, and the man with the gun went down. Another ran across to another stall; I aimed, and he fell. A bullet pierced my chest, and I collapsed. The shooter emerged, laughing. I pointed my gun between his eyes and fired.

I woke up in the hospital. A neighbor had heard the gunshots and called the police. Joseph entered, shaking his head.

I’m giving you a month to recover. Don’t try to talk; it’ll hurt your chest. I know because I’ve had the same injury before. You were safer in Afghanistan. You’re all over the news.”

“I hope my parents don’t hear about it,” I whispered, wincing.“I told you not to talk,” Joseph admonished.

The door opened, and Lyon entered, along with a very large German shepherd. “Is this Niki O’Riley’s room?”

“Niki Bannon. She always changes her last name when she’s on a case. Who are you?” Joseph asked.

Lyon turned to me. “I know you. You saved my life when I was fifteen, in an alley where some older guys were trying to kill me. You were wearing a wig and contact lenses in Afghanistan.”

“She wore the wig because someone told her men in that country would shave her red hair and keep it for their wives. Since she had black hair, she decided to have dark eyes,” Joseph explained. “Nice dog.”

“Thanks.”

“Lyon, push him aside and sit next to me,” I said, clutching my chest. “It hurts when she talks. The bullet went into her chest and one in the leg. But she killed all the bad guys.”

“Goodbye, Joseph”

“Stay out of trouble for a month. Then come back to work. Call me if you need anything.”

I nodded, then turned to Lyon, placing a pillow on my chest. “I can’t believe it’s you. I’ve often thought of you, wondering if you survived the inner city of Los Angeles.”

“I’ll do the talking; you rest. Fighting those boys toughened me up. As you suggested, I worked for a man who taught martial arts for free. I learned to defend myself and pursued an education, knowing I wanted to join the Army Special Forces.”

“I’m so proud of you, Lyon. I thought you were around eleven; you were so small.”

He chuckled. “I was fifteen. I finally started growing in my senior year of high school. I told my friends about you. Seeing you kick those guys’ asses made me determined to do something with my life. I owe you for that. Plus, I had a huge crush on you.”

“Oh yeah? Well, I had a massive crush on you. With all that beautiful blonde hair and those sexy smokey blue eyes, even though they were swollen. That’s why I kissed your cheek. Max yelled at me all the way back to Grandma’s house for that.”

“I’ll sit here for a while; you rest,” Lyon said.

“What’s your dog's name?” I whispered.

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