Page 22 of Liberating Mia
Without paying attention to the woman huddling in the corner’s face, he indicated for her to remain quiet before stepping out into the open. Aiming his gun at the men hurrying toward him, Finn called out, “It’s over, Hunt. Lay your weapons down and then get those hands up nice and high, where I can see them.”
Dylan and Christoff stopped. While Christoff stared at him without moving, Dylan held his hands up in a conciliatory manner before reaching into his jacket for his gun. He made as if to lay it down, but in a swift move, he aimed it at the woman nearest to him. When Christoff made to repeat his boss’s play, Finn cocked his own and shook his head.
Turning his gaze back on Dylan, he said, “I wouldn’t do that if I were you. It makes my colleagues cranky when perps don’t listen.”
Instead of replying, Dylan cocked the Glock in his hand. The sound of a shot ringing out could barely be heard over all the noise going on around them, but Dylan dropped it without firing.
“Nice shot,” Finn said.
“Thanks, partner. I thought it was pretty good too,” Desai replied with a chuckle.
“Kick it to me,” Finn instructed Dylan, turning his attention back to the two standing before him.
With a sneer, Dylan kicked out, and the Glock clattered across the floor toward where Finn stood. In the split second he took his eye off them, Christoff went for the one he carried.
“Watch out!” Young shouted into the comms.
Looking up and seeing what Christoff was doing, Finn shouted for him to stop. This time, Christoff ignored him. Finn took aim and fired. He watched as the shot hit its mark but was perplexed when both men fell to the ground.
He rushed forward to find Christoff writhing on the floor, clutching his shoulder. Dylan, however, was a completely different matter. Finn could find no pulse. The man was dead, but who the hell had shot him?
He looked around, tracking across the area. Could find no one paying them any attention.What the hell?
“Either of you take a shot at Hunt?” he asked Desai and Young.
“Nope, not that I didn’t want to,” Desai replied.
“Not me, Finn,” Young said.
“Well, fuck me. The bastard’s dead, and I’m not the one who put a bullet in him.”
He saw his South African partner and their teammate coming down the aisle toward him. Both searched the area around them, as he had. Clearly finding nothing either, both stopped when they reached him.
Removing his face mask, Finn ran a hand through his hair. A gasp had him whipping around. The woman he’d warned to be quiet was now gripping the bars, staring at him as if she’d seen a ghost.
“Oh my God, itisyou.”
Recognition slammed into him. Finn stared into the beautiful eyes that had haunted his dreams recently. He couldn’t believe he’d actually found her. Momentarily at a loss for words, he stood staring, feeling like he’d gotten trapped in the twilight zone.
Chapter Sixteen
Holy Mother of Mercy, it’s him. Is it though? Is he a figment of my imagination? Did I conjure him? Surely, it’s him.
“Well, fuck me. The bastard’s dead, and I’m not the one who put a bullet in him.”
That voice. It had to be him. He took his protective mask off, running a hand through the hair she remembered had been sable-soft. She couldn’t prevent the gasp that escaped.
“Oh my God, itisyou.”
Three sets of eyes swiveled in her direction, but she was so focused on her mystery man she didn’t pay attention to the other two. As she drank in the sight of him, unbidden tears welled, obscuring her vision. She blinked rapidly, petrified that if she lost sight of him, he’d disappear like the figment she believed him to be.
But then she felt hands gently wrap around hers, gripping the bars, and looked up into that intense gaze she remembered so well. Her mind scrambled to grasp the situation. She’d prayed for a miracle, and here he stood – tall, handsome, and larger than life.
“Hey, Sugar. You okay?” he asked gently.
“I prayed for someone to rescue us. Then I prayed I’d somehow get to see you again. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine I’d get to see you again because you rescued us,” she whispered. “And I don’t even know your name.”
She listened to the rich, deep laughter of his amusement and soaked it in. She watched as he executed a slight bow from the waist. He never let go of her hands though. She was grateful for that, for the feeling of grounding it gave her.
