Page 68 of Heated Rivals
* * *
Carrigan saw the blood on James’s face and pulled the trigger on the Taser to deliver another devastating bolt of electricity to the little shit on the ground. She held the button down, wishing it was something more permanent. And then James was there, pulling her away from the man and into his arms. “What areyou doing here?”
“Saving your ass.” She clung to him, trying to process the fact that they hadn’t been too late. He was okay. A little bruised and bloodied, but he was alive. “God, I was so worried about you.”
The only warning she got was his arms tightening around her, and then James dragged her to the ground. Gunfire sounded, too close. She twisted around but, pinned between the ground and his body, she couldn’t see anything. “What’s happening?” She smacked his chest. “Get off me.”
“Not yet.” He did lift up a little so she could breathe. “You didn’t come alone?”
“No. I have Teague and Cillian and some of the Sheridan men with us.”My brothers. She rolled over, and squirmed to get out from beneath him. “I need to get to my brothers.”
James kept her pinned easily, and he’d pulled a gun from somewhere. Their position left their right side shielded by the van, but they were seriously exposed out here. He must have been thinking the same thing because he wrestled his free arm beneath her and started hauling her back toward the vehicle. “We’re getting the fuck out of here.”
She wanted him safe, but she was still hearing gunshots. “My brothers are out there.” And so was Callie.If something happens to one of them because of me…She hadn’t thought of the cost when she’d argued and bullied them into coming with her. All she’d been thinking of was how desolate her world would be without James in it. She struggled harder. “Let me go.” This was a mistake and not a mistake and, oh God, she needed to dosomething.
He climbed to his feet, taking her with him. “Where are they?”
She pointed at the approximate place she’d left her group. They’d been moving slowly, but she’d slipped away, determined to get to James before it was too late.Stupid, selfish bitch. “Around that building.”
“I’ll go.” He opened the passenger door and shoved her in before she could protest. When she tried to climb out, he stopped her with a hand on her chest. “Carrigan, there are twenty terrified women in the back of this van. We can’t leave them.”
We. She stopped fighting him, her breath coming too fast. “I love you.”
“I know.” He kissed her, quick and brutal. “There’s a gun underneath the seat and the keys are in the ignition. If I’m not back in ten minutes, you get the fuck out of here.” He slammed the door before she could respond, leaving her with only the sound of her heart pounding and her harsh breathing.
Stay safe while everyone around her put themselves in danger?No fucking way. She scrambled over to the driver’s seat and cranked on the engine. She couldn’t just sit here and hope for the best. She had todosomething. Carrigan froze when someone wailed in the back portion of the van.This is about more than me. She turned and muscled open the window panel looking back into the rest of the vehicle… and promptly stopped breathing. There were so many women back there, she couldn’t even start to count them. Several of them were crying.Oh God.
If she hauled ass after James, someone could shoot the van. If it was just her, she wouldn’t think twice about making that choice. But if she got some of these women killed because she couldn’t take orders… Carrigan gritted her teeth.Ten minutes. I can wait ten minutes. She tried to make her voice as reassuring as possible. “It’s okay. You’re safe now.” They wouldn’t believe her—if she was in their position,shewouldn’t believe her—but she repeated the words all the same. “You’re safe. Just hang in there for a little longer.”
Then she turned around and settled down to wait, her gaze on the clock in the dashboard.
* * *
James moved through the snow, his gun cold in his hand. He still couldn’t wrap his mind around the fact that Carrigan washere, and she’d brought reinforcements. God, he loved the fuck out of that woman.
He followed the sound of gunfire, skirting the edge of a warehouse. The weather made it hard to see more than a few feet in front of him, and he was doubly glad he left Carrigan back at the van. She’d keep the women safe—and herself safe in the process.
A man stumbled out of the darkness and went to his knees. James didn’t rush forward immediately, checking the surrounding area to make sure he was alone. It was only when he stalked closer than he saw it was Carrigan’s younger brother—the one with the fancy duds and tattoos. Cillian. He clutched his side, rolling onto his back with a harsh gasp that told James he was hurt, and hurt badly.
He went to his knees next to the man and spoke softly. “Cillian.”
“Halloran.” He cracked open his eyes. “Karma is a bitch, isn’t it?”
James didn’t know what the fuck he was talking about, but he patted the man down, constantlyscanning the surrounding area. The not-so-distant sound of gunfire hadn’t stopped, and it was only a matter of time before someone saw the blood trail Cillian had left behind and came to investigate. He touched the man’s shoulder and cursed softly when his hand came away wet. “Kid, I think you’re shot.”
“That’s… what I meant about karma.”
Fuck. “You’re not dying on my watch.” There hadn’t been a damn thing he could do to stop his men from killing Carrigan’s other brother. But hecoulddo something about this one. She’d already suffered enough. He shrugged out of his coat and yanked off his shirt, wadding it up and pressing it against Cillian’s bleeding shoulder hard enough to make the other man hiss. “Hold this.” He put his hands over the shirt and sat back, taking precious seconds to pull his coat back on.
A voice sounded close—too close. “I think he went this way.”
“Let’s get the little bastard.”
If their Russian accents weren’t enough to go by, their words would have been. James sent a silent prayer of thanks to the weather gods for the cover the snow offered. If it weren’t for that, he’d be a sitting duck right here next to this wall.
Two figures melted out of the gloom. One of them must have seen him because they cursed in what he figured was Russian. That was all he needed to know. He sighted down his gun and fired once, twice, a third time, dropping them both. His finger hovered on the trigger as a third man appeared, but the guy held up his hands. “Not one of Romanov’s men.”
Teague. James set his gun aside. “Getyour ass over here. Your brother’s been shot.” The man had passed out sometime in the last fifteen seconds, and the light coating of snow on the ground around his shoulder was stained red.Goddamn it.
