Page 28 of Leading Conviction
“Thomas, please answer me. Do you think he’s—”
“He’ll be fine!” Eagle snapped, horrified at his own thoughts. Shock and hurt flattened her full lips into a thin line and he sighed. “Seriously, he’ll be fine, Hannah. I swear.”
That thought had been a fluke. A disgusting mistake of an idea only a total monster would think. He hoped to God he wasn’t lying to Hannah and Hawk was fine. Eagle fought the urge to go back in and find his best friend, but if something happened to Hannah, Hawk would never forgive him. Hell, he’d never forgive himself.
The idiotic alarm still instructed civilians to “please calmly and safely” escape a fuckingactiveshooter, but at least it was muffled behind the stadium walls. The one siren had become many and they now seemed to be all around them.
Stress bunched the muscles in his shoulders and his fingers gripped the gun tighter.
“Thomas, what if—”
Eagle shushed her just as the employee doorclickedand cracked open. He grabbed Hannah’s arm and slung her behind him before aiming the pistol.
A tall, broad figure emerged from behind the steel door and Eagle’s shoulders slouched with relief.
“Hawk!”
“Han—”
Hannah sobbed as she shoved past Eagle and flung herself at Hawk, wrapping her legs around his waist. He clung to her and threaded his hand through her thick raven hair, holding her tight.
“You’re okay, baby,” he whispered. The obvious relief in his deep timbre tightened Eagle’s chest. “You’re okay. We’re okay.”
“Who were those people? Where are they now? Are… are they dead?” Her watery voice muffled as she snuggled farther into Hawk’s embrace.
Hawk’s eyes caught Eagle’s over the top of her head. Resolve and heartbreak hardened Hawk’s jaw.
“We’ll talk about it when we get home, dove. Right now, we have to go.”
“Don’t you need to talk to the police?” she asked as she pulled away to search his face. The steady wail of sirens seemed to punctuate her question.
“I’ll explain later,” Hawk answered as he released her from his grasp, but he kept her hand in his as his focused gaze narrowed on Eagle.
“I need to get Hannah home. Call who you need to in order to get all this straightened out.”
“Copy that,” Eagle answered, not caring that his second-in-command was giving him orders.
He understood the sorrow and determination on his friend’s face. The man’s mind was made up and while Eagle understood what Hawk had to do, understanding didn’t make reality less heartbreaking.
They were already in danger and MF7 hadn’t even left the Atlanta base. General Smithers was right.
Hawk was trapped in MF7 until their contract was over, maybe even afterward, too, depending on how many enemies they made and how successful they were at getting rid of them. And General Smithers had made it clear he would press charges for desertion if Hawk quit or ran away.
Despite the new ring tying them together, Hawk would have to sever the cord to keep Hannah safe from their job.
Then, as much as Hawk would hate it, he would have to leave her behind. She would be a loose end.
And loose ends get cut.
CHAPTERTWELVE
Present Day
One of the things Hannah had to come to terms with when she went on the run was that her son snored.
Loudly.
She’d been fortunate enough to always find two-bedroom apartments and houses within her budget to rent. But those first few weeks of hotel hopping had been pure torture, in large part because she’d been exhausted as hell thanks to her little lumberjack sawing logs in the same room.
