Page 23 of Line of Fire
“Tell me why your wife left you, Travis,” Aaron almost whispered. He watched as his old buddy fought the emotions that were flooding back. He almost felt bad for the guy. Almost.
“Once I could talk, I asked for my wife and kids. So much time passed that I wasn’t sure they would even come. They thought that I was dead—they had a funeral and buried an empty coffin. But they did come to see me in the hospital, and I was so happy to see them.” Travis’s arms began to lower, and the gun was pointing towards the ground. Aaron needed to keep him talking.
“What happened next?” Travis ran one hand through his hair and took a few steps back from Aaron.
“The pain was too much—I had to take those pills that the doctor prescribed. I had no choice, but my wife didn’t believe me. She told me that I chose those pills over her, said that Ichanged.” He barked out a laugh. “She was the one who fucking changed. She moved on and even found herself a boyfriend. That bitch took my kids away from me after I worked so hard to find my way back to them.” Travis stood hopelessly before him, a broken shell of a man, and Aaron realized that the fire five years ago destroyed all their lives.
“It doesn’t have to be like this, Travis. That fire fucked all of us over, but you don’t have to do this.” Aaron knew that he was grasping at straws, but he had no other choice. He wanted to hold Sunny in his arms again and marry her. He wanted to watch his daughter grow up—giving up was not an option.
“I have nothing left,” Travis muttered. The gun now dangled in his hand by his side, and Aaron saw that as his chance. He pulled his gun from his back waistband and pointed it at Travis. The surprise showed clearly on his face. “Well played, Aaron,” Travis almost sounded impressed. “So now what? We just stand here, both pointing our weapons at each other until one of us gives up? I have nothing to lose, Aaron, but you do.” Travis pulled his cell from his pocket, still aiming his gun at Aaron. He hit a button and put the call on speaker. “Remember my text? I told you that I took precautions. I’m calling in that favor now.” Travis’s cell phone continued to ring, and finally, a woman answered.
“Hello, who is this?” Aaron’s heart beat faster at the sound of Sunny’s voice. She was alive, and that was all that truly mattered. He breathed a sigh of relief.
“Who the fuck is this? Where is Clint?” Aaron didn’t hide his smirk. His girl figured out that Clint was the rat, and Tag took him down.
“I think she figured out who your ‘precaution’ was, Travis,” Aaron laughed.
“Oh my God, Aaron. Is that you?” Sunny’s voice cracked, and he didn’t have the heart to lie to her and tell her that everythingwas okay. “I’m here, baby. My old friend Travis and I are having a little talk. I’m sorry that I didn’t tell you that I was leaving. I just wanted to keep you and Sadie safe. I love you both so much, honey,” he shouted, hoping that she would be able to hear him.
“Oh, Aaron,” she sobbed. “We love you too.”
Travis growled, “If you two don’t mind, I’d like to get on with this. So, you have Clint? Well, that changes things a bit. When I get done here with your boyfriend, I’m going to pay you and that baby of yours a little visit.” Aaron barked out a laugh, drawing Travis’s attention.
“There is no fucking way you will ever touch either of them. I have them protected, and you won’t get near them.” Aaron saw the flash of anger cross Travis’ face. He was starting to realize that he couldn’t win and that could make him even more desperate.
“Aaron don’t do—” Travis growled and pushed the end button, cutting off Sunny’s words, and then slipped his cell back into his jacket pocket.
“Enough,” he shouted. Aaron knew that Travis was ready to make his move. It was going to come down to who was faster at pulling the trigger. Aaron didn’t see any other way around it. “I’m done with all of this. You have been a pain in my ass for too long now. Any last words?” Travis waited Aaron out.
“Well, I have a couple of words I’d like to throw in if Aaron’s at a loss,” Sawyer said. He stood behind Travis, a shotgun pointed at his back.
“Thank fuck,” Aaron breathed.
“How about you gently drop that gun, Reid?” Sawyer nudged his back with the barrel of his gun, letting him know that there was no way out. Aaron held his breath waiting for Travis to make a decision. He was still in the line of fire and knew that Travis could still take him out. “What’s it going to be, Reid?” Sawyer barked. Travis sighed and tossed his gun to the ground.
“You know that I’ll be back, right, Aaron? They won’t put me away forever, and when I get out, I’m coming after you and your family. This isn’t over,” Travis promised.
Aaron laughed, “Oh, it’s over, friend. You see, the entire time we were talking, I had you on speakerphone with Sawyer here. He heard your confession about killing Billy’s family and Ted. You’re not getting out in this lifetime.” Sawyer pulled Reid’s hands behind his back and cuffed him. A team of FBI agents swarmed in on the three of them, took Aaron’s gun from him, and secured the area. “The main house needs to be secured,” one of the agents barked. “A woman was shot and is being treated on site.” Sawyer and Aaron looked at each other, panicked. They took off for the ATV that showed up after Travis was secured. They jumped on the vehicle and headed back to the main house. Aaron needed to make sure that his family was safe, and then they could finally put this nightmare behind them.
Sunny watched as Aaron and Sawyer ran through the front door. Her arm was in a sling, but she refused pain medication because she wanted to continue to feed Sadie. She was relieved to see that Aaron was in one piece, but the anger that she felt when she realized that he had walked away from her again replaced her worry. He strode across the room and pulled her into his arms, causing her to yelp in pain.
“What happened?” he growled and looked accusingly at Tag.
His best friend shrugged. “Your girl couldn’t take a hint and stay behind me. When Piper hit Clint in the head with a frying pan, his gun discharged, and the bullet grazed Sunny’s arm.” Aaron growled in frustration and pulled her into his side.
“Does it hurt? Why are you not at the hospital?” Sunny pulled free from his embrace, needing some space. She so badly wanted to take the comfort that Aaron wanted to give, but she couldn’t forget that he had left her and Sadie again. If he didn’t understand that they were a team, that they needed to make decisions together, what kind of future would they have?
“The EMTs stitched me up and I’m fine. Besides, both of us couldn’t abandon our daughter.” She didn’t miss the confusion that flashed across Aaron’s face. “Sadie needed at least one of her parents to stick around and not go off on a fool’s mission,” she spat.
“Now, wait a damn minute, Sunny—” Aaron barked, but she wasn’t about to listen to him lecture about how he was doing what he thought was best for all of them. She knew that she wasn’t up for a fight; in fact, she was feeling completely worn down. She needed a bath, and then she wanted to sleep for days. But first, Sunny needed to do the hardest thing she would possibly ever have to do—tell Aaron goodbye.
“Aaron, this isn’t going to work,” she interrupted. “I just can’t let you in my or Sadie’s life knowing that you can so easily walk away from us. I won’t stop you from seeing your daughter; I just won’t let you hurt either of us again.” Anger and hurt replaced confusion on his handsome face, and God, she wanted to wipe both expressions away. But she needed to stand firm. She had to do this, not only for herself but for her daughter. She took off the engagement ring that he had given her hours earlier and slipped it into his hand. Aaron didn’t make a move; he just stood frozen in place, looking down at his open palm with the ring resting in the middle. Sunny turned away from Aaron.
“Pipe, would you and Tag mind if Sadie and I crash at your place for a couple of weeks? I promise we will be out as soon as I can find a place to live. I just can’t move back to my parents’ farm right now.” Piper looked at Tag, and he reluctantly nodded.
“If you and Sadie need a place to stay, then you are always welcome at the cabin,” Tag almost whispered. Aaron growled and stormed past Tag and out the front door.
“Are you sure you want to do this, Sunny?” Piper looked so worried. Sunny pulled her in for a side hug, needing the contact. Honestly, she wasn’t sure about anything right now. She did know that she couldn’t give her heart to a man who might decide to up and leave at any moment. She wouldn’t let herself be hurt again. But watching Aaron storm out of the house nearly gutted her. She wanted to follow him out to the porch and ask him to forget everything that she just said, but that wouldn’t make things any better.
