Page 17 of Nuclear Option (Owens Protective Services)

“Hey,” I smiled down at her.

“What happened?”

“What’s the last thing you remember?” I asked as I sat down beside her.

Her brows furrowed, making a cute line between her eyes. “A car chase, I think…We were leaving my aunt’s house.”

“Nothing after that?”

She shook her head. “Should I remember something else?”

Shit, that was a loaded question, and if she knew how she reacted to the medication, she’d probably be mortified. “Nothing much. We got you to the hospital and you had surgery on your shoulder. The doctor said you should be feeling better in no time.”

She glanced down at her arm that was still in the sling. “It feels numb.”

“Yeah, you’re on a lot of medications.”

She yawned, her eyes drooping. “I feel so sleepy.”

“Get some rest. We’re safe.”

I could tell she was still heavily under the effects of the medication, otherwise, she would be fighting me to know every last detail. I leaned forward and kissed her on the lips, but she was already drifting back off to sleep.

“You ready to fill us in on what the fuck you got us into?”

I stood and walked to the door, glaring at Jack as he leaned casually against the doorframe. “Stay away from her. She doesn’t know you, and she’s not the kind of woman you fuck with.”

“Because she’ll kick my ass?” he smirked.

“Because she’s already been through too much shit,” I snarled, closing the door behind me as the smile slid from his face. “Let’s go downstairs so she can rest.”

I made my way downstairs, taking the drink Rae was holding out to me. I needed it after the shit we’d been dealing with. Taking a seat in an armchair, I waited for everyone else to join us.

“So, what’s the deal with your girl up there?” Johnny asked. “Is she some senator’s daughter, or something?”

“Not at all. She’s a nobody really.”

“Then who the fuck is after her?”

I swallowed the rest of my drink and looked at all of them. “The governor of California.”

New Guy snorted on a chuckle. “What the fuck does he want with her?”

“What I’m about to tell you could get you all killed. I don’t have all the details yet. We were interrupted before she could tell me everything.”

“Fuck, I love it when stories start out like that,” Jason grumbled. “Nothing gets the blood flowing like being told you’re about to die.”

“Her name is Eva, but you know her as Beth,” I said to Rae. “She was living out in California years ago. She brought her friend to southern California one day and on the way home got lost and ended up on someone’s farm. Except, it wasn’t a farm, and she figured that out just a little too late.” I stood and walked over to the bar, pouring myself another drink. “Governor Walton has been working with drug distributors, bringing them across the border, and using the state’s money to fund his enterprise.”

I turned and faced them all, not at all surprised by the shock on their faces.

“Wait,” Jack shook his head. “You’re telling us that the governor of California is not only dirty, but funding the cartels?”

“Not the cartels…At least, not as far as I know. From what I understand, he’s providing safe passage for the cartels, and they bring the drugs to this distribution center. The farm.”

“Why didn’t they just kill her?” New Guy asked. I glared at him and he held up his hands. “No, hear me out. If they’re after her, that means they know she overheard something. Why not just kill her and end it?”

“She recorded it. She has both photos and video evidence that place Walton at the scene, and his own words condemning him. From what I understand, she uploaded them to the cloud. They either don’t know or can’t access the information.”

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