Page 42 of Silverstorm

Then he became all efficiency. “Keep an even pressure on the wound,” he commanded, taking the corner of one of the blankets and folding it to use as a pad to cover her wound and then helping her put her hand back over it. He shook out the other blankets and covered her with them, tucking them in around her body like she was a child. “I’m not leaving you,” he declared, and she sat up straighter, worried that he was about to do just that. “I’m going to see if they have a first aid kit in the back.” He glanced over into the rear compartment, which Aria already knew contained all kinds of camping paraphernalia, so perhaps he was right, there might also be a first aid kit.

“Okay,” she replied, her voice coming out much stronger than she actually felt.

He slipped out the door; and then she heard the rear door open, letting in a stream of cold air. A few moments later, she heard a loud grunt of triumph and the door closed again. Aria expected Jude to climb straight back in beside her, but she watched his blurry form as he paced past the side windows, head lifted and eyes searching the surrounding forest, looking for Parker. Which was probably a sensible thing to do, but Aria just wanted him back by her side. Feeling in her feet and hands was beginning to return, and they burned like they were on fire. She was still shivering, and she burrowed deeper into the blankets as she waited for what felt like an eternity but was probably only a few minutes. Until the car door opened again and there he was, larger than life, solid, and real.

He clambered back in and retrieved the first aid kit from inside his jacket, pulling out gauze padding and bandages. “I think I hit him,” Jude said, opening a packet of gauze with his teeth, then gingerly lifting her hand to take another look at her wound. “There’s blood in the snow farther up the hill, but there’s no sign of him.”

Aria sat in silence as he worked on her, his fingers cold but gentle. Good, she thought savagely to herself. She hoped that horrible man died out there. It was such an uncharitable thought, and it hit her with such force that she was momentarily surprised. She’d never wished anyone dead before. But she wouldn’t take it back. No, she wouldn’t. That man had single-handedly destroyed her whole family.

Jude finished wrapping the bandage around her neck and said, “That should hold it for now.”

“Thank you,” she replied, her voice strangely small. “Hold me. Please.” She stared at him, needing to feel the reliable presence of his body close to hers to help her believe this was truly over.

He grabbed another blanket, the one Parker had been using in the front seat, and draped it over the both of them, pulling her lightly in beneath his shoulder. She laid her head on his chest and just breathed. He stroked her hair, his lips resting on the top of her head, careful to treat her gingerly to make sure he didn’t touch her bandaged neck. Emotion swelled within, and she found tears running down her cheeks.

“It’s okay, baby, I’ve got you. Cry as much you like.” His tender words were like a catalyst and the dam burst, her tears overflowing, sobs breaking out, so loud she could hardly hear him say, “I’ve got you. I’ve got you,” over and over. And she started shaking, big convulsions, as she dragged air in and out, trying to breathe through her bawling.

She knew it was all the stress, the shock of the past few hours, the height of emotions strung so tight while she’d been in fear for her life, perhaps mixed with pregnancy hormones, but she couldn’t seem to stop. Like she was crying for everything that’d happened over her life. For the loss of her mother when she was so young. For her shitty childhood spent with a distant, half-crazy father. For the way Beau had treated her so callously and wanted nothing to do with the child they’d created together. For the death of a father who she’d never get to know better, and then the death of her sister. Who knew what she and her sister could’ve become if they’d been able to repair the bridges they’d burnt? A family, perhaps? For the little person growing inside her and all the possibilities that represented. She cried for everything that’d gone wrong in her life up until now.

She knew they couldn’t stay like this forever, but she needed this time with him to recover, to reconnect, both with Jude and with herself. Should she be concerned that Parker might come back for them? Probably, but with an armed deputy by her side, she decided to let him worry about that.

Finally, her weeping subsided and she sat up straight, wincing a little when the movement tugged at her injury. Using the other corner of the blanket as a handkerchief, she wiped her streaming eyes and nose, trying to get herself back under control.

“I can’t believe you came to get me,” she said, leaning back so she could look into his face, not bothered that he saw her red eyes and blotchy face. “And how did you know where I was? I didn’t even know where I was,” she laughed. It was a feeble attempt, but it felt good. A different form of release to the tears.

“Yeah, well, I’m sorry it wasn’t the whole squad, but I couldn’t convince Brady about my hunch, so you ended up with just me.”

“And you were enough. Thank the Lord that you came.” That was her intrepid and courageous deputy, single-handedly braving an ice storm, putting his own life on the line to come and rescue her.

Jude went on to briefly fill her in on how he’d come to the deduction that the kidnappers would most likely stopover somewhere to weather the storm. He told her about the fortuitous call from Levi, and how he’d spotted the van from the other day, when Parker had first tried to abduct her, in a nearby rest stop. How he borrowed a truck from the lawyer who was supposed to be there to defend her and then driven the treacherous roads until he found the fire trail and the small clues Parker had left behind that only Jude might understand. No one in their right mind was out there driving in that storm, and yet Jude had done it for her.

“But I need to know. How did you just disappear from a fully guarded police station?”

“One of the sergeants, he took me out in handcuffs to the rear parking lot, and just handed me over.” Aria could still hardly believe she’d been betrayed by a corrupt cop. “He said something like, now his debt was paid. Then he mentioned a woman’s name. Stacy, I think.” At the time, she hadn’t really thought about it, but perhaps Parker was holding something over the sergeant to get him to do his dirty work. Not that Aria much cared. The guy was a police officer, he’d made a vow to serve and protect, and he’d broken that vow and put her in danger.

“Ha, I knew it. I knew it had to be an inside job.” Jude slapped his knee angrily. “Did you recognize him? Or can you describe him?”

“Yes, he was one of the sergeants who raided my house today. I think his name was McMurdo.”

Jude nodded as if he knew the name, then his gaze turned thoughtful, and he stared out the window for many long moments. “Don’t worry, he’ll be on the other side of that jail cell door by tonight. I’ll make sure of it,” he ground out from between gritted teeth. Then he added, almost in a mutter, “You hear about these fucking dishonest cops, but I can’t believe we had one in our midst.” The look of revulsion and disquiet on Jude’s face was unmistakable, and her heart went out to him. In the short time she’d known him, she’d discovered Jude was a stickler for the rules, and expected everyone else to abide by them, as well. Jude would hate to be tarred with the same brush, but it was almost impossible not to. One corrupt cop was all it took to paint everyone in law enforcement in a bad light.

Jude’s face softened as he looked at her. “Can I ask about the men who kidnapped you? Do you know why they did it?” he asked, his eyes crinkling at the corners with concern. Jude would’ve heard Parker say that she was his daughter and he would be wondering. Yes, Parker had told her things, but she still wasn’t sure if she even believed half of them.

She guessed she owed Jude the truth; she was going to have to tell all this to the police soon enough, anyway. “His name is Parker Gaudin,” she replied slowly. “And he’s my uncle.” The words were hard to say, her tongue almost refusing to form the words. “He said some things that confused me, that I don’t believe are true. He tried to make out that he was my biological father, and that Tango had somehow stolen my mother away from him.” She shuddered at the memory. “He also said the man out there, the one that you shot dead, was my brother. Not just my half brother, but my full brother. But there’s no way he could…” She stopped speaking, overcome by rage, mixed with a hint of doubt. There was no way Rocky was related to her. She was determined to prove it, too. She would ask for a DNA test, because she had to know for sure. She had to know where her heritage lay, as much for her unborn baby as for herself. And if, by some unimaginable act, it turned out she was related to him, then she’d bear the weight of that knowledge. But she was sure the results would be negative.

“I agree,” Jude said, stroking her hand beneath the blanket. “There’s no way you could be related to either of those two people. Parker was obviously as delusional as your father. I didn’t get a chance to delve into that cult we discussed, InXium, but I’m sure when we do, we’ll find an interesting story of two brothers mixed up in something from an early age.”

She nodded in agreement. “I think you’re right. I think my parents were deeply involved in that cult way before Iliana or I were born. And perhaps they left to keep me and Iliana safe.” She shrugged. If only her mother or Tango had been more forthcoming with information, all of this might’ve been prevented. “I do believe one thing Parker said, however. That he is my uncle, my father’s brother.” There must be a story woven into those three people’s lives, perhaps one of intrigue and passion, affairs and betrayals. One that she may never truly know. “I don’t really understand what Parker wanted with me, but he murdered three people to get to me, so it must have been important to him, at least.”

“Hmm,” Jude mused, still stroking her hand absentmindedly. His touch sent tingles up her arm, and her body came alive as much from him being near as from the thick blankets keeping her warm. “Hopefully, we can get to the bottom of all of this. Brady will definitely have to send a team down to Colorado to check it all out.”

“He’s not going to be happy that he was wrong,” Aria said, a cynical twist to her mouth.

“No, but that man needed to be taken down a peg or two,” Jude replied.

“Do you think he’s still out there?” Parker’s last words still echoed through her head. I’ll be back to get you one day. Was she still at risk? Would she be looking over her shoulder for the rest of her life?

“If he is, we’ll catch him.” Jude sounded so sure of himself. He pulled her closer, and she laid her head on his chest again, enjoying the feel of his muscular pecs beneath her cheek.

---