Page 66 of Built of Illusions

“She’s been shot, Mitch. Shot. Get your ass up here and fix it.”

Josie almost rolled her eyes. The pain was shooting up and down her thigh but it didn’t feel like anything too serious. She grabbed Nico and tugged him to sit beside her, then she cupped his face in her hands. “I’m fine. I promise. I just don’t want to fall from the tree. Now, tell me you’ve got Nelson in custody.”

Mitch was leaning on the platform and had taken out his first aid kit. He opened the flashlight app on his phone and held it out. “We’ve got the bastard. Take this Josie. You’re the calmer one here and I’d like the light to be steady.”

A laugh choked out of her and Nico swore again. When Josie turned the light onto her leg, he leaned over, but stayed out of Mitch’s way.

Josie decided to let the two of them handle it and leaned her head back on the trunk again.

“That’s a lot of blood. We have to get her to the hospital. To a doctor. Stop the bleeding, Mitch.”

Mitch chuckled softly. “Never thought you were a drama king before, Nico. From what I can see, the bullet went through the outside of your thigh, Josie. You’ve got a gouge, but it hasn’t hit an artery or anything dangerous. I’m going to wrap it tight for now and we’ll get you out of the tree and up to the lodge where I can take a better look and clean it.”

Nico squeezed Josie’s hand tightly enough she thought it might go numb. “I’m sorry, Josie, I’m so sorry.”

Emotions balled up her in throat and she swallowed hard. “Not your fault, Nico. I’m the one who insisted on being here.” Because she’d wanted to feel part of the team, wanted to be useful. “I’m the one who’s sorry. You were right. I should have stayed out of the way at the lodge. I was useless here and now I’m a liability.”

Mitch’s hands were gentle as he wrapped her leg, but his voice was hard. “Bullshit.”

Nico swore as well and then blew out a deep breath and then another. “Okay. I’m calm now. And I echo Mitch. Bullshit. Absolute bullshit.”

“But—”

He cut her off. “No. You’ve been nothing but helpful on this case. You’ve pointed us in the right direction time and time again. Hell you figured out the patterns he was following. Without you, we wouldn’t have the asshole in custody.” He framed her face with his hands. “You are the most amazing woman in the world, Josie. I love you.”

Her eyes flooded with tears but she couldn’t contain the smile. “I love you, Nico. So damn much.”

He leaned in and kissed her with enough passion to fill up all the cracks in her soul.

Then Mitch cleared his throat. “I’m all for declarations of love and I totally agree that you’re amazing Josie. Although Bella’s my most amazing woman in the world. But maybe we could save the mushy shit until we get you out of the tree.”

At least the darkness covered Josie’s flaming face as they all laughed.

In the end, it was easier than Josie expected to get down, with Mitch one step ahead of her and Nico never letting her go. Bella and Joe waited in the clearing. The rest had gone ahead and taken Nelson to the lodge.

That stopped Josie in her tracks—literally. She’d refused to let Nico carry her but he and Joe were both helping her along. “I don’t know if I can handle seeing him.”

“Then you won’t.” Both Joe and Nico spoke at the same time.

Joe tugged her arm to get her moving again. “They’ve decided to hold him in the mudroom for the time being. He’s handcuffed, shackled, and under guard. We need Mitch to check him over before we transport him to Bedford. Sam was already on the phone with the lead agent there.”

Nico squeezed her waist. “Shanice Williams is an excellent agent. Being the nearest FBI office, she’s been in the loop for a while now. We’ll get him straight there and under secure lock and key.”

A shudder ran through her. “Then it’s over?”

Joe laughed. “Well, there’s the shit-ton of paperwork and trial prep and the trial itself, but yeah. It’s over.”

Over.

Another shudder ran through her as they approached the lodge. Instead of heading straight to the back door, they moved around to the front deck. Once they were up the stairs, Joe kissed her cheek. “It’s over, Josie. You’ve probably got a minute or two before Mitch will need to check out that leg.”

He moved inside, leaving Josie and Nico standing in the growing light as dawn finally reached over the lodge to light the trees across the lake.

Nico wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly. She felt his body tighten in a spasm and he buried his head in her shoulder. “I thought I’d lost you. When Tansy said you needed help, I thought I’d lost you.”

“I’m okay.”

“I know. You’re so much tougher than you look and you really are amazing. But I don’t think I’ve ever been as scared as I was in those few seconds when I didn’t know.”

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