Scarlett smiled at him kindly. ‘You’re a fraud, Stone. You want everyone to believe you’re a Neanderthal, but there’s a good guy in there.’
The look he gave her was witheringly cold. ‘I’m no fraud, Detective. I’m not a good guy. I’m not a nice guy. Most of the time I’m not even a very smart guy. But I do love my family and I will do anything to keep them safe.’ He took a step backward toward the door. ‘If you want to help me look like a good guy, then keep Marcus safe. Please.’ Then he was gone, leaving Scarlett staring at the empty doorway, her mouth open but with no words to say.
Sadness welled up in her, then helpless rage. At least she’d been old enough to understand when she’d found Michelle’s body. Those boys had been traumatized as children so that some bastard kidnapper could get rich quick. Six and eight years old. She couldn’t imagine what it must have been like for them.
She gently pushed the thought of a traumatized eight-year-old Marcus aside, replacing it with the memory of the man who’d returned to that alley this morning, risking a scandal. Exposure. Maybe even prosecution, were his team’s activities to come to light – to the wrong person, anyway. All because he wouldn’t leave Tala Bautista alone in the dark.
This was the man she’d dreamed of for nine months. The man who was waiting for her right now. The man who made everything go tight and hot inside her every time she thought about the way he’d looked at her, like he could never get enough.
The man who wants to have me every way there is until I scream his name.
She was taking him home as soon as she cleared this hospital. She started down the hall, fishing her cell phone out to check her messages as she walked.
‘Detective Bishop?’
Scarlett looked over her shoulder to see Phillip’s surgeon coming up behind her. Her feet came to a cold stop. ‘Oh no,’ she whispered. ‘Please don’t tell me Phillip Cauldwell is dead.’
‘No, no. His condition is the same. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to frighten you.’ He pulled a small plastic bag from his coat pocket and handed it to her. ‘A bullet taken out of Mr Cauldwell’s abdominal cavity. I didn’t want to give it to you in front of his sister and co-workers.’
Yes. The bullet was mangled, but recognizable as the same type that Carrie Washington had taken from Tala’s body that morning. ‘Thank you, Doctor. I’ll get this to Ballistics ASAP. We may just have a match to this morning’s killing.’
Which still didn’t fit, she thought. Because Tala knew her attacker.
‘I thought you might say that, because whoever fired that bullet didn’t want it found. There were three gunshot wounds, the first two superficial. The one in Mr Cauldwell’s arm was a through and through, the other a shallow wound in his side where it had no danger of hitting anything important. That one had been dug out with a knife. The third bullet was the abdominal wound. There are deep gouges in Mr Cauldwell’s tissue, like his attacker had stabbed at the thing. I’m not sure what happened, but it looked like the shooter tried to dig it out and gave up.’
Scarlett smiled, grimly satisfied. ‘What happened was Phillip Cauldwell had already stabbed the shooter in the arm. He was bleeding and had to run.’
‘Good for Phillip Cauldwell,’ the surgeon said coldly. ‘Hopefully he took the bastard’s arm off.’
Scarlett lifted her brows. ‘You sure you’re not a cop, Doc?’
‘Marine Corps.’
‘Ah. Well thank you,’ she said, sliding the baggie into her pocket. ‘What are his chances, really? Please don’t give me the “twenty-four hours will tell” song.’
‘Before you told me he’d stabbed the guy, I would have said they were fairly lousy. But it looks like he’s a fighter, so better than lousy.’
‘Hey, better-than-lousy ain’t so bad. Thanks for the bullet.’ She gave him a wave and jogged down the hall to where Marcus waited.
Cincinnati, Ohio
Tuesday 4 August, 10.55 P.M.
Marcus was getting impatient, and a little worried. Scarlett had promised she’d only be a few minutes, but it had been much longer than that. He was tempted to go back to the little consultation room and make sure that she and Stone hadn’t taken swings at each other.
Instead he called his brother’s cell. ‘Where are you?’ he asked.
‘Just getting my car. Gayle said that she’s going to keep Jill with her for the night, so I have a temporary reprieve from babysitting. Why? Where are you?’
‘Waiting for Scarlett in the lobby. I didn’t see you go past.’
‘I parked at the ER entrance. Your detective and I didn’t have a knock-down-drag-out if that’s what you’re trying to ask,’ he said mildly. ‘I don’t know where she is.’
The tone of Stone’s voice when he mentioned Scarlett had changed, become . . . maybe not friendly, but not hostile either. Perhaps subdued. ‘Are you okay? You don’t sound like yourself.’
A little pause. ‘I’m okay. Listen . . .’ He blew out a breath. ‘She’s not Satan, okay?’
The statement caught Marcus by surprise and he choked on a laugh. ‘No, she’s not. Look, I’m not trying to get into your business, but after Phillip, I’d like to know where you are. Just in case whoever is trying to get to me tries to hurt you.’
‘I’m not Phillip,’ Stone said, no longer mild. He’d grown cold and angry again. ‘I can take care of myself every bit as well as you can. I don’t need you to babysit me.’
‘Okay,’ Marcus said cautiously. ‘Can you at least call in every so often so I know you’re okay? You can think about it as babysitting me, if you want to. Please, Stone. I need to know you’re okay.’ I’ve always needed to know you’re okay.
‘All right,’ Stone finally said. ‘I’ll call in.’
Marcus hung up unhappily and began pacing again, watching for Scarlett. He’d held it together for far longer than he normally would, but he was starting to get antsy, needing to get out of this hospital. Combined with his worry over Stone and the rest of his team . . . And his mother. He couldn’t forget about her.
He’d called her before he’d called Stone, to tell her about Phillip so she didn’t hear it on the news. Audrey had answered, her tone flat when she’d said Della had turned in early and couldn’t be disturbed. That usually meant she had taken a sleeping pill, or two or three. Or she’d had a drink or two. Or a whole fifth.
He and his sister had danced around the topic of an intervention, clashing once again when he’d come out and suggested they try to get their mom into rehab. Audrey still hoped she would pull out of it, and Stone wouldn’t even talk about it. God, we’re one fucked-up family. Marcus almost thought twice about bringing Scarlett into the drama, but he needed her too much to be so charitable.
Marcus was seriously considering going to look for her when she walked into the lobby, talking on her cell phone. Relief washed over him and he felt a smile spread over his face. He probably looked goofy and ridiculous, but he didn’t care. She was back and they could finally leave.
She paused mid-step, studying him with concern, but when he smiled, she smiled back. He swore his chest felt lighter, even though his heart had started to pound.
‘I’ll have it to Ballistics in fifteen minutes,’ she said into the phone. ‘I’m leaving now.’ She hung up and slid her phone into her jacket pocket. ‘You ready?’ she asked him.
‘More than ready. I was about to go AWOL, but I knew you’d worry.’
‘I would have,’ she said, then shocked Marcus by taking his arm and tugging him out of the lobby double-time.
‘What’s going to Ballistics?’ he asked as she all but dragged him through the parking lot.
‘A bullet,’ she answered. ‘Surgeon dug it out of Phillip.’
Her car was parked beside a tall SUV, and she surprised him again by dragging him to the driver’s side of the mammoth vehicle.
‘What are you—’
He got no further, because she pushed him against the SUV, wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into the hottest kiss he’d ever had. Her fingers tunneled through his hair, and she lifted on her toes as she licked into his mouth, making his already hard cock throb. The groan that rumbled through his chest was met by her frustrated little moan as she rubbed her hips against him, trying to get higher.