Extreme Measures (21 page)

“No, you wouldn’t give me money. There’s a big difference. The only reason why you refused me is because of Matt. You were more worried about your husband than your own brother.” Stuart coughed then spat on the floor. He moved farther to the right, enabling Erin to catch a glimpse of him. “And you knew Mom and Dad wouldn’t give me any more money just as you knew that’s where I’d go next.”

The words struck her like arrows to the heart, but he was right. She had known where her brother would go once she’d refused him. He’d been so angry with her, but she hadn’t thought anything of it. She’d seen him angry before, and he always calmed down after he’d gotten high.

“Come out and talk to me before I blow this woman’s head off!” Stuart screamed.

The nurse begged him to let her go, telling him she had children, and amidst her pleas, the other nurses wept, in fear for their own lives.

“I said come out!”

Erin stood, her gaze meeting Matt’s for one quick second before he reached the front of the circular desk. He wouldn’t let her get in the line of fire. Neither would the trio of armored cops coming up behind Stuart. No happy ending was in sight for her brother, but she needed him to hear her. Or maybe she just needed to hear the words spoken aloud before she could believe them herself.

“I didn’t put that knife in your hand, Stuart, and I didn’t tell you to kill our parents. That was all you. One horrible decision ended their lives and put you behind bars. That wasn’t my fault, and I won’t take the blame for it.”

“You could have stopped it! All I wanted was twenty dollars. It wasn’t like your husband didn’t make enough money. He could have spared that little amount.”

“Yeah, I could have.” Matt stood up, pulling the trigger almost simultaneously. The bullet caught Stuart between the eyes, and as the nurse fell away screaming, Stuart toppled over.

Surprised that her legs would function, Erin ran toward Matt, meeting him halfway. In his arms, she buried her face into the curve of his shoulder.

He lifted her, holding her tightly against his body. “I told you to stay put,” he whispered, his voice both strained and shaky.

“This was where I needed to be. With you.”

Matt unlocked the door to the hotel room and stepped aside so Erin could enter first. She had her arms wrapped around her waist as she walked past him. Her teeth hadn’t stopped chattering since she’d gotten into the car to leave the hospital.

Under ordinary circumstances, she would have stayed to be properly discharged, to sign all the appropriate paperwork. But Stuart’s death had locked down the entire seventh floor of the hospital, and after much arguing with the doctor in charge, Matt had finagled her release.

She’d been cleared medically once all the carbon monoxide had been flushed from her system anyway. It had just taken longer than the doctors had anticipated because of the amount that she’d been exposed to.

“How did Stuart escape the jail this time?” Erin walked to the window and pushed one curtain to the side. The parking lot was the only view, so she let the drape drop back into place.

“He got lucky. The jail served peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch, and he ate one.”

She breathed out slowly. “He’s allergic to peanuts.”

“And he was transported to the closest hospital…this one. The paramedics had no way of knowing this was off limits. He knew you would need to be hospitalized so I’m guessing he just bided his time and made his move when he had the chance.”

“He couldn’t have known I was still here, though.”

“Maybe not, but today was the only day the jail served peanut butter and jelly so he probably figured this was a risk he was willing to take.”

Erin shuddered and turned toward the bed. Nothing seemed right at that moment. She felt like she was on the outside looking in. Her legs trembled, and she hurried to sit as the images of the white sheet covering her brother’s body scrolled through her head like a bad movie reel.

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about the money.”

Matt let out an explosive breath. “Do you really think that matters now?” He dropped to his knees in front of her, his hands reaching for hers. “It’s over, Erin. All the bad stuff is gone now, and we don’t have to relive it any longer.”

She nodded, brought his hands to her lips, and kissed his knuckles. “When I saw you stand up in front of Stuart, and he had that gun in his hand, I couldn’t breathe.”

He joined her on the bed, wrapping one arm around her shoulders. “For a moment, I couldn’t, either. It’s never easy staring down the barrel of a gun. All you can do is pray and hope you’re the quicker shot.”

Her head dropped to his shoulder. “I don’t want to stay in Charleston anymore.” She lifted her face to his. “I think I’m ready to go home now.”

Matt stroked the hair away from her face, cupped her cheeks. “New York home?”

“Yeah, that one.”

His lips brushed hers, then settled in for a long, leisurely kiss. “New York missed you.”

Erin slid her palms up the wall of his chest, looped her arms around his neck. “Only New York?” Without giving him a chance to respond, she straddled him, pushing him back against the mattress and following through with another kiss that left them both a little breathless.

When she raised her head, his dark-eyed gaze slid over her face and down to her lips. “I missed you more than New York ever could.”

Erin hesitated, her hand capturing the frantic beat of his heart. “Do you think we can make this work, this time?”

Matt tugged her back down and rolled with her until his body covered hers. “There’s no doubt in my mind.”

“How can you be so sure?” She nibbled her lower lip while watching him smile.

“Because this time, I’m not walking away no matter how much you push me.”

“I won’t push.” She arched up to meet him halfway. “I’ll let you do all the pushing.”

“Now that,” he nipped her lip, “sounds like a workable plan.”

Dear Reader,

Thank you for your support in reading Extreme Measures. Without readers, I would not be able to continue to do what I love. I hope you enjoyed this book and that, even if just for a short while, I was able to transport you to a fictional reality.

If you could spare the time, I would greatly appreciate your kindness in leaving a review at Amazon.com, Goodreads.com, Barnesandnoble.com, or All Romance Ebooks.

To learn more about my other books, please visit my website at www.dawnrachel.com. Please feel free to connect with me at any of the sites listed below, and you can always send me an email at [email protected]. I try to respond as quickly as possible!

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Thank you again!

Best wishes,

Rachel Carrington

About Me

I started writing years ago, and my first attempt was a contemporary romance that will never see the light of day. I think I may even have thrown it away by now. It was absolutely horrific as I knew nothing about well…anything to do with writing.

After that, I started writing fantasy romances about wizards and wizards, and once those took off, I segued to paranormal romances (hello, vampires and ghosts) and romantic suspense. I also write articles for various magazines, including The Writer’s Journal, Writer’s Magazine, Writer’s Weekly, Writing for Dollars, Absolute Write, and Funds for Writers.

I’m fortunate to make my home in historical Charleston, South Carolina. Beautiful city. Beautiful people. When I’m not writing, I love to read, create videos, keep Target in business, play visitor in my city, and drink lots of coffee.

You can find me all over the internet, but here are just a few of the places. Please feel free to connect with me on any of them!

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Acknowledgments

A huge shout out to Denise Vance Fluhr, beta reader extraordinaire! She makes this job more enjoyable and is always willing to read through my books more than once to make sure I don't wander off the plot and into the weeds somewhere.

Also, a big thanks to Janet Snell, my second beta reader who has been a real God-send! She's a joy to work with, too!

I can't say enough about these two ladies. Before I had beta readers, I thought I didn't need them, and once they volunteered to read my books in advance, I quickly realized what I'd been missing all along, what my books had needed all along. So an enormous thank you to both!

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