Redemption (Bennett Sisters Book 5) (21 page)

Chapter 22

Lydia
raised her hands above her head and arched her back. Then she rolled onto her side, into a large frame lying next to her. Her eyes jolted open
. Rick.

She threw one of her arms over his chest, snuggled into his side, and closed her eyes. She hadn’t recalled him coming back last night. She opened her eyes once again and looked around the unfamiliar room. Not her room but his. She blinked, her mind trying to figure out how she had come to be in bed with Rick.

She shot up into a seated position, and her hand flew to cover her mouth.
Marlaina.
The memories came flooding back.
Lydia
whispered, “Oh god, I shot her.”

Rick’s palm caressed her back. “Nice to have you back. How do you feel?”

Lydia
jumped from the bed and ran to the bathroom with her hand still covering her mouth. She slammed the door and locked it behind her, trying as she might to get the toilet seat up in time to dry heave.

Rick’s knuckles tapped lightly from the other side of the door. “
Lydia
, let me in. Are you all right?

Lydia
laid her head on her arms. “Just give me a minute and I’ll be fine.”

Rick was silent as if contemplating his reply. “I’ll just make you some coffee and toast. That should make you feel better.”

Lydia
pushed herself up and moved in front of the sink. She turned it on and cupped a handful of water and drank. She glanced up at her reflection. Her bloodshot eyes stared back at her. “Why me?” she asked her reflection. “Why is everyone trying to kill me? What did I ever do to deserve this?”

She pulled open the medicine cabinet and searched for mouthwash. “I’ve been a good person.” She glanced up at the ceiling. “Haven’t I?”

She poured some of Rick’s mouthwash into her mouth and gurgled.

He tapped on the door again. “
Lydia
, who are you talking to? Are you sure you’re okay.”

Lydia
spit the mouthwash into the sink and turned the knobs, letting the water wash it away. She unlocked and pulled the door open. “I’ll be fine. I just need some caffeine and some answers.”

She walked past Rick and out of the room.

“Do you remember what happened?”

Lydia
chewed the inside of her lip. The toaster popped, and she grabbed a napkin and pulled out a piece of warm toast and took a bite. She chewed and swallowed the only substance she’d had since yesterday afternoon. “She attacked me.”

Rick ran his gaze down
Lydia
’s body and lingered on her legs. “Are you bruised or hurt anywhere?” Rick reached for her with concern in his eyes.

Lydia
laid her toast on the counter and grabbed the coffee pot, filling both mugs. “Only my head hurts a little. It was a mental attack.”

He took the mug she offered. Jamie had told him as much, but that didn’t mean that it made any sense. “I don’t understand.”

She shouldn’t have expected that he would understand. Hell, she wouldn’t have had she not felt it herself. She grabbed her toast, and with coffee in hand, she moved to the little wood table that served as a dining room table.
Lydia
pulled out the chair and sat. “If felt like tiny needles stabbing my brain. I used every bit of strength I could muster against her and lifted the coffee pot. I was on the floor unable to stand and remembered the gun and what you said. While she was focused on the coffee pot I had hovering in front of her, I shot her and then passed out.”

Rick took a sip of his coffee “Did she say anything? Did she give you any clue what she could have been thinking?”

Lydia
shoved the last piece of toast into her mouth and rubbed her hands together, dropping the crumbs over her napkin “She said that I deserved what I had coming because of Brody. She planned on handing me over to Floyd.”

“It makes sense; she was jealous of you. She wanted you out of the picture. I’ve seen woman do more if they feel threatened.”

Lydia
pushed from the table and threw her napkin away.  She leaned against the counter. “What I don’t get is how she planned to get me out of here without being seen. Do you think she was working with someone else inside the compound?”

Rick rose from the table and walked over to
Lydia
. He pulled her into his arms. “I don’t know. Maybe the general has some more answers for us. He’s expecting us at eight in the conference room.”

Lydia
glanced down at her bare legs. “I can’t go anywhere looking like this, and I need a shower.” She looked at her watch. “I’m going to be late.” She looked up into his eyes. “Why don’t you go ahead and go?” She used her thumb to point back to his room. “I’m just going to take a quick shower, and then I’ll catch up to you.”

Rick shook his head. “I’m not going anywhere. Look what happened last time I left you by yourself.”

Lydia
patted his chest. “Suit yourself. You’re going to be late too.”

He kissed her forehead. “You’re worth it.”

Rick didn’t attempt to take a shower with her. Had he, they would have been a lot later getting to the meeting than they actually were. He was worried about
Lydia
and her safety. The looks people were giving her were some that he had a hard time deciphering. He couldn’t guess whether the other employees were mad at her or concerned.

****

Lydia
pushed open the door to the conference room. She had a lot of explaining to do and a lot to take in. She still couldn’t comprehend that Marlaina had hated her enough to hand her over to the one man who was after her.
Lydia
just wanted to go home. She wished that her life was simple and gift-free. At the very least, she wished she had more stability.

Lydia
eyed the people at the table. The general sat at the head. He radiated power even without any gifts. His presence alone ensured her cooperation. Brody’s brother, Ridge, was on his left.
Lydia
hadn’t spent much time with Brody’s twin, but she could immediately tell them apart. Maybe not from their looks, but their actions were completely different. Ridge tapped the eraser of the pencil on the paper in front of him. His sad eyes bored into her. She could feel the pity he had for her. Brody sat next to him, doodling on a piece of paper. If she had to guess, it was a woman’s body that held his attention. Briggs sat on the other side of the table with a scowl etched on his face, his unhappiness evident.

Jamie pushed away from where she’d been sitting next to Briggs. She approached
Lydia
. “How are you feeling?”

Lydia
could tell that the conversation had come to a halt when they’d entered. Rick’s palm on her back did little to soothe her nerves. Whatever they’d been discussing, Briggs didn’t much like, and that concerned her. “I’m feeling better.”

Lydia
pulled out the chair at the end of the table, opposite the general. “I guess you all want to know what happened?”

Everyone at the table turned to look at her as Rick sat beside her and Jamie returned to her seat.

The general nodded. “First, let me apologize. It has come to our attention that Marlaina has been giving information about you to an unknown informant since the day after your arrival. Cell phone and text messages have confirmed it. Had I ever expected that she was a threat, she would have been handled before I ever brought you here.”

From the corner of her eye,
Lydia
noticed Rick cross his arms over his chest.

Lydia
gave a slight nod. “It’s not your fault, general. I believe my friendship with Brody is what pushed her over the edge. I think in her mind she believed we were together.”

Brody snapped his head up and looked at her. “What?” he asked incredulously. He held up his palms. “I never, not even once, led her to believe that there was anything between the two of us, so forgive me if I don’t understand.”

“Must be all of that charm you exude,” Rick mumbled beneath his breath.

Lydia
kicked him under the table. Rick straightened in his chair and raised a brow in her direction. “Regardless, I was a threat she wanted to get rid of. She mentally attacked me and almost won.”

Ridge leaned forward, his gaze intent. “Where did you get the gun? I don’t recall the general saying that you were armed.”

Lydia
exchanged a look with Rick, and he nodded. “Rick gave it to me to protect myself, and I’m glad he did. If he hadn’t, I would be in the hands of that maniac, if not dead.”

Ridge wrote something on the paper in front of him. “Have you had any formal training with a weapon?”

Lydia
shook her head.

Ridge groaned. “Then it starts today, and I’ll train you myself.”

Briggs protested. “That’s not necessary. I’ll do it.”

Ridge narrowed his eyes at the silent giant. “And why is it that you don’t want me to train her?”

Briggs leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms over his chest. He lifted his index finger. “One, Thompson was taken while in the company of one of your command.”

Brody let his head fall forward.

Briggs lifted a second finger. “
Lydia
almost died trying to save him.” He lifted a third. “And one of your own tried to kidnap and / or kill her.” He dropped his fingers. “You’ll have to forgive me if I don’t want her to be alone with anyone of you until we catch this asshole.”

Rick let his arms rest on the table. “I have to agree. It wouldn’t be very diligent of us to leave her open for another attack.” Rick glanced at Brody. “Wouldn’t you agree?”

There were unspoken words between the two of them in that look, one she didn’t understand.

“I would never hurt her,” Brody growled. “Or let her be hurt by anyone.” He narrowed his eyes.

The general held up his hands. “All right, ladies and gentleman. I think it’s safe to agree that no one in this room would allow anything to happen to
Lydia
.”

“I’m not so sure about that,” Brody mumbled, and Ridge elbowed him.

The general stood and leaned over the table. “Is there something you would like to add, Connors?”

Brody glanced at Rick with hatred in his eyes. “Not at this time, sir.”

The general straightened. “Good.” He glanced at Briggs. “Briggs, you get to train her, but make sure she knows what she’s doing. We don’t often need range practice, so we just use the firing range in town. They’ll be expecting you.”

The general walked toward
Lydia
and placed his hand on her shoulder. “Since we don’t know if Marlaina was working with anyone in the compound, I don’t want you to go anywhere unless you are accompanied by someone in this room.”

Lydia
nodded. Trust was a bitch sometimes. Not knowing who was on her side made things difficult. She would have never thought that Marlaina would be capable of wanting to harm her, but she’d been wrong.
Lydia
glanced around the table. Who could she really trust of those sitting around her? Briggs and Rick. She’d liked to think that the other people around the table were her friends, but she’d made that mistake once, and it had almost cost her a price she wasn’t willing to pay.

Jaime stood and motioned for
Lydia
to follow her. “Let’s go get you some breakfast.” She glanced back at Briggs. “Come on, shadow. I know you’re always hungry.”

Briggs pushed from the table. Ridge followed behind them.

****

Rick stayed behind in the conference room with Brody. He wanted to reach over and strangle the bastard for implying in front of everyone that he had something to hide. The fact that he did was the only thing that stopped him.

Brody glared at Rick. “I don’t know what you’re hiding from her, but you better come clean before I find out what it is… and trust me I will.”

Rick lurched to his feet, and his chair went flying into the wall. Brody quickly got to his fee
t
but not fast enough for Rick to lift him off the ground and pin him against the wall by his shirt. “Are you threatening me?” Rick dropped Brody to the floor. He barely had time to catch his balance as Rick stepped closer. “Your threats don’t work anymore, or have you forgotten I’ve got this foreign crap running through my veins.”

Brody gave Rick a mental shove away from him, forcing his back to hit the table. “I don’t care what you’ve got in your veins. I won’t let you hurt her either.” Brody walked to the door and glanced back. “Time’s ticking, Romeo.”

Rick put his palms on the table and let his head drop. How had he let it get this far without telling her the truth? It wasn’t Brody’s fault; it was his own. Heck, he couldn’t even be mad at the arrogant man since Brody was trying to look after
Lydia
’s best interests.  If Rick were honest with himself, that was what he’d wanted all along. That was the reason for the talk in the hall before all hell had broken loose.