“I can hear you, baby,” he said hoarsely in-between his coughs. “Are you okay?”
“I’m fine.” She leaned over him and smiled at the worried look on his face. “You let me take care of you now, okay?”
He closed his eyes as she dabbed the cloth around his face. She noticed the blood coming from a series of cuts on his left side. “Looks like you got hit with something here.”
“I don’t remember,” he barely whispered. She could see it was painful for him to speak. She looked up at one of the neighbours who watched in horror. “Can you get him some water, please?” The woman nodded frantically and rushed towards her nearby house.
Kelsey turned Nick’s head to examine the injuries more carefully. With a sigh of relief, she realised he hadn’t been shot, but appeared to have some significant cuts and bruises. At a minimum, he was suffering from smoke inhalation, and she prayed the ambulance would arrive soon.
After grabbing a clean strip of cloth, she began gently wiping away the blood so as to get a better look at the cuts. When she brushed a little too close to his left eye, he groaned loudly and winced in pain. He continued to cough as he turned away, trying to avoid her touch.
“Nick. Can you open your eyes?”
His right eye opened without a problem, but she could see him struggle with the left. “Okay, okay, just hold on. Don’t force it.” She ripped a piece of her shirt and placed it over his left eye to protect it from any further injury. She then took a larger strip and wrapped it around his head to keep everything in place. “You might have something in there. Don’t try to open it until a doctor can take a look, okay?”
He nodded and continued to cough. The neighbour finally returned with a large bottle of water along with a couple of towels. Kelsey thanked the woman and gently placed one of the towels under Nick’s neck, propping his head back slightly to allow his airway to open as much as possible. After she helped him to drink some water to soothe his raw throat, she held tightly to his hand, having done all she could do until the ambulance arrived to transport him to the hospital.
The neighbour’s earth-shattering scream echoed through the night. Kelsey looked up just in time to see a man stumble around the corner of the burning building, his gun aimed directly at them.
“Anthony,” she said as her stomach dropped.
Nick turned his head in the direction Kelsey was looking and remembered the gun still attached to his ankle.
He rolled to his side, lifted his leg and drew his weapon as he tried to stifle his relentless coughing. He was weak, he was battered, and he was blind in one eye, but he prayed he’d be able to aim well enough to eliminate the threat. Kelsey’s life depended on it.
He’d barely lifted his gun when a shot rang out.
Chapter Forty
The scene played in slow motion as Nick lay helplessly on his side, his gun having fallen from his weakened grip. He looked up to see Anthony clutch his shoulder before another shot rang out, hitting the henchman square in the chest. With a muffled growl, Anthony’s hands fell to his sides and he slumped to the ground in an awkward heap.
When Nick knew the initial danger was over, he rolled towards Kelsey, wanting to protect her from the gruesome scene playing out before them. He was still unsure where the shots had originated, but he was thankful someone had taken Anthony out before anyone else had got hurt.
To his surprise, he turned to see her sitting straight up, a smoking gun held firmly between her trembling hands. The shock on her face was evident, as was the reaction of her body at what had just happened. Her chest heaved, and she focused solely on the wounded man lying across the yard.
“Kelsey,” he whispered as he lifted his hand to hers. He gently nudged her arms lower and spoke to her with a soothing tone. “It’s okay, baby. You can let go now.”
Her gasps came quickly and her grip didn’t loosen from the weapon she held, but she allowed him to point the gun away from them and engage the safety. “Kelsey? Look at me, baby, please?”
She finally looked at him, glassy-eyed, while he struggled to a seated position. “Nick?”
He nodded and finally pulled the gun from her hands. “It’s me, Kelsey. You’re safe now. Let me have it, okay?”
“He was gonna…” she choked out as the tears welled in her eyes.
“I know.”
“You said shoot first, right?”
His heart broke for her when he heard her voice. She sounded like a child trying to justify her actions. “And you did. You did exactly what you had to do, Kelsey.” His voice remained soft yet firm, though suppressing his cough was becoming difficult. “You saved me, Bright Eyes. You saved both of us.”
“But I… I think he’s dead,” she whispered.
Nick wrapped her into his embrace, still trying to catch his breath. The sound of the distant sirens told him help would be here soon, but it couldn’t be soon enough. “It’s okay, baby. It’s okay,” he repeated as he helplessly felt her weep.
He’d never been forced to take a life in his time as an agent, but his training had prepared him if the inevitable were to happen. Kelsey didn’t have any such training. In fact, her life had been spent taking the opposite path—healing people. He was sure she’d faced death, but she hadn’t prepared to be the one who caused it. He could only pray she would be able to live with the consequences of what she’d been forced to do.
“You did the right thing, baby,” he whispered in her ear as she cried on his shoulder. A split second later, he saw Timothy jog past them, gun in hand, and over to the man who’d just been taken down.
Comforting the distraught woman he now held in his arms, Nick turned them to see what was happening in front of the massive ball of flames that was once his house.
After kicking the discarded gun away from the unmoving man, Tim bent down to feel for a pulse. The slight shake of his head told Nick all he needed to know. The bastard was officially dead.
Nick looked back to the massive inferno, amazed at how quickly the house had succumbed to the powerful flames, and felt a huge weight lifted from his shoulders. It was finally over. Gianelli had been arrested and Anthony was dead. He was now free to do what he’d wanted to do since the moment they’d met—devote all his time and attention to Kelsey. After what had just happened, she would need no less.
He bent his head to look into her face when he realised she was watching Timothy as well. “Oh, God,” she cried. “He’s dead. I killed him.”
“No you didn’t, Kelsey,” Timothy said as he approached. “I killed him.”
Nick and Kelsey both looked at him in surprise as a handful of cars finally made it to the scene and numerous police officers began to swarm around. “Your shot hit him in the shoulder. It was my shot that killed him.”
Nick sighed in relief, causing another coughing spell to begin. His breathing was still laboured, but he refused to release his hold on the woman he loved.
“I didn’t kill him?” Kelsey asked incredulously as she pulled her head away from Nick’s chest.
“No, but your shot prevented him from shooting you or Nick. You did well, Kelsey. You saved the both of you,” Tim said as he knelt down.
The paramedics and fire department finally arrived with a loud roar of sirens that threatened to muffle Tim’s words, but Nick knew that she’d heard. She hadn’t killed him—had wounded him, but hadn’t killed him.
“Oh, thank God,” Nick wheezed between coughs. At least she wouldn’t have to live with the memory of killing someone, as justified as it was.
The paramedics rushed with a gurney to care for Nick, while another team hurried to Anthony. Kelsey released Nick only so they could prepare him for transport. She returned to his side after he was settled, clinging to his hand.
“Ma’am, let us care for him, please?” one of the paramedics asked gently. Her face was filled with concern, but Nick watched her reluctantly step back to allow them full access.
“Look at her, too,” Nick huffed weakly before they slid an oxygen mask over his face.
“We will,” the female paramedic answered. “You just relax.”
Nick nodded and closed his eye, finally feeling as if all would be okay.
“Kelsey!” Ronald shouted when he and Faith finally arrived. They ran immediately to her side. “Are you okay?”
Kelsey accepted her big brother’s hug, but didn’t leave Nick’s side. “I’m okay. Nick made sure I wasn’t hurt.”
Ronald gave her a little squeeze before releasing her into Faith’s urgent embrace. “Oh, I’m so glad you’re okay, sweetie.”
“I’m fine, Faith. I’m just concerned about Nick,” she replied with a sniffle.
“They’ll take care of him, Kelsey.”
“What about you, ma’am?” one of the medics asked. “Are you all right?”
“I’m fine.”
“Kelsey,” Nick mumbled from behind his mask. “You need to be checked.”
She returned to his side as the team prepared to transport him to the emergency room. “I’ll come with you and I’ll let them check me out at the hospital, okay?”
He nodded in satisfaction before they lifted the gurney into the awaiting ambulance. After giving one more hug to both Ronald and Faith, Kelsey climbed in behind Nick, holding tightly to his hand as he silently rested.
Timothy, Ronald and Faith all watched as one ambulance drove away and quietly waited until a second was loaded with the black body bag containing the remains of Anthony Portella.
A loud roar and a dozen screams pierced the night air as the house finally surrendered to the blaze, collapsing in a groaning pile of destruction. The fire crews evacuated the area, concentrating on extinguishing the flames now that the gas company had switched off the fuel supply. The three stood by and watched the remains of Nick’s house burn away.
“So what happened?” Ronald asked.
“Well, you know I got a text from Nick that said nine-one-one,” Tim answered.
“Yeah, that’s what you told us when you called,” Faith said.
Ronald and Faith listened intently as Tim gave them his version of everything that’d happened from the frantic phone call from Kelsey to the moment Anthony had been killed.
“Wait a minute, Kelsey shot him?” Ronald asked in disbelief.
“Kelsey shot him?” Faith repeated.
“Yes, she shot him in the shoulder, causing him to drop his weapon. I fired a second later, hitting him in the chest and killing him.”
“Kelsey shot him,” Ronald repeated. “My kid sister who used to lecture us on the dangers of guns?”
“Kelsey shot him,” Faith repeated with a broad smile. “You go, girl.”
“Who was this Anthony guy, anyway?” Ronald asked, ignoring his sister-in-law’s obvious pride.
“He was Gianelli’s right-hand man, and your all-around son of a bitch. He was a punk since birth, but over time became more and more dangerous. He has a history of drug dealing, coercion and battery, among many other entries on his rap sheet. He was brought up on a variety of charges over the years, but always seemed to get out of it one way or another. He was a thug, and fitted perfectly with Gianelli. In fact, rumour had it he was Vincent Gianelli’s illegitimate son,” Tim said, reciting the history of the deceased off the top of his head. He’d certainly studied it often enough.
“But you don’t think he is?” Faith asked.
“Nah,” Tim said as he shook his head. “As much of a scumbag as Anthony was, Gianelli would have been proud to announce him as his son. He wouldn’t have kept it a secret if it had been true.”
“So I guess it’s all over for you, then, isn’t it, Tim?” Ronald asked with a pat on Tim’s back.
“Yeah, I guess it is.” He smiled in relief and held his hand out to Ronald. “Thanks for your help, man. We couldn’t have done this without you.”
“No problem. It’s been a pleasure to take down a bastard like Gianelli. Thanks for helping take care of my sister.”
“Um, aren’t we forgetting something here?” Faith chimed in. “Bart is still sitting in solitary confinement because that bitch of a DA won’t let him go! What are we going to do about that?”
“Oh, yeah, the missing evidence,” Ronald said. “She’s gonna be a tough one to get past, even after we explain everything to her.”
“I wouldn’t worry,” Tim said. “I’m sure she’ll release your husband.”
“You think so, huh? Have you met her? Shakespeare’s Shrew has nothing on her,” Faith said in disgust.
Tim laughed at the description. “Come on, let’s go make sure everyone is okay at the hospital and I’ll help you make sure the bitch, I mean the DA, understands.”
Chapter Forty-One
The sun was just starting to peek over the horizon when Nick was finally situated in his room in University Hospital. His night had been spent undergoing a battery of tests with a very worried Kelsey waiting close by. He was exhausted, so it wasn’t surprising that he fell asleep before the nurses even left his room.
Kelsey had allowed the attending physician to check her over once they’d arrived. He’d recommended that she go home and rest, but she wasn’t going anywhere without Nick. Many of the hospital staff knew her, and were familiar with her stubborn nature, so no one had tried to fight her. She’d made it clear she wasn’t about to leave.
The view from Nick’s window was breathtaking as she watched the sky fill with different shades of pinks and oranges. It was going to be a beautiful day, and quite a contrast to the previous night. The events played repeatedly in her head—from his heartfelt confessions, to their incredible passion, and finally to the moment when the madman had been gunned down. She thanked God things had played out as they had, because she couldn’t bear to consider the alternative.
Kelsey sat in the chair beside Nick’s bed, studying his beauty while he slept peacefully. Sterile gauze covered most of the left side of his face, protecting the cuts and scrapes, along with his injured eye. All of his wounds were expected to heal completely, though he would have to wear the bandages for at least a week. A long tube snaked from one ear to the other, its pillars nestled against his nose to provide him with a steady stream of oxygen. The attached IV dripped fluids into his arm, along with the antibiotics required to fight off infection in his weakened lungs.
His head wounds weren’t as bad as she’d initially feared, and the concussion he’d incurred was very mild. His lungs had fared a bit worse owing to smoke inhalation. The doctor had assured them, however, that with careful monitoring and the proper medication, he would make a full recovery.