“Yes,” he hissed, his expression a morbid mix of pain and anticipation.
Kennedy, bless her practical, levelheaded heart, put the truck in Reverse and very slowly began backing away, enabling Reyes to keep pace with her. He wanted to reassure her, but he didn’t dare take his gaze off Golly.
With an effort, Golly regained his feet, his twisted expression triumphant. “To avenge my brother, I’ll kill all of you.”
“Your brother,” Jodi sneered, “was a smelly, disgusting, whiny little prick, and he sniveled like a bitch while I killed him.”
Roaring, Golly straightened even more.
Sirens sounded in the distance. It was all going to hell fast.
“Jodi,” Reyes said in his calmest, most even tone, despite the urgency humming through his veins. “Kennedy is going to be extremely pissed if you get hurt.”
“Keep her safe,” Jodi said.
Kennedy shoved open the passenger door and snapped, “Jodi, get your butt over here right now or I’ll never forgive you!”
That command surprised both Reyes and Jodi.
Seeing the indecision on Jodi’s face, Reyes promised her, “I’ve got it.” When she reluctantly nodded, he said, “Now run.”
Bolting away, Jodi sprinted for the truck. Reyes heard the truck door slam.
Golly, the bastard, tried to react in time, lifting his arm to throw the bomb—and Reyes shot him.
Deliberately, he didn’t make it a killing shot.
No, he took out Golly’s shoulder so that the bomb fell from his hand. A look of horror crossed his ugly face as he realized what had happened.
Satisfied, Reyes dove behind the truck.
Golly screamed a split second before the blast of sound, the rush of fire and the scattering of debris drowned him out.
Reyes heard the pellets hitting the truck, felt something sear his shoulder, and prayed Kennedy and Jodi weren’t hurt.
Ears ringing, he slowly came to his feet and saw both women ducked down on their seats. Golly was on the ground, bleeding in multiple places. His sleeve was shredded—and so was his arm. It was probably the ragged, gaping hole in his neck that had killed him.
Doing a quick scan of the area, Reyes didn’t spot any more threats. Other than the horrified desk manager, they were now alone.
The first sob alarmed him. Expecting the worst, Reyes jerked around and found Jodi with her face in her hands, her shoulders shaking while Kennedy tried to soothe her. She kept rubbing Jodi’s back and twice hugged her.
She looked up and met his gaze, her smile sad, and gave Jodi another squeeze.
Jodi wasn’t hurt, then. Likely it was an emotional overload now that the danger had ended.
Police swarmed into the lot from different entrances, lights flashing and sirens blaring.
And, damn it, Detective Albertson led the way.
Reyes set his gun aside, locked his hands behind his neck and waited.
There’d be no end of explanations to give, but the threat was now over and that’s what really mattered.
Full of frowns, Crosby got out of his car and nodded toward Golly’s body. “Rand Golly?”
“Yes.” Reyes nodded to the other side of the lot, behind the truck. “Two other bodies in that direction. So you know, there are more weapons in my truck.”
“I see.” Crosby rubbed his face and said something to two of the officers. They headed for the bodies Reyes had indicated.
“I thought you were going to my gym.”
“I sent others. Everything is fine there, and we now have several arrests.”
Reyes had no idea what was going on, but at least his gym was safe. “I see.” He frowned. “How is it you’re here, Detective?”
Smile tight, Crosby said, “Your sister.”
“No shit?” It wasn’t like Madison to trust anyone other than family.
“I didn’t give her a choice.” As he approached, he took in the blood on Reyes’s shoulder. “You’re hurt?”
What bullshit. No one took choices from his sister. If Madison opted to share with Crosby, it was a strong indication of her trust...which meant Reyes could trust him also.
Slowly, watching Crosby in case he objected, Reyes lowered his arms. He, too, glanced at his shoulder. Blood soaked his shirt, but the pain was minimal. “Little shrapnel from the bomb. It’ll be fine.”
“Your brother rounded up several men, only he managed not to kill them.”
“Cade is smooth like that.”
Looking very much like a man in charge, Crosby took in the scene. “Golly had a bomb?”
“Threatening Jodi with it, yeah.” He looked Crosby right in the eyes and said, “He planned a lot of damage. I had no choice but to shoot him.”
“Your choice could have been to notify me.”
He gave a noncommittal shrug. “Didn’t know he had a bomb, or I might have.” A huge lie. “Besides, my shot didn’t kill him.”
“No, it just caused him to drop the bomb, as you knew it would?”
Reyes said nothing. His methods had been efficient—he wouldn’t apologize for them—and he wouldn’t explain further, not until he spoke with Madison and got a handle on these new dynamics. A cop. What the hell was his sister thinking?
Lower, so the officers wouldn’t hear, Crosby growled, “Do you realize the clusterfuck your family has created?”
He sure as hell wouldn’t indict his family. “You wanted Golly.” He jutted his chin in the direction of the body. “Well, there he is.”
Reyes waited for Crosby to arrest him, and was still waiting when Kennedy left the truck and launched herself at him.
“She’s obviously upset,” Crosby grumbled. “Take care of her.”
Smiling, Reyes slowly gathered Kennedy close. More and more it became apparent that Crosby had a very soft spot when it came to women.
An admirable trait.
While the cops did their thing, Reyes held Kennedy, thinking of all the things he wanted to say, but first he had to prioritize. “Is Jodi okay?”
She nodded against his chest, her hold tightening even more. “She will be, thanks to you.”
“And you?” It wasn’t easy but he set her back enough to tip up her chin. “I’m proud of you, Kennedy. Again.” Pretty much always. “You did great, babe.”
“I didn’t do anything.”
“Wrong. You had the foresight to back up the truck so I could use it as cover. You got Jodi’s stubborn butt out of harm’s way. You ducked when you needed.” He pressed a kiss to her lips. “You were levelheaded and calm, and I’m proud of you.”