“Here’s my warning, Tommy. If you come near my family, Elizabeth won’t be the one who handles you. I will be. Ethan is mine, and if anything comes between me and him, like you, I’ll eliminate the problem. If anything comes between me and her, I’ll handle it. I won’t hide and let her do the dirty work. I will protect my family from any threats, and now, you’re on my radar.”
He stared at him.
“You won’t see me coming. I’ll walk right up to you and end you, Tommy. I’m not fucking around. If you try to take Ethan away from me, I’m going to be the most rabid, dangerous animal you’ve ever encountered. I’ll be more lethal than any killer you’ve ever chased. I won’t play with my family, and I’m a Blackhawk now. When I marry Ethan, that will be my name, and that will be my home. Back the fuck off!”
He was definitely surprised.
And he should be.
Gene was rarely violent—unless his family was bothered. Then, it was all bets off. The last time he felt this kind of rage was inPhiladelphia, and when Javier Hughes had tried to destroy his relationship.
“Do you understand, Tommy?” he asked.
The man said nothing, but he nodded.
“What we had is over. I should have faced you months ago, but I had hope you’d care enough about what we had that you wouldn’t make a mockery of it,” he said, wiping his bloody lip. “We could have parted as civil people. Had you come to me and said you were in love with someone else, I would have been happy for you. I wouldn’t have made your life hell.”
Elizabeth pulled a tissue from her pocket, and handed it to the man.
“Thank you, Honey.”
Tommy couldn’t leave well enough alone.
“You’re in love with someone married to her. He’ll never be yours,” he said. “Ever.”
Gene put his arm around Elizabeth, and softly kissed her on the mouth. It was clear that this man wasn’t getting the whole picture.
He wasn’t just marrying Ethan.
He was marrying her too.
When he broke the kiss, his arm stayed possessively around her waist.
“You assume that I’m not hers also, Tommy. That’s your first mistake. What you didn’t consider is that I can love more than one person, and be part of their lives too. Don’t come near Callen, Chris, Ethan, or Elizabeth. If you try to harm our children, you’re dead.”
Then, he glanced over at Elizabeth.
“I don’t want to deal with him anymore. If he tries to hurt the family, I’ll handle it. Just let me know. At this point, after assaulting me, he’s dead to me. I value me enough to not let someone physically abuse me because they‘love me’. I’m worth more than that.”
And with that, Gene turned around, and walked away, going to wait in the main part ofArea Fifty-Two.
She whistled again, and in came Wolf, and Reaper came out of the shadows.
“Take Mr. Bernard home,” she said. “Make sure he sees nothing, and drive him around a while before you leave him at his house,” she said, handing Wolf the address.
He could do that.
Because he didn’t trust him, or anyone for that matter, Wolf pulled out a zip tie, and bound his hands behind his back.
Then, he pulled the hood over his head, and tightened it so he couldn’t peek.
“Got it, Director. Want me to knock him around a little bit?” he asked. “It’s on the house.”
She shook her head.
The man was crying.
Thomas Bernard had been shaken up enough. He’d come face to face with the reality of it all.
