I can feel Jules let out a sigh of relief just knowing that her friends are safe in the protection of the guys she trusts.I reach for her hand and give it a squeeze.
“Okay, I’m going to keep the speaker on overhead, and be driving right by them in about two minutes,” I tell Cole, backing down the driveway and heading right toward the sitting car and Main Street that will merge with the ramp right out to the highway.
“Don’t look at the car, no matter how curious you are, don’t do it.Eyes straight ahead,” I tell Jules.
She exhales a deep breath.“Okay, got it.Eyes on the road.Looking straight ahead.”We pass them and they flip a U-turn in the middle of the road to get on our ass.
Jules turns to me oblivious of the tail.“Do you think it’s Eldridge Jr.?I swear we were all so scared for Lacy for months.It’s not just the land you know.He and Lacy were a thing for a while, and when she broke it off, he did not take it well at all.”
The four-way stop causes me to grimace, but I give the brake a tap, check all lanes and then roll right through.I do not want that sedan any closer than it is.“I did hear that from Garrett.”
“His father owned half this town until the Larussios set them straight and took over the shopkeepers’ debts from those bastards.Now everyone is making a good living again, and things are going great.They’re just jealous of how well Kenny is doing.When he first opened, that place was just a little bar with a few areas for some slot gambling.He has really turned it into somewhere everyone wants to be.”
My eyes scan the road ahead of me and then check the rearview again.“They’re not so much jealous, darling.They’re ruthless and greedy.They saw what a gold mine this town could be and wanted it for themselves, and now that it’s doing so well, they want it even more.Territory, money and power, that’s what they want, and it comes in that order.”
She sighs as I accelerate onto the open highway.“I just feel sorry for Kenny.Even the two biggest rival bars want to see him do well, because he doesn’t try to keep all the entertainment and customers for himself.He’s worked with the two other establishments in town and created a rotation for holiday fun.”
“Is that so?”
“Yep, he says there is enough business for all three, so now they’re all supporting each other.It’s been pretty fantastic to see.And now, Eldridge Jr.and Sr.and their Chicago Crime Family want to just ruin it all.”
It’s not that I’m not listening, I hear every word Jules is saying, it’s just that I’m more focused on the sedan gaining speed, and the fact that I don’t yet see Tommy or any of the guys anywhere in sight as that sedan gets closer to our ass.
But then I hear it … and so does she.A loud whirring noise overhead that’s hard not to hear.
“Beckett?”Jules asks from her seat, glancing up and out the back window.I would hit the sunroof window and slide it open, letting her see exactly what’s in the sky, but she’s far more protected from debris with it closed.
“Eyes straight ahead, brace yourself and the airbag will do its job.The guys are here,” I tell Jules, still keeping both hands on the wheel in case we get some of the heat from what I know my buddies are about to do.
The speed of the helicopter’s rapid descent almost on top of the sedan behind us sends the sedan into a spin.It veers off the road, sliding onto the sand and gravel shoulder, screeching to a stop before landing sideways, the front end almost hanging off of the road.
My foot presses down on the pedal, keeping the truck accelerating, speeding to get out of the way because when the Larussios send a message, absolutely nothing is left to claim.
The men chasing us know it just as well as I do.They race out of the vehicle, scrambling down the ravine and into the tumbleweeded terrain.They’d rather get caught than to have their remnants scraped from the inside of that car.
They and I both know that helicopter overhead will be sending a very strong message back to their boss.Don’t fuck with the Larussios.And when that grenade is tossed, the entire car explodes in the rearview mirror, lighting the sky with a streak of orange fire as the helicopter veers away from it and on to a mission to round up the escaping men.
Jules’ breathing is coming fast and furious.I don’t need a medical degree to tell me exactly what’s going on.I pull off the road now that we’re out of the radius of the blast and release her from the seat belt and pull her into my arms.“Come here, darling.”
I coax her head onto my shoulder while shifting her light frame over the center divider and into my lap.“This thing is going to be far from pretty, but it’s a necessary evil in order to get them to stop.”
“They were after us?Me?”
“Afraid so.”I stroke a finger down her face.“What I don’t understand is why you?Out of all of Lacy’s friends, why do they keep coming for you?They haven’t come after any of the others.”
She lets out a little sob.“I think they thought last year that I could get Lacy to change her mind about marrying Garrett or talk her into selling her grandma’s house.But they clearly don’t know Lacy.No one talks Lacy into doing anything that she doesn’t want to, not that I’d even try.Eldridge Jr.probably just knows me better than most of her friends.That’s just a guess though.”
“Well, the men who followed us won’t be bothering you again.Tommy and his boys will take care of that.”
“Now I feel like a helpless little female, wiping her tears away while the big hunky bodyguard protects me in his lap.It’s like a dirty little twist.”
I kiss her lips softly.“You’re not helpless, and I happen to like being the one to protect you.I’m all about dirty little twists.”
“Ahh ...one of those me man and you woman types?”she jokes, wiping a tear.
I shake my head.“No, but I protect and take care of what’s mine.I know you can do certain things, but I’m going to be taking care of you, at least while I’m in town.”
Her sweet smile dims.She kisses me softly and slips out of my arms and back into her seat, solemn again, just as the helicopter lifts up into the sky filled with a plume of grey smoke.I don’t have time to find out what’s wrong with Jules before Tommy’s voice comes over the line.“We’ve got all four of the fuckers.Heading back to town.”
