Kace (Allen Securities) Read online

  Dale smiled. “He’s on a ship with loads of witnesses.”

  “Ah.” Finn nodded. “He was always good with the alibies.”

  He shifted in his seat, and Dale jumped.

  “Although, I’m a little insulted at who he’s picked to carry out his plan.” Finn wrinkled his nose.

  Dale’s face filled with rage as he raised the gun to Finn’s head.

  “You really shouldn’t taunt him like that.”

  All eyes turned to Liam. The barrel of his gun was pressed against Viktor’s head. The thug near the women cursed in Russian.

  Kace yanked his gun from his holster and pointed it at the thug near Jessica.

  “Took you long enough,” Finn said to Liam.

  Liam sighed loudly. “That’s what happens when you leave all the work up to me.”

  Finn laughed as he stood. “I suppose.”

  Liam looked over at the Russian thug near the women.

  “Move the fuck away,” he said. His face contorted as he stared at the man. “Or my cop friend is going to make you move.”

  The man stared back apparently weighing his options.

  “Pretty sure there isn’t a win with this,” Finn said. “Boris isn’t a fan of loose ends. From what I hear, you don’t want to get on his bad side.”

  The thug moved slowly around the women, his eyes fixed on the gun and Kace, waiting for the opportunity. Kace followed him without hesitation.

  “I suggest you move over there with your new friends,” Finn said to Dale.

  Dale’s face flamed as he moved away. His gun still pointed at Finn as he made his way to the Russian. Liam pushed Viktor to the other man and steadied his gun.

  “Seems like this didn’t go at all like you were told it would,” Finn said to Viktor. “Wasn’t as good a plan as Ennis might have told you.”

  “We will see,” Viktor said and smiled.

  “If you think there’s still a payday after this, I’ve just drained all the money.” Finn grinned when they turned to look at Dale.

  “He’s lying,” Dale said, pale.

  Finn shrugged. “You’ll find out soon enough,” he said to Dale. His cousin glared at him complete hatred.

  Kace sighed. This standoff had to end before someone got hurt.

  “As far as I can tell,” Kace said to Viktor. “There is really only one person responsible for all the problems.”

  He glanced to Dale and then back to Viktor.

  “Fuck you,” Dale said and spat on the floor.

  Viktor looked to his associate and then to the back door. “And what about my men?”

  Finn piped in with, “Either take them, or I’ll dispose of them.”

  “You got to be kidding,” Dale said to Viktor. “Ennis isn’t going to like this.”

  Viktor laughed loudly. “Fuck Ennis. We’re not working for free.” He turned to nod to Finn. “Boris is not going to like this.”

  All laughter faded from Finn. “You let me worry about Boris.”

  Viktor gave a wicked grin. “Oh, I will.”

  Kace watched as they made their way to the door and out into the alley.

  “Conor,” Finn said into his phone. “I need a cleaner.” He listened for a moment and sighed. “I’m already aware. We just got done having a little heart to heart with the Russians.”

  Kace watched as Finn nodded.

  “Good.” He hung up the phone and stared at Dale. “So who else are you working with?”

  “No one.” He shrugged.

  Finn glanced over to Alyssa. “Are you sure?”

  Alyssa opened her mouth to say something, but the room bust into chaos as the front door flew in.

  Chapter Nineteen

  Jessica screamed as the front windows shattered, armed men in helmets and bulky vests bursting crashing through. She crouched to the table but heard Alyssa’s shout over the noise.

  “Watch out!”

  When Jessica looked up, she watched in slow motion as Alyssa launched herself at Finn. Arms outstretched, she shoved Finn back.

  Alyssa stood for a moment and turned to stare at Dale, his arm outstretched and gun still smoking. Jessica screamed when she turned back. Two growing blood spots marred Alyssa’s chest. She crumpled to the ground.

  “You son of a bitch!” Liam yelled. He pulled the trigger of his gun. Dale yelled and fell to the ground.

  Shutting out the sound around her, Jessica crawled over to the small woman. Finn was already applying pressure to the spot at her breast. Jessica scrambled to sit near her head and pressed against the hole at her shoulder.

  “Why did you do that?” Finn asked her. His face was nearly as pale as Alyssa, and he shook.

  Her breathing was labored as she tried to talk. “I would not betray you.”

  Jessica saw the guilt flash over his face.

  “Just lie still and wait for the paramedics,” Jessica said. She jumped when a pair of hands slipped onto hers. She looked at the person and sighed when the blue uniform focused into sight. She glanced around realized the room was filled with police in bullet-proof vests, pistols and shotguns ready. A discarded black battering ram lay next to the door, the likely destroyer of their front door.

  A few seconds later, Reed and several his men filtered in, also in vests. The cavalry had apparently arrived at twice the required strength.

  One of the officers yelled back, “We’ve got two victims in here. Look like gun shots.”

  Moments later, a pair of paramedics pushed through the throng with a gurney.

  Jessica crawled to the other side and pulled Finn away. “You’ve got to let them take care of her.”

  He nodded and followed Alyssa with his eyes as they loaded her onto a gurney.

  “I’m riding with you,” he said to the paramedic.

  “That’s only reserved for family,” the paramedic replied.

  Finn tightened his fists as he stared at her. “I’m her fiancé.”

  The man looked at him skeptically but nodded.

  Jessica jumped when strong arms circled around her but turned in his embrace.

  “Oh, Kace,” she sobbed.

  “I know,” he said and smoothed her hair.

  “Is Dale dead?” she whispered.

  “No,” he said. “Liam just clipped him in the leg.”

  Jessica turned her head to look across the room. Dale was strapped onto a gurney while someone messed with his leg. She could hear him cursing from all the way across the room.

  “Liam, you son of a bitch, I’ll get you for this,” Dale screeched loudly. “You and your slut mother will pay for this. Or maybe I’ll find another way.”

  Jessica’s stomach rolled as she followed his line of sight to Meg.

  “Listen here, you piece of shit.” Liam started to march over. “Maybe I should have just taken the kill shot.”

  Kace let her go and whirled to a few of the other cops nearby. “Get him the fuck out of here.”

  They jumped into action, a few held Liam back while the others helped the paramedics rush Dale out of the building.

  “I need to get to the hospital,” Jessica said quietly.

  Kace nodded. “I’ll have Reed drive us.”

  She looked up to him shocked. “Don’t you need to see to things?”

  He looked around. “Maybe, but some things are just more important.”

  Jessica smiled and followed him to Reed’s car. When she climbed into the car, she thought about the support someone like Alyssa would need.

  She pulled out her phone.

  “Irene,” she said. “I need you and the girls to meet me at the hospital.”

  * * *

  Kace looked silently around the waiting room. His family always was one to offer support when needed. It was nice looking around and seeing family and friends.

  “They have been in surgery for such a long time,” Jessica whispered.

  “You heard them,” Kace answered. “The bullets ripped through a lot of muscles. The one in her shoulder
is the least worrisome. At least the one in her chest didn’t hit her heart, but it’s going to take a lot of work.”

  Kace glanced to the corner where Finn sat with Liam and one of his men. His face was still ashen, and he knew the guilt of the whole thing must be eating at him.

  “Mr. Kelly?” the surgeon called from the door. Finn jumped up, and they all stood with him.

  The doctor looked worn and when Kace thought about how long they had been in there, he marveled at how surgeons were able to last that long.

  “She’s going to be okay,” the surgeon said. A collective sigh overtook the room. “However, we’ve noticed some,” she glanced around the room, “problems with several of her bones. They were prevously broken and healed slightly off.”

  Kace cleared his throat and stepped forward. “Alyssa was in an abusive relationship previously and that man is in custody.”

  She glanced at Finn, still clearly uncertain. “I’ll be checking into that.”

  “How long before she’s awake?” Finn asked, his voice low and harsh.

  “It will be a few hours before she’s really awake enough to have visitors.” The doctor scanned the group. “What I would suggest is to go home. Take a shower. Get some rest, and come back in the morning. Every one of you looks like you could use a good night’s sleep.”

  Kace looked around. They were a pretty rough-looking crew. Large men aside, most looked like they hadn’t slept well for weeks. Jessica and Finn had the worst of it. Caked in dried blood, they could have been easily mistaken for victims themselves.

  “Thank you, doctor,” Jessica said and shook her hand. “I’m so relieved.”

  The doctor gave her a squeeze. “She’s in no danger, but she’s going to have a long road ahead. The damage to her shoulder was pretty extensive. It’s going to take a lot of therapy for her to get back the mobility.”

  “She won’t have use of her arm?” Finn slumped and ran a hand through his hair.

  The doctor stared hard at him. “We suspect that it will be limited, but with work she will go back to a more normal use.”

  Kace patted him on the arm. “It will be fine. Go home and get some rest.”

  Finn shrugged the hand off. “I’m staying here.”

  “Finn,” one of his men said, “let me take you home.”

  Finn shook his head. “Conor, bring me a change of clothes.”

  Kace watched as the man pressed his mouth in a firm line and nodded. Finn gave Kace a nod before returning to the corner of the room. He watched as the mob boss sat down. He looked worn and defeated sitting with just Liam.

  “Honey, we’re going to take Olivia home.” His mother came up next to him, and he was glad to have her there. She looked over to Jessica, and he could see the tears in her eyes. “Now you just call if you need anything.”

  He smiled when she wrapped Jessica in a big hug. When the two separated, Jessica wiped her eyes several times.

  Slowly, his family made their way out of the room, hugging the two of them and nodding to Finn and Liam. It appeared that despite his background, Finn had worked his way in as part of the fold.

  Kace sighed. Things were hard enough with his job. It was going to be even harder to explain his connection to a mob boss. But then, he wasn’t really certain staying on the force was the way to go. He had spent all his life believing that things were different, only to find that corruption really did depend on who was telling the story.

  Jessica held on to Kace for her support as she said goodbye to his family. She only let go when her sister was standing in front.

  “Oh, Jess,” Victoria said and pulled her into a tight hug. “I’m so glad you’re okay.”

  “I know,” Jessica said into her sister’s hair. “It’s going to be fine.”

  Victoria sighed. “It’s not, but that’s okay. We can deal.” She stood back and looked at Jessica hard. “You should go get some sleep.”

  Jessica laughed. “Little role reversal?”

  Victoria winked. “Only when I need to.”

  She sighed and pulled her little sister back to her. “I love you.”

  Victoria wrapped her arms around. “Me too.” She pulled back and gave a wave to Kace. “Take care of her.”

  Jessica linked fingers with him when he nodded. She gave a tired wave to the others as they left and pulled Kace over to Finn.

  “You didn’t cause this,” she said directly to Finn. He slumped in his chair and seemed more drained than she had ever seen him.

  “Like hell I didn’t,” he said.

  Jessica crossed her arms and stared down at him. “We all knew the risk working for you,” she said. Finn’s eyes shot up. “But the truth is, you pay well. You pay on time, and you aren’t a dick.”

  “Maybe not to some people,” he mumbled.

  Jessica threw her hands in the air. “So you made a mistake. It’s not like you didn’t have reasons.”

  She leaned forward and placed a firm hand on his shoulder.

  “You are a good man for the most part,” she said. “You are going the right direction and shouldn’t let anyone else tell you different.”

  Jessica sat up and nodded. Regardless, she had said her piece.

  She put her hand back in Kace’s and stepped back.

  “Call if there’s a change,” Kace said.

  She followed him through the door and down a series of halls before reaching the outside. Jessica was glad to have the cool air hit her face.

  “Well this has been quite the night,” she said as they walked to his car.

  Kace nodded and continued in silence.

  Her stomach flipped as she thought of all the reasons he might not be talking. She hoped he was just tired, but with all the things going on, maybe he just needed more time to process things. Or just her. After all, things we pretty much finished for now with the club. Sure, Finn had unfinished business with Ennis, but it didn’t seem like the club would be much a target for the Russians without him.

  She climbed in and sat quietly until he started the car.

  “If you want to take me to my house, I’ll understand,” she said quietly.

  Kace whipped around to her. “Why would I want to do that?”

  She pulled at the buttons on her top. “It was a long day. Things are wrapping up. Maybe you need more time.”

  “The only thing I need more time on is how much I can spend with you,” he said. “I’ve been thinking. Maybe I should leave the force.”

  Jessica gasped and turned to face him. “But I thought that was you dream. What about Paul?”

  Kace sighed. “It was my dream until things got all crazy. Now I can’t tell what my dream is, but I know it’s with you. And I think Paul would approve of that.”

  Jessica beamed. She wanted to talk, but the words got stuck in the back of her throat. She pulled him to her and kissed him hard.

  “I love you,” she whispered.

  “Let’s go home,” he whispered back.

  She smiled and pulled back. Going home. That sounded so loving and normal.

  Chapter Twenty

  “I’m sorry, ma’am,” the prison guard said as he led her through the prison halls. She marveled at how it had only been a week ago she had been to see her father, and now she was having to ID him. A chill crept through her as she walked.

  Maybe it hadn’t been such a great idea for her to go alone, but Kace was off turning over his badge. She had wondered if it would be hard for him to switch to working for Reed, but the reception had been more than welcoming. He had been even more excited when Reed offered her an office position. It would involve sorting through all the paperwork. She cringed, but with the classes he was offering to pay for, it was an amazing deal.

  She shook her head. Who was she kidding? Not taking the job just be stupid. It was really a matter of finding her replacement at the club.

  “He just right in here,” the guard said, startling her out of her thoughts. “Now try not to look too long. He was mangled pretty
bad when the explosion went off in the laundry room.”

  Jessica took a deep breath and swallowed. This was going to be harder than she expected.

  The room smelled of chemicals and made her gag. She was certain that when she left the room, her clothes would be saturated with the smell.

  “He’s right here,” the guard said and walked back to the door.

  She quickly flipped the cover off his face and back again. The heat from the explosion had burned most of his face. Red open skin ate up most of his natural color. She took a breath and focused on his arm. She jumped when it slid down his body and hung limply at his side.

  Steeling herself, Jessica reached over and put his hand back on his chest. She patted it a few times and then jumped away quickly. The cross tattoo on his right hand was missing. She looked around and felt her stomach lurch.

  She didn’t know whose hand she had been touching, but that was not her father.

  Jessica teetered around and then burst through the door. A trash can sat around the corner. She leaned forward and emptied her stomach.

  There was only one thing she could do.

  * * *

  Kace smiled as he walked down the hall to the wing they were keeping Alyssa. She was tough, and he was glad to see she had made such great progress over the week. There was still going to be a lot of work she’d need to do, but it would happen.

  He rounded the corner and chuckled at Finn in his normal spot. When Kace neared, Finn looked up and frowned.

  “She still not letting you in?” Kace asked.

  Finn groaned. “I’ve tried everything, but she starts throwing things if I try to sneak in. She might have one bad arm, but the other is just fine.”

  Kace laughed loudly. The meek girl from before seemed to have found her voice.

  The sound of running feet made him jump for his gun, but he drew up air. Maybe this would take more time than he thought. Or he’d just need to get one from Reed. Jessica skidded to a stop just outside the door.

  “No time,” she panted. “Inside.”

  His feet moved without thinking as she shoved them all inside.