do this if I had any choice whatsoever?â
âJesus Christ!â Kyleâs violent outburst scared me all the more, because he was a bit of a loose cannon while he still learned the bodyguard ropes. There was no telling what he might do to save me. The very reason Iâd asked him on more than one occasion to reconsider this new quest of his to protect me when Dane couldnât be here with us and when Amano had FBI business to attend to.
âThey forced my hand,â Tom continued. âThatâs the only reason I let someone on-property to plant the snakes. The only reason Iâm standing here, pointing a gun at you.â
âYou wonât hit your mark,â Dane said. âI wonât let you. It was a good attempt, but youâre not getting to Ari. Whatever happens to your family because you failed is on you.â
âI know that.â
Despite Daneâs cold words, I suspected his mind worked feverishly with how to get Candace and Ruby out of the clutches of Hilliardâs henchmen. Dane wouldnât let them suffer if there was anything he could do about it.
I watched as Tomâs arms dipped in defeat, in surrender. My eyes squeezed shut from reliefâand to fight back tears.
He wouldnât shoot Dane.
Yet a heartbeat later the sound of a gunshot ripped through the house. I screamed. The noise and the sinister, horrific implication jolted me. My eyes flew open. Dane reeled backward, plowing into Kyle.
âDane!â I cried out.
Just as Amano slammed the butt of his gun to Tomâs temple.
Tom Talbot dropped to the floor.
I stood and whirled around to face everyone. Tomâs rifle hit the tiles and Amano kicked the weapon away. I scrambled around the counter as Kyle helped Dane to a chair, which he slumped into.
âOh, shit!â I stared in shock at the blood gushing from the gaping hole in his shoulder. Kyle bled, too. The bullet must have exited Daneâs shoulder and grazed Kyleâs biceps.
A rush of adrenaline propelled me forward. I snatched two clean linen napkins from the kitchen table where Dane sat and pressed them against Kyleâs arm. âHold these firmly.â
Then I raced back to the island, jerked open a drawer, and extracted several dish towels. I hurriedly returned to Dane and held the thick material to his wound, applying as much pressure as I could with shaky hands and panic vibrating through me.
Kyle had to help me with his free hand while keeping the napkins to his arm. Dane fished his iPhone from his pocket and hit a speed dial number. Amano was on the phone, too. From the sound of the conversation, Iâd venture to say he spoke with Jackson. A man who knew how to handle dire situations such as this.
I certainly didnât know what the hell to do.
Luckily, Dane had a private physician, and that was whom he called.
Amano also told Jackson about Tomâs wife and daughter being in jeopardy. All the while, Amano kept his gun trained on Tom. Who didnât so much as flinch. He was out cold.
To be honest, I was surprised Amano hadnât shot him. It must have tested the very limits of his restraint not to have inflicted mortal injury when it came to someone heâd trusted with all of our livesâwhoâd betrayed us all. Someone whoâd just threatened my life and used Dane for target practice.
âThis is getting a little too real.â Kyleâs voice was tense, rough around the edges. âLike, seriously? Now weâve reached the point of dueling over breakfastâto hell with high noon?â
âPressureâs on the society,â Dane said. His gaze slid to me. âItâll get worse before it gets better. So you get your wish. Creek house. And you donât leave Amanoâs or Kyleâs sight. Do you hear me?â
I nodded, not even capable of cracking my usual joke about whether theyâd follow me into the ladiesâ room. Tears crested the rims of my eyes