“Star.” The sound of Nick’s voice speaking her name sent chills through me. “I won’t forget that name. Perhaps I’ll pay her a visit one day.” He laughed wickedly and then cut his eyes around to me. “You know I’ll never stop. Not until they carry you in a pine box.” I heard the click of the gun and looked over to find Chance ready to fire.
“Go get dressed, baby. Maybe take a nice hot shower first.”
“You’ll never get her stench off me, Chance Owens. You think I don’t know who you are? You think I didn’t look into the man fucking my wife?” He continued his raspy talk, and Chance looked up at me with a dead stare.
“Go.” His jaw was so tight he could barely speak the words.
“No, I can’t. He’s not worth it, Chance. Not worth the trouble or the guilt.” He looked up at me, his blue eyes still as dead as before. “You think I don’t know why you’re sending me away?”
“You heard him. He’ll never leave you alone. He’s practically begging for it.”
Just then the phone rang. “I’m just up the road, I don’t want to get shot coming in,” said Austin.
“Please hurry. I’m not sure I can hold him off much longer.” I turned off the phone and walked to the door. “Austin’s nearly here.”
“Go out to wait for him.”
“I’m not leaving you alone with him.”
“He beat you. He killed your child.”
“Yes, and he’ll pay for it. But I don’t want you to have to live with it.”
“I live with worse. I’ve killed before.”
“Do it, you piece of shit. Plug me.” Nick laughed as Austin’s car pulled into the drive. “You don’t have the guts.” Nick taunted him like he wanted to be killed, but I couldn’t let it happen. Not in Star and Chance’s home, not by Chance’s own hand.
“Looks like I got here just in time.” Austin stared at Chance and then reached out. “Give me the gun, brother.”
“He threatened to keep coming back, and he threatened Star.” Chance turned his eyes on Austin. “It’s now or later, man. I should just save myself another hunt.”
“I feel you, brother. And I have a call in to the FBI. I told them things might get ugly and I have been authorized to use deadly force if necessary when bringing him in. Let me bring him in.”
“You think you’ve got connections in the Bureau,” Nick laughed and taunted the men. “I’ll be out in days.”
The men exchanged a look and Austin held out his hand. “Let me.” Whatever was going on between them, Chance finally gave in and let Austin have the gun. Once he stepped back, I rushed into his arms, and he held me tight.
“Get him out of my sight.”
“I’ll be back, just you wait.” Nick laughed as Austin picked him up and dragged him out of the house.
Chance drew me close and pressed my face to his chest tucking me beneath his arms. He tensed as a shot rang out from the front yard, and I knew what it had meant. It was the sound of freedom, and I knew that it would stay with me for the rest of my life.
CHAPTER 23 – CHANCE
The gunshot fired, and I tried to hold Dream close knowing it was coming. I knew once I told Austin that he’d not only threatened to keep coming back but that he’d threatened my niece, too, he would take care of it.
A moment after the shot sounded, he came back into the house with a somber expression. “He tried to get away. I had no choice.” Dream sank to the couch, and she cupped her face as I went into the kitchen and came out with a pair of wire cutters.
Austin, who’d already called authorities, took the cutters and went to untie Nick’s hands.
“You should have let me handle it.”
“I don’t know what you mean, man. He really tried to get away, and I had to shoot. Honest.”
“Right.” He wasn’t ever going to change his story, and I couldn’t blame him, but I knew he’d taken care of my problem as any brother would. I walked out to see Nick lying on the ground next to the car, and Austin took the cutters and undid the ties from his hands.
The man had mouthed off until the very end, and his smug expression was a fitting death mask.
I stayed outside with Austin until the paramedics had come with the police and taken Nick away.
After they drove away with the body, the local sheriff came over to talk to me and Dream. “You said your husband was a member of the Chicago PD?”
“Yes, sir. For nearly fifteen years now.” She let out a long sigh.
“Well, apparently your husband was fired from the force months ago. It seemed he had a lot of trouble with anger management and had been suspended several times before they made it official.”