Boone's Cowboy [Rescue for Hire 8] (Siren Publishing Everlasting Classic ManLove) (3 page)

“So those papers are from last year?” Eddie asked. He studied her face, looking for any telltale sign that she was lying.

“Honest, they’re from last year,” she responded.

Silence ensued between them as Eddie continued to watch his wife turn pale and the corner of her eye twitch.

Finally he said, “All right, I’ll see you later.”

Turning abruptly away, Eddie walked out of the backroom and left the jewelry store by way of the correct aisle. Outside the store, he turned left and went into the huge open food court.

Various food vendors lined the walls, offering everything from fast food to Chinese. An open
balcony lined
the second floor, where a nightclub took up half the
floor,
and
a fine
-dining restaurant covered the other half.

Eddie turned his back to the crowd of busy ants that raced to complete their missions of shopping, eating, or wasting time. He set the backpack on the floor before crouching down and taking the clips of extra ammunition out of the pack and slipping them into his pockets. Next, he removed the two
handguns
. Slipping the backpack over his shoulder, Eddie headed back toward the jewelry store and his lying wife. Did she think he hadn’t read the date at the top of those divorce papers?

* * * *

“Kelly, this is Judy Barrett. Eddie just left the
store,
and I can tell he’s off his meds again.” Judy tried to calm her breathing, but all of her fears and nightmares were coming true.

“Oh, honey, not again. What are you going to do?”

“It’s time to get out. I still have another hour of work. So, in an hour and a half, I’ll meet you at the rest stop like we planned.” In her
mind,
Judy ran through the list of arrangements she and Kelly had devised for her and the children to disappear if Eddie went nuts again.

“I wish there was more I could do.”

“Kelly, you have been the best friend, neighbor, and babysitter that I could have asked
for,
but you need to get out of there. The way Eddie was acting, I wouldn’t put it past him to head over to your house and take the children home with him.” Judy took a deep breath, trying to lower her voice. “Kelly, I’m scared.”

“It’s going to be okay, Judy. You’ve planned for this.” Kelly reassured her. “I’ll load the suitcases and box of toys into the car. There’s plenty of baby formula for Toby and snacks for Abbie until you get wherever you’re going. Maybe the kids and I will go to the playground over in the next town until we need to meet you at the rest stop.”

“Thank you,” Judy said.

The thought of leaving Kelly devastated Judy. Her parents’ deaths a few years ago had left her with no living relatives. And Eddie was an orphan who’d grown up in the foster care system. It wasn’t until after they married that she found out the extent of his bipolar disorder. By then she was pregnant with Abbie, and even with all of his problems, she still loved Eddie. Over
time,
her love for her husband became overshadowed by her love and
need
to protect her children.

Kelly’s support and friendship kept her strong enough to do what was necessary to keep her children safe. Now was the time to leave.

“I love you, Judy. I know we decided I wouldn’t know where you are going so there wouldn’t be any way he could find out. But after you settle down, maybe you could give me a call?”

“Once the divorce is
final,
and I’m sure we’re safe, I’ll call you,” Judy promised. “And I love you, too.”

At that
moment,
a click of metal on metal sounded next to Judy’s ear.

* * * *

Eddie walked back toward the jewelry store. Around
him,
he heard a few intakes of breath, but it wasn’t until he reached the doorway of the store that someone yelled, “He
’s got
a gun!”

He ignored them and made his way toward the rear of the store. Out of the corner of his
eye,
he saw Judy’s coworkers ducking behind the jewelry cases. Stepping through the door of the
break room,
Eddie found Judy standing with her back to him talking on the phone.

“Once the divorce is
final,
and I’m sure we’re safe, I’ll call you,” Judy said. “And I love you, too.”

Eddie didn’t hesitate. Lifting the gun, he put it to the lying, cheating bitch’s ear and pulled the trigger until it cocked. Satisfaction filled him when her whole body
stiffened
and froze in place. Eddie smiled and pulled the trigger completely.

Eddie dropped his backpack onto the floor next to his wife’s crumpled,
blood-spattered
body. Shoving the
handgun
into the waistband of his pants, Eddie opened the backpack. A few
quick,
precise movements had the rifle extended and locked into place. After pulling out extra ammunition and shoving it into the deep pocket of his camouflage pants, Eddie headed out to do some damage.

Shane Miller flopped back
on
the bed, trying to catch his breath. Tony lay collapsed on top of him with a sheen of sweat coating his gorgeous tan skin. The sex between them just kept getting better and better. They had been together for years
now,
and Shane’s obsession with the handsome Italian was still going strong.

Shoving his hand into Tony’s black hair, Shane tilted the man’s head and captured his lips in a kiss that reignited his excitement.
Shane’s cock hardened, stretching Tony’s snug hole. The kiss turned wet as their dueling tongues meshed together. Last year Tony had his tongue pierced as a birthday present for Shane. The barbell scraped over his
flesh,
and Shane’s gut tightened.

In one smooth maneuver, Shane flipped them over and brought one of Tony’s legs up against his chest. Shane pressed his cock deeply into Tony
,
loving how the keeper of Shane’s heart and soul closed his eyes in ecstasy and arched his back.

Their first round had been a hard, fast fuck. Now Shane slowed things down, each stroke slow and steady. The little muscles of Tony’s hole quivered around Shane’s cock, trying to hold it in.

Tony’s brown eyes opened. Shane looked down at the love of his life and continued giving him pleasure.

“Pull your ring, honey,” he ordered.

Tony twisted the silver nipple ring with a ruby red stone hanging from it. Between their
bodies,
Shane
watched
a drop of pre-cum spill onto Tony’s tan belly.

Changing the angle, Shane made sure his cock rubbed against Tony’s sweet spot with each thrust. Delighted, Shane watched his lover’s body begin a sensual dance beneath him.

Gritting his
teeth,
Shane quickened his pace, knowing he wasn’t going to last much longer. Tony continued to twist his nipple ring with one hand. His other hand encircled his dick and started jerking it with sharp movements.

“Shane,” Tony cried out, and cum
splattered
across his tan stomach.

That was all it took. Shane braced his legs and powered his pulsating cock into Tony’s body. Hot cum surrounded his dick and added to the already overload of sensations. Shane kept his frantic pace until his balls were empty. Still not wanting it to end he continued to slide back and forth.

The palm of Tony’s hand slapped against Shane’s chest. “Shane, I need to unbend.”

Reluctantly, Shane let go of Tony’s leg and pulled his cock out of Tony’s tight warmth. Rolling to the side, Shane lay on his back, keeping Tony snug against his body.

Shane stared up at the ceiling, listening for Tony’s breathing to slow down. Once they were both calmer, he spoke, “Do you want to tell me what’s bothering you?”

“No,” Tony answered.

“Too bad. Tell me
anyway
.”

Tension built between
them
the longer Tony was silent. Shane’s temper spiked. Turning his
head,
he looked at Tony. “Tell me.”

Tony’s velvety brown eyes widened before his gaze skittered to the left. It took a moment before Shane’s love looked back at him. Trembling lips parted. “I found a…”

On the night
stand,
Shane’s phone rang, interrupting Tony. Shane wanted to punch something in frustration. Tony hadn’t been himself for the last couple of
weeks,
and Shane had waited long enough. Tony should have talked to him about it by now.

“This conversation isn’t over,” he warned, reaching for the phone.

“I know,” Tony answered, his whole body relaxing.

He used his thumb to
swipe
the screen. “This is Shane.”

His
brother, Cade's, voice
came through. “Is Tony with you?”

“Yeah.”

“Gear up. We have a mall shooting with hostages. I have Damian getting the plane ready.
Be at
the hanger in fifteen.”

Shane ended the call as his mind clicked into professional mode. He led a team of
specialists
that rescued people from natural disasters and catastrophic events, including mass shootings. He was the commander, and his brother, Cade, was the owner of Rescue for Hire. From the sound of things, they had a job to do.

* * * *

Eddie glanced at the huge round clock mounted above the row of exit doors. Almost two hours ago his wife had gotten what she’d deserved. The moment Eddie’s bullet killed her, he’d become a god. So far his judgement over those around him had been swift and final.

He had taken his time stopping at few stores on this way back to the food court. Eddie enjoyed the hunt of finding people hiding from him.

As Eddie had made his way through the aisles of tables and chairs of the food court, he’d felt invincible. But he was a smart man. Using his brain, he found the perfect spot to take cover and continue his judgements on anyone who was unworthy.

Three more shots and three messy people went down. Eddie crouched behind the counter of The Hamburgers are Great restaurant. Its location in the corner of the food court made picking off fools who kept trying to run down the incorrect exit aisle easy. Those who went down the correct one left unharmed. See, he wasn’t unreasonable or nuts, as some over the years had whispered behind his back.

Three employees of the restaurant currently sat on the floor next to Eddie. When he had first overtaken the fast food place he’d shot a fat man wearing a dirty white apron who tried to attack him with a knife. The rest of the workers immediately cooperated and obeyed Eddie’s orders.

Eddie loved it when people feared him. Their trembling bodies and pale faces turned him on. Except, if that long-haired kid in the middle didn’t stop sweating, Eddie was going to put a bullet in him. He purposely turned his attention away from the messy kid and concentrated on the main food court.

Four mall security guards lay in pools of blood. Those city boys had no idea what skills a true hunter learned though surviving off the land. If the swarm of cops gathered outside the mall doors thought to take him down, they better find someone who knew what they were doing. Earlier a few of the stupider cops had tried to sneak into the food court. They received a bullet to the head for their trouble.

A group of boys crept down the correct aisle to the wide glass exit doors. How frightened they
looked.
One glanced over his shoulder toward Eddie. Like Lot’s wife in the
Bible
, he paid for his curiosity. Eddie’s judgment included a bullet. The rest screamed like little girls when the shot echoed off the tall glass
walls,
and their buddy went down.

Movement from above caught his eye. Men covered from head to toe in black glided low to the floor behind the
second-floor
balcony railing. A
five-tiered,
small, metal shelving unit, containing packets of macadamia nut cookies, sat on the counter next to the register. Eddie moved the metal shelving in front of him. Eddie knew experts when he saw them. Clearly, he needed the extra cover.

“Can you tell me your name?” a deep voice
echoed off
the walls of the food court.

“Why?” he yelled back.

“I need a name to put on your tombstone.”

That pissed Eddie off. He quickly fired a couple of shots up at the figures in black. Across the food court, a
tall,
muscled silhouette appeared in the window of a store that sold T-shirts.

“Come on, man,” the voice said. “You’re brave enough to shoot all these people. How can you be a chickenshit about telling me your name? I’ll even be generous and tell you my name is Shane.”