Dangerous Beauty: Part Three: This is War (78 page)

She was met with silence from the brothers as they looked at one another.

“Answer!” she snapped. “Robert, what’s going on?”

Robert brought his eyes to her with a frown. “Aziz contacted Silas a night ago to alert him of a pending attack on his children and their family—”

“What?”

“It seems that my leaving the Steeles has pissed off a few of the lower level members of the family,” Silas added. “Aziz said that they have aligned with someone that has wanted to kill me for decades. Robbie and I are here to make sure they don’t attack.”

“Are you fucking crazy? How could you let this happen, Silas?”

“This wasn’t intentional, Anastacia—”

She ran over to her phone and called Claude. When he didn’t answer, she panicked. “He’s not answering. Something’s wrong.”

“We don’t know that—”

“Claude would never miss one of my calls, Robert.”

“She’s right, Robbie,” Silas interjected. “I think something may be wrong.”

“Carter’s phone went straight to voicemail, and Shadow isn’t answering either. I sent him to protect them …” Anastacia ran out of the kitchen and through the living room. Something was wrong. She needed to get to Nathan and Carter’s home first, then they needed to go and search for Nathan and Carter. Anastacia swore to God, if anybody touched her kids or her grandsons, she’d murder them mercilessly.

“Ana,” Robert and Silas yelled after her.

“Somebody’s trying to hurt my kids,” she screamed at them in anger as she opened her car door. “I swear to God, Silas, if anything happens to them …”

“Have faith, Anastacia,” Silas said as he got into her car. “We can’t think negatively. Not when they are involved.”

Anastacia got in the driver’s side and swiftly started the car once Robert’s door was closed. As her mind raced she wondered which one of Silas’s enemy was now going after his family.

“Does this person know where Nathan and Carter’s home is, too?” Anastacia asked as she sped down the highway.

“Yes,” Silas answered.

“Well who the hell is it?”

The moment Silas said the name, Anastacia nearly crashed the car. Fury shot through her body as an enraged scream tore loose from her throat.

“Motherfucker!”

Chapter 31: Battle on the Bridge

Nathan & Carter . . .

The sudden thunder cracking in the sky caused the car to shake.
Damn
. Carter hadn’t known the storm would start this soon. Drops of rain began beating against the car windows as Carter looked over to Nathan.

“I’m doing it,” she said softly. “I’m going to help Isabella.”

Nathan nodded. “I know you are. You wouldn’t be my Carterina if you didn’t.” Nathan kissed her forehead. “You and I will go pick her up together …”

“Really, honey? You’ll help me …”

Nathan frowned. “Of course I will, baby. I don’t usually interfere in other’s affairs, but what happened out there has me interested in knowing more. I don’t know what the fuck Niko was thinking, marrying a girl so young.”

“Eighteen” Carter whispered, still shocked by the revelation. “She’s just a baby, Nathan.”

“Indeed, she is.” Nathan agreed with a nod. “It will be interesting hearing her story. Where she came from. I’ll get some friends of mine to start doing some digging tomorrow. We’ll know everything about her by the end of tomorrow night …”

Carter smiled and scooted closer to him, curling up to his side. She’d had a horrible time at the dinner, but honestly Isabella had just lifted her spirits. Carter was going to pull that child from whatever fucked up situation she had gotten herself into, and mold her into a warrior. Past all of the shyness, sadness, and brokenness, there was a strong, powerful young woman inside of her just itching to break free. Carter wanted to explore that, she
really
wanted to. Isabella had potential to be someone great. There was no way Carter could deny her the help she’d asked for; she wanted to help the girl, as soon as possible.

She sighed and looked up at her husband. “Thank you, bubby,” she whispered. He was such a wonderful husband to her. Choosing to let the subject be for the remainder of the night, Carter put on her sexiest smile. “And thank you for coming to my rescue tonight.” She would never stop loving how protective he was of her and their children. Nathan was her Super-Man, and the way he always dominated a room like he had tonight never ceased to turn her on. Carter brought her hand up and slipped it through the slight opening of his coat, laying it against his chest. She played with the buttons on his shirt, imagining how much fun it was going to be ripping them apart when she took it off of him tonight.

Nathan kissed her forehead. “Thank you for scaring the shit out of Niko Bonaducci.”

Carter chuckled softly. “Anytime,” she whispered. Her fingers slid to his muscled abdomen and she slowly wrapped her arms around his waist. “So Don Salerno, huh?”

Chuckling, he ran in hand down her exposed back and cupped her behind. “Don’t tempt me, Mrs. Salerno. I’m not above giving the driver a show.”

Carter giggled and placed a lingering kiss on his neck. “Can I at least have a kiss?” She was teasing, she knew that, but the more she worked him up, the harder he’d fuck her when they got home.

When he turned his face and caught her lips in a long kiss, Carter moaned and tightened her arms around his waist. “That was some kiss, Mr. Salerno.”

He gave her a sly, crooked smile. “That was nothing. Just wait until I get you home.”

That promise, coupled with the heated look in his eyes, sent a slow shiver inching down her spine.
Damn
,
I may need to call Gabriel and have him put the boys to bed.

“Seatbelts.”

Shadow’s deep voice stole their attention and brought their eyes to him as he entered the driver’s seat. He wiped the rain from his face and turned to them.

“I do not like to drive the car unless you both have on a seatbelt. Anastacia’s orders,” he warned before turning to face the front. He started the car and pulled on to the road before they even made a move.

Carter and Nathan turned to each other and rolled their eyes, deciding not to argue with the stern older man. There was no use. The man followed her mother’s orders to the letter, never straying and never allowing error, all in effort to please his boss. They understood and never gave him a hard time for it. He
was
protecting them, why would they object to his rules if it allowed him to perform his job better?

Carter scooted back to her side and pulled on her seatbelt just as Nathan clicked his. After she’d pushed hers in the lock and heard it click, the belt automatically tightened around her waist and body.

As he looked over to her pulling on the straps of her belt he took her hand in his. “You all right, honey?”

Shifting uncomfortably, Carter frowned. Hers may have pulled a little too much. “The belts are a little too tight.” She released his hand. “I’m going to do it again. It’s not letting me readjust.” She reached for the buckle and attempted to release the seatbelt only to find it jammed. “Shit,” she muttered. With a sigh she gave up and slapped her hands on her lap. “I’m stuck ….”

“Stuck?” Nathan asked as he reached over to assist. “What the hell is wrong with your seatbelt?” he wondered aloud as they turned on to the highway, headed for their country home. “It’s stuck. How did it get this tight on you, honey?” He inched his finger between the strap at her waist and frowned at how tight it was around her body.

“It did it by itself, bubby.” She shifted again. “It’s uncomfortable.”

“But it will keep you safe,” Shadow said from the front. “When we get you home, we will cut you out of the seatbelt.”

Nathan’s frown only deepened as anger became evident in his features. He released his seatbelt and moved closer to Carter as he continued to work on her belt. “But in the meantime, my wife must endure discomfort. That’s not acceptable,” he said angrily. “You will pull over so that we can get my knife from Mikilo.”

Shadow immediately protested. “This I cannot do, Salerno. Anastacia does not want me to linger. Silas could be anywhere—”

“Shadow, you need to do as I say when you are driving myself and my wife. When you are with Anastacia you listen to her. You will pull the car over now. We have plenty of men behind us.”

“Fine then,” Shadow conceded reluctantly. “I can pull over once we get across bridge—”

“Do you not understand the meaning of the word
now?”
Nathan snapped.

Carter wanted to calm her husband but she couldn’t. When she took a breath in she could have sworn it got painfully tighter.

She began pulling at the belts along with Nathan. “It has to come off, Nathan. I’m going to bruise.” She tried to put the top belt over her head and get out, but it was pointless. The belt was just too tight. It was now to the point of holding her to the seat. It made no sense. It was almost like someone had—

Realization dawned on her and immediately ceased her body with fear. Her eyes widened and her heart pumped faster in her chest as she reached forward and gripped the arm of Nathan’s coat. She shook him, trying to get his attention as he and Shadow continued to shout at each other. Eventually she had no other choice but to scream to get their attention.

“Stop,” she yelled at the top of her lungs. “Stop! Stop yelling at each other.” They both immediately went silent. Carter locked her eyes with Nathan as her body shook with panic.

“Someone did this,” she exclaimed frantically. “Someone did this! Something’s about to happen.”

His eyes widened and he shook his head. “What are you talking—”

She shook him again. “Think, Nathan,” she screamed. “
Think!
Someone doesn’t want me to get out of this car.
Why?”

It was at that moment Nathan realized what was happening, too. Unfortunately, it was too late.

Everything after that moment flashed by in a tragic, horrific blur.

Nathan whipped around to stop Shadow from driving any further, but at that exact moment blindingly bright lights from a large vehicle sitting in the middle of the bridge cut through the windshield. The lights revealed the men, Carter guessed about thirty of them, each armed with heavy guns that they immediately began to fire at the SUV.

The first several bullets flew through the front window, killing Shadow instantly. His body slumped forward and his foot went down heavily on the gas, making the car speed up.

Carter was
screaming
, urging Nathan to take cover and protect himself from the bullets, but he wouldn’t listen. He’d gone into protection mode, shielding her with his body. The bullets were flying through the car so quickly, Carter couldn’t even hear her own cries. She gripped his hair and shook him, crying, pleading,
begging
him to protect himself, screaming for him to just listen to her, but he wouldn’t. Stubbornly, he covered her, protected her, even though she didn’t want him to, even though she wanted him to protect himself, to let her go …

Then it happened.

An abrupt hit to the side of the car sent it hydroplaning over the now water-covered road. The hit had been so forceful that it caused Nathan’s body to jerk forward and slam against the back of the seat in front of them, knocking him unconscious. Swiftly, Carter reached forward and gripped his shirt, jerking him back to her and locking her arms around his larger body as she connected her hands in a tight fist. One of her arms popped of socket, and the belt holding her against the seat tightened until she nearly couldn’t breathe, but she still held on to him. The car was spinning out of control, but she still held on to him. Even when the car flew off the bridge and went plunging into the river beneath it, Carter held on to her husband.

The impact of the car plunging into the river nearly made Carter pass out, but she held strong and fought against it. She knew she only had a short amount of time to shake Nathan awake and get him out of the car before it submerged under the water.

“Nathan!”
she screamed, shaking him until she heard him let out a pained moan in his unconscious state. Above them the storm worsened, and on the bridge the sounds of an
all-out
war was filling the air. Shouting, cries of agony, and gunfire, Carter even heard a male voice screaming her and Nathan’s names. Her eyes went to the front window. Water seeped through the bullet holes and it looked as if it were moments away from shattering, and allowing the water to consume the inside of the car.

“Nathan, honey, please wake up! Wake up!”

The last scream got through to him and his eyes shot opened, darting in every direction as he fought to process what was happening. Realization hit him hard, showing in the panicked expression that fell over his face.

“Shit!” he exclaimed breathlessly, looking around at the water filling the car. “What the fuck?”

Carter gripped his shoulders tightly. “Get out of the car, Nathan. If you go down with it it’s harder to get out. So please, please! Get out of the car now!”

His eyes darted between hers, as if he were trying to understand the words she’d said. After a second his eyes cut to the belt still tightly holding her to her seat.