Lucas
"Where is she?" I ask, rushing past Ben while scanning the busy dining room behind him. The need to see her and make sure she's okay outweighs everything else right now.
"In the back office with Aunt Rosie, but..."
Not interested in whatever he has to say, I walk past him, pulling Nero along, so he follows. In my periphery, the room blurs, and all I see is the bright red door that separates me from the woman I love. Yet another barrier. This is how it is between the universe and me. Forever dangling things I can't live without, on the other side of obstacles I can't breach.
Knocking on the door, I glance at Nero, whose deep brown eyes look up at me with understanding. "Embree, it's me. I'm coming in."
When I enter, I find her sitting on the small loveseat next to her Aunt. Her knees are drawn to her chest, her eyes red and rimmed with unshed tears, but that all changes the moment she sees me. Coming to a stand, she wraps her arms around herself and lifts her chin in defiance.
"What are you doing here?" She's angry. It makes sense, given I walked out on her the last time we spoke. That was four days ago. I was so conflicted after hearing her declare her love for her husband, I thought it would be best to keep my distance. Now I see that the apology I owe her is four days too late.
"I came as soon as Ben called. I needed to see you were okay."
Never breaking our stare down, she says, "Aunt Rosie, could you give us a minute?"
"Of course, dear. It's so nice to see you again Luc." Aunt Rosie wraps me up in a warm hug before whispering, "Whatever you did, make it right. She needs you right now."
Returning the hug, I nod and then watch as she turns to leave the room. The soft click of the door closing leaves Embree, Nero and I standing in awkward silence. Uncertainty fills the air and based on how she's looking at me, it's obvious she doesn't want me here. Her continued silence speaks volumes and makes my skin crawl. The fear she'll send me away leaves me desperate to try and set things right.
"I'm sorry," I say on an exhale, my head hung in shame.
Unable to face the scrutiny in those whiskey eyes, I turn away from her. The wall in front of me is crowded with pictures of Aunt Rosie's family. Moments of happiness with her daughter and late husband are captured and displayed with loving care. At one time, my family home held pictures just like these. Framed snippets of a happy life, burned and destroyed by the same flames that stole my parents away. Swallowing back the sudden wave of grief, I shake my head and take a deep breath. Now isn't the time. This moment can't be about me.
"I shouldn't have walked out the way I did." I hang my head again, the weight of my regret making everything heavy.
"But you did." Her voice behind me is curt. It's a tone I've never heard from her before, and the shock of it has me spinning around to face her. "Which is fine." The quiver in her chin says otherwise.
Leaning against the desk, she pulls her shoulders back, probably in an attempt to exude confidence. But try as she might, she can't hide the hurt buried underneath all the pretense. At least not from me.
"I understand why you did. My life is complicated, and it was wrong to expect you to drop everything to help me. So I'm giving you an out. You can go back to your life, Lucas. It's better this way since all we seem to do is disappoint one another."
With that final blow delivered, she leaves the room. Taking with her all the hope and warmth I'd just begun to feel in my cold, jaded heart. The trust I've worked so hard to build over the past couple of weeks shattered and broken in the end. Our friendship, never mind the chance at anything more, is now tainted, all because I was too selfish to put my feelings aside.
Her words must hit their mark, for it's not until Nero licks my face that I realize I've collapsed onto the loveseat. I can't believe I've done it again. I hurt her. Even worse is knowing she's right. I will always disappoint her because it's who I am. Whatever good existed in me rotted away long ago, thanks to senseless tragedies and shitty circumstances.
As I'm swallowed up by hopelessness, my mind drifts to our time at the lake. It was only my second day back when I took her there to clear the air. At the time, I had little to no expectation of what would happen in the days to come, but her words of forgiveness and understanding soothed the dark void that, for more than a decade, had eaten away at me. It awakened something in me. Something akin to hope. Like a spark. A want. For the first time in 15 years, I could see hints of a future I wanted to be a part of.
I've done some awful things in my life. Things that make me not deserving of her, but fuck! There's no going back. My heart wants what it wants, even knowing she isn't mine and will probably never be. She's the balm to my irritated mind, the quench to my thirst for peace. She's the air that I long for when I can't breathe, and the only one who pacifies the haunted demons inside me. There is no going back. I won't walk away from her. Not now. Not ever again.
Rubbing rough hands over my face, I come to a decision. The Embree I spoke to just now is hurt. She's angry, and she's scared. More importantly, her ire toward me is well deserved. I have a lot to make up for and the only way to prove to her and myself that I deserve to be here and back in her life is through my actions.
By being there for her through the tough times.
By staying, even when all I want to do is run.
By supporting her, even if it's toward the arms of another.
From this point forward, she is my mission. Protecting her, keeping her family safe, and neutralizing all threats.
With my mind made up, I head out of the office and make my way to the private space where I know the team is waiting.
"There you are. Nice of you to finally join us," Ben chides.
Unlike the last time we were here, the room has been configured with one large table at the center, which accommodates eight. With all members of the team in attendance, the only seat available is the one next to Embree. That she avoids my gaze as I sit next to her cuts deep, but I tamp down my disappointment, choosing instead to focus on the reason I'm here.
"Let's get started," Ben looks around the table as everyone quiets. "As you know, the FBI paid Emilia a visit this morning. Though they attempted to scramble the signal, we were able to capture audio of the exchange, which we will play for everyone now. Emilia has expressed her desire to stay through this part." Looking at Emilia, his tone changes to that of a loving big brother. "If at any point this gets to be too much, say the word and we'll stop." Then to Owen, he says, "Whenever you're ready."
For the next thirteen minutes, I'm on the edge of my seat, my anger and disdain for the asshole FBI agents growing by the second. How fucking dare they speak to her that way, and why the hell did we leave her so damned exposed, given what we know? Nothing about this situation sits right. The entire story is like that of a movie, with everything pointing to some sort of conspiracy within the FBI. As I look at the men sitting around the table, I see the same rage I feel. They all know what this means, a battle the likes of which none of us have ever seen.
As the audio concludes, the room falls into a deep silence. Everyone is working through the information, and no one wants to say out loud that which we're not ready to face as truth. But in the end, this isn't something we can ignore.
"This is on us. One of us should have been there." I can't help the accusing tone as I look right at Ben. After all, he's the one who insisted it wasn't necessary. He was so sure tapping into their surveillance and watching from a distance would be enough.
"We had her covered Luc, hence the audio. This is more information than we had. Given all the protocols that were broken, it confirms their investigation isn't on the up and up. Plus, now we know they're unaware we've tapped into their surveillance. They wouldn't have been this sloppy if they knew we were listening."
"They could have taken her, Ben. Then we'd be stuck with no way of getting to her," I remind him since he's obviously forgotten what's at stake.
"They're FBI. If they wanted her, they'd only have to arrest her. Even if we'd been there, there's nothing we could have done to prevent it." James adds as he leans back in his chair.
While I know he's right, it doesn't change the way my blood boils when I think of her facing those thugs alone.
"If you think about it, this is a good thing." Owen pipes in. "They just showed their hand and in that footage gave us leverage. A little something we can use to make them think twice before they come near her again."
"Did you forget that leverage was obtained illegally? Are you ready to face the consequences of that inmate 78462? Cause I'm not interested in going back to prison, which is exactly where we'll end up if that's the game we choose to play," Zeb remarks as he fidgets in his seat.
"He's right. We can't bribe the FBI into leaving her alone." I concur. "They're a federal agency, backed by the Justice Department, reporting to the President of the United States. Bribing them is like poking a dragon with a twig and hoping it doesn't bite back. We do this and the motherfuckers aren't just going to bite back, they're going to torch us to the fucking ground."
"Lucas is right," Mason, who's been quietly listening at the end of the table, jumps into the conversation. "We can't go after the FBI, but what about the agents who showed up at her door? Kessler and Hunt. They broke procedure. They bullied and threatened her. There's no way OPR would stand for that, especially if the audio file was leaked to the public. There'd be an investigation. Their jobs would be at risk, along with their pensions and retirement. I'd bet the agents would do anything to keep that from happening."
"Who's OPR?" Emilia asks, deep worry lines marring her beautiful face.
"Office of Professional Responsibility. It's the equivalent of internal affairs for the FBI," Owen responds.
"It was still obtained illegally. The FBI will not let that go. They'll investigate." James adds. "They'll come after us."
"Nah. Trust me on this, brother. I can finagle something up, make it look like we used our own surveillance to capture the footage." Owen responds with certainty.
"But wait, they warned me against making things worse. Can you guarantee the girls and I will be safe if we do this? Can you be certain things won't escalate? If not, we can't do it. I won't have my girls be put at risk."
"Emilia..." I sigh, aware that what I'm about to say will be difficult to hear. "The only thing we're clear on right now is that you're not safe. Regardless of where we go from here, even if we don't go after those agents, it won't matter because, to them, you're a means to an end. A way for them to get to Creed. To remove the target off your back, we have to give them what they want. Since that's not possible, you'll need protection until we find a way to get them to move on."
For the first time, her armor falls away and she wilts before us. Her whiskey eyes grow distant as they fill with despair. "So what do I do now?"
Reaching for her hand, I squeeze reassuringly. "For now, there's nothing for you to do except trust that the men around this table will come up with a plan to keep you and the girls safe. You're not alone, Embree. Not anymore."
As she remains quiet and doesn't pull her hand away, I search her tired eyes for a sign she's still with us. She's not. The weight of what's happening has caught up, leaving her despondent. We need to move this along so I can get her out of here.
"What now?" asks Zeb. "How do we approach these assholes without bringing the wrath of the federal government on our heads?"
Zeb, like Owen and James, is distrustful of law enforcement. From the little Ben has told me, the three of them have a criminal history, which is how they learned the skills that make them valuable members of our team.
"I'll take care of it, since the audio proves they know who I am," Ben says, before turning to Owen. "Keep that audio file safe. In the meantime, I'll figure out who amongst our friends at the FBI I need to meet with."
"As for Embree and the girls, I'll take point," I affirm. "I'll need help working out a plan for the girls, so they're covered while at school."
"Zeb, James, and Mason, I'm assigning the three of you. James, you've got Alyssa. Zeb, since you're almost her size, you've got little Mallory." The room erupts in laughter. "The two of you will cover the girls when they're in school, including their rides to and from. Lucas and Mason together will cover the girls when they're home with Emilia. Owen, I'll need you to up the security at the house, including shutting down current FBI surveillance. Our friends may have a problem with it at first, but I'll make sure to bring them on board when I meet with them.
"Mason and Lucas, it's time to cash in those favors we talked about. Since it seems much of what they're doing is off the books, you'll need to vet anyone brought in on this to be sure they can be trusted. While priority one is keeping everyone safe, we'll need information on the case the FBI is building against Creed, along with all the ways they're tying it back to Emilia.
"Hopefully, that information will explain what's driving them so far off the reservation that they'd take such a colossal risk and threaten her in broad daylight. All information is to be funneled through Dominick, who'll work with me to investigate and dig deeper until we find a solution."
"What about Creed? Should we try to find him before they do?" Dominick asks.
"Yes..." Emilia's voice stills the room. Her eagerness stabs through my heart, but like I swore I would, I suck it up. "What they're saying he did, that's not him. You know him, Ben, you know he wouldn't do this..." she pleads, her eyes begging that he help save him.
Her husband.
The man who has her heart.
The same selfish bastard that brought this hell to her doorstep.
I shouldn't hate him as much as I do. I shouldn't despise him or place judgment upon him without all the facts, but I can't help it. Maybe because I'm jealous, or maybe because in his actions I see so much of myself. I abandoned her first. In a lot of ways, he and I are the same and she deserves so much better than another prick like me.
"I know." Ben sighs. "And you're right. Owen and Dominick, the three of us will work together to find him. Tap into whatever you can access without putting us on the FBI's radar."
Turning back to Embree, and with his voice full of love and sincerity, he promises. "We'll find him, Emi. If he is back in the country, we'll do our best to get to him before they do."
"Thank you." She whispers. The tiredness in her eyes seemingly spreads through her body as she slumps back in her seat. With the adrenaline wearing off, it's only a matter of time until she crashes.
Pushing down my emotions, I clear my throat and come to a stand. "I'm taking her home. She'll call the school from the car to let them know the situation. James and Zeb go ahead and get to the girls. Owen, how soon can you be at the house to set up?"
Grabbing her hand, I pull her to a stand, handing her Nero's leash while I reach for her purse. With him at her side, I'll feel much better walking out of here. I must make it clear to him that she and the girls are ours to protect.
"In about an hour. Just need to make a couple of calls to secure what we need."
With a nod, I turn to her, taking her keys from her other hand. To my surprise, she doesn't resist. "I need someone to drive her car home," I tell the team.
"I'll take care of it," Dominick says, as I toss the keys his way.
And then we're gone. The feel of her shaky hand in mine helping to re-affirm the only thing that matters now.
The mission.
Protecting her and keeping her family safe.
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Author's Note:
She and those girls are now the mission! Protecting Embree and keeping the girls safe is what matters, and given what's been disclosed in this scene, his commitment couldn't have come at a better time. His willingness to put Embree first, even if it means reuniting her with the man she married is honorable and makes me love him that much more.
So tell me what you think of this chapter. Did you see the part about three of the guys having criminal records? Do you think their plan of going after the FBI agents instead of the bureau is a good move?
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