Chapter Nine

 

Bright light seared into his consciousness, and Slattery lifted one hand to block it. He struggled to sit up and someone prevented the action with a firm hand. “Sir, don’t move. You may have some serious injuries.”

His head ached like hell and his leg screamed with pain, but Slattery knew he was essentially fine. “Bullshit,” he said in a hoarse croak, then coughed hard. “Let me up.”

“Sir, you shouldn’t move. You’re next in line after the accident victims have been loaded into the ambulances. You need to be checked out at a hospital by professionals.”

“No.”

A paramedic attempted to put an oxygen mask over his nose and Slattery slapped it away. “Get that fucking thing away from me. I’m going home. Where’s my lady? Sabetha?”

“I’m right here, Pride.”

It intensified his headache to focus but he did, and her face, taut with concern, came into view. “Help me up from this gurney,” he said.

Sabetha clutched his hand in hers. “Are you sure? You passed out and you may be hurt…”

“I’m damn sure,” he said through gritted teeth. “No fucking hospital. I’ve seen the inside of enough hospitals, and I’m not going unless it’s critical. And it’s not.”

Some of the worry in her eyes faded and she smiled, an ironic expression, then snorted. “All right, Slattery. You had to be the hero again. You’re one stubborn son of a bitch and I hope you’re as tough as you think you are, but I think you really should get checked out at the hospital.”

She peeled away the blanket tucked around his legs and fumbled him upright.

“Dizzy?”

“Naw,” he said although the world titled and spun like a merry-go-round.

“Sir, I can’t let you…”

Slattery knew the drill. He’d refused medical assistance before. “Yeah, you can and will. I’ll sign a release if you want, but I’m outta here.”

After resisting a few more halfhearted arguments, he did. Fifteen minutes later, after a long limp to where he’d parked the car, Slattery slid behind the wheel. “Let’s go home, honey.”

Her blue eyes gazed at him, still worried but also calm. “Can you drive?”

“I think so. You’re not up for the traffic, are you?”

She shuddered but said, “I doubt it, but I can do it if I have to. I’ll be a nervous wreck and we’ll go snail-pace slow, but I’ll get us somewhere eventually.”

Damned if she didn’t mean it, he thought. “I’m sure you could, but I can drive. I’m okay, Sabetha.”

“You could’ve fooled me,” she said. For the first time, a couple of tears trailed down her face. “You scared me to death, Slattery. First running into the middle of a wreck, then pulling those people out, then falling over like a toppled tree. I didn’t know if I should scream or just yell ‘timber’.”

Slattery laughed. His shoulder and arm muscles twinged. He would be very sore by morning. “Honey, you’re amazing. Most gals would be crying all over me, clinging to me like a baby possum to its mamma, and you’re cracking jokes.”

A muffled sob came from her throat and she began weeping hard. “Oh, Slattery, I want to be. I want to hold you close and cry till Christmas or till I know you’re all right, whichever comes first, but I’m scared to touch you in case I hurt you more. I thought you’d get yourself killed, but you were a hero instead. And after, you started to freak out and I worried. Then you collapsed in the road, and for a minute I thought maybe you were dead.”

He stretched out one hand to cup her chin and gazed straight into her eyes. “Thing is, I’m not, Sabetha. I did start to freak out a little. I was back there, back in combat and out of it. But I know where I am now, and when, and most important, who I’m with.”

Tears brimmed full in her eyes but she smiled. “Oh, Pride. I…”

Slattery had no doubt she was about to speak the words he very much wanted to hear, those three small words that meant so much, but he couldn’t hear them now without breaking. His hold on reality was fragile and he needed the physical pain to stay grounded. He wanted to say them back to her, but instead he bent forward and kissed her with tenderness.

Her lips met his and he kissed her softly because she represented something precious to him. This wasn’t a prelude to sex or even a display of attraction. It was a promise, almost a vow. God, but he loved her so much, and that delighted him but also made him very afraid. Slattery had lived a long time without anything to lose, and now he had something he needed to keep.

Sabetha pulled back first. She touched his temple with a tentative finger. “You’re bleeding, you know. You hit your head pretty hard. It’s not too late to get checked out, Slattery.”

He shook his head. “Probably not, but I’m not.”

“What about your leg? It really twisted when you went down.”

“I may have to go to the VA hospital Monday to get it checked.” Slattery had already figured he had damaged it. With any luck, the prosthetic could be readjusted or even repaired. “I’ll take it off soon as I’m home and go from there.”

“Why don’t you stay with me?” she suggested. “I’ll help you get cleaned up and treat your injuries. You probably shouldn’t be alone right now.”

Slattery grinned a little. “Yeah, I imagine you’re right. Okay, sure. But I need to go by my place to get some stuff, things for my leg, pain meds, clothes, and all.”

She nodded. “Yes, of course. And I should stop at the market to get a few things too. Dang!”

“What?”

“I left the picnic basket on the pier. Can I go see if it’s still there?”

“Sure,” he said. He wasn’t totally sure he could drive yet anyway. “I’ll wait here though.”

Sabetha smiled. “You should. I’ll be right back, I promise.”

Her absence gave him time to catch his breath and deal with what had happened. He’d acted on instinct, but he’d saved a kid and her mother, a good thing. But he’d messed up his leg and suffered a few minor injuries, and that wasn’t so great. And on the verge of telling Sabetha he happened to be a federal agent, he’d been distracted. Slattery wanted to tell her and needed to get it done, but right now didn’t seem to be the optimum moment. Maybe after we’re settled in at her place, after I’ve had a long, hot shower, taken off my damn fake leg, taken something for the pain, then maybe I can.

Slattery stretched out his hands and noticed how they trembled with aftereffects of the excitement. He probably shouldn’t drive after all, but Sabetha feared it so he would. Doing what had to be done had always been his way.

Someone pounded on the driver’s side window with a heavy fist. Startled, Slattery shifted position to face the intruder. Through squinted eyes, he realized the person wore a paramedic’s uniform but he recognized the face. The guy wasn’t an EMT—well, he might be, but he was, like Slattery, an undercover Homeland Security Agent. His name was Tim or Tom. No, neither. It came to him. Todd Thomas. He rolled down the window. “Yeah?”

“You really should get checked out, Agent,” the man said with a smirk. “Our mutual pal Beckett will agree.”

“Beckett can kiss my ass,” Slattery said with feeling. “I’m not going to the fucking hospital. I’ll get the leg checked later by the VA, but I’m good.”

He stretched out his hands to grasp the wheel to still their shaking, but Thomas noticed. “You’re not in any shape to drive, Slattery.”

“Maybe not, but I don’t have much choice.”

Agent Thomas inclined his head toward Sabetha, who approached with the basket in hand. “Can’t she drive?”

“LA traffic scares her.”

“Getting in an accident won’t help either one of you.”

“Probably not,” he replied. “I’m done here.”

His cell rang in his pocket and he fished it out, cursing when he recognized Beckett’s voice. His superior ordered him to accept a ride home from a pair of agents in plain clothes driving an unmarked vehicle. “From what I hear, you’re in no shape to drive anywhere, Slattery. Let them drive you home, the woman too. We’ll make sure your clunker gets delivered.”

“No way,” Slattery said. “I need my wheels. I’m not cooling my heels waiting for someone to show up with it tonight or tomorrow or something.”

“They can follow and leave it in your hands if that’s what you want.”

Something had to be rotten enough to stink for Beckett to be so nice. “What’s up? Kindness isn’t one of your virtues.”

Beckett laughed. “You know me too well, sergeant. Your two weeks are ticking away. I want an answer, and besides, the word out on the street is that you got made as a cop by some Latino gangbangers.”

Cold ice filled his gut. “It was one dude and he just suspected. He had no proof, nothing.”

“It’s still dangerous.”

“Could be, but maybe not.”

Sabetha had almost reached the car. She strolled down between the parked cars, her small smile fading as she spotted the paramedic at his door and the phone at his ear.

“So take advantage of the car service for now.”

With no time left to debate it, without Sabetha hearing, Slattery yielded. “All right, you win this time, you bastard. Where’s the ride?”

“Pulling up any minute,” Beckett said. “Keep in touch, Slattery.”

Sabetha climbed into the car and tossed the basket into the backseat. “Slattery, what’s going on? You look upset.”

He shrugged. “Angry” better defined his current emotion, but he choked it down. “Aw, the paramedic here thinks I shouldn’t drive so he’s offered to have a couple of law enforcement officers drive us home and follow with my car.”

She nodded. “I think that’s probably a good idea, don’t you?”

“I’m not too thrilled with it, but I guess.”

A black sedan, the kind that screamed government to anyone who’d ever been in the business, rolled to a stop in front of Slattery’s Caddy. Todd Thomas thrust his hand into the cars. “Gimme the keys and I’ll follow with your car, Mr. Slattery.”

“All right, damn it, all right.”

Slattery thrust his key ring into the man’s hand, retrieved Sabetha’s picnic basket, and turned to her. “Let’s go then, honey, before I change my mind.”

The driver asked his address and said nothing more as he maneuvered the car with skill through the dense traffic and busy freeways. In the backseat, cuddled together, Slattery and Sabetha remained silent too. He hated having an audience and whether she did too or felt intimidated by the two men’s presence, Slattery didn’t know. They arrived at his apartment in record time, and he exited the vehicle without assistance.

Sharp pain shot through his leg when he put his weight on it, but he refused to let it show. They walked up to the front door and he unlocked it. He managed the few steps into his apartment but once there, he sank down into his recliner with a groan and tossed his keys onto the adjacent table. “Look out and see if my car got here,” he said through gritted teeth.

Sabetha leaned toward the windows. “It’s there.”

“Good, ‘cause I’m still planning on going to your place in a little while.”

He’d held back all the pain until now. His head throbbed, his leg hurt like hell, and his other muscles ached. Slattery buried his face between his hands for a moment and indulged in a moan.

“Slattery?” Her voice sharpened with concern.

“I’m no worse than I was,” he said, voice muffled. Then Slattery lifted his head. “Soon as I get this piece of shit detached, I’ll take a shower.”

He managed to remove the prosthetic, to remove both the socket and sock. His stump hurt and he rubbed it, noticing it appeared both red and maybe a little swollen. Slattery reached out and picked up the cane he seldom used. He maneuvered to his feet.

“Can you help me get these clothes off?”

“Sure,” Sabetha replied and did.

Slattery made his own way into the shower and scrubbed away the blood, the grime from the nasty smoke, the dirt, and most of the tension. Pain remained, but as he clumped into the main room to dress, he thought he could bear it awhile longer. Sabetha waited, on her feet the moment she saw him. “Can I help?”

He nodded. “Yeah, grab me a pair of briefs, shorts, and a T-shirt from the dresser, would you? I can get dressed and then maybe you could help me put the leg back on until we get to your place. There’s some antibiotic cream in the medicine cabinet over the sink, then I’ll need a fresh socket and sock to put it on.”

“Is it damaged?” she asked as she gathered the things.

“Maybe, I’m not sure yet. It hurts too bad to tell.” At the stricken expression on her face, Slattery added, “It’s nothing so bad I can’t stand it, honey. I’m used to pain.”

Her blue eyes bored into his with fierce concentration. “Nobody gets completely used to pain, Slattery, so lay off the bullshit. Once we’re at my place, I’m going to pamper your stubborn ass, so get ready.”

If anyone else had said anything similar, he would have protested and became angry, but he wanted the TLC from Sabetha. He smiled. “All right, I’ll wrap my head around the idea, but it may take some getting used to.”

She answered his smile with one of her own. “Who were those men anyway? They weren’t paramedics, were they?”

Damned if she hadn’t skewered him in place like the insects he’d pinned onto a board for his science project in school. He finished dressing, then hopped over to face her. Do or die, he had to tell her now. “No,” he said, choosing his words with care. “They weren’t.”

“I didn’t think so. So, were they feds?”

His stomach twisted hard in a brief cramp, born from fear she might become angry or reject him. “You’re perceptive,” Slattery told her. “Yeah, they were feds in plain clothes. So was the EMT, but he’s undercover.”

“Are you in trouble, Slattery?” Her voice sounded worried, not mad, like she might just stand by him even if he were.

“No, honey,” he replied. “Well, I might be, but not with the law. I’m not just a security guard, Sabetha.”

“I was beginning to wonder about that,” she said in an even tone.

“I’m an agent with Homeland Security,” he confessed. “I’ve been in deep cover since I relocated to California, so deep my mother and family doesn’t even know. I shouldn’t even be telling you but I needed to, to be honest. I couldn’t stand to hide anything from you.”

“If everything that happened today hadn’t, would you have told me?”

Some of the warmth had vanished from her tone. “Honey, I’ve been trying to figure out how for a while. I wanted to but I knew I shouldn’t. Now that you know, it could put you in danger too, and that’s the last thing I want.”

Her face darkened with sadness. “I can relate, but I wish you’d told me sooner, Slattery.”

“I couldn’t,” he said. “If I’d known how I’d feel about you, what you mean to me, I would have that first day, although it would have been stupid. Are you mad at me?”

She took a long time to answer and his heart thudded hard against his chest until he thought he might suffer a fucking heart attack. “No,” Sabetha said after the pause. “I’m not. I’m just trying to take it all in and understand. I’m wondering what kind of future there can be for us.”

Worried she wanted to walk, Slattery spoke up. “There’s more to it, and I want to tell you. Now that you know, there won’t be any more secrets, I promise.”

“As long as you’re not about to tell me you had to fuck someone named Natasha or Rosa or some would-be movie actress or some prostitute walking the street, I think I can deal with it, Slattery.”

A huge sigh of relief exited his body and he wobbled down to sit on the side of the bed. “There’s nothing like that, I swear. But my boss, the one who arranged for the ride and all that shit, he wants me to either produce evidence on the case I’ve been trying to investigate for over a year or relocate.”

Sabetha sank down beside him. “Where?”

“Close to home,” he said. “Texas, Georgia, Alabama, someplace like that.”

“Are you?”

“Am I what?”

“Leaving California.”

Slattery didn’t know what to say except what was in his heart, so he spoke the only truth he had. “Not without you, honey, not without you.”

She leaned against his right shoulder and he put an arm around her, then held her close without words for a long while.

There didn’t seem to be anything else to do.