Breaking Shadows (Darkness Falls Book 2) Read online

  The man had just walked around to the van, and Ethan was ready to spring into action when all hell broke loose. The man heard a noise at the same time Ethan did. It was coming from the far side of the road, but before he could fully process the pop, the woman’s head was gone, then the beefcake, then the driver of the van holding the kids. Three rapid shots—pop, pop, pop, and they were all down. What the hell had just happened? The silent field turned into chaos. He could make out several voices yelling stand down. He knew the shots that were fired had not come from one of them. But they didn’t want somebody light on the trigger finger to shoot up that van.

  In his ear, he heard the team leader shouting, “Everyone. Stand. The. Fuck. Down! No one shoot. I need the northern position to move on that van. We need those kids out of there before this turns into a war zone.” That was his cue to move; he and Caleb were positioned the closest to the van. They were both covered in full tactical gear, but even that might not be enough if there was a sniper out there. Staying low to the ground, they rushed the van, not even looking at the bodies that were laying in triple pools of blood. At that moment, he had never been more thankful that they had taken the SWAT training. The city didn’t have enough money to have a full-time SWAT team, and Darkness Falls didn’t really require one. Thankfully, instances like this were few and far between. Therefore, SWAT was comprised of officers from throughout the force that doubled up on work duties when the need arose. So far, it worked out well.

  Ethan slid open the door of the van as Caleb watched his six and was greeted with two feet to the face. One of the kids was ready for their abductor and wasn’t going without a fight. He would find the time to be proud when he stopped seeing stars. The kid sure packed a punch behind those feet; he could taste blood in his mouth. If only the kid had aimed for his Kevlar protected chest.

  “Darkness Falls PD, we’re here to help, but we need to get you out of this van and to safety,” he said quickly.

  The young kid was pulling back his feet to kick again but stopped and assessed Ethan before his face crumpled and he began to cry. Shit, the young boy looked to be only eleven. The blood in his veins boiled at that realization, and he had to tamp it down as he looked at each of the scared faces.

  “Listen to me and listen closely. I want you all to stay put for now. We need to secure the scene, and then we’re going to get you out of here and back to your families. Copy that?” He watched, his stomach sinking as he realized there were ten kids in the van, and all ten of those heads bobbed up and down in unison. “Good.”

  There was crackling in his ear and then he heard, “All clear. We found where the SOB was hiding, the grass and brush are trampled. Whoever it was is a professional, not to mention a jackass. Left the gun behind, guess he knows that won’t net us any evidence.”

  “All right, we got the all clear to get you out of here. But I want you to stay tight to me. I’m going to take two of you at a time and bring you to the other good guys. Got it?” He watched as once again, all the heads bobbed in unison.

  There was no need to get too gutsy. Even if the shooter had left, there was still a small chance they were lying in wait somewhere else or that they had an accomplice. After he sliced through the bindings, he helped two of the kids from the van, leaving Caleb behind as he made five trips to the police caravan waiting. It was a long process, but easier to control the scene if all eyes were trained on the van and him escorting the children two at a time. They didn’t want to have too many kids to watch if the shooter was still out there. Though Ethan figured whoever it was had made like a ghost and vanished.

  Once all the kids were safely inside the police vehicle set up to take them to the hospital, he climbed in and looked at all of their faces again. Now that he had good lighting, he wanted to see if Kimora was among the group. He was about to give up hope when his eyes landed on the last girl huddled in the group, and his eyes stung when he saw that it was Kimora.

  “Kimora, honey, your mom and brother sure are going to be happy to see you,” he said and watched as her face broke and she began to cry. She had been stoic until that point; the only child who hadn’t been in tears he noted as he glanced around the van one more time. “We are going to get you all home to your families as soon as possible.”

  A tap on the side of the van was his cue to get out so they could get moving. He climbed out and stood by Caleb as the van pulled away. His captain walked up as soon as the taillights were no longer visible.

  “Kimora Washington one of the kids?” Ethan nodded and he continued, “I suspect that you would like to be the one to tell Ms. Washington that her daughter has been found?” Another nod. “Then get out of here—the kids are going to the hospital. I need you to find out the names of the other kids so we can get them home tonight. I have more than enough officers here to help me clear this crime scene. Caleb, go with him. The work will go faster if you both work on finding their parents. The faster you’re done, the faster that you get home to that beautiful wife of yours. I hear congratulations are in order. You, too, Vanderbilt. I hear you may have finally landed that girl you’ve been pining over.” With a chuckle, he turned and started barking orders at the other officers on the scene.

  “How does he know these things?” Caleb mumbled.

  “I imagine it’s one of the reasons he has the job he has, and you know that he considers Kara a daughter. Hell, he stole my job and walked her down the aisle along with your father.” Caleb grunted at Ethan and smiled, shoving him in the shoulder.

  “You know damn well she wanted you at the end of the aisle standing next to me. The two most important men in her life.”

  “Yeah, I get it. Let’s get going. there are a bunch of people that are in need of some good news tonight.”

  “Don’t think I didn’t hear his last comment. I’ll let it slide tonight.”

  They drove in silence, both on that adrenaline high that happens after a takedown. The same adrenaline high that wouldn’t get him far and that he was about to crash from. He didn’t sleep well for starters, and having Quinn in the same apartment was playing havoc on his dreams. When she came out in that ridiculous set of pajamas that covered too much skin and that was probably supposed to not look sexy, but did exactly that and much more, he almost lost it. Then she nearly fell in his lap, and he did lose it. That kiss. Man, that kiss, the spark from that kiss was enough to light a thousand fires with its intensity. Not for the first time since that earth-shattering kiss, he found himself cursing the cat. If it wasn’t for her, he’d have had the woman he wanted in his bed with him in all their naked glory.

  At least the cat was smarter than he was. She put the brakes on for him when his horny mind couldn’t, but the look on Quinn’s face was enough to deflate any joy or hard-on he had after that kiss. She looked confused and then terrified. He had pushed too soon and too fast. He’d have hated himself if he’d slept with her right then. Not only was it too fast for her, but then the text came, and he had to leave. Nothing says I love you like, hey, sorry to rev your engines and run, but you know, a person has to work. Catch you later.

  They were pulling into the parking lot as dawn was breaking. The van would have beaten them by a few minutes, and for the first time in a while, Ethan didn’t feel dread when he got out of his car to go into the hospital. There was a lightness to his step because today was a good day. Not only did he kiss the girl of his dreams, but he was also going to return ten kids to their homes, and three monsters were put down in the process. The only downside was that the bad guys weren’t alive to help take down their leaders.

  “What. Happened?” he shouted down the line.

  “I don’t know, sir. One minute the exchange was going down smoothly and then the next brains were spraying all over, and then the pigs were everywhere.”

  “You mean to tell me, that the cops took out the best procurer of our product and the best client we had?”

  “No.”

  “What do you mean ‘no’?” His teeth were c
lenched so tight that his jaw ached.

  “What I mean to say, sir, is that I don’t think the cops took them out.”

  “You don’t think? I don’t pay you to think. I pay you to know.”

  “It’s just, judging by the way they were behaving, they got caught with their dicks out. They were just as surprised when Paulie got it as I was, and they were everywhere. I had no choice but to bail.” At least the little pissant had the balls to sound scared.

  “I want to know who the hell killed them and cost me that paycheck. The sooner, the better.” He disconnected the phone and then picked it up again.

  “Bring up one of the new ones, boy or girl, I need to let off some steam.” He disconnected again and cracked his knuckles. He almost felt bad for whoever they brought up. Well, not really. If he had a soul he would care, but since he didn’t, it wasn’t his concern.

  That greasy son of a bitch needed to die. Harrison Black wanted to be the one to make that happen. Paulie didn’t know that his boss had put a tail on him. He thought that Black was only there because he wanted him there, but he didn’t know that the boss was starting to feel jumpy about his capabilities. It had worked in his favor to play both men against each other. Black had done a good job planting seeds of deception, but it hadn’t been enough, not yet anyway. The old man was still reliant on Paulie. Unfortunately for him, poor, dumb Paulie had his run of luck come to an end on a dark deserted road. The question that remained was who killed him. Black had two theories, but it was just that. A theory. Either the buyer took out Paulie or Paulie’s boss did before he became a liability. Something about the man’s reaction to the news was slightly off. It was another piece of the puzzle that needed to be solved soon before more people were sold or he was discovered.

  Black being discovered was simply not an option; at least, not until this was finished. He had work to do, and he wasn’t going to be taken out in this hellhole of an environment until that work was done. And what about after? He had already decided that once this case was done, he was going to reevaluate his life goals. He felt much older than his thirty-four years on this planet should have him feeling. The time was coming for him to make a decision, because he was bone tired of the evil he encountered and how too often his hands were tied by the rules of his job.

  There was also the matter of a young woman he’d met not that long ago who invaded his mind at the darkest moments and made the shadows disappear before they could take him under and strangle him. That beautiful woman was about all he had to anchor himself to the real him: the person he knew he was but that he had almost lost playing this game. A game he was damn sure ready to be done with. One way or the other, Black was going to get what needed to be done, done.

  It was only a matter of time and he was going to have to take some major risks, but it needed to be done because he wanted to get back to the light and those hauntingly, beautiful blue eyes that saw too much. That saw him—the real him—and didn’t shy away. Even if he might not be the match others would want for her.

  Quinn was going stir-crazy sitting in Ethan’s apartment with only Cat to keep her company. Cat was great company, cuddling with her and purring, but she needed to know that Ethan was okay. He had somehow become an integral part of her life, and he stirred feelings in her that she didn’t even realize she had. That kiss, the kiss that set her underwear on fire and nearly melted them off, was enough to make her forget all her reasons for never getting involved with a man. It was enough to make her say to hell with it all, live for once, Quinn, just once. Then Cat decided to put a kink in it all. It was probably for the best, though. Probably. Maybe?

  The fantastic news was that her pain level wasn’t worse. The bad news was it wasn’t much better, either. Regardless, she got up and made herself move. Sitting around was not helping, so she might as well keep her muscles moving. Her restlessness brought her to the kitchen, Cat hot on her heels. She scrounged around to see what was in the cupboards, fridge, and freezer. Ethan had said there wasn’t much there. He wasn’t exactly wrong, but there was enough for her to make a decent supper for them both. She found some potatoes and a pot roast. She figured she could handle the simple meal, even with a broken arm. At least, that’s what she told herself.

  An hour later, she had potatoes and the pot roast in a crock pot. Quinn was exhausted, and her mind was still whirling. After a bit, she decided she could turn on the TV or play on her phone. Wandering into the living room, she grabbed her cell phone off the table and glanced down, her brows knitting together when she saw she had a bunch of text messages. She hadn’t heard her phone chime at all, but then she remembered Ethan had put her phone on silent when she was resting yesterday morning, and she had been too out of it to really pay attention to her phone’s silence.

  None of the messages was urgent, but the most recent message sent her pulse sky rocketing.

  Good news. Kimora found safe. Caleb and I are fine. Will fill you in when I get home.

  Home. The word made her feel warm and welcome. Even though she knew he was referring to the fact that he was coming to his home, not hers. Although, if she decided to move into the apartment, then she would be able to call this beautiful place her home. She still couldn’t believe that he had offered to let her live there rent free. It was crazy, but also something she would be completely one hundred percent nuts to turn down. What were the chances anyone would offer something like this again? Slim to none. A safe place to come home to with a police officer living in the ground floor apartment. One that she knew was a great guy, whose sister she loved as if she were her own.

  Like a lightning rod, it struck her that she wouldn’t turn down the apartment. Not a chance. It was a dream to be able to live there, and the fact that Ethan and Kara wanted to offer the other apartments to struggling families made it even harder to say no. Ethan really was an outstanding person, and she knew that she was in dangerous territory with this man. She was still trying to work through her feelings about that kiss when she heard a knock on the door. The unexpected noise had her nearly jumping out of her skin. She walked as quiet as humanly possible and peeked through the peephole in the door only to find a smiling Taylor with a bag in her hand standing on the other side. Without hesitating, she swung the door open to allow her admittance.

  “What are you doing back so soon?” she asked, a grin splitting her face. “Ethan isn’t here right now.”

  For some reason, the idea that Taylor was there to see Ethan made Quinn feel odd. It was something akin to jealousy. Quinn stomped on the feeling and pushed it back, way back into the recesses of her mind. There was no reason to ever be jealous of Taylor and Ethan. They were like siblings, and she’d never seen Ethan look at Taylor with anything other than the same adoring look he gave Kara.

  “I’m not here to see him, silly! I just came from making sure Kara, and my new niece or nephew was indeed healthy, as reported to me via Mom. Now I want to see with my own eyes that you’re okay. Like Mom told me you were.”

  “I’m not going to lie. I’ve felt better. I can’t believe your mom told you about it.”

  “Are you kidding? The Montgomery clan has a telephone chain when something like this happens to one of our own.” With a shrug, she added, “I cut my trip short.”

  “Your work trip? You cut it short to see that we were fine? After you were presumably told we were fine?”

  “Ah, yeah? Why?” Taylor said, looking sheepish like there was something else to the story. Something she wasn’t willing to tell her parents.

  “Come in, have a seat. You might have to fight Cat for a spot.”

  “Cat?” Taylor asked with a lifted brow.

  “You haven’t met Ethan’s cat?”

  “Well, I heard Kara gave him a cat, but the way you said that…”

  “Yeah, Ethan named the poor thing Cat. He is quite insufferable at times.”

  “You’re telling me.” Taylor chuckled.

  After Taylor settled into the chair, Quinn gratefully sunk dow
n onto the couch. Cat quickly got up and rubbed her warm little body on her.

  “It smells great in here. What is that smell?”

  “Just a pot roast and potatoes. It was all I could find in his kitchen to make, and I was feeling antsy. It was harder to do than I expected, with one arm in a cast. Ethan had to go to work, in the middle of the night. I couldn’t fall asleep after he left.”

  “Mm-hmm, for some reason, I feel like there’s more to this story. Spill it, Sanders.”

  18

  Taylor, always the clever one, the one who would sit back and watch everyone was too intuitive for her own good, but she was also a very close friend and confidante. Next to Kara, she was one of the few whom she trusted. But she couldn’t share how she was feeling with Kara, not about Ethan, because while Taylor was like a sister to Ethan, Kara was his sister, and it wasn’t that they were fiercely protective of each other. It was just weird to talk to her friend about her brother when it came to all the confusing feelings she was having. Kara had told her she was okay with it, but that didn’t mean she wanted intimate details about what was going on.

  “Fine, I’ll spill if you tell me the real reason you came home from your work trip early.” Taylor blinked once, twice, and then slowly nodded.

  “Fine. It’s a deal.”

  “Ethan didn’t want me staying at my place alone. You know how over the top protective he can be.”

  “Yeah, it is pretty adorable. Caleb and Ethan are both over the top like that.”

  “You think it’s adorable but try being on the receiving end of it. A little trust I can take care of myself would go a long way. Anyway, my bathroom is on the second floor at my place, and yesterday I struggled with the stairs to go use it. Your mom was leaving town with your dad, and they colluded to have him take me to his place.”

  “Colluded?” Taylor’s eyebrows lifted. “That’s a million-dollar word if I ever heard one.”