Jacked (Trent Brothers #1)(152)

Something warm trickled down over my eye while I shook uncontrollably in the dark.





MARCUS COULDN’T DRIVE fast enough.

Other units were dispatched; their lights and sirens lit up the night sky behind us. But it didn’t matter. I didn’t want to think about what I might find when I finally reached her.

He drove our rig right onto her front lawn. Gun drawn, I was up at her door, shouldering it in easily. Marcus was at my back.

“Erin!” I shouted, hoping and praying with every fiber of my soul she’d answer me back.

Shit was scattered on the floor: broken glass, pillows, a lampshade.

Marcus shoved me up against the wall; the whites of his eyes drilled reminders into me of years of training, of protocol, of keeping the team safe. Several other uniformed officers entered behind us.

“We clear first,” Marcus growled low through his teeth.

All I could see was blinding rage and a terrifying fear that I wouldn’t get to her in time. I pushed back but he shoved me harder, knocking some sense into me.

Flashlights lit up the rooms, the stairs, announcing police presence with every step.

“Adam!”

I heard her shaky voice before my flashlight scanned over her petrified face. Her arms were around my neck in the next step. I had her pinned to the wall two seconds after, shielding her body with mine until all threats were neutralized. She was barely dressed; I at least had a vest on, able to protect her.

“I’m here, baby. I’m here. You’re safe.”

The familiar smell of her hair, the feel of her warm skin against my cheek as she shook in my arms—it was the best and worst feeling in the world, making it harder to breathe.

I caged her in, unwilling to holster my weapon in case I needed to kill the f*cker who did this. I’d think about revenge and retribution later.

“Are you hit?” My words came out choked with everything I’d been feeling, knowing I’d seen blood on her face.

She was trembling. “N… no.”

I wiped her hair back, scanning her from head to toe, moving clothes to see her skin, assuring myself that she was okay.

My heart clenched. “You’re bleeding.”

She touched her forehead. “I tripped in the hallway.”

“Did they come inside?”

“No.” Her head shook. “I don’t think so. I… I didn’t hear anything. Adam…”

I hugged her, taking her tears as my own threatened to follow. I kissed her hair, trembling with her. “I know, sweetheart. I know. I got you.”

All throughout the house officers were calling out “clear,” announcing that each room was free from perpetrators. Lights in every room were turned on.

Marcus holstered his weapon. “You all right?”

Erin swiped her hair back, nodding.

He shined his flashlight on her forehead, minding her eyes. “She need an ambulance?”

I wanted him to quit looking. “She’s okay. Just shaken.”

Marcus glanced around while more officers paraded through. “Any ideas who’d do this?”

I didn’t want to state it out loud, but whoever did this was trying to kill her to hurt me, and that made the list of possible suspects quite long.





I DROVE PAST my house slowly before circling the block and pulling into my garage. Erin had been quiet for the last few hours, withdrawing pretty hard while local PD processed the scene. She answered questions as best as she could but beyond describing hearing the gunshots and seeing things break, she had no valuable information to share.

My captain had shown up shortly after we cleared the house, providing a great buffer between the leading questions posed by the investigator assigned and me. As if I’d want any harm to come to the woman I was in love with.

I knew he was just doing his job but I didn’t like him implying that I was directly involved. I wanted to question her neighbors myself, but there was no way I could leave her side. I had to take the other officer’s word for it that they’d do a thorough job.

“What makes you think we’ll be safe here?” she murmured. I let her doubt slide as I knew she’d been through the wringer and her voice was still shaky.

“I have an alarm system and plenty of weapons. This is safer than a hotel.”

She nodded; the life had been sucked out of her.

“Erin, look at me.”

She was on the verge of tears again. It killed me.

“I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise. You trust me?”

I didn’t like her pause before she nodded.

I grabbed her suitcase and her duffle bags and set them outside the kitchen door. I punched in my alarm code and then reset it, moving Erin into the corner of my kitchen, away from windows.

I had a Sig Saur loaded in the cabinet above the microwave. I made sure a round was chambered and handed it to her. “Don’t shoot me. Safety on, safety off. Red is dead. Remember?”

I knew she was confused. I pulled my service weapon. “You stay here. I’m clearing the house to make sure you feel safe, and then we’re going to bed. Okay?”

The fear was back in her eyes.

“That’s just like the weapon you fired at the range. You know how to handle it. We’ve got this.” I touched her face. “You with me?”