Red After Dark (Blackwood Security #13) - Elise Noble Page 0,72
Emmy out, then tip off the NCIS as to where Ridley was.”
“What if he left the property in the meantime?”
“Yeah, no, that wasn’t gonna happen.”
“Why didn’t anyone tell me?”
“Because you were supposed to be back in Kentucky. Nick only brought you because he understands what it’s like to have little pieces of Emmy embedded in your soul.”
Alaric had never thought of it that way, but it was true. Once you’d spent any time with Emmy, there was no escaping the effect she had on you. The memories stuck with you forever, good and bad.
In the front seat, Dan took a call, listened for a moment, and then hung up.
“They caught Ridley.”
“Did he get far?” Alaric asked. “Was anyone hurt?”
“No, he was still at the house. Cradling Devane’s body, apparently. Seems her death hit him hard.”
It occurred to Alaric that perhaps he should feel sorry for the man. After all, he knew what it was like to lose a woman he loved, albeit under very different circumstances. But Ridley had shot Kyla thinking she was Emmy, no hesitation, no mercy, which left Alaric struggling to muster up any sympathy. If Ridley hadn’t been a murderous thug, maybe he’d still have his girlfriend.
“I’ll send flowers to the funeral. Any word on Emmy? How’s she feeling?”
She might have been alive, but she’d spent several hours unconscious and who knew what they’d drugged her with?
“Seems okay. She sounds properly awake now, anyway. The doctor’ll check her out when we get back to Riverley.”
Turned out they’d gotten a new doctor during Alaric’s time away. Before, Black used to bribe some guy from the emergency room at Richmond General whenever Blackwood needed a hand with discreet medical care. His replacement was a thirty-something brunette, and judging by the looks Evan gave her, he wanted to volunteer for a check-up instead of Emmy.
“What happened to Dr. Beech?” Alaric asked Dan.
“Oh, he’s still around. He heads up the ER now. We use him if anything big comes up, but we brought Kira on board to help lighten the load.”
When Emmy turned to walk into the living room—or rather, one of the living rooms—Alaric saw the telltale burns from a stun gun. Two small dots on the back of her neck. She’d have heard Ridley’s men approaching, and yet she’d acted oblivious and allowed them to incapacitate her. Alaric couldn’t decide whether she’d been incredibly brave or monumentally stupid in following Black’s plan, and it was Black’s plan. There was no doubt in Alaric’s mind whose idea today’s adventure had been. That stun gun could have been a silenced .22. A double-tap to the head, that’s all it would have taken, and Black’s next job would have been picking out a casket.
Which was precisely what Alaric said when he found himself alone in the kitchen with Black a half hour later. Nobody else would stand up to the man, and he needed to be told a few home truths.
“Could you pass me a glass?” Black asked. “A tumbler’s fine.”
“Emmy could have died today, you asshole.”
“Is that a no?”
Alaric’s hands balled into fists at his sides. If he’d have opened the kitchen cabinet, Black would have got his damn glass squarely in the temple.
“If you want to risk someone’s life, make it your own.”
“Emmy’s life wasn’t at risk.”
“You couldn’t be sure about that.”
“Not with absolute certainty, but close to it.” Black reached past Alaric and opened the cabinet. “I’d drink out of the carton, but Emmy would kill me.”
Alaric marched to the fridge and grabbed the orange juice. “Here, go right ahead.”
Black just barked out a laugh, took the juice, and poured himself a glassful.
“I spent a year serving under Ridley. A year working out what made the sadistic bastard tick, what made him mad, and what I could get away with. The main things I discovered? He let his ego get the better of him. Palm his ID card, and he’d search the whole barracks because he was too proud to admit he’d screwed up and lost it. And he was as vindictive as he was predictable. Play a prank, and he’d make everyone pay. We did so many damn push-ups it was a miracle the ship sailed anywhere.” Black flexed the biceps of one arm. Was that meant to intimidate? “Guess I should thank him now.”
“You played the pranks?”
“We took it in turns. The enlisteds thought of it as a sport.”
“I didn’t think you had a sense of humour. And your past doesn’t excuse what you did today.”