Protecting My Hart (Protectors Series Book 1) (12 page)

“Te amo, mi Tesoro. Te amo simepre.” Again his words float into my head and are the last thing I hear before I fall asleep, safe in his arms.

Hartley slept through the night again and I’m glad. I don’t know how often this happens, but I do like that she can relax enough with me to sleep. As much as I hate to leave her right now I need to get up; Beamer, Kash and Mack will be here soon. I slowly slip out of bed. Hart lets out a small whimper of protest but stays curled up and doesn’t wake. I take a quick shower and toss on some clothes. When I come back out she’s curled into my spot but thankfully still asleep. Leaving the room, I close the door quietly behind me and then head down the hall to check on Ethan; he too is still fast asleep, and I can’t stop myself from admiring him. He is seriously the most beautiful child I’ve ever seen and every time I look at him I become more convinced that he really is my son. He’s mine regardless now, but I’m pretty sure this perfect little boy shares my DNA. The question arises again,
Why the hell didn’t she tell me?
OK, so I know why not, she had to escape to save her life and his, but she left me no indication, none at all, and I looked—I looked everywhere. Nothing.
Leaving him alone to sleep, I head to the kitchen to make coffee. My phone beeps, and it’s Beamer letting me know he’s down the street so I can unlock the door.

“Bro, you better have some coffee going!” Beamer calls out as he walks in.

“Shut it, dumbass! Hart and Ethan are still sleeping.”

“Shit, sorry, man. How are they?”

“Ethan seems to be doing just fine. Hart I think is trying to be strong, but I have a feeling she could break at any given minute. She’s struggling with me wanting to take care of her. Honestly, I don’t think she knows how to let someone take care of her, simply because no one ever has. However, that stopped two days ago. Don’t really care how much she fights it.”

“Good for you. She needs it too. I don’t know her that well, but I could tell last night she became more relaxed once we got here, and it wasn’t just because she was back with her son.”

“Yeah, I know. She came lookin’ for me last night, just needing to be close while she slept. She knows it too, struggling with it like I said, but she knows it.”

“You know I got your back, man, regardless of what goes down with Mack today.”

“Yeah, thanks, brother, but I’m not giving Mack much of a choice this time.”

“I figured as much.”

“Oh thank fuck you have coffee.” Kash’s voice comes around the corner followed shortly by the man himself, who is followed by Mack.

“All right, Cardoane, what was so fuckin’ important that you felt the need to call this little meeting and not explain over the phone?” Mack states. Mack is a good guy. He’s kind of an ass, but a good guy.

“It’s Hartley…”

“Oh fuck, not this again. Slyde, I told you we can’t find her.”

“Mack, I like you, but shut the fuck up!” I snap and glare at him. “I fuckin’ found her.”

“No shit man? Where is she?” Kash asks.

“In my bed, sleeping.”

“What? You fuckin’ around?”

“No, man, I ain’t, found her two nights ago, she was being attacked, car smashed. Took her home, stayed with her. She thinks it’s JD that found her and is causing trouble.”

“Why does she think that? Why the hell would he still be after her?”

“I have my theories. I found out what he had planned for her, and if it had all gone through, fuck I have no doubt if he found her he would go after her again.”

“You said
if,
” Beamer points out.

“Yeah the attack the other night was sloppy, geared more toward scaring her and mentally torturing her. If it was JD it would have been quick, he would have just taken her, no big scene, and she wouldn’t have even known what was even happening.”

“So who do you think it was?” Kash asks

“Still not sure on that, I have a theory but I need her to tell me more about what happened the night she left.”

“Did she say why she left? Do you know why we couldn’t track her?”

“She changed her name, last name for sure. To what, I don’t know yet. As for her leaving, she was pregnant. JD found out, beat her bad, she left and got stabbed, she thinks that was JD too, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t, same reasons as earlier. She has a son, Ethan, five years old.”

“What the fuck man?” Kash exclaims.

“Yeah I know, and this is all just the tip of the motherfuckin’ iceberg, I’m sure. There is still so much I don’t know yet.”

“Slyde…”

“Mack, I know what you’re gonna say, and I don’t give a shit. We have to keep them safe. She’s been runnin’, not sleepin’, and been terrified for years. She’s done runnin’. I finally found her, and I’m not letting her vanish again. I promised her son that I would catch the bad guys so she could sleep.”

“Slyde, it’s the same gig as years ago when you asked, we just can’t do it, we don’t have the men to send her away and keep watch on her.

“No, Mack, it’s not the same. I ain’t askin this time, I’m tellin ya to make it happen. Hartley is staying here with her son, and she
will
be safe. I don’t give a shit about anything else.”

“Slyde, we are close, we can’t blow it.”

“I fuckin’ know how close we are, but I failed her five years ago when I didn’t get her out of that fucking house and someplace safe. You want my guess as to what happened then? I told you something was wrong, I knew by her tone. My guess is the fuckin’ son-of-a-bitch beat the shit out of her, and that’s why she couldn’t get out of bed. Also why she wouldn’t let me turn the lights on, so I wouldn’t see the bruises. That’s why I didn’t know exactly what went wrong. She has somebody after her, and until that piece of shit is caught and I know that JD is put away, I will keep her safe. I ain’t gonna fail her again, so either you figure out a way to make this happen, or I’m out.”

“What the fuck do you mean you’re out? Slyde, don’t pull this shit.” Mack gets pissed, and frankly, I don’t give a shit.

“Mack, I told ya I ain’t fuckin’ around!” I snap back.

“Slyde, calm down man,” Beamer speaks for the first time since they arrived, and I glare at him.

“Kinda hard to calm down when she is scared out of her fucking mind, and I’m being told that nothing can be done. Until this shit is solved and that fucking son-of-a-bitch is some place where he can’t find her or hurt her anymore, then she needs to be protected. If you want me to continue doin’ what I’m doin’, then figure out how to get me what I need. And I
need
both of them to be safe.”

“Slyde, I just don’t have the men to…”

“Nine fuckin’ years, Mack. Nine years I’ve been on this. You fuckin’ owe me. Figure it out.”

“Slyde?” a soft voice comes from behind me. Spinning quickly, I see Hartley standing in the doorway.

“Hey, Tesoro, did you sleep OK? I’m sorry if we woke you.” I caress her cheek and arm once I reach her, and I feel her lean into my touch, so I leave a small kiss on her forehead. “Come with me.” I take her hand and lead her into the room. “Hartley, I’d like you to meet Charlie Mackintire aka Mack. Also this is Kash Ryan, and you know Beamer. Gentleman, meet Hartley Jackson.”

Hartley shakes hands with Mack and Kash and smiles at Beamer, stating her hello, and then she spins to me. “Slyde, can I talk to you for a second, please?”

“Of course, Tesoro.” I pull her away from the guys. “What’s wrong?”

“Well I, um, I heard you yelling. Please don’t get in trouble over me.”

“Hart, I’m not…”

“I’m going to be fine, and you don’t have to worry.”

“Hart, listen to me. I didn’t get you out of there years ago. I didn’t protect you then. I’m not gonna fail at that again.”

“You don’t have to protect me. Like I said, I’m gonna be fine. Ethan and I can leave and find another place to stay. I don’t want you in trouble.”

“Not up for arguments here, Tesoro. You’re staying here where I can keep you and Ethan safe, and I will keep you safe.”

“But I…”

“No. You’re here. You’re safe. You don’t leave this place without me or someone else to protect you.”

There he goes again being a good guy, but I don’t want him to get in trouble for this. This is why I just left years ago, and never told him anything that ever happened. I didn’t want to cause problems for him, which is all I seem to be doing right now.

“Slyde, I appreciate what you are trying to do, but I’m just causing you problems, and I won’t upset your life like this. I do still have work and Ethan has school; you can’t be here all the time.” I try to convince him, but then something I overheard him say forces its way to the front of my mind. “Wait, what did you mean nine years? What have you been doing for nine years? I’m confused.” Then it suddenly hits me. “Oh my god. You still work for JD! Oh my god! Oh my god! I have to go, we have to get out of here!!” I turn to run back down the hall.
How could I be so dumb? He still works for JD, and even though I know he would never give me back to him, I can’t risk being this close to him. I can’t risk my son. We have to go!

“Whoa, Hartley, stop. Just listen for a minute, and let me break it down for you, OK?

“No, you still work for him. I can’t stay here. He’ll find me!” I screech in panic. Slyde grasps both my arms to keep me from running.

“Hartley, I’m FBI.”

“What?” All the air leaves my body, and I become frozen with shock. I feel myself being moved, he sits me down on the couch and then sits on the coffee table in front of me. All I can do is stare at him.

“I’m FBI, nobody knows. Mack is my boss. Beamer and Kash are my partners and best friends, but you know that already. We are all a team.”

I know my eyes are wide as I stare at him. Slowly, they shift over the other three men who are all standing behind Slyde watching.

“They are the only three who know what I really am. Everyone else thinks I’m just undercover helpin’ them out so I don’t go to jail.”

My eyes remain glued to his. He watches, waiting for my response. I’m trying to process this but so many questions filter through my mind. Swallowing hard a few times, I finally manage to speak.

“How? You were there before me.”

“I was.” He nods. “I got mixed up with JD and his crew when I was about seventeen. I’d gotten caught during a deal gone bad, and I took the offer from the cops to work undercover for them to get intel on JD and all his dealings. I fed my information to the local cops, and they were able to shut down some of the smaller circles, but I knew that JD was dealing with much heavier shit then what the local cops could handle. They knew it too, and that’s when they called in the FBI. By this point I’d already worked my way up to his number one guy so all the information I’ve had access too has helped. We let him keep at it for so long because we are closing down everything. It’s a huge bust of gangs, drugs, guns, girls, etc. It’s going to shut down the entire north east area plus parts down south and out west. Anyway, the FBI had just taken over when you showed up. I watched you from afar, tried to make sure you were OK, but I had nothing to go off of since he seemed to treat you well. I tried to get you out of there after the attack from Griz and Tiny, I also knew something had changed but didn’t know what. I didn’t get you out, and I’m so sorry for that.” His hands, which I didn’t even realize where holding mine, rise to his lips, and I feel them softly press against my fingers. “Anyway, I got training and shit done so I could join the FBI, and like I said Mack, Beamer and Kash are the only ones who know. I’ve been undercover with them for nine years, since I was twenty-one, been an official agent three years.”