Risky Shot (14 page)

Click. Click.

The noise reverberated through the night and Dani dragged her eyes away from the gun pointed at her head and up to Edwards’ face. He was focused on something behind her. Oh, thank God the police must be here. She turned her head and saw a massive shotgun pointed right at Edwards’ chest. Behind the shot gun was a poof of white hair.

“You don’t want to do that. I am FBI and I am here to arrest this lady. You’d be interfering with a federal officer.”

Dani slowly reached out with her right hand and felt along the ground. She used her fingers to try to find the knife Edwards made her drop. She wasn’t sure if Miss Lily knew how to use that gun and she figured she knew she didn’t have long to act.

“I don’t care if you are Jesus Christ, himself. You will put that gun down or, bless your heart, I will shoot you.”

Dani could not believe that strong voice was coming from little Miss Lily. She looked up at Edwards and could tell he was not totally convinced to put down the gun.

“Lily Rae! What’s going on over there?”

Dani looked about twenty yards behind Edwards and saw another older lady level a very large .44 magnum at him. Edwards darted a glance around him as more people appeared with guns drawn.

“Bless your heart, you must be one stupid son of a bitch if you expect us to do that before the police arrive. We haven’t seen your badge or a warrant for that little girl’s arrest.” Edna told him.

Dani saw the knife out the corner of her eye, but she couldn’t quite reach it. She tried shifting, but Edwards grabbed her arm so hard that she thought it would snap in two.

“You’re not going anywhere. Even with your band of gun toting grandmas, I still have the power to do whatever I want with you.”

Pain shot up her arm and she saw stars dancing. They were pretty blue and red stars though. Edwards loosened his grip as he pushed the gun against her head. She felt the cold steel pushing into her forehead.

“Sorry sir, we can’t do that.” It was a deeper voice with more twang to it. That must be Dinky’s partner, Noodle. She hadn’t met him, but had heard about him. Two against one, maybe they could handle Edwards. “We need you to put that down and let Miss De Luca go. We will take her into custody until you produce identification and a legal warrant for her arrest.”

“No. I am authorized by the Assistant Director in Charge of the New York Office to bring her back to New York. You’re nothing but a bunch of hicks. I will see all of you thrown in jail.” He squeezed her arm tighter and she shrank into the pain. It felt as if his grip was slicing through her muscle and about to snap her arm like a toothpick. “Stop where you are or I’ll shoot her right now.” He drilled the gun barrel into Dani’s forehead causing her to scream out in pain.

“Everything is not going to be okay. Put down those guns. I am taking her with me.” He started to back up and Dani fought with all she had to break his hold.

“Last chance.” The cold, steely voice hardly sounded like the Ahmed she knew.

“Or what? You’ll shoot me in front of all these people? I am an FBI agent. You’ll spend the rest of your life in jail. Just who do you think you are?”

“I am Ahmed and I can shoot you and never be touched. Isn’t that right Sheik Ali Rahman?”

She felt Edwards pause. What was Ahmed talking about and why did Edwards care? She caught a movement directly behind Edwards and saw Cole quietly walking up behind them with his gun drawn. Adrenalin surged and hope soared.

“Edwards. It is not good to see you again. However, I do have great pleasure in telling you to put the gun down and place your hands behind your back. You are under arrest. And I do have a legal warrant from the Deputy Director of the FBI, not that corrupt Pottinger in New York.”

Edwards staggered back, still holding onto her arm. As he fell to the ground, he dragged Dani on top of him. She screamed as she saw the blood start to spread over his shirt. She tried to stand up, but Edwards still had a grip on her arm. Frantic, she clawed at his hand trying to pry it off.

“Get his hand off me, please.” The panic had not subsided yet. Until she had his hand off of her arm, she wouldn’t be able to relax. Mo reached down and pried it open. She fell back and fell to her bottom on the driveway.

“Danielle! Oh you poor dear! Are you alright?” Miss Lily ran to her side, the massive shotgun hanging down by her side. Dani just wanted a moment with Mo to tell him she understood, but was surrounded by neighbors as Ahmed, Cole, Dinky and Noodle called ambulances and administered first aid to Edwards.

“Where’s Brutus? Brutus! Come here boy!” she called. That cat had tried to save her and she just wanted to hold him. She felt him rub against her bare leg and scooped him up. “You are such a good boy. I will feed you fresh fish for the rest of your life.”

“You should have seen that cat! He jumped onto Edwards’ back and dug in with all of his claws. He caused Edwards to drop his lock on Dani and she stabbed him in the leg,” Miss Lily told all of the onlookers.

“Dani! Oh my God. Are you okay?” Paige pushed her way through the crowd with Marshall and Miles. Dani grabbed Mo’s hand and looked him in the eye. She hoped with that look she conveyed her feelings to him since she couldn’t tell him now.

“Can you please help me up?” She placed her hand in his and gave a little squeeze. She saw his eyes soften as he rubbed his thumb across her knuckles. “I am okay, just let me stand up.”

He nodded and stood up. He held out his hands and helped pull her up. Her legs felt wobbly after being pinned underneath her for so long.

“Thank you, everyone. I am okay. I can’t thank you enough for saving me.”

“Oh! Bless you heart, come here before I start leaking like a watering pot.” Miss Lily wrapped her arms around her and hugged her tight.

“Sweetheart, the EMT’s are here. Let them check you out. I’ll hold Brutus for you.” Turning around she saw Edwards being loaded into one ambulance. Cole and Noodle went with him.

Dani was being checked over in the other ambulance when Mo asked, “Can I take her home?”

“Yes, but make sure she gets some rest and plenty of food and water. She’s had a major shock. Her forehead will be bruised for a couple of days. Her arm suffered deep abrasions and will most likely take weeks to heal. Try not to use it for a couple of days.” The EMT took the blood pressure cuff off and started packing his first aid kit.

Chapter Twelve

Mo placed Brutus on a towel in the back seat of the Mercedes and scratched his ears. “I’ll have cook prepare you some salmon.”

Brutus purred and rubbed his head against Mo’s hand, happy with his upcoming treat. Mo opened the front door and slid into the seat. He cast Dani a look that she knew he was unsure of where he stood with her.

“Mo. There’s something I need to say without being interrupted.”

He nodded and stared out the windshield into the dark night as he drove towards his farm. Maybe it would be easier to say when he wasn’t focused on her.

“This afternoon I spent an hour and half under the desk in my office.” She saw him whip his head toward her with his eyebrow raised. “I thought about what you told me, about it being the first time someone liked you for you, and that was why you didn’t tell me who you are. Well, I thought about it and I understand it. I thought about this last week together. There were no paparazzi, no women falling at your feet, and plenty of privacy. If we both care for each other, we can overcome any obstacle. That is, if you do care for me that way.” Suddenly feeling vulnerable, she looked out the window as they turned into Desert Sun Farm.

A huge house came into view. No, it wasn’t a house, it was a palace. It was three stories high and made of red brick. There was a Greek revival entrance and two large wings that went off from the sides of the main part of the house. There had to be at least twenty stairs heading to the front door from the ornately red colored graveled driveway.

“I guess that’s your farmhouse I kept imagining?” She spoke with a mixture of awe and trepidation. How could a place like that be a home?

“I must be completely honest with you. There has been a woman here the past two days. That is why I could not come see you. And I must admit I didn’t think you wanted to see me.”

“A woman!” That was fast. Here she sat trying to see if they could work things out and he had moved on in a matter of hours.

“Wait. It’s not what you think. You remember me telling you that in five months I must marry or my father will choose for me?” He waited for her to nod before continuing on. “Well, every couple of weeks he sends a woman of his choosing. They stay the night until I can ship them back. Kenna calls them The Bachelorettes. I call them a pain the in ass. But, since some of their fathers are high ranking officers in government or royalty, I can’t just tell them to get lost. Please tell me you understand.”

“That is my private wing. They stay in the back of the far right wing. I must warn you. They will keep showing up until I am married.” As Mo climbed out of the car and walked around to open her door, she closed her eyes and thought about the situation. Was the love she was feeling enough to overcome a domineering father, Bachelorettes, and the other downfalls to being royal? The answer was simple and it came to her quickly.

The house was even bigger than her parents’ sprawling villa in Italy. Black and white marble floor and beautiful paintings gave the house a luxurious feeling. But Mo had worked hard at making it comfortable as well. The paint colors were warm and the furniture inviting.

He stopped in front of a huge staircase that went up a story and then divided with one branch going off to the left and the other to the right leading to a wrap around balcony on the second floor that overlooked the entrance hall. “I am not very good at this. I am afraid I am making horrible mistakes.” He shifted from one foot to the other as he tried to decide on his words. “See, I have always been pursued for my status and money. No one bothered to find out who I was and what I wanted. As a result, I have never been in love or able to express any kind of feelings. Actually, I am pretty sure my father would forbid it.”

Mo stopped again and took a deep breath in an obvious attempt to fight off frustration. Dani grabbed her hands to prevent herself from throwing them around him and begging him to love her.

“If we have any hope of a future, then we must always be honest with each other. I fell in love with you when Kenna told me about you.”

Dani bit down on the corner of her lip to keep from saying anything. She did not want to miss a word.

“I must tell you, as soon as I met you, I ordered an investigation on your background. But I never opened the report. You were such a gift to me that I wanted to unwrap you layer by layer myself. As I have done so, I have found that I am falling more and more in love with you.”

Dani’s heart swelled and all her nerves disappeared. She knew it was right. They made sense together.

“I love you too. I didn’t know it was possible to feel the way I do. When I didn’t have you beside me, the world just didn’t seem as bright.” She smiled as she watched Mo’s expression turn from nervous to excited.

He closed the distance and kissed her with such passion that Dani couldn’t hold anything back. They were fighting to show how much they loved one another through this one kiss. Her toes were curled and their bodies couldn’t get close enough.

She laughed when he swept her up into his arms and carried her upstairs. She didn’t notice the priceless art on the walls or the crystal chandeliers. All she saw was the love he had for her in his eyes.

* * *

Dani slowly woke as the sunlight came into the room. They had forgotten to close the curtains last night. There had been other things on their minds. She grinned and thought about closing them now, but that would mean having to move Mo’s arm and leg that were thrown over her. Brutus was happily curled up on his own chair by the window watching birds.