Page 10 of Silver Linings

“Lily? What’s going on?”

“G-Gunner? I’m so sorry. He’s drunk and out of control. I c-can’t get him to stop. He keeps yelling about how better off he’d be without me and the baby. I’m afraid he’s going to hurt us.”

“Where are you? Can you get somewhere safe? Somewhere with a door and a lock between the two of you?”

“I’m in the bathroom. The door’s locked, but he’s trying to kick it in.”

Gunner pulled at the straps of the black bag he didn’t go anywhere without and jumped from his truck. He was in her yard, stomping towards the back door in less than a minute.

“I’m coming, Lily. Just get in the tub or the shower and stay calm. I promise I’m almost there. Does he own a gun?”

“Oh, god.”

“Lil, does James have a gun or any other weapons in the house?”

“Yes. He has hunting rifles in his study. I hate them and told him to take them out of the house before the baby came, but he hasn’t.”

Fuck. Gunner needed to slow down and come up with a plan, but slowing down too much could mean Lily and the baby got hurt.

“Hurry, Gunner. Please.”

“Lil, I’m right outside. I need you to hang up the phone and call 9-1-1. Can you do that for me?”

“I tried to call them first. No one answered.”

“I need you to hang up and try again, okay? Try until you either talk to someone or I come get you.”

“Okay. I can do that.”

“I know you can. Listen, I’m coming in the house right now, Lily Kate. I’ve got you. Hang up and call for help.”

Her cries on the other end of the phone absolutely gutted him, but there was no room for emotions with what he was about to do. Slipping into SEAL mode was like finally slipping back into his natural state. Ice ran through his veins as he hurried around the house and up onto the back deck.

He could hear James screaming, banging on what he imagined was the bathroom door Lily was hiding behind. Gunner needed the element of surprise, which is why he held back every instinct that was raging inside him to get to Lily as fast as possible.

Gunner tested the doorknob. If it was locked, he’d have to spend precious time breaking into the house. But the universe was looking out for him, and Lily, because the knob twisted and the door popped open under his hand. Thank fuck.

His feet were heavy in his boots, although he still managed to move silently through the house. Another fun party trick he’d picked up as a SEAL. Every one of his teammates could move silently when needed.

The house was small, and the layout simple, which is how Gunner found James so quickly. He looked inside what was clearly their bedroom and saw the fucker with his head resting against another door, pleading with Lily.

“Baby, come out. I just want to talk. I don’t want you to be mad about what I did. I just…I needed something.”

Gunner moved into the room, immediately spotting the rifle in James’s right hand. It was resting against the floor, and had been shadowed by his body. He almost wanted to cry with relief at the fact that Lily had called him for help.

One step behind James, Gunner dropped his bag and wrapped his arm around James’s throat, squeezing as the idiot let go of the weapon and clawed at Gunner’s arms. Like that would stop him from choking the life force right out of the slimy bastard. Gunner watched as spittle flew from James’s mouth, silent gasps forming on his lips like a bloated goldfish looking for its next meal. Finally, the asshole’s eyes rolled into the back of his head and his body fell lax against Gunner’s.

He wanted nothing more than to let James lay there while he got Lily out of the house, but he wasn’t taking any chances of him waking up and somehow getting the jump on them. Somewhere in the back of his mind, Gunner registered sirens getting louder. Hell, they took long enough.

Pulling zip ties from his black bag, Gunner tied James’s hands and feet together, and then dragged him down the hallway and into a room far away from Lily.

Blue and red lights filled up the house as several police cars pulled into the driveway. God, he wanted to get to Lily, but the last thing he needed was the police busting down her door and freaking her out even more.

Holding up his hands as he opened the front door, Gunner stayed still as the officers approached him. Just a minute of explanation and they were more than happy to have Gunner lead them to the room where James was.

“I’ll need to see the weapon,” an older officer said to Gunner.

“No problem. It’s in the bedroom.”