Page 22 of Rescuing Baylee

Something must have shown on her face, because Landon turned to look as well. “What is it?”

She shook her head. “Nothing.”

He dropped his head, catching her eyes. “Hey, if you think you saw something, you probably did. Let’s get out of here.”

Baylee blinked at his closeness, and she drew in a breath. It smelled of sandalwood, something she’d noticed him wearing. She wasn’t sure if it was deodorant or soap, but it teased at hersenses. It spiked something in her belly, and she was very aware of how close they were.

Then he took her hand in his and tugged her from the chair. Baylee was more than happy to go, and she followed him through the crowd, her fingers tangled with his. Yes, she knew she was in danger, but that didn’t keep her from not registering other things. Landon was strong and decisive, and he cut through the crowd like he meant to keep her safe at all costs, his broad shoulders angled to protect her. She couldn’t see the weapon in his waistband, but he had to be wearing one.

Man, her emotions were in a jumble. Determined to protect herself, she scanned the area, looking for anything out of the ordinary. She had her own weapon in her cross-body bag, and she knew she could get to it fairly quickly. Her anxiety had ridden her hard this morning, and she hadn’t been able to leave without her protection.

It was quiet all the way back to her car. When she caught sight of her vehicle, though, she gasped. Red spray paint decorated the windshield and along the body panels. Killer, it said. There was no gang symbol, but it was easy enough to work out who had done it.

Baylee felt the blood drain from her face, and she clenched her jaw. Shock rippled through her, and flashes of the men she’d killed. Even years later, she could still see their faces. This vandal had no idea how close to the mark they’d hit.

It took her an incredibly long time to catch her breath. By that time, Landon was already tugging her away from her car. On down the line, he pushed her into the passenger side of the black sedan he drove. Then he circled around the front of the car, climbed in, and cranked the ignition. He screamed out of the lot, sending two oncoming cars into a flurry of honking.

Baylee didn’t say anything for several minutes.

“Are you okay?” Landon asked her.

She flicked a glance at him. His strong hands held the steering wheel in a death grip, and she didn’t like seeing him on-edge. “Yeah, I’m fine. Do you think you can call a tow company to take my car to a paint place? I’ll call insurance when I get home.”

“Yeah, I can do that.” He paused. “I think I need to take you somewhere other than home.”

Baylee cringed, because she’d kind of been thinking the same thing. There were a lot of innocent people in her building, and she didn’t want any of them being caught in her mess. “I know,” she said, and she hated that her voice wavered. Turning her head, she looked out the window again.

She felt him cup her shoulder in his hand, and it took everything in her not to lean into his touch. Eventually, he drew away and called the police department.

Landon filled his boss in on what happened, and he also told her about the CI that had come forward. Baylee turned to watch him speak, listening as he related the details of the meeting. It explained why he’d been shadowing her.

Chino Vega’s brothers were after her for revenge. After she’d shot their crazy brother, who was shooting innocent people. How was that even fair? What was their reasoning behind coming after her?

Once he hung up the phone, she shook her head. “I just don’t understand why they’re after me.”

“It’s cocky male gang bullshit,” Landon growled, “and you’re caught in the middle of it.”

“What, exactly, am I supposed to do?” she said, exasperated. “Go into hiding indefinitely? I can’t do that. I have a job, and people that rely on me.”

“I know you do, Baylee, and I’m so sorry this has happened to you. For the next couple of nights, we’re going to a safe house.”

She turned to him incredulously. “I don’t have any clothes. Or anything,” she cried.

Landon winced, and she could see in his expression that he felt bad for her. “I know. We’ll make do or I’ll run to the store for you. At this moment, you need to go underground. For your safety and everyone else in the building.”

Baylee crossed her arms over her chest and clenched her teeth. Anger was moving in, and she seriously hoped she would get the chance to watch the brothers go down.

She clamped her mouth shut and watched out the window as he drove them into the suburbs. When he eventually pulled into a very plain tan vinyl ranch house, she wasn’t surprised. The place was a boring box in a long line of other boring boxes.

Once Landon parked, she slipped out of the car and followed him up the front walk. He typed a 5 number code into the deadbolt keypad on the door, and let them in.

Yeah, it was just as boring inside as outside.

Baylee looked around, feeling totally out of her element. “I have to get stuff from my apartment. And somebody needs to watch my cat.”

Landon looked at her as he closed and locked the door. “Didn’t know you had a cat.”

Baylee walked into the room. Overstuffed couch, a recliner, all in shades of brown. There were a few decorations on the walls, but nothing spectacular. Looked like garage sale rejects. She moved into the kitchen. Same uninspired look and feel to the place. She opened the fridge. “We may have to split the bottle of water,” she said, swinging the door shut.