Page 47 of Beckett (Warrior Security #2)

Beckett

The speedometer hit ninety as I took the mountain curve too fast, tires screaming against asphalt. My phone sat in the cupholder, speaker crackling with dead air as Lark’s number rang straight to voice mail for the fifth time.

“Come on, come on.” I jabbed the end call button and immediately redialed the Pawsitive Connections’ landline. Ring. Ring. Ring. Nothing.

The SUV’s engine roared as I pushed it harder, taking roads designed for forty-five at twice that speed. Every second counted. Every second I’d wasted watching that decoy meant Reggie was closer to?—

No. I couldn’t think about what he might be doing. Had to focus on getting there.

My phone buzzed. Text from Coop.

Two minutes behind you.

Another from Hunter.

Aiden and I are five out.

I didn’t respond. Five minutes. In five minutes, how much damage could that fucker do?

I tried Lark one more time as Pawsitive Connections’ entrance came into view. The phone rang uselessly as I skidded into the driveway, gravel spraying in an arc behind me. I was out of the vehicle before it fully stopped, legs already running.

The silence hit me first.

No dogs barking their usual greeting. No sound of animals moving in their enclosures. Even the chickens were quiet. The kind of quiet that meant something had already happened, something that had sent every creature into hiding.

I sprinted toward the main house, boots pounding across the dirt. The porch came into view and?—

Lark .

She lay crumpled near the door, red hair spread across the weathered boards. Not moving. So much blood. I dropped to my knees beside her, fingers finding her pulse. There—steady but weak. She was breathing.

“Lark.” I kept my voice calm despite the panic clawing at my chest. “Can you hear me?”

Her eyelids fluttered. Thank God.

“He…he was here…” The words came out slurred, confused. “Audra…”

“Where?” I was torn. Lark needed help. But every second… “Lark, do you know where they went?”

“I don’t know…” She was struggling to focus, eyes rolling back. “I didn’t see…”

Gravel crunched as Coop’s truck roared into the driveway, taking the turn so hard I thought he might flip it. He was out and running before the engine died.

“Lark’s hurt! I don’t know where Audra and Reggie are!”

“I’ve got Lark!” He ran toward us. “Check the barn!”

Coop tossed something as he ran past—his backup Glock. I caught it one-handed, the weight familiar and reassuring. “Take it. Go find Audra.”

I ran for the barn, weapon ready, tactical training overriding emotion. Clear the corners. Check the shadows. Watch for movement. The barn door stood open, afternoon light streaming through to illuminate empty stalls. No Audra. No signs of struggle. Nothing but that oppressive silence.

Back outside, I scanned the property with growing desperation. Where would he take her? The kennels were visible from here—no movement. The training ring sat empty. The back pastures stretched toward the tree line, but?—

Red on the ground.

Blood, fresh enough to still glisten, dotting the dirt near the fence. Not pooled—droplets, like something bleeding had moved through here. I followed the trail, each drop a crimson breadcrumb leading toward…

Jet.

Oh no. No. Fuck .

The German shepherd was dragging himself toward the woods, back legs barely working, leaving a smear of red behind him.

Two wounds in his side leaked steadily, darkening his already black coat.

But he was still moving, still pulling himself forward with a determination that broke something in my chest.

I dropped beside him, hands already pulling off my shirt. “Hey, boy. Hey. I’ve got you.”

His tail tried to wag when he saw me, the movement weak but unmistakable. Even now, even bleeding out, he was glad to see a friend. I pressed the shirt against the worst of the wounds, applying pressure. Hopefully it would slow the bleeding.

Jet whimpered and kept trying to crawl toward the trees.

“You going after your girl, buddy?” I kept one hand on the makeshift bandage while studying his body language. Those brown eyes were locked on the forest, ears forward despite the pain. Every line of his body pointed the same direction—toward the dense woods that bordered the back of the property.

He’d been trying to follow them. Wounded, maybe dying, and his only thought was to follow Audra.

“Show me where she is, boy.” I helped him to his feet, supporting most of his weight. “I’m listening this time.”

This wouldn’t be like Afghanistan.

Jet limped forward, each step an obvious agony, but he didn’t stop. We entered the tree line together, moving from bright afternoon into green shadow. The blood trail behind us would make us easy to follow, but that didn’t matter. Backup would see it, know which way we’d gone.

Twenty yards in, I heard it—Reggie’s voice, drifting through the trees like smoke.

“You can’t run forever, Audra. You already know that.”

The tone was conversational, almost friendly. The voice of someone enjoying himself, taking his time. Playing with his food. But I couldn’t hear Audra. No response, no crying, no pleading. That silence terrified me more than screaming would have.

I looked down at Jet. The dog had frozen, one paw raised, body rigid as he pointed deeper into the underbrush. His training might have failed in controlled environments, but here, when it mattered, instinct took over.

“Jet, stay.” I dropped low to his ear and tightened my blood-soaked shirt more fully around him. “You’ve done your part, buddy. I’ll get her now.”

He lay down with a soft whimper.

“I promise I’ll get her. Stay.”

With one more scratch to his head, praying he’d hold on, I ran toward Reggie’s voice.

Audra stood with her back against a massive fallen pine, nowhere left to run. Her shirt was torn, dirt and pine needles in her hair, chest heaving. And Reggie… He stood ten feet from her, knife catching the filtered sunlight as he gestured with it.

“Eye for an eye.” His voice carried clearly now. “It was always going to end like this.”

He raised the knife, arm pulling back for a strike that would?—

I burst from the underbrush at a full sprint. If he stabbed me, so be it.

Reggie started to turn at the sound, but I was already airborne. My shoulder caught him in the ribs, both of us crashing to the forest floor in a tangle of limbs. The knife flew from his grip as we hit, disappearing into the leaves.

He was stronger than he looked, wiry muscle and fourteen months of rage making him fight like something feral. We rolled, each trying to gain position, fists and elbows flying. He caught me in the jaw, snapping my head back, but I’d taken worse in training. In combat.

And I had so much more to lose than this bastard. But I wasn’t going to lose today.

I got a hand on his wrist as he scrambled for where the knife had fallen, twisting hard.

The snap of breaking bone was followed by his scream, high and shocked.

His other hand clawed at my face, going for my eyes, but training took over.

I caught his arm, used his momentum against him, flipped him onto his stomach.

My knee went into his back, pinning him down. His broken wrist, I twisted behind him, drawing another scream. He bucked and thrashed, but I had fifty pounds and proper leverage on him.

“Todd Cartland killed my brother!” He was screaming now, all that calm control shattered. “Jeremy was innocent! Your whore girlfriend needs to pay! Eye for an eye! Eye for an eye!”

I ignored him, looking up to find Audra. “Are you hurt?”

She was standing pressed against the tree still, tears streaming down her face, whole body shaking. “Jet! He stabbed Jet!” The words came out between sobs, nearly hysterical. “And Lark—oh God, he killed Lark!”

“Lark’s alive.” I kept my voice steady, calm, the anchor she needed while everything spun apart. “Coop’s with her. And Jet led me to you—he’s hurt but alive.”

“He stabbed Jet.” She kept repeating it, like her mind had gotten stuck on that one terrible fact. “He stabbed him. Jet tried to protect me, and he stabbed him.”

Branches crashing announced the arrival of the cavalry. Hunter emerged first, weapon drawn, taking in the scene with one sweep. Aiden flanked him, moving to secure the perimeter without being asked. Then Lachlan, his sheriff’s uniform incongruous in the forest shadows.

“We’ve got him, Beck.” Lachlan moved in with cuffs, taking over the arrest with practiced efficiency. His voice carried a mix of relief and dark humor. “The real one this time.”

None of us gave two shits about Reggie’s broken wrist as Lachlan let him away, still spewing his vitriol.

It took me three strides to reach Audra, who stood frozen against the fallen pine like she couldn’t quite process that it was over.

“Hey.” I kept my voice soft, approaching slowly like she was one of the traumatized rescue dogs. “It’s okay. You’re safe now.”

She looked at me with eyes that couldn’t quite focus, shock making her movements disconnected. “Jet?”

“Come on.” I wrapped an arm around her shoulders, feeling how badly she was shaking. “Let’s go see him.”

She took one step, and her knees buckled. I caught her before she hit the ground, scooping her up without thinking about it. Her head dropped against my chest like she didn’t have the strength to hold it up anymore.

“I’ve got you,” I murmured, carrying her back through the trees. Ahead of us, I could hear Reggie still ranting about Todd, about justice, but his voice was fading as they dragged him away.

Jet hadn’t moved from where I’d left him, lying on his side in the pine needles, my blood-soaked shirt still pressed against his wounds. His tail thumped weakly when he saw us approaching.

“See?” I lowered Audra carefully beside him. “He’s right here.”

She reached out with trembling fingers, touching his head gently as if she was afraid he might break. Jet’s eyes opened fully, focusing on her with that complete devotion dogs gave to their people. His tail managed another thump. She lay down on the ground so they were face-to-face.

“You saved me.” Her voice broke completely. “You silly, wonderful dog. You actually saved me.”

She gently stroked his ears. “I’m so sorry. I’m so sorry he hurt you.”

“None of this is your fault.” I knelt beside them, one hand on her shoulder, the other checking Jet’s wounds. The bleeding had slowed but not stopped. He needed real medical attention, fast. “Jet did exactly what he wanted to do. He protected you.”

Through the trees, I could hear more vehicles arriving—ambulances, more deputies, some of the Resting Warrior guys. The cavalry had well and truly arrived, but right now, in this moment, it was just the three of us in the forest shadows.

The woman I’d fallen for despite every wall I’d built, the dog everyone had written off as a failure, and me—the soldier who’d finally managed to trust his instincts in time.

“Help’s coming,” I told them both, though I wasn’t sure who needed to hear it more. “Everything’s going to be okay now.”

They both looked up at me, and I could swear there was hope in both their eyes.

“Promise?” she whispered.

I thought about all the promises I’d broken, all the people I’d failed to save.

Rodriguez. All the ghosts that visited me at three in the morning.

That wasn’t ever going away. But this time, looking at Audra, covered in dirt and pine needles, holding the wounded dog who’d finally found his courage when it mattered, I knew I could keep this one.

“Promise.” And I meant it.