Page 68 of Justice

“What happened to being my guardian angel?” Justice asked.

“You have me for that now,” I interjected.

Liberty shook his head as he knelt down on the truck bed. “Nope, sorry. He’s one up on me again.”

I looked over at him. “What?”

“How do you think he got shot, Scarlet?” Liberty asked me.

I slowly shook my head as it never occurred to me to ask how it had happened, I was only glad he was alive.

“He did it again,” Liberty went on, as if disgusted that his brother had taken a bullet for him. “We were skedaddling outta Dodge before the copter was gonna rain metal down on us, whenthis rider who was pinned under his bike, aimed at me. Justice here yelled ‘hey’at him, so the guy turned the gun on him.”

I immediately looked down at Justice.

“Not a hero,” he said softly. “It was just a natural reaction.”

“Forget hero, you called out a man with a gun?” I asked.

He stared at me. “Just my reaction.”

“I would have just shot him,” Liberty said. “In fact I did, right between the eyes.”

“And there’s your answer,” Justice said as the truck started up.

“The answer?” I felt totally confused as I laid my torso over his chest and held him.

He said nothing in reply.

“Justice, are you going to explain that?” I asked as I pressed my ear to his chest.

“I will in a minute. Just now…Um…I’m having another natural reaction to you laying on me like you are.” He chuckled.

Liberty snickered as he stared at me lying over his brother’s midsection and chest. “Well, that is confirmation for ya. This man is gonna live!”

“Oorah!” came a multitude of voices.

I gasped as my mouth popped open. I’d forgotten that all the men could hear us over the comms. Once again, total embarrassment consumed me.

Justice raised his good arm and took his earpiece out to clench it in his fist then he explained his earlier statement, “I suppose I’m not like the rest of the men here, I instinctively use my words first. I carry weapons and I use them, but they aren’t my first line of defense.”

I raised my head to look at him as I pulled my earpiece out too and cupped my hand over it. “I think that’s part of why I love you. You are too smart to act in anger or rage by instinct.”

He smiled at me. “Well, Liberty would call that being a wuss.”

I shook my head. “It’s not being wussy. I admire it.”

He stared at me. “So, you said that waspartof why you love me. What are the other parts?” He gave me a wink.

I laughed. “I will list them to you later.” I winked back at him then laid my head down on his chest.

The trip did take a long time, but I felt happy about it. Things slowed down finally after the whole warfront thing and I could hear his heartbeat under my ear the entire time. He was alive and that made me feel hopeful again.

Finally, the truck stopped and I raised my head to gaze down at Justice.

He looked asleep.

I gazed up at Ranger.