Page 33 of Lane (East Dremest Mafia #5)

LANE

Why were those panties so fucking hot? Seriously, never had I thought about a man wearing them before and, holy fuck, had I been missing out.

Maybe it was the panties, or maybe it was Alton.

The combination blew my mind every time.

To know only Raiden and I got to see him in them, that he was walking around with them on, and no one knew, fuck me.

We helped Alton pack more of his belongings to take over to Raiden’s—our—apartment.

There was a decent amount Alton was leaving behind for others to use when he finally made this a space for people to recover from traumatic experiences.

The home was warm, inviting, without being stuffy and outdated.

There was a lot of charm rather than making it feel like grandparents lived here and anyone would expect to sit on old dusty couches.

With the help of Sheldon, we loaded boxes into the back of the Navigator Sheldon had driven here.

The SUV I was in when we made our way to Jack’s was at Jordan’s building with the others in it.

Thankfully, I didn’t get much blood on myself, or I would have had to sneak in the back door at Alton’s house and use his shower to scrub the crimson from my skin.

Reghan and Barrett said they’d debrief Jordan.

Eventually, I’d have to talk to him too, but Raiden and I wanted to be with Alton.

We didn’t like that he was out in the open where anyone could get to him.

The closer we were to taking out my asshole fake family, the safer he’d be.

Who would have guessed I’d have unearthed family who decided to make a fucking mess?

In reality, I should have. No one from my past except for my mom was a stellar person.

“Is this it?” Sheldon asked as we handed over the last of the boxes.

“For now,” Alton said. “There’s more I want to bring, but I don’t want to unpack all of it at once either. I can get more on my next day off.”

Alton went through the rooms and shut off the lights before we stepped outside. Sheldon stood near the Navigator, his eyes scanning our surroundings. Raiden was at my back while Alton took the keys out of his pocket to lock the door.

The sound of tires squealing over pavement and a large engine accelerating had Sheldon, Raiden, and my heads turning in the direction of a large black SUV barreling down the street.

I barely had time to grab Alton and throw him to the ground before gunfire rang out, peppering the house and everything around us with bullets.

Another body slammed into me, blanketing us as gunfire was returned from our end.

It happened so quickly and was gone just as fast.

“Inside,” Raiden rushed to say. “Get up.” He grabbed my arms and moved me, assisting me to my feet.

Sheldon helped Raiden form a wall until Alton and I were hauled inside. The door slammed shut, the lock engaged, not that it would do much against bullets.

Raiden opened the basement door, quickly ushering us down the stairs. I had no idea where I was going, but I trusted him with my life and Alton’s. We were urged into a reinforced room, just the two of us, while Raiden and Sheldon stayed on the other side.

Before Raiden shut the door, he said, “I know you’re more than capable, Lane, but right now, I have to protect you and Alton above everything else.” The door closed and I was plunged into darkness until Alton flipped a switch.

Bright light flooded the room that wasn’t much bigger than a walk-in closet. There was food stacked on shelves along one wall as well as bottles of water. This wasn’t a room anyone could stay in for too long, but it would do in case of an emergency.

Turning, I gripped Alton by the biceps and looked him over from head to toe. I spun him and made sure he wasn’t hurt. “You’re okay? Were you hit anywhere?”

“No, I’m fine.” His voice was surprisingly steady. “Are you okay?”

I nodded. “I’m good.” My hands shook as I took him into my arms, needing him as close as possible. If I hadn’t thrown him to the ground… I couldn’t think about it.

He returned my embrace, his hands soothing over my back. “I’m all right, promise.”

“Why aren’t you freaking out more?” I looked into his blue eyes. They were wide but he didn’t seem afraid.

“I haven’t always been like this. When my sister was in trouble, I was a mess.

” He’d told us about what happened and how he’d met Jordan.

“Over the years I’d resigned myself to the fact that, eventually, I would have someone trying to kill me.

I’m surprised it took this long. It’ll probably hit me later.

I was more worried about you and Raiden. ”

“The only reason they did it today is because of me.”

Alton cupped my cheeks gently. “You don’t know that for certain. Even if they were after you, I still wouldn’t change anything. Being with you is a risk I’ll gladly take.”

“What if I don’t want your life on the line?”

“You already told me you love me and we’re living together. It’s too late now.”

“God.” I dropped my forehead to his. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“Ditto.”

We stood like that for a bit, just breathing each other in, as my heart calmed in my chest. I wasn’t sure how much time went by before the door opened, and Sheldon was on the other side with Barrett at his back.

“You need to stitch up your man’s side, Doc,” Sheldon said. “It’s just a graze but he’s been out here bleeding, not giving a fuck about himself.”

Alton bolted from the room, rushing past Sheldon to find Raiden sitting on an old chair in the basement. Reghan was crouched in front of him, holding a cloth to the wound. “Let me see,” Alton said. Reghan pulled the fabric away and the bleeding started again. “Can we go upstairs?”

Barrett nodded. “It’s clear.”

I followed them upstairs, pissed that Raiden waited to say anything about his injury. I also understood why and would have done the same thing if I’d been on the other side of the door with Raiden and Alton inside.

In the medical room, Alton had Raiden lie down and went to work numbing the area. I focused on Raiden’s face, at the pinched pain in it. He was hurt because he put himself over Alton and me.

There was a distinct noise Jordan’s shoes made on any hard floor surface. That was how I knew he was going to enter the room in three, two, one…

“What the fuck?” he growled when he saw Raiden on the table. “How bad?”

“It’s a graze,” Sheldon answered. “Nothing serious.”

Jordan stopped at my side, since Alton was working on the other. “You’re good?” he asked Raiden.

“Yeah, I’m fine.”

“Sheldon gave me the vehicle description. At this point, it’s probably hidden or ditched somewhere.

Barrett is outside asking the neighbors for video footage.

We checked what Alton has, but it doesn’t show much of the people.

They had their faces covered. There’s only one person who can be behind this.

” We’d already heard Ethan was dead, as were those who were with him.

With Jack gone, that left the fake family and whoever worked for him.

“Anyone else turning on you?” I asked.

“No,” Jordan growled. “I would have killed them if they were.”

“Tomorrow is the third day,” I reminded him, not that I had to. Jordan would remember.

“I’m not giving him a fucking penny.”

“Nor should you. If we don’t do something, he’s going to escalate. This was only a warning.” If they had wanted to kill all four of us, they could have. Ulrich wouldn’t hire shitty shooters. If he was doing this, asking for so much money, he’d make sure his ass was covered in all aspects.

Jordan gripped Raiden’s shoulder tightly, then left the room, speaking in the hallway with Reghan.

I watched Alton stitch Raiden. Every movement was done quickly and with precision.

Alton’s hands didn’t shake. He didn’t falter in anything he did.

Even though it was Raiden on the table, a man he loved, Alton treated him like he would anybody else.

That was who Alton was. Life was precious, except maybe the people’s who were after us. Alton didn’t mind us hurting them.

“You’re done,” he said, applying the last of the dressing to keep the wound covered.

Alton turned to clean up, but Raiden gripped his wrist and held him in place. “Thank you.”

Alton’s shoulders relaxed. “You don’t have to thank me. I’m just glad it wasn’t worse.”

“You do a lot for not only Lane and me but my brother and everyone else who works for Jordan. You’re appreciated more than you know.”

“I’m just doing my job.”

“No, you could get in trouble for helping us, and you know it, but you don’t care. You do what you have to so we’re okay.”

“Every one of your lives is valuable. I care about making sure you’re all healthy.”

“Come here.” Raiden tugged on his arm, pulling him down so he could kiss Alton. “I love you.” My heart melted a little. It wasn’t the first time he said it. Hearing the words was still a novelty, even if they were directed at Alton.

When they broke apart, Raiden beckoned me closer to do the same. His lips met mine in a brief kiss before he uttered the same words to me.

“I love you too,” I whispered. “Next time, don’t put your body on mine though. I don’t want you hurt.”

“And you think I want you shot again? Hell no.”

“While you two work that out, I’m going to clean up the area,” Alton said.

Raiden slid over so I could climb on, lying on my side to be closer to him. My head went to his chest. The beat of his heart was strong and steady beneath my ear.

“Fuck’s sake,” Jordan growled. “I get that you could have been hurt worse, but you’re all fine. We have shit to do, a plan to make changes to. Lane, I need you to call Ulrich and tell him we’ll meet him tomorrow.”

“What happens after that?” I asked.

“That’s why we need the goddamn plan updated,” he bit out and left the room.

Before this, the plan consisted of digging around as much as we could and finding him before the three days were up. That didn’t work out in our favor. We still had no idea where he was and now, he shot at us.

“Shit,” Alton muttered. “I forgot to pack a few things I’ll need for work tomorrow.”

“You’re not going to work,” I told him.

“I have to. I have patients to see. Sheldon will be with me. I’ll be fine.”

I opened my mouth to object again when Alton’s hard gaze met mine.

“I won’t do this with either of you,” he stated firmly.

“I understand that you want to protect me, but we have jobs to do. You deal with this shit with Ulrich and I’ll take care of my patients.

I won’t stop what I do out of fear. Every time I leave my house I could be killed.

We never know when our last day will be.

I’ll be damned if I spend each moment wondering if my time is almost up. This is nonnegotiable. Got it?”

I swallowed and nodded. I didn’t like it, but I understood where he was coming from. Raiden and I risked our lives daily. Alton just wanted to be a doctor to the people who depended on him.