Page 78 of Lethal Vengeance

Wood creaks behind me, and I turn to glance at Maria. She’s moving restlessly.

“Hold out your hand, palm up,” he orders.

I hold it out.

He scrapes the side of his thumb until a clear ragged edge appears, then pulls off the fingerprint cover. Grabbing my hand, he places it over my thumb and smooths it down. Then he does the same with my pointer finger.

“Gelatin?” I ask, admiring the smoothness of the material.

He nods and hands me the silver box. “Make sure you only use these two fingers when you handle the cloth inside.”

“Cruz, we’re in position,” Zane murmurs.

Hard lips capture mine and time stops for a second.

“Almost there,” Sterling’s voice comes through my ear.

He releases me and disappears.

I hurry over to the bed.

“Sterling, I need you to stay close,” I murmur.

“I’m down the hall,” he returns.

I smooth Gabriel’s hair back. He’s a beautiful little boy. Sophia’s son. A piece of her still exists in this world. Legacy is a powerful thing. Gabriel is the only family I have now.

I’m so lost in my thoughts, I miss the door opening behind me.

A gun appears in my peripheral vision. Startled, I look up to find the guard staring down at Gabriel.

Maria screams and rushes the guard.

The gun goes off.

She stumbles back, her hand clutched to her chest, blood trickling through her fingers. “Gabriel.”

The guard stares at her in shock, then raises his gun again.

I move to the right, but the guard’s eyes never leave Gabriel. With a quick step back, I put myself between them. “What are you doing? He’s just a little boy.”

The guard spits on me. “He took my son, and now, I’ll take his.” The gun comes up level with my chest.

It fires.

The guard crumples to the ground.

Sterling stands behind him with his gun raised. “Bloody hell, that was close.” He holsters his gun. “Armando is on his way back.”

I pull the sleeping child up into my arms. Grabbing the animal in his bed, I hand both of them to Sterling. Then I reach back and grab his blanket.

Surprise flits across Sterling’s face.

I grip his hand tightly. “Promise me you’ll get him to safety. And if something happens…”

“Quinn,” Sterling interjects, his voice hoarse with emotion.

“Listen to me. If something happens, make sure he has a good home with the best parents,” I plead. “I’m entrusting him with you because your parents were wonderful. Those are the type of parents I want for him. Do you hear me?”