Absolute Trust Read online

  Behind them, the trunk hatch came down with a solid thunk.

  Forte let out a curse and grabbed her, pulling them down to the ground and rolling for the cover of other cars as an explosion lifted the entire driver’s side of her car.

  * * *

  Sophie screamed. Maybe. She was pretty sure she did, but wrapped in Brandon’s arms and smooshed up against his chest, she wasn’t sure if she’d gotten it out or if it’d only been in her head.

  The explosion was crazy loud. The concussive force of it slammed into her and Brandon despite the shelter of the cars and the Dumpster he’d pulled them behind.

  He covered most of her, one of his hands tucking her head protectively into his chest. His other arm was around her waist. They were horizontal.

  Not the way she’d daydreamed this would happen.

  After a long moment, all she could hear was the ringing in her ears. Her heart thundered in her chest. And she thought, maybe, Brandon’s lips were pressed against her temple.

  Or was it her imagination?

  His weight lifted off her, and his hands started to roam over her, gentle but with purpose. Looking for injuries.

  His voice started to penetrate the roaring sound filling her head. The words slowly started to make sense. “Are you hurt?”

  “Haydn?” She sounded funny in her own mind, but Brandon met her gaze for a moment and jerked his chin to one side.

  “Don’t turn to look until I check to see if you hurt your neck or head.” His admonishment came through sharp. It was the way he talked when he was worried. People thought it was meanness, but it wasn’t. He was frightened. For her. “Haydn’s right here. He’s fine; a little shaken up by the blast, but his training will help him keep his shit together. He’s fine.”

  As Brandon continued, a cold nose touched her cheek. Big ears came into view, and warm, not-so-sweet breath huffed across her face.

  “I’m glad you’re okay,” she whispered. It was for both Brandon and the dog.

  A brief whine answered her. Then a large, furry body lay down next to her, just barely touching her shoulder and side. A fine tremor passed through the big dog and then he pressed closer to her.

  “He’s going to stay here with you.” Brandon rose. “Can you lay here until the ambulance comes, Sophie? Please? He’ll be calmer if he has you to watch over.”

  Then she realized things hurt. Her right shoulder, her hip. Pain shot from her right ankle. Maybe the only thing that didn’t hurt was her head. Brandon wasn’t just worried about Haydn.

  “Is it bad?” She stared up at Brandon as he lifted his smartphone to his ear. Sirens were already approaching.

  Brandon held out his hand. “Give us space, please. Stay off the blacktop!”

  People must have been gathering. He was stepping out to take command of the situation. He was walking away from her. Again.

  “Don’t leave me,” she whispered. She always said it quietly. Because she didn’t want him to actually hear her.

  A soft woof answered her instead. Careful not to turn her head, because Brandon had asked her not to, she looked as far to her side as she could. There was Haydn lying next to her. His eyes were dark, almost as black as his fur. And his gaze was steady on hers. Calming. He wasn’t going to leave her.

  “Okay, Haydn,” she whispered to her new friend. “We’ll wait right here for him.”

  It was what she’d always done. And this time, she had company.

  Chapter Two

  Forte leaned against the wall, keeping an eye on all approaches in the hospital corridors. From his vantage point, he could monitor the elevators to his right and the nurse reception area for the floor. To his left, the hallway stretched all the way down to the one emergency stairwell. If anyone odd showed up, he’d see them right away.

  Haydn lay with his big head on his paw at Forte’s feet, keeping him company. The dog appeared to be resting, but his ears were up and alert. They’d both been there for hours since Sophie had been brought in, assessed in the emergency room, and admitted for further observation. Haydn had accepted a bowl of water from the friendly nurses, but Forte hadn’t taken them up on offers of food from the cafeteria or drink. His stomach was a tight knot of cold anger, pent up and controlled, waiting to hear more on Sophie’s status.

  Those hours had been long and filled with tension, but they had allowed both Haydn and Forte to assimilate the “normal” sounds on this particular hospital floor. Any time an unusual clang, ping, or voice broke that learned soundtrack, Haydn’s ears twitched and Forte searched for the source to assess the potential threat.

  It might be overkill. Maybe. Forte was reasonably certain it wasn’t. He’d wait until he could check in with Rojas and Cruz to be sure.

  Officer Kymani Graves was in Sophie’s room now, asking her about the explosion. In the absence of Sophie’s direct family, Ky had arranged with the hospital to allow Forte to remain nearby. Which was good because nothing would’ve kept Forte from being as close to Sophie as possible. He’d almost lost her today, and his heart stopped every time he thought about it.

  Forte had to respect the hospital staff, though. They’d been understanding and had given him space. Apparently, they’d gotten used to the vigilance of the Hope’s Crossing Kennels trainers when one of their own was under medical care.

  Back then, it’d been Alex Rojas keeping watch. Elisa had become the kennel’s administrative assistant and an integral part of Rojas’s happiness. When she’d been attacked by her stalker, Rojas and his dog, Souze, had intervened in the kidnapping. It’d been too close a thing for any of their peace of mind. But Elisa had only needed a few hours under observation to be sure she hadn’t suffered any major injury from the harrowing ordeal.

  Forte hadn’t envied Rojas the worry, but he’d understood. Or thought he had. Now, when it was Sophie here, Forte wasn’t sure how to keep the seething combination of rage and anxiety in his chest under control.

  Sophie—his Sophie—had been hurt. There’d been a bomb in her car.

  Until they all knew exactly how and why it’d happened, there was no way he was leaving Sophie’s safety to question. She wasn’t just a childhood friend; she was his reason for breathing.

  And he’d never said it to her out loud.

  Haydn lifted his head, issued an almost inaudible whine, and came to his feet. Forte murmured quiet praise and reassurance, straightening away from the wall to stand and be ready for what might come next. The GSD wasn’t his, specifically, but Haydn had been right there with him through the hours without a single complaint. This was work, and Haydn was a working dog at heart. It allowed the big dog to focus on the task at hand and get past the aftershock of having been near another explosion.

  Ky emerged from Sophie’s room, closing the door behind him quietly. The officer glanced down to the end of the hallway, then turned to find Forte and smiled. Relief flooded through Forte at the sight of Ky’s brilliant white teeth contrasted against the backdrop of his dark skin. The man had a grin that could disarm an entire crowd.

  “She’s fallen asleep.” Ky reached Forte in a few long strides, his uniquely resonant voice pitched low so it didn’t travel too far down the corridors. “I asked her a few questions, but she wasn’t able to answer in much detail. I’ll be back in a few hours to question her again once the initial sedation has worn off. The doctor tells me she’ll be more lucid after she’s had a chance to rest and recover from the shock.”

  The doctor had grudgingly given Forte a more detailed catalog of Sophie’s injuries. Superficial cuts and scrapes from the asphalt of the parking lot were the least of the worries, though the most visible at the moment. Mild tinnitus would mess with their hearing for a while longer but was likely temporary. The cars around them and the Dumpster had saved them from the shock wave of the explosion, thankfully. But contusions incurred from falling to the ground would start surfacing in a couple of days, and Sophie would be aching, sore, and in some pain from those. The biggest concern at the momen
t was her right ankle. She’d twisted it severely as they had gone down and they’d need X-rays to determine whether it was broken.

  It could’ve been worse. Unspeakably worse.

  Still, Forte considered every one of those injuries his fault. If he’d recognized Haydn’s signal sooner, gotten her away from the car more quickly, she might not have been hurt as badly. He had his fair share of scrapes and bruises, too, especially across the outsides of his forearms, but he’d learned a long time ago how to fall and get to his feet ready to take action. Sophie had learned to land on mats at Revolution MMA in the women’s self-defense workshops, not on hard asphalt with things blowing up around her. She’d stiffened up as they went to the ground and hadn’t quite rolled with him as he’d tried to distribute their momentum. It’d been enough for her to come out the worse for wear between the two of them despite his attempt to protect her from flying shrapnel.

  “I’ll stay with her.” Forte didn’t expand on how long. It wasn’t even a question. He’d watch over her while she needed him.

  “Her family’s out of town, from what I gathered?” Ky didn’t pull out his notebook. The police officer had an excellent memory. Forte guessed he took notes only for the benefit of the people he interviewed.

  “Yearly visit to South Korea.” Forte considered the date. “They should be back just before Christmas, in about a month and a half.”

  He’d been considering how to reach out to them. He wasn’t her father’s favorite person in the world. Actually, the exact opposite. They hadn’t spoken since Forte had graduated high school, and her father wouldn’t be happy to speak to Forte now. The man had made it clear all those years ago that it didn’t matter what kind of person Forte grew into being; Forte would never be a good enough person.

  And her father was right. Forte was not a good man.

  “Sophie didn’t want them contacted.” Ky grimaced.

  Forte shared the man’s frustration. Family should be contacted, but Sophie was an adult, and even if she was out of it currently due to medication, her life wasn’t immediately in danger. At least not from her injuries.

  “I’m betting she managed to mumble about being back on her feet by tomorrow and no need to freak everyone out. She tried to make you promise to let her family enjoy their vacation, didn’t she?”

  Even as Forte finished the thought, Ky sighed. “You know her better than anyone.”

  Yeah. He did. Forte chuckled. “I’ve known her a long time. Don’t worry. I’ll be here. Lyn and Elisa will probably be here as soon as the doctors say she can have visitors.”

  With Lyn Jones and Elisa Hall would come David Cruz and Alex Rojas, respectively. Sophie was a part of Hope’s Crossing Kennels, even if she didn’t work there. Oh, she kept the accounting on track, but in reality, she was the heart of Hope’s Crossing Kennels. Her caring came in the form of home-baked rolls, pastries, and cupcakes. Her laughter filled the shared kitchen in the main house, and every dog had learned the sound of her footsteps on the grounds.

  He wouldn’t have it any other way.

  “Blood is family.” Ky paused. “Family can be more than blood. I’ll have a word with the doctor about each of you.”

  “Thank you.” Forte’s throat closed some at the thought. Yes, the others from the kennels were Sophie’s family, too. What he felt for her was…a different kind of connection. “We’ll keep watch while she’s recovering.”

  And once she was discharged from the hospital, having him keeping watch nearby would liven up her apartment complex some.

  Ky only nodded, his brows drawing together. “We’re actively investigating the explosion. The forensics team is on site now and studying what they can of the car. There aren’t any immediate answers. Let me ask her what happened when I get back. Until then, if she wakes up, keep conversation away from anything I’ll need to ask her later. It’ll be better if she answers me to the best of her memory, without the filter of anyone else’s impressions on what happened.”

  Forte nodded. Sophie would be full of her own questions when she woke up. But he understood the implicit warning in Ky’s words. With her at the center of an active investigation, it would be best if she didn’t receive influence from anyone around her, accidental or not.

  For his part, Forte raised his eyebrow at Ky. He couldn’t ask Ky about an ongoing investigation, and Ky couldn’t tell him anything anyway. Not directly.

  Ky snorted. “It could still have been a random incident. A lot of people could’ve been caught in the explosion with it going off in a public place, and it was lucky no one else was hurt. It was good for every person in the general area that you and one of your dogs were present to call out the warning. Who is this, by the way?”

  Haydn tipped his head and looked up at Ky as the officer gestured at the big dog. Innocuous as it was, it was still a motion in Haydn’s direction, and the GSD was sensitive to it.

  “Zit.” Haydn complied immediately, sitting at his side and turning his dark gaze up at Forte for the next command. Satisfied, Forte returned his attention to Ky. “This is Haydn. He’s joined us at Hope’s Crossing for some physical therapy and advanced training with his new prosthetic.”

  “Fine dog. Never thought we’d need a military explosives-detection specialist here.” Ky didn’t crouch to pet Haydn. It was a silent acknowledgment that both Haydn and Forte were in working mode. “Well, I’ve got your statements on record already, and I’ll arrange for you to be point of contact while her family is out of town. Your name was listed as emergency contact anyway, so it shouldn’t take much convincing with the hospital staff. If I need to find you, I’m guessing I only have to come here for the time being.”

  Forte nodded. “You’ve got my number once Sophie’s discharged. Or you can ask for me at the kennels.”

  He might not be there, depending on where Sophie decided to stay while she healed up, but his partners, David Cruz and Alex Rojas, would know where to find him. He planned to have eyes on Sophie until they were absolutely sure who had set the IED and why.

  Ky nodded, his expression showing no sign of surprise. “I’m on this, Forte. We’ll find out what’s going on.”

  Forte nodded in return. Ky trained at Revolution MMA with Rojas and Forte. They had learned to spar together, run timing drills, and train in various forms of martial arts. This wasn’t an official collaboration, but they were working together all the same. Ky was good people.

  With a parting nod, Ky headed over to the nurses’ reception desk. The tall, lean police officer paused to chat with the nurses. Forte envied Ky’s ability to set civilians at ease, engage them, and foster an open channel of communication. Every nurse there had a bright, cheery expression for Ky. By the time he’d finished checking in with them, he’d probably heard all about their lives, from what they’d had for breakfast to where they went after their shifts were over. The useful part of the flow of information was the amount shared unintentionally. Nurses noticed everything. Ky would find out if there’d been anyone poking around on any of the hospital floors looking for a recently checked-in patient.

  When Ky straightened and gave Forte another nod, Forte relaxed. No unusual visitors on the patient floors.

  As Ky left, stepping into the elevator, Forte resumed his watch.

  * * *

  Something was beeping.

  Sophie drew in a deep breath, slow and steady. The air had a tang of disinfectant. She opened her eyes, blinking rapidly. Waking up was a struggle, the way it could be when she’d napped too hard, too late in the afternoon. But it was well past afternoon based on the darkness outside the window, and there was only one sterile, white light behind her head.

  Where was she?

  The beeping picked up speed, and she took in the rest of the room in a rush. A chair in the corner, a tray stand. The bed she lay in had guardrails. Sheets layered with a tan blanket covered her. Her entire body ached in a dull throb, accentuated by a sharper pain in her right ankle and a few other places. Cuts and scrapes, m
aybe? Not the ankle. She tried to wiggle her toes through the pain.

  A quiet knock came at the door.

  Startled, Sophie tried to respond and croaked. Swallowing against the dryness in her throat, she tried again. “Come in.”

  The door opened slowly, and something below her line of sight came in the room, panting. Then Brandon opened the door wider, holding a cup. “Thought you might be ready for a few sips of water.”

  Relief flooded through her. He was here. Hungrily, she took in the sight of him from head to toe, noting the scrapes on his muscular forearms and the torn state of his left sleeve. His dark hair was disheveled, the way Korean pop stars tended to wear their hair to look sexy. And on Brandon, it was a good look—even if she was sure he hadn’t done it on purpose. How he managed to look so incredibly hot even banged up and the worse for wear was beyond her. The man cleaned up well, but parts of her still melted whenever she saw him rough and ready for action.

  To be honest, she was melting now as his broad shoulders filled the doorway, and not in the delicate-flower kind of way. More likely, she was a hot mess.

  Sophie made an effort to fix her gaze on the cup of water in his hand and nodded gratefully. “Is that Haydn with you?”

  “Yeah.” Brandon came to her and pressed a button on the side of the bed. The bed made a soft buzzing noise as it raised her upper body to something closer to a sitting position. “Did you want to see him?”

  She tried to take the cup from him, but he didn’t let it go. Instead, he held it to her lips. Heat warmed her cheeks as she gingerly placed her fingers over his to tip the cup and sip. Cool water slid over her tongue and eased the dry tightness in her throat even as electricity zinged through her fingertips from touching his skin. Another sip, and a third, then Brandon gently pulled the cup away.

  “Let’s take it a little at a time.” His tone was gruff, but with the odd note of gentle amusement she hadn’t ever heard him use for anyone else. “Haydn.”