Fractured Memories (Badge of Honor #1)

Chapter 26

TWENTY-SIX

Felicity opened her eyes. Sunlight filtered through the panes on the window to create shapes on the hospital floor. A set of boots extended from the chair next to her bed. She trailed her gaze up the long legs and across the broad chest to Noah’s gorgeous face. His eyes were closed, but one hand cupped hers. Even in his sleep, he was watching over her. She smiled. Thankful prayers lifted from her heart for the gift of another day with the man she loved.

“Hey.” Noah sat up, blinking the sleep from his eyes. He gently squeezed her hand. “How are you feeling?”

“Better.”

The emergency room doctor had insisted on keeping her overnight for observation. Felicity had taken several knocks to the head in the last few days, and her body was bruised and battered from being hit with the baseball bat. Thankfully, no bones were broken, although she sliced her leg pretty badly on a rock while running from Kurtis in the woods. It’d taken a dozen stitches to put her back together.

Harper was completely untouched. She’d slept through the whole incident and woke up after they reached the hospital in her father’s arms. Something else Felicity was grateful for. “How’s Harper?”

“She’s fine. The doctor said the drug they used to sedate her has completely cleared her system. She won’t have any adverse side effects.” Noah reached for a carafe of water and a cup as she raised the bed to a sitting position. He poured some water and handed it to her.

She sipped slowly through the straw, the cool liquid coursing down her throat and soothing her dry mouth. She leaned against the pillow. “Did you stay all night?”

“You didn’t think I was going to let you out of my sight for a moment, did you? Not after that stunt you pulled.” He kissed her forehead to take the sting from his words. “You scared me, Fee. Promise you won’t ever do that again.”

“I’m sorry.” She took his hand. His request wasn’t unfair. She’d ignored her training and acted recklessly by going after Harper on her own. Felicity hadn’t seen any other option at the time though. “All I could think about was Harper.”

“I know.” His gaze was tender. “I suppose I can’t be too mad since you saved her life.” This time, his kiss landed on her lips. As gentle as a butterfly wing, and fleeting, but with so much passion and tenderness, it brought tears to her eyes.

Noah swiped at one as it coursed down her cheek. “ Once Daniel found out that Kurtis had set him up to take the fall for everything, he spilled his guts. If you hadn’t followed their instructions and gone to the farm, the plan was to murder Harper.” Anger flared in his expression. “Kurtis wanted to break you. And me. He hoped Harper’s death would keep us from pursuing Brooke’s murder and the Triple 6 any further.”

“Stupid plan.”

“Agreed. He was desperate to buy time so Melanie could erase the bank records. Grady arrested her within an hour of Kurtis. Neither of them will see the outside of a prison cell. Ever.” He sighed. “Although there may be a trial. Trials, actually. Neither of them confessed and have lawyered up. You may have to testify.”

She ran her fingers over the warm skin along his knuckles. “It won’t be the first time I’ve faced down killers in court. I’m not afraid.” Felicity frowned. “So Kurtis and Melanie were running Triple 6?”

“Not exactly. They’re part of the organization, and had a lot of territory here in Knoxville, but they aren’t completely in charge. They operated more like a franchise. Grady is going to continue working the case over the next few months. It’ll take time to track all the money that transferred hands through Knoxville Bank, but he hopes it’ll lead to everyone involved in Triple 6. We want to shut it down. For good.”

Felicity would request to assist on the case. Her boss might not agree, but it was worth asking. She blew out a breath. “One thing I can’t understand is why Kurtis did it. He comes from money. ”

“His dad apparently had a gambling problem and blew through most of the family's fortune. Kurtis started selling drugs after law school. With his connections, Triple 6 leadership moved him up higher in the ranks. Then he got Melanie involved. Working together, I guess, created a bond. He dumped Brooke and started dating Melanie.”

“What a love story.” Her nose wrinkled. “Kurtis planned to kill her.”

“According to Daniel, he’d grown tired of the marriage and wanted an out. Melanie didn’t know what his plan was, so when he convinced her to kidnap Harper in order to create a distraction so she could finish covering their trail, she agreed.”

“What about shooting her at the bank?”

“An accident. Since the wound was superficial, Daniel stitched her up.”

Felicity frowned. “How did Daniel manage to hide his drug activity for so long? He was high when he attacked me at the house.”

“Daniel worked for Kurtis before Brooke’s death, but then got sober. Triple 6 wouldn’t let him out of the business all together however. Kurtis and Melanie paid him to stay quiet while they used bank accounts in his name to launder money.” Noah shook his head. “Daniel suspected Kurtis had killed Brooke, but wasn’t angry about it since he’d told his sister to stay out of things.”

“Wow.” Felicity couldn’t comprehend the callousness.

“Yeah. After Gene failed to kill you a few times, Kurtis got Daniel involved. They needed his help to pull off the attack at the bank. He started using again. After Melanie was shot, Kurtis flipped out. He was furious they’d come close to killing her before she had the chance to wipe the records. He shot Gene. We found the man’s body in the woods near the house you and Harper were held in.”

No one deserved to be murdered, but Felicity wasn’t going to lose sleep over the criminal’s death. She sighed. “You know if a respected criminal judge and a bank manager were involved in Triple 6, we can’t discount anyone. It’s frightening how many people may be a part of the organization and the lengths they may go to. Kurtis lied to everyone right up to the very end.” She squeezed his hand. “I can't imagine what it must’ve been like for you when he said Harper and I were dead.”

Guilt pricked her. Kurtis had known exactly the right nerve to hit. It’d taken another twenty minutes for Noah to find Felicity and Harper. If the roles had been reversed, it would’ve been the worst twenty minutes of her life. “I’m so sorry.”

“You have nothing to apologize for.” Noah lifted her hand to his mouth and brushed her knuckles with his lips. “I’m thankful you and Harper are okay. We have a lot to be grateful for.”

“You can say that again.”

He reached for a bakery bag on the nightstand and opened it. The scent of warm sugar and blueberries wafted out. “Cassie came by earlier to check on you. She brought breakfast.” He handed her a muffin with a crunchy streusel topping.

Felicity’s stomach growled. She took a bite and sighed with pleasure. “Now all I need is some coffee.”

Noah's cell phone dinged, and he grinned. “It’s on the way. Aunt Imogene, Uncle Sam, Amber, and Harper are in the elevator.”

Moments later, Noah’s family poured into the room. Felicity’s heart expanded at the sight of them, but her gaze shot straight to Harper, who was dressed in cute shorts and a tiger T-shirt. The little one shot straight across the room with a broad smile on her face. Noah had been right. She was fine. Thank God.

“Fee!” Harper squealed with excitement and attempted to climb on the bed.

Her curls bounced when Noah lifted her into his arms. “Fee has some boo-boos. Be gentle, okay?”

“Okay.” She grinned back, her dimples flashing.

Felicity held out her arms and Noah deposited Harper next to her. She wrapped the child in an embrace and kissed the top of her head, breathing in her baby scent. Love swelled inside her, bigger than anything she could’ve imagined. Then her gaze snagged Noah’s. Tears shimmered in his eyes. It caused a lump in her throat.

Imogene kissed her cheek. “How are you feeling, sweetie?”

“Much better, thanks.”

“We brought you some coffee.” Amber came forward to hand Felicity a takeaway cup. A shy smile graced the teenager’s face. “I wasn’t sure how you liked it, so I told them black. Cousin Noah says all cops drink their coffee black.”

Felicity laughed. “Black is perfect.”

Chief Garcia wore a wrinkled uniform and a five-o’clock shadow coated his jawline. He patted Noah on the shoulder in a manly greeting. “I’ve been up all night processing the paperwork and listening in on Daniel’s confession. We have a lot to discuss, but we can do that over the next few days.” Sam offered a tired smile. “Grady and Tucker are eager to see you. I told them it might be better to wait until this afternoon. Let you get some more rest before the entire group descends on you.”

Imogene laughed. “Actually, it might be easier to have a gathering at my house with everyone. Jason and Nathan have been calling to check on you, too, along with their wives. We can do it in a couple of days. Unless…” Her voice trailed off. “You don’t think you’ll be feeling up to it.”

“I’ll be fine.” She sipped her coffee. Harper spotted the muffin on the table over the bed, and realizing she wanted some, Felicity broke off a piece and handed it to her. “But I don’t want to put you out.”

“Nonsense. I love having people over.” She patted Felicity’s foot. “After you’re released from the hospital, you’re coming to the ranch to spend a few days and recuperate. We’re going to make sure you get lots of R&R.” She pinned her with a look. “Not one word otherwise, missy. We’re so grateful—” Her voice choked up. Sam placed a hand on his sister’s shoulder in silent comfort, and Imogene laughed. “My emotions are running away with me. Anyway, we’re grateful all of you are okay. It’s something to celebrate.”

Warmth flooded Felicity’s chest. “I’d love that.”

“Okay, then.” She clapped her hands together. “Well, we don’t want to overtire you.” Imogene frowned. “Harper, honey, you’ve gotten crumbs all over the bed.”

Harper giggled. Felicity shook out the sheets and planted another kiss on the little girl’s head. “That’s all right. I like crumbs. Want some more muffin?”

“More, more, more!” She bounced with each word, and the mattress rattled Felicity’s body. Her stitches pulled on the swollen and tender skin on her leg.

Felicity tried to hide her wince, but Noah immediately picked up on it. He scooped up his daughter and smothered her in kisses and tickles. “I think it’s time you say bye to Fee. You can come back later to see her.”

Harper waved, her innocent smile reaching inside Felicity’s chest and squeezing her heart hard. She waved back. “Bye, honey. See you soon.”

The group left. Noah shut the door behind them and came back to her bedside. “You okay? Need some pain meds?”

“Nope.” She snagged his hand. “But I wouldn’t say no to a kiss.”

He didn’t disappoint, sweeping down to capture her lips with his. Everything faded. The beep of the hospital equipment, the pain in her leg, and the feel of the mattress underneath her body. Nothing mattered except this strong, wonderful man and the feelings he created inside her. Felicity kissed him back with all the passion in her heart. When Noah finally pulled away, they were both breathless.

“Fee…” He cupped her face with his palm. His fingers dipped into her hair and a delicious sensation traveled down her neck and into her core. “We promised to go slowly. And we will, but you should know my intentions. One day, I want to make you my wife. I hope that doesn’t scare you.”

“It doesn’t scare me. We should give Harper some time to get used to the idea of us, and I need to work on figuring out a work-life balance, but nothing would make me happier than to be Mrs. Felicity Hodge.” She met his gaze. She saw forever in his eyes. “I love you, Noah.”

“I love you too.”