Shadows Redeemed (Garrison Security Innovations #4)

Chapter 24

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

THE CRACK OF A gunshot rang out as Bryce spun, his pistol raised in a flash of movement too quick to follow. The sound reverberated through the alley, a deafening boom that drowned out the ragged gasps of everyone present. Parker’s eyes widened as he saw the investigator fire—once, twice—directly at Jacob.

“Jacob!” Parker’s shout ripped from his throat as his body reacted before his mind could catch up. He sprang forward, but it was already too late. He saw his brother stumble back, gripping the support to keep himself from falling for a second time. As he fell back against the iron column, Parker saw blood blooming on his brother’s shirt. Again.

In the split second it took for his heart to seize in his chest, Parker’s instincts kicked in. Bryce wasn’t done—none of them were. As Parker rushed toward the older man, fists clenched, a new barrage of gunfire erupted from the other side of the alley. Blake, Sullivan, and Luc and his men turned on Sage’s team, determined, more than likely, to get out of there without leaving witnesses behind. The precision of her team was undeniable, however, their movements efficient. He could see why she trusted these men with her life. Yet now, the firefight they had been drawn into felt like an impossible nightmare in the confines of an almost empty warehouse.

“Get down!” Dane shouted over the clatter of bullets.

Parker barely had time to register the chaos before he saw Sage—brave, determined Sage—moving in the line of fire, doing her best to distract Bryce from firing anymore at Jacob. Fear slashed through him, sharper than anything he’d ever felt. In that moment, his mind blanked on everything else. Not Jacob, not Bryce. Only Sage.

Without thinking, he lunged across the warehouse floor, grabbing Sage and yanking her down just as bullets ricocheted off the concrete wall behind her. They both hit the ground hard, Sage’s breath rushing from her lungs as she twisted to face him, rage reddening her face.

“What the hell are you doing?” She jerked herself out from underneath him, pushing him away from her, but he cut her off, his voice tight with panic.

“Stay down, damn it!” He growled through gritted teeth, shielding her with his body as he peered over the top of an overturned table.

The rest of Sage’s team was returning fire with brutal efficiency, their movements honed from years of combat. Dane fired in rapid bursts, his aim true. Elvis, ever the calm one, inched his way around, ready to come between Jacob and Bryce. Meanwhile, Gage and Cookie flanked the enemy, their weapons singing death across the warehouse.

However, even as Parker breathed in the relief of seeing Sage alive beside him, a sharp burning pain tore through his shoulder, ripping a scream from his lips. His body jolted as the bullet tore through his flesh, and for a brief second, he faltered, his vision going white with agony. He could feel the warmth of his own blood spreading across his shirt, the sensation both surreal and terrifying.

“Parker!” Sage’s voice slipped from rage to desperation, her hands on him, trying to pull him back down as he swayed on his feet.

He clutched her hand on his arm, taking a deep breath. “I’m fine,” he rasped, though the pain was searing. His left arm felt heavy, useless, but he couldn’t stop. Not until this was over. Not until Jacob was safe. He grabbed Sage’s hand, his grip strong, and pulled her back to cover. Sighing, he fell back against the table, closing his eyes. “So, this is what it feels like to be shot. Can’t say I’m a fan.” When he opened his eyes again, he tried to peer over the table, but Sage yanked him back down. “We need to get to Jacob before the others do.”

The gunfire raged on, but Parker could feel the tide turning. The precision of Sage’s team was unmatched, but that didn’t mean the others didn’t do their best to take them all down. Dane’s shots cut through the air with deadly accuracy, taking out Blake with a single shot to the chest. The detective crumpled, lifeless, to the ground. Luc, obviously realizing the fight was lost, broke into a run toward the back of the warehouse, his figure vanishing into the shadows as Sullivan went down under a volley of bullets. Luc’s men, realizing things weren’t going their way, dropped their guns and fell to their knees, their hands in the air. Then, Elvis jumped out from behind a stack of crates, grabbed Bryce by the gun arm, and slung him into the wall. He grabbed the back of Bryce’s head and slammed it into the concrete until Bryce stopped moving and slid to the floor, blood pouring into his eyes, but still very much alive.

And just like that, the fight was over. The echoes of the gunfire faded, leaving only the ringing in Parker’s ears and the sound of heavy breathing.

Parker blinked, momentarily disoriented. His shoulder throbbed, but it was manageable. Pain was secondary now. He turned, his focus zeroing in on Jacob, who lay crumpled on the ground, pale and unmoving. Blood seeped from the wound in his side, as well as the one in his chest, pooling beneath him. Shot three times in two days. That had to be some kind of record, even for Jacob, and the sight of it sent Parker’s stomach into a free fall.

“Jacob!” Parker shoved himself into motion, stumbling forward, his legs heavy, his mind racing. He couldn’t lose his brother. Dropping to his knees beside Jacob, his hands shook as they hovered over his brother’s wounds, as if unsure where to begin. “Jacob, stay with me, okay? Just stay with me!”

He raked his gaze over his brother’s body, panic rippling through him. He had no idea where to start or even what to do. All he knew was that his brother wasn’t moving. “We need an ambulance!”

Elvis was there in an instant, kneeling on the other side as he dropped his pack on the floor, his hands already working with practiced efficiency. “Move over,” he muttered, his tone steady despite the urgency in his movements. “I’ve got him.”

Parker scooted back, his chest heaving as he watched Elvis press a towel against the wound. Blood soaked through almost immediately, and Parker’s heart clenched. There was so much blood. Too much.

Sage was there, trying to look at Parker’s wound, pulling his shirt to the side, but Parker didn’t want to worry about himself right then. Not while his brother was bleeding out in front of him.

He rocked back on his heels, rubbing his hands on his thighs as his heart hammered in his chest. “He’s going to be fine, right?” His voice cracked, desperation breaking through the mask of calm he tried to maintain. “He’s not…” He took a deep, steadying breath. “He’s not gonna die, right?”

Sage finally gave up checking his wound and moved to stand behind him, her hands on his uninjured shoulder, squeezing him to give him some assurance.

Elvis kept working on Jacob, a grim expression pinching his face. “We’re not letting him go to that big Graceland in the sky. Don’t you worry.” The man’s hands moved quickly, applying more pressure as he barked orders while Dane called for an ambulance. Cookie and Gage raced out of the warehouse, chasing after Luc Broussard.

Time stretched thin as Parker knelt there, helplessly watching the life drain from his brother. He felt Sage give his shoulder another squeeze, and turned to see her, her face pale, her eyes filled with concern.

“I know you’re worried about your brother,” she whispered, her hand going to his bleeding shoulder. “But you’re hurt, too, and you’re not going to do him any good like this. We need to get this taken care of. Elvis will let us know if we’re needed.”

Parker shook his head. “I’m fine. I just need to be here… I need to…” He reached for her, needing the reassurance of her warmth, her presence. Relief flooded him, knowing she was safe at least. If anything would have happened to her…

But now… his brother… While he was glad Sage was safe and there with him now, he needed to know his brother would be all right as well. He was the whole reason they were there, after all.

He swallowed hard, the weight of everything pressing down on him. Jacob, Sage, the mess with the Broussards—it all tangled in his mind, each thread leading back to the same point of failure. He hadn’t been able to stop this. He hadn’t been able to protect his brother when the world turned against him. And now… Now he was close to losing him.

“Jacob, come on,” he muttered under his breath, his eyes locked on his brother’s pale face. “Fight this, damn it. You hear me? You’re gonna be fine. You damn well better be fine.”

Jacob’s eyes fluttered open for a moment, unfocused and glassy, and Parker scooted closer, reaching out and gripping his brother’s arm. A weak smile tugged at the corner of his lips as he looked at Parker. “You just couldn’t stay out of it, huh?” He took a slow breath, but it turned into a coughing fit, making him scream.

Elvis pushed him back down. “How about staying put for me, hound dog? This patch job is just that… a patch job.” He then turned to Parker, his gaze dropping to the blood soaking his shirt. “And you go let Sage take care of you. Your brother’ll be fine.”

The distant wail of sirens reached them, growing louder with each passing second. Parker gripped Sage’s hand tightly, his body trembling from the adrenaline, the pain, the fear. All he could do now was hope. Hope that the ambulance would make it in time. Hope that Jacob would survive. Hope that they could finally put this nightmare behind them.

And for the first time in what felt like forever, he allowed himself to believe that maybe, just maybe, they could make it through this.

Sage pulled him away from his brother, leading him over to a crate against the wall so she could pull his shirt off. As she ran her fingers over the wound, Dane stepped up to them, his hands on his hips. Parker winced at her touch and then looked up at her boss.

He cocked his brow as he glanced over at the ones who tried to kill him. “Are they all…?”

Dane shook his head. “Only Detective Nealey. Sullivan is barely hanging on, and that old geezer is unconscious. He’ll wake up with a major headache and criminal charges, but he’ll wake up.”

Parker nodded as Sage reached into one of their medical bags and pulled out the alcohol, gauze, and tape. “Do you think this will be enough to clear my brother?”

Dane shrugged. “Probably from some things, but not all. I mean, let’s face it—your brother went rogue.”

Parker opened his mouth to protest, but Dane held up a hand, cutting him off. “I didn’t say I disagreed with his motives, but the NOPD won’t see it that way. He’ll still need to face the music.”

Sage placed a hand on Parker’s shoulder, making him look at her. “At least we have proof that he didn’t kill his handler, and that he didn’t steal those drugs. That should satisfy the Broussards, as well as the cops.”

He nodded, not sure he believed her, but knowing they had no other actual choice. Jacob needed a hospital, so there was no way to keep him out of the police’s hands. However, Parker would have felt much better if they had taken Luc Broussard into custody as well, especially since he was the one who stole the drugs. Well, stole the drugs from the ones who truly stole the drugs.

Parker leaned his head back on Sage’s arm. The whole thing was a convoluted mess, and it made his head hurt just thinking about it.

A few minutes later, police, followed immediately by paramedics, rushed through the warehouse doors. Dane moved over to intercept and fill everyone in as Elvis talked to the paramedics about what he had done for the injured. The medics helped Parker to his feet and attempted to put him on a gurney, but he chose to walk instead. Enough people needed to be rolled out as it was.

With Sage at his side, he moved over to where Dane talked with an officer, ready to deal with the arguments he knew would come. However, before he could get there, another shot rang out, dropping everyone to their knees.