Kyle rushed in, encircling her as well. “Fuckin’ hell, fuckin’ hell, Tara. I never get scared, and I was fuckin’ scared out of my fuckin’ mind.”
Unable to keep a nervous laugh from slipping out, she reached out to touch his face. “Mom would be so mad if she heard your language.”
Kyle leaned back and speared her with a glare, shaking his head. Finally, his lips relaxed slightly, and one side quirked up. “Jesus, Tara. Only you could fuss about my cursing after something like this.” He stood and kissed the top of her head, then looked down at Carter. “I guess I really do have to welcome you to the McBrides now.”
He reached out and clasped Carter on the shoulder. “I’m heading to the station with Beth and the doc. Evan’s going to finish interviewing the staff next door, and I’ve got officers bagging up all the evidence. I’ll see you later.” He started to walk out then looked back at Tara. “Just so you know, Sis, I’m not keeping my mouth shut so you can expect mom and dad to descend on you.” He winked before walking out of the room.
Michael came in with her coat and handed it to Carter. He wrapped it around her, enclosing her in its warmth.
She turned her gaze back to Carter, clutching his face with her hands. His eyes were still tortured, so she pulled him in for a kiss. A kiss of need and promise.
“I gotta agree with your brother. Scared me shitless.” He shook his head, his eyes once more filled with anguish. “God, this was my fault.”
“Your fault?”
“I should have had you go home, be far away from the center—”
She shushed him with her fingers on his lips. “Carter, if I hadn’t been here, she would have grabbed someone else. I was scared, too, but I was able to remain calm. Mostly out of fear, but calm. Bethany would’ve freaked and Beth might have killed her. I have no idea how Michael would have reacted, but it doesn’t matter. This was nobody’s fault but Dr. Tiller and Beth.”
She watched as his face finally relaxed, and he leaned in, kissing her once more. She breathed him in, pressing tightly against him, feeling their hearts beating together.
Night had fallen over Hope City by the time Carter left headquarters. While everything with the investigation had been processed, the emotions running deep inside had not. He had talked to Tara a few hours earlier, needing to hear her voice and be assured that she was safely ensconced at home. Her family had descended as Kyle predicted, and she had spent the rest of the day surrounded with love and care.
Now, instead of driving straight there, he found himself standing in his condo looking out the large picture window facing the Inner Harbor. The city below twinkled with lights and their reflection on the water created a beauty that could hide the dark ugliness that existed in the corners of society. Those with no home, no bed to sleep in. Those without warm clothes to protect them when the winter wind howled. Those in pain, desperate for any pill that would offer relief. Those who called the Cardboard Cottages home.
He sucked in a ragged breath and turned from the window, looking over the clean, modern lines of his condo. What had once given him order now stood in stark contrast to the warm home that Tara had created. A knock on the door jolted him from his confused musings.
Throwing it open, he was surprised to see Sean standing in the hall. “Tara? Is something wrong with Tara?” His heart pounded, fearful for the response.
Sean threw his hands up, quickly assuring, “No, no, she’s fine. Everybody’s checked on her, and she’s fine. Colleen got home from school and Mom made sure everybody had dinner. Honest, man, she’s good.”
Stepping back, he allowed Sean into the condo. He had no idea why Sean was there but figured the man would tell him when he was ready. He grabbed two glasses from the cabinet and poured a finger of whiskey in both, handing one to Sean.
Sean took a sip and nodded appreciatively. The two men walked back to the window, both staring out over the night skyline. “I’ve been where you are. I know the shit going through your mind right now.”
It was on the tip of his tongue to deny what Sean was saying, but the words would not come. Swallowing heavily, he waited to see what else Sean had to say.
“I stood on the sidewalk surrounded by firefighters and watched as black smoke boiled out of one of Harper’s windows. I watched my brother lift her body out of the third-floor window, not knowing if she was alive or not.”
Carter turned to look at Sean, not only hearing the words but feeling the impact of them in his gut. “Jesus, Sean.”
Sean twisted his head and held Carter’s gaze. “I figured you’d come here before going to Tara’s. You’d need a chance to wrap your head around everything that happened today. Kyle filled me in, and he’s battling his own demons while seeing Tara held hostage. I figure you are, too.”
“How do we do it?” He watched as Sean tilted his head to the side in silent question and worked to pull his churning emotions into coherent thoughts. “We go out every day and deal with people who have no problem putting a gun to someone else’s head. How do we do that job and then at the end of the day go home to beauty and not contaminate it? My job—my investigation—brought that to Tara. How is that fair to her?”
Sean turned his body fully toward Carter and growled, “You want to know what wasn’t fair to Tara? Her ex-husband. He was a weak-ass man who never could figure out how to stand on his own. He whined and bitched and moaned every time life didn’t give him exactly what
