The Last Thing He Thought Of
Chapter Seven
"Kenna got everything we need?" Nate was back at the apartment. He and Parker both made it to the second round of jury selection and they would have to return tomorrow.
"Nate that girl's got talent." Hardison pulled up the invoices. "It seems there are some transgressions in what was brought in and what was tagged and bagged for evidence." He put two of the invoices side by side. "The one on the left is the one booked into evidence. It seems thirty or so crates of Uzi's just disappeared somewhere in the shuffle." Eliot came in.
"There's a lot more then that missing." Eliot handed Nate a file. "A whole shipment wasn't logged into the computer. I found a whole box of files stashed in a storage closet." Nate looked at him confused. "Don't ask." Nate raised his eyebrows and looked at the file.
"So all these guns are on the street?"
"They aren't in the evidence room, that's for sure." Eliot answered.
"So this is all about the hardware." Nate didn't sound convinced. Tara and Sophie came in.
"I don't think it has anything to do with guns." Sophie interjected. "The Armenian's have bigger problems." She handed Nate a sheet of paper.
"You have to be kidding?" Nate looked at her. She shook her head. "The Irish and the Armenian's are in business together?"
"That's what it looks like." Parker came up behind Nate making him jump.
"Where were you?" Nate asked.
"I stopped at the Hospital to see Grace." Eliot looked at the thief.
"Remember what we talked about Parker." He raised his eyebrows hoping he got the point.
"I just looked at her Eliot. And I left the other ones."
"Other ones?" Nate questioned.
"Don't worry about it. So then what does this mean?" Eliot asked.
"It means this thing is bigger than we thought." Nate looked at the invoices. His phone rang. "Yeah."
"Nate don't, tell Eliot it's me. I need you down at the hospital." Kenna's voice sounded strained.
"I can do that. Okay. See you then." Nate hung up and looked at his team. "I have to go out." He turned to leave without giving an explanation.
"Sophie, he's acting creepy again." Parker noted. Eliot watched him leave.
"Something's not right." He grabbed his coat. Tara stopped him.
"Let him go. Trust him." Eliot looked at Nate's retreating and back at Tara.
"I do."
"Then let him handle it." Eliot backed off.
"You better be right." She smiled.
"Have I ever been wrong?" Eliot shook his head. They went back to the discussion on how they were going to bring this plan together.
0/0/0/0/0/0/0/0/0/0
Nate found Kenna in the Emergency room behind an exam room curtain.
"What the hell happened to you?" He looked at the bruise on her cheek and her bruised knuckles.
"Something I didn't expect." She pulled up her shirt and there were three bruises on her stomach. "We got a call. Nothing unusual until we went to put the guy on the gurney. He took a swing at me. Hit my cheek I punched him and his wife yanked the bus door opened and shot me." She looked at Nate.
"Other than the bruises are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. I got myself a week's paid vacation."
"How is this going to go down with Eliot?"
"That's why I called you." She grabbed her shirt. "The guy and his wife were brought in with me. It would have got a little complicated if he started busting heads in the ER." Nate shook his head.
"Okay, let's get you home and hope that vain doesn't pick today to pop out of Eliot's head." Kenna rolled her eyes.
"Like this isn't going to do it." Nate dialed his phone.
"Yeah, ah, Eliot grab a corner booth in the bar I'll be there in fifteen minutes. Just you and me." Kenna watched Nate's expression. It was hard to read. "Okay. See you then." Nate hung up and helped Kenna into the car.
"What's the plan?" She asked when Nate got into the driver's seat.
"Go home, take a shower and some pain killers and go to bed. If all goes right he'll be happy you're safe." Kenna laid her head back and ran her hand over the indentations where the bullets had hit her vest.
"If he wouldn't have given me this, the phone call you got would have different."
"Would I have gotten that call?" Kenna looked at him.
"I didn't want him to have to…I knew you would find a way." She sat up. "He trusts you. You and the team know how to protect him."
"Does he need protecting Kenna?"
"Not the physical kind of pain." Nate pulled up to the bar. He got out and opened the door for Kenna and helped her out.
"Go get some rest." He took the vest from her. "I'll make sure you have a new one before you go back to work." He kissed the top of her head. "Thanks for not fighting him on wearing this."
"I never even thought about saying no." She headed upstairs and Nate headed in to diffuse a bad situation. Eliot was in the corner like promised.
"Hey."
"Hey. What's all the secrecy about?" Nate sat down and put the vest on the table.
"It saved her life today." Eliot looked at Nate. The vain starting to grow as the anger pumped though his veins. "I know what would happen if you lost her to anything other than a mutual break up it would cripple you." Nate looked at the emotion playing on his friends face. "I know that kind of love Eliot and I know what's it's like to lose it."
"What are you trying to say Nate?"
"I'm saying that being angry because of what could of happen isn't going to make what did happen feel any better. She worried more about what was going to happen to you when you heard than what could have happened to her."
"So she called you to talk me down."
"She called me to make sure you were there for her." Eliot looked at Nate and ran his hand over the vest. "The kind of love you two have is more rare than anything you've ever stolen Eliot. Just keep that in mind when you go upstairs tonight."
"You really think that don't you." Eliot stood up.
"Don't you?"
"The last six months I've been walking on egg shells trying not to say or do something that might piss her off. I'm doing shoddy work and to top it off I got shot last week when I was thinking about her. Nate my mind is not in the game and the longer we're together the worse it's gonna get." He grabbed the vest. "I'm breaking things off with her tonight. I'm not going to tell the other's till I have to."
"Eliot don't do this. You love her too much to hurt her that way."
"If you haven't noticed everything I care about ends up broken sooner or later."
"We're not broken."
"Yeah well the four of you are built differently." He smiled. "And you are broken. Just in different places." He headed upstairs to do the last thing he thought he was going to do today. Breaking Kenna's heart was the last thing he wanted to do but if it meant become numb to the pain he was feeling, it just might be worth it.
o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o
Kenna took four of the pills in the bottle she knew held Eliot's pain medication. She needed something stronger then what the hospital had given her. And she wanted to sleep though the next twelve hours so maybe Eliot would forgive her. Crawling into bed she thought she should call and check on Grace but the pills hit her hard and fast. She was out before her head hit the pillow. That's where Eliot found her ten minutes later sprawled out on his king sized bed with his Texas Longhorn's t-shirt on and a pair of blaze orange panties. The bruise on her cheek was starting to turn back and blue. He went to the bed and pulled up the t-shirt to find three circular bruises.
"Son of a bitch." He said though clenched teeth. He turned around and headed to Nate's.
o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o
Nate was alone sitting at the counter in his kitchen when Eliot burst though his front door.
"I really need to lock that when I come in." He said as he looked at Eliot.
"It was a hit."
"What?"
"Someone tried to kill Kenna."
"It was the wife of the guy they were working on." Eliot threw the vest on the counter.
"They're clustered. If she was pissed and gunning for bear they shouldn't be clustered." Nate looked at Eliot. "They would have been scattered. Someone wanted Kenna dead."
"The cops arrested her at the scene…" Nate looked at Eliot. "Son of a bitch."
"That's what I said." Eliot leaned against the counter and took a deep breath. "Nate we can't win this fight. We need to call someone who can."
"The state police are our best bet."
"What about Kenna's friend at the police department."
"He's not safe either. We got to warn him. You stay with Kenna." Nate looked at him. "Are you still going through with it?"
"I'd like to say it's none of your damn business but somehow I think we'd all be losing something more then we gain if I send her away."
"It took you all of ten minutes to figure that out?"
"I saw the bruises on her stomach and I couldn't breathe." He looked down at the counter. "I almost died last week and she could of today." He looked up. "I never gave a damn if I lived or died before. Not since you came knocking on my door. Even then I didn't much think of my life going one direction or the other. Then she showed up. Now I don't go into a job not caring if I make it out or not. I try to make it out."
"That's what love does to you." Nate got his jacket. "Go take care of Kenna. I'll take care of the other stuff." Eliot shook his head.
"I can't let you do that alone." Nate looked at his hitter.
"You need to take care of her right now. I got this."
"Are you sure?" Hardison came in.
"We got your back brother…go take care of your woman." Parker poked her head out from behind the couch.
"Bring her some hot chocolate. She likes six marshmallows." Eliot looked at her and smiled. Sophie came downstairs.
"You know we have your back Eliot." Tara came out from behind the spare bedroom.
"Trust us." She smiled.
"You told them." Eliot looked at Nate accusingly.
"I couldn't let you throw away the best thing to happen to you since…us." He motioned to the people in the room. "Not that we didn't like the Eliot without Kenna…but we've grown quite fond of the Eliot with Kenna." Nate smiled. "We'll keep you posted." Eliot shook his head. He was crazy for letting them go off on their own but he needed to be with Kenna right now, for more reasons than he cared to bring up to this bunch.
"Thanks again." He nodded and left Nate's apartment and went across the hall. Topher sat staring at him from the foot of the bed. "I know how you feel buddy." He reached over and scratched the cat's chin. "I never was very good about sharing but I think I might make an exception." He sat on the bed and the cat came and curled up next Kenna and let Eliot lay next to her on the other side. "Thanks." He whispered to the cat knowing they had come to and understanding.
O/o/o/o/o/o/o/o/o
It was dark when Kenna awoke and she felt an arm draped protectively across her waist, just below the bruised section of her stomach.
"I'm sorry." She whispered. Kenna knew Eliot wasn't sleeping.
"Nothing to be sorry for darlin'." She felt his finger's tracing every line of the bruises on her stomach.
"How long have you been sitting there starting at me?"
"A couple of hours give or take." Kenna turned her head and looked at the clock and saw that it was nearly midnight.
"I've been out for nearly six." He just shrugged his shoulders.
"Me and Topher did a little bonding." Eliot stopped tracing the bruises. "You could of died today Kenna."
"And I could have died yesterday, and the day before that. I could have died in Iraq or Angola or right here in this bed. You know as well as I do that death doesn't make an appointment.' She turned over on her side and looked at him. "You got me that vest to protect me. It did what you wanted it to do."
"I know. I'm stupid to think that you leave this house every morning and nothing will happen to you." He ran his hand down her cheek. "I thought about a lot of things tonight and one of those things was to end this." Kenna stared at him. "I know another stupid idea."
"I can see why you would feel that way. We are really bad for each other sometimes." She rolled back on her back and looked at the ceiling. "We just have to realize that we also just as good for each other."
"I guess we are." He took her hand and laced his fingers through hers. "You know this wasn't an accident right?"
"I figured when I looked in the mirror when I got home that no distraught woman with a forty five could cluster her shots that way."
"Nate called earlier. The woman never showed up at central booking. Jenkins didn't even know you had been shot."
"This whole thing is getting a little too dangerous even for my taste." She curled up against his side and laid her head on his chest. "Maybe now would be a good time to go to Paris."
"I would love nothing more than to pack a bag and be on the next flight out of here." He ran his hand down her back. "But you and I know running away never solved anything."
"I guess it's one of the lessons we had to learn the hard way." She closed her eyes. "I love you so much Eliot, it scares me."
"I know how you feel baby." Eliot knew what they were admitting might have been more dangerous they any job either of them had done bur she was scared enough as it was. "You should eat something."
"If I thought I could lift my body off this bed I would agree with you but I kinda feel a little noodle like." He laughed.
"How about I carry you out to the couch and make you something to eat." Kenna smiled.
"Wouldn't it be easier to just bring it to me?"
"Then I would have to worry about you all alone in here." Kenna snuggled deeper in his embrace.
"Maybe staying here would be a better option." He ran his hand though her hair.
"Darlin' I know I for one would love to stay in this bed and shut the whole world out but you need to get some food in you before you take another pain pill. And you will be taking another pain pill." He sat up and left her sprawled out on the bed. "I'll be back for you in a few minutes." He slid on his jogging pants and headed toward the kitchen. Kenna rolled over on her back and realized that she hurt far more than she had when she went to bed. Sitting up was nearly impossible. Kenna knew that things were far worse then she had imagined. Slowly she guided his feet to the floor and edged herself upright.
"Son of a bitch." She whispered. Topher looked at her from the foot of the bed. "A lot of help you are." Kenna stood and it was the single most painful thing she remembered doing in a very long time. She slowly made her way to the bathroom. Checking her face she knew why Eliot looked at her the way he did. She looked like hell. After she went to the bathroom she tried to run a brush though her hair but she couldn't raise her arms above her waist without her ribs protesting.
"Here, let me." Eliot took the brush from her and started brushing her hair. "I told you I would come and get you."
"I know but there is just things a girl has to do for herself." Kenna tried to smile but the pain was radiating though her body.
"Okay that's it." He lifted her up and carried into the living room and got her settled on the couch with pillows and blankets and handed her two pain pills. "These aren't as strong as the ones you took earlier but it'll get you though dinner." He gave her a glass of water.
"It's after midnight…is that really dinner?" She smiled, trying to lighten things up.
"I guess it's a midnight snack then." He went to the kitchen and brought back a sandwich, some chips and a cup of hot chocolate. "Six marshmallows."
"You and Parker spoil me." He still didn't crack a smile. She knew he had seen the way she had moved to the bathroom and he was trying hard to control his anger. "Eliot you have to take a deep breath or that vain is going to burst." He frowned at her.
"Eat." He walked away to answer his phone that was vibrating in his pocket. "Yeah?"
"How's our girl?" Nate asked quietly.
"She's in a lot of pain."
"Hopefully all this will be over by tomorrow. I got the state police to look into the shooting and they are coming down hard on the prescient. We also got the proof we need to cripple both families."
"Wow, you've been busy."
"Yeah, well when the stakes are family safety the con runs a little smoother."
"Thank you."
"Do you need anything?"
"Yeah, two tickets to Paris for the week end." Eliot looked at Kenna sitting on the couch.
"Two first class tickets to Paris, leaving Friday…we can do that."
"I figured you could."
"Open ended?"
"No. As much as I would love to spend the next few weeks showing Kenna the sights, I think she wouldn't be happy if she couldn't go back to work."
"Your right. Go get some sleep and we'll wrap this up in the morning."
"Thank the team for taking care of things."
"I'll save that for you. Talk to you later." Nate hug up and Eliot threw his phone on the counter and went to sit on the floor in front of Kenna.
"Feel better?" He looked at her.
"Yeah."
"Do you want watch a movie or something till you fall asleep?"
"Sure." She whispered. He was shutting down. She knew all the signs. Kenna had done it enough times herself. Watching as he flicked though the channels, she wondered if this was the beginning of the end.