Law Man(154)

Lescheva’s brows went up. “Forgotten?”

“Forgotten,” Mitch answered.

“Do you speak for everyone?” Lescheva asked.

“Everyone in this room,” Mitch answered.

“There is one other small matter,” Lescheva remarked.

“Otis Pierson,” Mitch guessed correctly.

Lescheva dipped his head to the side.

Mitch held his eyes.

Then, forcing it past the acid in his mouth, he stated, “I ask no questions, you tell no lies.”

There was his give.

Now it was up to Lescheva to let him take.

Lescheva studied Mitch then he looked at Tack.

“We are not done, you and me,” he said quietly.

“No, man, we are not,” Tack agreed and Lescheva again smiled.

“You often surprise me,” Lescheva remarked to Tack.

“That’s me,” Tack replied. “Full of surprises. Now, you gonna give Lawson his assurances and make your call or are we gonna get out our knitting needles and chat while we make scarves?”

“A worthy adversary is full of surprises,” Lescheva muttered.

“Man, seriously? We are not in a Bond movie. Make the fuckin’ call,” Tack clipped and at his loss of patience, everyone in the room shifted.

Lescheva looked to Mitch. “It would be a shame if any harm were to come to the beautiful Mara Hanover.”

He’d been watching her.

And he liked watching her.

Fuck.

Mitch drew in breath and the men in the room shifted again.

“I will see that doesn’t happen,” Lescheva said quietly.

“My kids,” Mitch prompted.

Lescheva’s brows went up. “You claim them?”

“They’re mine,” Mitch stated.

Lescheva studied him.

Then he whispered, “This, I did not know.”

He’d been watching but he didn’t understand what he saw. Mitch got this. Lescheva thought Mitch’s moves were about Mara and they were. But it wasn’t only about her.

It was the closest he’d get to an apology.

And it didn’t mean smack because he also went after Mara even knowing she was Mitch’s.

Mitch didn’t reply.

Lescheva lifted his chin.

Assent.

“The call,” Mitch pushed.

“I’ll find these children for you,” Lescheva stated gregariously.

“You do that, as in, now,” Delgado entered the conversation and Lescheva looked to him then he looked to Tack.

Then he muttered, “Strange bedfellows,” and he did this while reaching into his inside suit coat pocket.

The room went wired and two guns moved to him.

Lescheva smiled calmly and his hand came out with his phone.

* * * * *

“Clear!”

“Clear!”

“Clear!”

Mitch heard the men’s calls as he moved through the house, his gun up, his flashlight up under it.

He moved up the stairs, Slim at his back. At the top landing, two ways to go. He turned, flicking two fingers right to Slim. Slim jerked up his chin, took the last two stairs and moved right.

Mitch moved left.

“Clear!” he heard from downstairs.

The right play was Lescheva ordered his men to move out, leaving the kids.

Leaving the kids.

Mitch hoped to Christ they’d moved out and left the kids.

Standing beside the first closed door on the upstairs landing, he threw it open then moved into the doorway, gun up, flashlight up.

In the corner there was a twin bed.

In the corner of the bed, back to the wall, there was Bud.

Asleep with her head on his thigh was Billie.

“Got them!” Mitch called. His eyes scanned the otherwise empty room, he dropped his gun and moved swiftly to the bed. “Here now, Bud. Safe. Yeah?”

Mitch kept his light low but shining on the children. Both kids were healthy, clean, in their pajamas. Bud had pulled a blanket over Billie. No blood, no visible injuries.

Thank Christ.

Thank Christ.

Mitch holstered his gun and arrived at the bed realizing Bud hadn’t spoken and Mitch’s eyes stopped scanning for injuries and focused on the boy.

“You came,” Bud whispered.

“Of course, buddy,” Mitch whispered back.

“You came,” Bud repeated so soft Mitch almost didn’t hear him.

Then Mitch watched the tear fall from his eye and slide down his cheek.

A burn hit his chest and Mitch found it hard to breathe.

He locked it down.

No blood. No visible injuries. They were safe.

Safe.

Now it was time to go home.

“Let’s get you home,” Mitch whispered, reached out and carefully lifted a dead to the world Billie to cradle her in his arms as he felt Slim enter the room behind him.

He straightened and Bud scrambled off the bed.

“Hey, Bud, you good?” Slim asked.

Mitch looked down at him and watched him nod.