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could see was his beloved sister bleeding, if not already dead, before him.
A knee to the groin Shawn successfully avoided. Then there was a loud pop that
shook the room. Dawson s hands fell to his side. His body went slack, limp in Shawn s
grasp. He grunted. His eyes rolled back into his head and his body slid out of Shawn s
hold and onto the floor in a heap.
Shawn raised his gaze to Ciarra and the gun she clutched in both hands. Her eyes
were agape with fear. She trembled.
Lower the gun, angel. Shawn moved carefully toward her, watching the barrel
shake unsteadily. She blinked hard, swallowed, yet held the gun firmly toward the man
lying upon the ground. Ciarra, honey, give me the gun. When he tried to peel her
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fingers from the weapon she refused to let go refused to look at him. He knew he
needed to calm her further, but his gaze darted to Taryn.
He turned away from Ciarra and with a silent prayer he fell to his knees beside his
sister. He felt for a pulse. There. It was light, but it was there. She d been shot in the
side. The blood flowed so quickly he was afraid she would bleed to death, even if no
vital organs were hit. Either way paramedics needed to be called and pressure placed
on her wound. The glossy look in Ciarra s eyes gave him no hope that she would be
able to help him.
As he scrambled to his feet, heading toward where he thought he d seen a tele-
communicator, another gunshot startled him, tossing him forward and onto his belly
for cover. His first thoughts were of Ciarra as he rolled over. Dawson stood over him, a
knife in his raised hands ready to plunge. The man s body swayed, the knife fell with a
clunk, and then he crumpled backwards, hitting the floor with a loud thud. A small
hole in the middle of his forehead oozed blood.
Damn, Ciarra was a good shot, or lucky as hell.
Ciarra, I need your help call the paramedics. I ve got to stop the bleeding,
Shawn said, making his way back to his sister s side.
Like a light switch, Ciarra s eyes brightened, she tossed the gun to the ground
thankfully it didn t discharge as she ran toward the small dresser next to her bed. She
fumbled with the tele-communicator, but managed to punch in the emergency number.
As Shawn applied pressure to Taryn s side he murmured softly to her. Sis, hold
on. You ll be fine. His sister s eyes fluttered, she mumbled something inaudible.
What, Taryn? He leaned closer as her eyes inched open.
I said, fuck it hurts . Did you kill the son of a bitch? Ouch! Taryn s face was
skewed with pain.
Shawn gave a soft laugh. No, Ciarra did.
Good, she groaned in agony. But I wish I d had the chance to shoot the bastard.
He shot me. The bastard shot me. She lifted her shoulders and started to rise. Shawn
held her down with a gentle hand.
Not a good idea. Just lie still until the paramedics arrive, he ordered, before he
realized he d done so. No one told Taryn what to do.
Damn you, Shawn, help me up. She groaned again. I don t want anyone to see
me like this.
He shook his head in dismay. You re hardheaded.
Not any more than you were with Ciarra s innocence, she bit back, but there was
a hint of a smile beneath her thinning lips.
Shawn looked about the room for Ciarra but she was gone. Carefully, he helped
Taryn to her feet. She nearly cold-cocked him as he tried to scoop her into his arms.
Don t you dare. The slap on his arm was weak, not the strength his stubborn sister
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was known for. So, arm around her waist, he moved slowly to the front room where she
collapsed in a chair.
I need to find Ciarra. Will you be all right? He headed for the front door.
Hell yes. It will take more then a bullet to put me beneath the ground. Shawn
released an uneasy chuckle at his sister s bad joke.
As he reached for the doorknob, the door sprang open and two local enforcement
officers entered. Behind them several more officers and paramedics approached. Shawn
looked around them to see one of the officers suddenly subdue Ciarra.
Shawn reacted. Before he could reach her two officers took him down. His
breathing was labored. He was seeing red as they cuffed his hands and feet, rendering
him helpless. In front of him he saw the officer place restraints on Ciarra s wrists. She
wasn t crying, but he could see the glistening of tears forming in her eyes.
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