Chapter Twenty-Eight
The next thing he knew, he was lying on the ground, his ears ringing, and something heavy pinning him to the floor.
Distantly, he heard shouting, the sound of boots pounding on concrete, then the weight lifted off him. He tried to move but there were hands on him, pushing him down, patting across his body. He could see booted feet near him, hear voices that he thought were far away until he realized they were right above him.
The hands patting him down turned him over and he found two strangers peering down at him. One, an older man, leaned forward and held his gaze while the other ran impersonal hands over his front and checked his pockets.
“Are you hurt, Drew?” That was the older man. His words sounded tinny and odd.
“I… I don’t know. I don’t think so.” His whole body felt numb, his fingers tingling.
“He’s clean, just a phone and wallet,” the other man said.
“Who are you?” he asked, his eyes roving from one man to the other.
“It’s okay, Drew. We’re Sam’s team. My name is Tom, and this is Gary.”
“Sam’s team?” He wasn’t following. The men helped him sit up.
Tom nodded, speaking into his headset. “Can we get Sam in here, please?” He turned back to Drew. “Are you sure you’re not hurt?”
“He was going to shoot me.”
That he was now a body lying on the ground next to them seemed only a distant concern.
“Yeah, he was. But we got there first.”
Tom’s hand was on his shoulder, pressing firmly. The touch grounded him and he took in a deep, shuddering breath.
“Drew?” Sam arrived in a rush of movement, kneeling next to them.
“He’s okay, Sam. Shaken up but not hurt.”
“I’m sorry, Sam. I thought Russ wanted me back, but he didn’t, he just wanted me out of the way.”
“Yeah, we figured as much.”
“How? How did you find me?”
“With my team, and Diego’s help.”
Sam’s hand replaced Tom’s.
“I’m so sorry,” Drew said again, conscious of all the eyes on them.
“It’s okay. You’re safe and that’s what matters.”
“You’re going to need to come to the station with us, Drew, to answer some questions,” Tom added.
“Of course. Russ and I were speaking, on video-link through a tablet.” He glanced towards the chair which had fallen on its side.
“We can talk through all that at the station,” Tom said again. “Let’s get you up.”
They helped him to his feet, Sam wrapping an arm around him when his knees threatened to buckle and his vision grayed out.
“He’s probably in shock,” he heard someone say, the voices distant again. He was hustled out of the warehouse and found himself sitting in the back of an ambulance, a blanket around his shoulders as an EMT checked him over. Distantly, he noted specks of blood on his skin and clothes and tried not to think too hard about where they’d come from.
Tom and Sam stood outside, waiting until the medic pronounced him healthy. Feeling foolish, he clambered back out, more steady on his feet this time, and let them lead him to a car. He sat in the back with Sam, Tom and Gary in the front.
Desperate to talk to Sam, he couldn’t say much more than sorry with so many people listening in. How much did they know? What had Sam told them? And what would happen now?
Sam paced back and forth in front of the dispatcher’s desk. She glared at him once but didn’t say anything. His boss’s boss has been called in, as had a man in a suit he didn’t recognize.
While he waited, a woman arrived, declaring herself Drew’s attorney. After a flurry of suspicion and confusion, they worked out Diego had sent her. Sam was relieved, given how messy the situation was.
Hours passed, and he moved from reception to the gym, passing the time on the treadmill. Anything to take his mind off things.
Tom had insisted he stay outside and not be an active part of the team going into the warehouse. He’d heard the shot and the confusion afterward. It was a long few seconds before someone declared Drew safe.
It was Tom who came to find him, long after midnight, taking a seat next to him on one of the benches lining the gym.
“They’ve made a deal. Drew’s testimony against Russell in exchange for immunity from prosecution.”
“Drew hasn’t done—”
“I know you believe that and I think you’re probably right. But we both know the actual truth can get lost in a case like this. Russell will be only too happy to point fingers. This way, regardless of what Russell says, Drew will be safe. Once this is over, he’ll be free to live his life without a potential prosecution hanging over him.”
“What happens now?”
“Given what Russell just attempted, they want Drew in protective custody. They’re going to move him to a safe house tonight.”
He nodded slowly. “Can I see him?”
“They’re hashing out a few details. Once they’re done, I’ll try to give you two a few minutes.”
‘Hashing out a few details’ took another two hours then Tom ushered him into the room, shut the door, and he was alone with Drew once again.
The other man looked exhausted, his head pillowed in his arms on the table.
“Drew?”
He jerked awake. “Sam? How long do we have?”
“Not long. A few minutes at most.”
“They didn’t give me a lot of options. Cora—she’s the lawyer Diego sent—she said it was a good deal and they’ll keep me safe until after the trial. They were already investigating Russ, they just didn’t have enough to take it further.”
“And now they do.”
“Thanks to you.”
“To both of us. We make a good team.”
Drew stood, stepping towards him.
“I’m leaving tonight. I’m not sure for where. So I guess this is goodbye.”
“It doesn’t have to be.”
Drew pressed against him, burying his face in the crook of Sam’s neck.
“I wish…” Sighing, he lifted his head. “Sam, this trial will take months, probably years, before there’s any resolution. I can’t ask you to wait for me. We barely know each other.”
He traced Sam’s collarbone over his sweater and Sam wrapped his arms around him, holding him close and pressing a kiss to his cheek. Drew turned his head and their lips met, slow at first, then urgent, aware that time was short. When the need for air became greater than their need for contact, they broke apart.
“Don’t wait for me, Sam. Go, live your life, find someone who doesn’t need rescuing all the time.”
Sam trailed his thumb under Drew’s lip, drawing a shiver from him.
As much as he didn’t want to admit it, he knew Drew was right. Besides, when all this was over, Drew wouldn’t need him anymore.
He leaned in again, pressing a final chaste kiss to Drew’s lips.
“Take care of yourself. Be brave and don’t lose sight of why you’re doing this.”
Drew clung to him for another moment, his hands fisted in Sam’s sweater, his eyes locked on Sam’s.
“I won’t. And I won’t forget what you did for me. Not ever.”
There was a perfunctory knock with just enough time for them to pull apart before the door swung open.
“Time to go, Andrew,” Drew’s attorney, Cora, said. Behind her were two federal officers. Drew swallowed hard, giving Sam one last glance and a wobbly smile. “They said no outside contact. Can you let Logan know I’m okay? And Diego, if he makes contact with you?”
“Of course. Be safe, Drew.”
“You too, Sam. And take care of Matt.”
“Always.”
He forced himself not to follow them out, knowing it wouldn’t make things easier. Instead, he focused his mind on replaying those last few moments they’d had together, how Drew looked, how his voice sounded, how his lips tasted.
Tom interrupted him a while later.
“Come on, Sam. I’ll take you home.”
Sam was grateful he didn’t say anything else.