Wyatt and I took a taxi to my place, and Darcy dropped by to debrief me. I let him in, and I sat on the couch, my head pounding as I told him exactly what had happened.
“You did what you had to do,” Darcy said firmly. ”I’ve no doubt it was a justified shooting.”
“Thanks.”
“Vasily Novikoff,” Darcy announced into the awkward silence.
“Is that the gunman’s name?” I asked.
“Yep.” Darcy scratched his jaw as he read from a folder. “My sources have assured me he was acting alone. He was simply a loose cannon with a grudge against Wyatt.”
“That guy had major anger issues.” Wyatt’s face was red and his eyes wide. “I didn’t even remember what he looked like until today.”
“How did you get on his radar?” I asked Wyatt.
“He got a little too rough with one of my clients and I shoved him off.”
“That’s it?”
“We exchanged some words, but it wasn’t a big deal to me. But from that one little scuffle he decided he wanted me dead?”
“Apparently he had a history of aggressive behavior.” Darcy grimaced.
“Makes sense. He was obviously a hot head.” Wyatt frowned.
“You weren’t the only person he’d stalked because he felt insulted.” Darcy winced. “You’re the only one still alive though.”
Wyatt swallowed loudly.
“He got closer than I would have liked.” I shivered thinking back to the moment I’d shot him.
“You got him first. That’s all that matters,” Darcy said.
I shifted uneasily, trying to push images from my mind of his bloody corpse on the ground. “I was distracted or he might not have got the drop on us.” I didn’t bother enlightening Darcy as to why I was distracted.You see boss, I’m pregnant. Yeah, not a conversation I was ever having with Darcy.
“You did your job. From what I gather, he wouldn’t have stopped until he killed Wyatt.”
“What a dick.” Wyatt exhaled roughly.
“Obviously we will keep our ears and eyes open in case Novikoff has an avenging brother or something. But from what we can tell he was working solo, and no one could stand the guy.”
“I can see why. If he was this vindictive over a shoving match, imagine if you gave him a Christmas present he didn’t like.” Wyatt snorted.
Darcy snapped his folder closed. “So unofficially, you’re free to return home, Wyatt. I’m sure Tork will call you any minute to confirm.”
“Sounds good.” Wyatt nodded.
Darcy stood and shot me a curious glance. “Everything okay? You’re unusually somber.”
“I killed a man.” I winced. “I know it had to happen, but I still took a life.”
“He didn’t give you a choice. It was him or you guys.”
I nodded. “I know that intellectually.”
“I get it,” Wyatt said softly. When I looked at him, his gaze was sincere. “Whether they deserve it or not, he was somebody’s son.”
“Yeah.” I was grateful he understood.