are, because they slashed my tires tonight so I couldn’t drive home. While I was walking to the bus stop a car pulled up by me, and someone started shooting.”
She looked at Aaron and relief washed over her features. “Thank God you were there. I’d be dead if you hadn’t acted so quickly.”
Aaron shifted his feet. “No problem, ma’am.”
It wasn’t a big deal. Why was she making it such a big deal? Anyone else would have done the same thing. Just because he’d got them both out of harm’s way didn’t mean Aaron was someone special.
He knew he wasn’t a hero, because heroes didn’t ruin missions and get their teammate hurt. His shoulder injury was inconsequential compared with the fact Franklin wasn’t ever going to see again. And it was Aaron’s fault.
His first time as leader of their now four-man Delta Force team, and he’d led them right into a trap. The package had been retrieved—eventually—and the information brought home to whoever needed the intelligence, but the success of the mission on paper didn’t make the reality any better. Not when Aaron had been shot and Franklin blinded by shrapnel. Sure, they couldn’t have known there would be that level of resistance at the plant they’d infiltrated, but they were trained to be prepared for anything.
The truth was that while Aaron had been a spotless Delta Force solider for years, when the responsibility of leading the team was on him, he’d frozen. And the cost of that hesitation, that moment of trying to decide whether to continue on or abort had been high. Too high.
The cop looked up from his little pad at Mackenzie. Her eyes were on the EMTs carrying the old man out on a backboard. “I’m sorry people got hurt. I didn’t know.” She looked at Aaron, tears in her eyes. “What do I do now?”
“How should I know?” Why did she persist in looking to him for help? Did Mackenzie really think he knew how to help someone in witness protection? He was on vacation, not some kind of hero for hire.
“You’re not going to help me? You’re just going to abandon me? What if they come for me again, what if they...kill me?”
Aaron motioned to the officer. “That’s what the cops are for. They’ll be able to keep you safe. I’ve got a life to get back to.” Not to mention a career to rebuild, and a whole lot of reparations to make.
She blinked and a tear fell down her cheek. He didn’t want it to prick his heart, but it did. The last thing he needed was a vulnerable woman looking up at him with brown eyes that really were too big for her face.
Aaron cleared his throat and turned to the cop. “You have someone who can look out for her?”
The officer nodded. “Of course. If you’ll wait here, I’ll inform my sergeant that Ms. Winters feels that this wasn’t a random shooting and that her life is in danger.”
He walked away and Aaron looked at Mackenzie again. “We’ll get you squared away, don’t worry about it. No one’s going to hurt you.”
“You’re really not going to help?”
This again? Why did she think it had to be him who kept her safe just because he’d thrown her to the ground while bullets were flying? That was nothing but a reflex.
He couldn’t let the hurt on her face get to him. He sighed. “Look, you seem nice and all, but I think you’ve got the wrong end of the stick here. I’m not your hero.”
She swiped away tears that were still falling. “Of course you are, Eric. You’re the only one who can help me.”
Mackenzie watched the realization wash over his face.
“You think I’m Eric.”
She didn’t know what to say. This was Eric. Had he hit his head when he pulled her down onto the sidewalk?
“I’m not Eric.”
This was bizarre. “Well, if you’re not Eric, then who are you?”
The man’s lips curled up into a smile, and he stuck out his hand. “Sergeant Aaron Hanning, U.S. Army. I’m Eric’s twin brother.”
She stared at his hand. What was there to smile about? “I just told you I’m in witness protection.”
“How was I supposed to know you were going to say that?”
“I thought you were Eric!”
“That’s apparent now, but I didn’t know it then.”
“This is awful. Eric’s going to make me move for sure. I don’t want to leave. I like it here. I’ve lived in Phoenix for years.” Mackenzie sucked in a breath to try to get control, but Sergeant Aaron Hanning, U.S. Army, just stood there smiling at her. She put her hands on her hips. “There is nothing funny about any of this.”
“You just told me my brother works in WITSEC. I thought he worked at the courthouse, or ferrying prisoners around and whatnot. This is cool.”
“Cool? It’s going to get out. I’ll be exposed. My life is over because of you.”
“Me?” He glanced around the room, and then sighed and looked back at her. “Look, I’ll call Eric. We’ll get this figured out. Get your name removed from the witness statement or something so you’re not in danger.”
“You’d better.”
“Excuse me?”
“This is your fault. I’m already in danger, I didn’t need this.”
His eyes widened. “I didn’t shoot at you. I saved your life. Maybe you should say thank-you instead of yelling at me because you blew your cover to me.”
Mackenzie gasped. “It’s not a cover, it’s my life.”
“Okay, okay, calm down already.”
“Calm—”
Sergeant Aaron Hanning, U.S. Army, put his hand over her mouth. “I’m going to call Eric, okay? He’ll tell us what to do, and we’ll get you squared away.”
She took a breath and nodded. The frustration bled away a little, leaving a sick feeling its place. His eyes flickered, but he didn’t look away. He just kept staring into her eyes until Mackenzie reached up and pulled his hand away from her mouth. “Please call Eric.”
He blinked and whatever connection they had dissipated. Aaron pulled out his phone and stepped away. He stuck the phone between his ear and shoulder and pulled open the first-aid kit that was on the counter.
Officer Parkwell strode back in, his mouth set in a thin line. “We have a witness that identified the plates of the car your shooter was driving. It belongs to a local gang member. At this point we think it’s highly unlikely this was anything but a random shooting. Unless you can think of a reason someone might want to harm you?”
“It could
