All the King's Henchmen Read online

  “You’re insane. Who does that kind of thing to someone?” Ivan asked, already knowing the answer.

  HER.

  That was right up her alley.

  “Yeah, so they tell me. What has me curious is why the grin, Sleepy?”

  Ivan was confused.

  “I’m not tired. Why do you think I’m tired?” he asked, glancing over at her.

  “My bad. I meant Grumpy.”

  He glanced over at her as they sat at a stoplight. Was he having a stroke? None of this conversation made any sense to him. One minute he’d been daydreaming, and the next, he’d been wet.

  And not in the good way.

  “Elizabeth, I’m not in a bad mood. What are you talking about?”

  “Doc?” she tried as Chris snickered from the backseat. They had kids.

  He got it.

  Ivan?

  Not so much.

  Finally, it hit him. Yes, it took him three dwarfs, but when he did get it, he laughed.

  Yeah, she’d gotten him.

  AGAIN.

  “Oh, the Wicked Queen is smiling and in a good mood. Who ate the poisoned apple today? I hope you didn’t feed it to the husband.”

  She laughed.

  “No, I was saving it for you.”

  She pulled an apple from her purse. It was in there as a snack for Chris.

  “This proves my hypothesis correct. You do lurk around the castle talking to yourself in a mirror.”

  She was accustomed to Ivan and his comebacks. In fact, the banter made her day. There were a few things that Elizabeth could be sure of in her life.

  There would be a horny husband.

  Crazies were going to kill.

  Kids were going to spill something on you.

  Ivan was going to be an asshole on a Monday.

  Those were the constants, and him being quiet did not play into her morning plans.

  It was time for all things to fall into place, so she’d be ready for her week.

  “I don’t like when you smile at nothing and you’re quiet. You’re either planning something, or there is a stick up your ass. What gives?”

  Oh, he was aware, but he had some things on his mind, and he needed to discuss them with her.

  “You see, here, I was going to be serious today.”

  “As a heart attack, I’m sure.”

  He got quiet again, and that was her cue that he really did have something he wanted to discuss.

  If anything, he was predictable.

  “Is Blue okay?” she asked.

  “Yeah, she’s on that case. I miss her, but that’s normal. She has to help Johanna and Brody.”

  Well, if it wasn’t that…?

  “Are you okay?” she asked. “Anything on your mind that you need to unload?”

  Oh, there was a lot.

  Ivan was going to discuss this later, but he didn’t know how to bring it up. It was hard for him. Generally, he didn’t like being too close to people, but she’d made him actually like her with her wit, her heart, and her sarcasm.

  “Okay, what were you going to be serious about?” she asked, being a friend.

  “I wanted to talk to you about the wedding.”

  “Okay, shoot. God knows I’ve had a few. I’m racking them up like a drunk in a pool hall.”

  He stared at her.

  “I am so damn curious what your father was like. Was he the reason you are like this? Or did the poor man try to break the sea wench?”

  She laughed.

  Oh, she often wondered what Charlie would think of her if he were still alive. She was…something.

  Elizabeth knew that for damn sure.

  As if on cue, Chris chimed in from the backseat. He remembered the man, and he knew the answer to Ivan’s question.

  “She is just like him,” he admitted.

  That had Ivan’s attention.

  “You knew him?”

  “Oh, you could say I had no choice in the matter. When he found out I was dating his daughter, and living with her, we had a heart-to-heart.”

  To that day, he still remembered having that talk with the man. It was something he’d never forget.

  “Oh, do tell,” Ivan said, continuing the drive in the morning traffic. “What was this man like?”

  Yes, he was curious.

  Elizabeth was the funniest person he knew, and she was seriously jacked in the head. He appreciated that in a person. She was decent, and she was kind.

  It was a good package to have.

  Chris thought about it. How did one even begin to describe Charlie LaRue?

  He was something.

  “Picture a man about Callen’s size, wider, wearing plaid, and facial scruff. He looked like a lumberjack. If Paul Bunyan had a brother, it would be Charlie.”

  Yeah, that painted a pretty accurate picture of the man. He was scary, he was funny, and he was kind. Chris knew where she got all of her traits.

  Elizabeth was a pretty picture, but she could give you a wicked flaying if you tangled with her.

  Like father like daughter.

  “Was he sick like her?”

  Chris laughed and laughed and laughed.

  “HE. WAS. WORSE.”

  She smiled sweetly.

  “I am my daddy’s child. I’m proud of it too. I come from cop stock with a side of cuckoo. I admit it. My daddy was badass when he had to be. I have no filter. That’s on my mother. I get that rapier tongue from her.”

  Since no one had met her, the men took her word for it. They’d seen pictures of Catherine LaRue, and she did look like her mother. How lumberjack plus pretty cheerleader equaled Elizabeth, no one knew. She came out prettier and meaner than a snake when provoked.

  “I am fascinated,” Ivan stated, stalling. He knew why he’d brought it up, and he was trying to get to his point.

  “Well, I have stories,” Chris stated.

  “Oh, come on. Let me have them,” Ivan begged. “Do you have pictures too?” he asked, laughing.

  “As a matter of fact…”

  He pulled out his wallet.

  “Uh, what are you doing?” she asked.

  “I have one picture of you that I’ve never stopped carrying,” he stated, opening up his wallet.

  She watched.

  Behind his license, she waited as he carefully pulled out the worn photograph.

  “It’s a special memory for me.”

  He handed it up to Ivan, and the man whistled.

  “Wow!”

  She looked over at it and laughed.

  “Our vacation.”

  He smiled.

  “I will never forget it. I rented a yacht, and we headed down the coast.”

  She wouldn’t either.

  “You look so young,” he stated. How old were you there?” he asked.

  She held the picture in her hand. It was of her and Chris, and they were cozied up on the one seat. She was in his lap, and they were smiling at each other.

  “I couldn’t be older than twenty-six or seven. I was only in the FBI a couple years. Chris was only an ME for a year or so. It was our big vacation together.”

  “You were pretty.”

  “She was, and is, beautiful,” Chris stated. “I really fell in love with her. In that moment, she was everything. I remember thinking that I was so lucky.”

  “She thought the same,” Elizabeth offered, reaching back to squeeze his hand.

  Yeah, and then he’d forgotten how much she’d meant to him and how he broke her heart. Now, she was healing his.

  “It was a wild week,” she stated. “It was a vacation, and then we picked up a case.”

  “Yeah, a gross one. I got to spend time with Charlie,” he said, taking the picture back. It was an adventure.”

  “How was that?” Ivan asked.

  “Oh, so much fun. When Elizabeth and I first began dating, he made a point to try to catch us having sex all the time. If he stayed with us in DC, he’d jump into the room and shout to kill my erection.”
>
  Ivan found that amusing. He took the opportunity to bust her ass.

  “I’d think just seeing her naked would kill anyone’s erection.”

  She punched him.

  “Or was it like looking at Medusa?”

  Elizabeth laughed at him.

  “Uh, Medusa turned people to stone. That’s the OPPOSITE of losing an erection. Technically that’s a permanent one.”

  Ivan found that amusing.

  “Well, don’t I feel dirty?”

  Chris continued, “Charlie was intimidating. He’d stare at you, kind of the way she does when she’s pissed and done fooling around. Then, when you were ready to throw up, he’d ask something totally irrelevant. You couldn’t read Charlie on his worst day. On his best, you were basically at his mercy. Does that sound familiar?” Chris asked.

  Oh, did it ever.

  Ivan had seen her emasculate a man with a look. Pretty girls could intimidate, but a gorgeous woman carrying a gun and a bad attitude?

  They were lethal.

  “My daddy could interrogate with the best of them,” she stated. “He was my idol. Remember that day he showed up to re-meet you?”

  “RE-MEET? Is that even a word? How does one do that?” Ivan asked.

  “Call Callen and ask,” she said, grinning. “He’s the word guy. I’m the crazy magnet.”

  Yes, yes, she was.

  “Well, when my Daddy met Chris the first time, we weren’t a couple. In fact, he cancelled a date to get laid by a serial burglar.”

  Chris sighed.

  “You make one mistake and bring a crazy back to your place to get laid, and you never get to forget it,” Chris stated.

  She snorted.

  “One time?” she asked, laughing. “Really, Christopher? Do we need to discuss the birthday debacle?”

  No, they didn’t.

  It had been his biggest disgrace and regret in his life. Because of it, he’d spent time without her. The only redeeming things were that she’d found Callen and Ethan, and he’d had Bethe.

  For that, he’d accept his mistakes.

  “You make two horrible choices in judgment, and no one…”

  She stopped him.

  “Anyway, Charlie had a heart-to-heart talk. I still don’t know everything they talked about, but Chris was definitely terrorized,” she teased, knowing that wasn’t the case. They had a good relationship after that.

  “He told me about his mistakes with his wife and warned me not to be a dumbass. Clearly, I didn’t listen. I screwed-up but I did make it ten years,” he offered.

  While they joked about it, she knew it still hurt him. Chris was carrying guilt, and she wasn’t. You couldn’t look back. You could only go forward.

  She held his hand. On it was the ring they’d all picked for him, and then given him when she was marrying Callen. It was their symbol of love to him, and his invitation into their lives.

  “Nah, what happened was meant to be. You made a choice, and it put us where we are today. I’m happy with it. I still have you in my life.”

  Ivan really saw the connection between them.

  He loved that he had it with Blue, and he hoped it was just as enduring for them.

  “How did we get talking about this?” she asked. “The last thing I remember is talking about Dopey.”

  Ivan shook his head.

  “I brought it up because I wanted to discuss something regarding my wedding.”

  She loved a wedding.

  “Okay, shoot.”

  “I need a best man.”

  “Okay, and? Do you need me to kidnap one and hold him at gunpoint since you’re a troll?” she teased.

  He got serious.

  “I meant you.”

  And that was awkward.

  “Jesus. I feel bad for being a douche just now. God! You bring out the worst in me.”

  He laughed.

  “I know. I set it up that way. I know the enemy. Will you, Medusa, be my best…?”

  “She’ll punch you even if you’re being nice,” Chris warned. “She hurts too.”

  He figured he was right.

  It was just this was so awkward. Ivan didn’t do sentiment and mushiness—well, with anyone but Blue. What he felt for Elizabeth was something he had a hard time swallowing.

  She wasn’t a Marine, but he loved her like she was one. She mattered in his life.

  So, he explained.

  “I don’t have siblings, and I don’t want a military affair. You’re the one who pushed Blue and I together. She told me when I was ready to bail on my job that you met her in her room and told her that she should forgive me and go after me.”

  It was no secret.

  She played Cupid.

  It was her thing.

  “I did.”

  “That’s having someone’s back. With you, I never have to worry you’ll shoot me…unintentionally.”

  She laughed.

  That was funny as hell, and very true. If she put a bullet in ANYONE, you could bet it was done on purpose.

  It was apparent that he knew her well.

  Ivan didn’t stop there.

  He offered her the truth.

  “I know that if I need you, you’ll be there. So, will you, Elizabeth, have my back on that day? You’re letting my parents stay at your place. You’re having the rehearsal dinner at your home. You’re like the sister I didn’t have, and still really don’t want except for that day,” he teased.

  She snorted.

  “Gee. Thanks.”

  He reached over and took her hand.

  “Seriously. Will you be my best man and help me get through that day? It’s emotional now, and I can’t imagine what I’ll do when I’m standing up there ready to puke.”

  Elizabeth leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek. She had a fondness for the man. Everyone who worked around them knew it. She tolerated a lot of his antics—mostly his snarkiness. She didn’t do that with just anyone.

  He was family.

  Ivan had proved himself as one of them. He was calm, he was protective, and he was just like a brother. She’d always wanted one just like him.

  Instead, she got a perverse killer, who had destroyed women in Salem and killed their father. Sometimes the universe dealt you a weird-ass hand.

  Well, she’d play it.

  “I’m in. I’ll have your back on that day. It’s the least I can do for family.”

  That made him smile.

  “Thank you, Elizabeth. I appreciate it.”

  “Tux or dress?”

  “Tux. I want you manned up. It’s my wedding, and I’ll screw with you if I want to.”

  She wasn’t surprised.

  “Okay, I can play man for you. I’m sure Blue does it all the time…”

  Chris laughed and laughed.

  Ivan walked right into that one, and he should have known better. Elizabeth, while docile, was still on her game when it came to takedowns.

  She’d proved it countless times.

  “I should know better,” Ivan stated, winking at her. She was like his sister. He valued her.

  Ivan pulled into the parking lot.

  “I can rock out a tux,” she stated. “You wouldn’t be the first I’ve worn one for,” she admitted.

  That was the truth.

  Ivan wasn’t surprised. To know her was to love her—even if you didn’t want to do it at first.

  She grew on you.

  Only, fun was over.

  It was time for her to get Chris to his appointment, and for Ivan to wait for her to be done.

  “Do you need me to walk you to the door, Brunhilda, or can you and the doctor make it without shooting at anyone or being shot?”

  She rolled her eyes.

  “Stay here. I don’t need you babysitting in a doctor’s office. That’s all kinds of wrong. We’re trying to be low-key. They wouldn’t come to us, so…”

  He understood.

  They were trying to get appointments on the DL to protect Chris,
but the best specialist in the city wouldn't play ball, so they were having to risk it.

  “Okay, well, text if you need me to get you out of there fast.”

  “We’re hoping since this doctor deals with mostly HIV patients,” Chris said, “That they won’t want media attention either. No one will likely rat me out.”

  They hoped.

  When they both got out, they headed toward the doctor’s office. Inside, Chris checked-in, and they sat down in the waiting room with the couple of other people waiting to see the specialist.

  There were varying degrees of illness there.

  Elizabeth couldn’t help but look around. A few of the people looked like they were entering full-blown AIDS and didn’t have much time. They looked weak, worn down, and sickly.

  She knew Chris saw them too.

  “I’ll be okay,” he whispered in her ear as he dropped his arm over her shoulder. “That’s years from now. I promise. I have a lot of life in me. He might not have started taking the drugs in time. I have.”

  She hoped that was the case.

  Her fingers were crossed.

  Leaning into him, she gave him a kiss, despite that there were people watching them. Supposedly, this doctor didn’t just specialize in HIV, so maybe this would plant the seeds of doubt if it ever got out.

  Once more, it was all about protecting Chris.

  When the nurse came to the door, she didn’t say their names. Instead, she pointed, and they got up. In the next room, they sat there as he had his blood pressure checked, he was weighed in, and the normal pre-doctor questions were asked.

  When the nurse left, Elizabeth wanted to keep his mind busy.

  “How’s the new ME working out?” she asked, watching him peek at his own medical records on the screen of the tablet she’d left unlocked.

  That was Chris to a T.

  Once a doctor, always a doctor.

  “She’s good. Doctor Duncan is very smart. With the right training, she’ll be able to run the team if I’m not there.”

  That upset her, and she could only imagine how he felt about that. The finality…

  “Chris.”

  “As in on vacation. I hear we have a rocking new house on an island in Washington. I can’t wait to go,” he stated. “I didn’t get to see it yet, and I’d really like to do that.”

  Yeah, yeah, they did, and for him, she’d make that happen. Their lives had to change so they could make sure the rest of Chris’s life was filled with vacations, family, and not only work. That was no way to live.