Maverick Stone: Winter Wishes

Maverick Stone Winter Wishes DEE STEWART Maverick Stone: Winter Wishes © 2023 Dee Stewart Published by Dee Stewart Kindle Edition All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form, including electronic or mechanical, without written permission from the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles or reviews. This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events, and incidents are either the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. This book is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This book may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each person you share it with. If you are reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then you should return it to the seller and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the author’s work. Published: Dee Stewart January 2023: [email protected] Editing: Grace Augustine, A Touch of Grace Cover Design © Drew Hoffman Buono Amici Press Formatting: Paul Salvette, BB eBooks This book is intended for a mature audience of eighteen and older. Table of Contents Title Page Copyright Page Chapter 1 Chapter 2 Chapter 3 Chapter 4 Chapter 5 Chapter 6 Chapter 7 Chapter 8 Chapter 9 Chapter 10 Chapter 11 Chapter 12 Author’s Note Books for Sale Books Coming Soon Acknowledgments About the Author CHAPTER 1 Maverick’s eyes fluttered open. As his brain awakened, unimaginable pain in his legs hit him like a sledgehammer, and he lost consciousness again. Adrift in a state between awareness and unconsciousness, Maverick heard voices floating above him, next to him, beyond him. Sometimes he could distinguish them from their tone and quality. The deep, commanding voices of those in authority. The lighter voices of women frequently coming and going. And one in particular, lilting and musical, the one Maverick clung to without knowing why. Unable to resist the magnetism of that voice, Maverick fought against blessed numbness and opened his eyes. He stared into the vivid blue skies of heaven. Struggling to breathe through his pain, he croaked, “Grammy Jaime? Am I dead?” If he were indeed dead and ascended into Heaven, then the promise of no pain had been a colossal lie. Light, tinkling laughter, maybe from an angel, echoed in his ears. Warmth seeped into the skin on his hand from the angel’s touch. Was his grandmother an angel? Disoriented, Maverick tried to make sense of the vision above him. It moved farther away and the blue skies receded. Now, he discerned a heart-shaped face, lightly tanned and dusted with a few freckles. Rich chestnut strands of long hair framed the heavenly countenance. Lips curved in a smile. “Maverick, hi. I’m Dr. Lacey Patterson, one of your surgeons. If you think I’m your grandmother Jaime, I should probably call an ophthalmologist for you.” The humorous comment didn’t register with him. “One of my surgeons? What happened to me?” He glanced down at his legs, the source of his incessant pain, and his heart rate spiked. Thick bandages encased his limbs. Electrical shocks stimulated his feet, and unseen machines kept his legs as cold as popsicles. “Jesus Christ.” Lacey frowned. “You don’t remember?” Maverick tried to reach back, but his memory remained a blank slate. “No. How did I end up like this?” He indicated his mummified legs. “Do you remember Lieutenant David Hutchinson?” “Sure. Hutch came to Hawaii to check on those psycho Anderson kids.” “And after that?” He concentrated, and his head began to pound. “After that… I don’t know. Oh God, my head hurts.” “I can give you something for it.” “No, don’t, not yet. What happened after Hutch arrested the Andersons?” “From what I’ve been told, you helped him rescue his fiancée, Special Agent Jiena Cofield…” “Wait a minute. Fiancée? Hutch and Jiena weren’t engaged when I met them.” “Hutch proposed before they left Hawaii.” Maverick managed a slight grin. “Good for him. So, you were saying?” Lacey grew serious, a sure sign he wouldn’t want to hear what she was about to share with him. “You were involved in a gunfight with a Colombian drug cartel.” He drew his brows together as the fog in his brain dissipated. Sharp gunfire rang in his ears, and the acrid smell of smoke and the pungent, coppery smell of blood filled his nostrils, as if he were there in the moment. “A Colombian shot me?” Lacey fiddled with his IV drip and avoided looking at him. “No.” “Then who?” “Lourdes Grimaldi-Rossi.” * Maverick witnessed Hulk’s vicious attack on Jiena. He started to rush toward her aid when Lourdes confronted him. She shot him four times, obliterating his kneecaps. He yelled as white-hot pain scorched him, and he crumpled to the ground. “I’m not going to kill you. I want you to live crippled for the rest of your life knowing a Grimaldi brought a Stone to his knees.” Through a haze of pain and shock, Maverick replied, “And you’re going to die knowing a Stone killed you.” He lifted his gun and fired. A hole appeared in the center of Lourdes’ forehead before she pitched forward. Maverick replayed that scene over and over in his mind. He couldn’t let it go now that he’d recovered his memory. The moment Dr. Lacey Patterson had mentioned Lourdes’ name, everything came rushing back in a tsunami that swept him away in a terrible flood. He’d released his pain and horror in a loud cry and ordered Lacey out of his room. Turning his face toward the wall, he refused to acknowledge anyone entering the hospital room, except those who needed to check and record his vitals. He wasn’t ready to hear his prognosis, but one thing became abundantly clear. Judging from the Southern