The kiss pulled her out of her panic. She jumped at Wes’s slap on her backside and was able to step back and smile. “Wes is my boyfriend. What do you want, George?”
“Who says I can’t say hello?” George snapped.
Wes adjusted his position so that Eleanor was off to his side. “No need to get upset, man. Lindy asked a simple question.”
“Nurse Frey needs help. One of the brood mares has been in labor for fifteen hours. She’s got a fever, and two more are in labor. And a fourth one is bleeding. We got busy after you got shot,” George said.
“You should’ve led with that,” Eleanor growled. “Where the hell are they?”
“The wardroom.” George pointed.
* * *
“Gator to base. I have two male occupants proceeding through the driveway gate heading north.”
“Roger. Team Car 3 and Team Car 6, follow and report. Remember, these men are to be considered armed and dangerous. We’ve confirmed they have access to explosives.” Troy waited for the acknowledgment.
“Shit,” Kip said. “We’ve got a large three-story home. Over one hundred heat signatures. I see five tiny stationary ones, ten adults stationary, two hotter than the remaining. Twenty more inside the structure and…seventy-four on the property.”
“We need to cut off the head of the snake,” Zach said. “Capture or kill the Drake family, and I think the rest will come in line, with a little help from Belinda.” His posture straightened.
* * *
Eleanor’s breath caught in her chest. Five newborn babies rested swaddled in cribs. It was the nine other women chained to beds that made her want to scream, cry and run. “Nurse Frey,” Eleanor screeched. “What’s going on here?”
“Lindy, it’s too much. Too many.” The woman was sweating profusely.
Eleanor placed the back of her hand against the woman’s head. “You’re burning up. You need to lie down.” She guided her to an empty bed. “Momma, get in here; we need help.”
Wes went over to the young woman who appeared to be in the most distress. “It won’t come out. I can’t push anymore,” the girl panted and sobbed.
“We’re going to help you,” Wes’s voice was soft. He put on a pair of gloves. “I’m going to examine you.” His smile was reassuring, but his eyes spoke danger. “Your little one has adorable feeties. I’ll be right back.”
Eleanor listened to him as she found Tylenol to give to Nurse Frey. He joined her and whispered into her ear, “The baby is breech. If we don’t get it out of her soon, it will die, and likely, so will she.”
“Do you know what to do?” Eleanor helped the older woman take the medication.
Nurse Frey swallowed the medicine and took her hand. Patting it, she said, “You were always the good one, Elora.”
“I’m Belinda,” Eleanor insisted, her voice rising.
“Belinda doesn’t have a nice bone in her body.” Nurse Frey closed her eyes.
She shoved her shaking hands into her pockets. “She’s delirious,” Eleanor insisted. Her eyes searched for an escape.
* * *
“Arrow to base, Witch and I have a perch one hundred feet from the front door. We are establishing ears. Be advised, the perimeter is wired to blow. In addition, we found a ring of old claymores. We followed a blood trail from thirty feet within the perimeter due east of the driveway. Advise the driveway is the safest path for fast entry.”
“Roger,” Troy answered.
“Gator to base, I have a perch fifty feet west of the rear porch. Hoist is five feet above me. Three armed targets all equipped with a side arm and M4 carbine are visible. On our way in, we sidestepped six similarly armed. If they are trying to be covert, they are failing. They are loud.”
“Roger, Gator.”
* * *
“This is Team Car 6. We followed the pickup to the hospital. One tall male with a long white beard assisted an obese male with a leg injury. Photo following.”
