“You going to let me out so I can?” I counter. “Or are you scared of a five-foot-nothing Latina?”
The bastard rolls his eyes at me and snickers. “Not falling for your antics today. The boss wants his personal breeder hosed off and brought to him.”
Zoey snorts, asking, “So you’re the low man on the totem pole, huh? A dog on a leash doing his master’s bidding?”
I really like her and her sass. “The lowest man,” I confirm. “And I like the pun you used there, Zoey.”
“Thank you, Letti. I thought it was pretty witty,” she says.
“I’m not falling for your games,” the guard snaps.
Seems like we’re getting to him, but we need to tread carefully because unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do to overpower him when he does take Zoey out of here. I don’t want to mess with his pride too much and have him take it out on her. I give her a warning look and she snaps her mouth shut.
When he puts the key in the padlock and I hear the mechanisms give, my heart begins to rapidly beat in my chest—it sounds like a bunch of galloping horses to my ears.
“Don’t touch me,” Zoey commands. The guard roughly yanks her out of her enclosure and begins leading her down the hallway. Her voice is faint, but I can hear her giving him hell. “Get your goddamn filthy paws off me!”
Good for you, Zoey. Keep fighting, Chica.
All of the air rushes out of me as I slump and fall to the ground, hitting my knees. “May God have mercy on all of our souls,” I pray.
I’m not a firm believer in God himself, I lost my faith a long time ago, courtesy of my mother but I do believe there’s a higher power out there, watching over us.
I look skyward and ask, “What’s the endgame here? Why must you test my resolve? None of us deserve this, it’s time for you to step up and find us some sort of resolution. Save us. Please.”
I close my eyes and let the tears flow freely. I cry for us all.
CHAPTER
EIGHT
Icer
The momentwe set our kickstands down and lean our bikes to the side, the roar of engines has our heads turning toward the entrance of the parking lot. When I recognize the cuts of the Kings and Riptide leading the brigade, I know shit’s about to hit the fan, and I’m here for it. Nobody messes with my princess!
Indiana asks Rip, “Where are they taking off to?”
“Saw some pussies hauling ass down the back road so they went after them,” he briefs us. “Renegade will chase and capture them. You know he doesn’t admit defeat. He’ll stay out there all damn night if he has to until he’s rounded every damn one of them up and has them hogtied in the tomb.”
“We done?” I interrupt, my entire being vibrating. I don’t understand why we’re standing here having a pow wow instead of charging inside and tearing the place apart to find my girl and her mother. With Elodie in danger, I’m wound up tighter than one of those spinner toys.
“We’re done,” Rip answers, his finger twirling through the air. Without further direction, we split into groups. Indiana, Rip, Nova, and me are taking the front while Renegade, Slayer, Shade, and Ozzie track down the pussies who fled.
“Time to play ball!” I roar, lifting my automatic weapon above my head, issuing a war cry.
Sketch pulls a Louisville slugger from the side holster on his bike and takes a practice swing—he likes a more hands on approach. Me, I don’t care how shit gets taken care of, as long as it does. “Let’s hit a home run!”
“They left a few behind,” I tell the others, nodding my head in the general direction where some are scattering about, they’re unorganized and that makes it a little harder to track them.
“They left their disposables behind for us to play with,” Sketch rabidly chuckles.
“Keep at least one alive for questioning,” Rip orders. “Preferably one with more than two working brain cells.”
“If you can, but that’s not necessary,” Indiana tacks on with a straight face. “We know who we’re looking for, even if they manage to vanish, we’ll eventually track them down and end them.”
“I’ll want a piece of them, whoever you catch,” I decree. “Once I know my princess and my sister are okay, that is, because if they’ve been hurt, I may have to get… creative in my punishment of the offenders.” They’re going to pay, in blood, for touching one hair on the head of my princess and Indiana’s woman, Zoey. One of the only two females I’ve ever trusted enough to give the moniker ‘sister’ to outside of Issy.
“Let’s find them, Ice,” Indiana says. “Check every room and if you find a leftover Dragon, see if you can beat the information out of them. The sooner we find Zoey and Elodie, the sooner Rip can call church so we can fill everyone in on what else we found out earlier.”
