“Glad to see I still get to oversee church,” Rip deadpans.
Indiana doesn’t waste time trying to open doors, he simply kicks them in, quickly checks inside, then moves on to the next in the lineup. He’s taking too long so I shuffle my way around him and start shooting the doorknobs then kicking in the doors. I’m not a cop, I don’t case joints or check for those hiding, I’m a shoot first and ask questions later kinda guy.
“Icer! Slow your fucking roll, brother,” Indiana yells.
“Gotta find my princess, Indy.” I shout back, tired of everyone’s lollygagging. We’re here for a reason and I intend to follow through with it.
“Don’t shoot my old lady or kid,” Indiana sneers. “A bullet could stray from its intended target and hit one of them whether it’s intentional or not.”
That statement stops me in my pursuit. I’m so blinded by rage that I’m not thinking about the consequences if I were to hit one of my beloved girls. “You’re right. Fine, kick them in, shoot if there’s an enemy, but don’t hurt my princess. Got it.”
“Or my old lady!” Indiana shouts.
“My sister,” I mumble, owning my relationship when it comes to Zoey.
“They’re here,” Indiana announces.
“You feel it too?” I ask, another sound has my head tilting to the side as I rely on my senses. My eyes honing in on two doors where I’m hearing muffled sounds. “Hear that?”
“Yeah, I do,” Indiana says, smiling. “They’re separated but on this floor.”
“Thank fuck for that,” Rip adds, and for a few short seconds, I forgot he was with us. During this mission, we are his problem kids so it’s not surprising that he decided to tag along with us instead of leading the charge to take out the pussies left behind.
“Indiana!” Zoey hollers.
“Daddy! Uncle Icer!” My princess cries, breaking my damn heart. She sounds so damn scared that my entire body starts vibrating with the need to charge in and wrap my arms around her.
“Move away from the door, Elodie,” I instruct her, not wanting her to get hit when the door goes swinging inward. “I’ll get you out, okay?”
“I’m at the back wall, Uncle Icer,” Elodie yells. Less than two seconds later, the door to the room she’s in is in smithereens. Elodie, spotting me first, rushes through the room and jumps into my spread arms.
“I got you, princess,” I coo, looking closely at her. “Did anyone hurt you?”
“The bad man was going to whip me, Uncle Icer,” Elodie whispers. “And he said some really mean things. But then he left.”
My entire body stiffens at her statement. A red tinge coats my vision, but I stay in control. At least, for now. “What did he looklike, princess?” I ask, wanting a description of the man I’m about to filet alive.
“He wasn’t as tall as you or Daddy, he was skinny and had no guns, and his hair was long,” she replies.
“How long, Elodie?” Indiana probes, asking for further details.
“To here,” she says, touching her shoulder. “It was greasy too,” she whispers. “He was stinky and I didn’t like him at all.”
I glance up at Indiana and he cants his head to the side, letting me know he’s going after his old lady. I nod back, letting him know I’ve got this and nothing will harm my princess as long as I’m around. That’s a goddamn guarantee.
“I’m okay, Uncle Icer,” Elodie promises, placing her palms over my cheeks. “But I really wanna see my mama.”
“Alright, princess. Let’s go see your mama,” I tell her, lifting her up in my arms and tucking her as close to me as humanly possible. I will shield her from any harm, even if it’s at the cost of my life. I march us into the other room, and when Elodie sees Zoey, she begins to do her wiggle worm dance, excitement blazing in her eyes.
“Mama!” Elodie shrieks.
Zoey breaks free and rushes over, snatching Elodie from my grasp. She runs her hands all over Elodie multiple times as tears continue to flow down her cheeks. “Are you okay?” she finally asks. “I… I saw you in the room. There was a special mirror that let me see you and hear you, El. You were so, so brave, sweetie.”
Elodie, in her sweet, melodic voice, says, “Mama, I knew he wouldn’t hurt me. Pepaw said so.”
“He did, did he?” Zoey questions. “Well, he was always our biggest protector, so if you talked to him and he told you that, he was obviously right.”
“Yes, because Daddy and Uncle Icer showed up a few minutes later,” Elodie replies.
