“They’re still down by the river,” Lion continued, but Voodoo had already lost interest in this little talk, all he cared about was getting to Indigo, and destroying anything that got in his way.
“Let’s go,” he snapped, already stalking from the room.
The others followed, thankfully without any disagreement, or any talk of working on a plan. Voodoo didn't care about a plan, he’d attack whatever stood between him and his girl when they got there.
In the vehicle, the others talked, probably coming up with one of those plans he wasn't interested in, but he blocked out all of their voices. Despite the fury cloaking everything, trying to take control of him, urging him to do things he usually would never even consider, a tiny piece of his brain was still capable of rational thought.
It urged him to calm down, get back in control. Reminded him that clear heads were what would rescue Indigo, get her back alive and in one piece. If he gave in to the anger fully, there might be no coming back, and where would that leave Indigo? Even if he didn't mess up her rescue, he couldn’t be what she needed if he wasn't in control of himself. The last thing she deserved was another person in her life ruled only by anger, that wasn't safe to be around, that was a threat to her physical, psychological, and emotional well-being.
“You doing okay?” Dragon asked quietly.
Forcing air into his lungs, forcing back the rage, forcing himself to find himself again before it was too late, he clung to what little control he could manage. “Yeah,” he ground out. It was partially true. Maybe he wasn't really doing okay, but he hadn't fully given in yet, so he had to count that as a win.
The more deep breaths he took, the easier it got. The rage receded a little, enough to clear his head, enough to think, enough to know that this was the only way to save Indigo. If it wasn't for that one thought, Voodoo knew he would already be gone. Once he gave all the way in to the rage, his team would have no choice but to kill him to ensure their own safety. He’d seen it happen before when they were being held hostage. After someone let that fury take over, there was literally no coming back from it, they became the beast their creator had designed.
“Back with us?” Steel asked.
“Yeah,” he said again, calmer this time as more of his control returned.
“Good, because we’re almost there,” Thunder said from the driver’s seat, where he was once again maneuvering them between trees at breakneck speed.
“What do we know?” he asked, aware now that a plan was in fact necessary to save his girl.
“They’re about a mile up ahead,” Steel explained. “In a spot where a small logging road once met up with the river.”
“Think they’re on a boat?” he asked.
“Lion said he sees a houseboat and a truck,” Steel replied. “We’re going to pull over half a mile out, go the rest of the way on foot. We don’t know how many of them there are, but we know they’re prepared for the possibility of us showing up. This was what they wanted after all, to use her as bait to lure us in.”
“We’re not going to give them what they want,” he growled.
“Damn right,” Blade agreed.
“We’re getting your girl back,” Lion said fiercely. “No one else is losing the woman they love.”
It was only now that Voodoo had fallen for a woman himself that he fully understood the sacrifice Lion had made in walking away from the woman he loved. And the daily restraint it must take the man not totrack her down and drag her back to their mansion, convince her to forgive him.
When Thunder pulled their vehicle over, they all jumped out, moving as one, as the bonded-for-life team that they were. There were no words exchanged, they all knew what they had to do and were prepared to do it.
As they approached the location, Voodoo could see that the river was wider there, deeper, fiercer, roaring through the dark night, like it were angry that Indigo had been spared from its clutches.
“He’s here,” Dragon said, nostrils flaring. “She is, too. Nineteen other scents.”
“Nineteen to six, those odds are easy, that’s like one on three,” Blade said with a cocky grin.
“She’s still alive?” he asked, needing to know before they went in that his girl was waiting for him. If she wasn't, then he had no reason not to allow the fury to take over, no reason not to give in and allow himself to become a monster.
“Alive,” Dragon said the only word that mattered.
“Then let’s do this,” Voodoo said as they all started moving again.
The first layer of defense went down in a short burst of gunfire. Four bodies dropped, behind them others shouted, moving into positions they thought would afford them a measure of protection.
They wished.
Every single person there was going to die tonight.
“I knew you'd come,” a voice called out.Hisvoice. Dr. Gardner’s. And as the guards began to fire back at him and his team, Voodoo spotted the man standing on a houseboat, watching them with a gleeful expression, like he truly believed he was going to get them back under his control.
