Total pages in book: 76
Estimated words: 76609 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 76609 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 383(@200wpm)___ 306(@250wpm)___ 255(@300wpm)
“Motherfucker,” I hissed, duck walking away from the living room window, thankful as fuck that Aspen had left it open like she always did.
Once I reached the garage, I rounded the side of her house and made it into her backyard.
We didn’t go out there much. The only thing you could really do was walk around the edge of the house due to the hill that doubled as her backyard.
Although it was big, and fenced, it really wasn’t something anyone could ever find as functional.
“That door right there leads to the garage, which’ll then lead up into the side of the kitchen,” I directed PD and Tai.
Tai and PD nodded, disappearing inside.
“I called for backup,” Booth spoke from my back.
I’d heard, which was why I hadn’t bothered to tell him how to do his job.
He knew it almost better than the rest of us.
I was in the Army for four years, right out of high school, and it just wasn’t for me.
Once I had my schooling done, I’d gotten out, then immediately started training to be a firefighter.
Although I did have tactical experience since I’d joined the SWAT team, I wasn’t Booth, who had nearly a decade under his belt filled with experience.
So when Booth wanted to take the lead, I let him.
Not because I wanted to, but because I was smart.
My daughter, and the woman that I knew would be sharing my bed for the rest of my days, were in that house with a fucking psycho.
I sure as hell wasn’t going to put them into any more danger if I could help it.
“We go in, I want you to get your daughter. She’ll trust you more than she’ll trust me,” he said. “I’ll get Aspen.”
But it turns out, that Aspen could damn well save herself, which she did, not even twenty seconds after we’d breached the door.
One second we were hurrying through the kitchen, and the next we were stopping in awe as Aspen took some of the chains off the swing she’d been sent to try and review, and had launched them at the boy’s face.
The chains hit Ellison’s nose with a sickening thump, blood spraying out in an arc as Ellison’s head was whipped to the side due to the force of the blow.
Horrified at what she’d done, Aspen immediately threw her hands out as if to catch Ellison, but stopped before she could touch him and let his body fall to the ground.
The gun that’d been in his right hand clattered to the floor beside him, and Aspen immediately dove down and captured it, backing away while she looked over her shoulder at what I could now see was Mace and my daughter.
“Jesus Christ on a cracker,” Booth muttered. “That could have made one fuck of a YouTube video.”
Aspen’s head whipped around, and then her face broke as she started running towards me.
“What are you doing here?” She wailed loudly.
“Obviously not saving you.” I muttered under my breath. “I came over to talk to you. And get my coat,” I plucked the jacket that was covering her small frame with my fingers. “And found this.”
She hiccupped, and I wrapped my arms around her when I realized she was going to be a while.
“It’s okay,” I whispered, patting her back lightly.
She cried brokenly into my neck, and I looked over to see Attie doing much the same to the kid. Mace.
He gave me a nod, and I returned it before I started for the front door, Aspen still in my arms.
“Your brother’s going to be here soon,” I told her, starting to reach for the front door, which burst open before I could capture the handle with my fingers.
Downy rushed through, a look of pure panic etched across his features.
“You okay?” He questioned, pulling Aspen from my body and crushing her into his arms.
“Yes!” She wailed
The room filled up, then.
Police. Firefighters.
They filled Aspen’s living room, and chaos ensued.
“Guess it’s good that we got an ambulance here since this badass took care of the problem,” Tai said teasingly a few minutes later.
I gave him a look.
“I’m not thinking the fucker needs a ride in the ambulance,” Downy growled. “I’m thinking he’s well enough to go straight to the station.”
Aspen giggled and Downy’s eyes warmed slightly.
His body, though, was still extremely tense.
Wary.
Waiting.
I almost smiled, knowing for a fact that if that kid got in the car with Downy, he’d likely come back a couple of broken bones worse for wear.
Something which Luke, as well as Nico, knew as well.
“I’ll take him,” Nico offered at the same time Luke said, “You’re not taking him, Downy.”
Downy snorted and said, “You can try to stop me, but it’s going to happen.”
Then Luke pulled rank.
“You’ll keep your shit together,” Luke grumbled, walking to the boy that was now sitting in a kitchen chair with his hands cuffed behind his back.