“You better fucking stop struggling or I swear to God, I’ll hit you until you’re dead and cut that pretty face off.”
I’m freezing from the rain, shaking either from cold or fear, I can’t tell.
I wonder if this is what death feels like.
“Get up.” He yanks me by my hair, and I get to my feet, letting him lead me toward the door.
I turn to check on Bolt, but he isn’t there. I blink a few times and rub my eyes to make sure, but he really isn’t there.
Oh God, let him be okay.
The door creaks open and he shoves me inside which has me rolling down the metal staircase. My breath is knocked out of me when my back hits the wall.
Darkness is cruel. It engulfs me just as quickly as the happiness I found with Whistler. This time, I don’t know if there is a way out. Evil has me.
And if I’ve learned anything, there’s never more than one way out.
Either face it head-on.
Or die.
I’ve toed the line too long to keep doing both.
The fact that I have to sit on the back of One’s bike and hold onto his waist while we drive to the Hoover Dam makes me more than irate.
My Cupcake, who is usually very sweet, stole my mother fucking bike. She’s being a complete fruitcake right now. I mean that in the sense that fruitcakes are disgusting. I do not like them.
And because her little plan excluded me and included fucking Bolt out of all people, I have to sit here hugging One.
While the situation is serious— I’m worried and afraid for her— the guys haven’t missed the opportunity to take pictures and videos. One is eating it up. He smiles and leans into my frowning face. It isn’t about them having fun, it’s about them trying to make me feel better.
Because I’m worried sick. I’m afraid. It isn’t often I’m afraid, but I can’t feel anything else but fear right now. I am thinking of the unimaginable.
Enemies are bloodthirsty, but nothing, I mean nothing is more brutal than the words and images in one’s mind.
I’m thinking about her beaten to a pulp, naked, taken advantage of, barely breathing, and her trying to say my name but her mouth is too swollen to speak from being punched. And then I’m thinking of my sister on the floor being dragged, screaming, crying, hearing the punching of flesh upon flesh, and I know no matter when I get there, the damage to her has been done.
It could have been avoided if I was a better brother. I should have been stricter. I should have put my foot down instead of listening to her apologies because all I wanted was for her to experience happiness.
Then there is Charlie, my timid, sweet, beautiful, strong, loyal, and fierce Cupcake. She’s a fighter. She doesn’t think she is. She thinks she’s weak and fragile but really, she’s just needed someone to bring her out of the dark.
Charlie wants to solve this problem on her own because she thinks it’s up to her, but it isn’t. She gathered the courage to face her greatest fear anyway, and I can’t be more proud of her.
But I’m also fucking pissed because protecting her is my job now.
And don’t get me started on Bolt. I’m going to kick his fucking ass when I see him for supporting her trying to do this on her own. He didn’t agree with me and he guided her out the door right under my nose.
I should have just skipped off into the fucking sunset by myself and handled Kenneth on my own. Instead, we dragged our asses and now look at the consequences.
Rain pours souring my mood further. Moose holds his fist up in the air as he rides next to Mercy, and we all slow to a stop since he is the Road Captain and that’s his way of telling us when to stop.
A red laser hits my shoulder and I follow it, noticing a sniper somewhere on the mountain. “Get down!” I shout, pulling One off his bike with me. We hit the ground together as a shot rings out. I glance around, jerking my head back and forth to make sure no one was hit. The rain drips into my mouth, and I swallow as I take in a breath. “Anyone hit? Is everyone okay?”
“I got nicked,” Driller grunts, holding the side of his arm.
“You’re the fucking doctor!” I stay low to the ground and crawl to him to make sure he’s okay. I take his hand away and let out a breath when I see it’s just a scratch. “Oh, you’re fine. That’s good.”
“No shit. I’m the doctor, remember? That’s what I said,” he teases, but the joke falls short as he narrows his eyes ahead of us and we all stare in that direction too. “I hate to say it, but I think we’re here.”
And I have no idea where to go.
I.E.D. hands Birdie a small device, something grey, but I can’t tell exactly what it is through the rain. Birdie lifts his arm and Skyhawker caws before spreading his massive wings and launching toward the sky. I watch him until I can’t see him, and Birdie leans back and grins, then lifts up five fingers.
Four. Three. Two.
Like a rock falling from the sky, the hawk spears through gravity after he finds his target and releases whatever he had in his talons before opening his wings and gliding away just as fast.
I.E.D presses a button on his watch and the side of the mountain explodes. It’s a small explosion, nothing too catastrophic, but enough to kill any snipers or anyone near that mountain as rocks fall into the body of water to the left. One and I brush ourselves off and climb back on his bike.
Birdie holds out his arm and I dip my head down to dodge the long talons nearly touching the top of my head as the bird lands on his owner’s shoulder. Birdie digs into his pocket and tosses up a raw piece of meat and the curved beak catches it and swallows it whole.
I bet Skyhawker could take a finger off.
Moose signals for us to move forward again and we take a slight turn, but what I see has me jumping off One’s bike.
My Harley is on its side down the road and Bolt’s is upright, but where is Bolt? I sprint forward, passing Mercy and ignoring his protests. The only person I’m listening to is myself. I don’t see a thing. I can’t hear anything over the rain. I lace my fingers behind my head and spin around, feeling fucking lost.
“Did you not find anything when you surveyed?” I ask Prez.
“There’s a door on the other side of the bridge. I’m assuming that’s what we need to get to,” he says.
“You’re going to need…” Bolt stumbles from behind a rock. “You’re going…” he tries again, and I run to him, Mercy hot on my heels. I catch Bolt before he can fall, and Mercy throws Bolt’s arm over his shoulder to take the remaining weight.
“Holy shit, Bolt. What happened?”
“Tranquilizer. Scapegoat. Shit sucks. No wonder…” he sounds drunk as he drags his feet while we get him to the nearest bike. “No wonder O’Crowely didn’t want it.”
“Tried to protect her, but he doesn’t expect to see you now. Kenneth thinks Charlie is a whore since she came with me. She wrecked your bike. I tried…” he guzzles a bottle of water Mercy pulled from his saddlebag. “I tried to protect her, but someone shot me with a tranq. Kenneth has her. I dragged myself to that rock after I passed out for a few minutes. They must have expected to tranq Charlie. The dosage only made me loopy. I’m still…” he tries to take another drink of water but misses his mouth and it spills down his shirt. “Damn it. I’m wet,” he slurs.