Page 146 of Finding Our Reality

And I get angry.

Very, very angry.

“Get the fuck away from her!” I level my service weapon right at his head. “I will shoot!”

And I’m a damn good shot.

For the first time, Phillip notices me. His head slowly turns. His eyes are glazed, not even focusing. He looks possessed. Demented. Inhuman. Lulu uses the opportunity to shuffle herright leg free, and before I can bark another order at the son of a bitch, she hauls back, kicking him right in the sternum with the heel of her foot.

AndMy Lulukicks hard.

He grunts in pain and rolls to his side, fully freeing her. I rush him, quickly securing my weapon in my back waistband. Right before I reach him, he scrambles to his knees and violently lunges for my legs, trying to sweep me off my feet.

Hell yeah, motherfucker. Bring it on.

Kicking him backward, I kneel across his chest and fucking punch the shit out of him. One punch. A fucking glorious punch. Good enough to make me all warm and fuzzy on cold winter nights for years to come. Bones crunch, blood flies out of his mouth, and his eyes roll back in his head.

Turning him to his stomach—none too gently, I might add—I grab the zip ties from the pocket of my vest and work at securing his hands.

I have to yell at Lulu to be heard over Phillip’s painful moans and garbled words of protest. “Are you okay?”

Lulu’s in shock, scanning the room from one corner to the next. Her body is poised to strike, ready to defend herself against anyone else who tries to harm her.

She’s a fighter. A hellcat. The strongest woman I know.

I shift my head, begging her to make eye contact with me. “Are you okay?”

She looks at me. Looks at Phillip. And nods. Just one time.

Once Phillip is cuffed, I sit him up, leaning him against the couch. It’s more than he deserves. I want to toss him out the window. I want to beat him until the life vanishes from his eyes. I want to break every bone in his body, make him pay for laying one single finger on My Lulu.

My body hums. I’m shaking with anger.

I can’t control myself.

My fist curls into a ball, and I’m about to pummel his bloody face even more when I hear the coordinated scatter of feet. The tell-tale click of weapons, readying for a fight. Having Marcum as my partner, as my mentor, has given me a connection with him, an untethered umbilical. I don’t need to see him to know he’s here. I quickly call out, giving him the all-clear. I’m just standing up when everyone charges the room. Marcum makes it to Lulu first, bending to her level, his eyes and hands scan her body, asking if she’s okay. He yells for Colson to call a medic.

“I’m fine. Help me up,” she answers. I can’t help but notice the scratchy timbre of her voice.

Phillip’s house is in the city limits, so there’s both city police and sheriff’s deputies here. The patrol officers take charge of Phillip, and I give them the ten-second rundown of events. Anything more, and they’ll have to wait. I need to see my wife.

Now.

Lulu’s standing in the corner of the room, watching everyone. She’s investigating. She’s thinking. She’s marking everything to memory. Marcum is patting her shoulder, and Leary is urging her to take a few sips of a sports drink. I’m not sure where he got it. He must’ve raided the kitchen.

Marcum narrows his eyes. “We’ll talk about you making entry by yourself another time.”

I snort. “You can talk until you’re blue in the face. I’d do it a hundred times over to save my woman.”

He slaps me on the back as he walks away, trying to hide a small smile. “I know. And we’ll never be able to thank you for it.”

I long to wrap my arms around Lulu. I need to feel her. I need to kiss her. But she’s still in a stupor.

My adrenaline is starting to fall. My vision is blurry, and my racing heart feels like it’s skipping a beat or two as it tries to slow down. If I feel this crazed, I can only imagine what she’s feeling. This trauma could break her.

God, help me, I plead. I don’t want to break her. Not again.

They teach us how to deal with victims.

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