Page 262 of G.O.D.S Omnibus

“It’s fine. I was just pulling myself together. I’m trying to be strong for you, but it’s hard. I can’t lose them. Losing you almost killed me, and I don’t know if I can survive this,” he says through his tears. I step up close to him and pull him into my arms. He wraps his arms around my waist and rests his head on my shoulder.

“I know. We just have to believe we will find them. I can’t accept that we won’t. Especially now knowing Elizabeth is involved, Chester won’t stop hunting until he finds her. I just hope he asks questions first.”

“I have never felt so useless in my life. I’m their father, I’m supposed to protect them, and yet we sent you off right into his hands.”

“What even happened to you? Why were you not right behind us?” I ask. In the haze of losing the twins, I didn’t even think to question it.

“There was a bomb threat, and the entire carpark went into lockdown. They closed the gates, and we couldn’t get out straight away. Marlow had to get Jimmie to hack their system and override the code.”

“So he really did have someone on the inside who knew we were leaving.”

“It makes sense if it was Elizabeth. I’m sure Grandma Betty would have been updating her.”

“Has anyone asked Grandma Betty if she told Elizabeth? Because if no one told her, we may have another leak at the hospital.”

Case pulls back and looks into my eyes. “I’m not sure, but I will talk to Brennan. Are you okay on your own?”

“I will be fine. Just need to empty these before they explode, since someone drugged me and I slept for two days,” I say, looking down at the boulders on my chest.

“In our defence, you would attack anyone who looked your way. It was for your own safety.”

I get it. It still annoys me, but I can’t focus on that right now. Case leaves, and I spend the next five minutes figuring out what tube goes where and how to attach all the pieces. When I have it figured out, I make myself comfortable on one of the rockingchairs. I gently attach both bottles to my rocks, but I don’t know how this will go, considering the pain I feel right now.

I turn the machine on the lowest setting and wince as it sucks my nipple in. When nothing happens, I close my eyes and picture little Zadom with his fine layer of jet-black hair holding his sister’s hand. A daughter I didn’t even get to name.

The relief is almost instant when the first stream comes out. It doesn’t feel nice, but it’s a relief all the same.

When the small bottles are filled and my breasts are no longer so lumpy, I turn the machine off. I put the girls away, and as per the instructions, I tip the milk into the freezer bags. I’m not sure how much they will drink, but at this point, I’m just glad I can do something for them.

The sound of a door slamming has me grabbing the breast milk and racing down the stairs. It’s a fast walk, but I stop dead in my tracks when I see Chester standing in the foyer, his mother hog-tied and thrown over his shoulder.

“Is she alive?” Laughn asks, moving in close. Elizabeth thrashes around and Laughn jumps back.

“Where is Marlow?” I ask, and everyone turns to me.

“Right here,” he says, stepping through the door. “Let’s take her to the holding cells while we decide what to do with her.”

“Let me slit her throat, really fucking slowly,” Chester growls, standing in a stare off with his brother.

“I told you already, we can’t kill our own mother,” Marlow snaps.

“I’ll do it,” Laughn says with a shrug of his shoulders.

Something snaps inside me, and I race down the stairs, my fury at the forefront. I hand the breast milk to Laughn, who just raises a brow at me. Chester drops his mother to her feet and holds her up while I get closer.

“Where the fuck are my babies?!” I scream at her, ripping the damn tape from her mouth.

“Help!” she screams, trying to plead with me, but at this point, no amount of begging is going to save her. I slap her across the face, and the sound echoes through the foyer. Her mouth drops, and a red angry handprint forms on her skin. It’s not even the beginning of what is going to happen to her if she doesn’t start talking. Though, if she hasn’t opened up to her own sons, I doubt any of us will get her to change her mind.

“No one here will save you, bitch. You will meet your maker if you don’t start talking. Fuck Laughn doing it—I want to see you suffer, agonisingly slow.”

I had always thought I would never be able to actually kill someone, even after finding out who I was and getting my memories back. But right now, sheer anger courses through my veins, and my hands tremble with rage. Shewilltell me by the time I’m finished with her.

“Fuck you!” she snaps. “I won’t say anything, especially not to you.”

“So you do admit to taking part in your grandchildren’s kidnapping,” I snarl back.

Her face goes white, as if she hadn’t even considered them her grandchildren. “That’s right. They’re your blood, your sons’ DNA runs through their veins, as does yours. I can’t believe you’re that self-centred you would do that to innocent children, and for what? Money? What is it? Now that your sons are legal adults, has the cash flow stopped?”

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