Page 25 of Three More Shots
She smiles up at me, and I want to punch this guy in the mouth for taking her away from me, even though I’m sure he’s a good person working at a place like this.
I also want to whip out my wallet and pay what needs to be paid, but that will embarrass her, and I refuse to do that to her. I let the matter lie for now and will make the financial arrangements later.
“I’ll be right back.”
I look through the huge window overlooking a play area while I wait, glancing back and forth to watch over Corinne talking with the administrator and watching Ainsley sitting in a circle of kids. They pass a red baton from child to child, each of them saying something while they hold the short stick. I can’t hear her through the glass, but I’d love to know what Ains says, especially since she talks for far longer than I’ve ever seen her.
Almost as if she senses me thinking about her, her head twists in my direction. Although she doesn’t seem to look directly at me, she scrambles up and runs toward me. Hell, if that doesn’t make my normally cold heart pound with joy I’m not used to. I meet her at the doorway.
"Hi, Steele Daddy."
Fuck me.I don't get a smile, but I do get a tiny hand wrapping around my pinkie finger. I guess all those nights of coloring and her kicking my ass in her board games has let me in a little. And the perfect life is closer than I hoped. "Hi, Ains. Did you have fun?"
“I missed my mommy.”
I miss her too, and it’s only been three minutes instead of three hours for me. “She’s coming. She just had to take care of something.”
Ainsley is silent, so I am too. Waiting while the other parents retrieve their kids. Some easily, some horribly. Guess transition isn’t difficult for just Ainsley. Waiting while the counselors return the games and toys to the shelves and fold up beach towels piled in the corner. Waiting while Ains shifts from side to side, almost as agitated as me that her mother isn’t here.
With Corinne gone for far too long, apprehension begins to evaporate all the optimism Ainsley’s possessive touch swelled in me. I need to find her mother. Now.
I turn to the young woman with a ponytail high on her head stacking chairs and keep my voice calm but firm. "I need to see what's keeping her mom. Can she stay with you for a few minutes?"
She turns around and gives us a huge smile. Already holding out her hand to my daughter, she nods enthusiastically. "Sure. You want to help me clean up, Ainsley?"
Luckily, Ains is all about helping and races to the girl without hesitation and awkwardly attempts to pick up a plastic seat that’s almost as big as she is. Pride, that I can’t fully enjoy in my concern over her mother, shoots through my body as fast I jet back to the lobby.
Nothing seems amiss with the woman at the front desk assisting another parent and two kids sitting on the floor reading books next to him. I stride to the office and push open the door. No interest in niceties of knocking or waiting for a response. Not with my woman in here. Or so I thought. The room is empty. Rage explodes in my head from the contents of her little black purse strewn across the tile like a path to the back door. Son of a fucking bitch.
Disregarding the red and silveremergency exit onlyetched into the metal plate, I slam the handle open and catch sight of an image that will haunt me until my last breath. Corinne’s limp body being loaded into the back of a white SUV by two motherfuckers who will not survive touching her.
The wail of the alarm sounding is no match to the fury screaming inside of me. Mycara’sgone, and my daughter’s probably terrified, which fucking kills me. At least the chaos will buy me some time to get her mother back, which is the only priority for both of us. I whip out my phone and text Deuce, ordering a team here and an even bigger army to follow us.
My black SUV appears before his response, and I fly to the passenger side. More than willing to dole out orders while he drives. We easily catch up to her, which means they want us to follow. They’re leading us to the fight, and I warn my men to prepare for war. Hold nothing back because I know for damn sure the only person certain to come out of this alive is Corinne.
The sound of the locks clicking from the false floor ricochet through the otherwise quiet vehicle. My two guys work in silence, releasing the thirteen assault rifles from their cases. Always a wise move to have more guns than men because double shots send the message much quicker.
“Frank and Luis are behind us, boss.”
Too occupied texting Curtis to ensure a crew is already in place for my daughter, I only nod in approval of our convoy. Reminding him to kill as needed to protect her, but do not touch or talk to her. The counselors will handle her direct care.
To keep from going crazy, I rack my brain to figure out who the fuck has the audacity to attack a defenseless woman. Rare regret seeps through my bones. The fucker is smart enough to find my weakness. When it's really me who's the stupid fucker for being so lax with her. So preoccupied with seducing her, I failed to remember when I lose focus there's always someone ready to take advantage of my distraction.
We're heading farther and farther away from the city. Deuce glances toward me, only for a split second at our speed of one hundred and twenty, and I'm guessing he's thinking the same thing as me. A set up in a rural area where massacres are easily hidden from the authorities. Where local sheriffs are undermanned and underwhelmed, watching the ball game on a lazy afternoon, until the local bars start emptying out this evening, and they pay the bills with the fines levied from the DUIs.
The vehicle we're now tailing suddenly careens to the left, with a quick and unexpected turn down an unmarked rock road. We make the curve, sliding only about thirty feet through the grass, kicking up mud in our wake as Deuce steers us back onto the path. My guys behind us get the benefit of seeing the route we're forced to take and keep on the lane. Thank fuck, because this is not going to be easy, and I need all the reinforcements I can get to keep her safe.
Motherfuckers don't slow down, and our asses bounce over the ruts in the rough surface. Rocks pelt the windshield from the force with two slamming hard enough against the glass to make hairline cracks. The best driver I've got, Deuce, never flinches and rides their bumper until they skid to a stop in front of a pole barn that looks surprisingly sophisticated in this rural area. The cameras mounted along the exterior and a fifty-foot cellular tower on the roof provide confirmation of my suspicions – this attack is intentional and the work of someone with money and skills.
I don't have any more time to consider the source. The SUV doors fly open, and the bastards come out shooting, blocking us from getting to Corinne as she’s carried inside behind their fire. We reply, and the sixteen of us easily down the four of them. I crush any sense of satisfaction amongst the team with a swift shake of my head. This could be a rouse, easing us into a false idea of dominance when we have no idea what or who is inside.
Chapter Nine
The guys waitfor my commands, which in any other scenario would be full force and reckless, be damned the consequences. With Corinne inside, I have to think of her and Ainsley. I refuse to let my daughter grow up without a mother, especially because of me. Because I fucked up.
We need to go big to send a message, but careful to ensure she doesn't receive the wrong end of the announcement. I nod to Knox. "Bomb the left corner."
Sick bliss flashes in his eyes. Motherfucker loves blowing shit up. He races to the back of his Suburban for the launcher while all I can hope is my guess is right. Usually pompous men wait in the middle for the advance. Cowards wait in the back. If we distract them on one side, we can invade on the other.
