Page 379 of Chaos has a Name
She spun, used her forearm to shove him back, grabbed his gun, put him in an arm lock, hit the magazine release, and then put the gun to his forehead.
He gasped.
Hell.
They all gasped.
It was then that she spoke, her voice low, chilly, and filled with emotion.
“First, you don’t put your hands on me.EVER. Secondly, Takoda, this isn’t a game. I’m not letting one of my children protect me. I can protect myself. If you think I won’t eat my own gun if I am the cause of one of your deaths, then you don’t understand me at all.”
She tossed Raphael the gun, and released her son’s arm.
Then, she walked away, rolling her shoulder because proving it cost her—more than just the pain in her arm.
In her wake, Takoda just stood there.
When Callen and Gene headed his way, giving Elizabeth time to calm down, they made sure Takoda was alright.
“Is your arm okay?” Callen asked.
He nodded.
“She didn’t hurt me.”
It was time his son had a‘come to Jesus talk’, and it was something that needed to be done.
“Takoda…”
He stopped him.
“She thinks I’m not good at being a Marine. I am. I might not be as fast as her, but I’m tenacious.”
He turned his son so he was facing him.
“Koda. Listen to me. She is in so much danger, that having you guard her is going to get her killed.”
He blinked.
“What?”
Callen was honest.
“She won’t be watching her own ass. She’ll be worried about you the whole time. That’s not about you being a good or bad Marine. That’s about a mother protecting her children. We all know you can hold your own. Hell! The Marines we work withhave told us that you’re a good Marine, but to her, and don’t take this the wrong way…,” he began.
Koda listened.
“To her, you’re not a Marine. You’re her kid.”
He said nothing.
“As your parents, we areNEVERgoing to let you shield our bodies with your own. We know you can protect your wife and child. We know you could save your siblings if it went south. Hell! You could save our Marines. We just can’t let you save us.”
He stood there.
Gene was honest.
“She wouldn’t survive if you saving her cost you your life, Koda. Don’t take it personally. You’re better at what you do than we ever could be,” Gene admitted. “But we don’t want to watch you go down so we can live. That’s a pain no parent should have to bear.”
