Page 41 of Fearless
I begin sobbing in earnest, unable to contain the desperationand anguish racking my body. Carter rocks me back and forth while he prays.
“Dear Jesus, please provide Your protection over our team and all those involved in the skirmish. I pray that You will calm our racing hearts and blanket us with peace while we wait to learn the outcome. Our minds often imagine the worst, but we know that You have a grand plan, and it’s Your will that is done. We trust in You and You alone, for You are our strength and our shield. In Your name, we pray, Amen.”
I echo the “Amen,” but that’s the only word I manage to get out. Carter continues to console me and whispers the words, “I lift up my eyes to the hills. From where does my help come? My help comes from the LORD, who made heaven and earth. He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, he who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep. The LORD is your keeper; the LORD is your shade on your right hand. The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night. The LORD will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life. The LORD will keep your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forevermore.”
I let out one last hiccup and wipe my face with the tips of my fingers. “That was beautiful. What verses did you quote?”
“Psalm 121,” Carter tells me as he gets to his feet. He holds out a hand to help me up. “I repeat that Psalm when I need a reminder that God is always with us, caring and watching out for us. Our path in life is often treacherous and wrought with danger, Harper, but He is our shelter and refuge. He will protect us until it’s time for us to go home.”
“You’re right, Carter. I’m not one prone to giving in to myfear, but this is the first time I’ve ever been absolutely terrified. We have no way of knowing if Roger is dead or alive, or Jessie and Elijah, for that matter. After that last explosion, they could all be gone. The only way to know for sure is to go out there ourselves and search for them.”
I gather my strength and walk onto the small pier that leads from the deck. I stand on the edge and shield the sun from obscuring my vision. I see smoke rising off in the distance and a helicopter flying by. Carter stands beside me and says just above a whisper, “We’ll know soon enough.”
I sit on the edge of the pier and let my feet dangle off the side; Carter sitting beside me as we wait in silence for any news. Nearly an hour passes before a speedboat I recognize comes into view. Elijah and Jessie are at the helm, but I can’t see Roger from my vantage point.
Carter jumps to his feet to help tie the boat as soon as Elijah navigates the boat next to the dock. “Help us get Roger inside,” Jessie says, moving toward the back of the boat.
“Is he alive?” I ask, jumping in to assist. As soon as Jessie stops blocking my view, I see Roger holding a towel to a gash on his head.
His eyes meet mine, and he smiles grimly. “That didn’t go at all how I thought it would.”
We get Roger inside, and I immediately go into “mama bear” mode, pulling out a medical kit and cleaning his wound. “I thought I lost you,” I whisper so only he could hear. “Please tell me what happened.”
Roger opens his mouth to speak when there is a loud bang on the front door. Jessie, who is staring at the camera feeds on Roger’s laptop, sighs. “I’ll get it. Thing 1 and Thing 2 have arrived.”
Roger winces when I apply pressure to the gash near his temple to stem the bleeding. I wince when Agent Simms storms inside and asks, “Can someone please explain why there are half a dozen Demon Kings floating in the Atlantic?”
“Maybe they wanted to snorkel and didn’t know how to swim?” Jessie replies acerbically.
“Sure, and their boat just happened to explode in the process? That makes perfect sense!” Simms shouts back. “What did you do?”
Jessie points to herself. “Me? I didn’t do anything. None of us did! Everyone was minding their own business when The Demon Kings just came up and launched an RPG and destroyed Zurkowski and Ackerman’s boat!”
“Zurkowski and Ackerman?” Monroe asks. “Our sources tell us that there were only six bodies, all associated with the Demon Kings. There hasn’t been a report of any others in the vicinity. Why were you there, and why were you talking to them in the first place?”
Roger shrugs. “They invited me.”
“If your team wasn’t behind the destruction, then who is?” Simms asks.
Roger shrugs. “I have no idea. I was knocked unconscious. I saw Ackerman and Zurkowski dive into the water just before their boat exploded. After that, I’m asblownaway as you are bywhat went down.”
Jessie mimics playing the drums. “Ba-dum-shh!Dad jokes are in the house!”
Monroe scowls at Jessie. “Do you ever take anything seriously?”
“Do you ever lighten up?” she retorts. “A little humor goes a long way after a near-death experience. Pardon me for smiling in the face of adversity! You should try it sometime! Turn that frown upside down!” She stands toe-to-toe with Monroe and uses her thumbs to lift the corners of his mouth. “See? That’s better. Maybe if you make it permanent, Melanie from the tech department will finally go out with you!”
Monroe smacks her hands away. “Melanie is my wife.”
Jessie falls silent, and her jaw drops in surprise. The moment she closes it to say something in response, Simms steps in before the two of them have a playground scuffle. He points to Elijah. “What can you tell me?”
Elijah glances at Roger, silently asking whether or not he should share. Roger nods. “Roger’s account is correct. Zurkowski and Ackerman dove into the water just before their boat exploded. The rest of their team came up behind The Demon Kings and took them by surprise. We were busy trying to rescue Roger—who was hit with shrapnel—when the fuel tanks ignited on the vessel carrying The Demon Kings. Zurkowski and Ackerman swam over and helped us get Roger out of the water. We performed CPR while they took our jet skis and rendezvoused with Henrickson and Walsh. None of us waited around to deal with the authorities.”
I stop applying the second butterfly bandage to Roger’sforehead once Elijah finishes. “Wait. What? I thought The Demon Kings and my father were supposedly working together. Does that mean the agents we suspected of working for my father are working alone?”
Roger shakes his head and winces. “No, Zurkowski, Ackerman, Henrickson, and Walsh are all working for your father, and apparently, there are more agents working with him that we don’t know about. Zurkowski said as much. We assumed they were all working together with The Demon Kings, but that was all supposition because of the blood found here in the cabana. After today’s events, I can say with the utmost confidence that is not the case.”
“What else did they tell you?” Simms asks stoically, arms folded and feet spread a few feet apart.
