Total pages in book: 60
Estimated words: 56651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 56651 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 283(@200wpm)___ 227(@250wpm)___ 189(@300wpm)
“What happened?”
A pause. A pause that ate my guts up. She is okay, I reminded myself. She is alive. My combat brain was ready to kick in and make this an emergency. Make it a mission.
“I was asleep and someone came into the house.”
“What?”
“There was a… a man. He had a mask on. I didn’t see his face.”
“Did he hurt you?”
“No. No… he ran off.” A pause while my insides ate themselves alive. “The police were no help.”
“Did he touch you? Where are you?”
“I’m at my Auntie’s.”
“Address?” I rapped out, trying not to sound like a goddamn drill sergeant.
I tried not to sound like a complete psycho. I really did try. But it was challenging, to say the least. Sounding like I didn’t want to rip the guys head off in that moment might have been one of the hardest things I had ever done. Thankfully, it didn’t seem like I was freaking her out anymore than she already was. She was keeping her cool, which was impressive, especially under the circumstances. Of course, Dana wasn’t there to see that my posture, my face, my entire body had gone into kill mode.
She rattled off an address in a run down part of town. I’d know about her Auntie, of course. It was in the file. My Sunshine sparkled despite having a hard life, not because she’d been born into an easy one.
I had already routed the path to her Auntie’s house. Days ago. As soon as I got the file. I’d mentally planned the routes to every single place she frequented. It was as natural as breathing for me. The roads were my playground.
And since the moment I saw her, all roads led to Sunshine.
“On my way.”
I hung up, staring straight ahead for what felt like an eternity. I was trying very, very hard not to go into kill mode. That’s what we called it in the service. It happened in combat and after a while, it happened as soon as you knew combat was imminent. It had never happened to me off duty before, not even in a fight, and I’d been in some serious brawls.
Bust someone’s add mode, sure. Give a thorough beat down mode, yes indeed. But kill mode? Not as a civilian. Not like this. Maybe not even in combat. Combat was different. There it was a matter of survival. Of doing your duty. Following orders. Protecting your buddies asses, and your own.
This time, though, it was different. This time it was personal. Someone had messed with what was mine. Dana was my most precious possession. Someone had dared to touch her. Worse yet, to scare her. And I was going to make them pay for it.
With their life, more than likely.
But she didn’t need to know that. She sure as shit didn’t need to see the monster her words had unleashed. I had to put the beast back in his cage. For now. Until the right moment when I let him out again.
With my Sunshine about a million miles away.
I texted Dev, Cain, and Jack. Then I splashed cold water on my face, put on my shoulder holster, and tucked my piece into it before sliding into my leather jacket.
I was over at Auntie’s in three minutes flat. On some level I took in the beautiful but dilapidated house, the worried, weathered faces at the window, but nothing really registered. I rang the doorbell and an impressive woman opened it. Hair curled. Dress ironed. Lipstick and jewelry on. The smell of something delicious in the oven wafted over me with the soft powdery sweetness of her perfume.
I barely noticed any of it.
“Yes?”
“I am here to see Dana. I’m Drake.”
She nodded and told me to wait a minute. I definitely could tell she was giving me the once over. It was hard to believe she didn’t notice that I was literally vibrating with rage.
“Dana, honey, someone here to see you.”
I heard the patter of her cute little footsteps. I already knew the sound of her walk. And then like a breath of fresh air, she stepped into the door frame. But she wasn’t herself. My Sunshine was pale. Subdued. And still somehow so beautiful it almost hurt to look at her.
That wasn’t my concern right now. My concern was making her feel better. Making her feel safe.
I pulled her into my arms and held her for a moment, afraid to speak. Afraid she would sense that I was in murder mode. I didn’t want her to see the ravenous beast inside me. She couldn’t. She wouldn’t.
I felt her relax against me and squeezed her a little harder. I had never held her so close. But my urge right now was to protect her, not to ravish her.
Well, mostly not to ravish her.
“You okay?” I finally asked. Dana nodded against my shoulder. I pulled back and looked down at her, not willing or even able to let go. Feeling connected to her was helping to calm the rage storming inside me.