Xposed

As quickly as possible, he got down into the basement and Hollister immediately opened the door to the safe room. “Oh my gosh! You scared us to death! Boys, keep your eyes on the monitor to make sure Leonard stays down and nobody else shows up.” Hollister grabbed Indi’s upper arms. “You scared me! God, you are so badass! I’ve never seen anybody fight like you before. You belong on the television as a superhero!”

Indi blushed. He never blushed.

“Let’s not get ridiculous. I’m blind,” he muttered, embarrassed and feeling proud. “Okay, guys. We still have work to do. There should be a large black box under a shelf on the left-hand side of the room. Help me drag that out. It has Kevlar and black suits—best used for ass kicking,” Indi joked.

It took some work. Well, lots of work that none of them had time for, but Indi finally got his gear on. He’d lost weight so things didn’t fit as well as before. The Kevlar was tight and held firmly in place, so that was what really mattered. “Hollister, I hate to ask it, but I’m going to need your help.”

Hollister was up in his space in a second. “If you thought for one minute I was going to let your blind ass drive my car to that cosmetic surgery place, you are batshit crazy. Put me in coach; I’m ready to play!”

“You aren’t playing, Hollister. You’re driving. That’s it. Leave the rest to me and Sky. I just need safe transportation. Can I count on you?” Indi reached out and grabbed Hollister. “I can’t risk your life. You have these boys to take care of. Keep that in mind.”

“Don’t insult me, every decision I’ve made has been to keep my brothers safe. Can I at least wear some Kevlar so I’ll feel badass?”

Indi couldn’t help but smile. “The driver always gets to wear a Kevlar vest. Suit up and let’s go. You drive me to Modern Surgical Arts, and I’ll take it from there. After that, you be ready to drive us the hell out of there once I have Clay and Levi.”

“Couple of things,” Hollister responded. “Modern Surgical Arts is huge—twenty-seven floors above ground and it wouldn’t surprise me if Dr. Evil doesn’t have dungeons below ground. Second problem; today is Sunday. They aren’t open on Sunday. That would tell me that anybody on the grounds or inside the building would fall under the ‘bad guy’ list. I don’t think you’re going to be able to take Sky and wander about the building unnoticed.”

“Shit. It is Sunday.” Indi agreed. “I’ll figure it out on the way. Let’s go. The boys need to stay in the safe room until we return.”

“Agreed.”

“We don’t agree but will concede because there’s plenty of gadgets in here to play with.”

“Don’t play with the gadgets,” Indi practically shrieked. “Most of those gadgets are for killing people. Hands off. How old are they, Hollister?”

“Sixteen and seventeen…dumb enough to try anything without using one brain cell.”

“Not fair!” One of them yelled. “We won’t touch anything but the food. We saw what happened upstairs. We aren’t idiots.”

CHAPTER SIX

“Promise me they’ll be safe, Hollister,” Indi said for the tenth time as he and Hollister drove through the streets, on their way to building where they believed Clay and Levi were being held. His hands twisted the bloodied piece of shirt that Hollister said Clay had been wearing when the crew picked him and Levi up. Hollister had Levi’s shirt clutched in his hand.

“We’ve been raising ourselves since I was eight years old, Indi. They know how to stay safe and wait for me. The boys will be fine.” The hand clutching Levi’s shirt clenched it tighter. “Levi was the first person to show any compassion for us at all. When this was all over, he was going to put us into witness protection—all three of us together. Small country town. Everything we could have ever dreamed of. You’ve got to help me get him out too, Indi. Not just Clay. I know you and Levi didn’t hit it off, but he’s a good man.”

“I’m getting both of them out, Hollister—stop including yourself. You are in charge of the getaway car, remember?” Indi reminded Hollister.

“You do your thing and I’ll do mine,” Hollister countered. “If you try to keep me out, I’ll scream loud enough to wake the dead.”

“You would do that? You’d risk Levi and Clay’s life?”

“Not when you put it like that but so help me, I’m going in. I’ll do everything you say. I don’t want to piss you off, but I can be your eyes.”

“That did piss me off and Sky is my eyes.” Indigo answered through gritted teeth. His head was starting to throb. Damn Hollister and damn himself—he should have known Hollister wouldn’t sit quietly and do as he was told. He never had before. Anyway, he probably would need Hollister’s help, as bad and weak as that made him feel. To think he was so helpless that was going to be forced to risk the life of an innocent made him sick…made him feel so fucking weak. Hollister had zero training…well, if one didn’t count the two years of cosmetology school he served as an intern.