“No. You’re family. She’ll take you in. She’ll help you deliver that baby. She’ll have her sons, her husbands, and others watch over you.” Her aunt cupped Vye’s cheek.
“You are a beautiful, strong woman. I don’t want you to have the life my other aunt has and is stuck with. That’s one of Ella’s sisters. You’re twenty-four years old. You have this baby to protect and to raise right. You’ll do that as long as we can keep Murdock from finding you. Don’t let your guard down. Be smart from here on out.”
“Are you sure this is going to work?”
“It’s going to work. You just need to get there.”
Aunt Gay hugged Vye tight and Vye prayed she would survive this ordeal. She was scared to travel to Texas alone. Terrified that Murdock would continue to hunt her down, yet determined to somehow make it and have a real life, a safe life, and make the baby her focus.
“I’m going to make the call. Pack your things, not too much, and the cash you have saved. You’ll need some of it for your travels. It’s going to take a long time traveling by bus. Maybe rent a car a few states away, just in case Murdock has a way of tracking you somehow. Remember to not take any chances trusting anyone but Ella. She’ll be expecting you. You just get to the address I give you, and it will be just fine. You’ll see.”
Vye nodded as more tears fell and then she gulped, straightened out her shoulders, and quickly started packing.
* * * *
“Where the hell is she? Her aunt was fucking lying. I know she was.”
“Maybe not, Murdock. She was scared of you. Took that hit and looked terrified. I think, if she knew anything, she would have said something,” Detrix said to him.
“I can’t take this. I’m under too much stress, man.”
“Calm down, Murdock. Does she really matter? I mean, we made a shit load of money in one hit. One fucking hit. You can have all the women you want now.”
“That’s if we don’t get fucking caught. It was risky ripping made men off.”
“Shhh, no one fucking knows that but us. We got this. Just keep your mouth shut and let it ride. I’ll have another hit, an even better one, the biggest one all set up shortly. Mark my words, you don’t need that preg
nant bitch, a fucking baby, and responsibility like that in your life. Not when you can live like a fucking king with pussy at every corner,” Detrix said and smiled wide.
They got into the car and Murdock eased back into the seat. He looked at the apartment as they pulled away. He wasn’t giving Vye up just yet. She was special, had been a virgin until he bagged her. The thought of another man one day being able to touch her, possess her, hell, fuck her, made him see red. If he couldn’t have her, then no other man would. He’d end her life and that baby’s life. Then, he would move on.
Chapter Two
“I’m fucking tired. Thank God that was the last fucking job for a while. Holy shit,” Lou said and collapsed into the chair in the living room.
“It felt good to take a shower. To get all the grime, the days of sweat and death from my clothes. What a fucking messed up situation out there,” Frankie stated and ran his fingers through his hair, then rubbed his black beard before leaning back into the chair. His hair was still wet from his shower, but he was happy to be home in Salvation and back on their ranch.
“Beers?” Tex called out from the kitchen.
“Fuck yeah,” Pierce stated, joining them in the living room next.
Kendrick walked into the room dressed and looking ready for a fight or something.
“Where the fuck are you going?” Lou asked him.
“To get some fucking action. Three damn fucking weeks in the jungle, gotta make sure the dick still works,” Kendrick said, and smoothed his hands down his shoulder-length blond hair. He looked untamed and women were drawn to him.
“You’re out of your fucking mind, and would be lucky to even get it up, never mind find a woman ready to jump right into bed,” Frankie said to him in disgust. That was his brother’s way of handling the shit they saw, experienced, and were exposed to—dead bodies…women, children killed for no fucking reason other than to make a statement against the government and as retaliation against these rogue terrorist groups. Keep them all fucking over there, and not here in the U.S., Frankie thought, then accepted the cold beer from Tex.
“You aren’t going anywhere until we debrief. I allowed the showers, but now we need to sit down and go over shit. Then if you still want to go get laid you can do that,” Tex ordered and Kendrick accepted the beer and sat down, moaning about this being bullshit, but he knew the routine. They all did and the others chuckled.
As they went over the details of their latest mission, the taste of smoke, and bad memories came to Frankie in flashbacks. One look at Lou, and he knew his brother was pondering over the same moment as him—Lou holding a dying child in his arms comforting him in his final moments of life. Scarred for life more than likely. This shit was tiresome. There was just too much witnessing of inhumanity, one tragedy after the next. What was this fucking world coming to? Why couldn’t people just get the fuck along? He’d be happy to be out of work. But no, instead, they went out to these fucking places and tried to save lives, and if they were too late then they took out the ones responsible, or at least the ones they were ordered to. That was another thing. The orders, the commands to stand down when they could eliminate threats entirely. It was frustrating and he was at his wit’s end.
Once they were done going over shit, recapping what they saw and witnessed and expressing frustrations, Tex just nodded. He was so desensitized to feelings and emotions, just like the rest of them.
Lou stood up when they were done, just as thunder began to rumble and rain started again. A shitty, fucking night.
“I’m going out with Kendrick. I could use a little distraction, and I’m kind of wired now,” Lou said, and Kendrick slapped him on the shoulder.