He looked out, seeing Grace’s mother tied up to the lone chair. He didn’t see Church or Yo-Yo, which meant they were in the dining room or Grace’s bedroom. He already knew they weren’t in the kitchen since Jackal was pressed to his back, facing it.
“Get me another beer, Yo-Yo.”
Ice and Jackal both froze at Church’s voice from the dining room.
“Make her get it. She isn’t going anywhere with my gun pointed at her mom,” Yo-Yo snapped back.
“She’s busy right now,” Church laughed.
They heard the scrape of a chair then Jackal moved away, farther into the kitchen, keeping to the inside wall so that, when Yo-Yo entered the kitchen from the other side, he wouldn’t see Jackal until it was too late. Ice waited a second to give Jackal time to get in place. As soon as he saw Jackal round the corner to make his move, Ice moved stealthily into the living room, seeing Oceane’s eyes following him.
Ice cast a quick glance toward the front door and saw Bear lying still against the wall. Ice was going to kill the motherfucker for murdering his dog.
Just then, Daisy came up behind him. He was going to get shot before he could get near Grace with the dog’s wagging tail slapping against his leg.
Ignoring the dog, Ice looked around the corner to see Church sitting at the table with Grace on his lap. Her top had been ripped half off and her breasts were bared and bruised. Fury went through him when he saw her beaten face; one of her eyes was swollen shut, and her mouth was bleeding from the corner
Church stood up, throwing Grace to the floor and running for the kitchen when they heard the sound of breaking glass from the other room. Ice shot him, but Church, hearing the gun, turned toward him. The bullet that should have hit him in the back went into his arm. That’s when Jackal and Yo-Yo fell into the room, fighting.
Ice raised his gun to fire at Church again, but Yo-Yo managed to knock Jackal back. Ice hesitated, not wanting to shoot Jackal. Church read Ice’s hesitation and charged Ice, both of them falling to the floor. Ice saw Grace running for her mother as he and Church struggled.
Church was as big as a bull, but Ice had the advantage of having fought more fights, while Church had others fight for him. Church tried to take Ice’s gun away; however, Ice wouldn’t let it go, managing to get another bullet off that went into the ceiling.
Church then used his forearm on Ice’s neck, pressing all his weight on it and cutting off his air. Ice saw spots, and the harder he fought, the more oxygen he lost. As he struggled, Jackal and Yo-Yo fell onto Grace’s table, knocking dishes onto the floor.
With the last of his strength, Ice raised his gun, holding it against Church’s neck and pressing the trigger. Church couldn’t grab for the gun as he would have had to release Ice from his hold, yet he managed to move enough that the bullet only grazed his neck.
Ice’s arm fell to his side as blackness closed in around him.
When Grace ran to Church, trying to get him to loosen his hold, he ignored her, pressing down harder on Ice’s neck. Church’s malicious laughter was ringing in his head so loud it took a second for the gunshot to register. Half of Church’s head was blown off, and his body fell forward. Ice pushed him to the side.
“Church!” Yo-Yo screamed over Grace’s terrified cries. He quit fighting Jackal and ran toward Church, only to be shot. He grabbed his stomach, falling to his knees then face forward onto Ice’s legs.
Ice kicked him off, sitting up. He pulled Grace into his arms then turned to see who had shot Church and Yo-Yo, expecting to find Alec. Instead, Grace’s mother was standing there with a rifle in her hands. She set it down on the floor before running to Grace, pulling her away from Ice.
“Mon bébé,” she cried, rocking Grace back and forth.
The doorbell rang as Ice got to his feet, amazed Grace’s mother had managed to kill both men.
Jackal answered the door as Ice picked his gun up from the floor, hiding it in the waistband of his pants.
Alec and several of his men came in.
“The police are on their way,” Alec told Ice, looking at the dead bodies on the floor. “Why didn’t you call them?”
“They would have tried hostage negotiations with Church. He wasn’t going to be taken alive. He knew when he attacked Grace he was a dead man.”
The sound coming down the street alerted them the police were coming.
“I’ll go outside and tell them to call an ambulance for Grace.” Jackal went outside.
Ice started back to Grace, but Oceane’s glare had him staying put. Grace was already upset over her ordeal; he didn’t want to start a fight with her mother over who was going to hold her.