Total pages in book: 16
Estimated words: 14553 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 73(@200wpm)___ 58(@250wpm)___ 49(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 14553 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 73(@200wpm)___ 58(@250wpm)___ 49(@300wpm)
The island in the center of the kitchen gives us enough cover to sneak around. It only takes Lana a few seconds to get the upper hand on one intruder, while the other tries to drill through the door leading into the garage. It’s obvious they can’t hear us.
Lana wraps an arm around the intruder’s neck and uses her free hand to muffle his cries. She’s quick, hitting him behind the leg to force him onto his knees. She squeezes the headlock tighter and uses her legs to keep him still.
Her tussle with the intruder draws the attention of his partner, who turns around. He drops the drill and rushes toward Lana, ignoring his surroundings. It only takes me a split second to reach him from the island and knock him unconscious with the butt of my gun.
Two unconscious intruders sprawl out in the middle of the living room floor. The zip ties come in handy as I secure their wrists and ankles together. Lana pulls their ski masks off. She looks to me for answers, but all I can do is shrug my shoulders.
“I’ve never seen these guys before,” I tell her.
“That’s okay,” she says. “I have something that will help them tell us exactly who they are. Why don’t you check on your mom and Jeremy?”
I walk into the garage, tap on the pantry door, and call out to them. “It’s me. It’s okay to come out.”
My mother unlocks the pantry door with a weary look on her face. Jeremy, on the other hand, is eating a croissant slathered in strawberry jam. The sticky remnants of it coat his mouth and cheeks as he flashes his bright smile, his one front tooth missing.
“Dad, Nan made jam again. It’s so good. You want some?” he asks, offering me a bite of his croissant.
“No thanks, bud. You finish that. How about you and Nan pack a few things and head to the beach house?” She simply nods before wrapping her arms around me. I console her as she trembles. “Everything is going to be fine. Go to my house, grab some stuff for Jeremy. Take my Jeep and head to the beach house. Okay?”
She nods and sniffs back tears as she pulls away from me. “Please be careful, Aiden.”
“I always am. Go on. Don’t go through the house; just get in your car and go. If you don’t want to stop by my place first, that’s fine. Here’s one of my credit cards to get anything you need to hide out for a few days while I figure out what’s going on.”
She takes the card and pockets it.
Jeremy’s eyes widen. “We get to go to the beach too? This is the best day ever. Dad, are you coming to the beach?”
“I’ll come as soon as I finish up a few things. Keep Nan safe, okay?”
“Okay, Dad.” Jeremy beams as he hugs me and gives me a thumbs up. My mother gets him back into her car and flees the garage. I feel an instance of relief, and then I remember what’s waiting for me inside the house.
7
LANA
The weight of one intruder is easy enough to manage as I squat down, pull him up by the zip ties, and hoist him over my head to lay across my shoulders.
“Fuck, you are strong.” Aiden smiles as he walks in to grab the other guy. He mimics the same movement, deadlifting and snatching the intruder to get him across his back like a weighted barbell.
We carry them out to the garage and drop them in a heap in the middle of the cement floor. I pull out a vial and syringe from one of the pockets in my tactical belt. I inject one of the intruders with synthetic adrenaline to wake him up.
He takes a deep breath, gasping and struggling to break through his zip ties.
“Fuck, get this shit off me,” he snarls.
Aiden takes a step back before getting enough leverage to kick the hell out of him. “You think you can just break into my house and threaten my family? Who sent you?”
The man groans in pain but manages to hiss out his words. “Fuck you.”
The words enrage Aiden, sending him into a fit of fury and unleashing blows and kicks against the intruder. The other guy tries to curl into a fetal position, but it’s useless. Aiden delivers blow after blow until I move into the line of fire to stop him.
“We can’t get answers if you break his jaw, Aiden.” I hold my hands up to show him I’m not the enemy, to break through his blind rage.
“Fine,” Aiden huffs, flexing his fingers into a fist and releasing them. His knuckles are bloody and bruising. The intruder gurgles a bit and coughs up blood.
“Fuck. Tell him what he wants to know, or I’ll be forced to finish what he’s started,” I warn the guy.