Page 259 of G.O.D.S Omnibus

Screeching pulls my attention to the road, and Chester’s car is speeding away, smoke billowing from the tyres. Creed stands on the curb, hands clasped behind his back, and he turns to face me as I close the distance between us.

“He okay?” I ask. He and Creed are extremely close, and not because of their unusual sexual connection, if that’s even what you would call it.

“Not really. He is spiralling, and it will not end well. He was talking to Marlow and then they got into the car together. I tried to stop them, but you know how Chester is.”

“Let them go. We should get on the road.”

Creed nods and we all split up, heading to the remaining vehicles. If Marlow is with Chester, they have a lead. Even though it might be a long shot, they have something. I have to trust that they know what they’re doing and will fill us in eventually.

Trace, Boston, and Davis all jump into my car, and we drive home in silence. No radio, no small talk, just the sound of the car on the open road. Usually I enjoy the silence, but my head is full of worst-case scenarios. Jolie told us the babies are a gift from Ziyon to Melinda, so we can only hope he doesn’t have any bad intentions. I wish I knew where his head was at. It makes no sense that he would want to keep them alive when they own Olympia. It is now their company, but maybe he thinks he has a way around that, since they can’t take control until they are older.

Once we arrive home, Jimmie lets us in before we reach the top step.

“How is she?” I ask, and he shakes his head.

“Not good. She is in the morgue and won’t let us look at her stitches or her head to make sure they are fine. If we try to open the door, she throws scalpels at us. So, we just knock and listen for the bang to make sure she is still in there and conscious.”

I blink a few times and scratch my face. “Okay, thanks.”

We all walk into the house, and Creed and I decide to check on Jolie. Creed leads the way—I’m sure his scalpels being thrown at him would usually make his day.

“Tenshi,” he says, knocking on the door and twisting the handle.

“Go away!” she yells, and thethunkon the door indicates she has thrown something in our direction. It hits the floor, and Creed pushes the door open the entire way.

She looks over at us and screws up her nose. “Did you bring my babies home?”

“We are working on it,” I say in a low tone. Right now, we don’t need to set her off.

She places a scalpel down, and I watch as she holds up her bloody hands. I don’t know who the man is on the table, but I’m at least eighty percent sure he was already here.

“Working on it?” she scoffs. “That’s not good enough. Bring. Me. My. Babies.”

Creed moves across the room, and her shoulders sag as he gets closer. In an unexpected flurry of motion, she snatches the scalpel and holds it out towards him. “Get away from me! You’re not making this feel better for me.”

Creed holds his hands up in the air. “Tenshi, please, we just want to check your injuries.”

“No, leave!” she screams at him.

Laughn walks through the door and takes in the scene before him. Any other time, this would be a dream come true for him.

“Bro, I think you should leave,” Laughn says, and Creed turns to look at him and nods.

“I love you,” he whispers.

“You love me?!” she snaps. “Is anyone out there looking for our children?”

“Chester and Marlow are following a lead,” I say, and she whips her head towards me.

“Good. Tell them to come see me when they get back with my babies.”

I take a small step forward every time her attention shifts.

“I just want my babies,” she sobs, stabbing the scalpel into the dead body in front of her. “I.”Stab. “Just.”Stab. “Want.”Stab. “Them.”Stab. “Back.”Stab.Stab.Stab.

She drops the scalpel, and it hits the floor with a clang. Her knees buckle and I run to her side, catching her before she falls to the ground. Cradling her to my chest, I hold her tight. Her eyes close, and she snuggles into me, grasping my shirt in a closed, bloody fist.

“I didn’t even have the chance to show them how much I love them.”

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