Page 78 of Take Me to Church
Reaching the bottom of the stairs, I shove my feet into the pair of boots next to the door, glancing around as I tie the laces, just in case she ventured across the street to one of my brothers’ homes. "Lydia?" I listen for a response before calling for her sister even though I doubt it was Myra who set the alarm off. She’s learned to be sneaky as hell. “Myra?”
Nothing.
The windows flanking the front door only offer a blurry view of the street outside, so I go to the door and pull it open, not even noticing the beep of the security system this time. Because all my focus goes to an expensive SUV pulled up in front of my house. The tinted windows offer no hint of who is inside. But I don't need to see their faces to know who's got enough balls to show up on my doorstep thinking they can take what belongs to me.
I race down the steps and along the neglected sidewalk, scaling the fence like Myra does to avoid wasting time, but I'm still not fast enough. The SUV is pulling away before my feet hit the cement, tires squealing against the asphalt like they think they'll be able to move fast enough to escape me.
They won't.
I stand in place for just a second, watching the retreating vehicle long enough that whoever's looking in the rearview mirror knows I’ve seen them. If they're smart they'll know I'm coming for them and rethink their plans. But smarts aren’t what’s gotten Ansel Parks where he is. All his power was gained through threats and intimidation, and he’s about to discover they won’t save his ass when I get my hands on him.
Even though it takes everything I have to pull my eyes from where I know Lydia is, I turn, jumping the fence and skipping the steps completely on my way back inside. I hit the panic button on my security system, setting off the alarm, letting it wail as I grab my cell phone and keys on the way out the back door. My phone's ringing before I'm in my car and I connect the call as I pull out of the garage.
"Please tell me Piper accidentally set your alarm off." Tate is out of breath on the other end of the line.
"A black SUV just pulled away from the front of my house and all three girls are gone." I speed through the gate as it opens, scanning the road and sidewalks to make sure they’re clear of my nieces and nephews. "It’s headed east. Brand-new Escalade with tinted windows." I hit the gas, revving the engine higher than normal to gain speed before I shift into the next gear. "And Arkansas plates."
Tate swears. "I don't know if that’s the lesser of two evils or not." I hear an engine start on the other end of the line as he starts his own SUV. "I'm right behind you. I'll make sure Simon is right behind me."
The call disconnects and I drop my cell into the console, completely focused on the road in front of me as I watch for any sign of the SUV. I don't know how in the fuck Ansel found the girls’ location, but he and whoever’s with him are going to regret their decision to come to my front door.
I fly through a red light, clearing the intersection right as the only car headed my way lays on their horn like they think I give a shit. I don’t even glance their way. I’m looking for one thing and one thing only. The SUV with Lydia inside of it.
A glance in my rearview mirror confirms Tate’s already caught up with me, closing in fast. I wish his presence made me feel better, calmer, but right now the urge to cause pain is strong. The need to dish out retribution the way I know best is almost as consuming as the need to protect Lydia. Once I finally get my hands on the piece of shit men who tried to break Lydia, they’ll be begging their God to take them.
I doubt he’ll be interested in collecting.
A flash of brake lights up ahead catches my attention and sends my foot closer to the floor, pushing the limits of safety and sanity. I don’t care. The only thing that matters is getting to her. Protecting her.
Proving I’m the same now as I was all those years ago, even if it’s only in this small way.
Tate is right behind me as the Escalade comes into view, offering me a front row seat as it jumps the curb, bouncing across the sidewalk toward a steep hillside cutting down to a wet-weather creek bed.
My stomach drops as I watch, unable to tear my eyes away when the out-of-control vehicle starts to tip. There's no way for me to stop it. All I can do is stare helplessly, heart in my throat, as it starts to roll. It happens in slow motion, dragging out the worst moment of my life, forcing me to bear witness as the future I’ve finally started to weave unravels before my eyes.
I jerk to a stop, barely remembering to set the emergency break as I jump out. Tate’s tires screech behind me as he comes to a similar stop and follows me down the hill. The SUV rests on its roof, wheels continuing to spin as I skid through the overgrowth, sliding my way toward Lydia, unsure of what I’m going to find.
She has to be alive. It’s the only possibility I’m willing to consider.
If she’s not…
Something hits the side window, planting against the tinted glass with a thud, stalling out my heart. Momentum carries me the rest of the way, slamming me into the side of the Escalade with enough force to make me see stars, but I don’t stop. I yank at the handle of the door, but the panel is caved in and crumpled, making it impossible to open.
“Stand back.” The voice on the other side is muffled, but the determination in it gives me hope.
I lean away just as something smashes into one corner, splitting the safety glass into a spiderweb of cracks. The hit is hard and effective and forces me a step back. Tate slides down the hill behind me, managing to stop within a foot of where I stand as the tempered glass shatters, stabbed through by some sort of metal rods. The bulk of the pieces drop to the grass but the edges remain in place, stuck to the film of tint still covering the space.
“Fucking fuck.” A hand shoves at the black cling, tearing more away. Piper leans through the opening she’s made, her face bloody and bruised, the headrest from one of the front seats gripped in her hands. “Get us the hell out of here.”
Tate pushes past me, going straight for the handle I just wrestled unsuccessfully, but instead of simply yanking on it like I did, he leans in to open the lock then braces one foot against the side and wrestles it open, muscles straining as he fights the damaged door. To my relief it opens, protesting the whole way, and Piper tumbles out, looking a little beat up and mad as shit.
He scoops her up as I shove my way into the opening. There’s an unconscious man with a familiar face piled in my way so I grab him by the shirt and drag him free, rolling his soft, pasty body into the weeds before reaching in for the only thing I care about.
I grit my teeth at the trickle of blood sliding from Lydia’s split lip as I carefully pull her from the wreckage. Her dark eyes are dazed and a little unfocused, but the smile she gives me is bright and clear.
I resist the urge to plant my boot into her brother’s ribs as I pass him on my way up the hill, barely noticing Simon as he races past us to retrieve Myra, relieving me of that duty.
“I knew you were coming.” Lydia loops her arms around my neck as I fight my way back up the incline, unwilling to put her down for even a second. "That's why I fought so hard. I wanted you to be proud of me when you got here." Her smile is a little lopsided, but still bright enough to ease some of the tension making it hard to breathe. "That and I knew Piper would be pissed if she was the only one throwing hands." Lydia's smile falters as she twists in my arms, eyes swinging across the landscape. "Where is Piper? Is she okay? She didn't get hurt breaking the window, did she?"
