Page 20 of Wick
Not wasting any time, I exit the basement and go in search of my woman. I don't slow down until I make it to the second level of the home. The first bedroom I come upon; I test the door to find it locked.
"Cover me, brother," Riggs orders just before he uses his shoulder to bust the door open. Inside the bedroom are a queen-size bed and a crib. "Clear," I call out.
Next, we make our way to the last door at the end of the hall. I turn the knob also finding it locked. This time it is me who breaks the door open, causing the hinges to splinter by using my booted foot. Immediately my eyes zero in on Vayda, who is lying motionless on a bed. Beside her is a young Latino woman who looks to be no older than her mid-twenties. She and a small child are sitting on a chair next to the bed Vayda is in. I keep my gun trained on the woman, not wanting to take any chances. Though if I had to go by the look of sheer panic and fear on her face, she is not a threat. With that thought, I rush to my woman. "Baby." I gently place my hands on her body and roll her toward me. "Son of a bitch, " I grind out when I see the state of her face.
Vayda groans. "Malik."
"Yeah, baby. It's me."
"You're here." Vayda cracks her one good eye open.
"I'll always come for you. Now, come on. Let's get out of here." I reach my hands underneath her body and scoop her up into my arms. "Hold on to me, baby."
Vayda wraps her arms around my neck. "Cowboy, Thor, and Preacher?" she questions.
"They're okay. Scott got them out." I feel some of the tension leave Vayda's body when I tell her that her team is safe.
"Let's get the hell out of here, brother," I say to Riggs as I go to walk past him.
"Wait," Vayda breathes out. "They're coming with us. I promised."
"Who?"
"I think she's talking about the woman and child, brother," Riggs supplies.
I turn back and eye the young woman who is now standing with a little boy clutched to her chest. "Do you speak English?"
The woman nods.
"What's your name?"
"Zara."
I don't ask any further questions. I don't need to. If Vayda says this woman and her child are coming, then that's what will happen. "Alright, Zara Let's go."
Chapter Eight
Tequila
Another explosion rattles the walls of the house as Malik keeps a steady pace making his way toward the end of a long hall. My nausea returns with a vengeance as my body rocks in his arms, and I become slightly dizzy.
"Are you okay?" Malik looks at me.
"I may throw up on you," I confess as I breathe in through my nose, trying to let it pass. "Malik, we could move a lot faster if you put me down." The words leave my mouth, even though I feel safe right where I am.
"Not gonna happen, baby." His grip tightens as he jogs down the stairs. "Riggs?" he calls out. Looking behind us, I catch sight of Riggs, who has Zara and her son directly in front of him.
"Right behind you, brother." We pause on the last step, as Malik checks for safety before moving us forward toward the front door. "Scott is in my ear. He secured transport back to the chopper. We have got to move."
Before we reach the door, a bullet whizzes past my head, shattering a large mirror hanging on the wall. Pushing Zara and her child behind him, Riggs aims his rifle, taking out his target. Catching sight of a second guy, and acting on pure instinct, I reach down, pulling Malik's pistol from the holster, watch the red dot paint the fucker's forehead and pull the trigger.
Riggs' eyes cut to me. "Thanks."
"Where the fuck are you?" Scott's voice can be heard coming from the earpiece in Malik's ear.
"Where are you located?" Riggs asks, peering through the broken window. He looks back at Wick, who is still holding me as if I weigh no more than a feather. "Scott found an unmanned jeep on the west side of the compound."
"I know where he is." Zara's soft voice trembles. "It's where the women are kept." Her eyes cast down to her feet.
