Chapter 16 #2
“You think your sister will tell your parents?” I asked her again.
“I doubt it.”
“Oh, good, you’re up,” my mom said from the doorway. “Hungry? I made pancakes.”
“I’m hungry,” Esther replied, leaning around me.
“Well, come on,” my mom ordered, walking away.
Esther pulled out a pair of sweatpants that I was pretty sure I’d never worn before and I pulled them on with a T-shirt before following her to the kitchen. Mom was the only one home since it was a fucking Tuesday and everyone else was either at school or work.
“Fuck, I need to get to the garage,” I muttered as I dropped onto a stool at the bar.
Mom laughed. “Yeah, right. You’ve got the day off, turbo.”
“Did someone grab my phone last night?”
“It’s in my purse,” Esther said, hurrying back out of the kitchen.
“Dad said to keep your eyes open,” Mom said quietly after Esther was out of earshot. “There’s been some movement this morning, and he thinks that whatever’s going to happen will happen soon.”
“Here you go,” Esther called as I nodded at mom.
“Thanks, sugar,” I said, grabbing the phone from her. No missed calls.
I drank coffee with breakfast like I’d never have it again, and about three cups later, I was feeling mostly human again.
I needed to be on my game if the Sons of Calgary were going to be moving those guns.
I also needed to figure out how I was going to keep Esther safe now that her sister knew she was alive and living with me.
A plan formed as Esther and my mom talked quietly about the doctor appointment she’d set up.
“Hey, Ma.”
“Hey, Otto,” she replied jokingly.
“Can Esther hang here with you while I work?”
“You’re going to work?” Esther asked in surprise.
“Of course,” my mom answered at the same time. “I’d enjoy the company.”
“Thanks.” I turned to Esther. “I need to go in.”
“Can you run me home first?” she asked apologetically. “I packed clothes for you last night, but I forgot to get anything for me.”
I glanced at my phone. Still nothing. “Sure.”
We borrowed my mom’s SUV and agreed that Esther would drive it back over to my parents’ house after she’d changed and got ready for the day.
I felt the tension leave my shoulders, knowing that she’d be safe over there while I went to the club and got an update on what was happening.
I knew I could call, but I was pretty sure my dad would blow me off, knowing that I probably still wasn’t feeling great.
“It’ll only take me a few minutes,” Esther assured me as I parked in front of the house.
“All good, baby,” I replied, scanning the property as I followed her out of the car and up the porch steps. Nothing seemed out of place, but I didn’t like being exposed. I stood at Esther’s back as she keyed in the lock code and hurried her inside once the door was open.
As she took off her shoes and set down her purse, I hurried through the house. I didn’t have time to check the basement, so I locked the door instead before jogging up the stairs. The house was empty.
“What are you doing?” Esther asked curiously as I closed the nursery door.
“Just checkin’ to make sure there’s no surprises,” I replied easily. “Go ahead and get ready, baby. I’m gonna put on some real pants.”
“Those are real pants.”
“These are pajamas,” I countered, leading her into our bedroom.
“I wanted you to be comfortable.”
“Thank you. They’re very comfortable, but I’m gonna put on some jeans.”
Esther huffed out a laugh.
She left me to get ready in the bathroom, and I was sitting on the bed pulling on some clean socks when the hair at the back of my neck prickled.
I couldn’t hear anything except Esther moving around in the bathroom, but I still got quietly to my feet and pulled the pistol out of my top dresser drawer, silently double-checking it was loaded.
I moved through the house slow and steady, checking each of the rooms again. None of them were disturbed, and I was almost positive that no one had been in our house. Then I remembered that I hadn’t checked the fucking basement.
I slid through the kitchen in my socks, trying not to make any noise. Unlocking the door, I threw it open and flipped on the light, grateful that I’d changed the bulb when Esther moved in. I couldn’t see anyone, but I hurried down the stairs anyway, just to make sure.
I was at the bottom of the stairs when the living room window shattered with a loud boom and Esther started yelling for me from upstairs.
I’ve never run so fast in my life.
I was out of the basement and through the kitchen in seconds.
Someone had thrown a pipe bomb through the window, and the fucking couch was on fire.
“Otto,” Esther yelled, panicked. “What was that?”
“Come here, baby,” I yelled back. “Be careful on the stairs, but hurry, yeah?”
I moved toward the windows, staying out of eyesight of anyone outside. She’d probably be safer upstairs, but I couldn’t leave her up there when the goddamn house was about to go up in flames.
I couldn’t see anyone out the window, but I could feel whoever it was out there. Waiting.
Pulling out my phone, I cursed as it rang.
“How you feelin’, son?” my dad answered on the third ring.
“Someone just threw a pipe bomb through my front window,” I said quietly, waving Esther toward me and shoving her behind my back. “Me and Esther are sittin’ ducks and my couch is on fire.”
“Jesus Christ,” he spat. “Hold tight. I’ll send anyone close.”
“Don’t have to tell you—”
“Five minutes at most,” he spit. “Even if I have to call the fuckin’ cops.”
“Otto,” Esther murmured, gripping the waistband of my jeans as she coughed. “We need to get out of here.”
“Down on the floor, sugar,” I ordered, pushing her back toward the bathroom.
She was shaking as I helped her sit down.
“What’s happening?” she rasped, clutching at me.
“Not sure yet.” I looked around the room. The smoke wasn’t bad yet, but any minute the couch was going to really start burning and then I’d have to get her the fuck out of there. Where the hell were the people my dad was sending?
Something hit the side of the house with a loud thump, and Esther jumped.
I couldn’t wait.
“Stay right here,” I ordered, kissing her hard. “Don’t move.”
“I won’t,” she whispered, wrapping her arms around her knees.
“I’ll be right back.”
I crouched, running toward the stairs, and quickly opened the door to the spare room. There was no way I could look out the front window without showing my face to whoever was watching, but there was a good chance I could see them out the upstairs window.
Sure enough, I could see someone messing around in the front seat of a car that was parked just off the driveway near the trees.
As he turned, I realized he was talking to someone just out of eyesight.
Just two people? I couldn’t be sure but there was no use waiting to find out. We were running out of time.
I found Esther where I’d left her, wide-eyed and rocking a little.
“Hey, we gotta move,” I told her quietly, pulling her to her feet. “Stay low, okay?”
She nodded, and then we were hustling toward the kitchen. There was a big window in there but since they hadn’t sent anything through that one, I figured they were staying at the front of the house for some reason. Probably so they could bail quickly if they needed to.
“We’re goin’ fast,” I whispered to Esther at the back door, brushing the hair out of her face. “Straight to the garage door, yeah?”
“Okay,” she replied shakily. “I’m scared.”
“Remember what I said?” I asked gently. “I’ll kill anyone that tries to hurt you.”
The ten feet between the house and the garage were the longest and most gut-wrenching ten feet of my life. Every second, I was waiting for someone to take a shot at us, but miraculously, I got the door unlocked and Esther inside without incident.
I hurried to the new garage door opener and quickly disconnected it.
“Driver’s side,” I ordered, pushing Esther toward the Mustang. “You can drive a stick, right?”
“Of course,” she said distractedly as she climbed in.
I reached in and moved the seat forward, crouching next to her.
“I’m gonna go over to the door,” I told her, putting the keys in her hand. “The minute I get there, I want you to start the car. The second the door is open, I want you to back out of here like the garage is on fire.”
“No—”
“You drive like hell,” I continued, ignoring the way she shook her head. “Don’t stop for anythin’, Esther. Not a goddamn thing. You go straight to my parents’ house. Someone gets in your way, you run the motherfucker over.”
“Where should I stop so you can get in?” she asked breathlessly.
“Don’t stop.”
“Otto—”
“I’ll take care of shit here, sugar. You go. Don’t stop.”
“I can’t just leave you here,” she argued.
I leaned forward and kissed her, setting my hand on her belly. We didn’t have time to argue.
“I’ll meet you at my parents’ place,” I told her, getting to my feet.
“Otto.” She scrambled toward me, trying to grab anything she could reach.
“I’ll be there soon,” I assured her, locking the door before I closed it in her face.
Straightening fully, I strode toward the door and made eye contact with her in the side mirror.
The Mustang fired up, and I bent down and threw the sliding door open.
I didn’t watch as she flew out of the garage, just stepped outside, my pistol up. Someone was standing close to the front door of the house and I fired at him, moving forward.
Gravel sprayed and I barely glanced toward the Mustang as it skidded backward. Esther hadn’t been lying when she said she could drive a stick. She was in first before I could blink and was flying down the driveway.
The man by the house finally went down, and I spun, looking for the other one. He was running toward the Mustang. It clipped him as Esther flew right past.
Good girl.
I ran toward him, and I was almost there when the roar of Harley pipes filled the air.