Chapter 12
Chapter Twelve
Kelsey had eventually lost her pursuers, but it hadn’t been easy.
She’d ran through a series of back alleys, deserted courtyards, and even through an old building that had a busted door and broken windows.
Eventually, after what seemed like hours, the warehouse district started to look somewhat familiar to her. It took a moment to jog her memory, but she eventually realized why.
The Daddy Guard’s headquarters were over there!
She’d gone to play with Trixie and Stephanie one time, and the Guard’s place was in an old building that had been renovated and turned into a command center.
The coolest part was that it had a big indoor playground, ball pit, and other fun stuff for Littles to do while their Daddies worked.
And if her memory served her correctly, it was just right down the street.
Finding the last ounce of energy she had, Kelsey pumped her legs hard as she ran toward the warehouse. It came into view, but a dreadful thought struck her: What if no one was there?
She knew Trixie and her Daddy, John, had an apartment. But they were in the process of relocating to the converted warehouse.
Would they be there tonight? Or this morning? She wasn’t quite sure what time it was.
Then she remembered that Breaker and Stephanie lived there, too. Surely one of the couples were there, if not both.
It was worth a shot. That was really her only option.
She hadn’t seen a cop to flag down since starting her escape.
There wasn’t much going on in the mostly deserted industrial section of town.
Law enforcement was probably kept so busy on the Strip and downtown that they didn’t have time to just randomly patrol areas where no one actually lived.
Which is exactly why Niko had taken her there, she figured.
But why? What had she done? And where was Daddy?
She prayed Marco was okay. Life without him was unimaginable. But she couldn’t let her mind spiral into doom and gloom right now. For all she knew, Marco was safe and out looking for her.
Heck, she might even run into him anytime!
There was so much momentum behind her final burst of energy that she barely stopped before smashing into the warehouse’s thick steel door. But she skidded to a halt just before her nose made contact and she brought her fist up and banged on the outside.
Ouch!
She remembered it being heavy from her last visit, but it didn’t even seem like her knock was doing any good. They probably couldn’t hear her in there—if anyone was even inside at all.
A moment later, that fear vanished when the door swung open.
Breaker looked massive as he stood there in the threshold, looking down on her. It was obvious he’d been awoken out of sleep, but it only took a second or two before he seemed to have his bearings straight.
“Little Kelsey? Are you okay?”
“Uncle Breaker! I need help!”
He must have read the desperation in her eyes, because she watched as he leaned forward, craned his neck outside, and looked around to see if anyone was following her. With his height, it wasn’t hard for him to peer over her like that.
“Come on. You’re safe now, honey.”
In just the blink of an eye, all her concerns about her own safety vanished into thin air. But she was still worried about Marco.
“Are you all right?” Breaker asked, looking her up and down with obvious concern in his dark eyes.
Kelsey didn’t know how to answer that at the moment. Too much had happened, but she at least had the wherewithal to realize she was in a state of partial shock.
Suddenly, she remembered the gun, and it felt like a weight she couldn’t shed fast enough.
“Uh, sir, what do I do with this?” She gingerly lifted her hand to reveal what she was holding.
Breaker’s eyes widened. “Honey, you let me take that from you. I’m just going to reach out very carefully and…”
By now, John was walking in from somewhere deeper in the warehouse. “Everything okay in—my goodness!” He rushed over to the table where Breaker was placing the gun.
Trixie and Stephanie came in next, seeing their friend and hurrying toward her.
“What’s going on?” Stephanie asked.
Trixie took Kelsey’s hand. “Are you okay?”
The scared Little couldn’t hold it in any longer. With her adrenaline fading, Kelsey collapsed into her friend’s arms and began sobbing.
She was safe, at least, for the time being. Even through her mental and physical fatigue, she still had the awareness that the Daddy Guard would protect her.
But what about Marco? Was he okay?
Was he even… alive?
Kelsey began to cry harder.