Chapter Thirty-Four
O’Connor
This is a bad fucking idea. If I had any leverage left at all, I’d convince Linden not to go inside, but at this point, I’m on my knees for her. I’ll do anything she asks.
Anything to make her realize that I’m being honest.
I rap on the door to warn the others that I’m coming in, and ignore their disapproval when I help Linden in.
Her body stiffens as soon as she sees the man tied to a chair in the middle of the kitchen.
His face is swollen and bloody. His hands look much the same after having quite a few fingernails ripped off.
“Has he said anything new?” I ask Oni, the one in the Japanese devil mask.
“No, and I’m not sure he knows anything useful anyway.”
“Is he the one who killed them?” Linden asks from beside me, but her eyes are glued to the guard. “All those innocent people in the mansion?”
“Someone did,” Joker says from behind his all-white mask. “But he’ll be killed regardless.”
“We’ll leave before that happens,” I tell her softly.
“He can’t move?” She asks, ignoring me.
The doc, in his skull balaclava, shakes his head no.
Linden takes short, measured steps forward, wincing every time her right foot hits the ground until she’s standing in front of him. I’m a shadow right behind her, prepared to catch her if she falls, or to shield her from this piece of shit.
“I see you survived. Congratulations,” the guard says raspily, smiling with blood-covered teeth.
Before anyone can react, the sound of Linden’s slap fills the room, and the guard’s head snaps to the side.
He spits more blood onto the floor before righting himself in front of her, but his eyes are angry now, and it takes everything in me not to step between them. My hand ends up levitating near her hip, ready to pull her away at any sign of retaliation.
“How do I look, sweetheart?” He grumbles.
Her fists clench, and she winces, examining her knuckles. The bruises there are probably from last night, like the ones on her face. “Not bad enough.”
Rage so boiling that I have to grit my teeth to withstand it overtakes me. “Did he give you these bruises?” I grit out, angrily, and Linden twists in surprise, looking up at me as my arm circles her waist.
She nods stiffly. “I tried to fight back but…” Her fingers brush her cheek delicately as if recalling the pain that bloomed there. “He hit me harder than Turner ever did.”
“She went for my gun. Bitch deserved it,” the guard spits blood onto his lap.
“I wish I could have shot you in the head so no one else had to die!” She lunges for him like she might hit him again, but I stop her. I just don’t want her to mess up her hand anymore.
“Are we done here?” I’m not asking her, but she answers first.
“No! He deserves to suffer!” She cries, and I know she’s hit her limit. Linden is being consumed by the evil she’s experienced. This isn’t her.
I look at the other operators, seeking my answer.
“He’s no longer a useful asset,” Oni says.
“He killed all those people,” she cries, clawing at her forehead.
“Linden.” I cup her cheeks in my hands so she has to look at me. “I got it from here. Go get in the truck.”
She looks at me wide-eyed and tearful. “Are you going to kill him?”
I don’t respond, not out loud. I let her see the killer behind the mask. When she doesn’t run screaming, I nod.
My hands fall from her face before I move to the guard’s back, and she watches my every move. He starts jerking against the chair as I palm the back of his head and forehead in either hand.
“Wait!”
My eyes snap to hers, and I prepare to disappoint her once again. I am going to kill this bastard for hurting her, whether she wants me to or not.
“Don’t do it in my kitchen… I actually have some good memories here.”
Dancing. Singing. Coloring with Avery. Midnight dessert. All the memories I watched from afar. But I stare intently as her cheeks get pinker, and I can recall the memories that I was a part of too.
I straighten, dropping my hands from my soon-to-be victim. “You’re right. I apologize.”
Her kitchen can remain unstained.
She scrambles towards the door as I drag the bloodied guard and his chair into the living room. I look at her, desperately seeking her approval.
She nods, and this time when my hands go to his head, she disappears outside.
I snap his neck with one easy twist, and leave my team to it.
Linden’s still attempting to climb into my truck when I get outside, but she’s getting in the back seat with Avery.
I know I’ve lied to her for months, and she also knows that I’m a killer now… But I can’t stand the thought of her being afraid of me.
I take off the small gun I have strapped to my ankle and stick it in the pocket on the back of my seat. “In case you’ll feel better having this close by.”
She glances at where I stored the gun but doesn’t say anything.
“Whatever you need to feel safe, I’ll do it. Just tell me.”
“I need to be close to Avery,” she says solemnly.
I nod in understanding, getting in the front seat. I tuck a pillow on top of the center console and pat it. “For your foot.”
“Thank you,” she murmurs, leaning her head against the car seat.
“We going bye-bye now?” Avery asks, yawning. I imagine she’ll fall asleep again after the crazy last twelve hours.
“Yep, we’re going bye-bye.” I shift into drive and glance at Linden’s amused smirk in my rearview mirror. “What?”
“Your range is amusing. Trained K-I-L-L-E-R to toddler talk within minutes.”
“I’ve been unaffected by D-E-A-T-H for half my life now. The toddler stuff is a lot more pressure.”
“I still want to know everything, Jack.”
“I know. There just isn’t much I can say in front of A-V-E-R-Y.”
“Hey, that’s my name!” Avery says, and I cringe. I thought I was getting the hang of the spelling game. I didn’t anticipate her being able to spell her name already.
“You’re right. Good job!” Linden smiles at her daughter, and for one brief moment, looks up at me before it falls again. “You’re doing a good job with the toddler stuff, too,” she murmurs, as she glances out the window.
For one second, the air feels lighter, as if there’s hope of getting through this without losing them completely, but I don’t let myself enjoy it. I can’t.
“Thanks, momma bird.”
Her eyes narrow, but there isn’t much anger behind them. “Can you at least tell me about the nicknames?” She sounds exhausted. Defeated.
“When I was growing up, my mom always tried to keep me connected to her culture. Her grandmother was the one who taught her everything about the tribe she was from, and I think she liked talking to me about her when I was young. It made her feel like she was still connected to something even though she was the last in her family, and moved away from home to be with my dad.”
Linden’s eyes track the road signs as I head north, but she doesn’t ask where we’re going, and I hope that means she trusts me.
“Birds are symbolic in Native American culture. Even if it was just seeing a hawk flying overhead, she never failed to tell me about the spiritual significance. It always felt important.”
“It was important,” Linden agrees, softly.
“After my parents D-I-E-D, I was lost. I joined the Navy to feel like I had a place in the world, but still felt pretty broken. It wasn’t until I joined my first SEAL unit that they gave me ‘Eagle’ as a call sign.
It was just a coincidence, something randomly assigned to me, but I felt like I was connected to my mom again.
That it was a sign that I was right where I needed to be. ”
“What symbolism does an eagle have?”
“It’s believed that they’re strongly connected to the Great Spirit… Because of how close they fly to the heavens.”
“Wow.”
I glance in the mirror and see that Avery has already fallen asleep. “I was still trying to keep my distance from you guys when I saw you at the mansion during a party.”
Linden’s surprise is evident as she looks at me through the mirror.
“The night Avery was too close to the pool, I whistled a canary’s song to get her to turn around…” I watch her take in my version of events as I speak. “It worked seamlessly too. Got her attention as if she were a little Disney princess who could speak to animals.”
A soft smile tilts the corner of her mouth as she gazes at her daughter.
“After that, I started referring to her as baby bird in my reports, and of course yours, naturally, was momma bird.”
“Well, I guess that isn’t such a bad nickname then.” She huffs a sad laugh. “I hated those parties. I thought she was going to drown– Wait. What happened to that other guy?”
My silence grows and her eyes narrow again.
“He was a pervert.”
“What?” Her eyes cut to Avery quickly, and then back to me.
“He was flirting with your three-year-old.”
Her mouth hangs open. “Oh, my God. Why is the world so fucking scary? All I’ve ever wanted to do is protect her, and it feels like I’m being attacked from every direction,” she utters brokenly, covering her face.
“Not anymore.” I can see the dilemma on her face. She wants to believe me, but I haven’t earned it yet. The grief she’s feeling over her old reality will take time to fade. “No one can touch you guys ever again.”
“Did you kill him, too?” She asks apprehensively, but almost sarcastically.
“Yes.”
Her eyes squeeze shut. “I feel so empty.”
“Get some rest, Linden. It’s going to be a long drive.”
Her head rests against the side of the car seat as she watches out the window for several miles. “How can I trust you again, Jack? You’ve been lying for so long.”
“I know.” I watch her in the mirror as she accepts my response.
“You don’t ever have to forgive me, Linden.
I don’t deserve it. But I need you to know that even when I couldn’t tell you the whole truth, I was never a danger to you and Avery.
I promise on my mother and father’s grave, you can trust that. ”
She nods stiffly, but her normally vibrant, life-filled eyes are heavy and exhausted. “Are you sure you should be driving? You probably haven’t slept at all.”
“I’ll be fine. Going without sleep doesn’t bother me when I’m on a mission.”
“What mission is this exactly?” She asks as her eyes already start to droop closed and her head lulls.
“Keeping you guys safe.”