“I don’t think it’s them you have to worry about.” Thea grins, climbing off the stool she’s sitting on and heading for the door. “I think it’s more the kids you should worry about. Just imagine, Macy with the smarts to defend herself from a young age?” She winks at me over her shoulder and heads out.
I stare after her, even as Rose laughs. Then I turn my head back to Rose and see her grinning at me. “Don’t even think?—”
“Bullet, we need you!” Shadow barks as he rushes into the room. “We might have a way to get Hulk.”
CHAPTER THIRTEEN
BULLET
We’re in a race against time, and we’re on the losing side.
We hurryout of the kitchen, and I stop when I see two teenagers standing there, a mixture of fear, awe, and curiosity on their faces. Though, on the boy’s face, there is a bit more distrust, but that’s to be expected. “What’s going on?” I ask, walking in.
“Our sister sent us,” the girl tells me, her eyes staring into mine as I approach. Direct, to the point, and a bright blue that reminds me too much of Hulk’s for comfort.
“And who is your sister?” I ask her, glancing at who I can only assume is her brother. He’s positioned himself behind her, but in a way that he can see all of us. This is a boy who’s used to protecting her, and who is always on the lookout.
“Her name is Avery Clarke,” the girl answers, drawing my attention back to her. She swallows once, then twice, beforeadding, “And she’s the one that the Russian guy Vlad is using to keep your guy alive.”
I manage to keep my expression neutral. I can feel Rose coming up behind me, but she doesn’t move toward them, despite curiosity and shock. “And why would she be helping the Russians do that?” I ask calmly.
“Because she’s a nurse.”
“Our sister is being forced to do this,” the boy chimes in, a bite to his voice. “Our mother is an addict and she owes this Vlad asshole a lot of money. She offered up our sister as a nurse for him if he needed her to pay off the debt. Apparently, he needed her because he’s been taking her for months to fix up those scumbags.”
“And why is your sister going along with it?” Shadow asks carefully. He holds up his hand when the boy’s face contorts with fury. “I’m just asking, kid. We need the facts, nothing more.”
It doesn’t mollify him at all. Instead, the kid’s eyes whip back to mine, and they narrow to almost slits. His eyes are just as blue as his sister’s, and they’re like daggers as he barks, “No, you’re thinking that she’s part of this. She’s doing this to protect us. Do you know how many times Vlad and his men have broken in and threatened us to make sure she complies? Or how many times they’ve threatened to rape Isla? She’s doing whatever she has to do to keep us safe, so you don’t get to doubt or question her.”
“Alright, enough,” I say firmly, stepping forward. The girl swallows nervously and backs into her brother. I feel bad for frightening her, but this is not the time to cater to feelings. “I appreciate your protection of your sister,” I tell the boy. “And I appreciate that you think we’re questioning her intentions, but you showing up here, even if it is at her request, isn’t the norm, and we have to approach things carefully and without emotion. Let’s start with you two telling us your names, and then we’ll go from there.”
They glance at each other and then they nod. “Isla and Sawyer,” the girl finally answers.
I don’t ask for their last name. We’ll figure it out easily enough with Cryos’s help if it’s not the same as their sister’s. “Alright, guys, I’m Bullet, the President of the MC. How about you start from the beginning?”
“Answer this first,” Sawyer says, watching me. “Is this Hulk guy someone who is part of your MC?”
I arch a brow at that question. “Yes. Vlad kidnapped him.”
“Can you prove it?” Isla asks.
Impatience fills me, but also respect. They’re checking their details before they tell us, and it’s smart. Time-consuming, but smart. I pull out my phone and find a recent picture from our celebration of life for Hammer and turn it to show them.
Their stances visibly relax, not much, but enough that I feel like we might start getting somewhere. “Alright,” Isla says. Then she looks at me, and her face saddens. “He’s alive, but barely. Avery did what she could to keep him going, and she risked getting herself in trouble with the big, scary guy who works with Vlad when asked what Hulk said to her. She lied and told him that she was only asking him medical questions. The guy had no choice but to believe her explanation.”
“Not before he put a gun to my head and had the guard put one to Isla’s to threaten Avery to make sure she wasn’t lying,” Sawyer adds, bitterness in his tone.
“When did this happen?” I ask.
“This morning,” Sawyer answers. “They normally get Avery to go first thing in the morning and then again at night after she’s done at the hospital. We figured they didn’t want to be seen taking her from the hospital or during the day. But today, they grabbed all three of us as we were leaving for school, and her for work.”
“Do you know why?” Shadow asks.
“Just because that big guy didn’t think that Avery was telling the truth,” Isla answers, frowning. They tell us everything they can remember, including their sister going toe to toe with Nikolai, earning my instant respect.
“I like her already,” Rose says with a warm smile, stepping up beside me.
“Are you Rose?” Isla suddenly asks, looking at my wife curiously.
