I chuckle. There isn’t much funny happening, but at least Mace has lightened the mood a bit. “In a roundabout way, I suppose I am.”
Mace cringes. “I was kidding.” He turns toward the women. “You must be Simone and June. Let’s figure out how to get you out of here safely. You’re open targets. I don’t like it.”
I agree with him. In the madness, anyone could walk up and shoot Simone and June in the head without a single cop noticing.
Mace nods over his shoulder. “My SUV is double-parked around the corner. Let’s go.”
He takes June’s good hand in his while I thread my fingers with Simone’s. The four of us make our way to the awaiting SUV, and we’re inside without incident in less than a minute. Mace has June buckled in the front seat. I’m in the back with Simone.
I breathe much easier when we finally pull away.
Chapter 22
Simone
* * *
The next several hours are stressful. For one thing, I have no choice but to pull on my adult panties when we get home. It was okay for me to be Little in front of my sister. It’s another thing entirely for me to do so in front of June. As far as we all know, June knows nothing about the lifestyle I prefer.
So, when we get home, I head upstairs and change into something that won’t raise eyebrows. Mainly, I add a bra. But I also put on a different shirt.
I haven’t seen my sister in four years. She was seventeen when I left home. I’m pleasantly surprised that she’s gone out of her way to be hospitable toward June.
June was attacked last night. She hasn’t been back to her apartment, and it’s not safe to do so now. It wasn’t ever safe, but she didn’t know that. All the men I know would have a coronary if we let her go home alone.
Lillian and I—two women June met today—help her take a bath without getting her brace wet. I loan her some comfortable clothes. We get some soup and juice in her, give her some pain meds, and let her sleep most of the afternoon in a guest room.
I know Daddy has exchanged several texts with either Blade or some of his employees, but I haven’t asked him any questions about it all, mostly because I’m afraid of what the answers may be. If there were an important development, he would tell us.
We’ve eaten dinner, and now we’re sitting in the living room in front of the television. The volume is low, but none of us care. We need the distraction. June looks worse than she did earlier, which isn’t surprising.
She looks like I did the day after my attack with cuts and bruises. At least neither of her eyes is swollen shut. She does have a busted lip, though.
Suddenly, there’s a knock at the door, and we all sit upright as Daddy goes to answer it. I’m relieved to see that it’s Blade.
He looks tired, and he’s been running his hands through his hair. I’m not sure how old he is because his beard is gray. The hair on top of his head is still dark, so I suspect his gray beard is not a good indication that he’s any older than Camden.
I find it interesting that he scans the room, his gaze settling on June. “You okay?” he asks gently, aiming for her.
She winces as she tries to sit straighter in the corner of the couch.
Blade sits next to her and gently sets a hand on her shoulder. “Don’t try to move. You’re fine.”
Daddy takes a seat next to me. “Mace was on the porch. I assume you spoke to him?”
“Yes.”
“What happened?” June asks. It’s what we’re all wondering.
“The good news is we caught everyone involved.”
I grab Daddy’s thigh. “What? Really?”
Blade nods. He leans back against the cushions. “Three guys were watching the police station when we arrived.” He nods toward me and Daddy. “That’s how they knew which car to attach the explosives to. They were pretty organized and sophisticated for the amount of notice they had. That’s what concerned me most. After all, their buddy was only arrested late last night.”
“Why and how?” Daddy asks.
“We think the man who attacked the two of you did so as part of an initiation of sorts into an organized crime ring. A gang. He needed to prove he was willing to do the bidding of the syndicate. Specific crimes.” Blade winces. “He failed when he attacked Simone, so last night, he tried and failed again. Apparently, the mob bosses didn’t see either attempt and failure as his fault, so they were willing to stick their necks out and spring him from the police station.”
