Rock Chick Reckoning (Rock Chick #6)(159)

“You have no evidence,” Preston persisted, his face beginning to get red.

“You believe that, cal my bluff,” Mace invited.

“Your friends are on the line, Kai,” Preston reminded him.

“You think you got us by the bal s, cal … my… bluff, ” Mace bit off.

Preston glared at him.

Mace glared back.

Personal y, if you asked me, I thought Mace’s glare was a lot better.

This went on a long time too but I didn’t try to intervene and even Juno sensed she had to let this play out so, along with me, she remained silent.

Final y and suddenly, with some surprise, I watched Preston Mason’s face twist and he whispered so low it was nearly inaudible, “I had no idea Caitlin –” But Mace didn’t let him finish.

“I know you didn’t which makes your monumental f**k up a colossal f**k up because even after you f**ked up, you f**ked up again with those goddamned commandos then again when you didn’t come clean to the FBI and work with them to find a way to get her out of that f**kin’ mess then again when you let me walk in there and watch my sister die.”

“Kai, I had no –” Preston started again.

“You think I give a f**k?” Mace whispered and the tortured way those words came out made my stomach clench and even Preston flinched. “Honest to God, you think I give a f**k about anything that has anything to do with you? They tortured her, Dad, they cut off her f**kin’ hand then they took her f**kin’ life and al that is on you. This is not a f**k up like you grounded her for too long because she missed curfew and she’s pissed like any teenager would be pissed because their Dad is an ass**le, for f**k’s sake.” Mace spit the last three words out and kept going. “You f**ked up and her life ended. Even after it was done, I cleaned up your goddamned mess and kept my mouth shut. Way I see it, you owe me, you owe me huge, you owe me a f**kin’ sister and there’s no way to repay that so I’m tel in’ you now, you repay by getting the f**k out of my life and staying out.”

Preston held his son’s eyes.

Then, because he was a dick, he kept trying.

“Every day, I think of her and –”

Mace took a step back, most likely to retain a shred of control even as he lost it and roared, “Fuck! I do not give a f**k! ”

And that was when Juno woofed but her woof was not a woof of solidarity with Mace; it was a different kind of woof.

It was the kind of woof that made Mace’s head whip toward her so my head whipped toward her and I saw she was on al four paws on the bed, staring at the wal .

Then she woofed again as she jumped off the bed. Then she didn’t woof but barked, straight out, sharp, agitated, a warning. She immediately started dancing along the wal , sniffing, restless then more barking.

“Goddamn it,” Mace clipped, reaching into the jacket of his tux to pul out his phone but it started ringing before he got to it as did the phone in my house. “Goddamn it! ” Mace barked then shouted. “Get down!” When both Preston and I hesitated a mil isecond, he roared, “Down! ” On his word, the windows exploded and I hit the deck and I hit the deck with Mace’s body on top of me.

“Juno! Come! ” Mace shouted, I tried to look but he had an arm over my head, his body covering me as gunfire sounded from what seemed like al around, piercing my eardrums. “Talk,” I heard Mace growl, probably into his phone then, “No shit? You hear that. We’re under heavy fire.

Units. Every available man. Now.”

Then I heard the flip of a phone closing just as the gunfire stopped and I felt the fur of Juno pressing to my arm.

Thank God, she was close.

I thought that then thought no more. Mace was up and he was hauling me up with him.

“Move,” he ordered when he had me on my feet but he didn’t need to, he had my hand and he was dragging me to the door. “Come!” he commanded Juno but he didn’t need to do that either because she was right at our sides, crowding us.

That was when I heard several very scary noises, noises the like I only ever heard in movies. I stupidly stopped, turned my head and saw them.

I saw them.

Mace didn’t stop, he didn’t even hesitate. I knew he heard it too and I knew he knew what they were without looking at them. I knew this because he went faster, as in a lot faster, as in running faster and my feet had to move again or he would literal y be dragging me.

But I saw them.

I saw them

Grenades.

Not one.

Three.

Three!

I realized it then that they blew out my windows at an impossible angle if they were firing from the ground or they did it from higher ground but at a distance only so they did it from higher ground but at a distance only so they could launch the grenades in and blow us to bits.

Shit.

Shit!

We were out the door on a run and sprinting down the stairs, Juno at our sides, Preston fol owing close when we hit the first landing, multiple explosions rocked my apartment and tossed us as they blew out the wal above our heads. We flew to the side, Mace slammed into the wal and I slammed into him while plaster, wood splinters and probably bits and pieces of my possessions shot over our heads and rained down on us.

It took Mace a nanosecond to recover before he was dragging me down the next flight of stairs, this time tucked close to him, his arms crossed and covering my head.