Sleeves (29 page)

“Uh, yeah, but you really wanna do that with a broomstick down your pants? Maybe you better rethink me whacking you off right now.” She smirked and put her hands on his chest.

“Oh God, my mom’s gonna see right through me and know what a perv I am.”

She leaned in and kissed him.

“She’s going to love you the minute she sees you, because you’re sweet, charming, adorable, and most of all—you’re her Kelly. She’ll see how brilliant and strong you are before you ever say a word.”

He beamed at her, and she chuckled.

She pinched his cheek like he was a kid, then patted it. “Behave while I’m gone.”

“Never.”

“That’s the spirit.” She turned and left him standing there.

He white knuckled his phone they’d barely bought an hour ago, his insides quivering already.

Everyday they’d buy a new throw-away phone, make the calls they needed to and then toss it out.

This was all so fucked up.

“I can’t do this—get in there!” he told himself.

But his legs buckled. He might screw it up worse if he failed to trust her. If he barged right in, they might commence shooting all over the place, and they could kill the woman he loved more than anything.

“Head to the west end,” he chanted over and over as he moved over their vehicle and got inside.

That was the plan. Hannah was rarely over there, according to Casey. When they’d held her on that side of the facility, Hannah was absent.

Probably because she was too busy rubbing Kel’s nose in her shit and telling him it was chocolate pudding instead.

Bitch.

Why didn’t that skull cracking he gave her kill her?

He inhaled and blew it out, making a winded sound like his lungs were leaking.

His heart was. He was dying inside already, and Casey had barely disappeared out of sight.

“Hi,” a man’s voice said through his phone, speaking to Casey.

“That’s it, baby, ignore that asshole.” He tipped the phone toward his ear. She couldn’t hear him, but he could listen to everything on her end.

Feet clicked on the ground through his phone, and he hoped she was fine.

How nervous was she? She’d played it off well when she was with him if she was in fact terrified.

Her aloofness sold
him
.

Shhhhhfffft.

An automatic door must’ve opened.

“God, you better be careful,” he said.

Several minutes of walking, material shifting and then it went quiet.

Had she turned the listening device off?

Why would she do that?

He was jumping out of the car, when he heard a distinctive woman’s voice say, “You’re with my son.”

“Yes, I am,” Casey replied.

Oh Christ! His heart leaped out of his chest and landed in his throat. Tears blurred his vision. He slipped back into the car, slumping over the steering wheel.

“Thank God,” he murmured. He set the phone on his left thigh, facing it up so he could keep listening. With his right hand, he gripped the wheel, with his left, he rubbed his chest.

Shhhhhhft.

“Who’re you?” a man’s voice asked.

Chains rattled, and then crashed into something.

“You’re not supposed to be in here!” the man yelled.

“Fuck!” Kel was out of the car, sprinting toward the building.

“Hold him still!” his mom’s voice said.

“Now!” Casey replied.

Craaaaaaffffck!

It sounded like they were beating the hell out of him with those chains, and then there was a muffled, gurgling sound as if he was choking.

“Asshole! I always hated you!” His mother’s voice was strong. Was she right next to the phone?

“Is he dead?” Casey asked.

Shuffling and then, “Yeah. I’ll put his clothes on. You watch the door.”

Kel shoved himself up against the building, hiding in the shadow of a bush—the same one he’d hid behind with Peanut the night he escaped.

His heart ached as he thought about his little blonde guy. What a wonderful boy.

Kel would be with him again soon—really get to know him and love him the way he should’ve been as a kid.

His heart swelled at the thought they at least let his mother, Marie, be with her grandson. He didn’t remember them doing that a whole lot with him. Was Hannah being softer with Peanut because it was her son?

Rage swept through him as he thought about her running tests on the kid—poking, prodding and using him for her own evil ideas of what his potential should be.

Fucking soul-sucking hag!

He was marching back to the door to help his mom and girl out again when he heard the sound of them walking side by side.

“Where are you going?” another man’s voice rang out.

“Running some tests. I’ll be back soon,” Casey said.

“Let me see your orders,” the man demanded.

Oh perfect. They had no orders.

But there was a rustling of papers, and a grunt.

Ffffffppppt!

Something collapsed.

“Jesus—now I know how your son acquired his deadly skills. How’d you do that?”

“I’ve been in here for years. You don’t think I learned how to fight back? I was a soldier before I ever volunteered for all this garbage,” his mother answered.

“Impressive. I’m liking you a whole lot already.” Casey was clearly enamored, and he had to smile.

So cute—his woman was the adorable one, no matter how much she told him he was the one that brightened her life—it was her. All her.

“We’re coming, sweet man. Get back in the car. I know you’re edging your way inside, going nuts. But we’ll be there soon, and we’ll need to drive off as soon as we get there. Be ready,” Casey told him through her phone.

He nodded and walked back to his car, going for casual.

His eyes darted around—there wasn’t anyone nearby.

That alarmed him.

What kind of facility like this would be so lifeless? Especially after they’d barely escaped a few days earlier? And they got into the parking lot with some bullshit story about being here to see some guard Casey named that had been over her when they’d been prisoners here.

This was fucked up, and he could smell it like shit on a shoe. He should’ve known this was a setup. Way too easy.

The hairs on the back of his neck pricked and stood on end.

No one ever seemed to be coming after them unless they were in the hive. That wasn’t like these people.

They always hunted him down in the past.

It made his stomach swim in a sea of bile to think that something sinister was going on, and he couldn’t figure out what it was.

Were they watching him now? Hiding somewhere?

He ducked down as he approached the car they’d arrived in, just in case, and that’s when he saw it.

Something glinted in the front seat.

Some fuckhead was waiting in there to capture them.

Unlucky bastard was about to get his own shock.

Kel shoved the phone in his pocket and pulled out the knife he’d brought along. He went to the passenger’s side, yanked the door open, and before the dude raised his gun, Kel dragged him out and had slit his throat in the process. It was awful, but Kel watched the life drain out of the guy. He cleaned his knife on the stranger’s pants and took the asshole’s gun. Then without a second thought, Kel tossed his carcass under the car next to his.

He glanced around to see if anyone else was around. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary, so he jumped back in the car and ignored his pounding heart.

Casey should be here by now.

“That way,” his mother said through the phone.

They were still running? Christ. Had something gone wrong?

He checked the seat behind him to make sure it was clear. Nothing there. He started the car.

As he backed out, two men ducked out behind cars a few feet away and began shooting.

Shit! He stepped on the gas, racing to their meeting point.

Casey better haul ass and his mom, too.

He arrived to the exit they were supposed to use, but no one was there.

Fantastic. He’d have to go in.

He parked and was about to shut the car off when two women came bursting through that door, running straight at him.

They yanked the back door open and a shot screamed through the air. The bullets were flying from all directions.

As soon as they shut the car door, he gunned it and peeled out.

They barreled through the parking lot, and he had to make a choice. Run some schmuck down or get caught.

He chose carnage, and his foot tapped down hard once more.

“Go the way we did last time,” Casey said, gripping the back of his seat.

“Fuck no! They’ll be expecting that. We’re going through the main exit. They’ll have scattered the guards, planning for us to go ballistic and hack our way through the fence. Trust me.”

“That’s insane! They’ll have the most guards at the main exit!” Casey gripped his shoulder.

“Sometimes the direct route is the best way,” he said.

“And sometimes staying alive means being resourceful. I agree—we head through the main exit. They won’t be expecting it at all,” his mom added.

His heart rippled and did this strange clenching movement, choking his breath off.

He couldn’t think, knowing his mother was behind him, backing him up.

But his foot was on automatic—hitting it hard.

They jettisoned toward the main gate, and he’d been correct. Two guards. That’s all they had in that spot. Nothing had changed from the last time they had escaped.

And they didn’t even fire at the car, thundering toward them. The fuckers ran and hid.

Smart dudes.

He saluted them, chuckled and rammed the fencing down.

Alarms blared.

He laughed so hard, his balls actually moved.

“Fuck yeah—I love this woman,” Kel said, glancing at Casey.

She reached forward and gave him her hand. He squeezed it, and then kissed the top of it.

This time they had a place to go.

Vanessa was on board once more.

Frank, her brother, he’d helped bring over to the US, was in, too.

It was a longer drive to get to the rendezvous point, but it should be fine.

The facility was most likely still scrambling, scratching their balls and trying to figure out what the hell went wrong.

How did one woman defy them? He wasn’t even sure how she’d managed it.

In no time at all, they were in front of the house Frank told him to meet at, they were shuffled into another car, and the one he’d left behind was already being driven off.

They were headed to the peanut now.

There would be time to relax later.

Chapter 14

“Hey, bub, pull over and let her drive. I want to hug my son,” Marie told Kel, still driving like a madman.

Casey grinned. Yeah, she really liked this woman—a lot.

Kel grimaced and kept driving.

“Stop . . . It’ll be fine. A few seconds isn’t going to be the death of us,” Casey assured him, her hand on his shoulder, rubbing it a little.

“We . . . We can get acquainted later,” he said, his voice strained.

“I won’t bite. I only kick ass when someone’s trying to keep me away from my son.” Marie coughed a laugh. “Oh, wait, right now that’s you—knucklehead. You’re keeping me away from you. Now stop this and get back here with me.” She gripped the back of his neck and jostled him a bit.

Casey couldn’t help but chuckle. This woman was so much like her son when he was being playful.

“Fine,” he said through gritted teeth, his knuckles blanching white as he damn near strangled the steering wheel.

He took his time easing over into a gas station.

His tall, menacing body slipped out with a graceful fluidity she’d never seen from him before. Was he trying to impress his mom?

When he got in the backseat, Casey took a moment to watch them with tears in her eyes.

Marie lurched forward and engulfed him in her arms.

Casey placed both her hands over her heart, got out and took to the driver’s seat.

Finally—he had a mother that was beyond thrilled to have him back in her waiting arms.

“God, you’re a beautiful man. I knew you would be. Your father was, too,” Marie said, her voice cracking.

“Shut up—am not,” he said, sounding embarrassed.

“Are, too. Don’t you contradict your mother.” She let go of him and settled back into the seat.

Casey drove off, sighing and filled with so much happiness for her lover in the backseat, rediscovering his family.