by L. R. Wright
He wiped the tears from her face. “We want to go into the house as soon as it’s clear.” She closed her eyes, but he didn’t let up. “Can you pull that box out from under the bed?”
Frowning, she leaned over and felt under the bed until her hands skimmed a hard edge. Slowly, she pulled out a wooden box. She knew what was inside. Her eyes flicked to Dro as she set it on the bed. She ran her hands over the intricate detailing. It had a ladybug engraved on the top. Taking a deep breath, she undid the latch and lifted the top, revealing the contents.
He placed his hand on top of hers. “She’s been here waiting for you. I knew if we ever had to come to B5, you would need her.”
She picked it up and ran her fingers over it. A quick push of a button and the clip dropped into her lap. She traced the engraving on the side then snapped the clip back into place.
She noticed the gleam in Dro’s eyes as she admired her first baby—her gun, Lady.
CHAPTER 6
August 23, 1993, Alexa’s Thirteenth Birthday:
Alexa was so excited she ran across the street to Dro’s house. She sprinted into Dro’s room smiling. It was her thirteenth birthday and her mother had straightened her hair. It was almost as long as she was tall.
Dro looked up from his schoolbook. “What are you smiling about, Alexa?”
She was glad everyone had stopped calling her lady. Her father started it when he nicknamed her ladybug. As she grew older, she dropped the bug from her nickname and became known as lady. Now that she was thirteen, she wanted to be called by her true name.
She smirked as she sauntered over to him and perched herself on the edge of the desk. “I got my birthday present from Daddy.”
He removed his glasses and set them on the desk. “What did he get you?”
She pulled out her brand new Sig Sauer .380 caliber semi-automatic pistol. “This. I’m going to call her Lady.”
“How original.”
She smacked him on the arm. “Stop teasing me. I figure she can be called Lady. I mean, she’s my gun.”
“She?”
“Of course, it’s a she. I’m a lady and so is she.”
“Whatever you say. So, you didn’t want a Barbie for your birthday?”
“Why would I want a Barbie when I can have one of these?” She held it up to the light and studied it proudly. “Besides, I’m too old for a Barbie doll and you know it.”
He shrugged. “Don’t thirteen-year-old girls still play with Barbie dolls?”
“Ha Ha. You’re so funny. But Daddy says it’s time to train. And you know my goal is to be the best in the business.”
“Good luck with that. You may have to beat out your brother for that title.”
“Lei? Yea right. I already have him on my agility and ability to get into tight places. Not to mention my sex appeal.”
He laughed. “Sex appeal? You’re thirteen. What do you know about sex appeal?”
She smirked. “I know plenty. I’ve already had my first kiss.” She watched his eyes turn a shade darker.
“Oh really? Who needs their ass kicked?”
“No comment.” She grinned and changed the subject. “Anyway, I know plenty about sex appeal. Ari said I have to be sexy in order to lure men into my trap. That way I can get anything I want out of them.”
“What does Ari know about it? Alexa, you shouldn’t be worried about being sexy for anyone, yet.”
“What do you know about it? You’re only sixteen?”
“I know way more than you do.” He finally closed his book and pushed it to the side. He was giving her his undivided attention now, and she couldn’t help but feel nervous. “Sex appeal is overrated. If you really want to be the best, you have to make sure you can shoot that thing.”
“Daddy is taking me out this afternoon to practice. You want to come?”
He took a sip from a glass of water. “I wouldn’t miss it. Maybe I could teach you a few tricks, too.”
She didn’t know why but in the pit of her stomach, she was starting to feel very warm. Clearing her throat, she hopped off the desk. “I can’t wait to get started.”
“I’ll be there.”
She walked toward the door then turned around and found herself staring right into his smoky eyes. She swallowed. “Dro?”
“Yes?”
“Do you think I have what it takes?”
“For what?”
“To be the best?”
He sighed. “Well, I’m probably biased, but yes. You just have to be focused, because the minute you lose focus, everything can fall apart. And we don’t want that, right?”
“Right. I definitely don’t want everything to fall apart. I think I can handle it.” She couldn’t help but smile. She had waited for so long to get her first gun so she could go with the boys to the gun range.
“Well, then I believe you can be the best.”
She gave him a quick hug. “Thanks. You always believe in me.”
He wrapped his arms around her waist and squeezed, lifting her off the floor. She had a massive crush on Dro. And some days, she swore he knew it. But then there were the days when he was too entranced with his flavor of the month to give her the time of day. Not to mention the other days, when he treated her like an annoying little sister.
She pulled back and gazed into his eyes. She couldn’t help but wish he had given her her first kiss. But that was all in due time. “Dro?”
“Yes?”
“Are you sure sex appeal is overrated?”
“Why? Did someone else tell you something different?”
There was that spark in his eyes again. Was it too much to hope he was jealous? “No. I was just wondering why sex appeal is overrated when everyone is having sex.”
He laughed and ran his hand through her hair, causing her stomach to flip flop. “Don’t worry about it. You just focus on your training.”
That was such a “little sister” move. “For now, but I’ll figure it out.”
“I’m sure you will. Get out.” He pushed her toward the door. “You have plenty of time, Alexa.”
Before she could think of a response, he’d shut the door in her face.
***
November 4, 2011:
Alexa wrapped the sheet around her and walked over to the dresser. Placing Lady on the top of it, she bowed her head and took a deep breath. She turned around to face Dro. “You’re right. I’ll do whatever I have to do to keep my family safe. Don’t worry about it.”
He hopped out of bed, crossed to her, and braced his hands on the top of the dresser, one on each side of her, caging her in.
“I’m not worried. I trust you more than I trust myself sometimes. You’ll do what you have to do to protect our life just like I will.”
She kissed his chin. “I’m not going to lie. I don’t want to take it there. But it’s necessary.”
“You know what else is necessary?” he asked, placing a gentle kiss on her lips.
“What’s that?” She wrapped her arms around his neck, letting the sheet fall.
He kissed her deeply and perched her on the edge of the dresser. “A repeat.”
***
An hour later, Dro walked into the computer room. Kendrick was still working. Dro set a hot cup of coffee in front of him and took a seat.
Kendrick remained focused on the monitor, but he picked up the coffee and took a sip. “Thanks. I managed to get sound, but I still can’t make out any voices. The men seem inexperienced, but that doesn’t really matter. They have guns and numbers. More men have come in and out of the house in the last hour. At this point, there’s no real way to determine how many men are on the grounds. Honestly, B5 wasn’t ready to be used yet. We’re pretty limited down here. We were never able to fully test everything. As a result, there are still some issues with security cameras.”
Dro peered at the monitors. “How’s Nicholas doing with that background check?”
“We should have a preliminary report done within the hour. We�
�re kind of limited on some things down here. I’m hoping we can figure out more once we are able to get into the house.”
“I explained the situation to Alexa. She’s down for whatever.”
Kendrick arched an eyebrow at Dro. “Is she? Are you sure about that?”
Dro smirked, knowing Kendrick wanted more details. Kendrick stopped what he was doing and watched him. “What?”
Kendrick snorted. “You’re not going to elaborate?”
“What for?”
“You just said she was down for whatever? What exactly did you tell her?”
Dro took a sip of his coffee. “I told her the truth. We don’t know much, but we know these people were looking for her.”
“Shit. I know it wasn’t that easy. Alexa was firmly in denial last time I checked.”
“And I thought it was time she embraced her inner self. I gave her a little present.”
“I’m assuming from your cryptic jargon that you gave her Lady.”
Dro nodded. “I did. She needs it.”
“I agree she needs a gun. But more than that, we need her.”
“And we have her.”
Kendrick sipped the hot coffee. “I’m glad you got through to her.”
“It didn’t take much. She wants a resolution to the problem. And as much as I love her, I need her to stop hiding from the past.”
CHAPTER 7
October 19, 1997, Homecoming:
After leaving the party, Kendrick and Alexa waited in the hotel lobby for Dro and Lei. They had a situation—a threat against Alexa at the party—which left all of them on edge. Alexa was the only one still in high school and the threat had come from a classmate of hers, Steve Hall.
Kendrick had decided to stay local for college, so he was in charge of keeping an eye on Alexa. He made himself available when she needed him. Dro and Chase were away at school for much of the time. Lei was busy with a full load at college and working closely with Pop.
Kendrick had known Steve was trouble the first time he saw him. Steve was a cocky football player who gained some popularity in school and thought he had a right to cause problems. He looked for trouble wherever he went and that was bad news because Alexa never shied away from trouble.
She resented the fact that her father required one of the boys to be with her when she was hanging out with her high school crew. She complained about it constantly. But Pop didn’t play with safety and insisted she have a chaperone whenever she partied. Kendrick understood where she was coming from. Every new friend she made was met with tons of scrutiny.
Now she tapped her foot against the floor and glared at him. “Kendrick, stop breathing all heavy. It’s okay.”
“It’s not, Alexa. I’m not going to get killed because you refuse to take your safety seriously. That asshole shouldn’t be threatening you. And what is with that punk you’re dating—Erik? You’re with him but he can’t even defend you?”
She rolled her eyes. “Look, I don’t need Erik to defend me. I can defend myself.”
“You shouldn’t have to, especially when you have a date.”
“You’re worse than Lei and Dro. These are high school students, Kendrick, not hardened criminals out for revenge. You’re overreacting.”
He shook his head incredulously. “You’re serious? What part of ‘threat’ don’t you understand? You know there’s history between Steve’s father and Pop. That’s nothing to take lightly.”
“I’m not taking it lightly. I can beat Steve in my sleep. He’s weak, all talk and no action.”
Kendrick pinched the bridge of his nose. “You realize the others are not going to see it that way, right?”
“Yeah.” She shrugged. “So what?”
He ran his hand down his face and took a deep breath. She was really starting to get on his nerves. “You’re playing with serious fire, Lex. Why would you risk it?”
She studied him with amusement on her face then placed a hand on his shoulder and squeezed. “Steve is Erik’s best friend. I have to see him every day at school. It would be more dangerous for me to act like he’s a leper. You always told me to keep my enemies close, so that’s what I’m doing.”
She was right, Kendrick thought, but Dro was still going to kill her—after he kills me for not keeping a better eye on her. The Martinez family didn’t like to take chances, especially when Alexa was out in a social setting. They had many enemies, most of which stemmed from Dro’s father, Enrique, and his illegitimate businesses.
Kendrick wondered briefly why he’d volunteered to come with her to the high school homecoming dance in the first place. Lei had been all set to come, but Kendrick had volunteered at Alexa’s request.
Security was supposed to be a cinch because the dance was in a Martinez hotel, but he should’ve known better. “Cinch” and “Alexa” never went hand in hand. Normally, a threat from another student would be of no concern, but considering the source, it gave Kendrick cause for alarm. He was uncomfortable and didn’t like it.
When he’d called Dro to break the news, he had expected Dro to blow his ear drum out on the phone. Surprisingly, Dro remained composed during the whole conversation. He was so calm, Kendrick was forced to question his own reaction. However, once Kendrick had relayed all the details to him, Dro had finally blown his lid.
Steve had threatened to teach Alexa a lesson in “more ways than one.” Kendrick had had the overwhelming urge to hang up when Dro refused to stop yelling and cursing in his ear. Dro, who was pretty even-tempered most of the time, became a deranged lunatic when Alexa was involved. Kendrick remembered wanting to throw his phone into the pool as Dro ranted on the other end.
It got even worse once Dro found out Alexa had shrugged it off as nothing because she was too busy with her boy toy, Erik, to give a damn. She hadn’t even told Kendrick about the threat. He’d just happened to overhear a couple of students talking about it in the hotel lobby. Damn, was the woman daft?
Dro and Alexa had been sleeping together for a while, but they were keeping it light. According to Dro, that meant they could each see other people. It gave Dro the freedom to see whomever he wanted while he was away at school. But he apparently hadn’t realized it also meant Alexa could see whomever she wanted. And she wanted Erik.
Dro had a severe jealous streak when it came to her, so Kendrick had known “keeping it light” wouldn’t last long. He could personally vouch for that since he’d been on the receiving end of this jealousy once Dro found out he was the one who had given Alexa her infamous first kiss.
Alexa’s curse jolted Kendrick out of his thoughts. Looking up, he saw Dro burst into the hotel lobby, with Lei and Chase on his heels.
Dro marched up to Alexa, who didn’t even flinch. “Get your ass upstairs, Alexa. We need to talk.” Dro’s father reserved a suite especially for them when they were partying at the hotel. It was convenient, especially when they’d been drinking.
Alexa rolled her eyes. “Can you please not order me around like I’m your child?”
“Do you even realize what happened?”
“Yes. I heard about what he said.”
“And you don’t give a damn?” Dro yelled.
“That’s not what I said. Don’t put words in my mouth.”
He stepped closer to her, and they all knew how much she hated being crowded. “Well then what would possess you not take this threat seriously?”
She placed her hands against his chest and pushed him back. “Because I can handle Steve. I don’t need you to protect me.”
“So, someone threatens to rape you, and you say you can handle yourself? I hate to break this to you, but that shit isn’t going to fly. And—”
She turned her back on him, interrupting him mid-tirade. Kendrick snorted and Dro glared at him.
“Did you just turn your back on me?” he roared incredulously.
Instead of answering him, she walked away, back into the crowded party.
Dro growled and followed her into the ballroom. Kendrick
and the others had no choice but to follow, too.
Kendrick glanced at Lei as they entered the ballroom. “Dro is going to blow. You get him and I’ll get her.” He knew it was best if he stayed away from Dro. The man would choke him if given half a chance. He still hadn’t gotten over the news of that first kiss.
Lei snorted. “That would be best.”
As they hurried after Dro and Alexa, Kendrick knew this was only the beginning. Alexa was one of the two people that could get under Dro’s skin. The only other person able to do that was Enrique, Dro’s father.
***
Alexa took a seat at the bar and waited. When Dro caught up to her, she ignored him. She was tired of everyone treating her like she couldn’t take care of herself.
“Why did you walk away from me?” His voice was a low growl in her ear. “You know I hate that.”
She glared at him and spotted the others waiting quietly behind him.
“Really, Dro? You brought backup. What are you going to do, drag me out of the party against my will?”
“Why would I do that? You’re going to get up and walk out with me.”
“In whose world? Yours?”
“Exactly.”
She had expected his anger but not the gentle kiss he placed on her neck. She shivered. He was playing hardball. Bracing her hands on his shoulders, she shoved him away. “Stop that. I have a date.”
“And I should care because...”
She held him at bay with her hand on his chest. “We said we weren’t going public, Dro. That’s what you said, right? You made up the rules.”
He swept a strand of her hair out of her face, ran a finger along her jaw. “Rules were made to be broken.”
“You can’t have it both ways. I can see who I want, and you can’t act like I’m with you in public. I have a date with Erik. That’s who I’m going to be with tonight.”