Rocco

by Lagomarsino, Giulia

  “Claim you? That’s not how it works. You have to be a legal guardian.”

  “Well, it was a little different back then. It’s not like we lived in the city. The police knew Reese’s grandmother, and when she said that I was staying with her, they released me to her. I can still remember the look on her face when we got back to her house. She was so angry, but she wasn’t mean. She just put the fear of God in us and sent us to our rooms. And from then on out, she was my grandmother. I went to her for everything. I spent so many days after school with her, and when my parents had something come up that they just had to go to, they called her. She was the one that bought my first tampons and told me about sex. She was the one that made sure I got my driving hours in and made my parents take me to get a driver’s license. And she was the one that threw Reese and me a graduation party. So, that’s pretty much the story. It wasn’t a bad childhood. I had someone that loved me, and while it sucks it wasn’t my own parents, I never felt like I was missing out because Grandma was always there for me.”

  He shook his head with a sigh. “I won’t ever be like that with Evie. I can’t imagine just leaving her like that all the time, just because there’s something better to do.”

  “So, now it’s my turn.” I rolled onto my side, propping myself up on my elbow and resting my head in my hand. “You’re a medic.” He nodded. “Did you go to school to be a doctor?”

  A small grin tilted his lips. “No. I thought about it, but I wasn’t interested.”

  “Why not?”

  “Look, it’s one thing to be a medic in the army, but it’s another thing to go work in a hospital when you’re back home. It’s just not the same environment.”

  “So, do you do the same medic stuff that Hunter does?”

  He shook his head. “He’s in charge of all that stuff at work. It doesn’t bother me. I help out when I’m needed, but otherwise, I just like doing my job.”

  “Isn’t that weird? To not do a job that you’re trained to do?”

  “Well, it’s not like every team needs its own medic. I mean, all the guys go through a medic training course so that if something happens on a job they’re prepared, but in reality, nothing happens on most jobs. Hunter and I happen to have more training, but that level of training usually isn’t necessary.”

  “Have you ever had to use your training on the job?”

  “Yeah, but that’s a story for another time.”

  He rolled over me like, pushing between my legs, but I put my hand up to his chest to stop him. “Why?”

  “Because it’s a long fucking story,” he said, pressing his lips to mine. I shoved him back again.

  “Wait, what happened to not avoiding questions? Now it’s okay to do that?”

  “Just let it go,” he snapped. Sighing, he pressed a kiss to my mouth. “Look, it’s a very long story. I promise to tell you some other time, but not tonight, okay?”

  I nodded, and then I let him screw me exactly how he wanted.

  ✯✯✯✯✯

  When I woke in the morning, Rocco and I were in the position that had come to be ours over the past few weeks. He was wrapped around me, holding me close to his body like he would a lover. But he didn’t have lovers, so what did that mean for us?

  I felt the burn on my arm, but Rocco didn’t stir. I quickly checked the code of the day and made a snap decision. Rocco was exhausted and he needed help. I could do this. No matter how bad I was with kids, I could watch Evie for him so that he could get some sleep. How hard could it be?

  I slipped out of bed and grabbed my robe. Tiptoeing out of the room and closing the door behind me, I moved across the hall and punched in the code like Knight had told me. When it clicked green, I breathed a sigh of relief and walked into Evie’s room. I was only a few steps in when I felt a zap rush through my body. I squealed and jumped in the air, only making it another two steps before I was zapped again.

  No matter where I moved, I was shocked painfully, to the point that I was sure I would have burn marks all over my feet. Looking at Evie sitting in her crib peacefully, as if she wasn’t witnessing me getting zapped every two seconds, I took a deep breath, trying to work through the pain and rushed forward to her crib. But that last step was it, the pain too intense. I fell to the ground, screaming and writhing in pain.

  I was barely aware of the shocks stopping when I saw something moving across the floor. Blinking quickly to clear the tears from my eyes, I made out Ruby, as Knight had called her, the robot vacuum. Except, as I laid there with my muddled brain, I remembered that Knight said Ruby also had defensive weapons and would deal with any threat as she saw necessary.

  “Ruby,” I said, trying to ward her off. “It’s Brooke. Stand down.”

  But Ruby didn’t listen. The light on the top of the robot started circling red. I leapt forward, hoping to hit the button and turn her off before she turned her defensive measures on me. I slammed my fist down on the red button, but only a whirring sound met my ears. Freaking out, I grabbed Ruby and threw her across the room, the robot bouncing off the wall before falling to the floor.

  I breathed a sigh of relief, but then Ruby lit up and zoomed forward. I barely had time to blink before she was on me, spraying something right in my face. I screamed as it felt like my face was being melted off. Sirens blared loud in the house and the door was kicked in. I couldn’t see anything, and it felt like my throat was closing up. I could hardly breathe. Footsteps sounded all around me. I was lifted off the ground and rushed through the house until I felt the fresh air surrounding me. Something was shoved over my mouth and then I felt air being pushed into my lungs. Slowly, I was able to breathe a little easier, but I couldn’t see a fucking thing.

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  Rocco

  A blaring alarm sounded, jarring me from my sleep. At first I thought it was the smoke alarm, but instincts had me jumping out of bed and running to Evie’s room. Evie was locked in some kind of clear box in her crib, and she didn’t look like she was struggling to breathe or anything, but Brooke was on the ground and she most definitely was not okay.

  Since Evie appeared to be fine, I snatched Brooke up off the floor, and was just about to run out of the room when I saw Ruby, my killer robot pointing her lasers at Brooke. Knight ran into the room, took one look at Brooke and then ran for Evie. I ran out the door, figuring that he must know what to do, though I wasn’t too happy about what he was going to tell me. I ran outside with Brooke, setting her on the stoop and then ran back inside for my medical bag and oxygen. When I got back outside, she was gasping for air, so I quickly shoved the mask over her face and cranked the oxygen.

  Her face was red and splotchy, and tears and snot were running down her face. I was guessing she couldn’t see a damn thing right now. I quickly pulled out water and started pouring it over her face, trying to clear off as much of the tear gas as I could. I knew it stung like a motherfucker, so she was probably going to be pissed when she was finally able to see and talk again.

  Knight strolled outside carrying Evie as if he didn’t have a care in the world. She looked to be in one piece, but I wouldn’t calm down until I had her in my arms. After pouring some more water over Brooke’s face, I grabbed Evie out of Knight’s hands and held her close to me, breathing in the scent of her hair. My heart was still hammering out of control, but I needed to calm down and find out what the fuck happened.

  Knight went back inside and seconds later, the alarm stopped blaring. He strolled outside carrying Ruby in his hands. He plopped down on the step and started taking her apart.

  “You want to tell me what the fuck happened?” I growled.

  He raised an eyebrow. “Me? I just came when I got a signal from Ruby that she was under attack.”

  “That thing attacked me,” Brooke finally spoke up, pointing at my crotch. She obviously couldn’t see yet. “And what’s with being electrocuted? I was just trying to get Evie from her crib. You could have told me that I would die if I tried to enter.”
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  Knight didn’t even look sorry when he shrugged and looked at me. “You said she wouldn’t be going in there. I guess I forgot to tell her about the copper wire in the carpet.”

  “The what?” I asked incredulously. He hadn’t told me about that either.

  “Yeah, well, I had to put in some safety measures, so I lined the carpet with copper wiring. If you don’t avoid the lasers, it sends out electric shocks.”

  I stared at him in utter amazement. I didn’t know if he was an evil genius or the most fucked up human being I’d ever met.

  “How would I know to avoid the lasers?” Brooke asked, trying to squint through her red eyes. “You didn’t say anything about lasers. You said daily code. You said I only had ten seconds to read it. You said killer robot, but you also said that I was in the system.” She stumbled to her feet and pointed off at the road. “She tried to kill me!”

  I wrapped an arm around her and moved her one hundred and eighty degrees so her anger was pointed in the right direction.

  “She didn’t try to kill you,” Knight said irritatedly. “When the electric shocks were activated, she sent a signal to me that someone was in Evie’s room and wasn’t avoiding the sensors. If she attacked you, it was for some other reason.”

  “Well, I didn’t know that,” Brooke said. “I thought she was going to attack when that red ring was activated, so I did what any sane person would do, and I threw her against the wall.”

  “I can see that,” Knight said. “You knocked her programming chip free. She didn’t recognize your face and took secondary protocols. You’re lucky she didn’t go for the nerve gas.”

  “I’m lucky?” Brooke practically shouted through the gravel in her voice.

  “I knew this was a fucking mistake,” I muttered. “How could you allow her to attack with Evie in the room?”

  “Hey, as soon as she recognized a threat and sent the signal for the tear gas, she also sent the signal for Evie to be enclosed.”

  “Yeah,” I snorted. “Yet another protocol you didn’t tell me about. What’s next, directed-energy weapons?” Knight didn’t say anything and I almost lost it. “Tell me you didn’t fucking install one in my house.”

  “Not yet,” he said irritatedly. “I hadn’t decided between that and a directional loudspeaker.”

  “What is he talking about?” Brooke asked me.

  “A directed-energy weapon takes out a target with highly focused energy, like lasers, microwaves, and particle beams. The other one uses sound waves.”

  Brooke squinted up at me in disbelief. I thought she was going to lose it. I thought she was going to insist on being hauled off to jail or something instead of staying in the demonic house, but instead, she turned back to Knight, or close to where he was standing. “So, is this something I could use on my ex?”

  “I think there are more discreet ways to take him out,” he said with a smirk. When she heard his voice was in a different direction, she turned more to face him.

  “So…you’re not pissed?” I asked Brooke hesitantly.

  “Well, not that I liked being electrocuted and gassed, but it was for your daughter. He protected you, even if it was from me.”

  “Wait, why were you in there anyway?”

  “Because I felt the burn in my arm and you were exhausted. I figured I’d help out.”

  “Help out with my daughter,” I said slowly. “The same kid that disgusts you.”

  She huffed in annoyance and snatched another bottle of water. “Okay, she’s not totally disgusting or irritating. I can see where her charm comes in. I’m not saying that I like her or anything, but I figured that I could spend a few hours with her so that you could get some sleep. You just seemed really tired.”

  My heart started pounding out of control. Could this mean what I was hoping for? Was there a chance she would come around? I mean, it was by no means a ringing endorsement for my life, but she was willing to take care of my daughter for me, all because she knew I was tired.

  “Look at that,” Knight smirked. “You’ve gone and domesticated her.”

  “I am not domesticated.”

  Knight looked over at her, leaning in a little closer. “Trust me, when you start doing shit for people that you swore you would never do, you’ve become domesticated.”

  “Whatever,” she growled. “How much longer until I’m a functioning human being again?”

  “The effects should wear off in another few minutes. I’m sure it still fucking hurts, but you should be fine soon,” I said, feeling like total shit that the one time she tried to help she got gassed. “Come on, I’ll take you inside and finish cleaning you up.”

  “I’ve got a team coming over to clean up Evie’s room. Don’t go in there until then,” Knight said, pulling out his phone and fiddling with some buttons. “I’m having the air sucked out of the room to remove any particles still floating around.”

  “Gee, that’s so kind of you.”

  “I know,” he said before snatching up Ruby and heading off to his truck.

  I turned to look at Brooke and cringed. She would probably have a few blisters on her face in spots that had taken a particularly heavy dose of tear gas. I pulled her into the bathroom and shut Evie and I in there with her. I wasn’t letting Evie out of my sight until I was sure that all the tear gas was scrubbed from the house.

  “Sorry about this,” I mumbled as I grabbed Brooke by the waist and hauled her up on the counter top.

  “It’s fine,” she said easily. “It’s not like you meant for it to happen. You didn’t even know about everything he put in, so it’s not like I can blame you. Besides, I was the one that had the bright idea to help out.” She chuckled to herself. “Babysitting failure number one.”

  “How do you figure?”

  “Well, I’m guessing none of your other babysitters have triggered Ruby into tear gassing them.”

  “No one else babysits here, or at my place when I lived in the panic room.”

  “So, I was like your test dummy,” she grinned.

  I washed more water over her face, trying not to laugh because it wasn’t fucking funny. But Brooke didn’t take anything the way I thought she would. And now I was beginning to see that Brooke’s attack on her former boyfriend wasn’t so much her going crazy on a man that wronged her, but her being pissed for having let down her guard and allowed someone into her life, only to fuck with it. She was trying for normal, but Brooke was anything but normal.

  “So, have I scared you away?”

  “From babysitting duty?” She shrugged. “I’m not saying it’s something I would make a regular occurrence, but say it was a dire situation, you know, something that you really needed help with, I could be persuaded.”

  “Dire situation.” She nodded. “So, what would constitute a dire situation? I mean, me being tired isn’t dire.”

  “No, but that was the first time out of the gate. I’ll have to move the bar a little higher now. I would say, if you were stabbed or shot, you know, something more life threatening.”

  “But if I was shot or stabbed, who would play nurse while I was recovering if you were taking care of Evie?”

  “Good point.” She chewed her lip as she thought about it for a moment. “I guess it would have to be similar to what happened yesterday.” She cocked her head to the side. “What did happen?”

  I sighed dramatically. “You know, just everyday stuff. We got a client, got pushed off a bridge by a semi, and almost drowned in the frozen river.” I shrugged like it was no big deal.

  “Wow. That’s….”

  She shook her head slightly and hopped down from the countertop. I got the feeling that she was trying to hold back from me, and I didn’t like that. I wanted to know what she was thinking. I wanted to be all in with her. I wanted her to be the same with me.

  “We should get some food,” she said, changing the topic with a slight smile. Disappointment flashed through me that she wasn’t being open with me, but I let it go. I turned to g
rab Evie and heard the door open, then heard a loud bang, followed by a groan. I spun around to see Brooke holding her forehead.

  “What happened?”

  “I guess I can’t really see as well as I thought.”

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  Brooke

  Evie’s room had been thoroughly scrubbed and all the tear gas had been sucked out of the room. I was grateful that Evie hadn’t been hit with any of it, but I couldn’t say it was an experience I would want to repeat. My eyes and throat finally stopped burning about a half hour ago, and now we were just sitting down and relaxing after eating breakfast. Rocco was relaxed, sitting in his pajama pants and playing on the floor with Evie. It had started snowing right around the time we came back inside from our mad escape from the house and it hadn’t let up since.

  Fat flakes fell outside, covering the already white ground. I had grabbed extra thick socks and curled up on the couch under a blanket, just because it was what should happen when it was a snowy day. I watched Rocco tickling Evie on the ground, and I wondered if he was going to go into work today. Even though he was being rambunctious with Evie, I could tell that he was worn out.

  “The tickle monster is gonna get you,” Rocco said in a playful voice before attacking Evie with his fingers. She giggled on the floor as she rolled around. Rocco looked up at me with an evil glint in his eye. I shook my head slightly, but he just started prowling toward me on his hands and knees. I tried to sit up, but he was faster, pouncing on me before I could escape. His fingers dug into my stomach and I reflexively pulled my knees up to try and ease the laughter pains. Nothing was working and tears were streaming down my face as he continued his assault.

  Then little fingers joined in, tickling me under the armpits. It didn’t do anything, but when my gaze met Rocco’s and he nodded slightly to me, I knew he wanted me to play along. My gaze shifted to Evie’s and the smile on her face finally pushed me over the edge. I squealed with laughter, even though she wasn’t doing anything to tickle me. But her face lit up even brighter and something inside me turned slightly gushy, like I was enjoying making her happy. It was a strange feeling, but the more I watched her laugh, the more I found myself melting a little.