“They’ll be…”
I heard the front door open and movement downstairs. It was faraway, indistinct but there was a thud then murmuring.
Instinctively, I threw back the covers and slid out of bed, my heart hammering, whispering, “Someone’s in the house.”
“Stay where you are, Dusty, a unit is en route.”
“I have two kids in this house!” I snapped, rushing toward the doors, Layla at my heels.
“Dusty, stay where you are.”
“They’re sleeping.”
“Dusty –”
“They don’t know anything’s going on,” I hissed, hearing murmurings coming up from downstairs, the living room, right under Mike’s room. Deep voices, male, low. I pressed my lips together.
“Dusty, stay right where you are. The unit will be there in two minutes.”
Oh God. Oh God. It took less than two minutes to walk up the fucking stairs and get to one of the kids!
Holding the phone to my ear, using my leg to keep Layla back, I opened the door and slid out, closing it quickly behind me and closing Layla in. I hustled down the hall, my mind searching what I knew of the upstairs. Except for some pens and pencils in Mike’s office which I might be able to jab in someone’s neck or something, I had no weapon.
Shit. Fuck. Shit!
I ran down the hall and did the only thing I could do. Positioned myself on the other side of the stairs so if they came up they’d have to get through me to get to the doors of the kids’ rooms.
“Dusty, where are you? Are you there?”
“I’m in the hall,” I whispered but clearly the noises I made were heard.
“Dusty!”
I jumped mostly because this was Mike shouting.
“That’s Mike,” I told the operator.
“Does he sound okay?” she asked me.
“Dusty, get down here!”
Yeah, he sounded okay. Pissed but obviously breathing so I took that to be okay.
“Yeah,” I answered then ran down the stairs.
She said more but I wasn’t paying attention. I was rounding the stairs and running down the hall.
The living room was lit with overhead lights and I skidded to a halt when I hit it to see three teenage boys sitting on the couch glaring up at Mike. Mike was wearing his pajama bottoms and a tee standing over them holding the gun loosely in his hand, pointed to the floor. And I noticed instantly the three boys were the three who jumped Fin weeks ago.
Mike’s eyes slice to me. “You on with Emergency?”
I nodded.
“Disconnect. Use my phonebook, call Colt. Tell him I got his vandals in my living room.”
My eyes went to the kids but Mike kept talking and I looked back at him.
“Do that while goin’ back upstairs. My cuffs are on my belt. There’s another pair in my top drawer at the back. Bring both down. Now.”
I nodded and turned quickly, rushing back down the hall.
“Did you hear that?” I asked the operator.
“Yes. Unit is still en route and should be their imminently. I’ll let you go.”
“Right,” I said, running down the upstairs hall and into our room. I did as Mike asked, going quickly, with effort keeping an agitated now whining Layla back and I got a sleepy-alert Colt as I was rushing back down the hall carrying two sets of handcuffs.
I also saw No out of his room and he was staring at me, sleepy-alert too.
I shook my head, whispered, “Stay up here,” then kept talking to Colt as I ran down the stairs. By the time I made it to the living room, Colt told me he’d be here “in ten” and he’d disconnected.
Mike’s eyes came to me and the doorbell rang.
“Me, cuffs then you get the door,” he ordered.
I rushed to him, handed off the cuffs and ran toward the door telling him, “No’s up.”
I was in the hall when I heard Mike shout, “No, down here!”
I opened the door to see a uniformed police officer there. He opened his mouth to speak but I got there before him.
“Mike’s in the living room. I think he needs you.”
He moved immediately and I got out of his way. No nearly bumped into him as he rounded the stairs, his face pale, his eyes on me. The officer moved directly to the living room, his hand and mouth directed to the radio at his shoulder. I moved to No.
“Your Dad caught some kids, vandals. They’re in the living room. Go to him, he wants you.”
No nodded then took off down the hall.
I was closing the door, not looking what I was doing when I met resistance halfway. I turned my eyes to it and saw another officer standing there.
“Doin’ a perimeter search,” he muttered. “Mike okay?”
I nodded, pulling the door back open. “Living room.”
He moved past me and headed swiftly down the hall.