“Piece of cake,” Ephraim said. When he smiled, his teeth were startlingly white against the dark of the greasepaint.
“No, really,” I replied, looking at the fence again as I reached inside the sweatshirt and pulled my sports bra back over my boob and my t-shirt down. “Not happening.”
“This ain’t our first rodeo,” Josiah said. “The wall is about ten inches thick at the top. We’ll lift you up to straddle it, someone else will help you on the other side.”
“This is insane,” I sputtered.
“It’ll be fine,” Josiah reassured me.
Just as I started to take a step backward, because no fucking way was I going to attempt that wall while carrying a baby, a hand on my lower back made me freeze.
“Can’t use the front gate,” Mark said in my ear. “This is the only way out of here.”
I stared at the wall. Okay, logically, I knew I was going over it. I wanted to get the fuck out of there, and if this was how it had to be, then this was how it had to be. However, I honestly didn’t know how in the world I was going to actually do it.
“I’ll hold—” Ephraim came toward me and I jerked backward, instinctively pressing my back against Mark.
“The fuck you will,” I snapped. “She stays with me.”
“Hey,” Josiah said soothingly. “It’s all good, yeah? We’re here to help you.”
“This is takin’ too fuckin’ long,” Mark said shortly.
Before I knew what was happening, I’d taken about five steps forward and I was suddenly turned and lifted into the air. My ass hit the wall with a thump as I yelped.
“Get your balance,” Mark ordered, his hands still bracing my waist. He waited until I was steady before letting me go. Then, in one smooth movement, he hopped the fence. Just seconds later, I was being tugged backward and lowered to the ground.
It was over in less than a minute.
“Told you,” Ephraim said teasingly after he’d cleared the fence. “Piece of cake.”
“Let’s go,” a southern accented voice rumbled from somewhere in the trees.
Four shadows emerged out of the darkness, and I damn near tripped over my own feet.
“Jesus,” I whispered, tugging the baby even closer.
“Load up,” the same voice ordered. “We’ll meet at Chief’s. Different routes. Catch you on the flip side.”
I was ushered into a dark SUV as the two groups split up, and before I knew it, we’d made it out of Liv’s neighborhood and were flying down the freeway.
“Call your pop,” Mark ordered, his voice startling in the silent car. “Let him know you’re safe.”
I nodded and reached for my purse that was stashed near his feet. Without another word, he lifted it up and set it on the seat between us.
The phone rang and rang with no answer, but I hadn’t expected one. If my parents were on the road, they wouldn’t be able to answer until they’d found somewhere to stop.
“Thank you,” I rasped before clearing my throat. “Thank you for coming to get us. I don’t understand how—”
“Casper called me,” Mark said. Yeah, I’d figured that much out already.
“But why?” I prodded. “Who are these people? What the hell?”
“This is what we do,” the southern guy said from the driver’s seat. “Get people out of sticky situations.”
I looked at Mark for clarification, but he ignored me.
“You’re some kind of commando?” I asked dubiously.
The woman who’d ushered us out of the house earlier laughed and turned to the side so she could see me from the passenger seat. “Oh, yeah, he’s a regular Rambo.”
“Shut it, Lu,” Mark muttered.
“What the fuck is happening right now?” I said under my breath, shaking my head. The whole situation was surreal. It felt like one of the vivid nightmares I’d had when I was pregnant.
“Who were those people?” Mark asked, as I pinched my leg just to be sure I was awake. “How the fuck did you get caught up in that shit?”
It wasn’t necessarily the words he’d used, but his tone that made my back snap straight. “I wasn’t caught up in anything,” I shot back. “I was in the wrong place at the wrong fucking time.”
“Understatement, Cecilia.”
“Liv’s a friend—” I caught myself. “Was a friend. A good one.”
Mark didn’t say a word as he glanced down at where I’d unzipped the hoodie so baby girl had room to get some air. I could tell he wanted to ask more questions, but he didn’t, so I didn’t offer up any more information. The SUV was quiet