Chapter 36
Jennifer
I kicked off my bedroom slippers and raced up the stairs. I had to get Maria first then I would have to help Lara stand up.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
I threw myself forward pushing myself as hard as I could up the stairs. As I put my hand on the doorknob I heard Maria start to cry I turned the door and stood face-to-face with a gun pointed directly at me. I froze as a man dressed in all black with a ski mask on held Maria.
"Sit", he demanded. I tried to remain calm, but I had already lost the battle. He had my baby and and no one was coming to help me with the battle going on outside. I took a deep breath and raise my hands up. If I was going to die so be it, but not Maria, Fitz, Alma or Lara. I had to think fast, I had to...
"Who sent you?" I asked as I slowly made my way to the rocking chair keeping my eyes squarely on him.
He pointed the gun at Maria and coldly said,"I will kill her in front of you and then go after your other children".
I slowly sank down into my chair,"What do you want?"
"That's better, Mrs. Caffery", he said as Maria continue to cry. He kicked the door shut and aimed the gun on me.
With a trimble in my voice and my hands outreached to him I begged,"Please... she's just a baby. I can made her stop crying".
"So can I", he said waving the gun around.
And let my hands fall down along with any hope of me actually getting Maria back. If my children were going to walk away from this Adam and I wouldn't,"What do you want?"
"Paris, was our message not clear?" He said stepping closer to me.
I needed to lie. I needed him to see value in keeping us alive until the EMTs got here," I have no control over what my husband or his associates do".
"Don't lie to me!" he said pistol-whipping me. I saw stars and he busted my lip open. I ran my tongue over the freshly-made wound.
I was going to kill him.
I continue to speak tossing my hair back," I'm not lying. Who do you think is running things now? Adam can't even walk let alone talk. He's a crippled, and the other houses fell into chaos as soon as they saw power vacuum. Everyone wants to be top dog but no one can be Adam. I'm just the wife, you think I like being here in the middle of nowhere. I'm not even married to a man anymore. I'm here because he's the father of my children and the money is easy. My parents sold me to him to repay their debts. You think I like being here?" I said with wide eyes desperate for him to believe me.
"Who's controlling Paris?" He said placing Maria in my arms. And just when I thought I could breathe a sigh of relief he roughly started to choke me.
I only had one ace up my sleeves as I choked out the only name I knew stood a chance against these men," Alejandro".
Not expecting that answer he let go of my neck and I coughed trying to catch my breath. He stepped back and pulled a cell phone out of his back pocket and placed a phone call,"Yeah...I got them... something came up I think you'll want to hear.
..yeah... No...the wife", I rocked Maria back and forth mentally pleading with her to be quiet. But she continued to cry at deafening pitches. I unwrapped her from her swaddling.
The man held the phone out to me putting it on speaker phone in a computerized voice came through the speakers,"You have my attention Mrs.Caffery".
I had to sell my performance, I had to make both of these men think we were no threat. Unlike Adam I didn't have any connections to the drug world, Alejandro did that for me," I don't know who you are. But I can guarantee you. We're no threat. Adam lost, not just what he built in Paris but his body. He'll never walk or talk again. Please, if you let us live I'll tell you everything..." the door slowly started to open and through a fine crack I saw Lara.
Damn it.
I turned my eyes back to the flip phone in front of me.
Please, please don't do anything! Go hide.
"That depends on what information you give me".
"It's no shock that Adam can't talk let alone lead. Alejandro is his fail safe. Someone who can lead the business and knows his place. If you take him out you control Paris. You control the drug lords. And the world will follow", I carefully look back to the door and saw it was shut.
Thank you.
"Dose this Alejandro have a last name?" No he's one of the few people on this Earth that just have one name, putting him up there with Cher. Of course he does, but I wasn't going to make it that easy for him. Once he had that information I had no guarantees he wouldn't put a bullet in me and Maria.
"I don't know that but I know he has a small militia somewhere in Caracas", if this person went to Caracas and found Alejandro's compound he would find a bullet in his skull. If I didn't get to him first. He wants a war. I'm going to give him an apocalyptic Armageddon.
"MOMMY!" I heard from down stair with the most hysterical crying out of Alma, the screaming sobs were only interrupted by the person's need to draw breath. It was a primal sound, one we're programmed not to ignore. The man in black turned his heads, caught between an impulse.
If I was going to do something it was going to have to be now.
Fight!
Before I could even put Maria down, before I could even register what was happening I saw Lara rushing for the man with a large silver knife. She stabbed him in the gut and dragged the knife down to his thigh. A roar tour through his mouth like it was trying to shake the house as he dropped the gun. In shock the man slapped her throwing her back onto the ground. I heard her head connect hard the wooden floor.
I was ready to kill. I was ready to do whatever it took to protect my family. No guilt. No salvation.
I set Maria down in her crib as the man stumbled down to the ground screaming in pain. I rushed for the gun and once I had it in my hand I pressed the barrel against his forehead and pull the trigger. Blood exploded out of his head painting a white nursery with blood splatters. I crawled over to Lara lightly tapping her face,"Lara, Lara!" I said in a panic. She was out cold. I place two fingers under her nose to make sure she was still breathing. She would be fine, she would wake up with a headache but she would live. And thanks to her we may all just live.
I needed to get to Alma.
I rush for the door looking back for only a moment at the gruesome scene. I was definitely going to have to get Lara some type of therapy after this. I stepped outside and lock the door in place. I finally made my way down the hallway checking the gun to see how many bullets I had left.
Walther P99 AS 9mm with a suppressor.
Ten bullets left.
"Make them count", Edgar said appearing at my feet. He walked like he was ready for a hunt. He wasn't, just the negative thoughts in the back of my head he was ready for war.
And so was I.
I heard Alma scream again as the power went dead and quicken my pace. I made it the top of the stairs and walk down carefully not to hit any squeaky steps. I scan the living room and saw the front window had been broken. Someone was in the house.
I made it down the stairs silently still able to hear Maria's cries and the ongoing battle outside.
"The bedroom", Edgar said following wet footprints into Adams room.
"NO STOP! MOMMY! MOMMY!!" Alma cried in and sheer terror as I open the door and saw a man pointing a gun at Adam. The nurse lay dead on the floor. Alma was and effectively trying to punch the man's leg. He pushed her roughly to the ground.
Bang.
I'm to late! Before I could even pull the trigger the man shot Adam in the chest. And I in return shot him in the throat. The man fell lifelessly to the ground as blood poured out of his neck like an endless fountain.
I lowed my gun and sprinted to Alma. Kneeling down I helped her sit up. She was fine, scared but fine. I wiped your tears away and asked her sternly,"Where's Fitz?!"
Heavy tears filled Alma's eyes as her bottom lip quivered,"In the closet", she started to turn her head, but I took her chin in my hands making her look at me and not the dead man on the ground.
The children were safe.
But, Adam need help,"Ok little one. I need your help. That bad man hurt Daddy and I need you to be my helper now more than ever. Can you be a big girl and help mommy?" If you couldn't Adam would die and I didn't know if more people were in the house.
She shook her head no shaking.
"You ask too much of a 5 year old", anger said jumping up onto the bed,"She's a child".
"Okay. It's okay---" I'm a rushed into my arms holding me tightly.
What do I do?
"She's not hurting or dying. Adam is", Edgar said rolling on to his back.
"Come on, baby", I said trying to pull Alma away. She had a iron grip on my neck.
"NO! No!", She screamed.
"He's dying", Edgar stated. As much as I wanted to take away almost fears and comfort her I just didn't have time. I pulled myself away from her and she hugged my hips burying her head into my thigh.
I made my way to Adam.
I quickly assess the situation. His skin was clammy as sweat drip from his body. He was breathing hard and without a single doubt in my mind I knew he was in excruciating pain. Thank God the gunman was a lousy shot. He just missed his heart. I reach underneath him feeling, he grunted in pain. But I had to know if the bullet was still in him or did it go through. And of course with my luck it was still in him. He was going to need a CT scan and surgery. I kept my voice calm and steady,"Adam, baby can you move your hands?"
Please.
Please.
Nothing.
"The man's been shot. You wouldn't be moving your hands if the roles were reversed", Edgar said rolling over onto his belly.
I needed to control the bleeding. Paramedics were coming, I just needed to buy Adam some more time. I didn't have any supplies to do surgery on him right now. I grabbed one of the pillows behind Adam and stripped off pillow cover. I ripped Adam's shirt open I found the entry wound and balling the pillow cover up I press down on the bullet wound. This wasn't a control enough environment for me to do anything worthwhile. I applied pressure with the heel of my palm. For ten agonizing long minutes I maintained pressure allowing several blood vessels to close by spasming. This would form blood clot.
I felt Adam's eyes on me. "I love you and this isn't going to break you. You hear me. You don't get to die. And if I'm not giving up you're not giving up", I paused for a moment to look him in the eyes. He blinked yes with his beautiful green eyes it was a reviving green like grass from the harsh conditions of winter. The green that, even in the darkest times will be a light that guilds me home. Adam was my beacon of hope on my worst days. And here, in this moment. I felt defeated. I went back to pressing down on the wound.
He will Survive. We will survive.
As I continue to work I felt my heart breaking. Adam closed his eyed as if falling into a deep sleep. If the paramedics didn't get here quicker....
No.
Adam will pull through.
And even though I truly did want to believe that. I felt my heart breaking in waves like shards in my guts that would never leaves. It felt like death just the same as bereavement and in quiet moments it chokes the breath from my body and short circuits my mind. What was once whole is shattered; where once was peace is emptiness, echoes of a love I put my everything into.
And I would continue too.
But, for now it was a waiting game.