The buzzing in his ears drilled through his skull with the speed of a bullet. He blinked. Once. Twice. But nothing seemed to clear his blurry vision.
Andy tried to move his legs, but they didn't cooperate. What in the hell happened? His back ached and his arms twitched as spasms racked from his shoulders right down to the tips of his blackened fingers.
One moment he was walking into an abandoned house where they had to make the drop-off and then he was sailing through the air, heat blasting in his face and the deafening sound booming in his ears.
Gregg. The men.
Oh, no. Please no. They all had walked into an ambush. It was all a trap.
The money.
Gritting his teeth, he dragged himself into a sitting position. Andy squinted through the debris and ash floating around him. Smoke so thick clouded his surroundings.
Something wet and sticky trailed down his temple. Willing himself to ease the shaking of his hand, he reached up to wipe the substance away only to cry out in pain.
Blood. By the feel, a deep gash on his temple was badly in need of stitches.
Hot, blinding pain snaked around his head like a metal band. Andy grabbed his head and doubled over as waves of excruciating pain racked his body.
"Gah!" he cried.
Shit. He must have hit his head hard to feel this amount of agony. When the pain was bearable, he pushed himself back into a sitting position and glance around.
"Gregg?" he shouted.
The smoke wasn't so thick now, he could see a little more clearly. "Gregg?" he called again.
No answer.
Andy's mind tried to fit the pieces together to figure out what went wrong but with the ringing and the fogginess in his brain, he knew he would come up empty-handed.
"Help me! Somebody, please help me!"
The pain-filled voice reached his ears, and he jerked in the direction it came from wrenching his leg at an awkward angle. Fiery pain lanced up his leg so fast he didn't have time to cry out.
"Help me!"
"I'm coming; hold on."
Andy tried to stand but his legs wouldn't move. "Shit!" he muttered.
He reached down and tried to push the-door?
God help him. A burning-a smoking door was laying across his legs. How in the hell didn't he feel the heat?
Adrenaline? It had to be, or he had lost feeling in his legs.
Was he paralyzed?
Don't be an idiot Andy! He scolded himself. His legs were fine. With the trauma, his head suffered not-so-long-ago he probably lost some of his senses.
"H-help."
That snapped him out of his thoughts. He hurriedly reached down and tried to drag the heavy door off his legs.
Teeth clenched. Muscles straining. Andy gripped the door and pushed with all his might. Sweat mixed with blood dripped into his eyes but he didn't let that deter him.
"Hey, let me help you with that."
A hand clasped his shoulder as the person moved around him.
Andy glanced up to see Julian hovering over him. Soot streaked down his face like black ribbons. Clothes torn in several parts and he wore no boot on his right foot. His toes were bloody. Andy would bet he'd lost a few toenails.
"What happened?"
Julian glanced at him before he reached down and jerked the door off his legs. "We walked into a trap."
"What?" Andy asked rubbing his bruised leg. He kicked them in the air. Good; nothing's broken.
"There was no one waiting here-well, there was a bomb."
"A bomb? But what about the man from the picture?"
"All a hoax. We weren't meeting anybody; this was a setup, and we walked right into it."
Julian moved closer and held out a hand. Andy grabbed on and hauled himself off the ground. The weight on his legs was terrible, but he stayed on his feet.
"You okay?" Julian asked.
"I'll live. Where are you going?"
"To help the man crying out for help. I think he lost a hand."
"Jesus, that's horrible."
Julian ducked his head. "Yes. We lost five men in the explosion. Those who can walk are rounding up the injured so we can get the hell out of here."
Andy sucked in a breath. Pain rocketed through his body at the mention of the men who lost their lives. He didn't know them personally, but he knew they had families. In the pit of his stomach, he felt guilty. If it wasn't for...
"Hey, man, don't beat yourself up about it. Don't blame yourself."
Andy sigh. "How could we not know this was a trap?"
"Julian? Where are you, man? We have to get these men to the hospital."
Andy limped to catch up. Another man walked up to them. It was the man with the mustache-well, what's left of it.
"It's Gregg," the man picked at his charred shirt.
"I know, Vane. I know. He will pay for every life lost today," Julian growled.
What in the hell?
Andy could not believe his ears. "Woah, what's going on? Where is Gregg?"
"He's gone."
"Gone? As in dead?"
"No."
"No?" Andy frowned. "What do you mean?"
"He led us into a trap and now he's gone."
Andy laughed. Gregg would never do that to him. He'd known him since they were little boys growing up in Bay hills. He along with Kyle were best friends. Gregg would never betray him. Never.
"Do you think this is funny? I lost my friends in that explosion."
Andy stared at Vane, not really seeing him as he tried to wrap his mind around what they were telling him.
"He took the money," Julian whispered.
"He what!" Andy shouted.
"Gregg led us into a trap, he then took the money and left us here for dead. Which part of that don't you understand?" Vane asked.
"I know Gregg and he wouldn't do that," Andy insisted.
"Then who else could it be. He led us here; Gregg is the one responsible for this," Julian said.
Andy looked around. Men everywhere: some limping, some lying still as a rug. Groans and cries filled his ears. He felt drained and sick to his stomach. Did Gregg really betray him? Was he the one behind everything?
No. It couldn't be.
Annie. He needed to call her now.
Sirens screamed in the distance.
Andy reached into his pocket. "Shit!" The curse escaped his mouth. He had to find a phone.
"Julian, do you have a phone? I need to call Annie. If this was a setup, she's in danger. I need to call and make sure she's okay."
"No, sorry, man. I lost it when the blast flung me into the air."
"Shit. I need to leave."
"Yeah, You do that. Meet me back at Gregg's house when you get your family."
"Yeah, I'll do that."
"And, Andy?"
"Yes?" he answered but didn't look back.
"We'll find Gregg."
Andy didn't reply. What could he say? He wanted to see his family. Then he could think about anything else.
********
When Andy arrived at the cabin later that night, he noticed the front door open and the place was dead silent: no movement. No sound.
Why would Annie leave the door open?
He reached for his weapon. Could she have gone for a walk?
Andy shook his head, not in answer to the question that ran through his mind, but just to clear it, like a dog trying to rid himself of unwanted moisture clinging to its body. He quickened his steps. Something was definitely wrong, he thought.
Please God let them be safe.
His hands trembled as he clutched the gun tighter. Andy stepped through the open door and felt the blood rush to his heart with a deafening thud.
He flicked the lights on. Someone had flipped the rug to the side and there were drops of blood splayed on the ground in tiny puddles.
"They have to be here."
He took off running down the hallway.
"ANNIE! ANNIE!" he shouted. But there was no answer. The place was empty.
Andy could feel panic forming in his mind like a thick fog. They found her. They had kidnapped his family. Oh, Annie, I'm sorry I left. I'm so sorry.
Andy thug at his hair, pulling on the limped strands. His nose burned as the backs of his eyes stung. He made a fist and punched the nearby wall, Andy felt his knuckles split on impact.
Pain radiated through his hand, but he ignored it. He was seconds away from having a mind explosion.
"Oh Annie, where are you? I'm sorry I didn't protect you better," he cried.
He slid down the wall with his head resting in his hands. Tears he was trying so desperately to hold back, were streaming down his cheeks. The last time he'd cried like this was when Annie had left him the first time.
This time it was worst, it hurt far more than before. He didn't know if it was the carelessness that led to Annie and his son disappearance made it hurt more or because of the mistake, he'd made when he left them all alone at the cabin.
He felt like he was having a heart attack.
How could you leave them?
That question kept playing his mind, and it was driving him crazy.
Then another question swept into his mind like a hurricane. Could she had left him again, taking his son along with her?
Banishing that stupid question from his mind, he scolded himself, Don't be an idiot Andy! Look around!
There were signs of a struggle. Someone must have dragged her because he saw little droplets of blood and strands of her hair. He squeezed his eyes closed blocking out the sight. The pain she must have gone through...
Reon...
He prayed they didn't hurt his son-his baby.
This was too much...
Andy didn't know how long he sat there. It could have been minutes or hours. He was so lost in his thoughts about Annie and if they were okay.
He wiped his face, leaving long streaks of sticky blood. He'd forgotten that his hands were bleeding.
Andy got up and went into the bathroom. He looked into the mirror and he saw his eyes rimmed red with sadness and fatigue. He looked exhausted and haggard.
Cupping a handful of water, he splashed it onto his face. He took a rag from the cabinet and wrapped it around his busted knuckles, gritting his teeth at the burning pain assaulting him.
They messed with the wrong man and his family.
"Annie, I'm coming for you and our son. Hold on, baby."
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