“Everything’s okay now,” I replied as she struggled to her feet.
When Nova’s knees gave out, I swept Lyric into my arms and helped Nova steady herself.
“I want to go home,” Nova said while Lyric studied me.
“Do you want to go home, too?” I asked the four-year-old.
Her bright blue eyes watched me as she nodded. “Are the bullies going to hurt Skylar?”
“No. They’re going to the hospital to fix what got broken on them.”
“They’re hurt?” Lyric asked and looked curiously over my shoulder.
“Yeah,” I said, holding Nova’s gaze. “I can drive you home if you want.”
“Will you stay with us?” Nova asked and reached for me.
Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, I hugged her against me. “Of course. I was so scared when I heard there was trouble.”
Lyric nodded. “I was scared, too.”
“It’s okay to be scared,” I said, talking to Nova as much as Lyric. “But we’re going to handle things.”
A commotion back at the cars caused Lyric and Nova to flinch against me. I turned to see Nine punching one of the Jokers. My friend was yelling about an asshole putting his hands on Dalisay’s throat.
“Let me fucking strangle you now, fucker!” Nine hollered as Rock and Rowdy worked together to pull him away. “You’re a fucking psycho!”
I looked down at Nova. “Did they hurt you like that?”
“No, I just got knocked on my butt.”
“Do you need to see a doctor?” I asked and then bounced Lyric. “How about you? Did they hurt you?”
“I was riding that horse,” Lyric said and pointed at the little carousel. “Goldie and I were playing cowgirl, but then Goldie helped Mama.”
Turning toward the sound of more motorcycles, I figured Clint and Tricky might tamp down the hostilities. However, I also spotted Zodiac and Exile pulling into the parking lot. Those two would most definitelynotpush for calm.
“We’re going to walk to your SUV,” I told Nova as the day grew louder. “You can sit in the back seat with Lyric while I drive us home.”
“I made a mess with my groceries,” Nova said, panicking.
“We’ll figure it out,” I promised and got us moving toward the commotion.
Clint smiled casually at me, meaning he was ready to kill someone. Zodiac also seemed overly relaxed. I assumed they both knew we’d bury a few Jokers in the quarry soon.
“I’m taking them home,” I told Exile, who did not hide his rage. “Someone will need to get Vanessa’s ride back to her. I dinged the damn thing up.”
Clint nodded and reached to close Nova’s liftgate.
“A mess,” Lyric whimpered as she saw the broken jars on the ground.
“We’ll buy new ones,” I promised and wrapped her tighter. “You can help me pick out the stuff on my phone for delivery.”
Lyric gave me a scowl before nodding at my idea. For a moment, I thought she would reach for her uncle. Her body shifted as if ready to lunge forward. Instead, she gripped my shirt.
“Mama hurt her butt,” Lyric told Exile while I opened the SUV door.
“I’m okay. I don’t know why this happened,” Nova said, and Exile flinched when her voice broke. “We weren’t doing anything.”
