“Enough,” April said in the calmest and quietest tone she could muster. “You’re going to burn her out.”
Ned glared at April. “Do I need to ask you to leave?”
April glared right back at him, but then averted her gaze. If he asked her to leave, he wouldn’t be asking. He’d demand it, and she would not be given a choice. He wouldn’t think twice about having her removed from the room by his security staff, and then she wouldn’t be allowed back inside for days, possibly even weeks. She couldn’t risk that. Violet needed her.
Instead of answering Ned, she watched as Violet masterfully veered another set of six knives away from herself, only this time, instead of aiming them at the corkboard, they made a swift mid-air turn, and flew right into the soldiers. April gasped as the soldiers fell to their knees, screaming. They all wore some sort of protective gear, but it was likely not meant to shield them from deep knife wounds.
“Violet!” April shrieked, but it was no use.
Ned roared his anger and threw the microphone across the room. “I blame you for this,” he screamed in April’s face. “If I find out you put her up to this, you’ll never set foot in this building again. Do you understand?”
April was shaking now, terrified for her niece and concerned about the men who were undoubtedly injured. They lay on the floor, grasping at their chests as Echo hovered over them, evaluating their injuries and talking into his cell phone. Ned yanked open the door between the observation room and the exercise room, and stormed inside.
April started to follow him in, but he shoved her back and slammed the door behind him, effectively telling her without words that if she dared to follow him in, he would follow through on his previous threat. She stood, waiting, watching through the one-way glass, as he fumed, approaching his six-year-old stepdaughter who stood shaking like a leaf, her eyes filled with tears that were already spilling onto her flushed cheeks.
Just as Ned reached Violet, Echo came up behind her and exchanged a few words with Ned that seemed to calm him. Whatever he said must’ve been about the soldiers because Ned turned to look at them and nodded. They were never allowed to remove their goggles or headphones without explicit permission, so they had no choice but to wait for further instructions from Ned. A few drops of blood dotted the floor, but the wounds must not have been very deep, or else April suspected there would’ve been a lot more blood. At least that’s what she hoped.
Echo and Ned exchanged several more words, then Echo lifted Violet into his beefy arms and carried her out of the gym. April hurried after him, down a locked hallway and up the express elevator, back to Violet’s room, where Echo lowered her onto the chaise lounge in her bathroom. She looked up at April, exhausted and in tears.
“Oh, Sweetie, come here,” April said, desperately trying to hold back her own tears.” Echo silently stepped out of the bathroom, and April didn’t give him a second glance. “Are youokay?” April asked, checking Violet over from head to toe. “Did you get hurt?”
Violet wiped her nose on her sleeve and shook her head. “I’m so sorry, Aunt April. I swear, I didn’t mean to hurt them. I thought they were wearing bullet proof vests. I thought it would protect them from knives, too. I swear. I would’ve never done it if I didn’t think they were protected.” Violet gasped for breath between sobs, and April pulled her into her arms, holding her tightly.
“Shh, it’s going to be okay. The armordidprotect them. I didn’t see much blood, so I don’t think the wounds were deep. Maybe just little scrapes or knicks. They’ll probably need a few stitches at most.”
“Ned is going to kill me,” she said. “He was so angry. If Echo wasn’t there, I think I would be dead for sure.” The fear in Violet’s voice broke April’s heart. It infuriated her that a sweet little girl could be so afraid of the only man she’d ever known as her father. Violet deserved a real dad in her life that would protect her from the monsters in the world, not challenge her to fight them herself.
“Ned wouldn’t dare hurt a hair on your head,” April said. “He loves you.” She struggled to say that last part, but Violet needed to hear it, even if April wasn’t sure of it herself. “And I love you, so much my sweet Violet. I would never let anything happen to you. Ever.”
“Even if I accidentally hurt someone?” Violet’s voice was still laced with all the fear a six-year-old could possibly hold inside her little body.
“Even if,” April assured her. “Don’t you know that the love between a niece and her aunt is forever and ever?”
“Like a mommy and a daughter?” Violet asked.
April smiled through her own tears. “Just like. And Violet, I hope you know that I love you just as much, if not more than if you were my own daughter. Always remember that.”
Violet nodded. “I don’t want bubbles today. I just want to go outside with you. Can we bring the soccer ball?”
“Sure, but you still need a bath. We’ll make it really quick. In and out.”
Violet sighed and nodded, wiping the tears from her cheeks using the back of her hand. “I hate these stupid exercises. I get so scared sometimes. What if I make a mistake, or someone gets hurt again, like today?”
April didn’t know what to say. How do you explain a person like Ned to a six-year-old who just wants to be loved? “Was what happened today a mistake, Violet?” She asked. Violet had already admitted to doing it on purpose, but April felt it was important that Violet recognize just how much power and control she had. Because in the end, she really could hurt someone if she chose to.
Violet slowly shook her head. “No. I’m sorry. I just didn’t want to do it anymore. I hate them for being so mean.”
“They can’t see or hear you, Sweetie. You know that, right?”
Violet sniffled. “But Ned can, and he doesn’t care if I live or die, as long as I do the stupid exercises. He calls them games, but they’re not fun, and I hate his stupid rules.”
The despair in Violet’s tone was enough to break anyone’s heart, and April was coming to the end of her rope. She needed to get her niece out of here before someone got badly injured or worse. She couldn’t stop replaying Tanner’s words about that girl - Lana Murphy - in her mind. She’d been stabbed multiple times just like those soldiers had been today. Just like Violet would’ve been if she hadn’t been able to defend herself.
The sinking feeling in April’s gut went deeper as cold terror radiated throughout her chest. What if Ned or DynaTech hadbeen behind Lana’s murder? What if Violet wasn’t the only kid they were putting through this kind of hell? What if there were others?
***
Tanner still didn’t have any more information on the Arlo J case than he did that first day. The MC members hadn’t given him any real clues, and his second visit to the coffee shop had been a bust. The only thing the shy barista remembered about Arlo J’s order was that there were two people, and one of them had a hoodie on with the name of a bar on the back. She didn’t even remember if the second person was a man or a woman.
