Read Online The Circle of Eight by J Robert Kennedy - Free Book Online Page A

gripping her had fallen away.
    “Mommy,
look out!” she cried before she reached her.
    Sylvia
spun around, squeezing off round after round before even seeing her target,
another suit coming out of Jenny’s room. Her last shot caught the man in the
shoulder, sending him spinning to the floor.
    Picking
up Jenny, she raced down the stairs, grabbed her purse off the console table
and rushed out the door toward her car. She pulled the fob out of her purse,
unlocked the doors, and pushed Jenny into the backseat, slamming the door
behind her.
    She
climbed in the driver’s seat, jamming the keys in the ignition and started the
car as she closed the door. She began to back out when Jenny’s face blocked the
rearview mirror.
    “But,
Mommy, you forgot to strap me in!”
    “Do it
yourself please, you know how. We need to get out of here now,” she replied,
trying to keep her voice as calm as possible.
    “But,
Mommy!”
    “Jenny,
just do it!” she yelled, immediately regretting it as Jenny began to bawl. Her
head disappeared as she climbed over to the booster seat, Sylvia revving the
engine and backing out of the driveway, cranking the wheel to the left, then
putting it in drive and flooring it, praying her tires would hold out. She
checked her rearview mirror and could see Jenny buckling herself into her seat,
still sniffling.
    “That’s
good, baby. Just as good as Mommy or Daddy could do!”
    Her
voice was shaking, but Jenny didn’t seem to notice, instead beaming in pride at
her successful attempt. As Sheila’s eyes shifted from Jenny to the road ahead,
she saw something in the rearview mirror.
    The man
she had shot stumbling toward a black SUV parked on the road, its passenger
door already open.
    God
please help us!

 
     
    The Unit, Fort Bragg, North Carolina
     
    Dawson gave his Godson Bryson Belme a hug, then pushed him toward
the other children who were now playing outside, the families safely moved onto
the base, a squad of military police surrounding the area for additional
security. He turned to Bryson’s father, and Dawson’s best friend, Mike “Red”
Belme.
    “He
seems to be handling it well.”
    “He’s
got no idea what’s going on. Shirley on the other hand is a mess, but is hiding
it well.”
    “She’s a
brave woman. She’ll be fine.”
    Dawson’s
phone rang and he grabbed it, looking at the call display.
    His
heart leapt as he took the call.
    “Sis,
are you okay?”
    “No! Oh
God no! There were two men in the house, they had Jenny! Oh God, you’ve gotta
help us!”
    “Where
are you?” asked Dawson as he motioned for Red to follow him.
    “I shot
one of them! Oh God, I don’t know how you do it! I shot one of them! I killed
him! And I shot the other one too but he didn’t die.”
    “Are you
out of the house?” asked Dawson as he sprinted toward the Op Center. Red pulled
his pass out and ran ahead of Dawson, clearing a path for them, occasionally
none too gently.
    “Yes!
We’re in my car, but they’re following us!”
    Red slid
his card through the security scanner and the door beeped, Red pulling it open. Dawson ran inside, followed by his friend.
    “Trace
this call!” yelled Red, pointing at Dawson’s phone, shouting the number to the
room of techs manning terminals. The Ops Center Chief, Sarah Michaels, pointed
to one of the techs.
    “You
take it.” She turned to Red and Dawson. “We’re in the middle of an op, Alpha
Team. What do you need?”
    “Do you
know where the nearest police station is?” Dawson asked his sister.
    “Yeah,
yeah, I think so. I’m not sure.”
    “Okay,
head there now, but leave this call connected, okay?”
    “Yes. Oh
God, Burt, what have you done? Why are they after us?”
    “Don’t
worry about that now, just let me do my job.” He turned to Michaels. “I need
this call traced, then geo tracked so we can get her to a police station. My
sister is being chased by the same people responsible for Stucco’s death.”
    Michaels
nodded, pressing a