Page 22 of Rescuing Mary

Annie nodded again.

“And when Casey was in trouble? What happened then?”

“I went to the safe room and daddy and Bug Man raced to save her.”

“Right,” Rayne agreed. “And when Chase was hurt when the bad guy came and blew up your old house?”

Mary winced. She wasn’t sure Rayne should remind Annie of that day, but the little girl didn’t get upset.

“Me and Mommy made a ton of food and brought it to his place so Sadie didn’t have to cook.”

“And when the bad guys took you and your mommy from your car and put you in that metal box? You remember that all of the guys came and got you out, right? They worked together, making sure everyone was safe, and everyone went home safe and sound.”

Annie nodded again, a little more vigorously.

“No matter what, you and your mommy aren’t alone anymore,” Rayne said, shifting so she was sitting at the edge of the couch. “Your daddy and Ghost, and Coach, Beatle, Truck, and Blade and everyone else, are going to do everything in their power to come home to us. But if something happens and they can’t, you better believe Truck and Chase and Hollywood will still be here for you. You and your mom will never be hungry. You’ll never be lonely. And you’ll always have us as friends. Understand?”

Annie nodded, but looked up at her mom. “I miss Daddy.”

“Oh, baby. So do I.”

“But he’s protecting the world from the bad guys.”

“He is,” Emily agreed.

“It’s important.”

“Yup.”

“Do you think…” Her voice trailed off.

“What, Annie?”

“Do you think he’ll be back before my brother is borned?”

“I think he’ll do everything in his power to make sure that happens,” Emily reassured her daughter. “But, Annie, you don’t know this is a brother,” she said gently. “It might be a sister.”

“It’s not,” Annie said stubbornly. “It’s a boy.”

Emily sighed and looked up at the ceiling in exasperation. Mary knew she’d had the same conversation with Annie more than once in the past. Annie was set on having a baby brother, and nothing anyone said could change her mind.

Mary thought they were crazy for keeping the gender of the baby a secret until he or she was born, but they’d decided as a family to wait, and Emily was determined to do just that.

“I heard your dad changed out the motor in your tank to a more powerful one. Want to show me?” Sadie asked Annie, changing the subject.

And as if she hadn’t just asked about her father dying and never coming home again, Annie nodded and quickly climbed out of the armchair. She ran over to Sadie and grabbed her hand, pulling her up from the couch. “Yeah! Come on!”

“Thanks,” Emily mouthed as the other woman was towed past her.

Sadie blew her a kiss and then they were gone, leaving the women alone to talk about subjects little Annie shouldn’t necessarily be privy to.

“How do you feel?” Casey asked Emily. “What did the doctor say after that thing at the bank?”

“I’m good,” Emily said. “He explained that the pain was probably stress related. He told me to go home and put my feet up and relax.”

Everyone chuckled. “As if,” Rayne said.

“Right?” Emily agreed. But her smile quickly died. “Anyone know where they went?”