“MAMA.”THELITTLEGIRL’S voice is so soft I almost miss what she says, but it’s loud enough to snap me out of my internal freakout.
I don’t know how to deal with kids.
What the fuck am I supposed to say? “Hey kid, sorry about slicing your mom’s throat up. Say no to drugs and stay in school.”?
Fuck my life to hell today.
“Hey there, little parasite.”
My voice sounds more feral than calming. Even I recoil from it. The little girl holds her stuffed bear tighter and leans against the wall. Going on instinct, I hold my hand out, willing her to take it so I can dump her off on someone who won’t cause more damage.
“Wanna go for a ride in a really cool car?”
Little girls like cars, right?
“Where’s mama?” she asks, staring at the blood-soaked ground.
My eyebrows pinch together in confusion, and I look down at the woman I’d killed. Maybe this isn’t her mother, but that’s a problem to deal with later. I needed to get this kid the hell out of here.
Do kids know about strangers at this age?
Letting out a heavy sigh, I take a minute to catch my bearings and gather my thoughts. Parasite tilts her head the way I do when interested in something or hunting someone. Kids are creepy.
Long, straight brown hair cascades around her tiny shoulders. Her skin is pale, and she looks too thin. But perhaps she’s at a healthy weight. What the hell do I know about children? She wears a nightgown a little too big for her, and it’s filthy.
Whether or not this was her mother, this child is not being cared for. At least that’s what I tell myself since my conscience decided to show up to the party for once.
“Car?” she asks, observing me like she’s assessing the danger.
I cock an eyebrow and dip my chin once, letting my outstretched hand fall. My legs are beginning to ache, standing as still as I am, worried the slightest movement would spook her and send her running like a frightened animal.
Parasite raises her arms, signaling me to pick her up, so I stride over and do what’s asked of me. The feeling of a child on my hip is beyond foreign to me, and I have to adjust to get used to it. I look around the room. The carnage I’ve left for this kid to find is kind of fucked-up.
Okay, it’s a lot fucked-up.
“Cover your eyes, yeah?” I say to Parasite.
Her tear-stained face falls to my shoulder, and I resist the urge to drop her at the contact and leave her behind. Collecting my knives from the bodies, I place them in their new hiding places. My gun still sticks out from my cleavage, but there’s only so much a woman can do with one hand.
Parasite clings to me, not looking up the entire way back to my car. I put her in the back seat and strap her in the middle, the best I can do in a situation like this. Hurrying back to the driver’s side, I get in and look for my phone.
Pulling up Oren’s number, I dial and turn off the Bluetooth to be sure the little girl doesn’t hear everything. I’m not sure what kids understand at that age.
“Need cleanup?” Oren asks when he picks up my call.
“Yes, but I have a situation, and I need to come to your house.” Looking back at the heavy-lidded child in the rearview mirror, now smudged with blood from my clothes.
“I’m alone. I’ll leave the door unlocked.”
After I hang up with Oren, I dial our doctor and ask her to meet me at Oren’s house immediately. I don’t know the situation with the kid, but I want her checked by a medical professional.
It doesn’t take long to get to Oren’s place. I flew through the city at breakneck speed and hit the brakes hard when I reached his house. Oren stumbles out of his house barefoot and shirtless. I bite back the urge to ogle and check on the tiny human asleep in the backseat.
“The fuck is going on?” Oren says when he opens my passenger door.
I throw my finger up to shush him and point to the back. His brows furrow, then his eyes dart to the back, widening when he sees the child slumped over, now covered in blood.
The situation looks worse than it is. I snicker when his eyes widen, and he scrambles to get to the sleeping child.