Lean on Me Read Online Free PDF Page B

her hiding place.
    “ Hector no!” Dahlia
screamed. She dropped the phone. “Don’t do this! You don’t have to
do this!”
    As he ran the last hundred yards, his ear
blistered with the sounds of his brother dragging the love of his
life by the hair. He heard the thud of where she kicked Hector like
they had practiced. Hector grunted and released her. She landed
what sounded like a hard punch, an elbow and at least one kick
before his brother overpowered her again. From the sound of it, she
was giving him a real beating.
    But Hector kept coming.
    Troy skidded to a halt at the edge of the
forest. Through the sliding glass door, he saw Hector throw Dahlia
into the living room. She kicked him in the groin once, then again.
Hector jumped onto her. With his knees holding down her arms,
Hector pummeled with his fist the only woman Troy had ever loved.
She kneed him hard in the back and writhed under him. Her actions
only enraged Hector more. Troy was about to cross the grass
backyard when Hector flipped her onto her stomach.
    With blood cascading across her beautiful
face, Dahlia looked across the yard to see him standing at the edge
of the forest. Their eyes caught and she shook her head. She
mouthed “I love you.” Hector shot her through the back of the head
with a shotgun. Transfixed, Troy watched blood and brain matter
blow across the living room and splatter onto the sliding glass
door.
    “ Go now,” the apparition of
Jesse Abreu appeared in front of him. In the almost three years
since Jesse died, he had never said even one word to Troy. Troy
blinked with surprise. “He thinks he’s seen you.”
    Troy was rooted to the spot. Jesse created a
ball of hot energy and threw it at him. Troy jerked from the shock,
spun in place, and took off into the forest.
    “ I’ll convince him you’re
in the house,” Jesse yelled after him. “Call Alex!”
    Running full speed down the path, Troy tried
to speed dial Alex. His phone was still connected to Dahlia’s. He
heard Hector barrel through the house. He clicked for another line
and dialed Alex.
    “ How’s the almost married
man?” Alex asked.
    “ I need pick up,” Troy
said.
    “ How many?” Alex matched
the intensity of his voice.
    “ Three,” Troy said.
“Dahlia’s dead.”
    “ The Jakker’s in the air
returning the chopper,” Alex said. “Police?”
    “ I’ll call them when…” Troy
started.
    The house exploded behind him. The heat and
fireball blew through the forest. The force of the explosion blew
Troy forward. He landed in a full plank position. Ahead of him, he
heard the boys scream in terror. The trees around him caught
fire.
    “ I’ll meet you at the drop
off,” Troy said.
    “ Fifteen minutes,” Alex
said. “Call the police. Out.”
    Troy dialed 9-1-1 and had a brief
conversation with the woman on the other end. He saw a woman
murdered. The house blew up. He gave the address and clicked off
the phone.
    “ Hermes!” Troy yelled.
“Hector James!”
    Ignoring his bare feet, legs and arms, he
threw himself into the blackberry thicket. The thorns tore at his
exposed flesh. He reached the center in moments to find the boys
huddled together on the ground. They screamed when he touched their
backs. He pulled Hector James into his arms and Hermes threw
himself at him. With the boys clinging to him, Troy opened the trap
door that held his supplies.
    A Green Beret, Troy knew medical issues came
before anything else. He checked the boys. They were not visibly
injured. He poured rubbing alcohol over his bleeding feet, wrapped
them in gauze, and jammed them into a spare pair of socks and
boots. He set the boys down for a moment to pull on a pair of
camouflage pants and a jacket. He grabbed a gallon of water and two
fleece blankets. He doused the blankets in the water. He wrapped
the wet blankets around the boys and picked them up. He threw on a
camouflage wide brimmed hat to cover his head from the fire.
    Troy’s senses focused on whether someone