Chapter Twenty
Terror-filled screams echoed through the safe house, breaking the silence of the dark night.
Jack Hudson rolled out of bed and grabbed his gun in one smooth motion just as a large Golden Retriever landed on the bed with a flying leap.
"Levi? Jack? What's wrong?" Sue's sleepy, scared voice stopped Jack's rush toward the door.
He quickly flipped on a lamp. "SCREAMING." He signed. "GET BOYS. GO TO BUNKER. IT'S OKAY. I LOVE YOU."
Jack met Brandon and Jake in the living room, guns drawn. "What's going on?" Jack winced as the screams from the Manning side of the house reached a new level of terror.
"I don't know." Brandon whispered as they advanced toward the other side of the house. "Is that Jade or Tara?"
"Jade."
"Where's Sue?"
"The bunker."
"Why aren't you with her?"
Jack glanced at the marshal and reached for the door to the Manning side just as it opened.
"It's okay."
All three men jerked their guns toward the ceiling when they saw who was on the other side of the door.
"It's okay." Tara repeated, stepping slowly through the door with a wailing Robert and Stanley. "Jade's having a nightmare. It's a bad one. This could go on for awhile."
The men turned concerned eyes toward the doorway. "What can we do?"
"Nothing." Tara shook her head, her eyes filling with tears. "Bobby's voice is the only thing that can pull her out of it and sometimes even that doesn't work. We have a sedative, but if she doesn't calm down first it will only trap her in the nightmare." Tara swayed with the twins, trying to calm them.
Jack handed his gun to Jake. "Here." He reached for Stanley. "Hey, Stan Little Man, it's okay. Aunt Jade's okay." Jack pressed a kiss on the toddler's dark brown hair. He looked over at Tara and Robert. The boy had his thumb stuck in his mouth, large tears falling from his green eyes.
"Sue and the kids are in the bunker. Let's get you and the boys down there where it will be a little quieter. I'll stay up here with Bobby." Jack glanced over at the marshals.
Brandon nodded. "Jake, you go down with the ladies and kids. I'll stand guard tonight."
With Sue, Tara, and the kids settled in the underground bunker, Jack stood in the doorway of Jade's bedroom watching Bobby.
"It's okay, kid. It's okay. You're safe, Tagalong. It's me. It's Bobby. You're safe. It's Bobby. Come on, little shelia, wake up." Bobby sat on Jade's bed, pinning his sister's thrashing body against his strong chest, tears streaming down his face. He raised anguished green eyes to meet Jack's.
"I'm so sorry." Jack mouthed silently, knowing that the sound of his voice would increase Jade's terror.
He realized for the first time that every time Jade relived her captivity and torture through nightmares and flashbacks, Bobby was forced to relive it too.