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“It’s okay, bébé You’re gonna be fine”

A hand clasped on his shoulder, and he looked up to see understanding in his best friend’s eyes “Her feet are facing the open door If I get her legs out, you can support the rest of her while we ease her out of the car You want to hand your snake to me first, before we move Friday?”

“To hell with him He can damn well crawl out of there on his own steam”

There was furious rattling in reply He ignored the reptile and reached for the woht in his arms and they maneuvered her out of the car Pain, she was in pain His stomach roiled at the sound

“I’ve got you,” he soothed, hoping like hell he wasn’t causingher

“Striker?” The whispered word sent relief flooding through his system

“Who else, bébé? Don’t you worry none, we got you”

He cradled her head Bruises ht of theone before she felt the effect of them His diamondback slithered around until it was curled on Friday’s stoe to knock the damn snake from his perch

Slowly, carefully, the two men lifted her out of the upturned car Mace cradled her in his arot to his feet As soon as he did, he took the fragile bundle fro to be in anyone’s are to lock her away and ensure she never hurt again was al

“Striker?” She sounded less disorientated this time “The car crashed”

He kissed her hair “I know But we’ve got you now”

“My head hurts” It was barely a whisper

“We’re taking you to the jet We’ll get it sorted as soon as we’re on board” He looked at his partner “Is there a medic nearby we can use if we need one?”

“I’ll make some calls, see e can trust” Mace fished his satellite phone out of his pocket and did just that

“Your snake saved me,” Friday said softly