Foreword:
Part VI here includes a rewrite of the ending for Part V based on some feedback that, rightfully so, pointed out some issues. This series is meant to be relatively light-hearted with semi-realistic reactions to occurrences happening in the world, and I broke that rule in the previous version. I've redone the ending to keep truer to that rule.
Bully Troubles (Ending Rewrite)
Rina lay in Callie's arms, eyes half-hooded, a dopey grin on her face, as she held Kimi's hand.
"Did Daddy breed you too," Kimi asked in a hushed tone.
"Not yet, but I think I might be a buttslut," Rina answered. "You should try it. Oh. My. God."
"Okay, but make sure to get bred so that we can both be pregnant together." Rina giggled as she patted her sister's cheek.
"Okay, but this one wasn't really my fault," Josh said.
Callie glared at Josh. "What part of 'rescue' didn't you understand, Daddy?"
"I mean, it all kinda worked out, right?" Josh asked.
Callie closed her eyes and took another deep breath. This wasn't daddy's fault. She had wanted to introduce them anyway. It was just the timing that sucked. She exhaled slowly.
"I'm sorry, Daddy," Callie said. "I was just so worried that something terrible was going to happen."
"It was so amazing," Rina mumbled.
Josh knelt down and wrapped her in his soft embrace. "It's okay now. Everyone's safe."
"Oh, not everyone," Callie growled. "I'm going to smash that little bitch's face in. I'm going to stuff her into that hole and have everyone fuck her raw. I'm going to stream her face so that the whole world knows exactly what she is."
Callie rapidly spiraled into an uncontrollable rage. Her fingers dug into her palms as she shook.
How dare they? How dare they hurt her family? How dare they all let this happen? Who else had known and let them be abused like this? Why hadn't anyone stopped this?
A soft humming entered her ears, bringing her out of her nosedive. Her body rocked gently back and forth, wrapped protectively in Josh's arms. Her tunnel vision began to expand, the worried faces of her cousins staring back at her.
They were the victims here, not her.
She held out her arms, and the girls rushed in to hug her. She burst into tears and squeezed them tightly.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry I wasn't there for you. I didn't know. I'm so sorry. It'll be okay, girls. We're here now, you'll be okay."
Josh encircled them all and kept rocking them as they cried.
"How? How will you take care of it?" Kimi asked. "Audrey and Winter have been abusing us horribly for months, and no one has done anything. Not even our own parents."
"Daddy, can we get dad to help?" Callie asked, rubbing her eyes.
That was the smart play, get the lawyer involved.
"I'll call him from the car. Let's get everyone back to the house, first."
"I'm not leaving them with their psycho parents. They're staying with us until dad crucifies them all."
###
"And the girls are alright? They're doing okay? They're going to their counselling sessions?"
Charles asked over the speakerphone.
"Yes, they're doing fine, Charles," Josh answered as Callie lay beside him. "We'll keep them safe."
"Good. Good. Ah, the case, yeah, it's pretty much a slam dunk. Everyone from the school board to the teachers and staff starting throwing each other under the bus once the search warrant turned up all the registered complaints of physical and sexual abuse. The girls, Audrey and Winter, tried to delete their data, but a warrant got the provider to turn over all those records. Blackmail, extortion, and threats. Kimi and Rina weren't the first either. The parents are big investors, so they likely had the administration sweep it all under the rug."
"Thanks, Charles."
"Don't mention it. It's family. I'm just sorry that I hadn't known any of this was happening. I should have checked on them more regularly."
"Don't beat yourself up, daddy," Callie said. "There's plenty of blame to share. I should have checked on them too."
"Alright. Well, I need to get back to this case. There are still a lot of threads to pull at. And, Josh? Thank you. Really. You've saved my family again. I can't possibly repay you, but I'll try."
"Like you said, Charles. It's family. They're family, as are you."
###
Recruiting
Sevana had seen a lot of bad shit. She'd been running drugs since she was thirteen, seeing the worst humanity had to offer. Husbands selling their wives by the hour, young girls turning tricks, loan sharks busting knees, she'd seen it all. Then she'd moved up, hopped on a sweet ride with Domingo as he rose through the ranks. Now she was running production and distribution for him. They'd chased out the gangs, taken over the streets, and cleaned the trash out. But she'd never seen anything quite like this.
"Who the fuck did this to her?" she asked, her mind still not fully wrapping itself around what she was seeing in the pictures. It was one thing to kill someone. It was another thing to do... this. The message was clear though.
Mess with us, and we'll break a foot off in your ass. Literally.
"Uh, she's still pretty fucked up. We can't get much out of her. She keeps babbling about a slut, though." Mateo, her second in command, swallowed heavily before continuing. "We did, ah, get the foot out. We're pretty sure it's Luis'. Same boots he used to wear."
Sevana dropped the pictures on the table. She wiped her face, her hand trembling slightly as she did so.
When was the last time she'd dealt with body parts? Fingers, sure, but an entire leg? Whoever these people were, they didn't play around.
"And the rest of him?"
"Nothing definitive, but we think he was in the car. The, uh, the one that blew up the shop."
Right. The car. The one that had gunned it sixty miles-per-hour into one of the distribution centers and then burned the place down.
"Surveillance?"
"Nothing. Just came barreling into the strip mall. Should we send someone else to the tattoo shop?"
It hadn't even been a shakedown, just two people to talk, and they'd killed one and blown up one of their shops in response. What the hell would they do if she tried to send in more?
"Do we know of any of their other distribution zones? Other shops? Anything?"
"Nothing. This is the only place."
It was like they were daring them to raid. This group already knew their local spots. They'd shown that by firebombing their main shop on the east side. This was bigger than just a new player, this was a turf war.
"Don't move on them. We need to know more. This is a trap. They're baiting us into attacking. Call up our guy at the station. See what he can find out."
Mateo nodded and left the little office, pulling his phone out as he closed the door behind him.
Sevana glanced again at the photo. The leg, severed at the knee, jut out of Carmen's ass. She shuddered at whoever had thought to do that. He had to be a complete psycho.
###
Josh whistled along to the morning tunes as he whipped the eggs with the whisk. The frying pan was already sizzling with butter, and he had bowls set aside with diced peppers, onions, bacon bits, and cheese. He poured the eggs into the pan where it spit and quickly firmed up. He tilted the pan and poked at the mixture with a spatula until it became solid. Jennifer didn't like them to be too runny, so he let it cook thoroughly before dropping in the ingredients and flipping it over.
Josh served the omelet onto a plate, garnishing it with ketchup, just how she liked it, and adding some fresh orange slices. He set it on the tray with fresh orange juice and cup of black tea, two sugar and no cream. He strolled down the hallway, balancing it on one hand, and knocked on the door.
"Good morning, princess. I have breakfast. Can I come in?"
"Of course, daddy," came the response.
Josh entered and presented the tray, placing it at her bedside as she sat up. Her robe hung loose, her bare leg draped elegantly on the covers.
"Aw, daddy. You didn't have to."
Josh kissed her cheek, wiping away the little tear. She'd been getting more emotional lately.
"Anything for my sweet baby." He then rubbed her abdomen, which had just started forming a bump. "And anything for my other sweet baby."