With a sickening crunch, Allen struck the wall. He had been thrown with such incredible force, his head had burst like a ripe melon.

Elizabeth turned to her daughter. “Now, for you.” The rage she had shown just a moment before turned to a cold, hard focus. “Tommy!”

“Yes, mommy?” Tommy asked.

“Leave him alone for now. Come take care of your sister.”

Tommy hesitated. “But, Tabi…”

“Thomas Ian James, you will listen to your mother and kill this ungrateful bitch!“

Tommy flinched as though physically struck. He was over eight feet tall. His chemically enhanced strength would allow him to lift a diesel locomotive. He was, quite possibly, one of the most physically imposing people on the planet.

But in his mind, he was still an eight-year-old boy. And his mother was angry with him. He started to cry. “Y-y-yes, mo-mommy,” he sobbed.

He cleared the distance between him and Tabitha in three strides. “Sorry, T-tabi.”

“Tommy, don’t. Please.” She knew what she would need to do. “Don’t make me kill you.”