No one, especially not a woman, should be brutalized like that. Just seeing her bruises brought back the shocking pain of his father’s big fist hitting his face. The way a kick in the belly had left him curled up, unable to even breathe. The nauseating agony of a busted bone.

With a low grunt, he shook himself free of the fucked-up memories. “I’ll check the ro—”

A movement caught his eye.

A little boy wiggled out from under a bed and darted toward the woman.

Hawk grabbed the kid before he landed on her. “Uh-uh. She’s hurt, buddy.”

The boy went nuts, squirming and kicking and fighting to get to Kit—and yeah, this must be her son. “Aric.”

At his name, the kid went limp, staring up at Hawk with the biggest blue eyes he’d ever seen. Haunted, terrified eyes. His high voice was the merest whisper. “Mommy’s hurt.”

Jesus. Hawk felt like someone had stabbed him right in the chest. “Yeah, she’s hurt. But we’ll take her to the hospital. Get her help.”

On the floor, Kit opened her eyes. “Aric.” Her voice wasn’t any louder than her son’s. She blinked, trying to focus. Saw her boy in Hawk’s arms. Her gaze rose to meet Hawk’s and she…looked…at him. The kind of look that penetrated past the surface. Her voice was barely a whisper. “Keep him safe.”

Before he could answer, tell her that no kid would want to be around him, her gaze dropped to her son. “Aric, stay with him.”

A second later, she was out cold.

“Cabrones,” Caz was muttering as he rose.

Bull and Frankie appeared in the doorway—and Frankie stared at the child in Hawk’s arms. “You found him.”

Hawk nodded.

Caz turned to Bull and motioned to the unconscious woman. “’Mano, you carry her. We’ll take guard.”

“On it.” Bull lifted Kit gently.

“I can take the boy,” Caz said to Hawk.

Hawk tried to hand him over, but the kid had a death grip on his vest, and his little mouth was compressed with determination.

He didn’t make a sound, though—a lesson often learned from catching a backhand to the mouth for speaking. That’s how Hawk had learned.

“We’re good,” Hawk muttered.

Caz blinked in surprise before smiling in agreement. “Then I’ll guard your six, ’mano.”

“We. We’ll guard.” Frankie swept up her staff and gave Hawk a firm nod.

As he walked past her with the boy, she followed, ready to defend them with everything she had.

Hawk snorted softly. Bull had found himself a stand-up woman.

The PZ women had already disappeared into the night when Frankie followed the others out of the building with Caz bringing up the rear.