NINETEEN
Footsteps approach down the hallway and reach my ears through the cracked door.
We didn’t have to wait long. It was just enough time to race out to the tarmac, plant the bomb on the airplane, and get repositioned inside.
Ten minutes after the ambush, car doors slammed outside and we were in position.
Despite the epic importance of the next few minutes, my heartbeat remains slow and steady. This is what I was built for. This is what I pushed away for the last two years, to try to create a new life for me and Jade. But what I am, what I truly am at my core, can never be changed.
I’m a killer.
And it’s time to take lives.
The only concern is assuring Jade doesn’t get caught in any crossfire.
A quick peek at the gap in the door tells me I'm dealing with two of Tarek’s men. The first one I recognize. Emil has been with Tarek for at least half a decade. What he lacks in the brains department, he makes up for with reliability and willingness to do whatever he’s asked without question. He's the perfect employee for a twisted fuck like my brother.
The guy he's talking to as they make their way closer to me is new. At least to me.
“…radio…no answer…”
They’ve probably tried to get in touch with the two stone cold losers on the floor next to me. Yet, they don’t have their guns drawn.
Are they that fucking stupid?
More car doors slam and someone comments on the broken window on the front of the building.
Shit.
Just what I need…
“Tarek! Please! No.”
Her voice cuts through everything else going on around me.
A dog barks.
Bruiser? That motherfucker took my woman and my dog?
My heart screams for me to run to the window…to see her…to take out Tarek right now. But my training tells me to wait. This only works if we can ensure she’s safe and Tarek and his men die. That only happens if I follow the plan.
And the plan starts with these two asshats strolling down the hall toward me without a fucking care in the world.
Two well-placed shots drop them both mid-step.
Lorenc rushes out and drags the bodies into one of the empty offices while I make my way down the hall toward the front entrance and duck into the first door before the reception area.
Waiting sucks.
But it isn’t long before familiar voices enter the building.
Enrik’s with him. So is Behar, his pilot.
These men I once called friends and my brother, are now the only thing standing between me and the woman I love.
“Go make sure the plane’s ready. Load the bags. We’ll be right out.” My brother’s order will be followed, leaving him and Jade unprotected. Hopefully.
This is our chance. I just hope Lorenc is ready too.
I step out into the hallway, exposing myself to Tarek and anyone else who may be lingering with a gun.
My eyes immediately find Jade’s green, red-rimmed ones.
“Griffin!” She lunges toward me, only to be yanked back by Tarek. His nostrils flare, and his cheeks redden. The muscle in his jaw ticks.
Tears stream down Jade’s face as his fingers tighten around her upper arm. I want nothing more than to shoot off those white knuckles to free her from his grip. But rash actions will get me nowhere.
I approach slowly.
A sneer curls the corner of Tarek’s lips. “Well, brother, I’m impressed. You’ve managed to survive everything I’ve thrown at you. I’ll admit, I never expected it to get this far. But it’s irrelevant. You can’t stop me.”
I grin at him. “I already have.”
An explosion rocks the tarmac, shattering the windows of the building and sending glass flying toward us. Tarek loosens his grip on Jade just enough for her to break free, but before she can move toward me, Lorenc steps out from his hiding place and grabs her.
I nod to them. “Go!”
She struggles with him, kicking and hitting him. “No! Griffin! Don’t do this!” Her muffled cries dissipate as he drags her toward the entrance and disappears.
Tarek recovers from the shockwave of the blast and registers what just happened, taking in the carnage of what was once his plane. Only after seeing that does he look toward the entrance where Jade was just taken.
He turns his furious eyes on me…the same eyes I see every fucking day when I look in the mirror.
“You may have won this battle, but you will never win this war. All you’ve done is prolong the inevitable. Anywhere you go, anyone you try to become, I will find you. Rea is mine! And I will have her, no matter how long it takes.”
I scoff and offer him a grin. “That’s where you’re wrong, brother. You’ve underestimated me from the very beginning. This ends now. You will never lay a finger on her again.”
A vile sneer twists his mouth. “Oh, I’ve already laid much more than a finger on her…”
Rage turns my vision red, and I draw my guns at the same time he reaches for his. He lunges for the open door of one of the offices as I send a stream of bullets toward him.
Fire sears my gut but doesn’t stop me from advancing toward the door.
This ends now.