Dante
I spotted my bro’s green Chevy just down the road from our old boss’s house, the mansion hidden by massive trees. It was the address I’d been given, the same fucking one that had held the porn party I’d been forced to participate in. It was also where Kara and Beth had been forced to play Russian Roulette in front of a crowd. They had only survived because of an undercover cop and Nike—a mate of my brother’s. Which was probably why Nike was with Ash now. He was getting out of Ash’s car, looking much harder than the boy my younger brother used to hate. But Sledge and Nike had put their differences aside, and since Ash trusted Nike, I did too. Plus, the bloke was now working as a bodyguard, someone I definitely wanted by my side today.
I pulled up behind Ash’s car and got out, my dad and Murderer following suit. My phone went off in my dad’s hand as we walked over to my bro and his mate. I snatched it off him, ready to rip into Jade. I’d gotten my dad to answer my calls on the ride over, which was a big mistake. Jade had whined to him, trying to talk us out of saving Kara, saying it wasn’t worth risking our lives for her. And my bloody dad had agreed with him! He’d even joked that if Ant didn’t kill her, he’d do it for free. I’d told him to go fuck himself and not to answer any more calls from Jade.
I barked into my phone, “What?!”
But instead of Jade’s Texan voice coming over the line, a Kiwi chick replied. “Can I please speak to Clara? She isn’t answering her phone, and I need to talk to her.”
“Who’s this?”
“Georgie,” she replied.
I hung up, having no time for Clara’s friend. I lifted my chin at my brother and Nike in a friendly hello. “You ready?” I asked, stopping in front of them.
Nike opened his jacket, flashing his gun. If I wasn’t so concerned for Kara, I’d have asked him who he was working for, because he looked like he’d stepped out of a mafia movie, the thin scar running down his check adding to the effect.
“I’ve killed the father, now it’s the son’s turn,” Nike said, the dude having shot Craven dead at the porn party.
“They’ll have cameras—”
“I’ve already disabled the ones on the periphery. I’ll take care of the rest once I’m in.”
“Sweet,” I replied, more than a little impressed, but then again, he had worked for Craven, security one of his jobs. I shifted my gaze to my brother, making sure he was all right with being involved. “You ’kay with this, bro? ’Specially with your history with Ant.”
Ash bared his teeth, no doubt thinking about all the shit that had gone down at high school. Ant had attacked him in the locker room, the assault turning into an attempted rape. Although Ant was a big mofo, Ash had fought hard, beating the shit out of the sick bastard. As a result, Ant had been sent to a borstal, sealing his hatred of Ash and anyone linked to him.
“I’m definitely fine,” Ash said, “and if anyone gets to take Ant out, it’ll be me.” His gaze shifted to Nike.
Nike held his hands up. “You can have him, but if Big Mack’s there, he’s mine to kill. That sick fuck sexually harassed Corey.”
“He did what?” Ash growled.
“The dirty pervert felt Corey up in the back of a car when we were ordered to bring Corey in. The others in the car embarrassed Big Mack enough to stop him from doin’ more. I wanted to put a bullet in his head, but couldn’t do shit. Those fuckers would’ve killed me if I’d stepped outta line a second time. I’d already been warned after I’d punched Big Mack for sexually harassing one of the female workers. But now I don’t work for those cunts, nuthin’s holdin’ me back.”
“Fine, he’s yours to kill,” I said.
A nasty smile pulled at his lips, his dead eyes lighting up.
“Right,” I said. “Let’s get this rolling.”
We headed down the road to the main gate, while Nike indicated to Murderer to follow him, asking if he’d watch his back. Murderer nodded, following Nike down the side of the property. I didn’t need to ask what Nike was up to, the bloke knowing the property like the back of his hand.
Trees blocked our view of most of the homes on the road, but what we could see was pretty damn impressive. The properties were massive, this part of Remuera for billionaires, not millionaire chumps. We stopped at Ant’s gate, noticing one change. A box with a guard was out front, something that hadn’t been there last year. But after what went down at the porn party, I wasn’t surprised that Ant had amped up security.
The forty-something man inside the booth looked out at us with suspicion. “What do you want?” he asked, his expression also concerned. I couldn’t blame him, because we didn’t exactly look like upstanding citizens, especially with my dad staring him down with his so-called serial killer eyes.
“We’re here for Kara,” I said.
“I don’t know any Kara,” he replied, not taking his eyes off my dad.
I thrust out the photo of her tied up, finally getting his full attention. “Then fuckin’ explain this,” I snapped.
He took it, his eyes widening. “What the fuck?” He snatched up his phone. “Hold up,” he said, dialling through. Within seconds, he was talking to someone over the line. “There are three tattooed guys at the gate, claiming you’re gonna shoot a blonde bird if they don’t show. They have a photo of her tied up and your address on the back.” He frowned, his concerned gaze returning to me. “What’s your name?”
“Dante Rata.”
His attention shifted to my brother and dad, asking for their names too. Once he had them, he repeated our names over the phone. He paused, obviously listening to whatever the other person was saying. “Yes, Mr. Torres,” he said, confirming it was Ant he was talking to. He hung up, his gaze roaming over us. “He wants to see you all.” He pressed a button, the big mother of a gate slowly opening.
My dad’s phone started ringing. He held up his hand for us to wait. “Speak,” he said into the phone. He frowned, his eyes going to me. “Who?” He grunted, then lowered the phone. “It’s Jade—”
“For fuck’s sake, tell him to stop callin’, we’re gettin’ Kara back whether he likes it or not.”
“This isn’t ’bout Kara. He said that Clara’s taken off with a bloke—”
“Who?!” I yelled, not believing what I was hearing.
My dad relayed the question to Jade. Once he had his answer, he refocused on me. “He has no idea, other than the bloke has a Mercedes and is blonde.”
Ash swore. “Simon’s blonde and has a Mercedes.”
Wanting to know what the fuck was going on, I whipped my phone out to call Clara.