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“Right. I got her. You guys get the rest.” Mad Dog clamped his beefy hand around my upper arm.
I exchanged a silent look with Barry as we started across a concrete-paved courtyard. Barry gave me a subtle nod. He was with me.
Going in, I noted the barbed wire above the walls and multiple security cameras. Martin was more paranoid than ever. I had a feeling he had reason to be.
Entering the high-rise, we traveled a long corridor and went through one of several guarded checkpoints, including one with a metal gate that had to be rolled back before we were allowed to board an elevator.
Surrounded by Martin’s men, we rode in silence to the top. The walls were mirrored. There wouldn’t be any sudden movement that wouldn’t be seen.
I exchanged another look with Barry, who wore a determined expression. His brown eyes were my firm foundation. He was an imposing and a comforting presence. My sister and Tommy were on one side of him, and Claire and Missy were on the other. Barry gave me a subtle nod, telling me again silently that he thought I had this. I hoped he was right.
We exited the elevator, only to be stopped at another checkpoint. This one was guarded by men with M4 carbines. A code was entered into a panel without delay, and another metal gate swung open. On the other side, a man I never expected to see again was waiting.
“I’ll take her.” Arturo went to Claire, not me, and grabbed her arm.
Mad Dog shoved the barrel of his gun in Barry’s side. Mr. Gruff took me.
“C’mon, beautiful.”
Grabbing me by the upper arm, Mr. Gruff gestured to a thick wood door ahead that was open. I almost faltered at the sound of the voice inside.
“You’re in no position to threaten me.”
Stepping over the threshold, I saw Martin first. He stood opposite Kyle, who was battered and bloody. Unbuttoning his jacket, Martin revealed the Glock in his holster. He looked like he always had—like the devil in a dark suit.
Kyle’s defiant stance didn’t change, but his gaze locked on that firearm. He was going to make a grab for it. I sucked in a breath, and Martin’s bodyguard noticed.
“Hold it right there, Murphy,” Arturo called out.
My gaze swung to the man who had helped me escape my tormenter all those years ago. Arturo didn’t acknowledge me, not now, and not outside the penthouse either.
I got it. He had no loyalty to me.
Striding through the penthouse, he didn’t go to Kyle. He went to my niece and grabbed her, and Kyle went instantly still.
Arturo was Martin’s man, and he wasn’t stupid. Kyle wasn’t going to do anything that might put Claire in danger. But just in case, the men with automatic weapons stepped inside behind us. We were surrounded.
Kyle’s eyes were active, taking in the situation. Even with both swollen, he’d obviously figured all that out like I had. He didn’t look directly at any of us. He was trying not to show what we meant to him while doing the math.
I was too. With Rachel, Missy, Tommy, Barry, Claire, Kyle, and me, there were seven of us versus six of them. But Martin’s guys and Martin carried weapons, and with Claire in Arturo’s clutches and me with Mr. Gruff, Kyle and Barry weren’t going to push it. Unsurprisingly, Martin had a well-thought-out strategy for controlling us.
“Kyle!” Claire cried out. She wasn’t accustomed to the harsh rules of this world like Kyle and I were. Unwittingly, she revealed her hand—Kyle meant everything to her.
“Claire.” Kyle breathed out her name.
Their gazes met and melded.
My niece’s eyes widened behind her lenses when she noted Kyle’s condition. He had a cut on his temple, blood on his ripped shirt, his eyes were swollen, and he was favoring his midsection. He probably had some busted ribs.
Kyle was a product of this environment, but my niece wasn’t. The differences were stark, and yet it didn’t matter. It was their love that did, and that was something Martin didn’t understand.
“Get your hands off her.” Kyle snarled, hitting Arturo with the full force of his rage.
“Be quiet, Kyle Murphy,” Martin said. “Or Arturo will put his hands on your girl where you wouldn’t like them to be, and I’ll make you watch.”
I tilted my head. It was strange that Martin used Kyle’s full name. I wondered if that was his way of reminding himself that though Kyle was his nephew, he was Collin’s son.
“No one is laying a hand on my niece.” I yanked my arm free from Mr. Gruff and marched to Martin, my head held high.
