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My heart was beating dangerously slow. Just before danger, I was always calm. It was written in my blood since birth. Life-or-death situations were the kinds I thrived on. But when I was alone in my palace, that’s when the fear kicked in. The paranoia settled, and I couldn’t shake it off. I needed to break something just to stay relaxed. I needed to cause pain just to feel good.
My men gathered around us and formed a protective layer. The rule for the meeting was to come alone. But no one ever came alone. I wasn’t sure why we bothered saying it.
Cane looked at his watch again, the irritation deep in his eyes. “She’s dead.”
“Don’t say that.” No point in mourning someone unless it was a fact they were gone. I refused to go through the motions of heartbreak when it was unnecessary. It was so difficult for me to care about anything as it was. My body became frozen a long time ago.
And it never thawed.
“She’s dead, and we both know it.” When he looked at me, there was resignation on his face. “Sick fucks like him don’t just let people go. He’s toying with us. I know it.”
“We aren’t the kind of people he wants to toy with.”
“And that’s exactly why he’s doing it.”
Finally, activity happened. Black Hummers pulled up at the end of the alleyway. No one left their vehicles until the lights had been extinguished. Soldiers hopped out of their vehicles, carrying assault rifles.
One of the men opened the back door of a vehicle and out she came.
Vanessa.
Even from here and in the darkness, I could see the infinite bruises covering her body. Her arms were black and blue, scars on top of scars. The corner of her mouth was caked with dried blood from being slapped so many times. Her eyes were black from being punched. She could barely stand because her muscles had atrophied, and she was weaker than I’d ever seen her.
I saw red.
I couldn’t think about what he’d done to her. I couldn’t think about the months of torment he made her suffer. All those nights I slept, she was being whipped and beaten.
He was constantly on the move and virtually untraceable. I worked tirelessly to get her back. I put off work just to make it happen. Even when everything seemed hopeless, I didn’t give up.
Because she wouldn’t give up on me.
The ruthless tycoon hopped out of the vehicle behind her.
My hand immediately went to my gun. It took all my strength not to draw and fire a shot right at his temple. I daydreamed about his blood spraying the soldier behind him. I fantasized about his body hitting the cold pavement. I relished it like a dream come true.
“Crow.” Cane brought me back to reality with just a word. “Think about our sister.”
My hand squeezed the gun before I released it.
He grabbed Vanessa by her hair as he walked her forward. She was in a flimsy bra and old underwear, covered in dirt and sludge. She didn’t look like the same person I remembered. He could be handing over a completely different woman, and Cane and I wouldn’t know it.
“Here she is.” He pushed her forward, making her fall to the pavement.
She whimpered as her bare knees collided with the ground.
It was her. I recognized her voice.
My spine tightened in ferocity. I was so angry I could breathe fire. I wanted to drop a nuclear bomb and kill us all. It would accomplish nothing but death, but I still relished the idea.
“I brought my end of the bargain.” He stood in a black suit with a black collared shirt underneath. “Where’s yours?”
I nodded to one of my men.
They placed the bag of cash on a crate with wheels then gave it a hard push. It traveled across the distance separating us until it reached their end of the alleyway.
One of his men opened the bag and counted every single bill, making sure he received each penny that was due. He used a machine to quickly count it and make sure it wasn’t counterfeit.
Time dragged on forever.
Vanessa slowly rose to her feet, her knees red from the collision against the ground. The strong and proud woman I used to know was completely gone. She was broken beyond repair. Even though we were getting her back, she would never be the same. She would be fucked up forever after the terrible things she experienced. She looked at Cane and me then started to cry.
My sister never cried.
She was made of the same stuff we were. She was hard as steel and ruthless as fuck. You could break all of her fingers, and she still wouldn’t crack. But she’d experienced enough to make her break—a million times over.
“You got your money.” I placed my hand on my gun. “Now let her go.” When she was back to safety, I would take a shot. I didn’t care at this point. My blood screamed for murder. I had to do it. I had to annihilate him.
