Selene laughs. “Oh, I have plenty. But first I want to see my children.”
“Well, they aren’t here. We’d have to go for a drive. Or you can wait, and I can have them delivered here,” he says.
Delivered. Like assists.
“How far away are they?” Selene asks, pushing for the information we are waiting for. “I can drive to them,” she suggests.
“No. I will take you rather. Let me just call the driver. I think he was on his way back from there now. It’s only ten minutes’ drive here from the docks.”
“The docks!” Adrian and I both shout at the same time.
“He has two properties on the docks…” He pulls up a map from the research we’ve done before.
“So, which one?” Matvei asks. “Which one is it?”
“We attack both. We sent two teams, full force, everything we’ve got. We go now.”
“And if they aren’t there?”
I clench my jaw. “Um…”
“Ok, you need to stay here and keep listening to Selene. Adrian and I will lead the teams with the other guys. But if you get any new intelligence, you tell us right away, and we pull back.
“Deal,” I agree easily because I don’t want to walk away from Selene. I know I’m not there with her, but at least I can hear her, and I can talk to her if it’s an emergency.
My brothers leave in a rush. They head out, already communicating with my other brothers who have been on standby with the teams.
My stomach churns with anxiety.
I want to be there for my children, but I trust my brothers to keep them safe and get them out of there.
Right now, Selene is the one without backup.
I turn my attention back to the recording devices.
“Yes, my daughter has had a change of heart. When can you get here?” Alek says, obviously speaking on the phone. I steal the chance to whisper to Selene. “The teams are headed to the dock, to the properties your father has there.”
She coughs lightly. A signal that she’s understood.
My heart clenches. I wish I could just pull her out of there right now. But we need confirmation that the twins are actually at the docks. Otherwise, this would have been for nothing, and I would have lost everything.
The next fifteen minutes are the tensest moments of my life. I’m listening to Selene maintain a conversation with her father, knowing she’s in danger. She’s doing so damn well. He’s even talking about some family secrets that I don’t think he would be spilling if he didn’t believe her.
But on the other side, I’m listening to my brothers storm the properties at the docks. Their teams are rushing in, shouting commands to each other, replaying and confirming, and moving in trained precision. Gunshots snap through and make mewince. “Bogey down. Another left. Two in the front. Move. Move.”
There is a quiet moment. The team leader reports. “Two empty rooms. Heading to the third.” Gunshots continue in the background.
The speaker crackles, and suddenly I hear the words that almost make me collapse.
One of the security team reports, “Targets located. Two young children and a woman. Back room, third door on the left. The children are both unharmed.”
I hear my twins, their small cries, I hear Raya comforting them and telling them these are the good guys.
“Raya?” I hear Matvei’s voice.
“Matty!” she yelps in relief.
I wish, I wish with all my heart I could have been there to scoop them into my arms, but I am needed here with Selene.
