Chapter Fifty-Six
The Takedown
Raf
“Raf,you’re with me. Seb you’re with Avery. You two with Avery, and you with me,” Marco instructs the other Vault Enterprise men. “Do not act as a lone wolf,” he says to the group while looking squarely at me. “We’re a team. Stay together and follow my lead. We want to find her quickly and withminimal bloodshed. Ifyou need to use your weapon in self-defense, make sure you have a clear fucking shot. Shoot to maim them, and if that doesn’t work…shoot to kill. That’s the only way we overpower them.”
Fucking hell. If this gets out, I’m as good as disbarred—in fact, worse: jailbait. None of that matters; I just want Chiara back in my arms. My beast has been clamoring to come out since Alessandro sent me that video. She looked vulnerable and nervous, and even if for a brief moment I doubted the loyalty to me, her eyes never lie. She was trying to reassure me.
We all crouch low to the floor so as not to fall over as the crane whirrs to life and jerks as it winches up the shipping container. My heart is thumping in my chest, competing with every other sound assaulting me, including the hollow clangingof the mechanical beast carrying us across the water to our final resting place. The scrape and screech as we’re lowered down and my own ragged breathing sound as if they’re blaring on stereo, yet I feel oddly calm. Like I’m floating in the ocean and my ears are under water and the world around me is distorted.Clunk, thud.Our container hits the deck. Showtime. Everything else falls away. I close my eyes and touch my chest where the green-eyed wolf marks me. I say a silent prayer. A plea. Let us all survive this. Give me back the reason worth being in love. My heartbeat.
We’re all hooked up via earpiece so we can hear the commands and remain in contact at all times even if we get separated for whatever reason. AJ and Marco, appointed leaders of the groups of men, are in direct communication via an earpiece. Marco and Avery each take one side of the doors, nod at each other, then Marco counts to three out loud, and on the third count, the high-pitched creak of scratching metal from both container doors opening echoes in the night.
We file out quickly, AJ and his men joining us, except Julian, who has been charged with running decoy. I’m pissed off he’s here, but AJ said he has a good reason for getting him involved and to just let him do his job. I don’t argue.
We find hiding spots not too far from each other between the discarded crates and debris nearby. We watch as figures start to move out of warehouse 121 towards the crates. A couple jump on forklifts so they can move the gear from the containers quickly under the cover of darkness.
Marco waves his hand behind him to indicate we should all file in behind.
“Wait for my signal,” instructs Marco.
Julian is chatting to a big guy dressed all in black. His arms are folded, and he’s squinting into the night. I could be imagining it, but he doesn’t seem to be buying whatever Julian istelling him. He looks around and takes in the containers, which are indeed filled to the brim with contraband. Whatever Julian says seems to placate him, and he allows Julian to lead him to the containers. That’s our cue to make a run for it.
“Go, go, go,” Marco whisper-yells into the earpiece.
We take off, but then there’s a shout from above. Fuck! There must have been someone on watch from a higher position.
“Intruders! Intruders!” sounds the alarm, followed by gunshots that thankfully miss, but no doubt alert every man in this godforsaken warehouse.
The man talking to Julian swings around and catches sight of us making our way towards the open door.
Chaos erupts.
Julian takes his chance to stab him and the big guy doubles over, shouting bloody murder.
It’s now or never. I zone out the cacophony of the fight, determined to get into that warehouse so I can tear it down and find her. The shouting to kill us. The gunfire. The yelling in my ear.
“Keep fucking running!”
“Raf! What are you fucking doing?”
“Shoot!”
“Fuck! I’ve been grazed.”
I get inside and it’s clear.
I pull open the first door I see and am instantly met with one of the enemy’s men, another hot on his heels. I grab onto the small lip of the door and lift myself in a pull-up, then swing forward, planting my booted feet hard into the first guy’s chest. He falls back, taking out the other guy close behind. I propel myself over them, leaving them to fight amongst themselves about who’s going to shoot me.
Neither gets the chance because I’m running down a dim hallway now, trying to find any other doors I can that might reveal where Chiara is being held.
“Raf, just fucking tell us you’re okay,” shouts Marco.
“Okay!” I pant but keep running. “Seb?” I ask.
“Okay!”
“AJ?” Marco yells.
