Tossing a water bottle at his head, he stops and rubs his temple. “I’ll enter through the back, catch the runners you two fools lose.”
Shaking their heads, they don’t argue as we finish prepping. We’re parked two blocks away, vehicles hidden from view, and locked up tight as we begin moving towards our targets’ building.
A bunch of amateurs, in my opinion. Two guys wander away from the front door, smoking and fucking around on their phones as we approach.
“Give me thirty seconds.” I rush around the building after ensuring there are no cameras to catch me, and set up a few feet away behind a dumpster. Pot shots will be my friend tonight.
It’s not long before chaos erupts. Gunfire lights up the windows, followed by yelling and pain-filled screams. Hearing the commotion getting closer, I click off my assault rifle’s safety, set my finger on the trigger, keep my eye on the door, and prepare for bodies to rush out to me. The metal panel swings open, and two men stumble over each other, with four more barreling in hot behind them.
A grin splits my lips as I double-tap the trigger and both men fall. The door begins to close just as another man comes through. I hit him between the eyes as the other three finally catch on, trying to duck and run. It doesn’t work. Their skulls explode with each shot. Blood splatters against the outside of the warehouse as things begin to quiet down inside.
“Don’t shoot!” gets yelled a second before the rear door opens again, and Bishop tears out like he’s in a horror film—blood-covered, ripped shirt, psychotic smile. “God, that felt good.”
“Eh.” Shrugging a shoulder, I’m kind of sad I missed the close combat they seemed to enjoy. “Where’s East?”
“Clean up.” He turns and re-enters the building. Propping open the door, he points to the bodies I dropped and says, “We need to haul them back in.”
Grabbing the arms of one dead guy, I drag him inside, noticing a pile of bodies where Easton has collected them. “We burning them?”
“Yup.” It’s not an unfamiliar scene with the three of us. We’ve done plenty of missions like this in the past. Some in the military, and some hired out. “We’ve got about five minutes before sirens head this way. If you’d like to bolt now, we’ll talk next week.”
“Nah, I’m good.”
Bishop and I finish lugging bodies in and cleaning up anything that’ll trace back to us before Easton pours gasoline on the bodies and then around the outside perimeter of the building. The drugs are buried under the dead, and in seconds, fire lights the night sky.
Could be beautiful, if not for the reason behind it.
I wonder if Stella would like a beach bonfire. Would she want to roast marshmallows or cuddle under a blanket? Things I’ll have to find out soon.
CHAPTER 5
Stella
There is nothing better than feeling the sun shine on your face while a light drizzle of rain falls from the sky. It’s beautiful and refreshing, and the pick-me-up I need this morning after watching my mom fight her addiction all night.
She was so proud after her meeting, feeling hopeful for the first time, but then the cravings hit. And the battle was hard.
When we got home from the beach, she’d asked me to help her dump all the liquor in the house. I was the one who caved around midnight and offered to get her a bottle of something. She was so strong, and I was so proud of her. Thankfully, by the time I left for work, she’d fallen asleep and promised to text when she woke up.
The bags currently under my eyes are worth every agonizing moment of the night. It’s been so long since she’s even attempted to get clean, but this is the first time it’s been for herself, which is why I believe she’ll succeed.
Walking into Blue Heights, a few customers eat breakfast, while Martha engages in a heated, albeit quiet, argument with Chet in the kitchen. I think they need to hook up already. They’d be a cute, if not slightly unstable, couple. Tanner waves from where he’s clearing tables with Leslie in her section.
“Morning.” I smile at Taylor as she comes from the back with a grimace on her face. “The fighting that bad?” I hesitate to enter the employee lounge and instead store my purse under the cash register. I’ll put it in my locker later.
“Girllll, Chet had a woman drop him off this morning, and he’s letting Martha believe it was someone he’s seeing, and she’s pissed.” It’s miraculous how Taylor’s able to keep a straight face.
“Who was the woman?” Poking my head around the corner, I see Martha waving her hands around, and I wouldn’t be too surprised if she grabbed a frying pan and bopped the poor man over the head with it.
“His sister. She’s in town this week and wanted to borrow his car today for some shopping and house hunting. Guess she’s moving here.” Tay shrugs and goes back to filling the sugar containers while I get the bag of creamers in the fridge and start piling them into bowls for the breakfast rush.
As one table of customers leaves, two men enter. Instantly, the air crackles, and the hair on the back of my neck rises because their heads remain down. Shaking it off, I say, “We’re not busy, so sit where you like, and I’ll be there with coffee and menus in a second.” Maintaining friendliness when customers don’t is rough, especially with a gut screaming something is wrong.
Turning back around, I grab two menus, a bowl of creamer, and as I reach for the coffee pot, I hear the telltale click of the front lock clicking into place. Setting the creamer down, I meet Taylor’s eyes, and I can see something is happening from the way she’s paled, and her eyes glow with fear.
Slowly spinning around, I’m met with two men, now masked, and the barrels of two weapons pointed right at us. From the corner of my eye, I see Leslie and Tanner frozen in place as they assess what’s happening.
“Th-there’s not much in the register, but you can take it.” I don’t know how the words come out, but they manage to, sounding mostly steady. When I shift to open the register, a gun cocks, and I freeze. Ears ringing, my stomach rolls over with terror.
