Page 57 of Defending Van

Reaching out, Asahi Watanabe grabbed her bound wrists and began to drag her along with him. As badly as she wanted to glance over her shoulder at Van, get one last look at him just in case things went badly, and it was the last time she’d get to see him, Makayla forced herself not to. He wasn't supposed to be a safe place, even though he was, and she wasn't going to ruin their plan with a moment of weakness.

Van was counting on her. The Delta Force team was counting on her. Prey was counting on her. All the women who had and would fall victim to Azure were counting on her. There was no way she could let all of them down. The pressure might be crushing, but it was also grounding.

Helped her ignore the pain in her feet as she was forced to walk behind Asahi Watanabe, trying to keep up with the man’s longer strides as her feet protested each step.

They took turn after turn until she was completely lost, with no idea how to get back to the foyer. Although the plan was for her not to fight too much against whatever Asahi Watanabe had planned for her, and when the guys had what they needed they’d come for her.

But it was a habit to take care of herself, so she hated the feeling of being lost. Reminding herself that she had a team at her back, that she wasn't in this alone, she clung to that as they made their way down a steep set of stairs, ones she almost lost her balance on several times before they reached a dark, cold basement.

Only then did Asahi Watanabe release his hold on her. The polite façade had cracked, and when she met his gaze again, she saw that it was full of the evil she would expect from someone who ran a sex trafficking ring.

“You’ve been a bad girl, proven you're more trouble than you're worth, which leaves me with only one option,” he told her as he reached behind him and pulled out a gun he must have been carrying in a holster at his waist.

September 2nd

4:29 A.M.

Not having Makayla in his line of sight was almost paralyzing.

All the things that could possibly be happening to her at this very second were running through his mind on a constant loop, and Van wanted to reach inside his head, scoop out his brain, and toss it aside.

But he couldn’t do that.

Now more than ever, Makayla needed him to keep a clear head, to focus, to do what they had to do, then grab her and get her out of here. Ideally, they’d be able to do that while leaving Asahi Watanabe alive, so that the other head of the ring didn't go underground. He’d always suspected he knew who the other man was. It was the Japanese billionaire who had cloaked himself in shadows and remained so hands-off that it was impossible to gain his identity.

With whatever proof they found, they could go back to Prey and devise a plan on how to get the location of where the other head of the ring had squirreled himself away, and then finally destroy Azure. Van would hide cameras around this house so they had eyes on Asahi Watanabe. Once they found the address of the other head’s house, they could plan coordinated raids to take them both out at once.

Taking out only one wasn't an option, wasn't good enough, and wouldn't put an end to Azure. It had to be all or nothing. It was the only way to ensure that the ring was destroyed. Which was the only acceptable outcome given they’d put their filthy hands on Makayla.

Maintaining control should have been easy given the amount of practice he’d had, yet it felt almost impossible as he stepped out of the room he’d been shown to. At the same time he left his room, the door to the room beside his also opened, and Trigger stepped into the hall too.

They’d all been given their own rooms, but thankfully, they’d all been placed close to one another, so now they congregated in the wide, opulent hallway. They’d devised a basic plan on the drive from the forest back to Asahi Watanabe’s estate, but now that they were actually inside, they could get a more detailed layout of the place, and they needed to adjust it.

“Brain, get the cameras shut down?” he asked.

“Not shut down, set in a loop replaying the hour of footage from before we got here. If anyone checks the camera feeds, they’ll see quiet, empty hallways,” Brain replied.

“What happens once that hour of footage runs out?” Van asked.

“Then the bug I put in the system will reset the footage to real time,” Brain answered.

“Can you restart it? Give us another hour?” An hour didn't sound anywhere near long enough to search this place and find what they needed.

“Wouldn't be much point. By that time, the staff will probably be getting up and starting on their work for the day. Word is, Asahi Watanabe is an early riser, too. Maybe we can buy some time because of the interruptions during the night, but I think an hour is about all we realistically have to do this anyway,” Brain explained.

Unfortunately, that was true, which meant they shouldn’t waste any more time.

Working undercover was his bread and butter, it was what he did and what he intended to continue doing with his life until he reached a point where he couldn’t any longer. Now he had a team to work with, and it felt weird, and he wasn't sure he’d like it if it wasn't for Makayla. Since she was at the center of this, the one taking the hits so they could search for the information they needed, he was grateful for the support.

“We’ll split up, search Asahi Watanabe’s office, and keep watch for anyone who might be up early and moving about. You focus on getting to Makayla,” Trigger said. “We need eyes on her, and we have no idea what Asahi Watanabe had planned for her when he took her.”

There was a small apology in the other man’s gray eyes, and Van knew that Trigger didn't want to make him think too hard about what might be happening to Makayla while they stood around and worked out a plan. But it was all he could think about anyway.

“She said she was kept in his bedroom in a glass cage, I’ll start there,” he said, ready to get moving. If they had limited time, he didn't want to waste it.

“Comms units are open, so let us know if you need help,” Trigger added.

Giving a single nod, Van took off. Because this was a stealth operation, he couldn’t go storming down the hall, throwing doors open as he searched for the room he wanted to find. Instead, he had to move quietly, carefully. Just because they had a bug in the system linking the supposedly live camera feed back a couple of hours didn't mean that there weren't people here who could be up and about.