Page 60 of Vows of Ruin

“Mine are immaculate,” Max adds.

“Milkshakes solve everything,” Liam says smoothly.

Torque barks a laugh. “You guys are a circus.”

“Yeah,” I say, eyes on the passing city lights. “But we’re the kind of circus that burns the tent down.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

Reaper

It’s been three days since the meeting with Cyrus, and the war room still carries the scent of smoke and adrenaline. Wrenley’s seated at the head of the table, a queen without needing a throne. Her hands are steepled beneath her chin, gaze fixed on the blueprints Elias pulled up on the screen, every room, hallway, and camera angle of the House of Silk.

“This place is a fortress,” Torque mutters, arms crossed tight over his chest. “But it’s not impenetrable.”

Wrenley glances up. “We’re getting them out. That’s not the question. But afterward…” her voice softens. “We can’t just turn them loose on the street. They’ll end up back in a place like this, or dead.”

Silence follows. Everyone knows she's right.

Wrecker clears his throat from the corner. “I might have a solution.”

All eyes shift to him. “My aunt,” he says. “She’s got farmland in Missouri. Runs housing for seasonal workers. Off-grid, protected, and she’s no stranger to helping people who’ve been through shit. If I explain what’s going on, I think she’d take them in.”

Wrenley studies him, her expression unreadable at first, then it shifts. She nods slowly. “That’s better than anything I was imagining. Can you call her?”

Wrecker nods. “I’ll make the call.”

Max leans forward beside Wrenley. “That gives us an exit plan. But are we sure this is the right place?”

Elias taps the map. “Cross-referenced property records, underground facility blueprints, and drone footage. Jessa’s intel checks out. It’s here. Girls are kept in the lower levels, beneath the ‘entertainment floors’. There are armed guards, surveillance cameras, and electronic locks on the basement doors. We’ll need a full-scale breach.”

I cross my arms and nod. “We’ll do it like Kandahar.”

Hunter glances at me and smirks. “Without the sand in our teeth this time, preferably.”

Wrenley looks between us. “You two are being cryptic again.”

Max answers before I can. “Coordinated chaos. Riot and Elias knock the system off balance. Torque and Wrecker cause a distraction at the main entrance. Reaper and I take point on extraction.”

“I’m going in,” Wrenley says. No hesitation. Not a flicker of doubt.

Max starts to speak, but I lift a hand, knowing we won’t win. “She goes,” I say evenly. “But we’re not going in blind. We plan this down to the second.”

Riot leans back in his chair, cracking his knuckles. “Can I blow something up this time?”

Elias rolls his eyes. “Why are you like this?”

“Because fire solves problems,” Riot deadpans.

Wrenly lifts her chin to me. “Then it’s settled. We get them out. We destroy the House of Silk.”

I glance around the room. Serpents. Fighters. Every one of them has a blade at her back.

I bend at eye level, gripping her chin. “We burn them down.”

The mission is locked. Every hand is in. Now, it’s time to move.

The mansion shifts into something else entirely, no longer a sanctuary, but a war front. The air buzzes with purpose. No one’s joking. No one’s distracted. Everyone knows what’s at stake. Thirty women, most barely older than girls. We won’t leave a single one behind.