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Taking my woman against her will is even less intelligent; but that is something he wouldn’t have bargained for.
I'm positive that X has done some bad shit in his time, but me—I'm a trained killer, and taking these pieces of shit out of the gene pool means absolutely nothing to me. In fact, the thought of it has me amped up and ready to put them all down. Faye's life is worth more to me than all of theirs put together, and I would walk through the deepest levels of hell to have her back at my side, in my bed… where she belongs. Dominic and his men are just an obstacle in my way.
Xavier's team radios in. They are still patrolling the ground floor and the alley with our buddies, making sure that no one is able to come in behind us. So far everything down there is quiet.
John and Mike are in place on the opposite end of the structure.
Since their last contact with us, Blake relays that they encountered a couple of Dominic’s finest. They have them hogtied and gagged a couple of floors down. Blake informs Xavier and I that he has already relayed the info to Agent Weaver with the FBI. Part of our agreement with her is that after we get our women, the feds will step in and make arrests. They need to gather as much dirt on Dominic as they can if they have any chance of taking him, and the Cerelli mafia family, down. For his assistance and agreement to testify against his uncle, Xavier will not be implicated in any of his uncle’s crimes. Not that it sounds like he’s been involved with them anyway.
Blake confirms that we are all clear to take the next floor, and we ascend the final set of stairs. Mike and John doing the same on their side. By some miracle we have come this far with very little resistance, and a tiny part of me wants to sigh with relief that this has been so easy.
The bigger part knows that shit is about to get real.
They may be goons, but they aren’t stupid. The Cerelli organization has been around for decades, and they have to know that we are coming. Why take Ana as bait otherwise?
“Easy, Trav,” Blake says in my ear. It used to freak me out that he always knows what I need to hear, even when he is just my eyes in the sky.
“Yeah. I know,” I whisper back. This whole thing has been too easy, and I know better than to trust it.
I can’t think about Faye and how scared she must be or think about what I should have done differently. I just have to treat this like any other job. In. Out. No emotions.
I take a deep breath and place my booted foot on the step above me. It’s time to work.
Chapter Twenty-Six
Faye
“I never thought I would see you again.” The cold voice cuts through the fog of shock still clouding my body. There is a creepy shade of excitement in his tone that makes my blood run cold.
I try to play it off like I have no idea what he is talking about. “What do you mean?” I ask, scuttling backward, trying to keep as much distance between us as possible. He laughs, making my skin crawl like there are thousands of tiny spiders on it. I can't stop the shudder that ripples through my body.
He smiles at me, amusement lighting his dark eyes. I know I didn’t hide my reaction from him at all and he likes my fear. My skin prickles with goosebumps. It’s like a cold breeze flowing over me even though I can still feel the morning sun. I want to cry but I know that he would enjoy my tears.
I remember his smile. He smiled at my mom just like that as he pulled the trigger. First when he shot Brad, then her. He never flinched, never looked away, just kept his smiling gaze locked on her terrified face.
Murdered them both like they were nothing, grinning while he did it, and now that same twisted smile is focused on me.
“They are here to rescue you,” he breathes, ignoring my question. My heart leaps in my chest with a tiny flicker of hope. I try to stop my face from showing it, but he must have seen it in.
“Oh, little one,” he says squatting down beside me so he can stare into my eyes. I jerk back reflexively as he runs a blunt-tipped finger down my cheek. “They won't be in time to help you.”
The truth in his voice echoes in my ears. Resonates in my soul. I believe him.
He's going to kill me before Travis gets here.
He sees that knowledge reflected on my face and his smile gets even bigger.
His voice is almost animated with excitement when he asks, “Why don't you and I have some fun?” He pulls me to my feet, dragging me along behind him to a ladder like the one I used to get up here. There is a door that leads inside, I can see it behind him. He must feel like there is less chance of running into anyone this way. Debating my options, I let him push me right up to the edge. I stare down at the street below. No one seems to even notice us up here. In movies, someone always sees a jumper on the roof. I guess that doesn’t happen in real life.
Jumper...
I could jump. He wouldn’t expect me to do that.
The thought has some appeal. I would die. There is no doubt about that, but it would be on my own terms. I’d rather choose my own end than wait to see what this evil man has planned for me.
Tensing, I take a slow breath, preparing to take that step. I hope Travis can forgive me. My breath freezes painfully in my chest, grieving for what he will suffer when he finds out that I took this way out. Taking one last look down, I glance to the shadowed alley below I gasp as I stumble back a step. There are two black SUVs parked there, and I swear that, even from this distance, I can see Blake staring up at me. I’m sure it’s my imagination, but it stops me from taking that step.
Travis is here. Jumping would mean that I don’t trust him to come for me. I do trust him. Enough that I’m willing to bet my life on him getting to me before I am murdered like my mom.
