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Vas snorted. “I think you should be more worried about the people who crossed her by hurting her new friend.”
“Send pictures,” my father joked. “We breach on two.”
“One,” Seamus started.
“Two,” I snarled. The wood around the doorknob splintered as the bullet from my gun shattered the lock. Seamus kicked the door open, stepping aside to let our father and Eriksen take the lead. Just as we stepped inside, the power alarms blared and the power cut out.
Right on time.
We pulled down our night-vision goggles and advanced. Shots rang out as our backup made progress through the rear door. I fired two shots into the chest of one of the guards. He fell, and two more took his place.
Shit.
I ducked behind a ratty sofa as shots rained down on me. Keeping crouched, I peeked up from behind the sofa, ducking down again when they spotted me and fired. But now I had their position. Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself and pointed my gun through the back of the couch. Failure wasn’t an option. I had to get to Bailey. There was so much I needed to say. I’d spend the rest of my life apologizing.
Two shots through the dilapidated piece of shit furniture, and they were down.
One man screamed as Eriksen dove from his hiding spot and stuck his knife directly through his throat.
“Fucking traitor,” he hissed. That was one rat down in his organization. How many more were there?
“Clear!” my father hollered from another room.
“Clear!” Eriksen echoed.
Cautiously, I stood, peering at the wreckage around me. There had been fewer guards than I thought.
“Clear,” Seamus and I hollered at the same time.
“This way.” Eriksen pointed to a large wooden door that looked like it led to a basement. I disengaged the outside lock and knocked three times in a row. Our code to let the girls know it was all clear. That we were friendly.
Then we waited with bated breath, hoping that everything went as planned. There had been no way for us to breach the fortified basement, and even if we could, it was too easy for the men down there to take them hostage. This way, we had the element of surprise.
One of Eriksen’s men moved toward the door, a pair of heavy iron mechanical claws in his grasp. He placed them between the heavy metal door and the wall, and a few moments later, the lock on the door busted open.
My heart stopped as the door swung open and Bailey appeared. Her hair was a wet, tangled mess; her face and body were bruised, but she was beautiful.
“Fucking hell,” I growled, removing the jacket I’d worn over my Kevlar and placing it around her shoulders. “Whoever saw you in that better be fucking dead.”
“Oh, he’s dead.” One of the women cackled behind Bailey, her Russian accent thick. “Very, very dead.”
“Good,” I whispered as I cupped her face in my hand and pressed my lips to her forehead. I breathed in her scent. She always smelled like freshly cut flowers. “I am so sorry,a stóre,” I murmured.
“We’re sorry, wildcat.” Seamus came to stand beside me. “None of this was ever supposed to happen.”
Her throat bobbed as she stared at us, and her crystalline gaze clouded with tears.
“Are you hurt?” I asked.
Bailey shook her head. “Just some bruises,” she whispered. “I’m okay.”
“Good.” I breathed a sigh of relief as I hugged her to my chest. She stiffened in my arms at first before slowly relaxing into my hold. “We have so much to talk about.”
We’d never let her go again.
38
It felt as if I was walking through a dream. My body moved and obeyed, but my mind was far away. Kiernan hadn’t let go of me since the brothel. He’d hauled me into his arms and refused to set me down.
