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“Maybe we should have all gone in,” I whispered.
“They’re better out there watching the perimeter. If anyone shows up, they’ll be able to detain them,” he assured me. “Besides, they know I’ll kill anyone who tries to touch you.”
As we approached the back door, the sound of it creaking open filled the air, and several men stepped out. Too many for us to be able to catch by surprise. Dimitri pulled me behind the garbage dumpster just in time. We watched from our hiding spot as Brax and Hunter stumbled down the alley past the group.
“Isn’t that a Reaper?” one of the men asked.
“You’re right,” the guy at the back replied.
“Let’s get them!” two of them yelled.
It took everything in me not to follow. I had to believe in the guys, and their skills, if we were to make it out of this without any damage. Besides, by the time they realized they were being drawn away from the compound, it was going to be too late. Once they were out of sight, Dimitri pulled me to my feet and we entered the back door.
Witnessing the way the Crows had reacted at the sight of Hunter and Brax changed my plans. Initially, I had hoped to avoid a full elimination of this Charter, but it seemed that ship had sailed. Before continuing, I took my gun out of my waistband and held it at the ready. We were hesitant to use our guns, in fear of alerting the cops to our presence, but that didn’t stop us from being prepared. We knew better than to go into this place without having our weapons ready and in our hands.
Dimitri did the same.
When he gave me a slight nod, I began to move forward.
As soon as we stepped into the bar, I was hit with the stale smell of old beer and cigarettes. These guys didn’t know the meaning of spare no expense. The cost for occasional cleaning services was surprisingly affordable. However, it was possible they had more secrets to keep hidden than we did.
“Where is everyone?” Dimitri said.
It seemed like the guys who left were possibly the last of the stragglers.
“Probably upstairs fucking or sleeping.”
“Which is exactly what I’d rather be doing right now,” he teased.
“Maybe once this is all done, we can talk.”
“Promises, promises.”
With each step, the stairs groaned beneath us as we made our way up to the second floor. Beginning with the door at the very top of the steps, we paused to listen for any noises coming from the other side. Hearing only the sound of the deep, earth-shaking snores of the man, we slowly crept into the room. The room was in disarray, with beer bottles, dirty clothes and who knew what else scattered about the room.
No wonder he was sawing logs alone.
There’s no way I’d ever get drunk enough to shack up with someone who kept their room like this. With Dimitri standing watch at the door, I placed my gun back in my waistband and tiptoed to the head of the bed. I paused next to the night table and waited for him to take his next breath. Standing at the edge of the bed, I turned, so I was facing his feet, just outside of his peripheral vision.
With a quick, practiced move, I slashed his throat.
A cut so deep it severed both jugular veins and his vocal cords.
No chance of him calling out and warning his brothers.
Eyes snapping open, his first reaction was to grab for his neck, which was a bloody mess. The blood continued to flow out of the cut, and would until his heart stopped beating. Mouth gaping like a fish, he tried to get the air he would never receive. Finally, he glanced to the side and spotted me.
That was when he lost it.
Using whatever energy he still had left, he went for me. His movements were sluggish and uncoordinated as he tried to reach for me. Before he could completely topple out of the bed onto the floor, I snatched a pillow and braced it against his upper body. Unfortunately, my method didn’t work as well as I’d planned, and I still ended up wearing some of his blood.
At least it stopped him from falling.
By the time he took his last breath, we were back out the door and on to the next room. One by one, we carefully and methodically cleared the rooms. Each time we’d found the men alone, as if somehow they knew we were coming and didn’t want the women to be injured. Either that or they were just that unlucky with getting laid.
With my well-versed knowledge of the older Reapers, I was skeptical of the latter.
We had almost reached the last room when we heard a loud thud as the door opened. Two men hurried toward us, their faces grim and determined. I managed to hit one of them in the neck and Dimitri got the other in the chest, but not before one of them got a shot off. A sharp burning sensation was followed by the warmth of my blood as it trickled down my arm.
