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“I will have our pilot drop me and one of our soldiers off to meet up with you before bringing the remaining eight men to the address we provide. They will hold and be our eyes while we attack the first location. If she isn't there, we will give them the green light to charge forward—no waiting. They will falsely assume they have a short window to move ... and won't expect an immediate second attack.”
CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR
Kai
Inod even though he can't see me over the phone, feeling the weight of the situation settle heavily on my shoulders. “Okay, let's do it. I hope she's at the first address. It would make things a whole lot less complicated.”
“Couldn't agree more,but we’ll prepare for both scenarios,” he promises before hanging up.
I spendthe next few hours preparing myself mentally and physically for what's to come. I gather my tactical gear and brief my men on the plan. I open my laptop and download the schematics for both addresses so we know the warehouse layouts beforehand.
We loadup into our vehicles and drive in silence to the San Francisco address just before five. As we near the destination, my heart races as adrenaline floods my veins. This is it. I hope for zero casualties ... for my men anyway. We plan to decimate every single motherfucker in that building—no hesitation. Once we have Vasilisa back safe, because there is no alternative, she will need to learn to defend herself to give her the best odds of survival in our underworld.
We parka few blocks away from the location, and once Lennon and our extra man arrive, we wait the hour until the soldiers for the second address send word that they're in position. Once given the green light, we begin our approach on foot, moving with stealth and precision. As we near the building, I can see the tension etched into every muscle of my men's faces.
We reach the entrance,and I nod to Lennon, who takes point, readying his weapon. With one swift motion, he kicks the door open, and we flood inside, guns ready.
The room appears empty, but then several shots ring through the air as someone fires at us from behind a stack of crates.
We return fire,moving quickly to take cover as bullets echo through the air. My heart pounds in my chest as I try to pinpoint our enemy's location. Several more shots join in as we take out men left and right. I've lost a tally of the body count. We move from room to room, never ceasing fire. The warehouse is dimly lit, so our night-vision goggles give us an added advantage in addition to our thermal-imaging sensor. Their body heat gives us their location in hiding.
Suddenly,a feminine scream cuts through the chaos. My adrenaline soars. I'd know that voice anywhere. Its nuance is engrained into my brain.
“Vasilisa!”I shout so that she can keep screaming, guiding me to where she is being kept. I charge forward in the direction of her cry.
“Vasilisa!”I shout again, this time getting closer. My shoulder slams into a man's abdomen, and I twist my weapon to fire. My goggles’ vision is muddled with his blood, but I make out the silhouette of another one of our enemies who falls to his doom from a shot above us. A hand latches on violently to my neck, but I quickly swing my weapon behind me and squeeze the trigger—taking him down before he can squeeze even tighter and crush my windpipe. Someone releases gas, but we're prepared. I don't see Lennon. However, I know he can hold his own.
I reachinto my vest and pull out a gas mask before inhaling deeply—causing my chest to rise and fall immensely as the adrenaline threatens to take over. I'm nearly out of breath by the time I pull open the door, seeing her at last.
She's lyingon a wooden table in four point restraints. I waste no time in freeing her. I need to find a way out of here without bringing her through the gunfire. God forbid a stray bullet ruin our efforts to rescue her. I wrap her in my arms and spin us away from the camera that may be still live streaming.
“Thank you for finding me,”she tries to say, but her words are barely coherent due to her distress.
The gasnow fills this room, and I don't have a mask for her. I quickly remove mine and place it over her face before running to the nearest window. I bust out the glass with the butt of my gun and clear the shards as best as I can. After consuming a few breaths of fresh air, I look around to see what I could use for padding. Fuck! There's nothing. I stand Vasilisa on her feet long enough to climb halfway out the window. With my arse on the windowsill, I reach for Vasilisa to pull her onto my lap.
Once I have her secured,I jump down the single story, cradling her tight. My steel-toed boots crunch against the glass beneath my feet. I have just enough time to push her back against the building before shots ring out the window from which we just came. I return fire, hitting the guy right between the eyes. I scoop Vasilisa over my shoulders and make a run toward where we're parked.
“Stay here and stay low,”I instruct, closing the door to the Suburban. “I have to go help my men.”
She snifflesbut nods her understanding. When I return, I spot Lennon and some of our men running toward me as sirens sound in the near distance.
“We have to go,”he says, his voice urgent. I count, and we're missing two men. “They didn't make it,” he says, answering my unspoken question.
We pileinto the Suburban and speed off. Vasilisa finally allows herself to get off the floor and onto the back seat. As we drive, I can feel her trembling with fear and shock next to me. A foreign feeling aches in my chest seeing her so vulnerable. I want to comfort her, but right now we need to get out of this area and make sure we're not being followed. Once we're at a safe distance, I relax a bit. Lennon is already calling the other men to tell them to abort ... that we have Vasilisa.
“Are you hurt?”I ask, assessing her for any injuries.
She shakes her head,tears streaming down her face. “No, just scared,” she admits in a tremulous voice. “That woman was going to saw me into pieces. I think they have my father.”
I lookinto her eyes and give the only comfort that I'm capable of. “You're safe now,” I promise. “Lennon is already sending the men we have in Sacramento to rescue your father.”
She looksat me with wide eyes filled with gratitude and something else that I can't quite place. It's like she's seeing me for the first time, really seeing me. And I can't help but feel a flicker of something deep inside me in response. I won't read too much into it. Emotions are high right now.
As we journeyback to my estate to await word on Vasilisa's father, my mind races with tonight's events. The loss of two of our men weighs heavily on me, as does the fact Vasilisa was taken in the first place. Someone set us up, and we won't stop until we find out who. Within the hour, we are told that our men in Sacramento have subdued the few men that were left to sit on Vladimir. He's safe for now, but he will need to beef up his security. He needs answers as much as we do. Without knowing who the enemy is, they can be lying in wait within his domain. Now that he knows his daughter is safe, he is going off grid for a few days with Vasilisa's brothers.
We pullup to my estate. Vasilisa is waking up just before we do. When she reaches for her seat belt, I release it for her. My body aches with the need to hold her again, but tonight is not the night for that. As if to protest, my cock throbs in its confines, begging for more than just to hold her. I need to reset things back to the way they were before she was taken. I need her to look at me the way she does, not knowing she’s giving away the feelings she has developed for me. I pat her hand that rests in mine and quickly withdraw, knowing that contact with her will only lead to other things . . . things that will lead to activities she isn't ready for. I can't be a douche with her tonight.
She fastensher gaze on mine. Her eyes are sleepy with fatigue, yet they still burn my soul with their intensity.
