Total pages in book: 116
Estimated words: 106292 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 106292 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 531(@200wpm)___ 425(@250wpm)___ 354(@300wpm)
I make my way around the back of the property, Dalton coming with me and stopping by what must be the kitchen window. He starts feeling around the frame, more than capable of getting inside without having to smash through it. Knowing that he’s good, I keep walking around to the back door.
Unease blasts through my chest as I slip a pin into the rusted lock, unable to shake the feeling that this is all wrong. Joe has been a trusted mentor for years. He grew up with Zade’s father. Hell, all of our fathers. He watched over us as we learned the ropes and became the men we are today. Seeing him out on the street with Oakley on the security footage was like a knife right through the back. He knows who she is to us and what her value is to Zade. Taking her away like that was one of the biggest betrayals Empire has ever seen.
Quickly working the lock, I slip inside the old home and am immediately hit in the face with a foul stench. I hold back a gag as I close the door behind me, making sure to lock it before gripping the front of my shirt and pulling it up to cover my nose and mouth. I’ve broken into enough homes to know that, nine out of ten times, I don’t want to be inhaling that shit.
I do a sweep of the back rooms until I find both Sawyer and Dalton in the hallway, leaving only the front bedroom and the living room unchecked. Zade should have met up with us by now. The only reason why he wouldn’t is if he’s found something.
Meeting both Dalton and Sawyer’s stare, we each nod and continue toward the front of the house. Sawyer quickly checks the bedroom before we all step through to the living room, finding Joe already beaten and bruised, strapped down against a hardback chair with a gun in hand.
My brow arches, and I glance across the room toward Zade, leaning against the dining table. He’s watching Joe as if he’s wondering what the fuck to do with him, not even remotely threatened by the gun. We stride deeper into the living room, evenly spacing ourselves.
Oakley was taken a little over six hours ago, and it’s clear whoever Joe was working for had a message for him. I just wish I knew what that was.
My gaze settles on the gun, wondering why they’d leave him like this, and it occurs to me that they’ve left him with just enough room to turn the gun on himself. They knew damn well that we would come for him. It’s almost sweet, giving him an out like that. But it’s not going to be that easy. No one gets to betray us and simply take their lives before paying the price.
Make no mistake, Joe will die tonight. But not before we get exactly what we need.
Zade steps forward, looking at Joe with such deep disappointment that it almost makes me feel like I’ve been sent to the principal’s office too. Joe watches Zade’s every step with a sharp stare, his hand shaking on the arm rest, the gun gripped tight between his fingers.
“You knew we were coming,” Zade comments.
“How could I not?” Joe spits. “I’ve worked at that hotel for years. I know where every single one of those security cameras are. Though I have to admit, I’m surprised it took you so long to find me.”
Zade shakes his head. “Why now?” he questions. “You were a trusted adviser to my father for twenty years, a mentor to me. Why betray the blood?”
Joe scoffs and winces with pain. “Betray the blood? You’re one to talk, DeVil. You were never the blood. I was protecting the blood by getting that girl away from you. The moment I realized who she was, I had to get her out of there.”
Dalton narrows his stare and steps forward, itching to get in on the action. The fucker lives for the pain and gets off on giving it back. “You’re lying, Joe. You’ve always been so easy to read. Someone put you up to this. You didn’t figure it out on your own.”
Joe sends a scathing glare to Dalton. “You don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about, boy.”
I laugh as Venom makes her way over my knuckles. “As entertaining as this is, I’m bored. Let’s get some things straight. Your life will not be saved, and I know you understand that, so why bother with the theatrics? We were trained by the best this world has to offer, so understand this now—there is no point in lying to us.”
Joe swallows, his gaze flicking between the four of us, but I continue, ready to find Oakley and have this bullshit done with. “Look at the state of you, Joe. That’s the face of someone who just pissed off some very important people.”