“You know what you have to do, right?” Tobias didn’t look at me, his focus was fixed on the dark blue Explorer parked further down the street. Its headlights were off, but there had been movement a while ago behind the dark tinted windows. Someone was in there, two someones we assumed.
I swallowed my breath, trying to quell the shallow pants.
We were parked a street behind our target. We’d been sitting here, behind the overgrown brushes of the corner house, for the last hour. But it didn’t matter how long we sat here, I still couldn’t stop the shakes, not from my fingers or my knees. I gripped them, crushing my fingers as my legs smashed together.
“We’ll find another way.” Tobias turned and met my stare. “It’s okay. We’ll find another way.”
I shook my head. “No. I want to do this.”
He shook his head, and that spark of anger ignited inside me. “Tobias.”
“Our way, little mouse,” he reminded me. “You promised.”
Fuck.
I turned my focus back to the dark Explorer, and seethed.
“If we don’t do this, T, then we may as well start running now,” Nick’s voice was low and careful as he sat behind the wheel, staring at the same car we did. “She’ll never be safe, never stop worrying. We’ll never know when that fucking recording will surface again. You want that for her?”
He shifted his gaze to the rear-view mirror to see his brother.
Come on…come on…
My knees jerked and bounced no matter how hard I clenched.
“If anything happens,” Tobias murmured. “Anything you’re not prepared for—”
“Then I’ll scream,” I answered, drawing his focus to me. “I’ll scream and you’ll come running, and then the bad guys will be dead.”
He knew it. I knew it. There was no way anyone inside or around this house was getting out of this alive. I only prayed we would, that we would get that recording and get out, and fuck everyone else. Because Nick was right, there was no running from this. How could you run from a threat? The answer was simple; you couldn’t.
You eliminated the threat.
You countered the threat with violence and death.
Fighting for peace.
Tobias’s dark eyes were haunted, fixed on mine, as he whispered, “I can’t lose you.”
“Then don’t lose me.”
He searched my stare, desperate to find a reason why we should just turn tail and run. I straightened my spine and clenched my jaw, determined he’d find no weakness in me.
“Fine,” he muttered.
“Fine,” I answered, then held my breath and looked away.
He wouldn’t see it…because I refused to let him see it. I eased my grip on my knees, feeling the throb as blood rushed back into my fingers, and I reached for the door handle. But before I pulled, Tobias murmured, “I’ll be right there, little mouse. Right fucking there.”
I turned my head, meeting his stare once more. “I know you will.” Then I yanked the handle and opened the door.
The interior light didn’t come on, at best there was a tiny clunk before the door pushed open and I all but fell out. My legs were made of jelly, for some reason my knees were nowhere to be found. I jerked and stumbled, finally found my feet, and slowly, achingly slowly, headed for the house.
I forced myself to stare at the sidewalk as I rounded the bush and cut across the corner of the yard. The dark green grass and the tops of my boots were all I saw. I wore jeans, because there was no way in fucking hell I was letting that man get anywhere near me.
Never again…
Never…again.
I felt their stares on me, burning a hole in the back of my head as I strode past the four-wheel drive and then, at the last minute, I veered off, hurrying along the sidewalk.
“What the fuck?”
I caught the mutter as I crossed the sleek wooden entrance, mounted the stone steps, and stopped at the massive black door. My fists were already curled. I didn’t even think, I just acted, slamming them against the door. “Killion, open up. Open up, it’s me. IT’S RYTH!”
Footsteps sounded inside, growing louder.
“Get the fuck away from the door!” Came the bark behind me.
But I didn’t move. My focus lifted to the camera above the door and the tiny red blinking light. “It’s me,” I said to the lens. “You know…the woman you paid for.”
Click.
The door cracked open, then he was there, stepping out of the doorway, those sickening blue eyes fixed on me.
Stall him…stall him…stall him…
I didn’t want to look at him, not at the pressed white shirt he wore, the sleeves rolled against his forearms. Nor at the tight smirk that grew bolder as he whispered, “Well, well, well. Look what dragged itself to my door.”
“Mr. Killion, sir,” the bodyguard snarled behind me.
“It’s fine,” the vile fucking demon answered, never once taking his gaze from me. “She’s fine…just not what I was expecting. Why are you here, Ryth?” He searched the street behind me.
“I have n-nowhere else t-to g-go,” I stuttered, wrapping my arms around my body as I shivered. “My brothers…they…”
“They left you, right?” he answered for me, narrowing in on his kill. “The attention became too much and they decided they were their father’s blood after all.”
I clenched my brow, looked down, and prayed to God I looked sad, because inside I trembled with rage. “Yes.”
“Figures.” The snide remark made me flinch. “They were always lowlife scum.”
I clenched my fists so hard I felt the sting of my nails cutting into my palms and fought the urge to lunge forward and claw his fucking eyes out. But it’d come…it’d come…it would.
“You’d best come in then, the last thing I want is my three-million-dollar investment catching a goddamn cold.”
Three million dollars? I jerked my gaze to his. That’s how much he’d paid for me? That’s how much my body, my mind, and my soul were worth to him? Three million dollars. I thought of Nick as Killion stepped to the side and motioned me forward.
But I pushed my brother from my mind. I had to be careful now. I had to be smart, and strong. I had to keep my wits about me, especially in a place like this. I scanned the foyer and stepped into the house as the door clicked shut behind me.
“I have to say, Ryth, I’m surprised to see you. In fact, you were probably the last person I was expecting on my doorstep.”
“Yeah, well,” I muttered, watching another bodyguard come from further inside. “I wasn’t exactly planning on being here either.”
I stared at the holster strapped to the guard’s chest. My focus fixed on the silver weapon, calculating in my head how much time it’d take for him to draw it.
“Still, it’s a very pleasant surprise.” The voice came from right behind me.
Killion lashed out, grabbed my arm, and shoved me forward. I didn’t have time to think. Memories collided. Me in that room, with his hand around my neck and his fingers inside me. Tobias! TOBIAS!
I battled the howling need to fight back, just throwing my hands up as I hit the foyer wall. His hand was at my back, tearing at my shirt as he tried to yank it up while he reached around and gripped my throat with the other. No! No! His hand clenched around my throat, his fingers bruising as he snarled. But he had to work at exposing me. Nick’s long t-shirt was tucked in tight, pushed all the way down and cinched by the belt around my waist.
“What the fuck is this?” he growled, then snarled as he reached around instead, mauling my breast and pinching my nipple as a thwack thwack…thwack came from outside the front door.
Thud.
“Christ, don’t tell me he’s here,” Killion exclaimed, and pulled away, turning to the front door.
Crack!
I flinched at the shot, but this time the sound hadn’t come from outside the door…it was inside the house.
Movement drew my gaze to my right. Three dangerous men were a blur of menacing black, striding from the rear of the house, all three gazes fixed on me.
The bodyguard lunged from the doorway, looked at my brothers, then drew his weapon from his holster and spun. “Fuck! Get in the panic room!” he screamed at Killion. “Get in the goddamn panic room NOW!”
But it was too late, for him and for Killion, as Tobias took aim. Crack!
The bodyguard spun and staggered backwards, slammed again and again by bullets to his Kevlar vest. But he didn’t go down, and he kept hold of his gun. Harsh breaths sounded as he lifted the weapon and took aim.
“Kill them!” Killion screamed, his eyes wide with panic. “KILL THEM NOW!”
Crack…crack! The guard fired back, making my brothers scatter. Two went one way, and Caleb went the other.
“Fuck!” Caleb roared.
He was on his own now. On his own in a house with only God knew how many bodyguards, cut off from his brothers while the hallway was peppered with bullets. Panic roared inside me. My own panting breaths were a rushing noise in my ears. But still, I dropped down and my trembling fingers yanked the bottom of my jeans leg up and pulled out the knife from inside my boot. We’d had to get a way in, and we’d known Killion would open the door if I was the one knocking.
They knew I’d find a way inside.
“Kill those fucking bastards!” Killion roared beside me, his spine pressed flat against the wall. He didn’t even look at me, didn’t even see me. He was too busy hiding behind his men, who opened fire at my brothers as they drew their focus. You’ll have one chance, princess. Nick’s words filled my mind. One chance and we all get to leave that place. One chance, and we’re done. Can you do that? Can you be like us? Yes. Yes, I could.
I rose on trembling legs, took one look at Killion, and froze. He was so close, so close, stabbing his finger in the air and screaming. “Fucking kill that betraying bastard.”
Crack.
Crack.
Crack.
The nearest bodyguard opened fire as thunder came from deeper in the house. Thud…thud…thud…footsteps echoed as two more came from the rear of the house. It was now or never…now or we were all going to die.
And I wasn’t about to let that happen.
I gripped the cold steel in one hand, my knees trembling as I lunged. Only it was my turn to grab Killion by the throat, my turn to press my body against his back with the point of the knife at his neck. He stiffened instantly, understanding the mistake he’d made.
Crack! The bodyguard fired, only my brothers didn’t fire back. They wouldn’t because I was here…
“Tell them to stop shooting,” I gasped, then drove the point harder against his neck. “Tell them to stop or I’ll stab you.”
He didn’t dare move his head.
He didn’t dare breathe.
“Ryth—“ he whispered.
But I didn’t care, gripping his neck with one hand while I pressed the point against his vein with the other. All I thought of was that recording. All I cared about was getting it back. “I said, tell them to stop.”
Killion lifted his hand into the air. “Stop…” I eased the knife a bit. “Stop it.” He croaked louder, drawing the attention of the guards.
The bodyguard stiffened, staring at the knife in my hand. He sucked in hard breaths and glanced from Killion to me. “What’s going on?”
“We want the recording, that’s all.”
“Recording?” Killion turned his head, pressing against the blade.
“That’s all we want,” I urged, staring into his hate-filled eyes. “That’s all we’re here for.”
Killion motioned to his bodyguards, urging them to lower their weapons. Silence. That’s all my brothers needed, silence and…a way in. Tobias stepped around the edge of the doorway to draw the bodyguard’s gaze. He lifted the gun in his hand, barely taking aim before he squeezed the trigger.
Crack.
The bodyguard stumbled backwards, then dropped to the floor, blood spilling from a hole in the center of his forehead. Killion stared at the sickening sight…then slowly turned his gaze as Tobias strode toward us, with Nick right behind.
Crack…
Crack.
Two more guards were hit. One went down, while the other stayed upright.
Crack!
Crack!
The wounded guard tried to shoot back.
“Don’t bother,” Tobias snarled. His head was down, his shoulders rock hard as he took one more step and lunged. He charged forward, slammed into the male before fists and fury raged. My hand trembled at the sheer brutality of my brother as he used his knuckles as weapons, driving into the bodyguard’s face over and over and over again.
The male could only take the punishment.
Crunch. Crunch.
His head snapped backwards. Blood sprayed from his nose.
“Next time.” Crunch. “Pick a better employer!” Tobias roared, and drove his fist so hard into the bodyguard that his head rolled back and he slumped to the floor.
“T,” Nick called, sucking in deep breaths as he aimed his gun at the two remaining bodyguards.
Tobias didn’t answer, and he didn’t stop…until I called his name. “Tobias.”
His fist froze in mid-air, the knuckles dripping with blood as he turned that brutal gaze to me and it softened.
My hand with the knife trembled. He looked from me to the man I gripped around his neck and in an instant, he let the dying guard go. The male slumped to the tiled floor and didn’t move. Killion stiffened as Tobias stepped over the body and headed our way. “Ryth?”
“I’m okay,” I whispered, tearing my gaze from the bloodied mess that was once a man. “I’m okay.”
But Tobias didn’t take my word for it. He gripped my chin, sliding his bloody thumb along my jawline as he turned my head to the side, then lowered his gaze to the throbbing area left from Killion’s hold. There was a flare of rage, a promise of violence. “Did he do that?”
I swallowed hard, my hand trembling as I answered. “Yes.”
Killion flinched, paling as Tobias fixed that merciless stare on him.
“Uh-uh.” Nick shook his head as a bodyguard tensed, looking for an opportunity to make a move. “Don’t be fucking stupid.”
He seemed to think better of it, scowling before he glanced at Killion.
“The recording,” Caleb demanded, stepping around Nick to face Killion. “Where is it?”
“Recording?” the bastard snarled. “What fucking recording?”
Caleb’s jaw tensed and hate burned in his hazel eyes. He took a step closer as Tobias gave me a slow nod. “We’ll take it from here, princess.”
“We know you leaked it,” C growled. “All we want is the master copy, and every one you’ve made.”
Killion flinched as I stepped away and Tobias took my place. He glanced at Tobias, trying to shift away as he answered. “I don’t know what the fuck you’re taking about, Banks. But I can tell you right now, you’re in fucking deep shit.” He glanced at the unmoving mess on his perfectly tiled floor. “I’ll have your ass for this.”
“You don’t know about the recording?” Caleb repeated, his voice careful and controlled, and I’d never heard him so deadly.
“No, I don’t know about any fucking recording. Now, get the hell out of my goddamn house!”
Caleb gave a slow nod, then he carefully turned his head to Tobias, who lifted his gun, took aim at the bodyguard in front of Nick, and fired.
Boom!
I jumped at the sound. The bodyguard slammed against the doorframe, then fell to the floor.
“Now,” Caleb murmured. “Let’s try this again.”
He was so cold.
So careful.
So utterly terrifying.
“I don’t know about any recording.” But there was a tremble in his voice, one that could only be the telling of a lie.
“Now that just makes me disappointed.” Caleb stared at him. “Because I know, and you know, there is no way you wouldn’t keep something like that in your sick treasure trove. Nick…”
“Yeah?”
“I think it’s about time we showed Mr. Killion here how serious we are.”
“My fucking pleasure.”
Nick barely moved, just lifted his gun and took aim at the last bodyguard.
“No…no…no!” the guard roared, lifting his hand in the air.
Boom!
“You don’t get to touch what’s ours,” Caleb declared, staring at Killion. “You don’t get to look at her. You don’t get to watch…you don’t get to survive.”
Tobias grabbed Killion by his shirt and dragged him backwards. The bastard stumbled, crying out before he fell and landed on his ass on the floor.
“Get up,” Tobias growled, moving toward him.
“Wait…wait…wait a minute,” Killion stammered, his eyes wide, turning from one of my brothers to the other. “Okay. Okay, I’ll…I’ll give you what you want.”
Tobias stilled, looking down.
Killion didn’t even look my way. “You can have the little cunt.”
Ice plunged through me, making my belly clench tight.
Tobias’s brow furrowed. “What the fuck did you say?”
“The bitch is yours,” he continued hurriedly. “You fucked her anyway. She was supposed to be a virgin. I paid for a fucking virgin. Three million dollars. Three fucking million and I didn’t even get to make her bleed.”
My brother turned ghostly white standing over him.
Revulsion burned, rocking me where I stood.
“Her cunt is dry anyway,” Killion started…and that’s where it stopped.
Tobias unleashed a sound that was primal. He cocked his fist in the air and lunged, driving it down into Killion’s face. The sickening snap of bones made me jerk in surprise.
“The…fuck…DID…YOU…SAY?” Tobias roared. His eyes were black pits, his body a weapon honed by violence…and love as he drove his fist into Killion’s face once, twice, three times before he snapped out of it.
I didn’t even get to make her bleed…
I didn’t even get to make her bleed.
My hand trembled, still clutching the knife. Nick raged forward, moving like a blur to grab Killion by his shirt and lift his body from the floor. “Where is the goddamn recording!” he screamed. “Give it to us NOW!”
But Killion just whimpered, which only seemed to enrage him more.
Nick unleashed, driving his fists into Killion’s face, then he pressed his fingers into his neck on some pressure point that made Killion pale then buck in agony.
“You think you can bargain with her life?” Nick leaned close to him. “You think you can trade her away like she’s some piece of fucking meat?”
I tightened my hold around the knife, my whole body trembling.
“She is our sister, our lover. She is ours to protect and ours to save.”
“And we are hers,” Caleb joined in, turning his gaze to mine. “For now…and always.”
“There is no…fucking recording,” Killion hissed, staring up into Nick’s eyes.
My brother flinched, then eased his hold and dropped Killion to the floor. “Then we have no use for you.”
The ringing in my ears was a deafening drum. I moved on instinct, striding forward. “Only for me.”
Tobias’s head snapped toward me, followed by Nick’s. “Princess,” Nick murmured.
But I couldn’t answer, because I wasn’t here. I was trapped in that room, held prisoner by that man’s hands and his violence. I needed to find myself, to pull myself back any way I could. I stepped closer, drawing Killion’s stare. He thought so little of me, nothing more than flesh to poke and prod any way he chose.
I’d survived then…I survived that room and I survived him. I lowered myself to the floor, kneeling, and pressed the edge of the knife against the buttons of his shirt. But Killion wouldn’t survive me. I’d make sure of it.
Pop. A button tore free with a jerk of the knife. I flicked again and again, slicing them off. “Tobias,” I whispered.
“Yes, little mouse?”
I didn’t look away from Killion as I demanded, “Take his pants off.”
There was a second of silence, until he understood. Then with a chuff, he moved. “Whatever you need.”
“Wait!” Killion spluttered, and flecks of blood flew through the air as he batted Tobias’s hands away.
“He needs to be restrained,” Caleb directed, glancing at Nick.
Revulsion burned in my brother’s eyes. But he couldn’t do it. “If I touch him, I’m going to kill him.”
One shove, and Nick rose.
Caleb was the one who grabbed Killion’s arms as Tobias yanked open his belt and unbuttoned his pants, Caleb whose unflinching stare drove Killion’s panic even more.
“Stop this!” he bucked and fought.
But it was useless. One hard jerk and Tobias tore his pants down. He wasn’t gentle when he ripped his shoes free and cast them aside to hit the barely breathing, beaten bodyguard. I moved over Killion, straddled his thighs, and looked down at his white cotton underpants. “So fucking unoriginal, aren’t you?”
The worthless apology for a male blubbered, his hands held back by Caleb.
“You are just a weak, pathetic excuse for a man.”
“I’ll pay you. Whatever you want, I’ll pay you.”
I pressed the knife against his tiny cock, it was barely big enough to make a mound against his underpants. “What did you tell me? ‘I’ll fuck you until you see stars?’” I looked down and pressed the knife harder. “Not with this, you wouldn’t.”
He moaned when I dug the blade down even harder. “You disgust me.” I pressed more firmly. “Fucking vile piece of shit.” My hand trembled.
“We’re right here, our lioness,” Tobias murmured. “Right fucking here.”
I didn’t know if I’d ever told him what Dad used to call me. Maybe I’d told Nick once. I couldn’t remember. But the familiar pet name triggered something inside me. Something that had already been pushed to the surface. Harsh breaths moved deeper as I fixed my sight on Killion. “You won’t hold me prisoner anymore.”
I drove that blade down again, pushing it all the way to the inside of his thigh, until the blood ran and my hand shook. Then I jerked the knife back.
“That’s all you needed, princess.” Tobias lifted the gun in his hand. “I’ll take care of the rest.”
Boom!
