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“But nothing he needed. Like love. Like companionship. Like the knowledge that the person you love most in the world would do anything for you.”
Laughter returns to K’s eyes. “You’re just a silly, little girl. You came here to kill me but look at you now. Trust me, Kyla, you won’t make it out of this alive. As soon as I don’t need you as bait anymore, you’re gone. I’ll make sure Johnny never finds out what happened to you because you don’t deserve to be mourned. You’re nothing, Kyla Samson.”
His words hit me like an explosion to the chest. I have a love-hate relationship with the mourning process. I hated the fact that my parents were dead but mourning them gave me some semblance of peace. A time I could come to terms with the fact that they were gone. Just like Brawler visits his brother and sister on Christmas. Like Johnny and Jacob yearn for their mothers. Grieving is a facet of life. A cog in the cycle of love and death. If things go down like K wants them to, if he gets his way like he always does, the guys will never know what happened to me, and for some reason, that devastates me to my very core.
I deserve to be loved even when I’m dead.
The gravity of the situation falls on my shoulders. I might not make it out of here alive. Even if Magnum does have a plan, it might not work. Everything always seems to swing in K’s favor, and no matter how much I’d like to break that cycle, what if it just doesn’t happen?
I’ll lose everything.
The thought of death being a very real possibility sobers me up. K picks his glass up again, not even aware his words did more damage than his fists did last night. That’s the thing with words. They leave everlasting marks that actions never could.
The limo comes to a stop, and K puts down his glass. He glares at me as he slides toward the door. “You stay with me. If you try anything, you’ll be dead before you know it.” He pushes back his suit coat and reveals a small handgun.
The door opens, and K steps from the car. The guards reach back in and yank me out with more force than necessary. I know I can’t hide in the limo forever. I stay just behind and to the left of K as he walks over the uneven terrain. Stone mixes with cracked cement. Weeds poke up through fissures in the broken foundation. Around us are the charred remains of the race track.
Guards stick close to us as we move toward a pile of ash. I don’t understand K’s plan here. If he got the Dragons to meet him under the guise that he’s Gregory, they’re definitely going to figure out he’s not Gregory as soon as they see him.
Then again, K is just that fucking cocky.
I close my eyes.One Kyle and Anna. Two Kyle and Anna. For God’s sake, if you can hear me, keep me and my guys alive.
In the distance, three figures come into view. I take stock of who we have with us and am startled when I spy Magnum to our right. That makes Trey, Magnum, K, and me. And I’m just here for bait.
At least that’s what they think.
Magnum doesn’t meet my eye, but I doubt he’d show up here without a plan. Unless we’re all just fucked.
Clearly, I’m the only one who doesn’t know the plan. When we get within twenty feet of the Dragons, I scan their faces. My jaw almost unhinges when I find Cole as part of the team. Actually, he’s not just part of the team. He’s standing directly in the middle. His head drops back, a laugh escaping his mouth that is not nearly as crazy as K’s can be, but it has the same force. “You’ve got to be shitting me.”
K nearly smiles. “Surprise.”
“Surprise my ass. Where’s Gregory?”
I glance between Cole and K. It’s obvious K doesn’t recognize him. I guess having all those little Crew members means you forget faces. Or just plain don’t give a fuck enough to remember them. Trey must be new because he isn’t saying shit either. I don’t dare look at Magnum. Is he surprised? Did he know about this?
“Gregory was always my little bitch. He never acted without my command, but he’s surprisingly found himself not breathing recently.”
Cole’s face darkens. The earlier mirth is completely stricken from his face. They must be nervous, but they don’t show it. In fact, they look pretty calm for just finding out they were double-crossed.
“Give up.”
“Give up or die, you mean?” Cole asks.
K smirks. “Come on. You know I don’t play like that. It’s give up and die.”
Cole darts his gaze to me then back to K. Uneasiness crawls through me. I was literally here for just this. Just to keep them rooted in this spot. The carrot dangling in front of them.
“If we all die, you don’t get shit, and you know it.”
“It’s a hostile takeover,” K gleams. “Your underlings will see reason.”
“Like I haven’t prepared for something like this. You don’t get to be a leader without being smart.” This time, Cole moves his gaze to Magnum. Holy shit. He’s actually the leader of the Dragons. He’s been the leader this whole time.
They can sort their shit out later, if there is a later. We have more pressing concerns.
“Trust me, I know what I’m doing,” K says. “I took out Roza. Her merry clan of assholes never recovered. If your guys still want to make it, they’ll gladly fall under my wing. If not, the Dragons will be nothing but a memory.”