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Ze nodded. “Fucker didn’t like my race and was drunk, but he had some skill, I’ll give him that,” he said to try to explain why he had so many wounds. He knew Zindel wouldn’t just settle for some random dude putting that much of a hurt on his brother. He knew how good of a fighter Ze was.

Zindel bit his plump bottom lip but nodded. “Okay. I’ll let you get some rest. I’m glad you’re home.” He leaned forward, hugging his brother before rising from the bed.

“Me too, now scram,” Ze said, shoving at Zindel’s leg playfully.

Zindel gave him a slight smile, but nodded and left. Ze laid back on the bed and stared at the ceiling for a few seconds before closing his eyes. After the nut he’d busted and the drive home, it didn’t take long for him to drift off to sleep.

6

COLTON

“So,you’re telling me that he’s still alive?” Colton’s mom asked him as she glared at him from the other side of his kitchen island. She’d surprised him by coming over unannounced an hour after he’d returned home after his long drive.

Colton sighed and ran his fingers through his usually stylish silver hair. Right then, it was just slicked back with product. “For now, yeah, but I know where he is and how I’m going to take him out.”

His mother scoffed and rolled her jade green eyes. “He’s just some biker, why are you having this much trouble?”

Colton snorted. “Well, that fucking ‘biker’ just took out a state senator.”

Helena’s eyes widened and she arched a perfectly shaped silver brow. “The Senator Kelly assassination?”

Colton nodded. “From almost two thousand meters away.”

“You saw him?”

He nodded.

She put her hands on her hips. “You had him in your sights and you didn’t take him out?”

“Fuck’s sake,” Colton grumbled, then walked over to his refrigerator and pulled out the bottle of papaya juice. Next, he removed a glass from his cabinet and poured himself some juice. He took his time drinking it because it gave him a moment to think about what he should say to his mom and boss. He couldn’t very well tell her that he’d been impressed with the man’s skill. And he certainly couldn’t tell her that he’d fucked that man’s ass into oblivion the day before.

“Did you have a fight with him? Is that why you have injuries?” she prodded.

He was now fresh out of juice so he cleared his throat. “Yeah, after I failed to snipe him back at the motel, he got smarter and booked a hotel room, so I had to get in close.”

His mother’s expression changed from incredulous to intrigued. Her son, who she knew to be highly trained since the age of three to kill a man with his bare hands by the time he was seven was standing before her, admitting failure to do the job he’d been born to do. How was this possible?

“You faced him head on and he beat you?”

Not quite,Colton smirked.

“I fail to see the humor in this predicament,” his mother stated as she glared at him. Her silver hair was combed back, giving her a very regal look, which she perfected with the right outfit that screamed wealth and control.

“We fought.” Colton thought back to that moment, his hand around Zaire’s throat, draining the life out of him one second at a time. He could have finished the biker off then, but something primal took over inside of him and he kissed the man instead. Of course, after knocking the man out, he’d used Zaire’s fingerprint to open his suitcase and checked out his weaponry. Then he looked into his tablet and saw the man’s plans and with that knowledge, he became obsessed with seeing if Zaire could actually pull it off.

Colton had gone back to his own hotel room and tended to his numerous injuries, even having to stitch himself up here and there. Then he left the hotel and drove to the location of the convention. He’d seen the area scans Zaire had and knew the building he would be setting up in, which was a brilliant location. Far enough from the outdoor convention spot to be able to get away without hassle. And if he could pull off the shot, even better. Colton had snuck into the building adjacent to that one and found an apartment on the thirteenth floor whose owner was foolish enough to not lock the door, making it easy for him.

Colton entered, his face covered, leather gloves on his hands, and he’d located the owner who was asleep in his bed. He injected him with a sedative that would keep him unconscious. After gagging, blindfolding, and tying the resident up to his bed, he set up the place that gave him a good view of the next building. He only had a pair of binoculars with him and of course, his knife and gun. He just wanted to see if Zaire could pull it off. How professional the biker actually was. One shot, a head shot, and then he was gone and Colton had been left stunned. For one thing, the man carried out his hit in spite of the fact that he was also being hunted. That took focus and fortitude.

He poured himself another glass of juice and then shook the container at his mom. “Want some before I put it up?”

His mother tsked and waved it off. “I want answers to my questions, Colt.”

He smiled and put the container back in his fridge and turned to face his mom. “Our fight got interrupted by hotel security,” he lied.

His mother waved her hand again in her disbelief. “Wait a minute, so what happened after that?”

“I ran, he ran, it’s that simple.”