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A thunderous applause echoes throughout the room, as we move up the stairs. At the top, I let go of his arm, and he raises his eyebrows at me. I shake my head slightly. He frowns, turning to strut across the stage. Several women in the audience whistle, jealousy boiling in my veins.
"Thank you, ladies and gentlemen, for joining me tonight for this special occasion. As some of you know, five years ago, my beautiful sister, Shannon, disappeared from outside a local business," he pauses, taking a deep breath.
I glance around the room, the attendees entranced as Blake speaks. My eyes fall on the members of The Taurus, scattered throughout the room. Each one angry, hate filling their eyes. I bring my communicator to my mouth.
"Keep your eyes on the hitmen. If they're going to make a move, it'll be soon."
"We got them, Viper, relax," Dresden says in my ear.
"Shortly after her disappearance we learned that she had been kidnapped. Her kidnappers sold her to a human trafficking ring known as The Taurus. This ring is one of the deadliest, and for the past several years, my dear sister was lost within their grasp.
"Recently, thanks to an amazing agent from Interpol," he says, looking at me with affection in his eyes. "Shannon was returned to us. Tonight, we celebrate her homecoming, and we celebrate the countless number of women and children who have survived this horrific organization."
A round of applause sings through the audience, most of them getting to their feet.
"Lily, can you hear me?" Sammi says in my ear, drowning out Blake's speech.
"Yeah, go ahead, Boa," I say into my communicator.
"We got a fucking problem. Get Blake, Shannon, and Sorina out of their now!"
My eyes dart to Blake. "What's going on?"
"Someone put an adapter on my computer and hacked my system. The transmission is rerouted to a warehouse five miles from your location. I sent the address to your cell phone," she hisses.
"Gun!" Vlad screams from the other side of the stage.
I look up as screams erupt throughout the room. Time moves in slow motion. Several men move toward the stage . . . we've miscounted the number of Taurus.
"Blake, hit the ground," I scream.
He drops as bullets hit the podium. I pull my guns from their holsters and send a bullet flying, hitting the closest man in the temple. He drops as I run across the stage and slide next to Blake, blocking his body with mine, and Vlad kneels on the other side.
Vlad leans around us, and fires, the blasts vibrating my eardrums. I move to turn as someone grabs my ankle, knocking me on my ass. I pull my leg up, dragging them with me. Blake reaches out from behind the podium, grasping the person's head between his hands. The sick snap of bone reaches my ears as Blake twists his hands, breaking the hitman's neck.
"Get him the fuck out of here," I hiss, as Vlad reloads his guns.
"I'm not leaving without you," Blake says, grabbing my arm.
"Yes, you are. Now go. I'll meet you back at the apartment," I say, quickly kissing him.
I jump to my feet, side shuffling to cover Blake and Vlad as they move to the stairs. I hit another hitman in the shoulder as the guys dart for the main entrance. I crouch down behind a table, watching as they go. Another man jumps out from the other side of the door, trying to put Blake in a headlock.
Blake jabs his elbow into the man's ribs twice, breaking the hold, and as he spins around, Vlad puts a bullet in the guy's head. They dart for the entrance as the straggling guests storm the front door.
Impressive, baby.
I stand and look around, the hall cleared and only Dresden and I remain with three members of the Taurus left standing. They eye us ruefully.
"So, you guys really think you're going to make it out of here?" Dresden hisses, reloading his .45.
"There are three of us, and two of you. The odds are in our favor," the one furthest from me says.
I squeeze the trigger of my gun, hitting the guy closest to me in the forehead. He hits the floor with a thud. "Now you have two," I hiss.
The guy's eyes widen. "You must be Viper."
"And you must be stupid." I smile at him.