Page 37 of Blood in the Water

“Absolutely not.”

I stared, immovable, as a wave of rage simmered beneath my skin. “Listen to me very carefully, Cas. I’m. Coming. With. You. Unless you plan to hog-tie me in the back of this truck, shut the fuck up, and let’s go.”

He narrowed his eyes. “You have no idea what will be inside that warehouse.”

“Neither do you,” I snapped, once again filled with regret. For years, I’d been complacent, content to let my father determine my life’s course. I had become okay with being the spoiled mafia princess who just showed up to parties and looked pretty. I should have demanded my father include me and teach me how to defend myself. But he was dead, and here I was, trying to do somethingright. I might have been naive, but no longer. “I am not a fucking child.”

“Oh, trust me, princess, Iknowyou’re not a child,” he growled. “I can’t watch your back, mine,andinfiltrate a sex trafficking den at the same time. You’ll get us both killed.”

“Well,Ican’t sit here and wait while those women get assaulted and most likely killed.” I stalked around the edge of the truck and stood toe to toe with him. He towered over me, staring down at me with eyes filled with anger, but I’d never be afraidofhim. He would never hurt me, and we both knew it. “I know how to shoot a gun. I might not be as good as you, but I’m not an idiot, and I’m tired of being excluded. Ihaveto see what’s going on in there.”

It was like a compulsion. For whatever reason, the inside of that warehouse called to me, and the closer we got, the stronger the pull. Ineededto be inside.

I understood what Cas was doing. I understood why he wanted me to stay in the car. I knew I wasn’t trained for this, and I also knew I’d probably be horrified and completely distracted by what I saw inside. But it didn’t matter.

And the longer he tried to shield me, the weaker it would make me.

“If I’m ever going to be strong enough to face Max, you cannot keep me from this,” I whispered. His face softened to a mixture of frustration and resolution as the words sunk in. “I have to find this woman. I have to know why she’s here. Please, Cas. I’ll follow right behind you, I’ll listen to what you say, but don’t make me stay here.”

He let out a huge breath. “In that case…” He pulled his backpack out of the back seat and unzipped it before digging inside.

First, he pulled out the shoulder holster, removed his jacket, and strapped it on. He double-checked the ammo in each of his twin guns and slid them into the holders. Then, he pulled out another smaller pistol and tucked it into the back of hiswaistband. Before I could blink, he had another knife in his hand, which he slid into his shoe. Next came a bottle of pepper spray, which he tossed to me, and I slipped into my jacket pocket.

“Got anything else in there?” I smirked.

“I wish I had hog ties,” he muttered.

I flipped him off as he tucked the backpack underneath the driver’s seat. “Let’s go. You have to be silent. Seriously,silent. Follow right behind me. Watch where you step so you don’t make a sound. Keep your eye on my back and signal me if you need something.”

I gulped and gripped my gun before quietly slipping off the safety. With my bare minimum of training, I at least knew to keep my finger off the trigger until I was ready to shoot.

I had killed a man a few days ago. We had survived that shootout, and the attempted hit on us before that. We could do this. If I could help these women, I could prove I could be like Fallon. I could be the kind of woman who wasn’t afraid of getting her hands dirty—the kind of woman who got revenge.

We snuck around the buildings separating us from where we parked the truck, quickly moving from cover to cover.

Then we stood in front of the warehouse.

My heart raced in my chest. Something told me my life was about to drastically change once more, but this time, it would bemychoice. This time, it would be because I wanted to do something meaningful.

Cas reached for the handle of a side door, stuck his head inside, and gestured for me to come. I slid inside behind him.

14

WYNN

Itrained my rifle on the leader, waiting for the right moment to strike. I’d been watching from the rafters of the abandoned warehouse for five hours and thirty-six minutes.

Earlier in the evening, the traffickers had taken ten women to do their nightly client business. Five women had remained below in their makeshift holding cells, those deemed either too sick, too high, or too “used” to bring in high-quality dollars on this particular night.

Seven women had already returned, but three were still missing. There was still one van that hadn’t returned. If I attacked too soon, the traffickers in the warehouse could alert that van, and I could lose those women forever. But once they were safely inside, I would kill their captors and set them free.

An alert sounded in my earpiece. I glanced at the tablet tuned to the camera trained on the warehouse entrance and exhaled as the last van pulled up.

Right on schedule.

I had been staking out this warehouse for two days. Tonight, I would strike and finally bring this den down. Tonight, I would clear out the scum of the earth that had taken up residence here,release the women from this hell on earth, and then I’d move on to the next target.

I only had tonight. After this, I would have to take on a new contract and complete that mission. So tonight had to go perfectly. There was no other option.