Page 24 of Brick (Chosen Few #5)

Z ain parked on the side of the road three doors down from Keetan’s house.

From where they sat, only one vehicle was visible in the driveway.

The porch light was on. They’d waited outside for almost ten minutes to see if anyone would enter or leave, but the house remained quiet.

If Justin and his gang members were around, there was no sign of them.

“I’m ready when you are,” Zain said.

“Let’s go.” Brick slid from the passenger seat. He’d keep his rifle tucked close to his body so as not to alert the neighbors. There was the odd light on inside the other houses on the street.

They walked briskly down the sidewalk then up the walkway to Keetan’s front door. Anticipation strummed through Brick. Please give me a reason to put my fist through his skull.

Zain lifted his knuckles to knock, but Brick held out his hand to stop him. “One second.” He reached up and twisted the bare bulb until the light went out, sending darkness over the porch. “No need to show him our faces just yet.”

Zain snickered. “He’ll know who’s visiting when my knuckles break his teeth.”

Rap , rap , rap

Footsteps shook the floor inside, and a shadow passed the window overlooking the porch. The blinds were tightly sealed. “Who’s there?” Keetan barked.

All right, so the bastard wasn’t stupid enough to swing open the door in greeting.

“I said, who’s—”

Brick slammed his foot into the door, instantly splintering the jamb. The wood flew open. Keetan let out a sharp cry as he stumbled and fell onto his back. Brick charged inside with Zain at his heels.

Zain shut the broken door as Brick crunched his boot against Keetan’s windpipe. He really fucking liked putting this bastard on his ass. “Miss me, motherfucker?”

Keetan’s face turned red, veins bulged in his bald head, and his eyes bugged out.

Christ, he just wanted to crush his trachea right now and be done with it. The guy twisted and sputtered beneath his weight. Brick eased up the pressure.

Keetan sucked in a fast, wheezy breath.

“Tell me where the recording is,” Brick said, deadpan.

Keetan grimaced. “I don’t know what the hell you’re talking about.”

“Bullshit,” Zain said.

“I’m gonna bet you’re lying,” Brick added. “You know. The evidence you told Natalie you’re using against her. The death you blamed her for. Shelby’s.”

Keetan’s gaze became spiteful. “Don’t talk about my sister.”

“We’re gonna do more than talk.”

Zain chuckled. “We’re also gonna beat the shit out of you, but you could save us some time and hand over whatever audio you claimed to have.”

“Fuck you,” Keetan spat.

Brick put more weight on the guy’s neck. “You got a silencer handy?” he said, looking at Zain. “We’ll shoot him in the hands first and work our way down until he wants to talk.”

Keetan grappled with Brick’s leg.

“Sure do.” Zain pulled a silencer from his jacket pocket and screwed it onto the muzzle of his Glock. He wedged his foot against Keetan’s forearm, pinning his wrist to the floor.

Keetan grew frantic. He bucked and squirmed, but with Brick and Zain holding him down, he couldn’t do a damn thing but squirm.

Zain met Brick’s eye, silently asking permission.

He nodded.

Zain aimed.

“All right!” Keetan said, the sound guttural.

Brick extended his hand to hold off Zain and then lifted his foot and slid it back a few inches. “Got something to say?” he asked sweetly.

The asshole’s chest jumped beneath Brick’s boot. Fire sparked from his eyes, hot and vicious. “Yes, there’s a recording. It’s on my phone.”

“Get it.” Brick motioned for him to grab his device.

Keetan shook as he reached into his back pocket and pulled out his phone.

“You do anything fishy and the last thing you’ll feel is that fucking phone go through your mouth and exit the back of your head,” Zain said.

Glittering beady eyes zeroed in on Zain, but the idiot kept his mouth shut as he unlocked his device. Brick leaned down to make sure he wasn’t calling anyone. In less than a minute, he had an audio file on the screen. He held out the device. “Play it.”

Brick took the phone and straightened, then hit the button.

Soft, ragged cries came through the speaker. “It was my fault, Keetan. I—I pushed her. She was so angry about us. She just came at me. I’m so sorry.” Natalie’s desperate wail brought disgust up the back of his throat.

He gripped the device as rage pixelated his vision.

He wasn’t furious because Keetan had planned to use this against her.

That effort was futile. She hadn’t hurt Shelby in cold blood.

But goddamn, it made him violent to think Keetan had held on to this recording so long. Had used it to control Natalie.

And despite the fact Natalie had told him what she’d said, the sound of her innocent, young, and scared voice ripped his heart out.

“You sick bastard.” He curled his lip. “I bet you enjoyed listening to this, huh? Probably got off to it, you twisted fuck.” He stomped Keetan’s chest for emphasis.

The loser groaned but didn’t deny anything.

“How many times did you threaten her with it?”

Keetan grabbed at his stomach and his breath hitched. “Take it. Get the fuck out of here before I have you arrested.”

Red blazes of fury singed his vision. “Arrested? You’re the one who’s going to rot in a jail cell for kidnapping my kid. For beating my woman. Not to mention the deals you’re making with Club East.”

Keetan’s eyes widened before he schooled his expression. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“No? ’Cause your friend Clyde had lots to say.”

The slimy prick’s gaze shot from Zain to Brick. Panic scrawled itself across his paling face. “They won’t turn on me. Not after you killed Leroy. They want your throat slit more than I do.”

Brick’s mouth slid into a slow smirk. “Scared?”

“No. I’ve got nothing to be scared about.”

Zain laughed. “Framing an innocent woman for murder is the least of your crimes. You’ll get at least ten years for all the shit you’ve done.”

Rage rolled through Brick. Most people wanted to see men like Keetan degenerate in a cell.

But not him. He wanted Keetan’s last breath.

He wanted to watch the life leak from his body so he could return to Natalie and promise her that her abuser couldn’t touch her again.

“I don’t think he’s going to jail,” Brick said evenly. “I think this ends here and now.”

He brought the rifle over his shoulder to rest comfortably in his palm, the mouth of the gun pointed at Keetan’s head.

Zain’s firm grip on his shoulder stopped him. “Dude,” he breathed. The single word spoke a volume of warning.

Sweat broke out on Brick’s brow as Keetan lay frozen beneath his foot. All the moisture left his mouth as an image blipped through his mind. Bray huddled in that godforsaken crib. Covered in his own filth. Hungry. Scared. Alone.

He couldn’t let this bastard live.

Natalie’s face came forth next. The fearful, plagued look in her wild blue eyes when he found her in the parking lot that morning.

This worthless piece of shit had terrorized the two people Brick cared about most in this world. Had stolen them from him.

Then he remembered the sound of Bray laughing in the bathtub, remembered his squeals of innocent delight. He wanted to have moments like those day in and day out. He didn’t want to miss one more minute of his son’s life. God help him, he wanted to shape his son into the man he’d be one day.

And he couldn’t do that from prison.

Zain’s voice droned softly behind him, breaking through the fog clouding Brick’s senses. “He’s going down, man. I know it’s not the outcome we’d all like to see, but we’ve gotta hand over the evidence we have and let justice prevail. For Bray.”

Slowly, Brick lowered his weapon, but he didn’t take his gaze off Keetan’s. “You run, I’ll find you. You come near my woman and kid again, and I’ll torture you until there’s nothing left of your ugly face.”

Keetan exhaled a hot, angry breath through his nose.

“Understood?” Brick barked.

“I don’t fucking want them. Natalie’s only good for one thing, and that kid of yours is a loudmouth brat—”

Brick slammed the butt of his gun into Keetan’s nose. His eyes snapped shut, knocking him out cold as blood splattered from his nostrils.

“Shit,” Zain mumbled.

Brick removed his foot. “He’s not dead. But that’ll fucking hurt later.” He jerked his head toward the living room. “Look for a laptop or any other device he could’ve stored that recording on. I’ll stay with him.”

“Roger that,” Zain said, as he stepped over Keetan’s unmoving legs.

While Zain stormed through the house, Brick quickly changed the passcode to Keetan’s phone while it was still unlocked.

A minute later Zain returned with a laptop under his arm. “This is all I found.”

“Good. Let’s go.” Brick swung open the door and they breezed out, leaving Keetan unconscious on the floor.

The sensation of spiders crawling up Brick’s spine gave him a warning.

I should’ve killed him...

***

Natalie woke with a shuddering breath. Her heart raced frantically.

Bray’s soft breath against her neck made her muscles relax, but for once, it wasn’t fear for her son that’d woken her.

Intuitively, her body had sensed his nearness.

The sharp panic currently splitting her mind in two was for one big carbon copy of her son—Brick.

She looked over Bray’s head at the clock on the nightstand: 10:02p.m. She hadn’t meant to fall asleep, but pure exhaustion and snuggling her sweet baby had given her so much comfort that her body had finally rested deeply.

Light from the hallway spilled in through the open door.

She didn’t want to leave Bray, but he hadn’t budged since she got into bed with him.

Surely he’d be out for a while. The sound of voices downstairs caught her attention.

The deep, rumbling one sounded like Brick’s, but maybe that was hopeful thinking.