Page 170 of Caught in the Crossfire

Elio moved, but Cas moved faster. He immediately began shooting. It happened within seconds. I shouldn’t have been surprised when five bodies lay on the ground between us—my new security staff decimated. My jaw clenched in frustration. Clearly, I had underestimated him.

“Move!” he shouted as he dragged Leona through the backyard.

The choice was right in front of me. Go after them. Let them leave. Kill them.

I couldn’t bring myself to shoot them.

But if I let them leave, Cas would take her and run. He’d understand what happened here tonight. He’d want to get her as far away as possible.

That had to be enough for now, at least until I spoke with the other Heads and figured out what to do about the RICO case.

The last bit of feeling I had slipped from my body as she and Cas disappeared from sight. He’d get her out of the city. I’d put a hit on them just to keep them moving, but I knew Cas would never let anything hurt her. He’d get her to safety, and then they couldlive.

I’d never see them again. That was how it had to be.

They were free.

And I never would be.

55

LEONA

Iwoke up in a cold sweat with what felt like a massive hangover. The sun peeked through my bedroom windows, and I flinched at its brightness. My head pounded. My stomach churned. The events of the night before had played in my head on repeat all night long.

The things I’d seen.

The memories I’d tried to bury.

Nope. I swung my feet out of bed, surprisingly empty for once, and padded to the bathroom to wash my face and change. I’d go down to the gym and sweat these feelings out. Wynn might already be there, and he could help me train. It had been a long time since we’d done any sparring, but this morning felt like a good time.

After we were done, I’d get back to work. I wanted to go over the information we’d been exchanging with Max again. Last night, we’d dealt a hit to the Albanians, especially by killing Ervin Vokshi, and I expected things to go quiet afterward. I didn’t want them to slip through our fingers.

As I stepped into the hallway, voices echoed from the kitchen.My eyes widened in surprise when I walked in on all five of my men awake.

My body instantly went on red-alert.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

Obi was the first to pull me into a hug. “Nothing is wrong.”

Ciel followed up after, planting a kiss on my cheek. “Morning,ángel.”

Wynn met me with a kiss to my forehead before Cas captured my lips. I did a double take at the sunken circles under Cas’s eyes.

“Did you sleep okay?”

His eyes crinkled softly. “Yeah.”

“You didn’t come to bed.”

He turned back to help Ciel and Obi plate some bacon and pancakes. “I was in the library and lost track of time.”

I almost asked more questions, but Ryuji caught my eye, stirring some scrambled eyes in a pan on the stove. “Hungry? We made breakfast.”

My eyebrow raised. Was this a dream? Had I fallen into an alternate dimension? We’d never all had breakfast together, at the same time, this early in the morning. It was barely seven. “This is weird.”

“Nope, not weird,” Ryu quipped. “Normal. Breakfast. Eat.”