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CASH

So much time had passed, but I had yet to make any progress with the assholes behind the attacks. Michael was holding out on me, refusing to get me what I needed. It was time for me to take things into my own hands. There was only one way to end this shit, and that was by getting on the inside.

I stared down at the photos on my phone and swallowed hard. My kids…Eva…every fucking piece of their lives was on display for these fuckers. They hacked OPS’s system and followed my wife. How much longer until they took it a step further and did real damage? It could have been her in that chair in Wisconsin, bleeding all over the floor as they gutted her like a fish.

Leah had not been lucky.

I glanced discreetly at Knight, remembering the story he told me the other night about Kate—about how he’d watched her take a bullet to the head on video. She wasn’t dead, but he didn’t know that. It all looked so fucking realistic. He’d gone on a fucking killing spree, taking out anyone involved in her “death”. And when he found out she wasn’t dead, it nearly destroyed him for a second time.

I knew if anything happened to Eva, all of this would be for nothing. It was the whole reason I left, knowing that pushing her away would keep her safe. But would she ever forgive me for the horrible things I’d done?

Or what I was about to do?

I was no longer the man she married. Where I thought war had done the most damage life could throw at me, it turned out hell could be found in your own back yard.

I still felt the heavy burden of guilt every time I closed my eyes. I no longer felt at peace when I had Sally in my hands, and without Betty in my pocket, I knew it was only a matter of time before death came to claim me.

But I wouldn’t give up—not until I knew my family was safe and the twisted men who funded The Syndicate were dead.

“Are you sure about this?” Knight asked, his eyes flicking to where Michael stood.

“It has to be done.”

“And what about Eva?”

My gaze snapped to his and my lip curled in disgust. “What about her?”

“You’re taking a one-way trip you might not be able to come back from.”

I glanced away, refusing to think about anything but what needed to be done. “If we’re going to end this, it’s the only way.”

He grunted in disagreement but didn’t argue further. If there was one thing I could count on, it was that Knight would follow through to the end. “And what about him?”

Michael had just returned from another one of his disappearing acts. Despite wanting to get to the bottom of this clusterfuck, he was still Shadow. He still had things to take care of to keep shit running. Exactly what he did, I still didn’t know. I wasn’t sure I wanted to.

“It’s time to push ahead. He can either join us or get left behind. There’s no other fucking option at this point. No one at Reed Security or OPS is safe unless I go through with this.”

“It may not turn out the way you want.”

“Since when has that ever been a problem?” I snapped. “I don’t recall you playing by the rules just because things might get dicey.”

“The difference is, I understand what I’m risking,” Knight argued. “I’ve always known that I might not make it out alive. Can you say the same?”

My nostrils flared as anger swept through me again. “There’s one thing that being a sniper taught me. Life is never assured. Just when you think you’re in the clear, some fucker puts you in his crosshairs. And as that bullet strikes you in the center of the forehead and your life is bled from your body, you don’t even fucking know what happened. It’s over just like that. So, yeah, I fucking understand what I’m risking.”

He held out a phone to me, raising an eyebrow. “Call her. You have one fucking chance before this all goes to shit.”

I shook my head.

“Cash, if this goes south—and you fucking know that’s likely—this is your last chance to tell her what you should have told her from the start.”

“You want me to risk calling her?”

“I want you to do what you know you need to do. This is your chance.”

Slowly, I raised my hand and took the phone from him. The idea of hearing her sweet voice again sent chills down my spine. I’d been pushing her away for so long that I didn’t even know if I had anything to say that she’d want to hear.

But as tempting as it was to dial her number, I knew it was a risk I couldn’t take. Once this was done, they’d be safe. I might never see them again, but at least they wouldn’t have to worry any longer. Not about safety, anyway.

I stared at the phone in my hand, shaking my head slightly. “Contacting her is a fucking bad idea.”

“Probably.”

“Definitely,” I muttered. I handed the phone back to him, refusing to take the bait. “If I call her and they find out, it’ll all be for nothing.”

Smirking, he snatched the phone from me. “Well, at least I know where your head is.”

My eyes narrowed at his words. “It was a test?”

“Had to make sure you weren’t going to pussy out now. If you’d made that call, there was no way in hell I was going to follow you.”

He would have followed me. I knew it in my gut. He wouldn’t have liked the choice I made, but he was my brother, and we both felt that stronger now than ever.

“Let’s get this shit over with.” I approached Michael, already seeing on his face that he was going to put this off. Knight took a seat, watching it all play out. “It’s time.”

The frustration on his face was clear, but pussyfooting around this shit was no longer an option. “Cash?—”

“This isn’t moving fast enough,” I snapped at Michael. “I want this finished now.”

“You have no fucking clue what you’re asking,” he retorted, lighting up a cigarette.

I couldn’t remember the last time I’d seen my old man smoke. Then again, I rarely saw him. He was always taking care of something more important than me or Rafe. I glanced at Knight, wondering what it had been like for him growing up. Michael had been in and out of our lives all the fucking time, and if that was the case with us, then it must have been even worse for him. And then there was Isabelle. Fuck, my old man didn’t have loyalty to anyone but himself.

“I know exactly what I’m asking,” I argued. “I want in now. The longer we put this off, the larger the threat is. I thought this was what you fucking did.”

“I just secured Claire?—”

“She’s not the only fucking vulnerability around here,” I snapped. “There are plenty of lives at stake.”

“Do you think I don’t know that?” he argued.

“Why the fuck are you delaying?” Something was off about this. Michael wanted to help so fucking much, but it was like he was delaying things more than helping get to the root of it all.

Knight’s words rang in my ears. Can you really trust him? Fuck, I was beginning to think I couldn’t. Was he involved more than he was admitting? Was he somehow leading me into an ambush? I had no fucking clue. But there was only one way this was ending, and if he wouldn’t help me, I’d do whatever it took to make shit happen. I was done waiting for my revenge.

“I’m trying to do this the right way,” Michael seethed. “Claire was already attacked because of me. My daughter was stolen out from under me for thirteen fucking years. The last thing I want is for anyone else to suffer the same fate!”

“And yet it was your son who got her back,” Knight drawled, not bothering to look up at him. “He’s the one who sacrificed everything for a sister he’d never met.” His eyes flicked to mine. “Interesting, don’t you think?”

“I don’t think I like what you’re implying,” Michael bit out.

Knight shoved to his feet. All illusions of cooperation gone. “You’ve been running around for years, inserting yourself into the world’s problems. Hell, your fucking name is as mysterious as the shit you do. Yet, somehow, your wife and kid paid the price. Tell me how the fuck that happens? How the hell did your daughter end up in the hands of a psychopath?”

Michael clenched his fists, irritated as hell that he had to stand there and listen to this. But Knight was right to push. It was about time Michael heard it.

“Your wife was abused in the worst possible way, and what did you do?”

“Back the fuck up, son,” Michael snarled.

“I’m not your son,” Knight spat. “I haven’t been your son since you turned your back on me. You had too many other families to contend with. Fine. That’s fucking great, but you didn’t take care of them either.”

Michael’s face soured at Knight’s words. Fuck, we were falling apart, tearing at each other when we were supposed to be helping each other. How long could we last like this?

“We’re not going to do this. We’re not going to fucking argue about this shit!” I shouted. “We have a job to do. I need to get on the inside, and this is happening with or without you.”

Michael nodded, jerking his head at Knight. I turned, getting the same reaction from Knight, but just as I was about to say we could finally move on, something hard slammed into my head and everything went dark.