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Chapter one

This Means War

Axel

T he pounding gait of multiple footsteps approached the yacht. With guns drawn, I charged up the stairs silently in case it was the enemy. Kylie was safe. I’d ensure she remained that way. Even if it meant I had to leave men I considered my brothers behind to get her to safety. She’s freaked out and terrified. I didn’t blame her. The blitzkrieg style attack had tested her resilience fiercely.

And we weren’t out of the woods yet.

On deck, I raced into position. Using the yacht wall for cover, I peered over the edge. Gideon, Mateo, and Chase raced down the dock toward the boat. Behind them, Santos’s men closed in fast. Dark splotches of blood coated Chase’s left arm. Thank fuck, he was still alive. Must be a flesh wound because he kept pace with Gideon and Mateo on their mad dash.

I murmured a quiet prayer of thanks he wouldn’t be pushing daisies soon. Our line of work came with life and death stakes. But we signed up for it knowing the risks, willing to pay the ultimate price.

But the bill wouldn’t be paid today.

Sighting down the Glock barrel, I picked off mafia thugs one by one. The dock created a pipeline they had to funnel down. It made it like shooting fish in a barrel.

Weapons were my specialty. I could shoot any gun you put in my hands. And it didn’t bother me that I experienced a sadistic satisfaction every time one of those assholes went down.

We were escaping enemy clutches alive and intact. The moment they reached the boat, we would take off. If Santos’s men captured us, we would be executed. Then Kylie would be alone and defenseless against a monster.

Fuck that!

I would never leave her unprotected and would use every breath in my body to keep her safe.

It didn’t matter if I was six feet under. My ghost would be at her side, standing as a shield between her and them. No one would hurt my woman. I would defend her against all foes.

The guys were twenty feet away and picking up speed. More men spilled onto the dock, and I kept picking them off one at a time. Bullets whizzed by and I prayed they didn’t hit the yacht. Damn thing wasn’t bulletproof.

Then they were fifteen out.

Ten feet left.

And then only had five to go.

“Go. Go. Go!” Gideon roared with a determined scowl, waving his forearm.

Chase and Mateo boarded the bottom deck at a sprint. Chase didn’t stop and say anything. Just hustled past me and mounted the stairs two at a time, racing toward the helm. Gideon unhooked the ropes mooring us to the dock and shoved the boat away from the wooden pylons, moving it away from the dock before he took a flying leap.

He flew over the water, airborne as more goons spilled out of the tunnel onto the dock. They were shouting and waving their guns in our direction. The rat-a-tat-tat of gunfire disturbed the silence.

Shit. If one of their bullets hit the engine or fuel line, this boat would go up like a powder keg.

Gideon’s feet landed with a hard thud. The boat motor thundered to life. And Chase—that fucking maniac—floored it. The yacht lurched forward. That crazy motherfucker could pilot anything and laid on the speed. The boat could reach a speed of fifty knots. He’d taken it straight to its top speed. The ship swayed dangerously, a hairsbreadth from capsizing. The deck pitched against the incoming tide. We left a sizeable wake behind us, rippling out and mingling with the tide.

I gripped the railing to keep from tumbling flat on my face. Then readjusted my stance to account for the roll and kept shooting, replacing my magazine with a fresh one. I fired off shots until the boat reached minimum safe distance. We were far enough away from land that their bullets couldn’t reach the yacht. If they had heavier artillery fire, we’d be at the bottom of the ocean. The firepower they had was insufficient to reach this distance.

I breathed a sharp sigh of relief when we reached open water. We made it. Against all odds, the yacht sailed away with everyone on board and accounted for, if a little banged up. Atop the cliff, flames leaped high, and smoke billowed from the house.

Gideon clapped me on the back. “Thanks for the assist.”

“Kylie’s down below. Her house is on fire. Should we tell her?” I worried what it would do to my Angel. She’d been battered, abused, threatened, and terrorized by Santos and his men.

Gideon ran a frustrated hand through his hair. His burden was heavier than the rest of us as our leader. I knew the mantle weighed on him.

“Not tonight. We’ll tell her in the morning. It might survive. What she needs is sleep and reassurance that she’s safe. I’m heading below deck for the med kit. While I patch up Chase, I need you captaining this thing.”

“I can do that.” Not that I was an expert like Chase, but I could handle the ship for a hot minute until Chase could take over. Gideon headed below, and I took the stairs ascending two levels up from the ground floor.

Over the years, we’d been stationed on aircraft carriers and all other manner of ships in the Marines, but we’d never sailed a ship this luxurious. On the lower deck was the engine room, access to the below deck quarters, and near the stern was a small six-seater speedboat, and some jet skis. Located on the second floor was the galley, a living room, and the primary bedroom. There was also an open-air seating area on the aft deck. On the third deck was the ship’s wheel and control room, with a captain’s cabin and lounge area in the back, along with a dining area on the rear deck. The top level had a hot tub and an outdoor lounge area.

Chase was seated in the captain’s chair behind the controls. Even wounded, he kept his focus on the sea. Blood dripped from his arm and pooled on the floor below. His shirt was ruined. But fuck, at least he was alive, and Gideon had packed clothing provisions for us with a foresight that was downright eerie. But then, he’d also studied the way Santos operated when he went to war. “We need to get that looked at. Let me take over.”

“I’ve got it.” Chase gritted out and shot me a furious glance. We joked he was an eternal daredevil, always up for stupid shit. But when the shit hit the fan, there was no one I’d rather have at my side. Chase was fearless, with a side heaping of relentless. He never stopped. Even injured.

Gideon returned with the med kit and Kylie trailing in his wake. Battered and bruised, she shot me a small smile. We’d almost lost her tonight. The marks on her neck made me want to turn the boat around and go kill that fucker again for daring to touch her. There was nothing I wouldn’t do to keep her safe.

Between one breath and the next, an inconvenient truth struck me like a surprise meteorite strike.

I loved Kylie. Deeply, madly, truly. I loved her more than I ever believed it possible to love another.

But even that word didn’t accurately describe the depth of my feelings. I was devoted to her. Hopelessly. With every breath in my body.

She held my gaze with a warmth that sizzled into my heart. Did she feel the same? By chance, could she love this old Marine? I didn’t know what it meant either or how it would change things, since I had agreed to share her.

A blush spread into her cheeks. Then she shifted her attention to Chase. She gasped and put a hand over her mouth. Tears lined her inky lashes.

Chase shot her a cocky grin and winked. “I’m okay, beautiful. But I wouldn’t be averse to having you kiss me and making me feel better.

“Cool it, Romeo. We need to get you patched up. Move out of the captain’s seat. Axel will take over while we get this done.” Gideon had the med kit open and was assembling what he needed to treat Chase’s arm.

“I’m fine,” Chase gritted out, obviously in pain.

Kylie put a hand on his shoulder, above his injured arm. Chase looked at her with a wealth of meaning in his eyes and said, “Ah shit, gorgeous, don’t cry. Please. I’m useless around tears. I’ll let Gideon patch me up if it will dry your tears.”

Kylie nodded with a tremulous smile.

“Only for you.” Chase winked and rose. Then scowled at me. “Try not to sink us.”

“Quit your bitching and get your arm looked at. Then you can have the controls back.” Not that I couldn’t pilot the yacht. But I was far from an expert. And for this getaway, I’d feel better with Chase behind the helm.

Although until we were in the clear, we had to take shifts for all the duties on board. A yacht this size would normally have multiple crew members working round the clock to keep it running properly.

At the helm, I steered, maintaining the current speed and heading. But I monitored the group. Mateo sat at the communications panel, subverting any calls to local police and fire departments. We needed the attack handled by our clean-up crew. The less publicized the attack, the better.

Gideon cut off Chase’s shirt while he swore up a blue streak. Easier to do it that way than taking the black tee off over his head. Kylie sat at his side and held his free hand. Her resilience in the face of danger warmed me.

“You’re lucky they were such a bad shot. Another inch or so and they would have struck the artery. As it is, it’s not much more than a flesh wound. I don’t have sutures, so we’ll have to glue it shut. And you’ll wind up with a scar, but you’ll live.”

“Yay me.” Chase winked at Kylie. Then he hissed as Gideon poured alcohol over it to sanitize the wound.

It even made me wince. I knew an injury like that with alcohol poured over it burned like a son of a bitch. Better than letting it get infected, but still. Chase turned into a model patient, with Kylie looking on. She seemed to have that effect on us.

Gideon finished wrapping Chase’s arm when Mateo glanced over his shoulder and shouted, “We’ve got incoming and they’re not friendlies.”

“What the fuck?” Gideon swore and tossed the rest of the unused bandage on the table.

“Helicopter. Nine o’clock. I’m betting it is one of Santos and loaded with fire power.” Mateo added, “We need to take it down.”

“Take it down. You mean like destroy it? But how?” Kylie asked, her voice laced with terror. And all I wanted to do was go to her, hold her, and tell her everything would be all right. There would be time for that later. Right now, my expertise was needed and not at the helm.

“It’ll be fine, Angel. You’ve got nothing to worry about. I’ve got it covered.” I rose. “Chase, take over for me. Give me a minute to grab what I need down below.”

“With pleasure.” He slid into the seat with a nod.

Steely determination filled me. I marched below deck. The fuckers would die for putting Kylie’s life at risk. If they wanted a war, then they’d get one. And they would learn you didn’t fuck with a damn Marine.

Because I knew Gideon’s methods well, I located the firepower I needed. Hefted the AT4-CS disposable anti-tank launcher from a storage box. It had been designed for enclosed spaces with a saltwater counter-mass in the rear of the launcher to absorb the back blast. Which meant the deck would get wet, but it wouldn’t burn.

And this sucker would take the fucking chopper down. On my way up, I grabbed night vision goggles, and ear plugs, then raced the rest of the way. Mateo’s voice blared over the intercom, “If you’re going to do something, Axel, do it now. They’re a thousand meters out and closing in fast.”

I assumed position near the stern on the lowest deck level. Affixing the night vision goggles that had infrared and thermal scope capabilities, I used one of the jet skis for cover and located the helicopter. Mateo was right. It bore down on the yacht with nothing but bad intentions.

“Motherfucker.” They had heavy artillery loaded on the damn chopper. The doors were open. And I spied men with enough firepower to take us down with nary any effort. The closer the chopper flew, I confirmed what we already knew. It was a bunch of Santos’s assholes in paramilitary gear. I would recognize their ilk anywhere.

They wouldn’t last a week in the fucking Marines.

And they were about to see what we could do. It would be the last thing they ever experienced, too.

They hadn’t spotted me. Fucking fantastic! I didn’t want the aircraft evading the rocket. Because I bet they reported our location to Santos. Shouldering the weapon, I hit a few buttons. Lined up the sight, ensuring that it would hit even if they tried to dodge it.

I waited. My patience provided them with a false sense of security. They likely thought they had the upper hand, and that we didn’t know they were coming. Wouldn’t they be surprised when they went boom?

The distance diminished. The meters ticked by.

I held the rocket launcher, primed and ready. When the craft reached two hundred meters out, I fired, becoming their Grim Reaper.

The rocket blasted out of the launcher in a blaze of light and deafening explosion. It took flight. Arced into the sky, leaving a trail of smoke in its wake. Water splashed on the deck and saturated my pants.

Although I didn’t care about the water, my attention remained focused on the rocket.

As it flew, I knew it would hit. I’d used these bad boys one too many times in my career not to know when it would strike the intended target. I waited. It soared in a beautiful deadly arc and ate up the distance. At the last minute, the helicopter swerved, attempting to evade death.

But they were too late with their defensive maneuver.

The rocket hit the tail and exploded. A fireball enveloped the aircraft as it blew apart mid-air. Fire and debris rained down upon the black ocean waters below.

I gave those dead sons of bitches the finger. Mess with the bull, motherfuckers, you get the horns.

“Good job.” Gideon clapped me on the back. “I’m gonna call this in and give headquarters a heads up. Thank god that happened over the water and not on land or the director would be pissed.”

“He’s likely going to be pissed, anyway.” I shrugged. Whether he liked our methods, we did what we needed to protect the Phoenix. And I would have done it regardless of what our boss said. They were coming after Kylie. They’d hurt her, terrified her, and most likely destroyed her home. Killing was too good for them. They deserved to be strung up and tortured. In my book, they got off easy for what they did to her.

“We made it out alive. That’s what matters, and he’ll know that. But we need them to clean-up the house and handle the rest. You and Kylie made it here all right. No issues that I could see.”

“No issues. Once we reached the basement, we were good. And she’s been a trooper through all of it.”

“Likely the adrenaline. We need to prepare for the crash.”

I’d be there to help her pick up the pieces. Be what she needed. And do anything she wanted as long as it wasn’t ending what we have, because I needed her. She had wormed her way inside me, and I wouldn’t let her go without a fight. “Agreed. Are you going to tell her where we’re headed?”

“It’s best if she knows. I’d rather break the news to her before we make it into port. If we wait too long, it will blow up in our faces.”

“It might still. We’ve got to be prepared for it.”

Gideon sighed and nodded. “I know. But with Santos upping the ante, we don’t have another choice. And I need you on first watch.”

“On it.” I jerked my chin in acknowledgement. It still felt weird not saluting.

And no. We didn’t have a choice. At least, not any good ones.