Page 123 of Only Fools Rush

“We don’t have time for this,” I hissed as I yanked a bag from the closet shelf and started filling it with handguns and knives. Wynn did the same, with Obi handing us extra ammo.

“Ciel’s right,” Leona said. She pulled on the two thigh holsters she’d claimed. “We don’t have time to discuss it right now, so I’m going to let it go. But wewillbe revisiting this.”

“Fantastic,” Ryu quipped, already armed to the teeth as he pushed past me. He put his phone to his ear. “Kostya, heads-up. The Alacrán are headed your way.” He looked at me, and I repeated the trajectory I plotted based on their movements. I had the data on my phone, but I needed to log into my computers in my van to keep with real-time updates. Ryu passed along the info to Makarov, and then paused, listening as he spoke on the other side. “Are you fucking with me?”

“What?” I asked. Wynn punched in the elevator’s security code while we all piled inside.

“We’ll be there as soon as we can.” He ended the call before zipping the phone into a pocket of his pants. “The only thing Kostya has in that area is his sister’s apartment.”

“Zoya Makarova,” Leona breathed. “They’re going after her?”

He nodded curtly. “Seems that way.”

Leona’s entire body went taut with tension. “How would they even know she lived there?”

When they first started attacking the Russians, I thought they were looking for something.

“It’s not uncommon to search out a target’s weak spots,” Obi said, voice heavy. We did that kind of shit all the time.Idid. Putting pressure on your enemy’s weaknesses made it easier to eliminate them. Volpe, his hacker, and the Alacrán had to be doing the same.

Obi’s words seemed to trigger something within Leona. Her brow furrowed and her cheeks tinted red.

“What’s wrong, baby girl?” I murmured as my hand brushed against hers. She took it, squeezed it once, then let it go.

“I’m just so fucking tired of women being treated as collateral damage,” she hissed. “Zoya, Chiara, me. We’re real human beings with lives and hopes and dreams, not fucking pressure points.”

How many times had I given Obi or Ryu a roster on a target’s greatest pressure points? Too many.

I made a decision in that moment. We were done operating like that.

“We’ll intercept them,” Obi assured, squeezing her arm. His hand lingered on her for a few moments before he cleared his throat and pulled it back.

The elevator dinged open, and we piled into my van. Obi drove while I got situated on my computers and pulled up the feeds again.

Six Alacrán members, Arboleda included, headed straight for the address Makarov texted us in two black, stolen nondescript trucks.

At least Makarov could warn her. Maybe she could get out of the apartment before the Alacrán got there. If they did, they’d kill her. Or worse, take her hostage.

Obi maneuvered through the evening traffic and never-ending stream of pedestrians, and I pulled up the closest cameras to Zoya Makarova’s apartment, hoping we’d catch images of her finding some kind of safety.

“There,” Leona pointed, leaning over my shoulder. A woman with long blonde hair exited the apartment building’s door, glancing in each direction before she hurried to the south.

“That’s her,” Ryu said. “Zoya.”

Even with the grainy camera, she looked like Makarov. Blonde hair the same shade. Round cheeks. She hunched her shoulders and tightened her jacket across her body. One hand jammed in the pocket of her coat, clearly gripping a gun hidden inside. On my screens, we watched her run down the street and then disappear just as the Alacrán pulled around the corner.

“We’re ten minutes away,” I said. The cartel poured out of the vehicles and beelined for the entrance. They were going to rush the apartment. Could I try to cut the power? Would that slow them down?

“Kostya will get there first,” Ryu said, making sure his guns were loaded.

We watched on the camera feeds as the Alacrán entered the building, weapons out. Only moments later, Makarov and his crew pulled up.

“When we get there, I’ll find Zoya,” Leona said, hand on the back of my chair. “I can bring her back to the van.”

“I’ll stay with you,” Cas added. Leona nodded, glancing at his leg with a frown. He would be almost useless with that limp, and we all knew it. Cas glared at Ryuji but said nothing.

“I’m going inside,” I announced. Ryu and Wynn both turned to look at me.

“You’re not staying here?” Wynn asked, looking to where the feeds showed Makarov and his men surrounding the apartment building.