Page 15 of Reign (Kings of Chaos & Mayhem #8)

Jade

Deals & Lies

“And who the fuck are you?” I ask with a raised brow.

My hands sitting loosely on my hips, my fingers itching to reach for my pistols.

Slash hangs from chains behind him with two goons on each side, also with guns strapped to their chests.

The cries from the women who trusted us most linger in the room.

This is supposed to be a safe place for the people we care about, and yet again, the enemy just waltzes in, causing havoc under my nose.

“Walker Brooks, leader of The Brotherhood. It’s a pleasure to finally meet the famous Jade Rivers,” he coos, and I roll my eyes.

“I’d say the pleasure is all mine, but that would be a lie.

You have some balls coming here after what you did to my home.

I should kill you right now, but I’m a very curious woman.

So tell me, how can I help you ?this fine evening?

” I ask with a sickly-sweet tone. He stands, and my fingers automatically tighten around the dagger sitting at my hip.

The guys shift slightly behind me. If you’re not paying attention, you wouldn't notice how subtle it is.

“My apologies for the mess I created, but it seems one of your men killed someone of importance to me and...” he trails off, looking behind him then back at me with a sinister smile across his face.

“And it seems Marshall is missing. Would you happen to know anything about that?” he asks, tilting his head as his eyes rake up my body.

The growl that leaves Jamie’s mouth is evidence that he does not like this man or the words coming from his mouth.

On my signal, Jamie will pounce and rip this man to shreds.

“I’m sorry, Walker, but you are going to have to be a little more specific.

I don’t know a Marshall. And why would you assume I would know his whereabouts?

” I ask as he takes a step closer to me.

I immediately put my hand up to stop my men from making a move and raise a brow at the man before me.

His hazel eyes snap to mine, and I can see deceit and want flowing through them, but his good looks aren’t going to get anywhere with me.

No other man can ever grab my attention like the ones behind me, so this fucker can use his charm all he wants.

Little does he know that I have a bigger dick than he does, and I’m not afraid to use it.

He takes another step, and I still keep my hand up, with my other one on the handle of my knife, ready and waiting, because I really wish this motherfucker would.

“Because he was sent to distract you all earlier today, but it seems he never returned and his location is off. The last time he was seen was at your Mill before—well, you know the rest.” He smirks, and I narrow my eyes.

“I still have no idea who you are talking about. No one showed up at my place of business,” I lie, and he reaches up, tucking my hair behind my ear.

My grip tightens on my knife the closer he gets to me, and I know my men want to pounce, but they won’t disrespect my orders in front of others, not unless it's warranted.

“We both know that’s a lie. What happened to your gorgeous face? Don’t tell me one of these jokers beat you?” He scoffs, letting the accusations linger in the air. I laugh, licking my lips and inching closer to him.

“These men behind me would never hurt a hair on my head. If anything, they are waiting for me to set them loose, and trust me, Walker,” I mock, “make one wrong move and I’ll be the last face you ever see,” I whisper, and he nods, taking a step back.

“Very well, so you say you don’t know where Marshall is, but what about Tyson?” he asks, and I roll my eyes again, getting really fucking bored with this conversation.

“Again, I don’t know who that is,” I tell him, and he smirks.

“Now, there’s the truth. You don’t know him, but your boys do,” he says, pointing behind me. I don’t turn and look. I’m not stupid enough to take my eyes off him, or his men, for even a second.

“And what makes you so sure?” I ask, and he chuckles.

“Because it was part of the plan. You see, I tried to get what was owed to me. Ask the blond. He knows the deal that was made,” he says, nodding at Jamie, who is standing to my right.

Taking a deep breath, I still don’t budge—continuing to listen to him dribble on.

“But since my plan failed, and you killed all of my men, I figured I’d send a decoy in—a fake.

I knew you would let in a Devils Incarnate, and there’s nothing better than making a deal with a devil to get closer to what I want.

So, I put a plan in motion. Paid a lot of money for this, so…

” he trails off, clapping his hands as he takes a step back, picking up his glass and taking a sip of amber liquid.

“What is it that you want, Walker?” I ask in a bored tone.

“A life for a life, and it looks to me—you owe me two,” he says, and I laugh, causing him to send the glass across the room to my left, shattering against the wall.

“This is not a game, Ms. Rivers. And I don’t find this to be particularly funny,” he spits, and I cover my amusement and put on my game face.

“My apologies, Walker. I just don’t think that type of deal is workable. I’m pretty sure we are even,” I say, but his eyes narrow.

“We had a deal,” he growls.

“Not with me. Not with my family,” I snap.

“The kid belongs to us. He is an heir, and you have no business keeping him,” he says, and I shake my head.

“Jaxon is my son. He may have rancid Pierce blood in him, but he has Rivers—” But he interrupts me, and I realize my mistake.

“He doesn’t though now, does he? There are no ties to you or your bloodline. Hand him over and no one else will get hurt,” he orders.

“And if I don’t?” I ask, raising a brow.

“Then you leave me no choice. I will come for one of your husbands and one of your children. A life for a life.” He smiles.

“You will be dead before you even get close! I promise you that,” I threaten, and he takes a step towards me. Taking out my knife, I hold it up in front of me, ready to sink it into his throat.

“Or you can come with me. These are your options. This can all go away tonight.”

“For how long?” I ask, and that sets my guys off. I raise my free hand to shut them up. Why can’t they ever just fucking trust me?

“That’s up for debate. So many factors,” he says, and I smile. Suddenly his phone goes off, and he steps back to answer it, causing me to take a few steps back myself, never taking my eyes off of him.

“Jade, he’s not who he says he is. I’ve met the leader of The Brotherhood, and he isn’t him,” Jamie whispers into my ear.

“Kitten, it's your call,” Dario whispers into my other.

“On my signal,” I whisper as Walker hangs up the phone, sliding it into his pocket.

“Now, where were we?” he asks.

“You wanting me to go with you and this will all end.” I smile, walking towards him.

“You’re willing to leave your men—your kingdom and children to come with me?” he asks, tilting his head.

“Yes, only if it ensures their safety and that this all goes away. A life for a life,” I answer, and he smiles.

“I knew I’d like you, Jade,” he says, and I laugh.

“Oh, one more thing,” I say, getting closer to him, using my body as a distraction while I drag my knife up his chest. He eyes me, licking his lips and leaning down towards me.

“The only liar here is you,” I whisper, and his eyes widen as I send my knife through the bottom of his chin so fast, then rip it out just as fast before he can push me away.

Gunshots ring around me as I use him as a shield, whipping his gun around him to shoot the men on either side of Slash.

Throwing him to the ground, I spin around as men come barreling in from the rooms down the hall.

Taking my pistols out, I shoot left, right, left as Ryder rushes to his father, taking him down from the chains while Spade watches his back, shooting anyone that comes his way.

I run over to the women huddled in the far corner, making sure none of them are hit while Dario and Jamie take down the others.

“Lucille, take the girls to the chapel. Lock the doors. Okay? You know the drill,” I tell her, and she nods.

Lifting my gun as they run down the hall opposite the rooms, I clear the path for them, ensuring they get to safety without an issue.

Once I see her shut the chapel doors, I turn back around to check the other side where the bedrooms are to make sure there are no children here tonight.

Kicking in the first door, I see two men raping a teenage girl.

I don’t think before I shoot them one by one, right in the skull.

Looking back down the hall, I see Spade and our eyes collide.

“Take her down to the chapel. I’m going to check all the rooms. She might need to be looked at.

Those fuckers were raping her,” I spit, and he nods, doing exactly what I asked.

Checking the next room, I see it’s clear, and I keep going, making sure no one else is hiding anywhere.

I get to Ryker's old room and kick in the door, ducking as a barrel comes flying at my head, shooting behind me.

Still with my knife in hand, I jab the man in the wrist, twisting it, making him drop his weapon, then drag the knife across his throat.

He chokes, causing his blood to spray against my face more than usual.

Stepping to the side, I let him fall face first and peek into the room, seeing more women crying, huddled in the corner.

“It’s okay, you guys. Spade is going to take you to the chapel where it's safe,” I assure them, and they nod, standing and following me out of the room.

Spade comes back and takes them. “Hey, there’s D’mitri’s room and my father's left, then it's all clear,” I tell him, and he nods, walking away with the others in tow. I release my mags and put new ones in before walking further down the hall. D’mitri’s door is already open as I slowly point my pistol as I enter, but the room is clear.

Exiting, I go to my father's room. I haven’t been in there since he died, so I take a deep breath and kick in the door, but it doesn't budge.

I growl as Dario comes into view, rushing towards me.

“I can’t get it open,” I spit, and he laughs.

“Move it, toots,” he jokes, lifting his leg and kicking the wood. It splinters, and gunshots ring out at us. We both jump to opposite sides of the door and point our guns inside, but the cries of a baby stop us in our tracks.

“Fuck, we can’t shoot in there,” I say, and he nods.

“We can’t send a smoke bomb in there either,” he spits.

“Fuck, I guess we take our chances.” I smile, and he shakes his head.

“Jade, don’t!” he yells, but it’s too late.

I run into the room, ducking down and falling to my right, sweeping my leg out to take down one man with a gun.

He falls backwards as another grabs me from behind, wrapping his arm around my neck.

I take my knife and slam it into his knee and twist, ripping it out, causing him to release me as Dario shoots the man on the ground right between the eyes, and I spin, dragging my knife across the other man's neck.

Once again, blood splatters against my face as the man falls forward.

Dario pulls me out of the way, letting the asshole fall onto the ground.

“You okay, baby?” he asks, and I nod. Looking around the room, I see a baby in a crib and a few toddlers with duct tape across their mouths in a cage.

“I’m so sick of these fucking men hurting kids,” I growl as I open the cage, letting Dario take them out one by one as I pick up the screaming baby from the crib.

We leave the room and take them to the chapel, handing Lucille the baby and the other kids to the rest of the women.

“I’m going to call the Doc in. I’ll let you know when it’s safe to come out.

Alright?” I ask, and she nods, cupping my face.

“Your mother would be so proud of you, Fallon,” she says, and I sigh, nodding in response. We leave the room and head back to the bar. I sit down in a chair and take a deep breath.

“Everyone okay?” I ask, looking for all of my men.

“Where the fuck is Jamie?” I ask, and Dario looks at me with wide eyes. I stand looking around the room. “Where the fuck is Jamie?” I yell, but no one is answering me.

“He’s gone,” Dario says from behind me, and I spin.

“What the fuck do you mean he’s gone?” I panic as tears form in my eyes.

“I’m so sorry, baby,” he says as the room spins and everything goes black.