Page 17 of Revenge Saints (BloodHawks Duet #2)

“S o Roman doesn’t know you got me the radio?” I ask Bryn as she leans against the wall, arms crossed like she’s in control of something.

She stares at me, calculating. She can try to read me all she wants, but I’ve dealt with worse than her. And now that I know her real agenda? There’s no way I’m falling for the same bullshit again.

I just hope Knox or one of the guys is in range. Otherwise, this is all for nothing.

I click the radio .

Silence.

Fuck.

Again, nothing. Not even static.

“We’ll try again later. ” I know where they probably went.

Knox always sticks to the 72-hour fallback.

We set that plan in place years ago; if we’re ever separated, we return to the same checkpoint and keep trying the radios until we get a ping.

If one of us gets taken, the max wait time is seventy-two hours before rescue.

“Don’t try anything during the call, Dante. I’m not dumb,” Bryn snaps, eyes locked on mine like she’s daring me to test her.

“Where’s Roman?” I ask. I need to know where that fucker is slithering around.

“Placing traps with some of the men. He’ll be back before nightfall,” she answers casually. She doesn’t even realize how much she’s giving away.

A knock hits the door. Bryn moves to open it.

Sean steps in with clean bandages in hand.

“I need to change it,” he tells her. She nods and steps aside.

He sees the radio in my hand, smirks, but doesn’t say a damn thing. Just pulls my shirt off and gets to work.

The bandage stings less now. The pain’s dulled, but the fire’s still there, simmering, waiting.

“It’s looking good, son,” he murmurs gently. I nod. I should take him with me, but it’ll be hell just getting out alone. Still, I will come back for him.

My eyes flick to Bryn. She’s pacing now, biting her nails like a cornered animal .

“Why are you so stressed?” I growl. She’s getting everything she wanted, right?

She freezes, then slowly lowers her hand, caught in the act.

“I need Aspen here. And Knox,” she cuts herself off, staring at the floor.

“Dead,” I finish for her.

Her gaze snaps to mine.

“You’re really gonna use Aspen to bait Knox. And then use them both to control Roman.” I shake my head, jaw clenched. My fists curl until Sean shifts beside me. A quiet shake of his head. I breathe. Unclench.

Bryn murmurs, “Aspen…” I thought if she was here, with me, with Roman, we could have something normal. A chance at… something.”

She trails off.

“But?” I press, suspicion cutting through me like a blade.

She lifts her eyes. “Just get her here, Dante. It’s better if she comes willingly… before Roman and his men hunt her down.”

“Bryn! Don’t fucking lie to me, or I will make sure the guys and Aspen disappear forever.” The rage simmers, and not even Sean moving breaks it.

“For fuck’s sake, Dante, Aspen is a vital piece, another woman to bargain with the men, to make them turn on Roman. You know how this goes!” She mocks.

This bitch. I knew she didn’t want Aspen to build the perfect community. She wants Aspen to trade her for power .

Sean finishes wrapping my shoulder.

“Try the radio again,” he says calmly.

I lift it and press the button.

“Reaper?”

Static.

“Grit?”

Fuck,

“Yeah, brother.” It goes through like a breath.

“Where are you?” He asks. I can hear it in his breathing; they’re moving fast. Something’s wrong.

“Base.” I answer, and Bryn draws her gun. Points it at me like this is just another negotiation.

“Aspen. And him. Now,” she barks.

I nod slowly, lifting the radio again.

“Listen, Knox,” I say. “I need you and Aspen to come to the base. They’ll spare Aspen if you come with the guys.”

Bryn can’t even hide the malicious smile tugging at her lips. I doubt she gives a fuck about Aspen right now. What she wants is power. Control. And if killing all of us makes her a goddess in Roman’s eyes? She’ll pull the damn trigger herself.

The silence stretches.

“Grit,” He knows me. Knows I’d never call them in unless I had a plan.

“Listen, brother… It’s like Seraphim Red . You gotta quit.”

My eyes never leave Bryn. She frowns, confused. Sean steps in smoothly .

“It’s an old war movie. The team surrenders in the end,” he explains with such conviction I almost believe it myself.

Bryn nods slowly, then waves the gun again like she’s done playing nice.

“Just like it?” Knox presses through the radio.

“Just like it,” I confirm.

I glance at Bryn. “What time?”

She hesitates, thinking. Sean turns to her. “Maybe you should do it before Roman gets back,” he suggests. “With him here, you’ll lose control.”

Her eyes flick between us, calculating, suspicious. Then she nods.

“Before sunset,” she says coldly. She raises the gun again, pressing it against my forehead.

“Front door. Hands raised. No weapons. The three of them and Aspen in front.”

Of course. Putting Aspen right in the line of fire.

Fucking bitch.

I repeat the instructions to Knox. He confirms.

I turn the radio off.

“It’s done,” I mutter, exhaling.

But Bryn shoves the barrel harder into my skull.

“If this is a trick,” she snarls, “I’ll make sure Aspen survives… just so I can give her to the men. And I’ll make you all watch.”

Her eyes burn with fury. But underneath it, I see the crack.

The desperation.

I laugh coldly. “Oh, Bryn…” I murmur, rising to my full height, and she stumbles back .

“You’re already planning that. You want to use Aspen, the only other woman here, to control the men. You said it yourself; men only want one thing.” I snarl. “Pussy.”

She presses the gun against my forehead, and I smirk as I raise my hands. My muscles flex, neck cracking as I tilt my head, eyes locked on hers.

“She either accepts that her life will be better here with me… or she’ll be something to trade. Just like I was!” Bryn spits the words out; venom and fury laced with something off . Something cracked.

Fuck.

I don’t even recognize her anymore. She’s lost her damn mind. Finally broke under the pressure Ethan and Roman shoved down her throat. Or maybe… maybe she was always like this. Just real fucking good at hiding it.

She storms out, leaving me and Sean alone in the room. I hear her shouting names down the hall, probably the ones already wrapped around her fingers.

I roll my shoulder. Pain stabs up my arm, white-hot, but I don’t fucking care. I need to be ready.

Sean’s watching me. Calm. I grab my shirt and pull it on.

“I’ll either leave this place,” I murmur, “or die trying. But if it’s the latter, I’ll make damn sure Bryn goes down with me.”

Sean cracks a smile and claps a hand on my back.

“I heard Roman earlier,” he says. “He doesn’t trust her. The only reason you’re alive is so she thinks she’s in control. Roman already planned to kill Ethan even before she asked. But once she did, he pretended it was her idea. ”

Exactly what I suspected.

Roman’s loyal to no one. Not his country. Not his team. Sure as hell not a woman he met weeks ago.

I scan the room. Map my next move. When Knox arrives, I’ll need to move fast; I can’t afford to be locked in. He’ll send the signal, and I’ll have to make it to the back fence in seconds. One of the guys will make a distraction.

“I’ll need a gun,” I say, turning to Sean.

He nods, a grin playing on his lips.

“I can manage that.” There’s pride in his tone, humor too, like he’s finally getting a taste of rebellion.

He turns and walks out, leaving me in silence.

I move to the small window. The sky’s going orange.

Knox should be arriving.

He knows either Bryn or Ethan are alive. He knows Roman’s not here. And he knows I’ll meet him outside. I just hope that’s enough to get us the hell out of here.

But something gnaws at me.

The meeting point was the farm. No way a radio signal would reach that far. Which means… they’re close.

Too close.

And even though the 72 hours are up, there was something in Knox’s voice, something wrong .

And I’ll bet my life it has to do with Aspen.

Sean rushes in, fast. I barely hear the door before the stomp of boots hits the steel stairs outside the room .

“How many?” I ask as he presses the gun into my hand. I check it on instinct—one of ours. Five bullets. Not great. But enough if I aim to kill.

“Twelve. Maybe a couple more outside,” Sean mutters.

I do the math. I could take half if I were at full strength. But with my shoulder wrecked like this?

Yeah. It’s going to be a goddamn bloodbath.

I rub my face, forcing myself to stay still even as my heart kicks harder. Not from fear. From readiness .

The sky’s bleeding orange. It’s time.

It’s now .

Sean’s still standing there, worry tightening every line of his face. He knows. This is my one shot. And if it fails? There won’t be another.

Fuck it.

I stride to him. My breath slows, muscle memory from years in the field.

“Sorry about this,” I murmur, grabbing the back of his neck and jamming the gun to his temple.

His eyes widen, but he nods. Trust. No flinch.

“I won’t shoot you,” I whisper, and his nod comes again.

“Open the door.”

He does. And we move.

The hallway’s dim and shadowy. Each footstep echoes like a countdown. We reach the stairs. I hear movement above before we even step out.

As soon as we surface, someone shouts from the left .

“He’s got the Doc!” A gun lifts, shaking, too eager.

“Gun down or the doctor gets his fucking brain splattered across the floor!” I bark, loud and raw. My body tightens, adrenaline surging, every nerve screaming at me to act.

More boots. More men. Chaos unfurling fast.

“What the fuck, Dante?!” Bryn’s shrikes. She storms in from the kitchen, our fucking kitchen , the same one we once sat in, pretending to be people who still had peace.

“Shoot him!” She shrieks, rabid.

I yank Sean’s shirt, adjusting the angle to shield him, to protect his heart, his throat. Just in case.

“No!” someone else yells. Older. Authoritative. One of Roman’s higher ranks, maybe the one in charge when the snake isn’t slithering around.

Bryn rounds on him like a feral thing. “No?!”

She pulls her gun, but before she can fire, one of the soldiers grabs her, drives his boot into the back of her knees. She collapses, screaming.

“Roman needs the Doc,” the man mutters, and that grabs my attention.

Interesting.

“Who gives a shit about the Doc?! Dante’s going to escape!” Bryn snarls as she scrambles to her feet, her gun gone.

“Let him walk! Don’t fucking shoot!” the soldier commands. The others hesitate, but they obey. The path clears.

I walk .

Slow.

Controlled.

Every step, I turn just enough to make sure no one flinches. One wrong move and I’ll drop someone.

A gunshot rips through the front of the compound.

“We’re under attack!” someone yells. Three men sprint toward the front.

Another shot. Closer.

I move faster now, heading toward the back. Four shadows follow; one of them is the older man, his eyes locked on Sean.

“Why do they need you?” I ask.

Sean smirks, calm as ever.

“Roman’s sick. He needs me.” His eyes never leave the soldier ahead of us.

“So that’s why you helped me,” I mutter. “You knew you were never in danger with him.”

Sean just nods.

Then—A whistle.

I spin toward the sound. The fence, cut . There’s a narrow opening.

Another whistle.

A signal.

The guys.

I turn to Sean. “I’ll come back. We will. You’ll be safe.”

His only answer is the smallest nod.

“Be careful, son. Think about whether this base is worth it.” He whispers, and it slices straight through me .

My heart clenches.

I know Roman won’t hurt him. Not yet. Not as long as he needs him. But leaving him behind? It feels like betrayal. Still… If I take him now, Roman will unleash every bastard he’s got. We won’t make it a mile.

Another shot echoes from the front. The noise cracks the air like bone.

Most of the soldiers are drawn to the chaos, except for the three now in front of me.

I don’t think. I move .

I shove Sean to the floor and raise my gun.

Bang.

One clean shot. Then two more come from the fence behind me.

The three men drop, silent, crumpled like puppets with their strings cut.

“They’re back here!” Sean screams, loud enough to stir panic.

Then softer, sharp as glass:

“Move, Dante. Now.”

Smart bastard. He’s feeding them lies while buying me seconds.

I bolt for the opening, toward the split in the fence. I leave the base. The place that used to be our home. And I leave Sean behind, crouched in the brush, already moving branches to hide my escape route. A part of me aches for it, but I can’t look back.

Not now.

I dive behind a tree just as one of the soldiers climbs to the roof. It’s too dark, and he can’t see a damn thing. My chest rises and falls, breath quick and shallow, heart pounding like a war drum .

There is a crack in the brush to my left.

I whip my gun up, finger tense on the trigger,

“Grit.”

Knox speaks, and I let out a sharp breath I didn’t realize I was holding.

“Nice shot, Reaper.” I smirk.

He returns the smile, but only for a second. More gunfire rattles in the distance.

“We need to move. Max can’t keep it up; we only had two rounds.”

I push to my feet, scanning the tree line.

No movement. No pursuit . All the bastards are still at the front, right where Max is luring them.

“Where the hell did you get the guns?” I ask as we move low and fast through the trees.

Knox shakes his head, jaw clenched, the vein in his neck bulging with tension.

“Aspen escaped. We went after her… ran into two idiots carrying weapons.”

I stop dead in my tracks.

“She escaped ?” My heart slams against my ribs. I turn, ready to head right the fuck back.

Knox grabs my shirt and yanks me back.

“She’s safe ,” he snarls, eyes locked on mine. “Ryker has her.”

I study his face. Looking for any flicker of bullshit, but there’s none.

It’s Knox. He’d rather take a bullet than lie about her .

The brush behind us rustles. We spin, guns raised—

Max.

He strides through like he just walked out of a bar fight.

“Fuck, mate.” He pulls me into a rough, one-armed hug. I grab him back, grounding myself in the feel of him.

“Are you okay?” I ask, eyes narrowing as I spot the wet patch on his side.

Knox notices too. He moves fast, lifting Max’s shirt.

“It grazed me. I’m fine ,” Max says, brushing us off, already pulling the shirt back down. He sounds sure, but there’s a slight tremble to it, the adrenaline still riding high.

“Fuck, Max,” Knox mutters, half growl, half worry.

“I said I’m fine. We have Dante. Let’s get the fuck out before Roman sends the wolves.” Max turns, already moving.

Knox raises an eyebrow but keeps quiet. For now.

We move, fast and tight, into the trees, three shadows slipping back into the wild.