Page 51

Chapter fifty-one

We’ve set up a rendezvous point near Killer’s new clubhouse for everyone who’s chosen to join us in this fight. Our numbers are astounding, and the gratitude that fills me at the sight of them all chokes me up a bit. There’s always been power in numbers, and Wraith is proving how worthy he is of that President patch as I take in ours. He’s gained us allies instead of enemies in his quest to turn us toward more legitimate means.

I’m not sure Killer understands how much blood is about to be spilled on his doorstep.

We stand in a circle around the huge blacked-out SUV in the middle of the abandoned parking lot. Pages are spread out on the hood as Phantom and Blade point us in the directions we need to go to have surprise on our side.

The chopping of rotors in the air above have us stilling and turning our attention to the blacked-out helicopter lowering to an empty space in the lot. Weapons are drawn and aimed as we wait tensely. The engine is shut down, and when the rotors slowly come to a stop, the door slides open and men fill the space.

Fucking men in blacked-out gear and wicked-looking masks.

Holy fuck.

Power runs through them as they climb out. It licks against our skin, a heady knowledge that these men are not ones we want to find ourselves enemies of. Once they’re outside the helicopter, they stand in a line, arms crossed behind their backs as they stare at the crowd we have. Then they move toward us in sync.

I’m not a man who fears much, but I’d be a goddamn liar if I said these men don’t terrify the hell out of me.

“Venatori Nocturnus” is whispered in awe through our crowd.

They stop before Wraith, already knowing who is in charge, and bow their heads respectfully. We do the same in return.

“Gentlemen. We’ve heard rumors that we have a common enemy. We do not normally operate outside of our boundaries, but we also seem to have common allies.” The man speaking finds Crow and Kaito in the group before turning back to Wraith. “We have come to offer our assistance. We do not offer it lightly. If you choose to turn it down, know the offer will never be made again nor will you be allowed to seek us out.”

The voice behind the mask is modulated, unable to betray any detail about who is behind it. They’ve made themselves as unidentifiable as possible with the masks, black gloves, black boots, and black outfits. There’s even some fucking piece of black material under the mask that comes down their neck and tucks into their shirts. There’s literally fucking nothing we could tell you about them except their physical sizes.

I step forward and hold my hand out. “My woman they’ve taken. Your assistance is accepted.”

They ignore my outstretched hand until Wraith steps up next to me and nods to confirm my words.

They respect positions of power.

One by one, they slide their gloved palms into mine.

They stand out of the way, listening intently as Phantom and Blade continue to go over our plan of attack. They break our people up into groups and give one person in each group an earbud, dedicating them as point person.

Except the Ventori Nocturnus.

Those fuckers are ghosts in the damn night anyway.

As Blade and Phantom wrap it up and we all prepare to head out to our positions, my phone pings with a message.

UNKNOWN

I’ll be sitting pretty in the trees ready to help your little birdie fly away. Meow, Kitty Kitty.

It’s the last sentence that tells me who it is, and I relax. My gut is telling me which Killer Kitty it is, but I honestly don’t give a fuck as long as she helps get my girl out.

“Everyone understand their assignments?” Wraith calls out.

A chorus of confirmations rings through the air and then we all start rolling out. Our bikes stay in the lot along with the helicopter as we all take off on foot or in the quiet SUVs. Their compound is big, and from what Jagger was able to pull up on satellite, there’s a lot of fucking heat signatures roaming around the grounds. We’re only going to get a moment of surprise before all hell breaks loose. We have to make sure we’re inside those gates before that happens.

Wraith wanted to task the Bourbon Falls men with getting Bailee out because they have less experience in these fights than we do, but there was no fucking way I was letting that happen. She’s my woman, and I’m getting her the fuck out no matter who I have to go through to do it.

I pull my tomahawks from their holsters and twirl them around as I march up to the gates. I lift one to prepare to hit the throat of one of the guards, but a shadow flits through the opening, wraps gloved hands around the head of the single guard and twists, snapping his neck and dropping him to the floor. He opens the gates for us before disappearing into the night again.

I shudder, imagining coming up against one of them as I stomp through the opened gates. There’s only a few members outside, so I dispatch them quickly by slamming my tomahawks into their vulnerable throats.

Blood splashes over me, and I grin at the warm, thick substance.

I’m coming, baby girl. Hang on for me.

Guns are brought out as Night Skulls begin to file out the doors of the warehouse. I’m not bulletproof, but it sure as fuck feels like it as I dance through our enemies, slicing and dicing along merrily as I fight through the hordes that have come out to battle.

“Steel, there’s too many inside. I can’t tell you which heat signature is hers,” Jagger growls.

I’m pulling my blade out of a Night Skulls head when my phone rings. I ignore it, taking on another member, but before I get the chance to do anything, a quiet bullet whizzes past my ear and hits the man in the center of his forehead.

My phone rings again just as another member falls with a bullet to the head. Our men start looking around at each other, trying to figure out where the shooter is.

‘Unknown’ flashes on my screen, and I put it to my ear. “That you?”

“Back of the warehouse. Last room on the left.”

The call ends, but the familiar voice confirms my thoughts from earlier.

I shove it into my pocket and speak into the earbud. “Back of the warehouse. Last room on the left. I’m goin’ in. Killer is fuckin’ mine.”

Until the Night Skulls members started going down from the sniper bullets, we were losing too many fucking men. I saw so many go down that if I take the time to think about it, I’ll be smothered by fucking grief. Bailee needs me to be coherent. I can grieve later.

Shoving my tomahawks back in their holsters, I pull my pistol out and flick off the safety. I need to get to her quickly. There’s no more time to waste using my blades.

Bullet after bullet, body after body, I make my way through the warehouse with others at my back. There’s surprise on some of the Night Skulls’ faces at the force with which we came at them, but what the fuck did they expect when they took my woman? That they’d merely escape unpunished? I’m not that nice of a person.

When I finally come to a stop at Bailee’s location, the door is already open. There’s no one inside except Bailee hanging from her chains. I sweep the area anyway as I hurry in.

“Get her down. We got your back,” Ronin says.

She’s barely conscious and cries out when I step in front of her until her dull eyes find mine.

“Hummingbird,” I murmur as I step in front of her and run my eyes over the chains to see what I’m working with. “Not goin’ to be able to get you down without hurtin’ you.”

“Don’t care,” she cries. “Get me out of here. I don’t know how much longer I have.”

I’m as careful as I can be as I lift her from the hook. The war wages on around us, my brothers guarding our backs, taking out anyone who dares try to come in this room. Bailee cries as I move her, and my fucking soul rips from my body.

“Got to get these chains off you, baby girl.”

The lock comes apart easily against the blade of my tomahawk, then I hold my cut with one hand while I awkwardly remove my t-shirt with the other. I slide my cut back on and pull the shirt over Bailee’s head, being careful of her injuries. Her knees shake as she struggles to hold herself up, so I lean her against me as much as I can.

“Can carry you out of here, baby girl.”

“No,” she says sternly. “I need to walk out of here on my own. I need to know he didn’t break me.” She blows out a breath. “But I’ll take some assistance in doing it. Adrenaline is keeping me going right now.”

And I’m fucking worried about when that wears off.

“Got you.” I put one of my guns in her hand, making sure the safety is off. “Shouldn’t have to use this but need you to keep it just in case.”

Ronin, Jagger, Dirty, Linc, Gremlin, Bones, and Bender create a wall around us as we step out of her fucking torture chamber. We only make it a few steps before Bailee’s legs give out on her, and I swing her into my arms.

“It hurts,” she whimpers. “It hurts so bad.”

I kiss the top of her head. “Know, baby girl. I got you. You’re safe now. Let’s get you out of here.”

She keeps a tight hold on the gun in her hand as we follow my brothers out. Bailee flinches with each fire of a gun, whimpering as she crawls deeper into me.

When silence reigns again, I catch her whispers.

“Lyric. Jericho. Reed. Jedreck. Macey. Bailee.”

Over and over, she whispers the names, and my heart breaks because I fucking know she’s naming off the people she loves.

“How are the burns, Hummingbird?”

“I don’t feel some of them anymore.”

Ah, fuck. That’s not good at all. I know enough to know that probably means my lady is going to be spending some time in the hospital.

We need to get her wounds checked as soon as possible, but we’re in enemy territory right now.

The fighting dies down, and as focused as I am on getting Bailee out of here, my mind can’t help wondering where the fuck Killer got off to. I’m hoping to fuck that he didn’t make it out of here because I have some shit to say to him. Painful, painful fucking words.

As we step out the doors of the Night Skulls clubhouse, the scent of recently fired bullets, death, and blood mix on the slight breeze as it wafts over us, causing Bailee to turn her face farther into my chest.

Until a familiar screeching voice reaches us.

Before I can process what’s happening, Bailee slides out of my arms and around the brothers in front of us. The gun is lifted steadily in her hand as she aims at Heather.

I war with myself on what to do.

“How dare you?” Bailee screams, pulling the trigger.

The first bullet hits Heather in the shoulder.

“She’s your daughter,” Bailee cries, squeezing the trigger again.

That one hits Heather in the leg.

“You’re too dangerous. I can’t let you hurt her.”

Bailee squeezes two more times, hitting her in the chest and then the head. I catch her finger flicking the safety back on as she falls to her knees with giant sobs tearing from her chest.

Blade squats in front of her before I get there and lifts her chin, taking the gun from her with his other hand. “You did what needed to be done to protect the people you love.”

Bailee cries, her shoulders shaking, but she holds steady eye contact with him. “It had to be done.”

He nods. “It did. Now, what do you say you let your man and me get you checked out?”

“Steel?” Bailee gasps, jerking her head around.

I hurry to her and drop down. “Hey, beautiful. Right here.”

“I’m sorry,” she cries.

“Don’t you fuckin’ dare apologize for doin’ what was needed to protect your daughter.” I gently curl my palm around the side of her face with the least damage, careful of the cut on her cheek. “Been a threat to Lyric for a while, always manipulatin’ her. Did what I should’ve done. I’m sorry you now have to live with that.”

“She’s going to hate me,” she says, her voice monotone.

Bailee’s eyes glaze over as she tries to distance herself from the realization that she just killed someone.

“I believe this belongs to you,” the modulated voice says from behind us.

I keep my hand on Bailee, needing that connection as I glance behind me. The five masked figures stand shoulder to shoulder. Killer kneels at their feet, his arms behind his back as the man in the middle holds his head up by the hair.

Bailee whimpers, her body shaking under my palm. When I peer down, she’s staring at Killer.

I slide my tomahawk from its holster and climb to my feet. Blade takes my spot at her side, letting her lean against him as I go take care of one of those demons he mentioned her having.

“You touched what belonged to me,” I growl, holding my tomahawk loosely at my side.

Killer laughs. “She screamed so pretty. Too bad I didn’t get to feel her cunt choking me as I did it.”

A red haze fills my vision. I swing the tomahawk through the air and impale it in his jugular. His blood coats my skin as I pull it out and swing again.

And again.

And again.

Until his head separates from his body and falls at my feet. The masked man tosses his head to me. Instead of catching it, I let it drop to join his body.

“This concludes our business here,” the lead masked figure states.

“Loyalty and accordance in the face of evil,” their mechanical voices blend together creepily as they fade into the night.

“Steel, go get your woman checked out. Everyone else, our fallen brothers will be taken with us so we can honor their sacrifices. The rest of the bodies need to be moved inside the warehouse so we can torch it. I want nothing left but ashes, brothers,” Wraith orders.

I spit on Killer’s body before I turn back to my woman.

My Hummingbird has a long recovery ahead of her, but I’m going to be at her side the whole way.

I’m never letting her out of my sight again.