Page 32 of Wicked Vengeance

Around the time he kidnapped Raena, he started slipping. The people of Shadow Forest got their first glimpses of the monster behind the suit. He isn’t their savior. He’s a wolf in sheep's clothing. His mask started slipping when he became obsessed with a teenage girl. And when she escaped him, all bets were off. He’s been progressively getting worse. Shadow Forest has lived under his thumb for too long. That’s one of the reasons we created the Shadows. We’ve been planning his ‘removal’ for a while. Today is the day we free Shadow Forest from its depraved, oppressive rule. Today, we save our girl and set this town free.

“We’ve got movement,” Ronan says in my earpiece. “Three SUV’s. Exiting the gate.”

“Hold your position. Let them leave.” I say, stopping in my tracks.

“King could be in one of those vehicles,” he states.

“He’s not the priority. Raena is. Let them go.” I run my hand over my masked face. I’d rather take the chance than fail my Angel. If we don’t kill him today, his days are numbered. Getting Raena out safely is our biggest concern.

“Copy that. Everyone, hold your position. Do not engage.” Ronan orders our people.

“We’ll get him.” Alek says, squeezing my shoulder. His reassurance is comforting. I want King dead more than anyone but Raena is the mission. Getting her out of here is our only priority today. “You made the right call. The less people who stand between us and our girl, the better our chances.”

“As much as I want to gut the bastard, we might not get another chance like this,” Maddox says quietly. He is practically vibrating with restlessness. Our woman is inside that building somewhere. We’re so close. None of us are willing to risk it.

I look at my brothers while we wait for the vehicles to leave. So much has changed for us in such a short time. I’ve always loved them, but everything shifted when my Angel came into our lives. She brought us together, closer than we’ve ever been. We’ve been bonded since we were kids, through the shitty hand life dealt us. But now, our bond isn’t through our trauma, it’s through the five-foot-nothing little red head that turned our world upside down. I’ve never imagined anything more than brotherhood with them. Looking at them now, I can see what I’ve been blind to all these years.

“Promise me, whatever happens, if you get to her first, you get her the fuck out of here. Don’t look back until she is safe,” my voice dips low with emotion. I need them to understand–I would die for every single one of them. And I need to know they will do the same. “If we make it out of this alive, we’re going to kill that bastard and finally start living for us. For our family.”

Grabbing onto both of them, our foreheads meet and we take a moment to prepare for this. I’m not scared of dying, I’m scared of losing one of them.

“We’re all coming out of this alive, brother. We survive, then we start our lives,” Alek whispers in declaration.

“Agreed,” Maddox says.

“All clear.” Ronan's voice in our ears interrupts our moment. “You’re up. Two guards at the gate.”

“Let’s go.” I say, giving them both a firm squeeze on the shoulder before continuing along the treeline towards the guard shack.

I don’t look back. I know they’re following. Just like I know that Ronan has everyone in place around the property. We’ve got the place surrounded. The Shadows, the Huntsman, and Kohle brothers are spread out in the forest around us, watching our backs and waiting for our signal. We left Snow behind with our private security, Gage and August, along with a few Shadows to hold down the cottage. We don’t expect any trouble, but it’s our only safe place right now.

When we get to the backside of the guard shack, we can hear them talking inside. We don’t give them a chance to alert anyone of our presence. Maddox and I slip in behind them and slit their throats. Their bodies slump to the floor in a heap. Stepping over them, I hit the button to open the gate, giving our men the signal to move in.

“Check this out,” Maddox says, stepping over the guards to get to the wall of screens. They’ve upgraded surveillance since the last time we’ve been in here, monitors show a complete view of the property from all angles. The treeline where we slipped is in complete view–they just weren’t paying attention. “These dumb fucks could’ve seen us coming if they would have bothered to do their job.”

“Can you disable it? Put it on a loop?” A thought hits me. “If King has access to these on his phone, he can warn the guards left behind.”

“Does a bear shit in the woods? Of course I can.” Maddox sits down and immediately starts tapping away.

“Hold up, Ronan. Everyone stay where you are,” I tell them through our earpiece, then speak directly to Maddox. “How long?”

“Too late. We’ve got movement on all sides,” Ronan says, his breath coming in harsh pants like he’s running. The gunfire starts immediately, popping in all directions.

“Leave it,” I shout, grabbing his shirt and pulling him behind me. Crouching down, we slip back to the doorway and peek out.

“Four guards headed your way,” Ronan yells in my ear.

“I see them. Push through, we got them.”

The guards running down the driveway head straight for us. King must have been watching the cameras and tipped them off. What a dick.

Just as they approach the small building, the two in the front drop to the ground with perfectly centered holes in their foreheads.

“I left two for you. Have fun,” someone says in my ear. Sniper. I forgot that some of the Kohle Brothers are set up in the trees. I don’t have time to look for them or even respond before the other two guards reach us. However, I don’t miss the smile that splits Maddox’s face as he steps in front of me and Alek.

“I’ll take these,” he declares, drawing his blades. He has a fucking gun. But of course, he wants to play with his food before he eats it. He slips between the guards like a choreographed dancer, slicing their throats in tandem. He spins around, their blood coating his face and making him look even more unhinged than he is. “Well, get your thumbs out of your assholes, fuckers. Let's go get our girl.”

He takes off in a sprint down the driveway, gunfire pops in all directions around the property. I can only hope it’s our men taking out the Kingsmen, and not the other way around.

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