Page 121 of Emperor of Wrath

Shit.

Takeshi, who I saw ride off with Kenzo earlier, is staggering to his feet from the crashed bike. His helmet is missing, and even before he drops to his knees, I can see blood dripping down the side of his face and from the arm he’s cradling against his chest.

“TAK!” Hana screams as the three of us run over to him.

“What the fuck happened?!” Mal hisses, crouching next to his brother. I wince when I see the gash on the side of Takeshi’s face and the pain in his eyes as he grimaces. His eyes are blurry, but when they find mine, they come into focus.

“Kenzo?” I breathe.

His throat bobs. “They took him,” he grunts, wincing in pain.

“Who did?” Mal growls.

“Some fucking…Albanian, I think,” Takeshi mutters through grit teeth. “Pretty sure that’s what I heard him speaking to his men.”

“What happened?” I blurt.

“We went to Leka’s house,” he mutters, wincing again. “But it was empty, and there was blood all over the place when we got there. We found Leka all cut up, but then we got jumped by this fucker and his men.” He shakes his head. “Big motherfucker with a shaved head and a beard. Eastern European, for sure. His guys were calling him Gaza, or Gaza-something?—”

“Gacaferi.”

My heart drops, my face going white as the name falls from my lips.

“Yeah,” he grunts. “That was it.”

Oh fuck.

“They knocked Kenzo out. I got one of them, but there were like a dozen more. I…” His voice chokes as he looks away. “I…I left him?—”

“No, you got out, Tak,” Mal hisses quietly, shaking his head and grabbing his brother’s hand. “Getting yourself killed fighting a dozen guys doesn’t save Kenzo. Getting out and getting backup might. You got that?”

Tak nods grimly.

I’m already standing and marching away.

“Woah, hang on, cowboy,” Mal grunts.

I ignore him, my face stony and my heart thudding as I storm toward the garage. Inside, I grab a helmet and the keys to the same bike I rode the other night. Mal storms in behind me as I pause in front of the open locker on the wall.

“What the fuck are you?—”

He puts his hands up, stepping back as I whirl at him with a sword in my hand, pointed straight at him.

“I’m going after Kenzo,” I hiss. “What the fuck are you doing?”

His eyes flare as he tilts his head to the side. “It’s a trap, Annika,” he mutters. “You think they just let Tak run off? Gacaferi wants?—”

“He wants me to come to him,” I snap. “And he’s going to get his wish.”

Mal frowns.

“We have…history,” I hiss. “A business deal gone wrong. If this is how he wants to settle it…” I glance at the blade in my hand. “I know it’s a trap, Mal. But he’s got my husband.”

“And my brother,” he growls, turning and grabbing another set of keys and a helmet. He pushes past me, pulling a sword from the locker. “C’mon. We’re wasting time.”

My heart lurches as we step into the courtyard of Valon’s rental house.

That’s a lot of blood.

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