Page 103 of Brick

CHAPTER

TWENTY-NINE

Brick

The thirty minutes after Liv and Tre left were the longest of Brick’s life. He focused on his breathing as he waited for Sucre’s entire crew to arrive. Every fiber of his body strained to go after his woman, but he had to trust his failsafe would come through, or all of this would be for nothing.

There were dozens of guys in the organization, from the dealers to the pimps to the bookies, and the muscle, like himself. By the time Sucre set, about forty guys had gathered in the bar, all loyal to the boss, all curious about why he called them.

They gathered around Sucre at his throne and Brick in his chair beside him.

“My friends. I’ve brought you here for a very special announcement.” All eyes followed Sucre as he rose to his feet. No one noticed the extra men, all clad in leather, creeping in around them.

“Brick has been an important part of this organization for the past fifteen years. He’s worked by my side, earning my trust, following the rules. Starting tonight, he is becoming something more. He’s not merely a collector or a punisher for wrongdoing. Tonight, he takes his place at my side as a partner.”

Sucre clapped, and the crowd followed suit.

Brick cracked a half-smile and waited for the noise to die down. Then, he stood next to the man who’d made his life a living hell. “Thank you. Sucre is right. I’ve done this job for many years. All this time, it’s been about what I can do with my fists and what I can do with this gun.” He pulled his Glock out of his waistband and waved it carelessly in the air. “I’m ready for a new challenge.”

Still smiling, he turned the gun on his longtime boss and slammed it into the side of his head. Before the bastard’s body even hit the floor, he opened fire, picking off the shell-shocked men around him.

They were still reaching for their own weapons when the brothers of The Skulls M.C. ambushed them from behind.

Kane trained his gun on Sucre, allowing him to watch his empire crumble in front of his eyes.

The massacre took less than a minute to play out, and not even the bartender was left alive when it was all said and done. Bodies littered the floor.

He turned to Sucre, who rose to his knees and lifted his chin defiantly, despite the inevitability of what was to come.

“Go ahead and kill me if you want, but you’ll never be free of me, Brick. You’ll never be anything more than the monster I made you.” The boss laughed darkly. “I’ll be with you for the rest of your life.”

He cocked his head. It was strange to see Sucre on his knees. Strange, but satisfying. “The only thing you’ll be…is a stain on the linoleum.”

A single shot to the head ended the reign of Sucre de la Cruz.

It was a cleaner death than he deserved.

Kane stepped forward. Blood dotted his face and matted his beard. “Where’s your girl?”

He grimaced. “Tre took her to the apartment. Will should be there already, but I’ve got to go.” He surveyed the blood, brains, and other nasty shit around him. “You sure your guys can take care of all this?”

“For ten thousand dollars paid in advance? Yeah, brother. We’ve got this.”

“Thanks, man. I’ll never forget it.” He leaned down and put one more slug in Sucre’s head, one last fuckyou, before wading through the bodies out the front door.

Half of his plan had been a success, but none of it mattered if Will couldn’t get to his sister in time.

***

Liv

A loud crash verified Tre had stepped into Liv’s trap, but even with such a hard fall, there were no guarantees. In every horror movie she’d ever seen, the bad guy always got up again.

Her heart thundered in her chest. She held her breath, straining to catch a hint her stalker had resumed his hunt.

Before her lungs gave out, a familiar voice cut through the silence. “Liv!” It was her brother. “Liv, where are you?”

It sounded like he was right outside. Having him so close mobilized her to break out of her frozen fear. “Will, I’m coming out.” She sent up a prayer of thanks he was here. Now she just had to find a way out of this damn building. This side of the structure was unfamiliar.

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