Page 51 of Ruthless Angel

“Kill that one too.” I pointed to the man Cash had choked out.

Once they were both dead, we dragged them away from the door, in between two vehicles. Shoving my gun in the back of my pants, I used my t-shirt to hide it. I wiped the knife on the dead man’s clothes and shoved it back into the sheath in my pocket.

Since the back entry was likely being monitored for those coming to the auction, we rounded the building and entered through the front lobby. It didn’t take long to find the lounge upstairs. It did seem particularly busy for a hotel lounge. Most of the men were dressed well, wearing suits and designer attire. They mingled while drinking expensive cocktails, laughing while patting each other on the back. Literally.

We definitely did not fit in with this crowd. Taking a seat at the bar, we ordered drinks. I fought against the impatience that made me want to gun down every person in the lounge. Paying attention to our surroundings and the conversations going on around us would get us further than losing my mind and ending up in prison. That’s what I told myself as I sipped a mojito and listened to two men to my left.

They discussed a recent sale, making it sound like a business transaction. They were careful with their words so their real meaning wouldn’t be obvious. I clutched my glass so tight I expected it to break. I was mere seconds away from smashingmy glass in one man’s face and using the shards to slash his carotid wide open.

“Dude.” Cash nudged me, his voice low. “Brady just walked in. What’s the plan?”

I glanced over to find Brady and two men standing inside the entryway. My blood sang with a sense of victory. We had him now.

Before I could respond, Brady’s gaze fell upon us. He stiffened. Without a word to his companions, he turned and ran like hell.

I was off my stool and out the door behind him in a heartbeat. That motherfucker was not getting away. I owed him brutality.

Brady ran for the stairs that led back to the main lobby. I was right behind him. Propelling myself forward, I reached for the back of his shirt. Instead of grabbing him, I inadvertently shoved him.

He missed the top step and tumbled down, rolling ass over teakettle to the floor below. Too bad the bastard didn’t break his damn neck. Cash and Blaze were right behind me as I raced down the stairs.

Brady scrambled to his feet and took off, tearing through the lobby as he shoved people out of his way. Ignoring the shout of the valet at the door, he rushed out into the night.

I shoved past the valet as well, almost knocking him down in my haste. Nothing mattered but stopping Brady before he escaped. I poured on the speed, letting adrenaline drive me. Quickly, I shortened the distance between us.

He raced through the main parking lot, trying to lose me by weaving between cars. The idiot made the mistake of looking back at me and tripped over a concrete parking block. Brady went down on his face with a grunt.

I leapt on his back, grabbing his hair. Slamming his face on the hard ground, I rolled him over, needing to look him in the eyes.

“Did you bring Clover here tonight?” I snarled, punching him in the nose.

Brady got an arm up, using it to fend off another blow. “She’s long gone, asshole. I didn’t think she’d sell for so much. Your bitch made me a fuck ton of dough.”

“Then I’ll have to blow your goddamn brains out.” I reached for my gun, interrupted by a warning shot going off.

“Let him go. Now. Put your hands up where I can see them.”

I turned to find one of the men who’d entered the lounge with Brady holding a gun to Blaze’s head. His friend held a gun on Cash who pointed one right back at him. Fuck. Me.

Raising both hands, I slowly stood up and stepped away from Brady. There was a strained moment of tension as we all decided what move we wanted to make. I didn’t want to take any chances and risk Blaze. He’d faced enough already.

Brady got up and took off running. His friend gave Blaze a shove before following, keeping his gun trained on us as he went. The last guy slipped away too, walking backwards as he and Cash kept their weapons trained on each other.

I watched them go, a voice screaming in my head to go after them. As bad as I wanted to kill them all, it wasn’t worth risking myself when we were so close to getting Clover back. She’d been here tonight. Desmond had to have come through for us.

“Son of a bitch,” Blaze muttered, studying a scrape on his palm. “I can’t believe he got away again.”

“Hey, fuckers,” Havoc called as he strolled up with Knight and Gage in tow. “I just got a call from Raina. Clover is at the house with her.”

The utter relief and joy that washed through me was a brand new sensation. Had I ever felt this fucking happy before? Not that I remembered.

My throat closed up, choking off my words. I nodded my thanks to Havoc before breaking into a run for the car. I had to get to her. Now.

The drive to Desmond Monroe’s house seemed to take forever. Every red light killed me. The energy that buzzed among the three of us felt wild and frantic. We were crawling out of our skin with the need to see our girl.

Finally, we rolled up in the driveway. A sense of surrealism hit me as we went to the front door. Raina opened it, a smile on her face.

“She’s in the kitchen. I’m trying to get her to eat something. Pretty sure she’s itching to see you guys.”

---