Page 144 of Bratva Butcher

It all happened so fast, too quickly for any of them to be able to react.

Not wasting a single second, I ran out of the alley and back towards the main street Mikhail had been on, tucking my gun behind my back.

Police and firemen were on the scene, going into the Mixton Hotel. They might have been preoccupied, but seeing a man running down the street with a gun in his hand would definitely be a cause of concern for them.

Talon’s guards were professionals, and would most likely have a plan in place should they need to make a run for it quickly. My eyes ran over the other establishments on the street as I walked. A beauty salon. A bookstore. A cafe. A clothing store—

There.

A car park.

Within walking distance of the hotel, it was the perfect place to stash a getaway car.

I just had to hope Mikhail got there in time to stop them from escaping, otherwise there would be no telling where Talon would disappear to next.

Sprinting across the road, I slipped into the car park and pulled out my gun.

I’d have to go level by level.

The first was clear. So was the second and third. But the fourth?

Fucking bingo.

When I approached, all four of the guards were on the ground, either unconscious or dead, and Mikhail had Talon facedown on the concrete, hands behind his back. Mikhail’s knee was firmly digging into the centre of Talon’s back to keep him down as he struggled, cursing and trying to get free. Mikhail slapped a pair of metal cuffs onto Talon’s wrists and stood, wiping a streak of blood from his forehead with the back of his hand.

I jogged up to his side and slapped a hand on his shoulder. “Good fucking job,” I praised.

He smirked. “You too. Yours dead?”

I nodded, looking down at Talon. “Kind of feels a little anticlimactic, don’t you think? I thought it would have been a little harder than that.”

“Me too,” Mikhail chuckled. He grabbed Talon by the arms and brought him to his feet.

Talon sneered at me, face full of unimaginable rage. “Congratulations. You fucking got me. Go ahead. Kill me,” he spat, still struggling.

I laughed, shaking my head in disbelief. “You think I’m going tokillyou? Oh, Talon. For such a smart man, you sure are dumb as fuck.”

He finally stopped struggling, the meaning of my words making him stiffen. “What are you talking about?”

A dark, evil smirk curled on my lips. “I don’t kill people who hurt my children, Talon. I take them home.”

Chapter Thirty-Seven

Autumn DeValos

“Hello, I’m here tosee Dimitri.” I looked at the two guards manning the front gate of Dimitri’s home, a sweet, innocent smile on my face.

I’d debated just breaking in like I had a few days earlier, but Aleksandr had told me to use the front door next time, so I thought, “Why the fuck not?”

Sounded like an invitation to me.

“Name?” the blonde guard grunted.

“Autumn.”

He looked through a clipboard of papers. “You’re not on the list. I’ll need to call up for verification.”

“Okay.” I gripped the folder in my hands a little tighter as he picked up the phone, clutching it close to my chest, nervousness snaking through my bones.

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