Page 74 of Escape You

“You two have ten minutes before I call the cleanup crew. Fuck.” A sound like a kick and then a bunch of trays flying across the room broke the silence in the dark hallway. Mia wasn’t happy, but for now, she was letting us be.

“Manny, do you have eyes on my brother?”

“No. Last I saw him, he left the storage room, but he’s like a ghost.” He went silent, then came back. “Your other brother is on his way to DC. He says they got out no problem. He’ll meet up at your place when he gets back.”

“Thanks.” At least the first part of this plan had worked out. That boy with a busted lip and his mom deserved better than this.

“Nine minutes, guys.” Mia came back on. “The cleaning crew is on its way too.”

Something like a lazy smile pulled on Vic’s lips when he glanced at me. “You’re one of us now.”

“He’s leaving the office. And you have two guys headed your way.” Manny spoke fast while typing on his keyboard. I got the impression this job was his debut, though he didn’t act like it. Vic had left him to run point for us because he trusted Manny would handle himself well.

Taking a deep calming breath, I drew my gun. I’d shot bad people before in self-defense or to stop them. But this was the first time I’d gone in with the intention to kill. I padded down the corridor toward Mia’s office. The second we got there, the door swung open. Rossi glared at me with contempt in his eyes. Did he think I’d died where he left me in the middle of an abandoned general store?

“You disgust me.” I aimed my weapon at him, wishing I had a better insult for him. Or better words to make him understand what he’d done to all those people he uprooted from their homes with lies and deceit. The image of the boy I’d met briefly flooded my mind.

“Make sure he’s all the way dead this time.” Rossi looked past me, as if I weren’t there.

My body switched to automatic mode. I spun around and pulled the trigger when I saw Alex’s smirk. When I cocked my handgun, Vic shoved me out of the way as more shots rang out. The impact of getting shot in the chest and falling on my ass knocked the wind out of me. A buzz, mixed in with my heartbeat, thrashed in my ears as I lay on my back, weapon aimed at Rossi’s lifeless body sitting up against the office door. I looked inside the bulletproof vest. No open wounds. Shit, it still hurt like hell.

Several feet away, Wesley stood towering over one of Rossi’s guys, with his handgun in a tight grip. We’d been lucky he’d shown up when he did. Otherwise, we would have been ambushed.

“What the fuck?” I rose to my feet to take in the room and try to piece it all together. When I’d turned my back on Rossi, he must’ve drawn his gun to shoot me. Vic pushed me out of the way, took the hit, and also killed Rossi. I scanned the room quickly and found Vic face down. I rushed to his side. “Vic?”

“I’m fine. Just need a minute.”

Wesley sat on his haunches and helped him up. “Is it the leg?”

“My ass. He’s always been a terrible shot.” He applied pressure to his hip. Those bullets had been meant for me. He saved me. He met my grateful gaze and shook his head.

“What the hell was all that?” Mia’s voice boomed in my ear.

“Vic took a bullet in the ass for me,” I said, mostly to myself.

“Is that true, old man?” Mia let out a small breath of relief.

“I did it for her. The baby will need a father. It helps if he’s in one piece.” He glanced down at his bloody hand, cocking an eyebrow before he leaned his good side on the edge of the boxing ring. “I’d forgotten how much that hurts.”

“Mia, Rossi’s guys are still out there. Also, how ’bout that cleanup crew?” My life had done a true one-eighty turn if my first impulse hadn’t been to call for backup or the cops. I’d never been on this side of things, in a position where I knew for certain that no one was coming to save us. This was how Mia had lived all her life.

“Hang tight. They’re already there.”

The police siren blared in the distance, and within seconds the training room was showered in red and blue lighting, doing the usual psychedelic dance up and down the walls. We did as Mia said and stayed inside while her guys chased Rossi’s men off the property. Without Rossi or Alex calling the shots, they probably had no clue what to do. Running off back to the city was their best bet.

“Did you find Marcel?” I removed my earpiece when Wesley came to stand next to me. Mia didn’t need to be part of this conversation. This other job hadn’t been for Mia’s sake. We’d stayed to end what we’d started in Maracaibo. Though it seemed we’d failed again.

“Yes and no. I chased him down, but he got away.” He steepled his hands, glaring at Rossi’s lifeless body. “You cut off one head, and another one sprouts in its place. In the time I spent in Maracaibo watching them, the son never took point on anything. I guess that’s changed now.”

“How long before he finds a new business partner?” I pinched the bridge of my nose. This was a never-ending story. “Or I should say, how long before Rossi’s replacement strikes a new deal with Marcel.”

Wesley’s head snapped up, his gaze intense and almost crazed. “Isn’t that you?”

“Do you forget? Rossi shot me when he found out I wasn’t Chase.”

He gripped the dog tag hanging from his chest. “From what you told me, it sounded like the stunt you pulled on him would be something he’d want to keep under wraps to save face.”

The night Rossi shot me, he’d shown up with five other men. Two of them were laying on the floor dead. “He told his men. These two and three others. I don’t like that look on your face, Wes.”

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