Page 56 of Hunted Vengeance

There is no doubt in my mind that my face instantly becomes void of all color. Especially since Grayson mobilizes almost instantly to my side. Bellucci’s men also straighten their spines as if on high alert.

“You’re shitting me?” I finally ask.

“I am not. Colette and I are locked in a bedroom. There was a… scuffle. She’s okay.”

I’m glad that he ends with the fact that Colette is okay.

“What the fuck is he doing there?”

I have a million questions running on a loop inside of my head, but one is in the forefront of my head, and I can’t help but verbalize it. There’s no keeping it in, and there is no way I can wait to see her and find out then.

“Is he the one?” I ask.

“That’s who she was supposed to marry, yes.”

Fucking shit.

Ending the call, not wanting to give anything else away, I send him a text telling him that we will be there soon. I’m not sure how I’m going to play this quite yet. But I can’t just announce that Ravet is in my hotel room. I also can’t hang around here a moment longer than I have to.

Turning to face Adriano, I give him a smirk. It’s fake as shit. My entire body is humming with anxious energy. It’s finally here. All the hours of searching, of watching, of waiting, it’s all come to an end, and we’ll be able to take care of this motherfucker once and for all.

“We give you Ravet, and we’re square. You never attempt to contact Securus or any of its members ever again. That includes Colette.”

Adriano takes almost a moment too long to think about the offer. I’m about to just walk away, and then he will get nothing. He’ll also never know if Ravet is alive or dead. Is he watching him, following him, or is he of no threat at all?

That might be the best fucking revenge for what Adriano has done, not just to me but to Colette.

“I agree to that,” Bellucci states. “You deliver him to me. I want him alive, and you will never hear from me or see me or any of my men again.”

The deal is set, and with that, we leave. We walk out of his limestone, and I hope I never have to return. I’m also not sure that I will be able to just hand over Malcolm Ravet alive.

Malcolm Ravet.

I know his first name now. All those years he tortured and abused us, and we never even knew his first name. There is something that humanized him by knowing his first name. As soon as we jump into the car, I start driving back to the hotel, all while telling the others exactly what Theron said to me on the phone call. The entire car is silent. I know how they’re feeling, what they’re thinking.

Ravet must suffer—then he must die.

Chapter Twenty-Five

MERRICK

We don’t waste a moment.Not a second. Throwing the keys to the valet attendant, we unfold from the car and head straight toward the elevator. If we weren’t staying in the penthouse suite, it would probably be faster to climb the staircase, but none of us want to be out of breath, either, considering we don’t know what we’re going to be walking into.

When the elevator bell dings and the door slides open, we walk as if we are simply one person. Together, we move through the doorway of the car and into the hall. Our suite door is closed.

Jerking my chin toward Boden, I watch as he takes his key card out of his pocket and moves toward the door. He’s first. The rest of us step to the side, drawing our guns, and are ready to do whatever we have to do.

But when Boden opens the door, we are all met with silence. And as we move into the living room, we are met with even more deafening silence. We’re alone. Panic fills my veins as I immediately think that Colette and Theron must have been taken or worse…

Boden, Grayson, and Vaughn start going through the other rooms to clear them, but I walk toward my own. Reaching for the handle, I start to push it down, but it’s locked. I relax, but only marginally.

Lifting my hand, I tap my knuckle against the door and call out to Theron. I hear a muffled cry and take a step backward, drawing my gun, ready to take out whoever the fuck is hurting Colette.

But when the door opens, I instantly drop my gun because there, standing side by side, are Theron and Colette. She’s got her hand covering her mouth and tears streaming down her cheeks before she rushes toward me.

Wrapping my arms around her, I hold her close to my body, my eyes focused on Theron. He shakes his head once, the pain from the past sitting just below the surface. We usually all stuff that shit down, but right now, it’s bubbled to the top, not just for him but for us all.

“What the fuck?” I rasp.

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