Page 71 of To Have and To Hold

Unholstering my gun and releasing the thumb safety, I made my way through a series of hallways and doors. Nick, Piero and Lorenzo from the famiglia, Adrian, and two other Russians from Ivanov’s bratva were opening wooden crates of weapons. I holstered the Beretta.

Nick met me at the doorway. “El Patr?nwants to lead this mission.”

My eyes opened wide. “Fuck no. He and Silas can stay here and monitor us through cameras and headsets.”

My cousin shook his head. “No cameras. Jano won’t take a chance of the video falling into the wrong hands.”

“He still shouldn’t go.” I inhaled. “We won’t survive if we lose him. It’s not worth the risk.”

Nick clenched his jaw and the tendons in his neck pulled taut. “I tried to reason with him. It’s fucking impossible. He’s spent the last six months planning his revenge on Volkov and Herrera. He’s not going to sit back and watch.” Nick went on. “Intelligence came in earlier today. Volkov was spotted going into an abandoned building in East Village.”

“Why would he be in an abandoned building? What about their hideout?”

“Adrian heard chatter. Sounds like they’re storing weapons, drugs, and possibly human cargo. It’s a big operation. Volkov was personally checking out the merchandise.”

“The guns, the drugs, or the women?”

Nick shook his head. “No way of knowing. Possibly all three.”

“Fuck, it feels like a setup. Is that where we’re going?”

Nick shook his head. “Not to the hideout either. After leaving the abandoned building, he was followed back to The Legend.”

I blew out a gust of air. “High rent—by Petco Park.”

“Rei got into their security. Volkov is staying in a $1.5-million-dollar condo on the second floor.”

Fuck.

“Jano thinks we’re going to barge in there…it’s a fucking setup. Volkov knows Jano’s obsession, and he’s going to bring us all down with it.”

Nick lifted his phone. “The target is Volkov, not his men. Rei found the building’s schematics, courtesy of the government and building permits. There’s a service elevator near the loading dock. For the serenity of the high-paying residents, no deliveries are made after hours. All other building personnel including cleaning staff and executives must leave the building by six. That leaves The Legend down to three security guards by seven—one at the front desk, one monitoring the elevators in the front lobby, and the last one monitoring the security dock. Of course, the residents can employee private security.”

I was thinking about the timeline. “The building is basically cleared by seven and the sun sets around seven thirty.”

Nick nodded. “If we can’t convinceel Patr?nto stay back, there will be eight of us. If Rei makes it, that will be nine.”

Nine fucking people performing a swat operation in one of the high-rent buildings in downtown San Diego. “How far out is Rei?”

Nick looked down at his phone. “Touching down in twenty-five.”

Piero used a crowbar to open another crate. He started throwing out bulletproof vests, military grade.

I looked at the message on my phone and called out, “El Patr?nis here.” That meant everyone for the mission was present except Rei. We still had a couple hours before go time.

Jano strode in looking as if he was about to explode. “We have a location.” He lifted his fist and volume. “Are we ready to fight?”

A cheer came from the men.

Jano turned to Nick and me and lowered his tone. “You see how many cartel we have here tonight?”

The three of us and Silas—who had just entered—replied in unison, “Sí.”

“Diego and Felipe are with Mia and Jorge. José and Horace know what’s going down. That’s all.” His jaw clenched. “The fewer people, the more deniability.” He patted me on the shoulder. “Live through this assignment, Em. The capo called on the way here. Your request has been approved.”

Shock and excitement collided with the gravity of tonight’s operation. “Fuck.”

His lips quirked. “Not until you’re married.”

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