Page 49 of Revenge & Ruin

I just need a minute.

One fucking minute.

With one long exhale, I gather myself and take in my surroundings.

The air is a little stale, I’ll admit. It’s been a while since I needed to come home. The Guild’s compound has bedrooms, and after the last couple of weeks of surveillance work, I’ve been lucky to have more than five minutes to myself.

Still, as I stalk into the kitchen, I’m pleased to find the maids have stopped by and the fridge has been restocked. I pluck out an ice-cold beer and press the glass to my forehead.

The relief is only temporary, I know. But for a blissful moment, the pain of my throbbing headache subsides long enough for me to think clearly.

When I was alerted that Isabella was on the move again, I didn’t believe it at first. After the incident at the Prince’s Hand, I assumed she’d be on damage control all evening.

But perhaps assuming that a woman like Isabella Natali possesses more than a crumb of common sense was my own mistake.

It was sheer dumb luck that she came out of the bar when she did. I was about to run off for reinforcements. Over the river might be neutral territory, but the bar was crawling with cartel guys, and I would never have been able to get her out alive on my own.

And even if I had managed to persuade someone to back me up, how could I convince them to risk their lives for her? For our enemy?

I hadn’t been thinking, no. Ican’tthink straight when she’s around and so obviously in danger. It didn’t matter when I attacked that guy at the gym, but if I keep this up? With the cartel sniffing around? It will suddenly become very, very political.

And I can’t afford to lose any more support right now, not if the Guild is to have any hope of taking down the Prince’s Hand.

Suddenly, the object of all my headaches stumbles breathlessly into the room.

“You didn’t lock the damn door,” she hisses.

“Never said I did.”

“Then why even bother?”

I turn on her, wildly frustrated. “Because I couldn’t hear myself think over your damn complaining!”

“Oh, so you can actually use that head of yours? You know that you’ve just kidnapped me, right? You know what my brother will do to you now?”

“Probably give me a damn medal of honor for saving your life!”

She looks about ready to tear her hair out. “I told you, I had it handled. It’s over, done.”

It takes me a second to realize she’s not joking. It hits me out of nowhere, the bubble of laughter that is suddenly shaking through my entire body. I let it out, barking cruelly at her murderous expression.

“You really think this is over?” I finally manage to croak out. “You poked a fucking bear,belle.”

For the first time since she got off the motorcycle, she seems to hesitate. “What are you talking about?”

I take a long drag from my beer before pushing past her and out into the hall. Next to the front door is a basic surveillance setup equipped with a live video feed of the front of the house.

It only takes a couple of taps to show what now lies beyond the metal sheets of my front gates.

“Is…is that?” Isabella’s voice breaks off at the end.

No less than a dozen men in thick leather jackets wait outside the gate. Cartel men.

Some lean against bikes, others dare each other to climb the slick surface, while one tries to break apart the console on the gate. Not that they will get very far. This place is locked up like my own personal fortress.

When I look back at Isabella, it’s to find her looking far smaller than she was a moment ago.

“Did you seriously think they wouldn’t follow you?” I snap.

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