Page 91 of Ravaged Saints

Knox lets out a low chuckle. “I trained Ryker. He was young back then but easily the best recon and sniper I’d ever seen, so I brought him with me. We stayed in the unit for two years.”

“The Bloodhawks? Did you train here?” I ask, noticing how their expressions darken.

“Not exactly,” Dante answers as Knox turns away, pacing, the muscles in his back more tense than I’ve ever seen them.

“We were given a mission from our captain, Roman,” Dante continues, “and it led to the death of someone… important. After that, we were discharged.” His hands clench, the muscles in his jaw tightening.

“Oh,” I murmur, my brain going a hundred miles, “I’m sorry.”

“We each went our separate ways for a while,” Dante says, his gaze dropping. “But life outside the army was hell. It’s all we’d ever known since we were eighteen. Civilian life… it didn’t fit us. Knox had contacts, though, and he reached out. There was a need for a unit—”

“Dante, don’t,” Knox interrupts, his tone sharp, and he turns to face Dante, fists clenched at his sides.

“She deserves to know,” Dante says defiantly. Then he looks at me and blurts out, “We became mercenaries.”

My jaw drops. “Mercenaries?” The word hangs in the air.

A chill runs down my spine, my mind racing. That’s a bad thing. A terrible thing. They’re killers for hire, right? My heart pounds, a knot of fear tightening in my stomach, but deep down, I know—they will never hurt me.

“Doll?” Dante’s voice pulls me from my thoughts, and I blink, nodding for him to continue.

“We never took missions that would harm innocents,” he assures me. I want to believe him, but Knox’s expression makes me second-guess. His nickname has never felt more fitting.

“With the money from our first missions, we built this place,” Knox cuts in. “Completely off the grid, hidden from the world and safe from anyone looking to settle old scores. When the plague hit, we tried to reach our families…” His tone falters for just a second before he shrugs. “But no one survived.”

“So you stayed here,” I whisper, finishing the thought for them.

They nod. I get it; after the plague, people went crazy. It was war after war, everyone for themselves. If I had a place like this, I’d never leave it.

“And what about Ethan?” I ask. He acts so differently from the rest of the guys that I can’t see Knox choosing him.

They both chuckle.

“Well, Ethan was a rich kid whose father thought the army would toughen him up,” Dante says with a shrug.

“He served on the same base under the same captain just right before everything went to shit,”

He pauses for a moment, his eyes shifting as if remembering. “After the plague hit, we found Ethan in a nearby town, half-dead and barely clinging to life. We took him back to the base, patched him up, and... well, he never left. Stayed with us since.”

Dante’s eyes flick to Knox, who looks lost in thought staring into the distance, and my heart breaks for him.

“Knox still blames himself for that mission.”

I glance at Knox, and he turns with a smirk, “I’m right here, man,” he mutters, shaking his head, “I should’ve known something was wrong.”

“No one could have known the real extent of what was about to happen. Knox, you saved us all, and that’s all that matters.” Dante stands and claps Knox on the back, but I see the tension in Knox’s jaw and the stiffness in his shoulders, so I step closer, reaching up to wrap my arms around his neck, pulling him down to me.

“I don’t know exactly what happened, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t your fault.“ He lets me pull him in, and his arms wrap around my waist. I kiss him softly at first, but he hardens it instantly, taking control like I knew he would. Knox isn’t gentle; he is rough, strong, and menacing, and that’s exactly why I like him.

I grip his hair and pull, making him hiss. He leans closer, his warm breath on my ear, “Don’t play with fire, pet.”

I smirk, already forming a plan to unwind him. Then, without warning, I shove him hard, and he stumbles back, eyes flaring with surprise.

I turn to Dante. “Open the gate.”

“What?” Dante chuckles, eyebrows raising.

“I’m going to burn that rage out of you, Reaper.” I purr, eyes locked on Knox.

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