Page 105 of Ruger's Rage

Bloodhound raises an eyebrow. "You're using your ol' lady as bait? That's a new one."

"Marco wants her. Let him think he's getting what he wants." I turn to Tildie. "You stay in the car until we've secured the area. Then you draw him out while we take position. Understood?"

She nods, a small smile tugging at her lips. "Perfectly."

"What about her?" Coin asks, nodding toward Bailey.

"Lock her in the basement until we return," I decide. "We'll deal with her after Striker and Marco."

"And me?" Kinsey asks quietly from the back.

I study her for a long moment. "Your choice. Stay here under guard or come with us. You know your father better than anyone. Could be useful having you along."

She straightens. "I'll come. He's my mess to clean up too."

"All right then." I bring the gavel down. "Church adjourned. We move out in thirty."

As brothers file out to prepare, Tildie catches my arm. "Thank you for letting me be part of this."

"Don't thank me yet. This is dangerous as fuck, and I'm still not convinced it's the right call."

"It is," she says quietly. "I need to look Marco in the eye one last time. Need him to see I'm not afraid anymore."

I cup her face, searching her eyes for any doubt. "You stay in the car until I give the signal. You follow every instruction to the letter. One wrong move and I pull you out, regardless of what you want. Clear?"

"Clear." She rises on tiptoes to press a kiss to my lips. "I won't let you down."

"You couldn't if you tried, darlin'."

Twenty minutes later, we're geared up and loading into vehicles.

Tildie's changed into dark jeans and a black hoodie, hair pulled back in a ponytail.

There’s something different about her, maybe steel in her spine as she checks the pistol I've given her.

"You remember how to use that?" I ask.

"Point and shoot," she replies, ejecting the magazine to check the load before slapping it back in. "Marco thought it was sexy to take me to the range. One of his few useful lessons."

Kinsey appears, similarly dressed in dark clothes. She eyes Tildie's weapon. "Got another one of those?"

Bloodhound hesitates, then hands her a 9mm from his waistband. "You know how to handle this?"

"My godfather taught me to shoot when I was seven," she says, checking the gun. "Viper's big on self-sufficiency."

Bloodhound nods, almost like he’s impressed.

As we prepare to move out, Ellie approaches, pulling me into a fierce hug.

"Bring my girls back safe," she murmurs. "Both of them."

I glance over at Tildie and Kinsey, already forming an unlikely alliance. "I will. How's Sarah?"

"Stable. Doctor says the bullet missed vital organs, but she lost a lot of blood. Porter's with her."

"Good. We'll be back before dawn."

Ellie steps back, her eyes searching mine. "End this, Ryan. Once and for all."

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