Page 108 of Like An Animal
Better late than never.
CHAPTER 44
THE SHADOW
As soon as the call disconnected, Xavi continued speeding back to Newark while I made a bunch of calls. We had already started driving back as soon as Massimo texted me that my grandfather was up to something nefarious.
There’s nothing in the world more important than my family, which is the only reason I haven’t lost my shit yet.
I hate to say it, but Bronwyn was right and I was fucking wrong. Dimitri had no control over that Isaac fucker and that cost Massimo his life.
I will avenge my brother, but it’s not my top priority at the moment. I have a list I’m working off of and I have to stay focused on it to avoid losing my shit right now.
The top priority is getting my wife back and that one requires an urgency that only myself and Xavi will understand.
No one else in my ranks has been briefed about The Fathers of Jephthah. I only brought in Xavi and Massimo on that front, but I’ll have to do a quick brief before we rescue Bronwyn.
“Can we go any faster?” I ask, feeling antsy, but Xavi doesn’t answer.
“I should’ve stayed behind,” he mutters, full of guilt.
“No. You would’ve been killed, too. It was an ambush. They weren’t prepared because we all put too much faith in Dimitri. If anyone is at fault here, it’s me. He struck now because I wasn’t there. He knew I had left and took advantage of the opportunity. This was Dimitri’s plan and we’ll make him pay for what happened. Max deserves at least that and I bet Bron will demand more.”
Rage covers his face. “I want them all fucking dead. We lost our brother and they took Bronwyn. I want that band of pedophiles burned and I want Dimitri and his guards who stood by and did nothing tortured until they beg for death.”
I blink at him a few times because that’s not the Xavi I know. He sounds just like…me. I’m the one of us always out for blood, but I shouldn’t be surprised. We just lost the two people who served as a bridge between us, the bridge that connects us through our differences.
We were bound to meet in the middle. Now I’m the one trying to remain level-headed and Xavi is becoming more unhinged as the minutes tick by.
I place my hand on his shoulder and squeeze. “They’ll get what’s coming to them. You have my word on it.”
I calledSilva to make sure she took Charlotte to the panic room located in the compound. The one here is much bigger than the one my wife hid in. It’s meant for extended stays. There’s a TV, movies, and board games. Charlotte will be entertained and safe until I make sure her safety is never an issue again.
Based on the tracking device hidden perfectly at the juncture between my wife's ass and her thigh, they’re still moving whichmeans I have time, but I have a general idea of where she’ll be. She must be headed to Texas.
The compound is close enough to the old house that she was kidnapped around the corner from Xavi’s house, was taken to their hideout, forced to watch Missy’s demise, and brought back home in the span of three hours.
She never told me exactly where it was, but now we have an idea of how long we have until they reach their destination.
Xavi and I walk into our safe house and stroll into the kitchen where Dimitri is bound to a chair, duct tape slapped over his mouth and…Massimo’s lifeless body is laid out across the kitchen table. Our doctor stands at the head of the table, a frown across his face.
“I’m sorry, Mr. Borza. It was just too late when he got here. The bullet pierced straight through his heart. He was gone before he hit the ground.”
The beating muscle in my chest would be breaking if I had the freedom to let it. I can’t fall apart right now. We’re on a timeline.
“Has anyone called Nikolai?” I ask, looking around at all of my soldiers around the room.
“He’s on his way to collect the body and make funeral arrangements, sir,” one of the men says, not looking as unaffected as I would expect.
“And, where are the traitor’s guards?”
“In the torture room in the basement waiting on your command.”
A lot of these men used to be Dimitri’s soldiers, but their loyalty is to the family, not exclusively him. I think some of them have realized that there has been a shift, even if not officially yet.
“Leave them hanging and starving until we return with my wife. Get all the other guards and foot soldiers together in the pool room in ten minutes and ready to roll out in thirty. That’san order to all of you. Anyone who isn’t present by then will be shot on sight. Do you understand me?”
“Yes, boss.” The men speak in unison before filing out of the room.
