Page 89 of Echos and Empires
He couldn’t tell if the usually calmer man believed the words or if he was just trying to convince himself, but it didn’t matter. William would make them true. He had to.
William nodded, more of a promise than a gesture, then watched as Liam went to the group and spoke in low, urgent tones, leading them to where they could stay hidden until everything was over. Until this war was done.
Until Victor was dead, and Emma was safe.
William knew the island’s cliffs wouldn’t protect them if they hesitated, not with Victor out there and the group’s betrayal heavy in the air. It was only a matter of time before someone talked, someone broke, someone paid in blood. He moved inside, needing to grab some extra things.
Chris didn’t hesitate, throwing his jacket on and grabbing his gun as if those were all the orders he’d need. Bash flexed his fingers, muscles taut with impatience and anger, while Liam scrambled to pack and steal another few minutes with the refugees.
“No hesitation,” Bash said, his voice edged with steel. He had barely slept, and the shadows under his eyes were almost as deep as his urgency. “We hit them fast and hard.”
Chris met his gaze, the force of a leader and a brother clashing in the shared space between them. He turned back to the map, tracing the lines like a prophecy they couldn’t escape. “No other way,” he said, resigned to the risk.
“No screw-ups, either,” Bash added, his fingers tightening around his weapon as though he could already see the enemy in his sights. “Next chance we get might be our last.”
Their words were like punches, blunt and direct, the impact felt long after they were spoken.
“We can’t risk losing Victor again,” Alex added, his voice weighted with the memory of past failures.
William stood aside with a determined gaze, letting their urgency wash over him. He knew how close they’d come to losing everything, how dangerously thin the thread of hope was. But he also knew that if they didn’t act now, they might not get another chance. “And then we make sure everyone loyal pays.”
Chris grabbed his shoulder, squeezing hard. It was more than agreement, it was desperation with a pulse. “We’re going to, William.”
“Emma, this goes without saying, but you do whatever is necessary.” Chris passed his handgun to her as he spoke. “I know Marcus haunts you, but you need something to make me feel even remotely okay about leaving you alone like this.”
She nodded, her small hand grasping around the barrel of the gun. “I refuse to say goodbye this time. You’re all comingback. My heart is positive of it. You go out there and get him and come back to me.”
William had refused to make that promise the last battle they’d been in, but this time, with babies on the line, he almost spoke up before Chris.
“Move out!” Chris bellowed, stalking out of the caves with the others behind him, leaving William and the unit to do what was needed.
They were a blur of motion, tension, and hurried preparation. William watched them and felt the burning hope that it wouldn’t be the last time. His thoughts flicked to Emma, her safety, the life she carried and the love they shared. He couldn’t let Victor take any of it away. Not again. Not now.
They didn’t have time to do this cleanly, but they had to do it, anyway. As he glanced around, his eyes hard and focused, he knew the rest felt the same. Failure wasn’t an option, but it was breathing down their necks like the ghost of their past.
Bash took one last look at the map carved into the rock. “Keep to the plan,” he said, a warning and a command wrapped into one. “We hit the compound first, make sure nothing’s coming back to bite us.”
“And if Victor’s not there?” Alex asked, the question hanging heavy between them.
“Then we make damn sure he never shows up here.” Liam turned to William, his expression fierce, almost furious. It was the look of a man who’d tasted loss and refused another bite.
Urgency clawing at William, pulling him forward, making the world around him blur into a frenzy of action and need. “We’re not going to get another chance like this. If we miss him, we lose everything.” He let the weight of his words sink in, the echo of it lingering even after they had already started moving.
The sun was climbing now, creeping through the mist and turning the black sky a paler shade of purple. They didn’t stopto look back, didn’t stop to wonder if this would be the last time they left a place and called it home. All they knew was the fire in their blood and the urgency in their bones.
He climbed into the jeep, ready to sacrifice, ready to love, ready to bleed for everything they had left.
William couldn’t let himself think about what would happen if they failed. Not now, not ever. He pushed it all away, focusing on the one thing he knew he could do—fight.
The car moved with all the silence of a furious bull, but William kept his eyes trained around them, watching as Jose drove them. Twelve minutes. It only took twelve minutes with a vehicle.
“Fucking hot as hell out here,” Bash hissed as they jumped out of the jeep as if the vehicle hadn’t been exposed. “But we need to walk this last mile.”
“Seems someone forgot who’s in charge when Chris isn’t here.” Liam quipped with a weary grin.
“Seems someone forgot who got to sleep last night and doesn’t mind killing a man.”
Silence fell at the second reminder of what Liam had done to Hardee.
