Page 49 of Graves & Griggs
“I’ve got movement in the lobby,” Dominic says, looking at his phone.
“How many?” Vincent asks.
“Eight men total,” he answers.
“Eight?” I echo.
Dominic nods. “Must have beefed up security since Augustus was found.”
I know there are four of us and we have the element of surprise on our side, but eight guys won’t be a walk in the park. I pull out a gun, checking to make sure the safety is off as we wait. Less than a few minutes go by before the sound of the keycard unlocking the door fills the empty silence of the room.
Closing my eyes, I listen for the footsteps. One set, two, three and four. Five, six, seven and… We all wait with bated breath as that eighth set steps inside, then there’s the solid thunk of the door shutting before a locking whirr comes from it—Dominic’s device in action.
Then all of us move together, taking aim and shooting the first person we can. Each of us land a single target, and four bodies hit the ground. However, four more bodies now have weapons drawn and are firing back at us. Bullets fly, but the noise is surprisingly soft. They too must have silencers on their guns, making this a much more discreet gunfight than I anticipated.
Vincent practically rolls across the floor, emptying a clip into one man’s chest while Zayden and Dominic take out opposing men instantaneously. When I pop up from the couch, a hot, searing pain rips into my shoulder, and I curse under my breath as another identical pain burns into my arm, right beside the first. I fireoff several rounds and am able to nail the guy in the gut. He curses, his gun falling to his feet as he slumps to his knees.
Vincent comes over to me, quickly examining me while the Graves brothers grab the last man standing.
“Through and through?” I ask through clenched teeth.
Vincent looks me over before shaking his head. Fucking perfect.
He runs into the bathroom, grabs a towel and brings it back over, applying pressure as I lean against the side of the couch.
“What did you get shot for?” Zayden asks.
“I didn’t do it on purpose,” I scoff.
“With that reaction time, you kinda did,” he says before smiling down at the man he’s straddling. “Hello, Andre. It’s been far too long, myfriend.”
The way he saysfriendis sharp, eerie. A guaranteed indication that they’re anything but. The man groans as Zayden puts more weight on the spot where I shot him.
“Zayden,” he grunts. “How are the wife and kids?” He smiles, an evil smile that has Zayden’s disappearing in an instant.
“Griggs, grab my bag. I have a sweet treat for this fucking piece of shit,” he says.
Vincent walks over to Zayden’s bag and rifles through it before his brows furrow.
“C’mon, Griggs, before this fucker bleeds out.”
He sighs and walks over to Zayden, handing him two large…
“Candy canes?” Dominic asks.
Not just candy canes, though. Sharpened candy canes. Sharpened to the point of a knife at the end.
Zayden grips one of the candy canes in his hand, then drives it into Andre’s left eye. He screams and squeals as Vincent and Dominic both help hold him down. Zayden grabs the other candy knife, because that’s basically what it is, before jamming it into his right eye.
Andre writhes and screams, the candy canes moving from side to side like he’s trying to wiggle them out of his eyes. The sight of it honestly turns my stomach, or maybe that’s the pain from my two gunshot wounds.
“What’d you say, fucker? I can’t hear you. Were you saying you laid eyes on my wife and kids?” Zayden snarls before turning and yanking both of the candy canes out, taking Andre’s eyeballs with them.
Blood pours from Andre’s eye sockets as Zayden tosses the candy-cane-impaled eyes to the side. One of the candies shatters, leaving only a short, jagged piece in the wide brown eye that’s currently staring at me. What the fuck?
The next second, Zayden pulls a knife out of his pocket and jams it into the guy’s throat. He makes a gargling sound for a few more moments before the noises stop. Casually, like it was any other day, the three of them stand, gathering their things before coming to me.
“You good?” Dominic asks.
