Page 68 of Seduction

The apartment is proving to be a bust. We’ve searched every inch of this place, and haven’t come up with a damn thing, and my frustration is building rapidly.

“Looks like this fuckwit just came here for the three s’s. Sleep, Shower, and Shit,” Creed growls with the same frustration I’m feeling.

“There’s got to be something here. Some clue, some paper left behind. You can’t have your hands in dirty shit and be this clean. Check the vents, the pipes, everything. I refuse to believe there’s nothing,” I reply, doubling down my efforts in the search.

The tiny one-bedroom apartment has a living room, bathroom, bedroom, kitchen, and a small office. We’ve been through every room, but something draws me back to the office.

I search the desk harder than before, hopeful for a hollow leg or something, but again come up short.

How are Daniels and Dimitri connected? Is he just a hired hand? Or could there be something more sinister at play?

I hear Creed tearing the kitchen apart just as my phone rings.

“Yeah,” I answer Ollie’s call.

“Me and Lukas are tracking Daniels out of town. I hacked into the highway cameras, a new skill for me by the way, and I’m certain he’s headed towards Dimitri now that his cover is blown. He had to know once we took those foot soldiers it was a race to get the fuck out before they squealed. How’s the search coming along?” Ollie asks, giving me information overload.

“It’s a bust, man. There’s literally nothing here. It’s like he only slept here and kept everything important on him at all times. No paperwork, no clues, no trails, nothing. I’m about to start questioning his neighbours to see if they saw anyone ever drop by, but I doubt they’d speak to us considering I look like an escaped convict and Creed looks like a goddamn sociopath. Maybe there’s something under the cou—" I trail off in my rant when I hear a thud at the door.

I peek my head out of the office in time to see Creed crouch down in the kitchen’s archway signalling we have company.

“Ollie, can you check the cameras at the front door? I think we’ve got company,” I whisper.

“Just a second, I pulled a dual screen on the iPad to keep eyes on you and Dickhead Daniels. It’s loading. Yeah, you two have major company. I’m counting at least sixteen men. Tacked out and loaded. Try getting out the window because even with Creed, the odds don’t look good.”

“We don’t have time,” I say, easing my gun out and eyeing Creed.

I signal to him the number about to hit us, and he lets out a silent curse. We’re not getting out of this without taking some damage.

“Call Torren. I have a feeling we are definitely going to need the back up.” I set the phone down and send up a prayer that my aim stays steady.

Just as I make my move, the front door explodes inward, throwing us off balance, and sending my phone flying.

What the fuck? Did these fools use a fucking grenade in an apartment building? Shit!

Ears still ringing, I look up in time to see five men charge through the broken remains of the doorway. I set my shot and nail three dead centre of their foreheads.

Creed charges them but is quickly swarmed and I can’t get any more shots off without the risk of hitting him, so looks like it’s fight night.

I turn on my heel and charge these assholes with a roar. I never see the dart coming until it hits me in the thigh. Three more darts fly out, hitting my body in different areas, and I start feeling sluggish. I see Creed on the ground, eyes closed, with five darts sticking into him as well.

The toxic rush of the tranquilizer works its way through my system and all I can hear is my mother’s vile laughter.

“Forgive me brother, I failed you.”

That’s my last thought before I’m pulled into my own personal hell of darkness.

Torren

They’ve been in there for a good forty-five minutes when I hear a large blast, and people screaming as residents of the building start fleeing from the front door in a panic moments later.

Before I have a chance to run inside, my phone rings. One quick look at my watch tells me it’s Ollie, and I almost guarantee it’s about whatever shit is going down inside that fucking apartment.

“What the fuck is happening?!” I yell, and he doesn’t waste time.

“Sixteen fucking goons just attacked them. Blew out my cameras and I can’t see what the fuck is going on, but I lost contact with Matt.”

“Fuck!” I hiss, already knowing I can’t go in there alone. “I’ll call Barren and get him over here. We all know Cord is a little green when it comes to the grosser shit,” I state, and Ollie snaps.

---