Page 54 of Abyss

Jace sighed, sitting down on one of the wet chairs. “Fuck,” he said. “That wasn’t supposed to happen.”

“Which part? The storm or the getting attacked by henchmen?” Victor said, sitting down next to him.

“Both?” Jace said. “I’m going to go with both.”

The water still sloshed beneath us as we exchanged looks of relief and exhaustion. We had survived, but not without scars. It was only a matter of time before the full weight of what we had experienced hit us. But for now, we had to focus on getting to safety.

Teo expertly steered the boat back towards the marina, his hands steady as we navigated through the still-churning waters. Victor stood watch, his eyes constantly scanning the horizon. Grayson was quiet, lost in his thoughts for a moment, before he spoke.

“We can’t let what they did go unanswered,” he said, his voice calm and determined. “We have to make sure they pay the price.”

“I know,” Teo replied. “Don’t worry. I don’t plan to let anyone get away with anything. I promise.”

Chapter Twenty: Teo

The HQ apartment was a fortress of silence as I paced the length of our makeshift war room, the lines on my face etching deeper with every step. I hated when it was like this; I was used to the rest of them talking over each other and making plans.

After we had gotten out of the lair, though, everything felt…odd.

Once again, we had come up short.

Once again, it felt like we had walked into a trap.

We were alive, but barely. The adrenaline was still pumping through my veins, while everyone else seemed to have settled down well enough.

The others sat like statues, their expressions carved from stone and just as revealing. We were preparing to dive headfirst into hell, and it had all begun here, in this room, surreptitiouslyplotting amidst leather couches and the constant hum of a stainless steel fridge in the kitchen. And Sofia, tied and bound and insisting that she wasn’t trying to work against us.

Time and time again, we had come up against obstacles upon obstacles. I couldn’t even wrap my head around how large an operation the Viper had, particularly because it seemed like he had infinite resources.

We weren’t hurting for money, but that man…arms dealing clearly paid far more than drugs.

I ran my fingers through my hair, trying to steady my hammering heart.

“Alright, listen up,” I said as I turned to face them. My gaze flicked over each member of the team before settling on Sofia. Her gaze held mine, her dark eyes narrow. “The Everglades Viper’s base is no playground. It’s fortified, it’s remote, and it’s lethal. If we go back without a plan, we’re screwed.”

“So what is the plan?” Sofia said, her gaze still never leaving mine.

I took a deep breath. “The old man’s got Sam. And if there’s anything that could throw a wrench in our plans, it’s him being used as leverage.”

Sofia stood up. “My brother isn’t leverage. I’m going to get him back if it’s the last thing I do in my life.”

I stared back at her. “It won’t be. It can’t be, Sof.”

“I’m going to go down there and get them whether you want me to or not,” she replied. She started to pace around, and I watched as she sighed so heavily, her shoulders slumped forward. “We’ve done our research, and our research only tells us that my dad is a sick bastard. Okay, so my dad is a sick bastard. That’s nothing new. I’ve wrapped my head around that. My little brother…he hasn’t. My little brother is probably still in danger because of what he thinks about my dad and I’m not going to let anything happen to him.”

“I don’t want to let anything happen to Sam,” I said. “But you’re my first priority.”

“If I’m your first priority, then Sam should be your first priority. Look, Teo, I can handle my—“

“Can you?” I cut across her, harder than I meant to. “Because I’m not going to watch you or anyone else here get caught in his fangs because of personal blind spots. If we have to, we’re going to the feds with this. I told you that.”

I could tell the rest of the guys were holding back a gasp. As much as I detested admitting it, this was bigger than us, bigger than any grudge or blood feud. The Viper was a scourge that had slithered far beyond the reach of our vigilantism, particularly because it seemed like he had gotten into every part of the authorities and the police wasn’t to be trusted anymore.

I wasn’t an idiot. I knew that the feds wanted me and would probably indict me on a shit ton of RICO charges if I wasn’t careful, but I also knew that I couldn’t let the rest of my guys go down, and I definitely couldn’t let Sofia go down. She might have been with us for a while now, but she wasn’t part of this.

We could train her as much as we wanted, but she was still not part of this.

“Going to the feds is signing a death warrant,” Sofia’s chest heaved with silent fury. “You could spend the rest of your life there, Teo.”

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