Bonds of Obsession (Pretty Ruthless Monsters #3)

43. Nico

43

NICO

“Fuck!” I shout, but there’s no time to stop. Not with Ambrose’s men on our asses and bullets whizzing past our heads. Quinn’s arms tighten around my waist as I gun the engine, and I catch Atlas’s eye as he pulls up beside us. We’ve been riding together long enough that we don’t need words—just a quick nod and we’re executing the plan, breaking off in different directions.

I take a sharp right down a narrow side street while Atlas peels left, both of us leading different clusters of Ambrose’s men on a wild fucking chase through the industrial district. Quinn leans with me as I weave between buildings, the roar of engines behind us growing more distant as we split their forces. Smart money says half of them followed Atlas, leaving just two cars on our tail.

“Now,” Quinn shouts in my ear, and I bank hard into an alley, killing the lights. The pursuing vehicles blow past us in the darkness. Another sharp turn and we’re doubling back, my knuckles white on the throttle as I push the bike to its limits.

We find Killian near the spot where we left him, propped against a wall with his gun drawn. Blood trickles from a gash on his temple, but his eyes are alert as he tracks potential threats. That’s my brother—always the fighter, even when he’s down.

Atlas rolls up ten seconds later, having lost his tail too. We’ve bought ourselves maybe two minutes before those fuckers figure out where we went. Not much time, but it’ll have to be enough to get Killian mobile and find better cover. Because there’s no way in hell I’m leaving one of my own behind.

As it turns out, we don’t have two more minutes.

“Contact, northwest corner!” Atlas barks out. I pivot and squeeze off two rounds, forcing the merc who was trying to flank us to duck back behind cover. These aren’t some amateur thugs—they move with military precision, trying to box us in.

Atlas and I move like we’re sharing one brain, years of watching each other’s backs making us fluid as water. He takes the right angle while I cover left, both of us providing suppressing fire as Quinn helps Killian to his feet. A bullet punches into the brick wall inches from my head, showering me with fragments of masonry.

“I’m good,” Killian grunts, but the way he’s favoring his side tells me differently. Still, now isn’t the time to argue. Quinn already has his arm over her shoulder, supporting his weight as they move toward better cover. My wife is a fucking warrior—she’s got her gun in her free hand, ready to fire even while helping Killian.

“Move!” I command as more vehicles screech around the corner. The sound of gunfire echoes off the buildings, creating a metal storm of death all around us. Atlas and I fall into formation on either side of Quinn and Killian, our bodies creating a shield as we retreat deeper into the maze of alleys.

“My shoulder is fucked,” Killian says through gritted teeth. It’s the kind of injury that would put most men down, but pain has never stopped my brother. Hell, I’ve seen him fight through worse.

Quinn catches my eye and I can see the fury burning there—the same rage I’m feeling. Emmett’s betrayal led us right into this clusterfuck, and now Killian is hurt because of it. But there’s no time for anger. Not when we’ve got six or seven heavily armed mercenaries trying to turn us into Swiss cheese.

“We need high ground,” Atlas says, his voice tight with tension. He’s right—we’re too exposed down here. And I can hear more engines in the distance. Ambrose is calling in reinforcements. If we don’t find better positioning fast, we’re all dead.

We push into the alley with bullets singing past us as Ambrose’s men try to cut off our escape. The space between the buildings is narrow, barely wide enough for two people shoulder to shoulder, but that works in our favor. Less space makes it harder for them to flank us here.

“Contact!” Quinn shouts, dropping to one knee as she fires at a merc who tried to rush our position. Her shot catches him in the chest and he goes down hard. That’s my fucking wife—deadly accurate even under pressure.

Killian is still moving under his own power, but I can see the pain etched into his face with every step. The way his arm hangs limp tells me his shoulder is even worse than he’s letting on. But that’s Killian. He’d sooner die than slow us down.

Atlas takes point, checking our corners as we push deeper into the warren of back alleys. The sound of boots on pavement echoes behind us, mixing with shouts as Ambrose’s men coordinate their pursuit. These fuckers are organized, moving like a well-oiled machine. Military trained for sure.

“Two more coming in from the south,” Atlas calls out. I spin and squeeze off three rounds, forcing them back into cover.

Quinn’s voice cuts through the chaos: “We’ve got maybe thirty seconds before they box us in completely.” She’s right—I can hear them setting up a perimeter, trying to trap us in this concrete maze. We’re running out of options fast.

“Keep moving,” I order, although we all know standing still means death. We push forward, our footsteps echoing off brick walls as we search for an exit. We’re burning through ammo fast, and these walls around us are starting to feel less like cover and more like a coffin.

That’s when Atlas spots the fire escape above us. It’s our ticket out of this death trap if we can make it up without getting shot.

“Cover me!” Atlas shouts, holstering his weapon and jumping to grab the bottom rung of the fire escape. The rusted metal groans under his weight as he yanks the ladder down. More gunfire erupts, and I return fire while Quinn helps Killian get ready to climb.

“Go!” I command, laying down suppressing fire as Quinn practically pushes Killian up the ladder. His face is a mask of pain, but he doesn’t make a sound as he forces his injured body up.

Atlas goes up next, staying close behind Killian in case his shoulder gives out. The sound of boots pounding pavement gets closer, which means Ambrose’s men are closing in fast. Quinn and I exchange looks, both knowing we’ve got seconds at most.

“Let’s go together,” she says, and we lay down one final barrage of cover fire before scrambling up the ladder. A bullet rips through my jacket, barely missing flesh. Another pings off the metal next to Quinn’s head, but she doesn’t even flinch. All we can do is to keep climbing like death isn’t breathing down our necks.

We hit the first landing and keep going, with metal rattling under our feet as we race up four stories. My lungs are starting to burn, but there’s no time to catch my breath. Not with mercenaries flooding into the alley below us, sending bullets sparking off the fire escape’s frame.

“Keep going,” Atlas calls down from above. “You’re almost here.”

He’s already helping Killian over the roof’s edge, but Quinn and I are two levels below, pushing ourselves to climb faster as shots ring out from the street.

Less than two minutes later, we’re finally scrambling onto the roof. We’ve bought ourselves some breathing room, but I know it won’t last. These fuckers will find a way up here soon enough. Right now we’re like fish in a barrel—exposed on all sides with nowhere else to go.

I do a quick ammo check and curse under my breath. I have three magazines left—not nearly enough for the shit storm that’s brewing. Across the roof, Atlas is scanning the streets below with eyes that miss nothing. All these years of watching each other’s backs means I can read the tension in his shoulders like a book.

“Four more vehicles just pulled up,” he reports, his voice tight. “Black SUVs.”

“Fuck,” I mutter, moving to the edge to see for myself. Sure enough, more of Ambrose’s mercenaries are pouring out of the vehicles and strapping on tactical gear.

Quinn appears at my side, her jaw set in a hard line as she counts heads. “I’m counting fifteen, maybe twenty new hostiles.” She’s trying to sound calm, but I can hear the edge in her voice. This plan went sideways really fucking fast.

A crash echoes from somewhere below. They’re already in the building. Atlas and I share a look that says everything. We’re fucked six ways from Sunday, and we all know it.

“They’ll split up,” Killian says through gritted teeth. “They’ll hit the stairs and elevator to try to push us toward the east edge where their snipers will have clean shots.”

He’s right. I can already see two men setting up with scoped rifles in the building across the street. These bastards aren’t leaving anything to chance this time.

“How long?” Quinn asks, although we can all hear boots thundering up the stairwell now.

“Three minutes. Maybe less.” Atlas checks his weapon again, but we’re all running on fumes here. Between the four of us, we might have enough ammo to take down half of them. But that still leaves too many guns pointed our way.

Killian’s grunt of pain draws my attention as he braces himself against an AC unit. “Give me a hand with this,” he says, nodding toward his fucked-up shoulder. His face is pale in the dim light, but his eyes are sharp as ever, ready to fight even with one arm hanging useless.

“You crazy bastard,” I mutter, but I’m already moving to help. This isn’t the first time we’ve done this dance, and it won’t be the last if we somehow survive the next few minutes.

Atlas takes up a defensive position, giving us cover while Quinn keeps her eyes on the roof access door. The sound of boots on metal stairs is getting closer, and we’ve got maybe two minutes before company arrives.

“On three,” Killian says, positioning himself. His breath comes in sharp bursts, but his voice doesn’t waver. “One?—”

He jerks hard before “two” can leave his mouth, popping his shoulder back into place with a sickening crunch. The son of a bitch doesn’t even cry out—just hisses through his teeth like he’s stubbed his toe instead of resetting a dislocated fucking shoulder.

“You’re supposed to wait for three, you psychotic fuck,” I tell him, but there’s no heat in it. This is classic Killian—doing things his way, pain be damned.

He rotates the shoulder carefully, testing its range. “Three is an overrated number,” he says with a grimace that might be trying to pass for a smile. “Besides, we’ve got more pressing problems.”

As if to prove his point, a burst of gunfire peppers the roof’s edge near Atlas. He ducks and returns fire, but we all hear the click of his empty magazine.

“That’s my last one,” he reports, jaw tight. Killian immediately tosses him a spare mag. The movement makes him wince, but his throw is dead accurate. Even injured, he’s got our backs.

The roof access door shudders as someone hits it from the other side. Quinn shifts her position so her weapon is trained on the entry point. “If you’re done playing doctor,” she says, “we could use another gun up here.”

Killian checks his weapon one-handed, that familiar predatory gleam returning to his eyes. “Let’s give these fuckers a proper welcome,” he says, moving into position. But we all know we’re running out of time and options.

Quinn catches my eye across the roof, and in that single look, I see everything. The fierce determination that first drew me to her. The iron will that’s kept her standing through all this shit. And underneath it all, the fear she won’t admit to anyone—not even herself.

But it’s not fear for her own life. No, she’s afraid of losing us. It’ll kill her to watch her men die on this rooftop because her plan went to hell.

I know that look because I’ve worn it myself. I’ve seen it in the mirror every time I’ve had to make a call that could get my brothers killed. The weight of command is a heavy fucking burden, and right now it’s crushing her.

Another explosion of gunfire forces us both into cover. Atlas shouts a warning as more mercs appear on the neighboring roof. They’re getting bold now, knowing we’re running low on ammo and they’ve got us cornered like rats.

When Quinn looks at me again, I can see the gears turning in her head. She’s got that expression she gets right before doing something crazy—something that could either save us all or get us killed faster.

“Don’t,” I say, although I’m not even sure what I’m trying to stop her from doing. I just know in my gut that whatever she’s planning, it’s going to cost her. It might cost all of us.

She shakes her head with that stubborn set to her jaw that drives me fucking crazy in the best and worst ways. “We’re out of options,” she says, her voice barely audible over the chaos around us.

Killian curses as he ducks another burst of fire. His injured shoulder is making him slower than usual, but I’d still take one injured Killian over three of their guys. Atlas is down to his last magazine, and the door to the roof access is starting to buckle under the assault.

Quinn’s hand moves toward her phone, and suddenly I know exactly what she’s willing to sacrifice to keep us alive.

The look we share now is different. It’s raw and filled with all the words we never seem to say until it’s almost too late. Until death is breathing down our necks and time is running out.

“There’s no other way,” she says softly.

I know what she’s about to do—what she thinks she has to do—and every instinct in my body screams to stop her. There has to be another way out of this mess that doesn’t involve her owing more to those Dark Lotus vultures.

“Don’t do this,” I growl, but another burst of gunfire drowns out my words. Atlas shouts a warning as more mercs appear on the adjacent rooftop. They’re getting closer and more confident with each passing second.

Quinn’s fingers close around her phone just as Killian takes a shot that comes too fucking close. His grunt of pain makes her fingers tighten on the device. I can see it in her eyes—each near miss, each time one of us almost takes a bullet, it’s killing her inside.

“We’re out of options,” she says with that steel in her voice that means her mind’s made up. “I’m not watching you die up here. Not when I can stop it.”

My jaw tightens. Using that last votum… fuck. The Dark Lotus Syndicate already sees her as a threat. Using her final favor like this, demanding immediate action without a proper meeting, will put an even bigger target on her back.

She must see the war playing out on my face because her expression softens for just a moment. “I can handle whatever comes next,” she says. “But I can’t handle losing you. Any of you.”

The raw honesty in her voice hits me harder than any bullet. This is my woman, my love—ready to sacrifice everything to keep her family safe. Just like I’d do for her. Just like any of us would.

More gunfire peppers the roof around us, and Quinn’s fingers move to unlock her phone. Our time is up. We’re out of options, out of ammo, out of everything except her final card to play.

I reach for Quinn’s hand, trying one last time to stop her from making this call and putting herself even deeper in debt to those Syndicate vultures. But she yanks away from me with fire blazing in her eyes.

“Don’t you fucking dare,” she snarls, ducking as another bullet whizzes past. “Don’t try to protect me. Not from this. Not when your lives are on the line.”

A crash from the stairwell makes us all tense. They’re almost through. Atlas fires his last rounds, buying us precious seconds, while Killian positions himself to cover our blind spot despite his fucked-up shoulder.

“The Dark Lotus Syndicate will make you pay for this,” I warn her, because she has to understand. She has to know what she’s risking. “Using your last votum like this—demanding immediate action—they’ll see it as a step too far, or some kind of fucked up challenge.”

“You think I give a fuck?” Her voice is raw with emotion. “You think I care what those bastards think of me? Or what they’ll do to me?” She grabs my jacket, pulling me close enough that I can see the tears she’s fighting back. “I’d rather deal with their shit for the rest of my life than watch you die up here. Because I fucking love you, you stubborn asshole.”

The raw honesty in her voice hits me like a physical blow. Around us, gunfire continues to rain down. Killian curses as he takes cover, and Atlas shouts something about more hostiles approaching. But for just a moment, time seems to stop.

This is Quinn Kent—the woman who fought us, fucked us, married me, and somehow managed to claim every piece of my soul along the way. And now she’s ready to sacrifice everything to keep us alive.

“I love you,” she repeats, softer now but just as fierce. “All of you. And I’m not letting this end here.”

Quinn’s fingers don’t shake as she hits Malcolm’s number. Her voice is pure steel when he answers, even with bullets still flying around us.

“I’m calling in my last votum,” she says without fucking around. “Right now.”

I can’t hear Malcolm’s response, but from the way Quinn’s jaw tightens, I know he’s not happy about being woken up for this shit. Too fucking bad.

“There’s no time for a meeting,” she cuts him off. “No, and I don’t have time for any of your bureaucratic bullshit. I need the Syndicate’s help now.” Another burst of gunfire punctuates her words as Ambrose’s men try to push forward. Atlas takes out one of them with his last bullet, but there are too many more waiting to take his place.

Quinn’s eyes narrow at whatever Malcolm says next. “You know the rules,” she reminds him. “No questions asked. No hesitation. That’s what I agreed to when I joined.” She pauses, listening. “Either honor the votum now, or admit the Dark Lotus Syndicate’s word means jack shit.”

Oh, fuck. She’s not just asking for help. She’s challenging them and making it impossible for Malcolm to refuse without undermining the Syndicate’s entire power structure.

“We’re on the roof of the old Maxwell building,” she says after a moment. “Surrounded by heavily armed mercenaries. I need them eliminated.” She rattles off more details about our location and Ambrose’s forces.

The roof access door splinters a little more. Killian positions himself to take the first wave, but we all know we can’t hold them off much longer.

Quinn’s expression hardens at Malcolm’s response. “I don’t care how you do it. Just get it done.” She hangs up, meeting my eyes. “Help is coming.”

“How long?” Atlas asks, reloading with his final magazine.

“Soon,” she says. But we can all hear what she’s not saying. The question isn’t whether the Dark Lotus Syndicate will save us—it’s what price they’ll demand for this favor once the dust settles.