26. Gone
Chapter twenty-six
Gone
Adrik ran down the driveway. This compound was well situated in the middle of nowhere, but Vincent was a fucking idiot, thinking his people wouldn’t rat on him. It took no time to gain back loyalty. All Adrik had to do was show his face, and within minutes of getting out of jail, he had a militia in his hands.
Part of him, the one raised by a father who took meticulous action against his enemies, wanted to think about how to proceed with logic and strategic movements. But the part that was focused on his daughter and girlfriend had chosen to bulldoze his way into Vincent’s world with brute, unforgiving force.
A dozen men followed Adrik, who took out anyone hiding in the bushes. His team had already secured the gate, and the body of the security guard lay broken on the ground as he passed.
In the middle of the road were two black SUVs, trapped by a roadblock he had in place in case anyone tried to run. He knew Katia would do whatever she could to get out. But he needed to figure out what Boris, her father, would do. Yakov was the one who dealt with Boris in the past. Now he was about to see what the old man was capable of .
Adrik approached his people. Four Ford pickup trucks were positioned vertically, blocking traffic from both directions. A little Kia was backing up in a wild panic and twisting on the side of the road to get away. In the truck bed were three men with AKs pointing at the cars. But there was no movement. A soldier came to him and reported Katia and Boris wouldn’t get out of their vehicles.
“The Stephanovs have a crew on the way. Four cars were spotted two minutes out.”
Adrik stood behind the hedge. “What about the compound?”
“We took it over, but there’s a problem in the house. Alexei’s taking care of it.”
“Is my daughter in the car?”
“We think so.”
“Make sure no one shoots randomly, or I’ll cut their balls off.”
“Yes, sir.”
Adrik stepped out onto the road with his gun raised, holding up his hands in surrender. “Katia!” he yelled. “Give me my daughter, and I will let you go!” He had them surrounded. There was nowhere for them to go. Even if their vehicles were full, at maximum, they could only have eight people between the two cars. Adrik had twenty. There was no way for her to win. Staying in the car bought them time, but why? Any kind of help they had coming couldn’t be as abundant as his army ransacking Vincent’s estate. He owned this land now and everything inside it.
“Give me my daughter, and I won’t come for you and everything your family owns.” It was the only thing he had to offer. Money didn’t matter to their families. Only power.
Too soon, he heard it, the odd sounds of a helicopter.
Adrik looked to the skies, but the trees were so thick in this backwater town that he couldn’t find it. He backed away instinctively, despite his desire to stay. If Boris wasn’t here, he wouldn’t be so cautious. But like Yakov, there was a reason Boris remained in power after so many years, and Adrik wasn’t stupid enough to believe Boris didn’t have tricks up his sleeve.
A hissing sound stalled him. He turned in a circle, searching for it. And then a missile hit the truck behind him, and it popped into the air, blazing in fire. His men flung like shattered glass, drenched in flames. Their screams only lasted a second before they died.
Adrik stared, wide-eyed.
The truck on the opposite side was the next to go, bouncing so high in the air that it flipped. There was no escape from the explosion. Ten of Adrik’s men died in seconds. The remaining soldiers formed a ring around him, pulling him back and pushing him away, but Adrik struggled to go. He was so close to his daughter. He just wanted to see her face, hear her voice. “Helina!” he screamed as they shoved him back toward Vincent’s house.
His attention was stolen when the helicopter lined up in the sky. It was dark green—military—its automatic Gatling gun directed at them. Adrik tripped over himself, running. “Take it out!” he yelled. He sprinted down the driveway, trying to get into the cover of the trees, but he didn’t know where he was running to. He couldn’t go to the house and risk Jolie and his brother. But there was nowhere else to go .
The bullets effortlessly slashed through giant trees. They hit the floor at an intense speed, shooting dirt, grass, and concrete into the air. Adrik could feel the wind from behind, but he didn’t dare look back. Cries of his soldiers dying behind him were all he needed to keep going.
On his left, he saw a soldier line up a bazooka, and it fired. The rocket hit, and the helicopter spun out of control. Adrik turned and watched as it crashed into the ground, a burst of fire radiating heat. Men rolled on the ground to get the flames from their suits, but it was pointless. If the fire didn’t get them, Adrik’s soldiers did.
Adrik rested his hands on his knees, panting and laughing, high on adrenaline. He had never run from something like that, and the realization that Boris might be a problem for him flickered in the back of his head.
A celebration from his crew pulled him over to slap the man with the bazooka on the shoulder. The guy just earned a promotion.
When Adrik looked for Helina again, it was depressing to see the two black cars were gone.
Helina was gone.
Adrik bowed his head, the defeat cutting into his already fractured pride. He needed a win. He needed something after so much failure.
When he turned toward the house, Alexei and Jolie came out of the door hand in hand. He clenched his teeth, annoyed by his brother’s boldness. Adrik was losing too much. And though he didn’t know what he would do with Jolie, he wasn’t about to lose her unless he decided to.
“Who the fuck brings in a helicopter?” Alexei scoffed.
When Jolie spotted Adrik, she dropped her hand from Alexei and ran to him, desperate for his attention, but she stopped just a foot from throwing herself into his arms. She remembered how he was with Katia, how distant and cold he could be. She didn’t know what would happen between them and was scared to be pushed away. She tried to figure out what he thought of her, how upset he was, and whether there was forgiveness in him, but he wouldn’t meet her eye.
Adrik took one look at the laceration on her face and marked it as another defeat. It would scar, forever marring her skin. Because he hadn’t been here. Deep-ruby blood flowed down her neck, soaking her dress’s neckline. He stopped himself from reaching out to touch her. He wanted to sink into her arms, but her betrayal was brutal to push through. It was a pain he was once familiar with, and he never wanted to experience it again. He was bitter and angry but relieved she was here.
She’s not Katia, he reminded himself. Her lie, as terrible as it was, was nothing in comparison, and it wouldn’t be right to place her next to Katia. But it was difficult to stop.
Coming through the front entrance was the backup of Boris Stephanov. Adrik snatched Jolie’s hand and pushed her into the car. He could feel her eyes on him, but he ignored it. His attention was only on her safety. His men were already fighting back. They would have to go out the way they had come in.
“Adrik!”
Adrik paused from entering the vehicle, spotting Gil standing in the house’s doorway. He was beaten and bloody, but there was a gun in his hand.
“Gil?” Adrik questioned. Gunfire and screams sounded around them, but Adrik took a step forward. “Where have you been?” In the last three days of getting out of jail and planning this takeover, Gil had disappeared.
A soldier pushed him to get in the car. “Sir, we have to go.” A row of gunmen lined up to the right of Adrik as a caravan of enemies approached. “We’re being overrun. We have to get out of here.”
Alexei faced his estranged brother. “Gil,” he warned. “Don’t do this.”
Gil raised the weapon, and Adrik’s brows knitted in confusion. He fired. Adrik flinched, but no sound of a bullet struck the car or the ground. But the bullet had to have gone somewhere.
Alexei had shifted, just a few inches, coming between them, and now he turned to Adrik, his gaze searching for him in terrible fear. His mouth opened, and together, their eyes lowered to his chest. Bright-red blood poured down his shirt.
“Alexei!” Adrik lurched forward, but his soldiers were yanking him by the arms. He screamed when Alexei dropped to his knees, but with every push, Adrik was overpowered, and he was shoved into the car. A soldier kept him pinned as he banged on the window, watching Alexei fall as a wave of enemies overtook him.