Heartless Sinner (Empire of Sinners #5)

Chapter 29

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Micah

Fuck, fuck, fuck .

This is not happening. Anton is here in the house with Johnny.

And Jenson is the fucking rat. My pulse thunders in my ears, each beat pounding in the gravity of his betrayal.

Fuck. He was the least likely person on my radar because he's worked for my family since before I was born. He’s been my guard all my life. I got so close to him that when I left him, my father allowed him to follow me.

But everyone has a price and I come from a world that thrives on greed.

Jenson wanted more than he had, and he fucked me over to get it. The bitter taste of realization coats my tongue.

He's always been an enforcer. There was nothing more he could do than steal from me to move up the rank in wealth.

I ball my hands at my sides, fingernails biting crescents into my palms, but I try not to lose my shit as I walk out of the house. The worst thing I could do is draw attention to myself. That would put Scarlett in even more danger than she already is.

The air hits my face like a slap, carrying the metallic scent of approaching rain.

I can't fucking believe I had to let her go back up to the bedroom with them in there. It's like throwing her into shark-infested waters and hoping she won't get eaten. My chest constricts with each breath, the weight of my decision pressing down like a stone.

Scarlett hasn't even been alone for an hour and this happened. But of course, it would. When you're looking for an opening, you take whatever you can get, no matter how small.

And her brother is helping... When she told me he was a piece of shit, I believed her, but I've gotten to see the truth for myself now. He'll pay just as much as the others. Rage burns hot in my gut, a familiar friend I have to keep contained.

How did they get inside the house?

Fuck, that doesn't matter now. What matters is how I'll get them out without hurting Scarlett or her father. My jaw clenches so tightly I can hear my teeth grind.

A plan forms in my mind when I turn the corner and walk on the paved path, fallen leaves crunching beneath my feet like brittle bones.

Anton and Johnny would have had to use the secret passage to get inside the house. Jenson, too, because I only authorized the guards from the Creed to minimize the risks. My skin prickles with awareness as I piece it together. They also would have needed one of those guards to get past the security panel because it would have alerted me if anyone else used it.

I'll take the secret passage. That's my best option now. It will get me in the room with them. Once I'm there, I'll know what to do next. The certainty of violence ahead makes my fingers twitch with anticipation.

With that reasoning, I move faster and slip through the door at the back of the house leading to the passage.

The musty air hits my nostrils as I enter. All members of the Creed have secret passages installed in their homes for emergency escapes. They lead off the property so you can either go underground to a safe house or into the woods.

I take the stone steps carefully and quietly, making my way to the second floor, where the bedroom is. Voices greet me once I'm halfway up, echoing off the damp walls.

The distinct Russian accent must be Anton. He's telling Scarlett to get the blueprints from the vault.

That motherfucker Jenson must have put this plan together, much to Anton's satisfaction. I'm pissed at myself for not picking up sooner that it was him all along.

Jenson probably looked into the security I set up for the blueprints and saw that I changed it so no one would be alerted if Scarlett or I opened the vault.

It's the perfect win-win plan.

I reach the top of the stairs and walk down the path that leads to the bedroom entrance where the walk-in closet is. The air grows warmer here, stirring with movement from the room beyond.

I manage to push the door open slightly so I can see who's inside the room. The hinges whisper against my touch.

When I see Kazimir—the Creed guard—captive, I realize I was right. They used him to get in. The sight of him bound and bloody makes my stomach clench. But if I play my cards right, I can use him, too.

Anton grabs Scarlett by the throat and she screams. The sound rips through me like shattered glass. I want to run in guns blazing and end him, but I hold back. My God, do I hold back, every muscle in my body straining against the need to move.

Keeping focus, I access the security notification app on my phone then fire off a message to all the guards, with the exception of Jenson and Kazimir. If their alerts go off, it’s game over. Sweat beads on my forehead as I wait.

I receive a response from my men within seconds. My pulse quickens as I direct them to watch the bedroom window and take down either Jenson or Johnny the first chance they get. I also instruct them to leave Anton for me.

Then I wait and watch. But not for too long.

Jenson drops to the floor when a bullet flies through the window and lodges smack in his forehead. The crack of glass and thud of his body hitting the floor send adrenaline surging through my system.

The sight of Jenson’s body on the ground alerts Anton and Johnny that shit is going down. Then, just like I hoped, Kazimir flips into action and throws Johnny to the ground. Leaving Anton to me.

Before Anton can do anything, I burst into the room with my guns, a twin set of Berettas. The familiar weight steadies my hands. I fire both, hitting him in the chest and stomach. He fires his gun at me, too, but misses.

Scarlett screams and runs behind the bed to shield herself. The sound tears at my heart, but now that she's out of the way, I can focus on Anton.

"Micah Delarosa, we meet at last," Anton roars, his voice thick with pain and rage.

"And I'll be the last face you see in this life." My words come out as a growl.

"We'll see about that." He's covered in blood from the wounds I gave him but still comes at me.

Good. That was the idea. I don't want to kill him just yet. I want to teach him a lesson and beat his ass first.

"I should have known that bitch would tell you she's in trouble," he snarls when he reaches me.

To his surprise, I headbutt him, feeling the satisfying crunch of cartilage. "Don't you fucking talk about my wife like that."

"She's mine." Blood sprays from his lips with each word. “You stole her from me.”

"Scarlett was never yours." The words come out as a deadly promise.

I think of all the things Scarlett told me about this motherfucker and use it as I lunge myself forward and slam into him. We're like two titans crashing into each other.

The impact sends shockwaves through my bones as the wooden floorboards creak beneath our feet, a haunting melody to our deadly battle.

The force of our collision sends us both crashing to the floor in a flurry of fists and guns. My shoulder slams into the hardwood first, the impact jarring through my bones and I lose one of my guns.

Anton lands half on top of me, his blood-soaked shirt leaving wet smears against my skin.

He's strong despite his wounds. I buck up hard, throwing him off balance, and we roll across the floor, trading blow for blow. My elbow finds his bullet wound and he howls like a wounded animal.

His gun skids away in our struggle, spinning across the blood-slicked floor. Mine's still in my grip, but he's got my wrist pinned.

Slamming my forehead into his nose loosens his grip and allows me to wrench my gun hand free.

I press the barrel against his chest and pull the trigger twice. The shots are deafening this close, but they’re a beautiful sound.

Anton's body goes rigid, his eyes widening. He looks across the room at Scarlett and reaches out to her.

“This is for her,” I inform him and he looks back at me, the life in his eyes waning. “You claim to love her, but you never knew what love was. Now you will never touch her again, bastardo .”

His blood pools around us, then he goes slack, but still, I press the Beretta to his forehead and pull the trigger one final time.

The shot echoes through the room like thunder.

Then the sudden silence settles over us.

It's over.

It’s finally over.

Scarlett sits by the fire in the living room, sipping on a cup of hot cocoa Maria made her.

It’s not cold enough for a fire, but it’s soothing. We both need soothing now.

The house is finally free of blood, bodies, and gore.

Unlike the warzone it was a few hours ago, it feels like home again.

I feel like myself again, too.

I was able to use the intel from Jenson’s phone to track down Marcus Cage and any other Nexxus member who wanted the blueprints.

The Creed emissaries in Switzerland picked him up in a hotel at a high-stakes poker game. I’ve told them to deal with him accordingly once they’d extracted any necessary information. Suffice to say, he won’t be bothering me anymore.

I walk over to the sofa and join Scarlett.

She tries for a warm smile, but it doesn’t quite reach her eyes. Although the fight is over, she’s worried about her father. My men were able to get him back, and he’s okay, but he took a bad beating. We’re flying over to Denver tomorrow to see him.

I search Scarlett’s face. The bruise on her cheek is darker now. The sight enrages me. This has happened to her too many times since I’ve known her.

Once was enough. Twice makes me feel like a failure. It won’t happen a third time.

“How are you doing?” I brush her cheek, and she sets her cup down so she can rest against me.

“I feel like hell, but at the same time, I feel free.”

I know what she means. “You don’t have to worry about Anton anymore.”

“Thanks to you.” She lifts her head and stares at me. “What’s going to happen to Johnny?”

He miraculously survived the bullet Kazimir put in his chest. I was going to end him, but I held back remembering he wasn’t my kill. He’s hers. “What do you want to do with him? On your word, I’ll kill him.”

She thinks for a moment and looks away. “Johnny has put Dad and me through hell and in some dangerous situations. He deserves death. If he’d died in the crossfire, I wouldn’t feel anything. But… I don’t know if it would bother me and I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I ordered his death.”

When she returns her gaze to me, I nod. “You’re not a killer, bellezza, so I get it.”

“Can you teach him a lesson?”

“I sure can.”

“What will you do?”

“There’s an Island the Bratva use. The Creed does, too. When you go there, no one ever sees you again.”

She nods. “Yes. Send him there. I never want to see him again.”

“Consider it done.”

She grips my shirt and pulls me closer. “Thank you. Thank you for everything. Thank you for approaching me at the bar that night so long ago. That was how we began.”

“Thank you for agreeing to have that drink with me.”

She smiles. It’s a real smile that looks more like her. “I’m so glad I met you, Micah Delarosa.”

“And I you, Scarlett Delarosa. Now, how about that happy ever after we deserve?”

She laughs. “I like the sound of that.”

“Me too, bellezza.”

I lean in and kiss her thinking of how far we’ve come and all the things I still want to do with her.

Forever.

We have time.