Savage (Park Avenue Kings #1)

36. Cooper

36

COOPER

I DIDN’T KNOW how long I stared gaping at the door before Benoit’s laugh filled the now-empty space.

He turned around, and even though it was dark, I could see the amusement playing across his face from the dim light on the screen.

“Now you get it, don’t you?”

No shit I got it. I’d seen the masked man— Lachlan —in action, and Benoit was right: everyone in that building should be fucking terrified of him, not the other way around. I’d seen him take out an alley full of men on his own with hardly any effort, and now he had the rest of his brothers as backup.

“Oh…my…God.” It was all I could manage. All I could think. Because Lachlan was the masked vigilante, and somehow, in my gut, it all made sense. The déjà vu, the familiar feelings that came out of nowhere that I couldn’t place. He was right there in front of me and somehow I hadn’t seen it. Or was it that I’d refused to see it?

“Piecing things together?” Benoit said. “I heard all about Lachlan’s little escapade in the alley with you. Well, I saw it too?—”

“You saw it?”

“ Oui. And I should say, you’re very lucky to be so attractive.”

I blinked, wondering if I’d heard him right. “You’re saying Lachlan saved me that night because I’m attractive?”

“ Non. But it helps.” He winked, and I realized he was teasing me.

“So…wait, how did you see what happened? Were you there?”

“Eh. Violence isn’t really my scene, but I did enjoy the recap.” He tapped the screen.

Cameras. Lachlan must’ve been wearing one that night.

I ran a hand over my face and squeezed my eyes shut, trying to reconcile everything that had happened with both men—well, one man and his alter ego. Maybe I should’ve felt embarrassed somehow, even upset at the revelation. Lachlan hadn’t been forthcoming about being the one who’d saved me, the one who’d snuck into my apartment. The one I’d practically begged to fuck me.

Okay, maybe I was a little embarrassed over that fact, but mostly I was surprised that I wasn’t surprised at all. Lachlan in either form had always looked out for me and made me feel safe, and even now he was out there taking down the bad guys. Now I understood what he meant when he’d said he wasn’t always the good guy, because I’d seen him do things with my own eyes that crossed the so-called ethical line.

Maybe the craziest part about it all was that I didn’t blame him one bit.

“Ah, here we go, mon ami ,” Benoit said, settling back in the driver’s seat like he was about to watch his favorite TV program. The different squares on the screen had gotten progressively lighter as Lachlan, King, and the others made their way to the warehouse.

Even though I knew Lachlan was capable of taking care of himself, my stomach still did a nervous flip. “You, uh, don’t seem stressed about this,” I said.

“I’m not.”

Even with that reassurance, my heart began to race as they split up into two teams to approach from different points.

It’s going to be fine. They’re all going to be fine.

The only thing I could hear in the SUV was the sound of my heart thumping as both teams moved with stealth through the cool night.

Lachlan had split off with Alessio, which was no surprise considering how tight they were, and the final person making up their trio was none other than King himself.

“Lachlan always heads up a mission like this,” Benoit explained. “Always goes in first. Always protects the King.”

“Because he’s the best?”

Benoit smiled. “Partly. But mainly to make sure the coast is clear before?—”

“The most important person walks in the room.”

“Exactly. Lachlan is more dangerous than any weapon our guys carry, so he usually… assesses the scene first.”

In other words, he went in, kicked the ass of anyone who posed a threat, then sent the signal that the rest could enter without dying. Awesome. This wasn’t going to be stressful at all.

Benoit pointed to Lachlan’s screen. “They’re approaching the front entrance now.”

“Everyone in place?” Lachlan’s voice came over the mic clearly.

“Affirmative,” Shep responded as they moved into position at the back entrance of the warehouse. “Two security guards as expected, you?”

“Same.” Lachlan shifted, the two men he was talking about appearing on the screen. “Nonlethal in three,” he grumbled, his annoyance at that order clear as he started the countdown. “Three… Two… One.”

A soft pop pop sounded through the mic, and the security guards on both Lachlan and Shep’s feed dropped to the ground.

“Clear,” Shep confirmed.

“Clear. Continue to the door,” Lachlan said. “Wait for my next order.”

I sat riveted to the screen, just as Benoit had said he would be, as the teams moved through the shadows as though they were part of them. When they got to the entrance and Lachlan looked down at the men, I noticed they were still breathing.

“So, nonlethal means what, exactly?”

“Basically being struck by lightning.”

“Oh…”

I glanced up just in time to see Alessio had moved to the front of Team Lachlan, getting all kinds of excited when he pulled out my key card.

See? I was helping in some way.

Alessio swiped the card through the reader by the door, and when the light flashed green he whispered, “Bingo.”

He shifted back behind King, him and Lachlan flanking their leader like the loyal guards they were, as Lachlan reached for the door. He gently pushed down on the handle, making sure to keep quiet, and as he slipped in through the door and it shut behind him, I sucked in a breath.

He was alone now. That shouldn’t have worried me—I’d seen him fight off armed men with nothing more than his bare hands. But as he crept behind a row of shelves and his camera picked up a group of men standing around a table covered with boxes, I felt a lump in the back of my throat.

There had to be at least a dozen of them—some opening and unpacking the boxes, laying out bags of pills that others were counting and dividing into smaller packets, and I wasn’t na?ve enough to think they were doing all that without some kind of weapons on hand.

Shit. Why had he gone in alone again?

Benoit held a mic up to his mouth and said, “Looks like close to fifteen in house, all centered in the room. Lachlan has eyes on the product, but not the target.”

“Yet,” Lachlan added.

He moved farther down the row, the camera picking up dusty boxes with old boat parts and fishing tackle as he moved, trying to get a better view.

I held my breath as a familiar head of black hair came into view, standing off to the side with his gaze on his phone. Mick typed away, letting his crew handle the work, and I could almost hear the dark glee in Lachlan’s voice as he said, “Motherfucking target in view. He’s mine.”

From outside the warehouse, King said, “Remember—nonlethal.”

A grunt could barely be heard, but it clearly came from Lachlan.

“Ready to initiate countdown?” Benoit asked, and Lachlan gave a thumbs-up, followed by his middle finger. Benoit rolled his eyes. “Classy. Team one?”

“We’re a go,” King said.

“Team two?”

“Ready for your count.” It was Shep who answered, a fact that was still blowing my mind. If the rest of America knew their golden boy was moonlighting by performing drug busts, they’d never believe it. Hell, I was watching it and still couldn’t.

Benoit began the count, and when he hit one and both teams burst into the warehouse, I uncapped my pen but didn’t take my eyes off the screen.

Shouts sounded and it was instant chaos, Lachlan and each of the brothers moving so fast it was hard to keep up. Whatever it was they were using to knock the thugs out worked like a charm, bodies falling left and right, scattering the piles of pills.

I scribbled as fast as I could, marking down the important details of what was happening and hoping like hell I’d be able to read the mess later.

“Shit—” I started as a figure approached on one of the cameras, but Benoit was already on it.

“Theo, on your left.”

Lightning fast, Theo immobilized the man, and I couldn’t help but think it was a smart idea for the masks and hoods. If they weren’t taking care of these guys in a permanent way, the last thing they needed was for their identities to get out.

Lachlan had Mick in his sights, but he didn’t bother incapacitating him. Instead, he sauntered toward him, taking his time as Mick panicked, searching for an escape but realizing he was cornered, his crew’s bodies dropping around him.

I couldn’t look away as Mick reached for something behind his back, but Lachlan didn’t give him time to grab whatever it was. With a flick of his wrist, he released a throwing star, nailing Mick in the arm. A cry ripped out of him, but Lachlan kept coming. From the view of one of his brothers, I could see Lachlan reach for a knife, and he began to flip it as he approached Mick, the same way he had in his kitchen.

“Nonlethal takedown,” Benoit reminded him, but he didn’t seem too put out by Lachlan seemingly disobeying orders. In fact, I wagered he wished he had a bucket of popcorn.

“He’s not going to die,” Lachlan said, stopping in front of Mick, who held both his hands up in surrender. “He’s just going to wish he did.”

“No,” Mick said, looking past Lachlan for any sign of someone to help, but from the view of the other feeds, the coast was looking clear. Mick straightened his shoulders and lifted his chin, a final act of defiance as he dropped his hands. “Who are you?”

“Your worst fucking nightmare,” Benoit said.

Mick wiped at his nose, his jerky movements proving he hadn’t given up using at least some of his non fatal product. “Is it the drugs you want or the money?”

Lachlan shook his head slowly and flipped his knife again. “Justice.”

Before Mick could open his mouth again, Lachlan slashed his thigh, causing Mick to shout in pain and double over, grabbing at his injury.

But Lachlan wasn’t done.

His gloved fist made contact with Mick’s face with a loud crack, cutting off the scumbag’s shouts as he dropped to the floor like a rag doll.

“Oh shit,” I said, on the edge of my seat as Lachlan looked directly at the closest camera to him, Alessio’s feed, and said, “For Alex.”

Then he slammed his knife into Mick’s hand, effectively nailing him to the floor.

Mick screamed in agony as the sharp blade penetrated his skin and bone, and Benoit looked back at where I sat slack-jawed staring at the screen.

Holy. Fuck.

At least it wasn’t through the guy’s heart—which was what he really deserved, if you asked me.

“You okay?” Benoit said, waving a hand in front of me.

“Uh, yeah, I?—”

“We’ve got to go,” King interrupted over the mic, and as if we were both out there with them, we instantly fell silent. “Stone,” King barked at Lachlan. “Fall back, now .”

Lachlan slowly rose to his feet, his camera looming over Mick where he lay pinned to the broken floorboards, then turned on his heel and started back toward the warehouse entrance.

Through his camera I could see two of his brothers up ahead. Tall and commanding, they walked like leaders, and as they started to talk, I realized why.

“Once we’re out,” King said, “you make the call.”

“On it,” Shep replied.

A deep chuckle came from Alessio as they exited the warehouse one at a time and moved through the darkness toward the vehicle. “Aw, cheer up, lover boy—at least you got to play with your knives.”

“It’s not the same,” Lachlan grumbled, then under his breath added, “Couldn’t even let me have one guy.”

“I heard that,” King said. “And you know why.”

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.”

As much as I was dying to know what the “why” was, all I could feel was relief that Lachlan and the others were walking back here alive and breathing.

And as total fucking badasses.