Their Vengeance: Siren's Revenge Book Two

17. Lukas

Fyodor’s Rules #42 - Always try to contain your mess within a defined space.

I’d been glad when I”d gotten the signal to leave the party. Watching everyone congratulate Alexei and Yana on their engagement had brought up some feelings I wasn”t in the mood to confront. It wasn”t quite jealousy, but it also wasn”t anger. It was closer to longing, this should have been all of us. And Yana shouldn”t have had to use a fake name or pretend to be someone else. The whole thing sat poorly with me. Most deceptions did, I preferred when things were straightforward. It made everything easier.

It had almost been enough to distract me from what I was supposed to be doing during the party. I focused on Fiorenza, taking in every part of her until her scent wasn’t just in my nose, it was in my soul. She was marked, prey, the hunted. My skin itched with the desire to chase her down, but it needed to wait. I wasn’t going to be the reason our plan failed.

Concern for my men had also steadily built in the back of my mind. I didn’t think they would do something stupid. All were well trained, and I trusted each one with my life. Unfortunately, we didn”t know the nature or extent of the prophecy. Though I was certain it didn’t mention anything about tonight, otherwise why would Ksenia or Fiorenza have risked showing their faces? However, it didn”t stop the worry.

Making my way down to the garage, I pulled my go-bag out of the back of the Escalade and left the door open for my dogs to jump in. I had considered sending them ahead, letting them scope out the territory we marked for our ambush. Ultimately, I kept them with me. It was better to have them here in case something went wrong at the party. You could never be sure when Alexei”s family was going to start some shit. I had been reluctant to leave him and Yana alone, but I didn”t have a choice if I wanted to beat Fiorenza to the ambush point.

I slid my earpiece in as I started the car. Checking in with my men went smoothly, and Pasha was already updating us, as well as Nikolai. I didn”t have as much time as I would have liked to prepare, but not being present at the party at all would have drawn attention. It was well known the Sirota brothers did everything together. Besides, my men had the whole thing already set up and were in their positions. All I had to do was pull up and join them, then we”d be ready to spring the ambush.

We”d had a harder time selecting a spot than Nikolai or Alexei. There weren”t any industrial estates or empty stretches of road. The Italians lived in a gated community at the top of a hill. So instead, we chose a section of road which had a strip mall and a school on opposite sides. The school would be empty, and my men had spent the last few days paying off the store owners to make sure no one would be here tonight. I preferred to cause as little collateral damage as possible. It made the cleanup easier, and this way we didn”t have to worry about innocent people running around and screaming, or getting shot when they didn”t deserve to be.

I pulled the Escalade behind one of the shops and sent the dogs to patrol, just in case. With only a few minutes to get into position, I didn”t need Pasha to tell me Fiorenza’s location, although it was useful for him to update my men. We switched the comms to a different frequency as I made my way down the alley and gave a nod to the man already waiting there. Pasha could still monitor us, but Nikolai and Alexei wouldn”t be distracted by our chatter, and we wouldn”t be distracted by them. We needed to focus.

I could feel Fiorenza getting closer, my Hunter instincts homed in on her position. Hers wouldn”t be the only car, though Nikolai had done his best to delay her, so her car should be the last in the convoy. But in the end, you could never tell what drivers were going to do. As the first few cars passed by, we tensed and prepared ourselves.

Pasha spoke in my ear, letting me know he’d diverted all other traffic away from us as best he could. His hacking skills really were useful for things like this. I”d have to make sure he knew just how much I appreciated his efforts once this was all over. By staying in the van, it meant we could all relax and not worry if anything was happening to him.

“All right, get ready. Target in 30 seconds.”

My men checked in again as I gave the count. Fiorenza drew closer. As I felt her reach the block before ours, I stepped up to the mouth of the alleyway. A quick glance showed my men taking up their positions as well. Her car was about a minute and a half behind the others, which was good news for us. It lessened the chance of the other cars seeing or hearing our attack and turning around.

As her car drove into view, the gunfire started. We aimed at the wheels and the driver, and it sent the car skidding off the road and into a lamppost. Though we did our best not to damage the buildings, there were going to be some stray bullets.

This was the straightforward part. Things were about to get much hairier.

“Driver down.” The voice of the team sniper came across the comms. The spray of blood on the driver”s side window had told me he”d hit his target. It was good to have confirmation, as watching the way the car veered, he may have only winged him.

No more voices came through the comms as both the rear doors of the car burst open. Bright light radiated from the car and the sound of wings snapping open echoed as they exited. This was the part I wasn”t looking forward to. Nephilim were hard to kill. They were typically the descendants of archangels, dominions, or powers. I hadn’t known much about the various choirs of angels, but I’d done some research for this fight. All three choirs were built for war, for fighting the forces of evil, or for commanding those who did. It made them really fucking resilient.

It also meant we had flaming swords to contend with, which I was not looking forward to facing.

My men were prepared, and each group concentrated their fire on their set targets. There were two bodyguards who exited the back of the town car. I didn”t need to see through the bright light to know Fiorenza headed straight toward me. Her husband strode beside her, his wings spread while she held her flaming sword in hand. I had known she was an Archangel Scion, but I hadn”t expected him to be as well.

It wasn”t impossible to deal with, it just made the situation trickier.

They weren”t completely immune to bullets, and one of the bodyguards was already down. My men called out to each other, redeploying as they took their targets down. They covered each other as they tried to keep a distance between themselves and the winged men who approached.

Tapping the man with me on the shoulder, I motioned for him to move. We needed to cut off Fiorenza”s escape. Too many bullets whizzed through the air from the rooftops for her to be able to take flight safely, but if she escaped the ambush, we wouldn”t have that protection anymore.

“Stay out of sight, but keep them from getting too far away.” I didn”t need to do anything more than give the order, and he was already off and moving through the shadows.

The sound of gunfire was everywhere, short sharp bursts as my men did as they were trained. Fiorenza was still running, and I wouldn’t let her escape. Stowing my rifle, I pulled out a baton and knife. I didn”t have a sword. It wasn”t a weapon I had ever bothered to use, as they were cumbersome and drew attention. A sharp whistle called the dogs back to me. I was going to need their help.

Moving in concert, we came toward Fiorenza and her husband from different angles. Both the dogs launched themselves on her husband, each aimed at a wing. Their fangs tore and heads shook as they drove him to the ground. Trusting them to take care of themselves, I stepped into Fiorenza”s path, my baton up and knife ready and balanced against it, almost like a fencer with a parrying dagger.

“You! You ungrateful little bastard. After everything we have done for your family, this is how you repay us! We are going to destroy you.” She spat as she spoke, advancing toward me, her sword held defensively across her body. “The righteous fire of God will cleanse your depraved little family from the city like it should have a decade ago.” There was so much vitriol in her tone I was actually surprised. She clearly hated us more than we had thought, and it added to the danger of the situation.

I didn”t answer her, as there was nothing to say. I wasn”t the plucky superhero fighting against his nemesis, spitting out zingy one-liners. That was more Pasha or Alexei”s domain than it was mine. I took the time while she monologued to assess her fighting form as best I could. She clearly knew how to use that sword, but she wasn”t the first person I”d had to fight up close. The fire was a worry, but there had never been a version of this fight where I got through unscathed.

In the background, I could hear Demon and Ghost growling and tearing into Fiorenza”s husband. There was an occasional pained yelp, but neither of them had tried to retreat, so I trusted they were holding their own. If anything, the feeling of their excitement at an actual fight helped to buoy my own spirits.

I didn”t give Fiorenza a chance to charge; I wanted her on the defensive. Instead, I launched myself at her, baton up to deflect her sword as I slashed at her with my knife. Her wing swept in between us, and my blade only caught feathers. I had to back up to avoid being knocked over. Those wings were going to be a fucking problem.

The next time I darted in, I used the knife to deflect her sword. The two blades met and vibrated down my arm, almost forcing me to let go, but by gritting my teeth and ignoring the pain, I was able to hold on. This time, when she tried to sweep me aside with her wing, I swung the baton backhand as hard as possible into the delicate bones running along the top of her wing. The crack as the two met was almost as satisfying as the scream of pain the fucking bitch cried out. Her wing folded against her back as she tried to protect the injury.

She cursed me in Italian as she went on the attack. I liked to think of myself as someone who doesn”t startle easily, but a flaming sword swung at my head sent adrenaline coursing through my veins.

Choosing to dodge rather than parry, I jumped backward, trying to move around her. But her other wing knocked me back and sent me stumbling. This time, when her sword came down, all I could do was try to twist out of the way. The blade bit into my arm rather than the side of my neck.

Fuck, that fucking hurt.

It wasn”t bleeding—the wound immediately cauterized—but it caused me to drop the baton. I knew there was no way I would be able to use that arm until Pasha healed me.

I had a decision to make, and it needed to be made fast. There was no way I would win a sword fight with a hunting knife. Fiorenza may have been hurt and furious, but she was too skilled to make the sort of stupid mistake which would give me the opening I needed. I threw the knife aside and pulled out my pistol. I had fourteen shots before I needed to reload. Then I was really going to be in trouble.

With a pained cry, Fiorenza went on the offensive again, using big swings designed to take me out of the fight.

There wasn”t anything I could do other than try to avoid them—ducking or twisting to the side—a perversion of a dance, her moving forward as I weaved backward. All I needed was an opening. Enough space to lift the gun and then time to fire it. But she was determined not to let me have the chance.

My saving grace came when I heard a snarl from behind Fiorenza. Demon was there, blood dripped from his muzzle. He jumped and his fangs latched on to her uninjured wing, dragging her to the side as he pulled. He tried to rip it from her back as he shook his head furiously from side to side.

That fucking dog was going to get spoiled after this, with all the belly rubs and treats he could handle. I”d take him running through any realm he wanted. Ghost joined him, limping as he tried not to put weight on one of his front paws. He latched on to the wing I had injured earlier, pulling it in the other direction. Fiorenza shrieked, her flaming sword forgotten on the ground as she attempted to twist and reach behind her, to get the dogs to let her go. But they trained for this sort of thing. The Hunt was what they lived for, and right now she smelled like prey.

Holstering the gun, I scooped up the sword in my uninjured arm. I could feel the heat as it radiated through my gloves, but I would not hold it for long enough to cause myself damage. Stepping up to her, I looked down as the dogs yanked back on her wings further, forcing her to her knees. She was still spitting curses in Italian and English, but I ignored them as I hefted her sword in my hand.

“You should have left my fucking family alone.” With all the strength I had remaining, I swung the sword at her neck. I”d never decapitated someone with a sword before, and I was surprised at how much effort the swing actually took. Her head fell to the asphalt, eyes wide, staring up at me. The dogs started ripping into the body, and I didn”t bother to call them off. They had earned the meal, and it was a better fate than she deserved.

The heavy sword fell from my singed fingers as I turned back to the scene, taking it all in. There were bullets and bullet casings everywhere, along with blood and bodies. It was good we had cleanup crews on standby, because this was going to take more than our usual staff.

“Everyone, check in.” I didn”t bother to use the comms, just called it out loudly into the now comparatively still air.

I could see some of my men already moving around, gathering anything useful. One of our two medics was looking over a couple of injuries. Calls came in over the comms. We had lost three, which was more than I wanted, but less than I expected.

It was Pasha”s voice coming through the comms, which chilled the adrenaline-fueled fire pumping through my veins. “Lukas! Yana and Alexei need help. Can you hear me?” I hadn”t been paying attention to the comms during the fight, as the sound of my heartbeat drowned out anything else. There was no way to tell if this was the first time he had called my name.

“I”m on my way, but I”m injured.”

I was already racing to my car, with a brief command toward the men to clean up and then get some rest. We could debrief tomorrow, assuming I lived that long. One of the medics tried to follow me, but I shook my head and sent him back to the men. I would not lose any more of them if I could help it. Pasha could patch me up on the way in.

“I’m coming to you. Be ready to go, Pash. I need help.” All I got back was curses and the sound of him trying to get through to Nikolai. I had to hope he”d heard me. The fear in his voice had me worried as I pulled out of the parking lot, tires squealing across the road.

In a couple of minutes, I would know just how panicked I needed to be.