11. Ryuji
RYUJI
I double-checked that the rope was coiled properly, and the hook was secured inside the harpoon’s barrel.
Beside me, Cas and Obi were getting their own harpoon guns ready, and loading up our rigid hull inflatable boat—the RHIB—with the rest of our supplies and equipment.
The RHIB was a smaller ship used in military operations to board other boats, which we stole from the Coast Guard, and we’d towed behind our superyacht all the way here to the middle of the fucking ocean.
The plan was to catch up to the Albanian freighter, and then come along the lee side of the ship with the RHIB. We’d use our boarding equipment to climb aboard, rescue her, return to the RHIB, and then take her back to the superyacht. Easy.
I’d never boarded a boat like this before. We’d used helicopters to repel onto a ship, but with this distance from land—and the fact that we didn’t know what Leona’s condition would be—the two-boat rescue operation seemed the safer choice.
Obi had arranged everything. He’d called in one of his infinite contacts to secure this yacht—one of the fastest in the world—and drive it while we carried out Operation Rescue The Queen.
Edward was his name. The boat man. Ciel was in the bridge navigating with him now while the rest of us prepped the RHIB for boarding.
We’d be ready to approach the Albanian ship in just a few minutes.
Edward had done missions with us before.
Obi saved the life of his wife, and now the boat man was forever in his debt.
We’d used his services dozens of times, and we knew the boat man could always secure us reliable transportation by sea whenever we needed.
He’d do the job, and he’d keep his mouth shut.
Getting here had just taken time. Time we did not fucking have.
It had been three days.
I was so fucking ready for this to be over. Despite Cas’s words in the gym about not keeping her locked up in the penthouse, I wasn’t convinced. I’d aged ten fucking years in the last three days.
I loved her. And there was no fucking way I was losing her now.
We were out for blood. Nobody fucked with the Shadows, and especially not our queen.
The freighter loomed ahead as we finalized the plans. We were bursting with impatience, but this had to go perfectly. I double checked the RHIB was ready, then made sure my knives were secure in their sheathes.
“We’re at a safe distance,” Ciel’s voice crackled over our radios. We were locked into mission comms, with Ciel handling the tech as usual. “I’m heading down. Time to go.”
The boat man’s voice came through my earpiece. “I’ll hold the yacht here until you’re ready. Keep me posted on the radio.”
“Will do.” Obi gave the signal to Cas and me for the three of us to step into the RHIB.
He hooked an assault rifle onto a strap over his shoulder.
We gave a wave to Edward, who watched from the windows on the bridge.
Ciel hopped in as soon as he made his way to the stern.
“We’ll be quick. If you feel threatened, take the boat out and circle around.
We don’t know what safety measures they’ll deploy. ”
Edward saluted. “Copy.”
Obi drove the RHIB closer to the freighter, aligning it with the lee side of the ship to minimize the swell and wind.
“Brothers,” Obi said through all our headsets when we got close. The four of us turned to follow his gaze, looking up at the bow. Mountains of containers were stacked across it like bricks stretching toward the sky. It was a huge fucking cargo ship, but we’d scale it easily. “Are we ready?”
“Let’s get our girl back,” Cas said.
Ciel’s tablet connected to a strap, which he let hang at his side while he tightened his gloves on his hands. He dug a thumb into his injured palm, but attached the repel gear to his chest and legs like the rest of us without saying a word.
“She’s waiting for us,” Ciel said as he picked up his hook gun, then handed me mine. “Whatever happens, we get in, we get her out.”
“They’ll know we’re coming,” Obi added, aiming his harpoon. “We must be ruthless and efficient.”
“Let’s fucking go.” I fired the hook at the lip of the bow, and it hooked over the edge.
The rest of the guys followed suit, and it only took a few minutes for us to shimmy up the ropes.
The ends of the rope were attached to our boat, so our RHIB was secure to the side of the ship.
My feet landed on the bow with a thunk, and I turned to clasp Ciel’s good hand to pull him up the rest of the way.
Behind me, Obi had his scope to his eye, making sure we were alone on the deck.
“Here,” Ciel said, leading us to a door. He’d started studying the plans of the ship as soon as he’d learned its name. The Red Talon . The ship would never reach its destination.
We breached the entrance to the ship as quiet as ghosts. The hallways were eerily lit by fluorescent lights, but the ship was quiet. Cameras with flashing red lights blinked in corners as we ventured farther inside.
“Ciel, any luck connecting to the cameras?” Obi murmured. I led the pack, with Obi behind me, then Ciel protected in the middle as he tapped the tablet, and Cas behind us all.
“It’s a closed circuit,” he responded, dropping the tablet and picking back up the weapon strapped to his other shoulder. “No Wi-Fi. I’d need to plug into the system somewhere.”
We rounded a corner and came face to face with a group of two men. I put a bullet in each of their foreheads. Even with the silencer on the end of my assault rifle, the sound echoed through the ship.
“Well, now they know we’re here.” I stepped over the two bodies, pushing forward. My heart was a drum against my ribs, but if there were men this way, she had to be near. “Shouldn’t we be seeing more crew?”
“They’re probably running on a skeleton crew since they’re trafficking,” Ciel answered. “Head closer to the crew areas. We might find more clues. She could be anywhere.”
My jaw tightened. She could be anywhere . My blood ran through my veins like lava at the thought of her being hurt.
We carried on, searching each room we came across as we explored farther into the ship. Cas took out another man, and Obi slit one’s throat as we came up behind him, but besides that, we’d seen no one else.
“Why is it so fucking quiet?” I growled. “Where is everyone?”
Despite how much we’d run around the ship, it was still fucking frigid.
“Stay focused, Ryu,” Obi said, voice level. He nodded towards a door. “That’s the last room in this part of the ship. We’ll move down a level after this. Perhaps she’s being held farther below.”
My hand gripped the metal handle, and I pulled the door open with a grunt. It screeched so loudly I flinched.
As soon as it opened, I sucked in a breath.
“Is that a fucking cell?” I stalked forward, heart in my fucking throat as I spotted a body laying on the floor. It was a man, much too big for Leona, but there was blood, both old and new, covering the floor.
“Look,” Ciel gulped. We all whirled, following his gaze to a small, bloody handprint on the wall.
My eyes went wide. “Cas.”
He stepped forward, reaching his hand up beside it to compare the size. He looked back at us over his shoulder, face draining of color.
He didn’t have to fucking say it. It was the same size as hers. “Fuck! Where is she?”
“She’s alive,” Obi said, looking down at the corpse. “Knife wounds. She’s fighting.”
My grip on my rifle tightened. The knife. She had the knife I gave her.
“Let’s go,” I urged, spinning for the door. The four of us made our way back the way we had come. A distant sound of shouts had my head whipping in the other direction. “Wait.”
They stopped.
Thunk . A female scream.
My heart choked my throat. “This way!”
I ran, keeping my semi-automatic steady on my shoulder in case I needed to fire. Their footsteps pounded behind me as we leapt down a stairwell, then immediately rocketed up another.
Another shout. Male. A scream. Female.
“Oh, fuck,” Cas said as we rounded a corner. The sounds were coming from behind the door ahead of us. “That’s her voice.”
“Door!” I said as I reached for the knob. My brothers were right behind me, ready to lay cover fire as soon as I yanked open the door.
As soon as I did, I stopped dead in my tracks.
“ Hanii ,” I breathed.
Leona.
Her red hair cascaded down her back, but it was matted and dirty. She stabbed a knife into a man’s neck over and over and over. Blood spurted all over her clothes. Sobs tore through the air.
The world stuttered to a stop. My eyes were wide as I watched, frozen.
“Leona,” Ciel said, stepping around me.
Cas took a step forward as Obi pushed into the room behind him. They fanned out beside me, but I found myself rooted in place, unable to move.
The dead man’s face was mutilated. His eyes were gone. His torso was pulverized meat.
I didn’t care about any of that shit. I’d sure as fuck seen worse.
She was alive .
And I was paralyzed. Why? Why couldn’t I move?
“Princess,” Cas said.
She whirled, catching sight of us. Standing at the door. Staring.
My vision narrowed to her face, her body. A jagged gash ran down the left side of her face, from her forehead down her eye to her cheek. Her clothes were torn to shreds. Was that a suit jacket wrapped around her?
“What the fuck?” I murmured.
She dropped the knife as she struggled to stand.
“Is this real?” she asked, voice quiet. She tried to wipe the blood from her face, but it was just a slippery mess. Pools of it blanketed the floor. She was a vision in red.
A goddess of death.
She took a step forward, faltering. Before she could fall, Obi was in front of her, picking her up, wrapping her arms around his neck. It all happened within seconds, but it felt like fucking years.
I’d never locked up on a mission before in my life.
“You’re safe, ifunanya’m ,” he said quietly, locking eyes with me. He jerked his head. “Let’s go. Now.”
“Wait,” she murmured. “Max. The girls. ”