51. Leona
LEONA
T he tunnels were cold and dark despite the lingering warmth of late-summer outside.
When we arrived outside, at the same time as Max and his men, twilight had cast a shadowed darkness over the entrance.
The entire street was dead quiet, like the people who lived and worked here knew something bad was about to go down.
Wynn chatted with a group of two women waiting on the street corner, and then they disappeared inside a bodega nearby. Giulio’s men arrived after, and we agreed to go in together.
Max had a rough idea of where he thought the auction was taking place.
His men had been cataloguing the tunnels when possible, and he’d been using his tech resources to find blueprints and documentation that broke down the layouts.
He expected the auction to be farther north than this entrance, but this was the closest option to get there without being seen or running into anyone else.
We needed surprise. If the Albanians or the buyers found out we were coming, the whole thing would be blown. That could not happen.
The business where Wynn had blood-eagled the dude was still cordoned off with police tape, but no one was here. We broke through the tape and went inside. My eyes caught on a pool of blood staining the shitty linoleum. I glanced away, keeping my focus on the backs of our men.
Cas had asked me again whether I was fine before we followed a set of stairs underground.
I was fine.
Everything was fine.
Ciel and Wynn led our group inside while my heart raced.
I gripped my gun, pointing the barrel at the ground, while we slowly lost the light from above.
Instead, old lightbulbs hung from above, flickering periodically with their pale, ghostly light.
It was spooky at fucking best . Exploring New York’s abandoned subway tunnels with their cobwebs, drafts, echoes, and shadows was the last thing I ever pictured myself doing, but this was personal.
If there was an auction happening, we had to stop it. Not just for the Albanians, but also for the people being trafficked. We could find the buyers here instead of…elsewhere.
Most of us had either headlights or mounted flashlights on their weapons. I didn’t have either, so I stuck close to Cas and Obi.
The deeper we went, following Max’s direction, my fingers ached. The scar on my face tingled. Dampness clung to the air.
It reminded me too much of the ship.
Flashes of cold, hard metal sent ripples of pain down my spine. Kicks to my stomach. The metallic taste of blood on my tongue. Fear .
I shook my head, willing the memories to stay locked away. This was not the time. My hand clenched firmer around my gun, allowing the bite of the grip to dig into my palm and center me back to the present.
Things would change for the Vokshi Clan tonight. We would stop this auction, rescue the girls they planned to sell, deal with the buyers who took part in the atrocity, and ruin the Albanians.
“I think Ervin Vokshi should be there. He hasn’t been spotted in Albania for a few days,” Max murmured. His words carried in the echo chamber of the tunnels. “Everyone keep alert.”
The second son.
“Where’s Armir Vokshi? And the first son?” I asked.
“They’re both still in Albania tied up with the Camorra,” he answered, casting a glance over his shoulder at me. He frowned and stopped in his tracks. “Are you okay?”
I blinked, swallowing to clear my cotton mouth. “What?”
“What’s wrong?” he asked. His eyes burned into mine.
Beside me, Cas stiffened. All eyes were on me. Our entire group stopped.
A cool sweat dripped down the back of my neck. “I’m fine.” I jerked my head back toward the tunnel. “Come on, we have to hurry.”
He narrowed his eyes, opening his mouth to respond, but then he paused. He gave Cas a look and then turned back to our path without another word.
Cas pressed against my side, but said nothing.
The heat of embarrassment clawed its way up my neck. More than ever, I wanted to appear strong in front of all these men. My men.
I had to get my shit together. The sooner we could get this over with, the better.
I jumped on the box in my chest, shoving all the memories down as far as I could. This wasn’t the ship. Jump . This wasn’t the cargo hold. Jump . I’d already killed Buzz Cut . Jump.
We kept moving through the tunnel. We’d proceed for a few lengths, and then turn and go up another path. Max and Daniele consulted their maps, and I counted myself lucky that Daniele only threw a few disgusted looks my way.
After almost thirty minutes, we heard the voices.
We slowed at the mouth of a tunnel that opened to a large clearing.
The concrete roof above us arched into a large dome structure, with more tunnels adjoining around its circumference.
With how large it looked, this space might have been used in the past to change the direction of the subway cars.
Like a train roundhouse, but each tunnel continued into the dark farther than I could see.
In a lightning fast move, Ryuji grabbed the head of a man who stood guard at our opening and snapped his neck. When he fell, Wynn was there to catch his body, and the two of them moved the man back toward the way we came to hide him.
Meanwhile, Max shushed our group. Our footsteps had been loud on the concrete surface of the abandoned tunnels, but now we had to be silent. We could not spook them. Everything had to go perfectly.
I peeked my head around the tunnel opening to get a look at the clearing. Dozens of people mingled around, holding champagne glasses and chatting together. There were men dressed in tailored suits, and even a few women dressed in lavish fabric and dripping with jewels.
It made me sick to my stomach.
“Take pictures,” I murmured to Ciel. He nodded, pulling out his phone and trying to document as many people as he could. If they somehow got away, we’d track them down.
Max jerked his head to the opposite side of the clearing. “That’s how they’re getting in.”
More people filtered in through the tunnel entrance on the other side of the dome.
They were dressed to the nines, like this was some kind of high-society social event.
About twenty feet to the side, another tunnel spit out a group of men dressed in black and carrying automatic weapons.
Those must be the Vokshi Clan. A group of men carrying guns walked away from the clearing, entering a third tunnel and disappearing inside.
“Lots of entrance and exit points,” Wynn whispered. “Plenty of escape routes.”
This clearing must be a connecting hub to a bunch of other tunnel systems, leading all over the city. That had to be how they were moving so quickly with so many people. They were transporting and selling right under our feet. No wonder we struggled so much to keep track of them.
“So how are we doing this?” Cas asked.
Max looked at Obi, and Obi spoke first. “It looks like the auction is about to start. Wait until it gets going, and when the people are distracted, we will close in. We’ll focus on the Vokshi Clan first. Next, the safety of the victims. Last, the buyers.”
“We cannot let the buyers get away,” Wynn urged. “These people will never stop. They’ll just find other ways to get what they want.”
“I will keep documenting everyone,” Ciel said. “When all hell breaks loose, they’re going to scramble for the tunnels. We can’t split up and follow them all. If anyone gets away, we’ll have to catch them later.”
I placed my hand on Wynn’s arm. “We won’t let them get away with being here. They’re all complicit and need to be dealt with.”
Max nodded to Daniele, and then Giulio. “Take a smaller group around and see if you can come in through one of the other tunnels. If we can double back on them, we might catch anyone running.”
Giulio looked at me. “That good, boss?”
If this wasn’t a life or death secret op, I would have hugged him. “Yes. Stay safe, Giulio. If you’re not able to find another way in within ten minutes, come back to support.”
He nodded. “You got it, regina .”
“Do not kill Ervin Vokshi,” I said to all the men listening in. “ He’s got to be a wealth of information. We need to see if we can use him.”
“Oh, so don’t fuck up like you did at the auto-shop?” Daniele mocked.
Max’s voice cut off his sniveling chuckle. “That’s enough, Daniele.”
In response, I lifted my gun and pointed it at Daniele’s face.
“I guarantee I can kill you right here, and nothing will happen to me. Nobody will care. We’ll leave your body down here to rot, and you’ll never see the sunlight again.
I have that power, Daniele. Not you. So let me ask you a very simple question: do we have a problem here? ”
His look was scathing, but I didn’t give a fuck. I was done with this asshole disrespecting me, and he knew every word I spoke was true. There was nothing he could do about it.
“Well?” I pulled back the hammer to cock my gun. “Do we have a problem?”
“No,” he ground out.
“Great. Don’t speak to me again.” I lowered my weapon. The only reason I hadn’t shot out his kneecap was that we were trying to be quiet. My eyes flicked to Obi, and his mouth pulled into a small smile.
“Are we ready?” I asked everyone.
Ryuji looked like darkness incarnate with the amount of knives strapped to his body and his dark scowl.
Wynn was corded with tension, but focused.
Ciel bounced on the balls of his feet, loosening up.
Cas double checked his twin guns. Obi readjusted the harness that carried his backup magazines of ammo.
We looked ready. I felt ready.
Max watched me curiously, but when I locked eyes with him, he only nodded.
“Let’s do this,” I murmured.
In the clearing, the auction began. The buyers gathered around the main stage. A heavily armed group of Vokshi men led out the first group of women. They were chained together, wrist to wrist, and dressed in a simple white shift dress. Their hair was clean and brushed, their bodies cleaned.