Chapter Sixteen
ELIAS POURED A cup of coffee from the carafe and tapped Zane’s name on his phone screen. He didn’t understand it. Never had. Why would his father want him to come back to his MC when he hated Elias?
“Yeah, Murphy.”
“It’s Elias.”
“What’s up?”
“I think my father is close by, Z.”
“Why do you say that? Have you seen him?”
“Nope. He left his calling card, though.”
“What kind of calling card?”
“A decapitated-rat kind.”
“Ugh. Sounds like he doesn’t appreciate what you’ve become.”
“Understatement, my friend.”
“What makes you say your father is close by?”
“The rat isn’t the only calling card. He also left a scorched skull and crossbones patch. The patch symbolizes the Reckoners. A scorched patch is a symbol of a traitor to the club. My father always delivers those personally.”
“I’ll shift my search grid to use Red Rock as the center.”
“Any estimate on how long this search might take?”
“Your guess is as good as mine. I’ll let you know when I get a hit. In the meantime, watch your back. This could lead to some ugly confrontations.”
That was a given. “Copy that.” Elias ended the call and went back to the living room to monitor the computer screens. Riley had set it up so two laptops split the camera views, allowing the night watch team to monitor all the camera angles.
Iona turned away from the computer. “Everything okay?”
“I talked to Zane. He’s shifting his search grid to put Red Rock in the center.”
“How sure are you that your father is here?”
He raised his eyebrow.
Her lips twitched. “Thought so. Just checking. So, Knight, when will we see an appearance?”
“Any time.”
“Wonderful.” She shook her head. “If we have two MCs after us at one time, telling the difference between our enemies might pose a problem.”
“You can’t say I don’t take you on interesting dates.”
“Got news for you, buddy. None of these activities make up a date in my book.”
“We ate dinner together and are currently watching a movie.”
Iona rolled her eyes. “First, it’s not a date if I have to cook the meal. Second, if this is your idea of a stimulating movie, you need your head examined. The most exciting thing happening at the moment is the wind blowing around tree branches.”
“They’re still dinner and a movie. They count.”
“When we get back to civilization, I’ll treat you to a date. I’m positive you will see the difference.”
“Doubt it.” He grinned. “But you’re welcome to try changing my mind.”
“You’re on.”
Although they remained vigilant for the duration of their shift, the night was calm. Elias stood, drawing Iona up with him when Grant and Rayne walked into the living room for the start of their shift.
“Anything to report?” Grant asked.
“No, and there should have been. Do you want us to watch the back of the cabin?”
Grant shook his head. “We’ve got it. Go rest.”
He couldn’t explain the almost eerie quality to the night. “Wake me if you change your mind.”
“I will. Go.”
Elias escorted Iona to their room and locked them in. “Trouble is coming. We need to be ready to get up at a moment’s notice.”
She nodded. “I think you’re right.” Iona grabbed her Go bag and went into the bathroom. Moments later, she returned dressed in a fresh Fortress uniform. “Your turn.”
He grabbed his Go bag and closed himself into the bathroom. After a quick shower and change of clothes, he returned to the room and set his bag by the door, next to Iona’s Go bag.
Iona set aside her hairbrush and stood as he approached. “I checked in with the rest of Artemis, and passed on our concern for an interrupted night. They’ll be ready.”
“Good.” He bent and kissed her lightly. “I’ll wake you if something happens.”
She gave a slight nod. “Sleep, Elias. We may not have much time to rest.”
“Copy that.” He turned back and climbed into the pallet that Iona had prepared for him. He closed his eyes, and within minutes was sound asleep.
Although expecting two hours, he scored three before Grant tapped on their door. Elias woke instantly, fully alert. He palmed his weapon and held it down by his thigh. “Yeah?” he said, voice soft.
“It’s Grant. Company.”
His heart sank. He couldn’t say he was surprised, but he’d hoped for more time. “Copy. We’ll be down in a minute.”
Iona sat up. “What is it?”
“Company.”
She threw the blanket off her legs and slid her feet into her tactical boots.
While he shoved his feet into his own boots, Iona used a ponytail holder to tie back her hair. Standing, Elias scooped up their bags and slid them over his good shoulder.
At the door, Iona took her bag from him, and they went downstairs to the living room where Rayne and Grant continued to watch the camera feeds.
“Where and how many?” Elias asked as he and Iona set their bags behind the couch.
“We’ve counted four.” Grant pointed to camera seven, where four men crouched near a tree just inside the perimeter line.
Elias frowned. There should be at least two more. His father never sent fewer than six men to capture a target. “Look for more bogies. My father usually sends six to eight men to do wet work.”
Rayne’s head whipped toward him. “Your father wants to kill you?”
“That will be the goal when I refuse to fall in line with his plans. Whether that tops his agenda tonight is the question.”
“There.” Iona pointed to camera ten, which showed four more men crouched near the tree line at the front of the cabin. “You were right. He’s attempting to box you in.”
“Perhaps.”
Her eyebrows soared. “What else could it be?”
“He’s after you. If he has you, he knows I’ll do anything to get you back.”
“How would he know to come after me?”
“If he watched us for any length of time, he’d know.” He hadn’t bothered to hide how he felt about Iona. Their teams knew, and now his oldest enemy was hoping to capitalize on the knowledge.
“What’s the point of taking me if he plans to kill you?”
“Depends on what he wants. If he wants to kill me, taking you ensures I won’t fight back as long as he has you. If his goal is to force me to step into a leadership role in the Reckoners, all he has to do is take you. I’ll do anything to save you, Iona. Anything.”
“Then we’ll have to make sure they can’t use me as leverage.”
The rest of their teams assembled in the living room. “Sit rep,” Seth said.
Grant nodded toward the computer screens. “Rayne and I have been watching cameras seven and ten. We have eight men who crossed our perimeter and are converging on our cabin.”
“Elias, do you recognize any of them?”
“I haven’t zoomed in on their faces yet.”
Riley set down her laptop. A minute later, her fingers flew over the keys. “I’ll have their photos in a minute.”
While Grant and Rayne continued to monitor the men, Riley pulled in the feeds for cameras seven and ten, offering a split screen with closeups of the men huddled in groups of four, watching the cabin.
Elias crouched beside Riley and studied the images on her computer screen. He pointed to the group at the back of the cabin. “Zoom in on these four.” When Riley complied, he inched closer to the screen.
His heart sank. Not what he wanted to see.
“Well?” Seth demanded.
“The four approaching the back of the cabin are enforcers for my father.”
“What about the four coming toward the front?”
Riley switched to camera ten’s view and increased the magnification.
Elias studied the image on the screen for a beat, then sucked in a breath. Great. “Not only is my father making a move, but Dutch sent four of his own enforcers to take part in the ambush.”
Noah scowled. “What happened to honorable behavior between MC brothers?”
Seth held up his hand as he continued to watch the men on the screen. “I’m not convinced Dutch sent these four. We made an enemy of his Old Lady when Trish’s brother got kicked out of the MC. She’s blaming us for that action.”
“Dutch is lucky Trish didn’t turn on him instead of us,” Teagan said.
“She’s right,” Violet said. “I wouldn’t put it past her to go after her own husband.”
“If she does, she’ll have the brothers after her.” Elias stood. “So, we have two MCs after us. How do you want to handle this, Seth?”
“You heard Maddox. We take care of business. If we don’t, they’ll wipe us out.”
“Restrictions?” Violet asked.
“None. We pull no punches. An ambush deserves a full-scale response.” Seth looked at his teammates. “Gear up. I’ll contact Zane to loop into our comms. You’ve got two minutes, max.”
Elias joined the others in pulling on bullet-resistant vests and strapping on holsters to fill with weapons. The last thing he slipped into place was his comm device. Seconds after the device was in his ear, Zane’s voice came through the earpiece.
“I have the camera views on my screen and your body cam images.”
He adjusted the body cam so that the lens was in the center of his vest. This latest gadget Maddox was using to observe teams in action and correct mistakes might be a good thing or a pain in the tush. The jury was still out on that.
Seth finished strapping on his weapons. “Grant and Elias, you and your women monitor the bozos at the back. Don’t let them break into the cabin.”
“Orders, sir?” Grant asked.
“Capture and contain if possible. If not, do what you have to.”
“Copy that, sir.”
“Noah, Andre, and I will take the front with our wives. Grant, if you four need help, call out. Our goal is to capture and contain. If they don’t let us do that, we’ll do what’s necessary to survive the night. Questions?”
No one said a word.
“Iona, do you have anything to add?”
“Remember, we made it so no one can lift the windows to get in by surprise. They’ll have to break the windows, which will give us plenty of time to respond if we’re out of position.”
“Good point. If there’s nothing else, teams go. Zane, did you catch that?”
“Got it. I’ll monitor the two groups and let you know if I see something happening that you haven’t expected.”
“Copy that.”
Elias and Iona followed Grant and Rayne toward the back of the cabin. “We should split up,” Grant said. “Elias, you and Iona head toward the office down the hall. Rayne and I will set up in the kitchen. Any ideas how your father’s men will execute this ambush?”
“They’ll split up into teams of two and try their luck at slipping into the cabin from two different entry points.”
“Well, it’s a good thing there are four of us. That evens the odds at one apiece.” He grinned. “I bet those men have little respect for the women, so they’ll disregard them once they’re inside the cabin.”
“Likely. Dad doesn’t respect women himself, so he doesn’t train his men to behave any differently than he does.”
Iona and Rayne exchanged glances, their mouths curving. “They’ll be in for a surprise,” Rayne said.
Elias and Iona walked to the office and stood on either side of a large window. “Why haven’t they moved?” Iona frowned. “They have to know we’re aware of their presence.”
“Dad’s enforcers are notoriously arrogant. Doesn’t surprise me they don’t have a clue we’re aware of their presence.”
“Do they have special weapons on them?”
He froze. Oh, man. He’d been away from the Reckoners long enough to let something that important slip. “If they hold true to form, one member has a grenade launcher.”
She growled. “I think the short, fat dude has the launcher.” Iona tapped her earpiece. “Seth, one Reckoner has a grenade launcher.”
“Take him out. Do not let him get off a shot.”
“Copy that.” Iona grabbed her rifle. “I need a screwdriver.”
“I’ll take care of it. You line up your shot.”
“Your shoulder….”
“Will be fine. Do it, Iona.” He dug into his bag, pulled out his small toolkit, and withdrew the screwdriver. Elias removed a screw that Iona had inserted yesterday and stepped back. Between the two of them, they raised the window.
Iona knelt on the floor and lined up her shot. Once she pulled the trigger, both kill teams would know they’d been spotted. She tapped her earpiece. “Get ready. They’ll rush the cabin once I take out the dude with the launcher.”
“Do it,” Seth murmured.
“Copy that.” She drew a breath, let it out halfway, and gently squeezed the trigger.
Elias grinned. “Nice shot.” The man with the grenade launcher dropped like a rock. Unfortunately, his buddy picked up the weapon and raised it to his shoulder.
Iona fired another shot, then another. Either Grant or Rayne took the fourth and final man out as he prepared to fire on the cabin.
“Nice work,” Zane said.
“How’s the front looking?”
A last shot sounded from the living room, then an eerie silence descended on the night.
“All four men from the front team are down.” Seth sounded grim. “Capture and containment were not an option.”
“Our targets didn’t give us a choice either. Any injuries on our side?” Iona asked.
“All teams report in,” Seth ordered.
Each of the five teams responded. No injuries during the skirmish. Elias breathed easier. Thank God. The last thing he wanted was to lose friends to a war his father had started.
“We need to secure the prisoners’ weapons,” Noah said.
“Copy that. Echo unit, go.”
Elias climbed out the window and headed for the four men from his father’s MC. Grant joined him. “Iona made some pretty impressive shots.”
He smiled. “Good thing, since my shoulder is still healing.”
He and Grant checked each of the men for weapons, tossing them deep into the bushes and out of reach of the two club members who were moaning on the ground, clutching shoulders.
Grant secured their hands behind their backs and pushed them against a nearby tree. “Stay put. I’m not nice when I’m woken up in the middle of the night.” He tapped his comm device. “Four secured at the back. Two dead and two wounded.”
“Copy that. Front teams report,” Seth said.
“All four are dead,” Noah murmured. “Weapons secure.”
“Copy. Z, I don’t suppose we have a cleanup crew in the area, do we?”
“Sorry, my friend. Even the boss isn’t a miracle worker.”
“Well, what should we do with these bodies and the two survivors?”
“Dump them on Dutch’s front porch. Ring the bell and take off. They’re his problem.”
Seth chuckled. “I like it. Thanks for the suggestion.”
“Glad to help. Do you need me to stay looped in until you dispose of the men?”
“Nope. Go back to bed, Z. Thanks for the help.”
“Yep. Call if you need me.”
“Echo, let’s load these boys into the back of the truck. I don’t want to be caught by the local police moving dead bodies at sunrise.”