Chapter 24
MARCO
Something is different in the air as my brothers and I drive toward the Bear Valley house. Unlike our last rescue attempt, we have actual evidence to go on this time, so we have far more confidence about this raid. I could tell Karina was second-guessing herself, but I’m not.
The details she gave us were solid, and the old-timey gas station detail checked out when Armani did some digging.
Using Google Street View, he was able to move through a photo representation of the town’s streets on his laptop screen and quickly found a house just a few miles away that was a dead ringer for what Karina drew.
I trust her, and I feel a surge of certainty as we park in the driveway.
Adrenaline runs hard through my veins. This is it.
Livvie is inside that house, and we’re going to get her out.
Armani is armed to the hilt, of course—and as always, he’s calling the shots. Dante is subdued, quiet, to a level that isn’t like him. I wonder what he’s thinking, if he’s just worried about disappointing Frankie again if we go home empty-handed.
He can’t be distracted right now. It could kill us. Grinning, I give him a quick clap on the shoulder and tell him I feel good about this. Then I nod at Armani, who looks cool as a fucking cucumber, his usual game face. I’ll take it. We all have to be on our A-game if we’re going to pull this off.
We’ve parked where we won’t be easily spotted from the house, but also where we can make a fast getaway to the main road if needed.
Armani’s plan is for us to do a covert sweep of the property first to see if we can determine how many goons are guarding this place.
Pulling out the map and amateur blueprints that Karina provided, he gathers us around him.
She sketched out the rooms and the doorways, marked the stairs to the attic and drew stars in the three most likely locations Livvie might be in.
The rickety attic was already basically a deathtrap when she was a child, so she told us it’s highly unlikely Livvie would be there.
The Brunos wouldn’t want to risk their prized bargaining chip falling through the ceiling into the room below.
That leaves us with the den downstairs, one of the spare rooms upstairs, and the master bedroom, which also has a large closet.
The problem is, there could be a lot of men roaming around the two floors.
Once we bust through the front door, the clock will be ticking.
“I’m going to scout around. Meet you back here in five,” Armani says, pulling a black knit mask over his face. “Don’t do anything until I get back.”
Dante tenses up as if he’s about to argue, but he says nothing. Pressing between the car and the trees behind us, we wait. The silence is broken only by birds rustling in the branches and the call of insects. Dusk is coloring the air, and it will be dark soon.
Dante keeps his hand near his weapon, his body taut and alert. His voice is low when he speaks.
“If she’s not here, Frankie’s going to fall apart. She can’t keep going like this. But Armani wants to take out the entire Bruno family, and I know if we make that move, Livvie’s as good as dead. The second we start shooting, they’ll have no reason to keep her alive.”
“Yeah. We don’t want that. You’re doing the smart thing.” I’m not sure what else to say.
“I’m glad Karina recognized this place. I wouldn’t have noticed the sound of that clock. She picked it up even before Armani’s lady friend finished analyzing the audio.”
That’s the amazing thing. It was so hard to hear, like a faint little whisper of sound. The back of my neck prickles. Is he suggesting something?
“Right, but once she pointed it out, we all heard it,” I say defensively.
“I wasn’t accusing her of anything.”
“Good, because I’m done with it. And so is Karina.”
Silence falls between us, and my mood grows darker. I’m sure Armani still suspects that my wife knew about that sound before the analyst because she’s part of a deeper plot and this whole thing is a setup, but I expect Dante to be more reasonable.
As the clock ticks and our brother doesn’t reappear, I begin to worry that something is amiss. Dante and I look at each other.
“It’s been five minutes,” I say. “Should we wait one more or go after him?”
Dante hesitates. “We haven’t heard any shouts or gunshots. We can wait sixty seconds.”
All I can do is stare at the second hand on my watch, trying not to think the worst: that Armani got found out by someone inside or intercepted by a guard on the ground.
We’ve hired men to help us with this sort of thing in the past and I wish we could have left this to them, but Armani doesn’t trust anyone enough to handle this.
After all, Livvie is family. This could be our only chance to save her.
“This place is a joke.”
Armani appears behind us, and I nearly jump out of my skin. In his all-black getup and mask, he’s nearly impossible to see in the dying light.
I frown. “What do you mean?”
“There’s no one watching the perimeter and from what I can tell, there are only three men inside,” Armani says. “Child’s play.”
“And Livvie?” Dante asks.
He shakes his head. “Didn’t get a visual. But we’re going in.”
I’m not going to argue, but I would feel better about this if we had confirmation that she’s inside. This place could be nothing more than a party house like the last one. Or, God forbid, the kind of setup that Armani has been paranoid about all along.
He takes out the blueprints Karina drew, pointing at the rear of the house.
“We’ll go in through this back entrance here.
I checked it and it’s all clear. From there, we’ll have access through the kitchen to the lower-level den.
If that doesn’t shake out, we go upstairs and hit the two bedrooms Karina mentioned. ”
“Maybe we should split up,” Dante says. “We can surround the place and enter from three different access points, and each of us can cover one of the possible rooms. First person who finds her can yell for backup.”
My oldest brother has a point. Armani considers the suggestion and then nods in agreement.
I don’t like the idea of being separated, especially having so recently been shot at.
I’m not a soldier like my brothers are. This isn’t my element.
Not only that, but it’s a lot easier for someone to have my back if we’re in a group…
but I have to admit that the tactical logistics make more sense Dante’s way.
We plan a few more final details, including a staggered entry.
This means Armani will go in first, Dante ten seconds later, and me last.
“Let’s go,” Armani says. “Don’t anybody get killed.”
“Geez, man. Thanks for the pep talk,” I gripe.
Seconds later, we’re crouched low and headed toward the house. I get the back door, Dante goes around to the side, and—obviously—Armani takes the front. They’ll both be heading upstairs while I stay on the lower level.
After creeping along the edges of the wraparound porch, I tiptoe up to the back door in a hunched position and then carefully check the knob, moving it as slowly and silently as I can. To my surprise, the door isn’t even locked. Guess this saves me from having to kick my way inside.
Holding my breath, I listen for any sound. The gun in my hand feels unnatural, heavy, and cold. I pray to God I won’t have to use it. And then suddenly I hear the smash of something on the far side of the house. Fuck. It’s go time.
I shove the door open with my foot while aiming the gun in front of me, entering the space with light steps.
After I make a sweep of the mud room, I move through the doorway toward the kitchen.
Lights on, dishes in the sink, but it’s empty.
There’s a hallway in front of me. Bracing myself, I keep going, hyperaware that someone could come at me and attack any second.
Suddenly, a gunshot goes off from the other end of the house. Armani. Shit.
Dante appears from the living room off to my left, gripping a stumbling man by the collar of his denim jacket and forcing him down the hall in front of me.
My stomach drops. “Where’s Arman—”
“Come on,” Dante says to me over his shoulder.
Keeping my gun raised, I walk behind my brother and his human shield as we enter the sunken den. Another man jumps up from a sagging sofa, spilling an entire sub sandwich all over himself and the floor. He curses and grapples for his gun.
That’s when I catch sight of a small, towheaded figure curled up in an armchair near a cold fireplace. Livvie. Her head lifts up, pale hair falling away from her face. She’s bound and gagged. My heart skips, but I can’t lose focus. I keep my gun trained on the man on the couch.
His gun is aimed at Dante, but the man Dante grabbed is shielding him.
“Don’t shoot,” the human shield begs his friend.
From behind me, there’s another deafening shot.
Livvie screams through her gag. The man on the couch flies backwards and topples over the back cushions as Armani advances into the room like some action movie hero with a gun in each hand. He looks at Livvie, and then back at the man in front of Dante.
Armani approaches him with a gun aimed at the center of his chest.
“How many more here?” he asks coldly.
“Just us three,” the man responds, breathless and panicked.
Exactly as Armani thought, and he’s already dispatched two of them.
I wait until my brother nods that the coast is clear and then I race to Livvie.
Her tear-streaked face is pale. I untie her gag first, and then her hands.
She sobs the entire time, finally reaching for me once her wrists are free.
I let her loop her arms around my neck and then stand, her slight body in my arms.
She can’t even form words through her tears.
Dante joins us and slips an arm around her shoulders, so the three of us are in a group hug.
I’ve never felt such intense relief and anger at the same time, and my nerves are still pinging with adrenaline.
It takes me a second to realize that Armani and the human shield have left the room.
“Livvie, are you injured? Do we need to take you to a hospital?” Dante asks, moving back and then brushing some of the hair out of her face.
She shakes her head no.
“There’s a man we’re looking for with tattoos, specifically a big one on his neck,” he goes on. “I understand you know this man, that he was your bodyguard. Where is he?”
She goes completely still and drops her gaze. “He’s not here. I haven’t seen him…he didn’t come for me.”
Those last five words drum up fresh sobs, and she presses her head against my shoulder.
“Shh, it’s okay now. You’re okay,” I tell her. “Come on, let’s get you home.”
Dante takes his phone from his pocket and moves away. I’m sure he’s calling Frankie to let her know the news. I adjust my grip on Livvie and make way to the front door. Armani is standing out there on the porch. Alone.
“You want to tell me again how Karina is working against us?” I mutter.
I brush past my brother and down the stairs.
“Now isn’t the time,” he says.
“Oh no? God knows if we would have found Livvie without the help. I’d say we’re pretty damn lucky to have my wife on our side.”
“Marco—”
“Pretty. Damn. Lucky.”
Dante comes up behind me and we all make our way to the car.
Livvie’s ragged voice sounds in my ear. “I don’t know who Karina is, but if she helped you guys find me, I’d say we’re all lucky to have her.”
I smile and it feels like the most genuine one I’ve had on my face in a long time. I am lucky to have Karina—and I’ll do whatever it takes to keep her safe. Now and always.
No matter what.