Chapter Eighteen
Hades
What the fuck is going on with me? I must’ve asked myself that question no less than fifty times since I fucked Raven in the kitchen.
Hell, if I’m being honest, I asked myself that question every damn day for the past three days.
I couldn’t get enough of Raven, and I fucked her every chance I got, which was nonstop after nearly a week straight of rain.
I took her on every surface in this tiny house, in every position and as many times as I could.
And she was just as insatiable, waking me up with my cock in her mouth or begging me to fuck her when my dirty talk got to her too much.
God, the way she begged was forever etched into my memory and I knew I’d pull it out often.
Like now, the sound of her begging. “Please, Hades, I need to come. Please make me come. Now!” It played on a loop while I attempted to recreate that delicious as fuck grilled cheese she made after we spent the whole damn afternoon in bed.
“Goddammit,” I growled when I burned the last slices of another loaf of bread.
“You’ll get it. Eventually,” she teased and pressed a kiss to the center of my back. “And if not, well at least you’re hot.”
I snorted a laugh and spun around, hooking one arm around her waist. “You think you’re funny, don’t you?”
“No,” she laughed, flinging one arm and then the other over my shoulders. “I know I am.”
I loved it when she was confident and sassy.
It was the same Raven from before. Before I knew about her past and the crazy as fuck Russians entered our lives.
A different set of crazy ass Russians, which was crazy enough, but this was the Raven I knew and loved.
“You’re all right,” I joked. “But at least you’re hot. ”
“Me?” She shook her head. “I’m cute on a good day, but definitely not hot.”
“Bullshit,” I shot back, almost angry. “You’re gorgeous from these big brown eyes down to your sexy plump lips and these perfect tits.” My hands held her waist. “This body, fit and curvy and beautiful.” I kissed her forehead. “Every inch of you is hot. Beautiful. Gorgeous. Perfect.”
She shook her head, but every exposed inch of her skin pinkened into a beautiful blush. “Hades.” She pushed up on her toes and kissed me, but it was short lived as the lights flickered several times before the power cut completely, thrusting us into darkness and silence.
“Shit.” I gripped her shoulders to make sure she was okay. “You good?”
She nodded but the breath she released was shaky and filled with terror. “Yep.”
That was a lie, but I didn’t call her out on it. “Come on, the breaker box is at the back of the house.” I felt her right on my heels, silent but somehow still tense as fuck. Neither of us said anything as we stepped outside to check the circuits.
I checked the box, but everything seemed okay. “Nothing is fucking tripped.” That didn’t make sense. “Stay here, I’m going to check the generator.”
“Where is it?”
“On the side of the house.”
“I’ll go with you,” she insisted, giving my back a small shove.
I didn’t argue, just gripped her wrist and pulled her behind me to the generator, using the burner phone flashlight to check the old as fuck generator.
“Fuck.”
“What is it?” she asked with a trembling voice.
“The fuel line has been cut.”
“On purpose?”
“Yeah.” My jaw was clenched tight and my heart rate kicked up. “Get inside the house. Now.”
Raven heard the seriousness in my tone, and she didn’t argue or give me some smart ass comment.
She hauled ass around the house and slipped into the back door with a sigh.
“Someone cut that line,” she whispered. “Which means they’re here.
” She froze as if she’d only just now heard her words. “Shit, they’re here!”
Yeah, they’re here.
I drew my gun as I checked downstairs. No one had snuck it while we were checking the generator.
After locking the door I checked all the windows to make sure they were locked, and then I climbed the ladder where I found Raven sitting cross-legged in the middle of the bed with my guns surrounding her. “You’re okay, Raven.”
She nodded absently, her gaze fixed on a spot on the floor. “Yep. I’m okay. Totally good.”
“Look at me.” My jaw was clenched, hating to see that bone-deep fear in her eyes.
Her gaze met mine, dark and filled with worry. “I’m fine,” she whispered.
“You’re not. You’re scared but I won’t let anything happen to you.
I promise.” I realized just how much I meant those words as I stepped to the wall of windows and gazed at the world below.
I wouldn’t let anything happen to her and it had nothing to do with the fact that her brother was my best friend or that my brothers assigned me to keep her safe.
It was because I’d rather die than let anything happen to her.
Shit, I was in deeper than I realized.
I pulled out my burner phone and called Diesel. “Shit!”
“What is it?” she asked.
“No signal,” I muttered. I went back to surveying the surrounding area.
“Do you see them?”
I pulled my mind back to the here and now and let my gaze sweep across the land below. It was dark and raining with the moon nowhere in sight, but I spotted the outline of a car in the distance. “No, but I see a black SUV. They must have stopped by the river so we wouldn’t hear them approach.”
“Viktor’s people?” Her voice was soft and scared.
“Yeah,” I sighed. I continued my surveillance. Out of the corner of my eye I saw movement and three men emerged in the break between the trees wearing black tactical gear. “Looks like we’ve got company.”
“Shit,” she spat out. “How did they find us? I thought you said only Diesel, Rocky, and Falcon knew where we were?”
That question was at the top of my mind but for now, we had a bigger problem.
“We’ll figure that out.” They could have followed us here.
I knew that was a possibility, but I’d deliberately taken a longer, less obvious route, and backtracked on numerous occasions.
I’d been sure we hadn’t been tailed. “Come on.”
“Where?” she asked, already sliding off the bed.
“We can’t be up here if they get inside.”
She nodded, snatching the handgun and gripping it tight. “Right. Got it.” Raven moved like a ghost, her limbs worked to put the guns in the bag, but she moved on autopilot. “Now what?”
I looked around. We were hemmed in. There was no way we could escape without them shooting at us. They also knew we were here, so it was pointless trying to pretend we weren’t. I glanced around the main room of the property. The door was the only way out other than the windows at the back.
“We know you are inside,” a heavily accented voice called out. “Send the girl out and we will let you live.”
I laughed at their audacity. “Over my dead body!”
“That can be arranged, my friend.” There was amusement in his voice but that wouldn’t last long. We needed a plan. A solid exit plan that would get us away from this place. Fast.
“Someone gave up our location,” Raven whispered, her voice shaky and emotional.
I didn’t acknowledge her words because I couldn’t. She was right and it was the only thing that made sense, but that was a later problem. First, we needed to survive the assholes outside. A plan started to form. It wasn’t well thought out but it was dangerous and our only shot.
“How are you with heights?” I asked.
“Love ‘em,” she deadpanned, showing signs of the old Raven buried deep in there.
“Okay, head back up to the attic. There’s a side window up there that opens halfway. We go out there and shimmy down the trellis to the ground. If they’re waiting at the front for us, we might be able to get to cover before they realize we’re gone.”
“It’s raining.”
I smiled. “Sorry sweetheart, windbreakers are in the mudroom.”
She rolled her eyes, but a ghost of a smile appeared. “Then I guess that’s my answer.” She hooked the bag of weapons around her shoulders like a backpack and stared back at me.
“You go first and when your feet hit the ground, take off running towards the trees.”
“Hades, no!”
“Yes,” I insisted. “I’ll be right behind you. Promise.”
She hesitated, but just for a second. Then she nodded. “Yeah. Okay.”
“Good girl.” I pushed the window until it opened and helped her get out before following her out.
I could hear voices around the front of the cabin, so hopefully this would give us a head start.
We both made it and ran for our lives. The woods were thick and dark, our steps heavier as the rain fell.
“Keep going,” I whispered as I caught up to her.
“Running is pointless,” a voice called out from a hundred yards behind us.
“Fuu-uck!”
We continued towards the trees, but the ground was so muddy our feet kept slipping. The footsteps grew closer and I knew we couldn’t outrun them. Not in this rain. I slowed and spun around, finding them closer than I realized.
One smiled. “We just want the girl. You can go back to the house. Pretend this never happened and live a good, long life.”
“Sorry, can’t do that.” I shrugged once, taking in the scene before me. There were two of them, armed better than me but they were arrogant and didn’t see the threat I was. I wasn’t sure where the third man was, but these two were my immediate concern.
“Your death,” the taller of the two said, his tone resigned.
“Nope. Yours.” I pulled out my blade and lunged forward, slicing the tip across his throat in one quick move before he had a chance to react. There was no time to enjoy watching the asshole drop to his knees and fall face first onto the wet, muddy ground.
His buddy shot at me, I saw the motion before his finger squeezed the trigger and moved, skidding in the mud, and ending up on my knees. My pride might have been hurt but at least he missed me.
“Run!” I shouted until my throat burned. Raven had to get away. If this was my last night, I wanted to die knowing she was free.
“She will not get far,” the asshole laughed, pointing his gun at me.