Chapter Nine
It was a great night for a walk. Scout dressed like a jogger.
He had earbuds in, keeping track of the gang, while he jogged a little before slowing back down to a walk after cars passed.
Scout kept his eyes peeled and ears open to Tracker.
The adrenaline had died down a bit. He was a professional. This was where Scout shone.
Since he hadn’t gotten a chance to scope the neighborhood ahead of time, he didn’t know if there were any out-of-place vehicles.
It was an upper-class subdivision. Scout eyed each car, making sure it matched the class level.
This was definitely one of those places where people weren’t rich enough not to care what their neighbors thought.
It was a keeping-up-with-the-Joneses situation.
The only out-of-price-range vehicle he found was likely their target’s rental.
It was so strange to picture such an evil figure driving a ten-year-old family sedan.
Even though they were here to destroy the man who had raised them in so much cruelty, Scout still fought wayward thoughts.
What if his brothers and he could finally strike out on their own?
How many of his brothers would choose to keep the family together?
What if they were an actual blood family?
Tracker worked to find out, and it had Scout a little on edge.
So many things could go wrong thanks to those results.
What if Ridge and Shadow turned out to be brothers?
They were married and deeply in love. That knowledge would rip them apart.
What if damn near everyone was related in some way while he was the only outlier?
Would everyone eventually push him out and make him feel less than?
Sometimes he already felt that way. A set of shadows moved along the dark edge of the rental home where Kuznetsov stayed.
There was no glow of LED lights, peeking through the dark. Horror struck. It wasn’t their team.
Scout pushed the button on his earbud. “Guys. We have a problem.”
“You have your own troubles to worry about.” The thick Russian accent accompanied a knife to his throat, and another poised at his kidney.
Scout didn’t respond. He had always known he would likely die at the hands of the program.
Scout wouldn’t give them the satisfaction of seeing him care.
But fuck, for real, he would miss the life he could have built with Clay.
He marched in the direction he was told.
Scout followed every command. Once inside, he felt sick as fuck at the sight that met him.
If Jay was still alive at Kuznetsov’s feet, he wouldn’t be for long, judging by the amount of blood that coated the floor.
No doubt he had been tortured until he led Kuznetsov to them.
If that was the case, Jay had really taken a lot before breaking.
He hated knowing Jay was likely just like them, dying to be free. Scout supposed he was now.
Cold, sick blue eyes looked his way as he was steered into the room.
His brothers were all there, even Tidy and Crisp.
Scout had no idea how this had happened beneath his nose.
He had been on his toes, knowing the importance of this job.
Then again, Kuznetsov had trained them. There was likely no move they could make he wouldn’t anticipate.
With his hands clasped behind his back, his chest out, and hair perfectly brushed, Kuznetsov didn’t look his age. The guy bordered on elderly. Yet he looked no more than forty-five. There wasn’t a single frail thing about him. Apparently, evil kept people young.
“Look how grown all of you are.” Kuznetsov’s greedy gaze moved to Rain.
He could hardly show his true interest in front of his men, and they were everywhere.
Unfortunately, knowing the truth, Scout wanted to vomit at the twisted light in the commander’s eyes each time he focused on Rain.
A full team held guns on the room while Scout’s brothers stood proud, holding their LED masks.
Not a single one showed an ounce of fear.
Rain refused to look at Kuznetsov. It was a bold move, considering they all knew Rain was truly Kuznetsov’s target.
He had lost his favorite toy. Kuznetsov would not let such a beautiful prize slip away.
Tonight had always been inevitable. As long as Kuznetsov lived, he would hunt Rain.
At the thought of beauty, Scout’s gaze skimmed the room again.
Zeus wasn’t there. That thought was gone in an instant when Kuznetsov opened his mouth.
He stood toe to toe with Rain. “Choose. These men ran away because of you, so you choose which one dies first.”
Rain finally met Kuznetsov’s stare. “Me.” His expression said he had made peace with dying.
An evil-sounding laugh rolled through the room, sending chills down Scout’s spine. “No. This won’t be that simple. You will live a very long life back home where you belong, knowing all these men died because of you. Choose.”
“Me.”
Rage passed over Kuznetsov’s features at Rain’s continued defiance. Kuznetsov’s obvious impatience to have Rain alone in his clutches took control. He looked toward the man holding the knife against Scout’s neck.
He didn’t know why he had been chosen to go first, but Scout braced himself to die.
Scout far preferred that end over being forced back to Russia.
He wished he had kissed Clay goodbye, though.
Not telling Clay how he felt was his only true regret.
The familiar sound of a bullet cutting through the air buzzed past Scout’s ear.
The knife fell away. Before Scout had time to turn, his abductor hit the ground dead.
A round bullet hole in the dead center of his forehead was barely a passing observation before men dropped one by one in such rapid succession, no one even had time to shout.
By the time Clay stepped fully into the room, Scout’s brain finally caught up with reality.
Only Kuznetsov was left standing beyond Scout’s team.
Clay didn’t take his eyes off Kuznetsov. It took Scout a full three seconds to realize Kuznetsov clutched a bloody hand with missing fingers against his chest. A gun had been shot from his hold.
Scout couldn’t tear his gaze away from Clay. He had done it. Clay had used Scout’s method, and he was still drunk as fuck. That didn’t stop him from looking sexy as hell. Goddamn, Scout had never wanted anyone more.
Beau strolled into the room with Henry watching his back.
As one of the world’s most dangerous crime lords, Beau looked the part.
Salt and pepper hair, cut in a way that screamed money, joined a flawless and expensive suit.
Deadly-looking eyes skimmed the room. He released a tired-sounding sigh that sounded loud as hell in the otherwise silent living room.
Being the bastard he was, Kuznetsov didn’t give them the gift of hearing him scream. His jaw flexed, though. He wanted to show his pain.
Beau took a turn around the room under the guise of looking over the dead bodies scattered in nearly a perfect circle. Scout was the eagle eyes, though. He saw the way Beau reassured himself none of them were hurt.
Beau spoke as he walked. “I thought we had an unspoken truce of sorts, Kuznetsov. Your country continues to receive my services, as long as my boys are left in peace.” He stopped three feet from the commander.
If Kuznetsov wasn’t shaking inside, Scout was on his behalf.
Beau was truly a terrifying man. “A small part of me wants to send you home to face the wrath of losing my supply.” A smile so evil that Scout literally stepped back stretched Beau’s lips.
There could be no doubt they stared at the man who had taken the weapons trade by force before he even turned eighteen.
Here was the man everyone feared. “But I won’t risk you somehow weaseling out of your punishment. You look like someone who weasels.”
Kuznetsov spat at Beau’s feet. “Fuck you.”
The spit missed, but Henry didn’t. He punched Kuznetsov in the kidney hard enough to take the commander to his knees. That one got a small cry. Scout wanted so many more. He needed to hear every pleading word and pained scream. They were owed that much.
“No, commander. Fuck you.” Beau sounded colder than ice.
He glanced toward the doorway, where more guards waited for orders.
“Pick him up. You know where to take him. My boys deserve some retribution.” He turned a malicious look Kuznetsov’s way.
“My boys are owed their pound of flesh, and they’ll have it. ”
Heavy emotions poured through Scout. The time had come for vengeance, and he didn’t know how to feel.
The moment Kuznetsov was on his way, chained, and out the door, Clay headed his way. “Holy shit, Scout. You okay? He didn’t get a chance to do anything to you, right?” He inspected Scout’s neck like a worried mother.
Scout set his hand on Clay’s chest, trying to physically calm him. “I’m okay. You were right on time. Thank you for that. You were badass, which I’m learning is your natural state.”
A bright smile lit Clay’s face. “What are friends for?”
Scout shook his head. “We were never just friends.” He closed the gap between them and claimed the kiss he had feared he would never have again.
It didn’t last as long as he wanted, but they weren’t alone.
That thought had him glancing over Clay’s shoulder.
His brothers stood stoic, waiting for Scout to join them in closing a chapter of their lives.
He met Clay’s gaze. “I have to go with them.”
“I know.” There was no judgment in his eyes. Clay understood.
“When it’s over, I’ll come to you.”
A sweet smile touched Clay’s lips. “There’s no rush. I’m not going anywhere.”