46. Chapter Forty-Five
Chapter forty-six
T wo Days Later
We watch through the cameras as one by one, Tane’s men file in through the door in the corner of the room and take their seats around a large meeting table.
I recognize nearly all the faces in the room from their visit to the spiritual store and our special room in the back. As well as from the profile sheets Zeke and Aidan pulled together on each of Tane’s top men.
This is definitely a starting team, each of Tane’s star quarterbacks are basically seated around the table. Well, the ones that are left, anyway.
I’ve never really taken the time to appreciate just how good Tane has been at assembling his men. They’re all so similar, devoid of individual personalities for the most part. They wear signature dark suits, and bear impenetrable expressions on their faces, the only sign of personalities buried deep inside coming from the variations in the timbre of their voices, and the occasional twitch of the corner of their mouth or eye when something is said involving danger or a change of plans.
He’s deliberately molded them like this, into mini versions of himself. But there’s one distinct difference. Where Tane himself is a master of strategy, treating his men and everyone else like chess pieces—pawns specifically—in his sick games, these men don’t have the same desire to control things.
They’re perfectly content to take instructions from the man, just eager to be affiliated with him in some capacity. And don’t get me wrong, they are ambitious—but not in the way that they want to overthrow Tane and take over his share of power. Just the opposite, in fact. They’re motivated by working their way up his ranks, of proving their fierce loyalty to him.
Tane has carefully cultivated urban legends about how well he treats his men at the top, the power and untold wealth they’ll accumulate for themselves and their families. How they’ll be set up for life by the time they retire.
So what better strategy than to use that to our advantage? Tane is obsessed with loyalty, and he’s constantly wanting to test it with his guys. We know that, which means they definitely know that.
The second he gives them a task, they morph into a team of pick-mes. I get the image of a group of kids in class really wanting the teachers attention, raising their hands and grunting ‘mm mm’ in an effort to be selected. ‘I did the homework, miss. I’m your best student ever! You must see me!’ Just like that.
But, as it turns out, Tane is just as susceptible to a struggling labor market as the rest of us. While it might sound glamorous, living on the islands is a whole new beast from vacationing here. People perceive greater opportunities in bigger cities on the mainland. And, of course, it doesn't help when we've been picking off his best men one by one. It tends to serve as a deterrent to people with other options.
I still have no idea what Brick hoped to achieve with this little stunt of his. There’s always some genius end-game, and this appears to be no exception. He usually brings me into the details early on, but it's almost like he wants me to experience this one as a spectator… which makes me think this is going to be really fucking good. And really fucking bad for Tane and his men.
The room goes silent as Tane enters, flanked by two more giant men, and takes his place at the head of the table. “Right, men. We’ve achieved a critical state of alert. People will relentlessly try to take what’s ours. Your one and only goal is to protect our bottom line and any threats to our power by any means necessary.”
"What does that mean, boss?" asks one of the men sitting near the head of the table.
"Well, for starters, we won't be attending any further events. That restaurant thing was fine, although it was a pitiful attempt to compete with the standards set by my restaurants…" He smirks, and I want to punch the arrogant fucker in the fact on Aria's behalf. The audacity…
“Okay, get ready.” Brick nods at the rows of tiny remote controls in front of us.
I have six, he has six.
“On my count, activate them one by one. Wait five or so seconds between each.”
“Wha–what are these for, anyway?” I ask, still confused. All I know is I trust him, and I’m going to go along with his request for help, no matter how weird it might seem.
Brick presses the big button on the first of the remotes.
“Go!” Brick urges me, and I do the same.
Right on cue, one of the men stops short. His brows knit together, confusion clouding his features. He shifts his weight, hand drifting to his arm and he pats at himself near the incision site. Discomfort flickers across his face. "What the hell...?"
A second man looks down and I see him adjust in his chair. It’s as if he’s trying and failing to maintain a neutral expression, fighting the urge to fidget.
One by one, we press the rest of the activation buttons and each man around the table begins to act in a similar way.
A fierce joy ignites within me. "Here we go. It's starting."
The man's discomfort slowly morphs into panic. He tugs at his shirt, his breathing accelerating. The toy buzzes relentlessly, driving him mad from the inside out.
Across the room, his compatriots exhibit the same dismay. They clutch at themselves, faces contorting. One by one, Brick's genius plan unfolds.
I glance at Brick, my lips curving. His eyes glitter with that sadistic gleam I've come to adore. Tane's men have no idea what's about to hit them. But we do. And we're ready.
The men's confusion shifts to alarm as the vibrations intensify. Their muted discomfort transforms into outright panic under the harsh fluorescent lights.
"Something's wrong!" one exclaims, beads of sweat dotting his brow. "I'm...I'm vibrating!"
I lean forward, pulse racing. "They're realizing it's not just in their heads."
“Okay, now increase the intensity.”
I observe as he taps on the second button on one of the remotes, until it reaches its maximum. The corresponding henchman starts to writhe around in his chair, horror written on his face.
Tane looks on as we crank the remaining remotes and his top-ranking men all start dancing around.
“Wha-what in the world?” I ask.
“Good vibes only!” Brick yells, cackling with glee as the remaining men jump from their seats.
They’re clawing at themselves now.
“What’s that buzzing noise?” Tane yells. “Control yourselves, men!”
“These GPS chips you had us install, they’re buzzing! Mine’s buzzing inside me!”
Some of the men start clawing at their arms.
“GPS chips?” Tane asks, confusion painted on his face which is turning an infuriated shade of red. "What the hell are you talking about?"
“The ones you had us go get at the woo-woo shop,” the spokesperson pants as he grates his fingers over himself in a desperate attempt to remove the buzzing situation.
“Huh?” Tane doubles down on his confusion. “The 'woo-woo shop'? You're not making any sense.”
“Oh my god, did we really just… ". I stare at Brick.
“Abso-fucking-lutely that’s what we just did,” he grins. "I guess you could call this a bzzzzzz-ness meeting. "
My eyes grow wide. "Oh my fucking god. This is insane…" I pause and glance at Brick. "Even for you!"
“Get mine out!” another man yells. One of them runs over to the table at the side of the room and grabs a knife intended to cut through an eye of beef after the meeting.
But instead, he digs it deep into his arm and then drops the knife as he uses his free hand to desperately dig around in his arm. He screams in pain and terror as he retrieves the small black item from deep inside his arm.
“This looks like something… familiar, but i can’t place it. It’s just not like any GPS chip I’ve ever seen before.”
“That’s because it’s not a GPS chip, you idiot!" Tane screams. "It’s one of those remote control vibrators you can get at the adult store. My wife has one just like it! Have you ever seen a GPS chip that huge, you fucking moron?!””
“What the hell? A vibrator?! What’s it doing in my arm?”
The revelation just makes the other men work themselves into even more of a frenzy, and two of them clash heads in their simultaneous effort to dive for the knife that clattered to the floor earlier.
The glow of the monitors lights up Brick's face, casting harsh shadows across his chiseled features. I study his expression, searching for any cracks in that impenetrable fa?ade. As always, I find none.
"This is wild," I exclaim as one of them starts digging in his arm in an effort to extract the vibrator and stop the buzzing. He seems oblivious to the blood that pours from his arm, a tangle of flesh and bone getting in the way as he attempts to remove the device.
My pulse kicks as the live feed plays. My thoughts drift to everything these men have done, everyone they've hurt. Including me. Heat blooms in my core, primal and aching. I want them to suffer. To feel even a fraction of my pain.
Another vaguely familiar face twists in confusion, then panic. His hand gropes at his arm. Right where the toy sits, buzzing away."What the hell...?"
Excitement spears through me. My lips curve as I imagine the vibrations working deeper, driving them mad .
Brick's eyes gleam, feral and pleased. He knows what this will do to them. And he can't wait.
Neither can I.
The scene descends into chaos. Men stumble about, shouting and grappling at themselves in a futile effort to stop the relentless buzzing. Their lieutenant tries to restore order, arms raised placatingly.
"Everyone, calm down! We need to—"
"Calm down?" another interrupts, face twisted in disbelief. "Are you feeling this? We've been sabotaged! Operated on. Someone has been inside our bodies !"
Their panic is palpable through the screen. A heady rush courses through me as I take it all in. Brick outdid himself this time. Tane's men are coming undone at the seams, all thanks to us.
I meet Brick's eyes, lips curving wickedly. "They're falling apart," I purr. "This is our chance."
His answering smile is nothing short of feral. We've set the perfect trap, and now it's time to spring it. Tane won't know what hit him.
Tane's eyes flash dangerously. He grabs the nearest afflicted man by the shirt, giving him a rough shake.
"Tell me!" he roars. "How did this happen? Who did this to you?"
The man can only shake his head helplessly, teeth chattering from the relentless vibrations wracking his body. Tane shoves him away in disgust before rounding on the others.
"I want answers, now!" He slams a fist on the table, making them all jump. "Find out who sabotaged us. I'll flay them alive for this."
His men scramble to obey, fleeing the room. But it's no use. There's no stopping what Brick has unleashed in them. No countermeasure or antidote that can save them now.
Tane just doesn't know it yet. But he will.
And when he does, we'll be there to finish him off for good. I lick my lips in anticipation, adrenaline singing through my veins. The game is on.
The monitors go dark as we turn them off, the glow fading from our faces. Brick's vibrations have thrown Tane's men into chaos, just as planned.
Now it's time to act.
We gather around the table with the others, urgency charging the air. Aidan leans forward, his eyes blazing.
"This is our window," he says. "We need to hit them while they're disoriented."
"Agreed." I nod. "Let's let the others know we need to mobilize and take advantage of the chaos."
My pulse thrums with excitement. After waiting so long for this moment, it's finally here.
Brick grins, cracking his knuckles. "I've been looking forward to this. I knew it would create a real buzz."
I shake my head and laugh. This guy.
We head back to the compound, adrenaline surging through our veins.
Outside, the ocean crashes serenely against the shoreline. Inside, we gear up for war.
We've destabilized Tane's empire. Now it's time to tear it down for good.
As the others assemble so we can share what happened, Brick claps my shoulder. "Remember, this is just the beginning," he says, eyes glinting. "Stay sharp."
I meet his gaze and nod. We're ready.