Chapter 37
LEX
Atrum Fortuna
Finally about to put a bullet in Luca’s skull.
“Don’t even think about it,” I grit, yanking Ellie’s hand off the handle so hard her back slams into Briggs’s chest.
“Lex!” she shrieks as Briggs steadies her. “Luca said come alone.”
My fingers tighten around the cold steel at my side. “Not. Happening.”
Not when I finally have a shot at him.
And sure as shit not when Bella’s still out there.
“You’re such a control freak,” she snaps, crossing her arms.
She tries to step forward again.
“Get the fuck behind me, Ellie,” I order, leveling her ass with a death-glare I learned from Sabine. “Right now.”
She freezes for a half a second, seething and looking like she’s about to start swinging.
“Darlin’,” Briggs warns, his hand settling on her arm. “He’s right. You need to stay behind us.”
Ellie scoffs and rolls her eyes. But listens to him.
Briggs steps up beside me, pistol already raised. “I’ll cover you.”
I nod, pulse hammering in my ears as I reach for the door. It creaks when it opens.
We stride in fast, guns raised. The room is dark. Metal shelves stacked with boxes of liquor and cleaning supplies. Mops. Brooms. A few velvet chairs shoved in the corner.
A dark shadow is leaning against a table. His weapon foolishly abandoned on the cool surface. The metal groans when he pushes off it slowly, like he’s got all the fucking time in the world.
And I can feel it. I can taste it. The revenge I’ve been waiting for since this asshole slid into our girl’s DMs.
He reaches back and grabs his gun before stepping into the light.
My stomach drops.
Ellie gasps. “Zeke?” she breathes, carelessly taking a step toward the fucker before either of us can stop her.
“Did she just say, Zeke?” Tex slices through the comms.
“What the hell?!” I bark, stepping in front of her right before Briggs yanks her back into him with a brutal force.
“Darlin’ are you insane?” he asks with an aggravated grunt.
Zeke winks at Ellie.
The image of that bastard lowering himself onto Bella sends a red-hot rage barreling through me. I close the distance in two strides and jam the barrel of my gun into his chest hard enough to feel bone.
“Where is she?!” I snarl. “Where is Bella?!”
The asshole’s eyes flick to the barrel and then up to me. A slow grin widens as he takes a couple steps back.
“You’re not going to shoot me, Lex,” he says, calm as hell.
“Wanna bet?” I seethe.
“Eh.” He shrugs, rolling his shoulders. “I like my odds.”
“What odds?” I shoot back. “There’s two of us and one of you.”
Ellie shifts in Briggs’s iron-clad grip. “Hey,” she gripes. “There’s three of us, Lex.”
He peers around me to get a better view. “Nice to see you again, Whitmore,” he says, letting his eyes roam over her. They stop at the glowing ruby around her neck. “I’ll be needing that now.”
Briggs moves instantly, stepping in front of Ellie with his gun raised. “Back off, Z.”
“Been a long time, Briggs,” Zeke mutters, not backing down. “Since the twenty-two mission, right? Good times. Real good times.”
“Twenty-two?” Briggs asks, his brows pinched.
“Briggs, do I breach?” Tex’s rough voice hits my ear.
Zeke laughs under his breath, clutching his chest as if he’s been offended. “Now pretty please don’t tell me you forgot all about me that fast. I’m hurt.”
Briggs’s eyes widen just a fraction. He gives Zeke the smallest nod.
“Stand down, Tex.” Briggs orders through the comms.
Zeke takes another step back and sets his gun down on the table with care. He raises his hands and turns slowly to face Briggs. The two of them lock eyes and something passes between them that I’m apparently not invited to.
Tiny movements. A twitch of Briggs’s jaw. A subtle roll of Zeke’s shoulders. A few nods.
Whatever the hell they’re saying… clearly, I don’t speak it.
“What the—” I start.
Briggs cuts me off with a sharp look and a shake of his head.
He holsters his weapon and turns slightly. “Darlin’, give him the necklace.”
“What?!” I snap, my gun still aimed at Zeke’s skull. “You can’t be serious.”
“Lex!” Briggs grits, gesturing toward Zeke’s collar. “Look at his neck. Do you really want us to blow to fuckin’ bits over a damn necklace? Because I sure as shit don’t.”
His eyes flick to Ellie. “Give him the necklace, El.”
Ellie hesitantly steps forward.
“Ellie,” I warn. “Don’t you—”
She doesn’t make it to the next step. Zeke moves fast. His hand clamps around her arm and yanks her into him, slamming her back against his chest. A blade flashes into existence as he presses it to the racing pulse in her neck.
“Ahh!” she screams.
I lunge, finger tightening on the trigger. “You fucker!”
“What’s going on in there?” Tex bites through the comms. “Do we breach?”
“No!” Briggs shouts, throwing himself in front of my gun. “Everyone, stand the fuck down!”
“You sure?” Tex asks.
“Pretty please,” Briggs confirms.
“Heard.”
“What the hell?” I snap, heat flaring through my body. “Move out of my way!”
“No, Lex.” Briggs swallows, his golden-brown eyes locked on the barrel of my gun as he slowly shoves it to the floor. “Trust me.”
Trust him?
My vision tunnels. Zeke’s got a knife to Ellie’s throat. Bella’s still not in my arms. And the cowboy says trust him?
Not a fucking chance.
His eyes narrow. And I know the cowboy’s trying to pull one of those Black Book mind-melds or whatever with me, but my copy of How to Speak Black Book was obviously lost in the mail.
I’m about to shoot through the fucker just for the hell of it when Cade’s voice pierces my ears.
“Babe, breathe.”
“Cade?”
“It’s going to be fine. Just stand down.”
“Stand down?!” My shoulders tense. “Do you not remember what this fucker—”
“Trust me,” he interrupts. “Give the gun to Caleb.”
Fire burns through my veins as I lower my weapon and hand it over to Briggs.
He nods to Zeke.
Zeke leans in closer to Ellie. “Ellie, sweetheart,” he breathes against her ear. “Take it off for me.”
Her fingers tremble as she reaches for the clasp.
Zeke removes the knife from her throat. “Turn around slowly and put it in my pocket,” he orders.
She does.
“Good girl.” He brushes a kiss to her forehead, lingering way too long for comfort. “You can go back to your cowboy now.”
“Zeke,” she whispers. “What is this?”
“Ellie go!” Zeke roars.
Ellie flinches, stumbling backward into Briggs’s arms.
“Now, I’m going to leave this room,” Zeke continues. “And none of you are going to follow me. You got it?”
“Like hell you are,” I grit.
“Now, Briggs!” Tex booms in my ear.
Something cracks against the back of my skull. A searing pain explodes… and everything goes black.
???
Pain pulses behind my eyes.
A dull, throbbing ache like my skull’s been split down the middle.
“You didn’t have to hit him that hard.” Cade’s voice filters in. His hand drags slow circles over my chest.
“Yes he did, Cade,” Ellie counters from somewhere further away. “He was about to shoot Zeke.”
A groan tears out of me, the sound vibrating through my jaw.
“Babe,” Cade breathes, relief flooding his voice as he hooks his arm under mine to lift me off the tile. “Easy. Let me help.”
“Where is he?” I squint, my vision swimming. Cade’s face is a blur of tan and hazel before his features finally snap into focus.
“Lex,” he says, his hand tightening around my arm. “Don’t freak out.”
“Don’t freak out?” I shove at his shoulder, my hand fumbling for the back of my neck. “Cowboy just cold-cocked me with a .45! The fuck you mean don’t freak out?”
Tex pinches the bridge of his nose. “Barinov, breathe.”
“Hell no!” I eye Briggs leaning against the wall, arms around Ellie’s waist from behind. Rage spikes. I rip out of Cade’s grip and stalk forward until I’m nearly chest-to-chest with them both.
“You stood there while he took the necklace,” I grit. “Hell Briggs, you let him put his hands all over her. And for what? To put me on the fucking floor?”
“Lex, please,” Ellie whispers.
“No, El!”
Briggs arms tighten around her. “Just shut up for a second and listen, yeah?” he says, his voice gravelly.
“Babe.” Cade’s hand finds my forearm again. “Listen to him.”
I drag a hand down my face, pacing once before turning back.
“Fine.” My jaw clenches. “Someone spit it out.”
“Zeke said pretty please,” Briggs says.
I gape at him.
Flat.
Fucking.
Unimpressed.
“So, what?” I snap. “We let the guy who assaulted our girl just walk because he has manners? That some sort of Black Book protocol?”
“It’s a code word,” Knox mumbles from behind me.
I whip around. “A what?”
“It’s Project Dylan’s code word.” Knox sighs like I’m some sort of idiot. “When someone says it, it means they know something you don’t and that you need to trust them.”
I blink, the last bit of fog from Briggs’s cheap shot finally burning off. “Well wouldn’t that have been nice to fucking know before I went in there!”
“Enough,” Nate booms as he steps forward. “Let’s get out of this cramped closet. Everyone get upstairs where we can have a chat without causing a scene”
His eyes flick to me.
“And new rule, no more throwing hands unless you’re in The Pit.”