48. Dante
48
DANTE
P ietro has eyes on the airfield and confirms no movement has been made. By now, Tate’s waiting men would be bored and worn down; they would not be expecting an attack, and would therefore be unprepared enough for us to take them by surprise.
The cars on the road reach the meeting point just after we do. After going over the plan once again, we get back into the cars and head for the airfield, kicking up dirt as we travel through the terrain. It has been decided that I will deal with the hangar in which Kingsley is located, in conjunction with comms from Pietro, while the men will disperse and attack the two majority occupied hangars, led by my father, after I gain quiet entry to Kingsley’s location.
Marco and I sneak up to the hangar, locating a side door which is easy enough to open by picking the lock.
“Go,” I tell Marco, after I try the door. He shakes his head furiously, refusing to leave me. “Go! I’ve got this.” Reluctantly, he turns away from me and joins the men at the rear of the other hangars. He shoots me an uncertain look as he turns my way before I disappear through the door, and I respond with a curt nod. He is worried about me, and I know also that he has developed a brotherly affection for Kingsley and wants to do everything he can to help save her.
I make my way into the hangar, glad for the shadow of a truck parked in front of me to hide my movement. If I have to die saving Kingsley, I will do it on my terms. I have both guns out before I go any further, listening for any sound. The massive hangar is dark and musty, a cloud of dust kicking up where I step.
Kingsley’s melodious voice filters through the hangar, reaching my ears, and I breathe a quiet sigh of relief at the sound.
“Aren’t you going to untie me?” she asks.
“Are you going to tell me how you spent your time with Accardi?”
That’s definitely Tate. And she is now definitely under his control. The fact that he has her tied up causes my jaw to lock in anger. Just the thought of him touching her makes me violent with fury.
“I already told you. He kept me locked up in a room. I was fed, but I had minimal interaction with anyone.”
“And Accardi, what did you talk about?”
I don’t know why he’s so fixated on me.
“I was in my room the whole time; I hardly ever saw him.”
“And when you did see him?”
“What about it?”
“You really don’t know why he took you?”
“Beyond what you’ve told me, no.”
“Why do I find that hard to believe, King?”
I clench my teeth to suppress the curse that fights to make its way out of my mouth. Just the fact that he calls her by her name insults me and makes me want to gouge his eyes out.
I know the tracker he had implanted in her tells him she is lying. If he’d been tracking it, he’d know she had been free to roam around the house. He’d know she spent a considerable amount of time in one particular room after I was shot. He knows she is lying, and this makes him unpredictable. To know that Kingsley was trying to pull one on him could send this situation in any direction. Especially since she wouldn’t know he had access to her in ways she couldn’t possibly imagine.
My men would be making their move any minute now; I couldn’t delay making myself known much longer. All they are waiting on was one word from Pietro once he saw me emerge and approach Kingsley and Tate.
“I’m getting tired, Tate. I need air. And water. And a restroom. You can’t keep me tied up like this.”
“I can keep you tied up as long as I want.”
“You’ve gone mad, Tate. I don’t know what you’re hoping to accomplish here, but we can’t keep going around in circles like this.”
“You know what I want.”
“And you’re delusional if you think I’m going to give you what you want.”
“I have all day, King. And all night. Tomorrow. The day after. I have the upper hand here. I will keep you here until your body withers away and your bones rot, if need be.”
“You’re despicable!”
Kingsley is furious. I can hear the chair knocking against the floor as she tries to free herself of her shackles. I walk around the truck slowly until I have a view of her in the chair, Tate standing over her menacingly, about to strike her again.