Chapter 27
NICKEL
It’s been a long few days. Hell, it’s been a long few weeks.
We’ve been working hard to shut down the traffickers, but they keep turning up like bad pennies.
For every operation we shut down, another ten pop up.
I’ve never understood how people can treat other humans the way they do.
It makes me sick to my stomach every time I see the hurt and devastation in the eyes of the people we save.
The utter depravity we’ve seen turns my stomach.
And when you learn that the ones you’re targeting are only a drop in the ocean, it makes it even worse.
We knew, though, what opening a Chapter here would entail.
We were warned, and we went into it with our eyes wide open.
That doesn’t mean it doesn’t affect us, especially when we see the damage they’ve inflicted on one of our own.
We found a restaurant not far from the motel where we spent the day. I shared a room with Bolt, who spent an hour talking on the phone to Jeanie. As I listened to their conversation, it hit home how much our family had to lose if this all went pear-shaped.
I keep an eye on my brothers now as they finish eating.
I can’t deny that my brothers have all chosen women well-suited for this life.
Thea, with her expertise in explosives, weapons, and drone operations.
Jeanie, with her family connections, take-no-shit-and-let’s-blow-everything-up attitude.
And Copper, who’s found himself a woman deadlier than he is, with a brain for business and numbers.
Even though she was undercover while Beau was in charge of our accounts, I know she continued to work because he showed me the changes she made.
I’m not a jealous man, but I hope to fuck my woman will fit right in with my family as seamlessly as their Old Ladies have if I’m ever lucky enough to find one.
The chairs' scraping brings my attention back to the moment. Everyone has finished their meal and is preparing to leave.
“Are you okay?” a soft voice asks.
I turn to look at my newest sister-in-law, seeing the concern in her eyes.
“I’m okay, Bee. Just thinking.”
“Okay. But I’m always here if you need to chat or vent. I know how hard this work can be.”
Yep, if anyone knows, it’s Bee.
“I promise I’m okay. Ready to get this put to bed and back home until the next one.”
“I hear you.” She grins, then her smile softens as she sees Copper.
He wraps an arm around her waist and draws her to him. “Everything okay?”
I nod. “I’ll see you both later.”
It’s ten at night. We’ll return to our rooms for a bit before we head out to secure this Eades motherfucker.
***
“Check in.” Bee’s voice fills my ear.
I wait as my brothers check in one by one, ending with Blue, who had to walk the furthest and climb the mountain to find a good sniper position.
“Overwatch in place. Ten guards patrolling, two in the hut. No view into the house. Curtains are closed. Nickel, you’re up.”
I’ve drawn the short straw. It’s up to me to carry out the fake pizza delivery. If the guards open the box, all they’ll see is pizza, but we’ve secreted an explosive in the base.
I say ‘we,’ but it was Bee who did it under Cai’s careful eye. Watching the two of them, I knew it wasn’t the first time they’d done it.
Starting my sled, I ride up to the gates, stopping at the intercom. I press the buzzer, and don’t have to wait long for the guard to come out. He opens the pedestrian gate and walks towards me as I get off my sled.
“Pizza delivery.”
“Nobody ordered pizza. You have the wrong address.”
I make a show of removing the pizza box from my sled’s carrier and walk toward the guard, where he’s standing outside the security hut.
I turn the box to show him that the address matches the property.
Ramzi and Sterling did their online voodoo shit to find out the guard’s names and put one of them on the order.
“Are you sure? The order says it’s for Ryan”—I squint—“fuck, I can’t read this?”
I thrust the box towards him, so he has no choice but to grab it. “Hang on to that. Let me check on my phone.”
“Don’t worry,” the guard replies. “I can see who ordered it. I wish the fuckers in the big house would let us know when they order shit,” he mutters as he walks away. “This is the second time this week, for fuck’s sake. How are we meant to keep anyone safe like this?”
That was almost too easy. I know that all the guards are active in the trafficking, so I don’t feel bad for what I’m about to do.
Getting back on my sled, I ride away to a safe distance.
“Whenever you’re ready, Bee,” I say into the comms.
Parking my sled, I dismount and remove the delivery jacket, stuffing it in my saddlebag. I pull my handgun from its holster as I jog toward the house.
“In three, two, one,” Bee counts down in our ears.
Even though I’m expecting the blast, I’m still surprised when it happens.
“Let’s go, brothers,” Cahir orders. “Cai, you have the dogs. Tranq them quickly. Be safe, everyone. I’ll see you on the other side.”
We know what we’re doing and move as one unit—a marked improvement from our first operation.
We’ve upped our training and run frequent drills on the paintball field.
Brass, Iron, Cross, Blue, and Sterling punished our asses until we had no choice but to work as a team.
Now, it’s paying off as we take out the guards, one after another.
Bee pilots the drones towards the house, releasing the bombs onto the roof of the house. They won’t do much damage—enough to spook them and draw out the guards inside.
When that doesn’t happen, we move in and take the fight to them.
I’m not sure how I get boxed in. I hunker behind a low-level garden wall as two guards take shots at me.
“Blue, any chance you can get rid of them for me?” I ask, watching my brothers disappear into the house. Screams, shouts, and gunshots echo in the darkness. “Blue, I’m pinned down in the south garden. Two of them. I can’t move.”
“Hang on,” Blue replies. I hear him take a shot, but it’s not at either of my guys. “I can’t get a clear shot of them, Nickel.”
“Fuck,” I mutter.
I leopard crawl slowly along the wall to find a better position. I’ve barely moved when they fire at me again. Ducking, I wait them out, hoping they’ll run out of ammunition.
“Stay down, Nickel,” Bee instructs. “I’ll let you know when to move.”
She’s no sooner finished talking than I hear a cry and a thump. Taking a chance, I look over the wall and see the two guards slumped over.
“Thanks, Blue,” I say, staying low as I move to another spot.
“That wasn’t me, brother,” Blue admits. “We’ve got someone else out here with us.”
“Well, fuck. Let’s hope they’re friendly,” I mutter. The shouts and screams die down. “I’m going to do a last check around the grounds.”
“Careful, Nickel,” Bee warns. “We think we know who it is, but Ramzi will confirm.”
“Understood.” I use the shadows to make my way slowly around the grounds. The dogs are still passed out with whatever Cai tranquillised them with. I check them quickly to ensure they’re still breathing. All their guards are dead, so I don’t bother to check on them.
It's a decision I quickly regret.
I’m almost back where I started when one of the guards looms in front of me. He raises his gun, points it towards me, and pulls the trigger.
This is it, then.
I close my eyes and I wait for the bullet to enter my body, thinking about my mother and how my death will affect her.
“Dude, what the fuck? That’s the second time I’ve saved your arse tonight,” a husky, irate, and decidedly feminine voice berates me.
What the fuck indeed?
Surprisingly, my cock twitches in my pants. Surprising, because I’m not one to be led around by my dick.
I open my eyes to meet stormy grey ones. I smile. “Hi.”
She rolls her eyes and growls, “Seriously, dude, what the fuck? You checked the dogs but not the guards?”
She’s right. I fucked up. But my brothers and the Skulls are crack shots, so I didn’t think to check them as I assumed they were dead.
“You’re right. I fucked up. I should’ve checked them. Thanks for saving my life.”
Surprise flashes across her face before she quickly masks it. “You need a keeper,” she mutters, expertly checking her weapon before surveying our surroundings. “Where are the Skulls? They told me to meet them here. Oh, and you should answer Bee. I can hear her from here.”
I suddenly realise that Bee is shouting in my ear, asking me if I’m all right. I was too caught up in this woman, who appeared out of nowhere, and the instant attraction I felt for her that jump-started my cock.
“I’m okay, Bee.”
“Fuck’s sake, Nickel! You nearly gave me a heart attack. I thought she was going to shoot, but then I recognised her. Seriously, I was wondering how the hell I was going to break the news to your mum.”
“I’m sorry, Bee. You and my Old Lady are right. I’m a fucking idiot.”
There’s stunned silence.
Then Bee laughs.
The woman in front of me, the one I’ve decided is mine, narrows her eyes and glares at me. “You did not just call me old.”
“No, ma’am, I did not.” I grin. I don’t know what the fuck has come over me. This isn’t like me at all. I’m the quiet one, the serious one, the one who plans ahead and always has a backup plan should anything go wrong. Two minutes in her company, and all that has flown out the window.
“Holy shit.” Bee chuckles before she sobers. “Ramzi is on his way to you. Tell Nora I said hi.”
My gaze never leaves the woman I’m going to make mine. “Bee says hi, and Ramzi’s on his way.”
The woman nods but doesn’t say anything, continuing to assess our surroundings.
The way she moves tells me that she has military training.
In my ear, the rest of our team gives the all clear—it’s almost over.
They seem to have everything covered, so I’ll stay right where I am until I’m forced to leave her.
“Military, huh?” I prompt.
She slants her eyes at me, a hint of suspicion in her gaze. “Yep. You’re not.”