20. HUNTER #3
“Nope,” I say, just as surprised by whatever the fuck is happening outside, but I’m here for it. “Seems we’re not the only ones who’ve come to end your miserable life tonight.”
The chaos outside grows as Antonio’s men pour into the cell block, wanting to protect their boss. People scream, and I glance at Maddox. It sounds like a whole fucking army has shown up here.
“What the fuck is going on?” Antonio roars to his guards.
Great fucking question.
More people flood into the cells as though this is the only cover from the onslaught of bullets coming from outside, and when Antonio begins to shuffle away, desperate for an escape, I shake my head. This bastard isn’t getting away tonight.
Maddox takes the moment of distraction to push up against the body he’s standing on and effortlessly slips his chains over the meat hook that has us dangling here like a set of black and blue balls.
I crunch upward, catching the meat hook with my feet and taking the weight off my wrists to unhook myself.
I drop to the ground beside Maddox, and with just a few slight adjustments, the chains around our wrists turn from a disadvantage into a deadly weapon.
We spring into action, picking off Antonio’s men, and by the time Antonio even realizes that we’re free and coming for him, we’re already almost there.
The golden retriever personality Maddox wears around Lyra vanishes completely.
No smiles, no jokes, no fucking warmth, only focus, precision, and cold-blooded violence.
People see him as the easy-going flirt, nothing more than a charming playboy, but they couldn’t be more wrong.
Maddox isn’t harmless. He’s one of the most dangerous men I have ever met.
He’s just like me.
Ruthless.
Within seconds the compound has descended into complete chaos. Alarms blare as men run in every direction, trying to save themselves, but the gunshots from outside are getting louder. Then a bullet ricochets off the cell bars in a flash of sparks.
What the actual fuck is going on here?
Blood splatters across the polished concrete, and as I snap neck after neck and use the chains to every fucking advantage possible, a flash of long deep-red hair catches my attention, but then it’s gone in an instant.
It’s too dark to make out anything clearly, but I stop and turn, searching through the chaos. I could have sworn that was a woman, but not just an ordinary woman, there was something familiar there.
We push out of the cells and into the corridor, picking off guards one at a time while keeping our sights set on Antonio up ahead. His men have him moving fast, but we’re faster.
Guards go down beside us, and we take their guns, turning them on the bastards in seconds, though while taking shots is the easiest option, it doesn’t go unnoticed how Maddox continues to utilize his chains instead. He’s always been one for the dramatics.
It’s a fucking shitshow.
Antonio breaks free of the cell block and out into the night, and we forge after him. He’s not going to slip between our fingers this time.
Maddox and I move through the insanity like ghosts. Every corner we turn reveals more panic. More guards rushing toward us, rushing right to their deaths.
Antonio built this place like a fortress, but unfortunately for his guards, fortresses only work when the people inside them know where the threat is coming from, and right now, they haven’t got a clue what’s going on.
“You know,” Maddox says as we move through another corridor, “I think they were offended by our room review.”
I glance at him just as I’m hit with a hint of vanilla that brings me to a stop, my stomach tightening with unease. I know that smell. It’s the same one from the alley, the same night I first met Lyra when my kill was taken out from under me.
I’d spent weeks assuming she was a witness, but witnesses don’t vanish without a trace, and they sure as fuck don’t infiltrate cartel compounds or leave bodies behind like a goddamn assassin.
The pieces begin falling into place.
The woman from the alley wasn’t a witness at all. I’d been wrong. She was the one who took my kill. She stole my contract, collected my payday, and I foolishly looked the other way. Now she’s here . . . or was.
Interesting.
Very fucking interesting.
A bullet whizzes past my face, and it snaps me back into motion. “Your rating system is flawed,” I tell Maddox, filing that vanilla scent away for later.
“My rating system is art.”
Another bullet punches into the wall beside his head, and Maddox points. “See? Rude.”
I shake my head and keep moving, just as we break out into the night and see Antonio’s men ushering him into his private wing up ahead. Bingo.
We storm after him, and as we race through the darkness, I can’t help but notice that we seem to be the only target now. The woman with the deep-red hair must be gone, but why? Antonio is still alive. She didn’t make the kill, so why leave?
Reaching Antonio’s private wing, it’s clear the guards here are different. They have a higher level of training, they’re sharper, faster, stronger, but they’re still no match for us.
We’re immediately met with gun power, and we deal with it just as efficiently as we’ve dealt with every other threat tonight. Until finally, there’s only silence—
Maddox points ahead, a slow, wild smirk pulling across his lips. “There.”
Antonio stands in the center of his private wing, genuine fear flashing in his eyes. He’s got no backup, no way to save himself as Maddox and I split up, each of us approaching from different sides.
God, I’ve been waiting for this moment for years. I’ve imagined what it would look like, how it would feel, and damn, it’s even better than I could have ever imagined.
“Hunter,” Maddox says quietly, having waited for this moment just as long as I have.
“I know.”
We advance together, slow and steady, reveling in every moment of this, because for the first time, Antonio has nowhere to run.
The powerful cartel boss who once seemed so untouchable is suddenly utterly worthless.
His empire is crumbling around him, his world burning to ashes, and I will trample the remains on my way out.
“You never should have come back here,” Antonio spits with that usual bravado.
I almost laugh.
Because that’s the thing about men like Antonio. They always think they’re the exception. The one nobody can touch. But men who think they are untouchable don’t train the way we do.
Antonio’s jaw tightens, realizing time for talking is over. I’m not here for the bullshit. I’m ready to put it to bed. I’m done remembering our first stay in his cells, the way he tortured us for weeks on end, the way he made me watch as he almost ended Maddox’s life.
I’m done with these ghosts, and tonight, I will release them.
None of it matters anymore. The score was settled the moment Maddox and I climbed that fence.
Antonio lets out a low breath, defeat in his eyes, and for the first time in his life, I think he truly understands that nobody can rule forever. It’s the laws of physics. What goes up, must come down, and it’s the same for his empire. It was only a matter of time.
Maddox picks up the fire poker that sits beside the pristine fireplace like an offering, and Antonio starts to shake. “Fuck.”
He holds the fire poker out toward me. “You want to do the honors?” Maddox asks.
I shake my head. While we have both endured hell at the hands of this man, Maddox got it worse. “This one is all yours,” I tell him. “I’m happy to watch the show, as long as it ends up with DeLuca dead.”
“Oh, that I can promise you.”
And with that, I stand back and watch Maddox position himself directly in front of Antonio.
He takes the fire poker and rears back, white-knuckling the end.
Then with every ounce of strength he possesses, Maddox lunges forward, sending the sharp tip of the poker plunging deep inside Antonio’s torso before pulling down hard on the handle and tearing through Antonio’s organs like butter.
Antonio wobbles on his feet, held up only by Maddox’s firm hold on the end of the poker, and with one last shove, Maddox releases him. The mighty head of the DeLuca empire stumbles and falls to our feet, his blood pooling across the floor.
He’s dead in seconds, and with that, so are the ghosts that have haunted me.
“So,” Maddox says, meeting my stare. “Burgers on the way home?”
I nod. “Sounds fucking perfect to me.”