Thirty-Seven Justice
THIRTY-SEVEN
Justice
Fergus, Alexei, and I ride the elevator down to my secret garage.
The air feels heavy here, metallic with oil and old smoke, the kind of silence that makes every footstep echo.
The doors slide open and the first thing I see is Bronco, slumped on the pristine concrete, pale and still, the car gone but my SUV waiting beyond it.
Wesley Whisper is on his knees beside him, shaking him, trying to wake him.
“What the fuck?” I move toward them. “Wake up, Bronco.” He’s out cold.
Wesley looks up. “He got shot twice. By Wynd.”
I nod. “Wynd is the enemy.” Words I never thought I’d say, but I saw him on that video. I know the tattoo on his wrist.
Alexei barks orders into his phone.
I lean closer. Blood is caked up Bronco’s neck in a dark, sticky trail glinting under the fluorescent light. “Is he breathing?”
“Yes,” Wesley says. “I’m not sure what happened. The elevator door opened, and he attacked Wynd. The guy went ballistic.” Wesley’s bleeding from a cut beneath his eye and there’s what looks like a bullet wound near his collarbone.
“How bad are you hurt?” I ask, my breath heating.
He wipes blood off his chin. “Dunno. I’ve already called an ambulance, but they don’t know how to get here.”
“I’ll open the door. Tell them to come around back.” I need to find Ella. “You tried to save her?”
“I did,” Wesley says. “I love her.”
“That’s too bad.” My voice is flat. “She’s mine, but I owe you one. Thanks for trying to save her. Get Bronco to the hospital.”
Wesley nods and hauls Bronco up with raw, shaking effort. He staggers toward the massive door.
I run and jump into the SUV and punch the button to open the door.
Alexei climbs in beside me, sliding his phone into his jacket pocket as Fergus barrels into the back seat.
“You good for this?” I ask.
“Yes,” Alexei says grimly. “I’ll help you get her back. Where would Wynd take her?”
The door is taking way too fucking long. I pull up the map on my phone, scroll, and shove it into his hands. “She’s the blue dot.”
He blinks down at it, then looks up at me, his eyes dark. “You chipped your woman?”
“No. I chipped the dog. She’s got a bracelet with a tracker in it.”
“Smart,” he says.
The engine roars to life.
“Don’t tell me you don’t have Rosalie covered,” I say.
He smiles without answering.
“That’s what I figured.”
The door is only halfway open when Kaz crashes into it and crumples to the ground. The sound is sharp, like a sack of bricks hitting steel.
“Holy shit.” I leap out and run to him. He’s bleeding from everywhere, streaks of red glistening under the harsh garage lights.
Dirt covers him, head to toe, thick in his hair.
The metallic tang of blood cuts through the smell of grease and gasoline, and for a second I almost choke on it.
His clothes are shredded, caked with dirt, and his skin feels clammy when I grab his shoulders.
I lay him on the pavement, his body twitching once before going slack.
“It was Wynd,” Kaz mumbles. Blood bubbles from his lips, thick and wet. “He shot me and buried me in the old lot on Blarney Street. I wasn’t dead. Asshole.”
I press my hand on one of the bullet wounds. He’s bleeding but not enough. Is he almost out of blood? “How?”
“Dug my way out.” His voice is barely there. “Grabbed a lady’s phone, meant to call you but got Bronco. She took the phone, and I had to get here.”
He walked five blocks bleeding to death. So that’s why Bronco attacked Wynd. He must’ve been coming up to tell me when the elevator door opened.
“I got him,” Wesley calls, still feeling for Bronco’s pulse. “I hear sirens now.” He moves to drag Kaz inside the garage and out of the rain. “How many times you shot?”
“Dunno,” Kaz whispers. More blood slips from the corner of his mouth. His swollen eye is shut tight.
“Thanks,” I tell Wesley. “Get them help.” If we survive this, I might have to hire the guy.
I give one last, long look at Kaz. “Stay alive.” I jump back in the vehicle and push down the gas pedal.
The SUV surges forward into the night. Alexei holds the phone out.
The blue dot looks solid. We go after it.
“Where are they?” I ask Alexei.
He thumbs the screen, eyes narrowing. “They’re at TimeGem.”
I pause. “TimeGem?” But Sylveria is dead.
“Yeah.” He nods. “Besides Wynd, did you recognize the other guy from the video?”
“No. Probably hired muscle.” He was clumsy.
I slam the accelerator. The SUV rockets forward, the world on either side of the vehicle blurring into streaks of gray and green.
Panic chews through my chest, raw and unfamiliar.
I’ve never felt this before. Wynd has Ella, and he likes to play with his prey.
“I didn’t see this,” I mutter.
Alexei shakes his head. “We never do. It’s always the people closest to you, isn’t it?”
Not really. My brother would never do this. I don’t think Kaz would, either. Ella’s a complete brat, but she’d never betray me.
I wrench the wheel, pulling off the interstate toward TimeGem Moments headquarters. Asphalt rattles under the tires. We round a curve down the quiet street, and suddenly there’s an old Buick in front of us. “What the fuck?” I swear.
Alexei glances at me. “What?”
“Her godmother’s in there.”
Alexei leans closer to the front window. “Huh?”
“I don’t know,” I growl, leaning on the horn.
The dog lifts his head in the back seat and presses his nose against the window, his tail visibly wagging.
“Her godmother’s a dog?” Alexei mutters.
“Shut up.” I cock my head. Through the Buick’s dusty rear window, I see Aura behind the wheel. I honk again. She ignores me.
I press the gas pedal and nudge the Buick’s bumper.
She slams her brakes and whips the wheel, spinning into a tight 180 before sliding to a stop on the shoulder. Dust explodes around her.
I hop out of the SUV.
The Buick’s driver’s door bursts open, then two more. Three women climb out, each one leveling a gun at me. I see a Ruger, a Glock, and a Ladysmith, all black steel in the sunlight.
“What the hell are you doing out here?” I yell. I can’t remember the last time I raised my voice.
They’re all dressed like some strange corporate color wheel. Mags wears bright yellow, Jos is in fluorescent green, and Aura sparkles in eye-popping blue.
“What do you think we’re doing?” Jos snaps. “We’re going to get our girl.” They look like a deadly yoga class for seniors.
I swallow hard. “How do you know where she is?”
Mags shifts in her yellow suit, looking uncomfortable. “We’ve been hacked into all the cameras of the four social media companies for years. We saw her brought in by your man—the one who’s with you all the time. He lifted her out of the trunk and put a hood over her head. She was alive.”
I shove panic into the distance. “Alexei and I are going in. Fergus, you and the ladies are going to provide cover from outside. Got it?”
“No,” Aura says flatly. “We’re going in.”
Jos yanks her green pants up, ready to move.
“If you go in, you’re just going to get in my way,” I say, letting them all see the killer in me.
“You need backup,” Aura fires back.
Alexei takes one step forward, and he pretty much looks like death. “I’m his backup.”
The women glance between us, back and forth. Finally, Aura lowers her shoulders. “All right, but we’re covering the entrance. If anyone comes out that isn’t you, we’re shooting. And if you’re not out in fifteen minutes, we’re coming in.”
“That seems fair,” Mags says.
I pause. “Aura? Do you still have the rocket launcher in the trunk?”
Alexei swears something in Russian under his breath.
“Of course.” Aura smiles widely, moves to the back, and brings me what I need.
Alexei and I jump back in the SUV and I hit the gas.
“Are they serious?” he asks.
“Yeah, they’re serious.” I left Fergus with them on purpose. He might be able to stop them, but I don’t know. Either way, I don’t want him caught in the crossfire. I glance at the Russian. “Are you sure you want to do this? This isn’t your fight.”
“I want to help. Rosalie will be heartbroken if anything happens to Ella. Besides …” He lifts his shoulder. “I like her. She’s sweet.”
“That she is,” I say. “And she’s all mine.”
I stomp the accelerator and swing the SUV around the gate. Guards shout, rifles bark, and I duck as bullets tear into the metal. Glass shatters, and sparks fly. I don’t care.
My woman is in there.