19. Javier
CHAPTER 19
Cruz stayed on the phone with us as he got to the scene. “Fuck! I can’t get close. Police are already here.”
“We’re almost there,” I told him. “Find him.”
Marco leaned forward in the seat as if he’d see them faster. Traffic was stopped three blocks away, so I pulled over. We got out, running without speaking.
Remaining calm for their sake was something I’d been doing since we’d first met. It was my role. Clearheaded and pragmatic. I had to stay ahead of things, with multiple backup plans constantly evolving.
One block away, we could see the first responders.
“He’s on a stretcher,” Cruz updated.
“Barricade?” Marco asked.
“No, just police keeping people back.”
“Marco, create a distraction. We’ll get Derek and get out.”
“Got it.” Marco split off, running toward the opposite corner and out of sight.
I got to Cruz and grabbed his elbow. He pointed out Derek, and I fought down the panic at seeing him unmoving. They were getting ready to load him into the ambulance, and we could absolutely not let that happen. Not only would his healing kick in, but if they ran blood tests, they wouldn’t come back anywhere close to normal.
The Pack could intervene, but it would take time and resources we didn’t have.
Screaming broke out as the glass storefronts on the other side of the street shattered at once. Everyone turned, taking in the damage. Cruz and I ran forward, pushing the limits of what was humanly possible, and grabbed Derek.
By some miracle, he wasn’t strapped down. “Put his arm over your shoulder.”
We each put an arm around his back, lifting him so he stood between us. It would be less noticeable than carrying him. Hopefully.
We hurried past the crowd, none of them paying attention as more glass shattered in the opposite direction. I led us back to the car, and Cruz climbed in the back, dragging Derek in with him.
I got behind the wheel and waited for Marco. He was there a moment later, panting as he slid onto the seat.
“Call Rod,” I ordered as I pulled onto the street and turned as soon as possible getting us far from the scene within a minute.
Marco explained what happened, then paused. “Where’s the car?”
“We have men there. It’s been abandoned.” Rod’s voice came over the speaker.
“What?” I demanded.
“We’re checking cameras in the area.” His voice sounded far away. “Wipe anything with footage of them getting Derek.” He paused again. “Her phone and purse were left behind.”
“Ama’s too?” Marco asked.
“Yes. The driver disappeared.”
“He betrayed his boss. He’s going into hiding.” I slammed my fist against the door.
“Where’s the closest healer?” Cruz called from the back.
“Head to Hollywood. I’ll let him know you’re on your way.”
My phone dinged, and I opened the text from Rod with the address and pulled it up.
“We’re twenty minutes out,” I told him.
“I’m sending in a team to make sure cleanup at the scene is covered,” he explained over the sound of typing.
“Who’s tracking Em?” Marco demanded.
“Three different teams are working on it. The one that found the car is ready and waiting to move as soon as we find her.”
“Are they into the CCTV feeds?” I asked.
“Yes,” he bit out, then went quiet for a long time. “Dias received a call from Brazzi. It was him. He has them. He told Dias this wasn’t a negotiation. He either packs up and leaves Miami or he kills both of them. He has until midnight to get out.”
“Fuck!” I roared as Marco gripped the door handle until it broke off. He tossed it into the backseat.
“Where is she?” Cruz was calm.
“Working on it,” Rod replied.
“Is Dias?” he asked.
“Yes, we’re monitoring his security team. They’re searching Brazzi’s known homes, clubs, and warehouses.”
Marco rubbed his jaw. “Their setups aren’t as good as ours. We have more trackers on Brazzi and his men than they do.”
“I’m watching what they’re doing, but our teams are looking through our intel,” Rod explained.
We knew the protocol. We knew the teams were doing exactly what we would, but it was a horribly helpless feeling not being the ones to check. My going through the same footage wouldn’t change anything.
“Drive faster.” Marco pointed to the car in front of us. “Go around him!”
I glared at him but said nothing. We couldn’t let the tension have us turning on one another.
“He’s bleeding out!” Cruz pulled his shirt off. “Hurry!”
Derek was my only focus right now. I had to count on the other teams. They would find her. She was valuable to them. Rod kept us updated as we drove. Someone reviewed a store’s surveillance and found an SUV leaving the same alley the original car pulled into, but it wasn’t CCTV. Brazzi’s men must have already intercepted or wiped it.
We got to the address, and as soon as I pulled into the driveway, three men ran out and helped Cruz get Derek inside. I was halfway out of the car when voices shouted from Rod’s line.
“Found it,” Rod shouted.
Marco and I shared a look.
“Cruz will stay with him.” He looked from the house to me.
I nodded, and Marco jumped out, running to the door. He was inside for only a second before coming back to the car.
“Where is it?” I asked as we pulled away from our brothers.
“His warehouse on the south side,” Rod explained. “Address sent.”
My phone dinged again, and I changed the destination to pull up directions.
“Has Dias figured it out?” Marco asked.
“Not yet.”
“We need to get it to him somehow,” he continued. “We can’t be the ones to go in and get them.”
“Why the fuck not?” I glared at him.
“This is their battle, their war. We have to let them finish it.”
I shook my head. “No.”
“Our intervention will cause problems and raise too many questions. He’s right, Javier,” Rod agreed.
“I’m not leaving it up to that shithead!”
“We won’t,” Rod reassured. “We’ll make sure our team is surrounding. We can even take care of most of Brazzi’s men before Dias gets there. Thin out the threat so they can get in and out without issues.”
I gripped the wheel until I heard cracking. “Fine. Make sure he gets the location fast.”
“Already on it,” Rod replied.
Marco and I fell silent as I drove, pushing past the speed limit but not enough to draw attention. The last thing we needed was a cop pulling us over and keeping us from Em for a second longer than necessary.
This shouldn’t have happened. Derek never should have let Em get into the car without him.
But we’d had no reason to believe Dias’s own men would betray Ama. Her driver was her regular guard. Someone we’d been monitoring since the beginning. He had no red flags. No unusual calls or texts. Nothing to make us second-guess him.
Whatever happened to make him flip was done in person, without his phone around. Either he was smarter than the rest of Dias’s men or Brazzi was.
It didn’t matter. We’d find him and kill him ourselves.
“Who’s tracking the driver?” I broke the silence.
“The delta team. I diverted them once we located Em and the SUV.”
“Good.” I relaxed only a fraction. “I want him dealt with.”
“I’ll make sure we get him before Dias does,” Rod promised.
I checked my phone. “We’re ten minutes out. Are the others in place?”
He paused before replying. “Yes, just confirmed four snipers are ready. The team has visuals of Em and Ama. They’re being held in the back of a warehouse. Blindfolded and tied to chairs.”
Marco let out a low growl.
The only thing keeping me from completely freaking the fuck out was knowing if she absolutely had to, she could get herself free. If something went down without the team in position, she could get out, even if it risked exposure. We’d kill anyone who saw.
She might be able to get Ama, too, which was an annoying delay, but she wouldn’t abandon her. Not yet.
“They cannot take their eyes off her. They can’t even blink. Do you hear me?”
“They know, Javier.” Rod’s commanding tone was likely meant to remind me of my place, but I didn’t care.
Emilia was an asset to him.
She was our world.
“Dias has the location. He’s on his way, and he called in all his men through the city.”
Marco blew out a breath. “That’s going to cause issues.”
“No shit.” I smirked.
His men were already pissed he was going off the rails. Now he was disrupting business, bringing it to a complete standstill?
“It’s his sister, too,” Rod reminded us. “Family first.”
True, but how many of his men would be bitter tomorrow when things were running late and Dias was pissed about it?
“Where are they?” Marco asked.
“The closest are in the same area. They just need to find the right building.”
“Have our guys started?”
“No.”
His side went quiet.
I got off the main road and turned through the warehouse district. We were one block away when Rod came back.
“Stay where you are,” he ordered, and I pulled over with a curse. “Dias and his crew are coming behind you. I don’t need you guys getting confused for Brazzi’s.”
Marco and I sunk low in our seats.
“Snipers have taken out everyone outside,” he reported. “Both women are safe.”
I closed my eyes, willing this to be over as soon as possible.
“Dias arrived. He and his men are entering.”
“I wish we had visuals,” Marco whispered.
I looked at him and nodded. We had no choice but to trust our Pack, and we did. Otherwise, we’d be dragging Em out by now. It was too easy to get swept up in the bloodlust and revenge when there was a much bigger picture, one Rod was able to see and navigate.
“They’re inside. Shots fired. Fuck.”
“What?” I roared.
“Ama.” He sighed. “She’s been shot.”
“Em?” Marco demanded.
“Fine.”
I dropped my head back. This was bad.
“All of Brazzi’s men are down. At least four of Dias’s.” Rod continued to update us as Dias got the women out.
“They’re leaving now. Some of his men are staying behind for cleanup.”
“What do we do?” Marco asked.
“Stay put.” Rod went quiet again.
“Fuck,” I muttered. Doing nothing was the hardest thing in the world.
After a long moment, he was back. “Dias is heading to his house.”
“Em is okay?”
“She got into the car herself. Ama was carried out to another SUV.”
That was the best we could ask for. “Update on Derek?”
“They got the bullets out, and he shifted. He’s healing now.”
Marco let out a heavy breath. They were both safe.
“Now what?” I hated having to wait for orders. I was trained to follow my instincts, but there were too many things already going haywire for me to go rogue. Rod was the conductor.
“You need to get Em out. I don’t trust Dias to keep her safe if Brazzi retaliates.” Rod ordered.
I sat up and turned the car around.
“Marco, you’ll go in as her backup guard. Derek got word to you.”
“Got it,” he confirmed.
“She’s freaking out. Screaming at Dias.” Rod continued to update us.
I shared a smile with Marco. That’s our Em.
“Damn it.” Rod sighed. “Ama’s dead.”
“What?” Marco barked.
My chest tightened. I hadn’t expected that.
“They’re taking her to a hospital, but the men in her car couldn’t stop the bleeding. She stopped breathing and had no pulse.”
Fuck.
There would be no stopping Dias now. He’d destroy Brazzi and everything he’d ever cared about, and he had every reason to.
“His men just told him.” Rod cleared his throat. “Go in and get her.”
“We’re almost there.”
By the time we pulled up to the open gates of Dias’s house, there was pandemonium. Twenty or so men were armed, some patrolling the property, but most of them were shouting at each other.
I parked the car, and Marco and I got out.
“Where is she?” I asked as we crossed the driveway.
“I don’t see her.” He froze as one of the men pointed his gun at us.
“Who are you?”
“You need to leave,” another man joined in.
“We’re Millie’s security. We’re taking her home.”
“The hell you are!” one of them screamed. “We’ve never seen you before.”
Marco stepped forward to him, unaffected as he pressed his chest into the barrel. “Since her primary guard is currently in the hospital as a result of being shot by one of your men, we’ve been called in.”
The man had the good sense to back up.
“Now, are you going to have her sent out, or do I need to go in and get her myself?” Marco challenged. “I have no problem using force.”
“Hey, Junior, call for Millie,” he shouted to a younger-looking man.
It wasn’t necessary, since the front door burst open, and Em stumbled out. “Don’t fucking touch me!”
She was screaming at a crying Dias.
“Amor, por favor.”
“No!” She pointed at him. “Where’s my guard? What happened to him?”
“I don’t know.”
“You don’t care about anything or anyone but yourself!”
His head dropped. “Don’t.”
“It’s your fault! She’s dead because of you and your fucked-up bullshit! If you two could stop fighting over whose dick’s bigger for five minutes, none of this would have happened!”
She spun and saw us, nearly crumpling. Marco ran and caught her, wrapping his arm around her waist and helping her to our car.
“Who the fuck are you?” Dias demanded.
“Her security.” I moved to block his path.
“I’m not letting her out of my sight.”
I scoffed. “You have more important things to deal with right now. We’ll take care of her.”
He sneered, lifting his fist as if he was stupid enough to try to punch me. “She’s my––”
“Nothing. She’s nothing to you anymore,” I cut him off. “You lost that privilege when your men failed to keep her safe. Again.”
His eyes dropped.
“Now one of my men is wounded,” I continued. “Millie was kidnapped and held hostage. All under your watch. You will not see or contact her again.”
Fuck this mission. We had enough. He would never breathe the same air as her again.
“Millie,” he called out, looking past me.
I turned enough to see her standing next to the open back door. She shook her head. “I love you, Alessio, but I’m done. You never cared about me or your own damn sister. We were nothing but pawns. I won’t wait around to be your next victim.”
She climbed in, and Marco shut the door before climbing into the passenger side.
I went to them, getting behind the wheel and reversing away from the house, ignoring Dias and his cries for her to stay.
I glanced at Em through the rearview mirror. Silent tears streamed down her face.
“Derek is okay,” I told her, hoping it would help. “He shifted and is healing.”
She sniffed and closed her eyes. “Alessio has to pay.”