Chapter 36
Gabriel
Showered and dressed after his second grueling workout that night, Gabriel aimed the remote at the painting above the mantel in his study. The abstract image faded as the television came to life, already set to the nightly news.
The murder rate was at an all-time high in Irongard. Gabriel tuned into every briefing, read every gruesome headline, and pried whatever classified information he could from Hamza—which wasn’t much. It was either that or die pining for Nicholas. Most nights he managed to do both.
No arrests had been made—none that would stick—although the number of bodies found had escalated well into double digits. Outsiders had been brought in to assist the local police department and homicide squad to bring an end to the continued crime wave.
In unrelated news, another city resident had gone missing.
A dedicated husband and father, they called him.
Gabriel didn’t recognize the man from the photo taking up the screen, but there was a small reward being offered for his safe return.
He changed the channel, searching for more updates on the turf war.
His laptop pinged from his desk, and he fired up the two monitors connected to it. Kyrin’s estate came into view. Gabriel had set up the long-range surveillance a few miles from the secluded home shortly after Nicholas left, determined to keep his own eyes on the mafia head.
Kyrin had yet to leave his heavily secured property and kept only his most trusted men stationed throughout, armed to the teeth.
The motion sensors were set to trigger whenever there was movement along the private road leading to the sprawling mansion. Gabriel zoomed in on the black SUV heading for the tall steel gates. The windows were tinted, but Gabriel counted three men inside, including the driver.
He brought up the live footage of the mansion’s roof, checking for the sentries holding position there, then to the men who stood guard beyond the gates.
The SUV was allowed entry without question, climbing the long drive before rounding the side of the house. Gabriel accessed that camera’s angle, leaning in as the front passenger side door opened.
Kyrin’s lieutenant stepped out, the man who ensured Kyrin’s orders were carried out while his boss hid away. Gabriel frowned, quickly pulling up the surveillance footage from the ambush at one of Kyrin’s storehouses a few nights ago.
He watched again as a hooded man led a small army inside. Gunfire erupted before the man exited with what was left of his own men, and Kyrin’s lieutenant, bound and gagged.
Gabriel couldn’t see the man’s face, but he assumed he belonged to the Armenians.
He wasn’t inclined to look further into it because ‘the enemy of my enemy is my friend.’ Other than wishing them well in this war, he didn’t give a damn about the Armenians.
Kyrin was the only threat to him at the moment.
He’d assumed Kyrin’s second-in-command had been taken for information, or to be used as an exchange for something more important, or killed. But here he was…
A muscled man holding an assault rifle led him inside the house. Gabriel waited for the back door to open, for the other man to exit, but he never did. He couldn’t see his face from this angle, and made a mental note to adjust for that blind spot.
Moments later, Kyrin exited wearing a bulletproof vest, his men loading suitcases into the trunk.
Gabriel straightened, blood thumping in his ears.
Kyrin slid into the back of the armored SUV, his lieutenant returning to the front.
His guards all loaded into trucks in the detached garage, forming a motorcade around the SUV as they all drove off.
Gabriel checked his phone. His text to Marcus still hadn’t been answered. He shot up from his seat, snatching his suit jacket from the back of his chair before racing through the night fog.