Chapter 26
Chapter Twenty-Six
EMERSON
The wait was excruciating. Every second that ticked by was another inch Ava slipped from my grasp.
And Greyson was sitting on his plane like this was some game.
The hours I’d spent waiting for him to arrive, I had put to use.
A renewed energy filled me and with Pack’s help, I’d come up with a plan.
But standing there watching a plane sitting on my runway was enough to drive me mad.
It wasn’t until the second plane landed that I understood.
A decoy. How like my brother to not trust me.
But then, why would he? He had no proof that anything I’d told him was the truth.
But I’d stood there with no weapon, my hands in the pockets of my pants, an open target, hoping that was enough to give him some kind of proof this was not a trap.
The door opened on the second plane, stairs unfolding, and within minutes, Greyson descended them.
Alone with no weapon. His sign of trust on display to meet mine.
The stairs pulled back in, the door shut, and I wondered who was on that plane that he needed to lock it back up.
His steps were confident and steady. I remained where I was, at the top of the deck, the doors behind me.
Pack was inside, the others all hidden in the shadows of the property and the house.
With every step closer he came, the tightness in my chest grew.
The hatred had disguised the fact that I had missed my brother all these years.
And only now, seeing him, no longer the young boy of twenty but a man, his features so like our father’s, creases in the corners of his eyes, gray along his temples.
How much of our life had we missed because of his decision and my anger?
“Emerson,” he greeted me once he stepped on the deck.
He kept his distance, and I stayed in place, but a tugging in my chest had me rethinking all the years of loathing that had sunk into my bones and my being.
Until Ava had lifted it from me, replacing it with a lightness I hadn’t had since my youth.
“Grey.”
“You have me here.” The wariness was clear in his voice. The trust was still on a delicate branch, so easy to send tumbling. “Call your men in so mine can relax.”
“Ah, but you know I can’t because the minute anyone moves but you and me, your men will blast those windows out of the plane and an all out war will start.”
“True. So then what do you suggest we do, big brother?”
The term had me reeling back, and I caught myself, understanding the opening he was offering.
This was it, the only one he would present and if I did the wrong thing, he would recant it and turn around and leave.
Find Ava on his own, competing with me to get to her first. Our competition would hurt her in the long run and all of us would lose.
“You look good, little brother. Almost like dad.”
He chuckled. “That’s because I got the good genes. One of us had to be the good-looking one.”
“Fuck off. I was always better looking. With more muscle.”
His forehead creased, his eyes growing serious. “I’m sorry for being such an ass. If I’d known what it would do, I would never have done it.”
I shrugged. “I was thick-headed, and she did give good head, so…”
This time, he laughed, and I joined him.
“Sorry for shooting you,” I added.
“Now that was a dick move.”
“I purposely missed your vital organs, and I doubt you would have become such an expert shot if I hadn’t motivated you.”
His head shook, and he said, “So, Cade Slaughter is calling a truce with Greyson Tides?”
I put my hand out, offering it to him. “I think it’s time for Cade Slaughter to retire. Emerson Tides is making a truce with his brother.”
He stared at me for a second before he extended his hand. When our hands met, I had a sense that I was returning home after being adrift for decades. The bond between us repaired, the frayed edges of it sealed, and emotion washed through me.
“Let’s get your girl back,” he said, a knowing twinkle in his eyes as he released my hand.
“Tell your men to come off the plane and tell Brinks to stop being such a baby and grow some balls.”
Another laugh as he pulled his phone out, and I took mine out. My muscles twitched for just a second before I saw the phone and his grip on the phone clenched until he saw mine. I called my men off, telling them to stand down, and he did the same.
“Brinks, you and Raines come out first. No guns. His men are standing down, but if they see a gun, I can’t guarantee they won’t shoot. And I may not stop them if it means I won’t have Raines aggravating me anymore.”
I heard the bitching on the other end, then listened to him make another call. This one to Den, Ava’s uncle. The doors opened, the stairs folding out.
“How safe are we out here, Mer?” he asked me. His eyes trailed on the plane he’d emerged from and when I saw the familiar black hair of Riley Brinks, I knew why he was still on edge.
“Very. No one, not even my regular men, knows about this place. They’re all at my other safe house. Only my most loyal are here.”
“If any of your men shoot, I won’t hesitate to kill you,” he said, glancing over at me.
“Understood. Why did you bring your woman with you? And two other women? Is that Angela Donelli?”
“Yes. It’s a long story, but all three of them are stubborn.”
“Must be something in the water because Ava’s the same way.” Saying her name hurt, and I rubbed my chest.
“You fell in love with her,” he stated, as if it was nothing, his eyes still fixed on Riley.
“I don’t know what I did.” It was an honest answer. We’d never said the word, although I’d sensed it pushing for recognition. It had seemed too early, although now I wished I had told her it had been taking root and burrowing into my heart.
“So this is the infamous Cade Slaughter.” Mason Brinks was a tall man, solid build, muscles that weren’t as prominent as his partner’s, but still imposing. His green eyes mirrored the ones on his sister.
“And this is the not so infamous Mason Brinks and his lapdog, Tyson Raines.”
Raines snarled, but Brinks put his hand out to stop him. “We’re here because you let a rat into your ranks and now you’ve lost Ava. Don’t go pulling some kind of rank of me, Slaughter.”
“Considering you let a rat in your ranks who took your sister, I wouldn’t trade barbs with me, Brinks.”
“Enough,” Greyson said, his voice with an authority he had still been developing when I’d seen him last.
A pile of ebony hair ducked around Greyson’s arm, her green eyes so bright they almost shimmered. She was a beauty, but I’d known that from pictures even if they didn’t do her justice.
“Did you two make up?” she asked. Serious and confident. This woman matched my brother perfectly. Not the spirited bundle of energy that Ava was, but still just as bold.
“Yes,” I answered. “Let’s go inside.”
I led them into the house.
“So that makes you my brother-in-law,” she said, her eyes perceptively taking in the room.
“Where are your other men?” Brinks asked, stepping in front of Riley.
“She seems like she can defend herself, Brinks. And I’m sure if I made a move, Grey would break my hand and then I’d break his neck, of course.”
He sneered, and I evaluated him, seeing the striking similarities to his sister. They looked more alike than Greyson and I did.
“My men are around.”
Donelli’s daughter screamed as Pack stepped from a corner.
“Like I said, they’re around. Stand down Raines, if you shoot my second, I’ll have to kill you to even the odds.”
“Angie, get over here,” he scolded, and I could see the relief as he tucked his gun back in his pants.
“It’s like gathering children for story-time,” Greyson muttered. I could see the reflexive twitch in Riley’s arm like she wanted to elbow him, but she stayed in control. This was still a serious situation, one that could erupt at any second.
“There’s so much testosterone in this room it’s smothering.” I surveyed a mop of curls that bounced as a curvy petite woman walked around the room, her eyes fixed on the computer and map set up in the center.
“And you are?” I asked. She was the only one I didn’t know, although I vaguely remembered seeing her in intel pictures on the Donelli’s. Something about her being Donelli’s accountant nudged the back of my mind, but I couldn’t place her name.
“My sister,” Raines said.
“Casey,” she said, hopping over to Mason, who threw his arm around her shoulder.
That piece of information I didn’t know, other than hearing her name from Ava, but then, my intel had been off since this debacle began. I looked between the two men. “Bet that went over well,” I muttered.
“Oh, he’s so like you, Grey,” Riley said, and my sight flew to her. I had never heard anyone call him Grey except me.
“We’re nothing alike,” he grumbled.
“Keep telling yourself that,” she said, giving me a smile.
I suddenly sensed the loss of Ava’s presence even heavier than I had and my mood dropped further.
“We’re losing time,” I said, my words terse.
“The imposters are using a warehouse as a front for their business. I have men scouting it and the residence of their leader, Henley.” I walked over to the map we had spread out on the table.
“He’s the one who was running the trafficking business under my nose.
We flushed him out, but he went underground, and we only just found him again.
We haven’t figured out how they're getting the girls in or out but suspect it's some kind of tunnel system below the warehouse.”
“How many men does he have?” Brinks asked, coming closer to the map, his eyes sharp as they flicked over it.
“The estimate is fifty, spread between the two locations, based on what our operative has reported,” Pack said, coming over to the table.
“This is Pack. He’s my second.”
Nods around, then focuses returned to the map.
“Fifty is a lot more than we have,” Raines said.