This is it.
“Thank you, Boss. The headline comes as a shock to us all. I was unaware that any articles were going to be run, and typically wouldn’t bother with such trivial nonsense. However, this one specifically has some inconsistencies I’d like to clear up.” I hear the soldiers start to whisper, but I push on.
“The main one is that I’m sneaking behind enemy lines. That couldn’t be further from the truth. Mainly because I’m a grown ass man and don’t have to sneak to see, date, or fuck anyone. However, in saying that, I am in whatwillbecome a marriage with Jakob Fischer. As you all know, his father Lukas works for Karl Schwarz. One, they are not our enemies.Two, as you all already know from Mac’s fiance, none of the Fischer children are or have been involved in mafia business.”
Cathal, one of my higher soldiers, stepped up halting my speech. He worked on the same level as Owen, but he had a separate team working under him for clean ups, and other odds and ends we needed done. He’s about my age but definitely more old school in the way he did things. He’s never questioned the things we did around us, but we’ve heard rumbles of his displeasure in the past.
“Look, I don’t mean any disrespect, but you’ve lost your mind if you think I’m going to stand by and take orders from a fucking f–” He crumbles to the floor with a bullet between his eyes before he can finish the ignorant slur he was about to hurl at me.
In one swift motion I click the safety back in place and holster my weapon. “Anyone else?”
When no one else moves or says anything, I turn to Owen. “Find someone to take his place.”
“Who are you thinking, Boss?” He lifts a questioning brow.
“Dealer’s choice.” I can’t help but grin slightly when Owen smiles brightly.
“Sure thing, Boss.”
With that settled, my eyes scan the crowd and watch my soldiers standing, eyes wide with a look of shock on all their faces. I didn’t have a reputation like Kieran’s or a temper like Rowan and Mac. So me drawing my weapon and putting a bullet in a soldier’s head without blinking was comparable to a giraffe walking past them on its hind legs.
When the silence carries on long enough, Kieran claps his hands from behind me. “Perfect choice, gentlemen. Now that that’s settled, let’s talk about what the hell is about to happenin the next few days.”
I zone out while Kieran goes on his spiel about the plan we all carefully perfected last night. We’re ready for anything, and when Kie finally finishes laying out the plan, Rowan’s voice rings loud and sure through the crowd.
“Remember, you take out anyone you come in contact with. Except the girl. She’s to be taken alive to the warehouse.”
“She’s small and will appear docile. Don’t be fucking idiots. She should be handled like the enemy she is. We believe she’s behind the uptick in bodies we’ve been seeing for months. No, her restraints aren’t too tight. No, you didn’t hurt her from dragging her into the warehouse. No, this isn’t a misunderstanding or mistake. And most importantly, no, she will not fuck you in exchange for you letting her go. She may tell you that, but you’ll have a knife slicing your carotid before you know what’s happened.” Mac’s voice booms across the area.
After we finish up the meeting, we hang around for a while to answer a few questions and go over times and places to meet before piling back in our vehicles and leaving to go back to the estate. I’m anxious to get back to Jake and check on him. We’ve been gone longer than I thought we would be, but no one has texted me to let me know how he is. That makes me more nervous than if my phone was blowing up the entire time. Did they forget to check on him? Is he in pain? Fuck, what if he can’t reach his phone to call someone for help?
I’ve worked myself up, so I don’t know why I’m shocking myself when we pull up outside of the estate and I practically leap from the vehicle and tear into the house and up the stairs. Pushing into our room, I stop in my tracks when I realize he’s sound asleep with Hannah asleep beside him and Dieterasleep in a desk chair he’s pulled up beside the bed. My breath rushes out of my lungs in relief. Walking over, I kiss Jakob’s head gently before slowly backing out of the room and going back down the stairs, backtracking to Rowan’s office to work with him for a bit before I wake them up. It’s still early, and he needs rest so he can heal.
41
Chapter Forty-One
Flynn
Agroan works its way up my throat in frustration as I watch Annie dart around the corner as soon as she spots me. I’m hyper aware of her presence in my house, and it’s driving me mad. Of course all this shit has to happen a mere week before I have to leave for training camp. My luck would allow for nothing else than to be trapped in a house with the one girl who has me flipped around but wont give me a second look.
It was three years ago, and yet she acts like I set a damn puppy on fire. I follow her down the hall to see if she’ll talk to me but quickly realize that Calvin is here to see her. Seeing them seemingly arguing by the back door sets my blood on fire. Why the hell didn’t anyone tell me that he was here? He shouldn’t be.
I’m about to turn away when I notice him grab her wrist and yank her into him. She winces and he sneers in her face. His face is red with anger and I have to force my feet to stay in place. The second his hand pulls back, I’m charging ahead.
“Annie, your Da is looking for you.” Her head jerks over to me in surprise, her brows furrow for just a second before realization dawns on her, and she nods.
“Okay, yeah. I was just showing Calvin out.” She pops up on her toes and presses a fast kiss to his cheek. “I’ll see you in a few days. Love you.” She calls over her shoulder as she scurries up the stairs.
Calvin nods as he tries to move past me, but I easily slam him against the glass door with my forearm pressing into his throat. I stand about four inches taller than him, so he has to tilt his head up to look at me. Good, that’s exactly how I want him. Let him go toe to toe with someone bigger than him for once.
“If I ever see your hands on her again, I will slit your throat and scatter your body parts all over the city.” I seethe.
His smirk makes me even more murderous. “I know all about you, Flynn. Don’t think we’ve never talked about you. And it’s because we’ve talked that I know that she’d sooner eat her own hand than give you the time of day.”
He’s shooting for my ego, but he misses. He won’t tell me anything I don’t already know, and I won’t allow him the satisfaction of seeing anything other than the anger I feel towards him. Regardless, he needs to get out of my house before I skin him alive.
Okay, so maybe I won’t. But Kieran will without hesitation.
