Dante is waiting downstairs with Rafael. My papa decided not to join us this evening.
We slide into the waiting car, Dante in the front next to Rafael, me with Izzy in the back. Her leg jostles up and down nervously, her breath shallow, as she stares out the window.
“You got this,Piccola.”
Her head whips to mine, eyes narrowed, lips pulled into a frown. “You did not just call me that.”
I laugh. She pretends to hate that old nickname, but I know she secretly likes it. It's why I named my club after it.
I shrug, nudging her shoulder playfully. “If the shoe fits.”
A sharp thwack lands against my chest.“Bastardo fastidioso9,” she mutters under her breath.
My teasing has the desired effect—her shoulders are no longer bunched tight, and she’s not twitching with nerves.
The car rolls to a stop outside one of Xander's so-called ‘massage parlors’. They’re just fronts for his illegal operations—most of which I don’t give a damn about. But this one? This is where they send the girls. Not all, mind you, but enough.
We’re careful to close the car doors quietly, not wanting to alert our presence too soon.
“Alright, our intel says he should be here alone at this time. We get in, grab him, then get out again.”
Jerky head nods all around signal that everyone understands the plan.
Xander, according to the information from Kai and the guy I’ve had trailing him, is not the sharpest tool in the shed. He should be pretty easy to capture.
Swiftly, we move as a unit, pulling open the unlocked back door and filing inside. It’s dark, save for light spilling out of a room at the end of the hall. His office.
His voice floats down toward us.
“Luc, are you not worried? Derek’s been missing for weeks now. What if—”
Shit. He’s not alone.
I look towards the others—the silent conversation clear: do we continue with the plan or turn back?
Everyone nods again, eyes narrowing with determination.
Now’s the time.
We’re now right outside the office. I hold up a hand, telling everyone else to stay put.
The doors hinges squeak as I push it open, stepping into the room.
Thwack.
Pain lances through my skull.
“Fuck!”
Lucas’s slightly blurry face swims in front of my vision.His grin is evil—just like his soul. He shouldn’t be here.
I shake my head, clearly my vision, ducking just before he takes another swing at me.
Izzy’s high-pitched scream—one filled with rage—echoes as her, Dante, and Rafael join me. Our eyes meet, hers are filled with malice as her gaze flickers to Lucas. She charges, I step aside in time for her to lunge at him, both of them clattering to the floor. He twists, sending her sprawling, then kicks her in the face.
I see red.
Before I can charge at him Xander takes a shot at me, stealing my attention. My fist slams into his skull. Blood flies from his nose, the sound of crunching bones fills the air.
