“I think you’re going to rip everything we’ve built together to the ground. All for what? Some girl you barely know?”
I lunge forward in a blind rage. Lucy barely reacts when I slam my knee into her thigh, twist her around, and wrap my hands around her throat. Her mouth opens, and she gags as I dig my fingers into her windpipe.
“Speak of my wife and daughter like that again and I’ll kill you.”
She stares at me. There’s strangely no fear in her eyes. “Had to be sure,” she chokes out.
My grip loosens. “What are you talking about?”
“Had to be sure,” she repeats more clearly this time. “Let go of me, you prick.”
I back away uncertainly. “Had to be sure what of?”
“Your commitment.” She spits on the floor and straightens her clothes. “God, Mass, you’re still such a fucking psycho. Youknow, all the years we’ve worked together, you’ve never touched me before?”
“Never needed to.”
“Yeah, well, here’s hoping it never happens again.” She pushes herself away from the window.
“Why do you fucking need to know about mycommitment?”
“Because Medved reached out. You need to hear what he has to say and you need to seriously consider it. That little girl and your wife are the most important people in your life. Dragon or not, I don’t give a damn. We built this place on people, and if you start turning your back on them now, you’re fucked.”
My eyes open slightly. “Funny, coming from you.”
“I mean it. All these people? They’re loyal because you helped them. You took them seriously. It’s the same with me.” Lucy looks away again. “You remember what I was like when you found me?”
“I remember a skinny girl with hate in her eyes.”
“My parents were murdered by the cartels. I stole a gun from my uncle and I was going to kill them in cold blood. I went to that nightclub thinking I’d start with a local guy, but instead, I found you, and somehow you talked me out of it. You made me believe in something bigger. You gave me a purpose like you give all these people meaning.”
I smile to myself. “You were the ballsiest girl I’d ever seen in my life. We ended up killing those cartel guys a few years later, remember that?”
“It was one of the happiest moments I’ve ever felt.” Lucy steps forward and puts a hand on my arm. “Do the right thing no matter what. Pay any price. Burn down any bridge. But get your daughter back.”
My smile fades. The memory of better days fades too. “He wants something big, doesn’t he?”
Lucy doesn’t answer. Instead, she pushes past me and heads down the hall. I hesitate before following.
She’s right that I built this empire on favors. I’ve taken care of people all my life, maybe as many as I’ve destroyed. I’ve always believed that the only way to create something lasting is to give as much as I take. Loyalty has to be earned. Money goes only so far.
But Satya has shaken that belief to its foundations.
I never dreamed someone like her would turn their back on me.
Now here’s Lucy telling me to hold on.
We’ve been together a long time. I was only sixteen when I found her. She was ten years old and already a vicious little monster.
Throughout that time, I’ve trusted her more than I can remember.
If she thinks this price isn’t too high, then I’ll have to pay it.
MASS
The warship cuts through the choppy waves. It's moving in a slow arc around the island, keeping well out of radar range. The high-tech drone can barely keep track of the sleek ship without giving itself away.
Lucy zooms the feed. There are men on deck carrying rifles, and a massive gun is bolted to the front frame. “I believe he’s on board.” She zooms in to a window, but the image is too pixelated. “I haven’t seen him yet, though.”
