I ignore him, helping Sorcha into the car and fastening her seat belt.
“Mr. Taylor!”
I nod at Alec, who’s getting into his car. His driver pulls out just enough to block the police car that’s trying to slide into traffic behind us.
That’s only one of the groups chasing us, and Zhang’s is more of a concern. After the two SUVs holding my security pull in behind us, three more cars appear on the street.
“They’re not even making an effort to be subtle,” Callum says grimly from the front seat.
“Are they from that man, from Zhang?” Sorcha’s voice only has a slight wobble to it. “Did he try to buy me that night?”
I briefly consider lying to her, though I suspect she’d see right through it.
“Yes. Your brothers decimated his uncle’s triad. It is your family’s only action that I agree with,” I say. “The man was deep into the Red Trade and deserved to die. Zhang did not agree.”
“Fecking bastard,” she says, “I’d kill him myself if I had the chance.” Sorcha’s got a white-knuckled grip on her car door and she’s looking behind us. “He doesn’t seem to take no for an answer.”
“Alec and I have ended dynasties before,” I say, “and we’ll do it again if he challenges us.”
“Your friend hates me,” she says.
“His loyalty to me is stronger than his contempt for your family,” I correct her. “You are safe as my wife. The promise of protection was very much part of our wedding vows.”
“Boss, if I can interrupt,” Callum says urgently, “two of Zhang’s cars have peeled off, they’re pacing us on the streets parallel to ours.”
The Maserati SUV is bulletproof, though the extra weight makes it less nimble. I pull out my gun, checking that the clip is full. “I assume that Zhang has men positioned in front of the penthouse?”
Callum listens intently, tapping his headset. “Yes. And two police cars. That’s an awkward standoff. At least no one in that scenario will get what they want tonight.”
“If Zhang is desperate enough to start a firefight in the middle of London, we need to get off the street to avoid risking civilians. Somewhere with a helipad for the ‘copter to land,” I say, scrolling through a map of the area. “Ah. The McMasters Tower.”
“They still like us, right?” Callum’s loading his second pistol.
“For now,” I say dryly. I send a rapid text to Justin McMasters, requesting the use of his helipad.
He sends back one sentence.“You break it, you bought it.”
The McMasters are still unhappy about being in the middle of a firefight that decimated their father’s yacht last year.
“Still holding a grudge? I’ll do my best to avoid any unpleasantness.”
I can’t guarantee Zhang will behave, however.
“Let the car on the left that’s pacing us pull further ahead on this next street,” I say, “there will be an alley wide enough for us halfway through the block. The private garage for the McMasters Tower is one street over. Tell the men we do not engage unless absolutely necessary. We do not involve civilians.”
The gambit works, and as we shoot through the alleyway, we see one of our guard’s vehicles slam into Zheng’s chase car, smashing it into a brick wall. I raise a brow at Callum.
“No civilians were harmed in this action,” he says defensively.
“Just get us into the parking garage,” I sigh. “Have one of the guard’s SUVs block it.”
Callum frowns. “That only leaves us with one car for backup.”
“We’ll be fine.” I slide another pistol into my shoulder harness under my tuxedo jacket. Glancing at Sorcha, I see that she’s still calm, even though her full lips are compressed into a tight line. “My bride, have your feet healed enough to run, or shall I carry you?”
Her eyes are wide, staring at me with surprise.
“Are you all right?” I persist.
