I stop pacing, staring at the unforgiving concrete walls. Olivia’s right. We have no idea where Jax has taken us. This facility could be anywhere.
Olivia stands, smoothing her ruined gown in a gesture so familiar it breaks my heart. “We need to be practical, Aurora. If Hunter comes, great. But we can’t just sit here waiting to be saved.”
She lifts her chin, and for a split second, something flickers in her eyes when she mentions Jax—not just fear, but somethingmore complex. “I can handle Jax,” she says. “I’ve dealt with powerful men my entire life.”
“Not like him,” I whisper. “He’s different.”
“I know.” She looks down at her hands. “But we might not have a choice.”
I hate that she might be right.
7
HUNTER
Kevin’s blood still stains my hands as I slam the car door shut. The warehouse raid was a complete failure—empty cells, wasted time, and Aurora still gone.
“Where to now?” Penn asks from the driver’s seat, his voice steady despite the firefight we just escaped.
I stare at my bloodied knuckles. Kevin’s final gurgle replays in my mind—the look of shock when I drove my knife into his throat, twisting it as payment for his betrayal. I don’t regret killing him. My only regret is that his death didn’t bring me closer to finding Aurora.
“Take us to the secondary location,” I command, wiping Kevin’s blood on my pants. “We need to regroup.”
The convoy of black SUVs peels away from the river property, headlights cutting through the night. Ari’s voice crackles through the comms, confirming that Grayson and Blaze successfully escaped with minimal casualties. Two of our men are dead.
“We need better intelligence,” I say. “Kevin played us. Jax knew we were coming.”
“We’ll find her,” Penn says, eyes on the road.
“I know we will.” There’s no doubt in my mind. I will tear this city apart brick by brick if necessary.
I check my phone—nothing from Jax. This silence is calculated. Jax wants me to stew, to make mistakes in my desperation.
I won’t give him the satisfaction.
“Contact our assets in traffic control,” I tell Penn. “I want footage from every camera within ten miles of the masquerade. Facial recognition on Jax’s known associates. Track all vehicles leaving the area.”
My mind races through Jax’s properties, his connections, his habits. I’ve known the man for years, yet he’s maintained secrets even from me. A critical error on my part—one that Aurora is now paying for.
“And Kevin’s body?” Penn asks.
“Drop it at Jax’s downtown apartment. Make it messy. Send a message.”
Every minute that passes is another minute Aurora is in danger. The thought of her with Jax makes my blood boil. The man has no boundaries, no code beyond his own paranoid self-preservation.
I check my weapon and reload it. “When we find him, Jax is mine.”
Once we get to our secondary location, Grayson clears his throat. “Our intel was compromised.” He unfolds a map marked with red dots across the city. “Jax has been operating parallel facilities unknown to the main Viper network for at least three years.”
I lean forward, scanning the locations. Seven potential sites where Aurora could be held captive.
“How reliable is this information?” I demand.
“Very.” Grayson slides a tablet toward me. “I’ve maintained my own surveillance on Jax since he executed Marcus. Theseproperties were purchased through shell companies, but the energy consumption patterns match secure holding facilities.”
Penn points to three locations in the industrial district. “These are most likely. Underground access, minimal civilian exposure, reinforced structures.”
“We’ll hit them all,” I say, my voice a steel edge. “Simultaneously.”
