“We need every room searched. Every square inch of this property,” I command. “Holden?”
“Yes, Boss,” he answers automatically.
I smile behind my mask. “Any company?”
“All clear.”
“No more splitting up,” I say, rolling my shoulders to relieve some tension. I’m wound up so damn tight. This went in no way like we planned.
We start sweeping downstairs, hearing all clear from the guys outside searching. Where the fuck is she? And did they really set me up? Those two things keep running through my head after every room we search, and it’s clear. Is Viktor even here? There is no way he would let me ransack his house without his presence being known; his ego is too big for that.
We clear the downstairs and head upstairs, stepping over bodies everywhere. This house is huge, with at least twenty rooms to search. Ryder reaches for a door handle, and I grab his wrist to stop him. I hear a whimper coming from the room across the hall and listen closer.
“Is that what I think it is?” Gage whispers. So, I’m not going crazy if he hears it too.
I walk closer to the door, with them following closely behind me. I press my ear against the door and almost give up before it sounds again. It’s feminine, and they sound scared.
“Nina?” Ryder whispers, and I shrug. One way to find out; I reach for the handle only to be jerked back behind Dex.
“Stop fucking doing that,” I growl, getting pissed that they keep pushing me to the side.
“Remember what we talked about, Boss?” Dex reminds me of our conversation about letting them take care of me sometimes.
I wave my hand impatiently for one of them to open the door. Ryder reaches for the door, slowly twisting the knob and shoving the door open. He walks in with Dex at his back, guns at the ready. An ear-splitting scream echoes off the walls, making me cringe.
I rush in between them, pulling the syringe from my pocket. Nina is tucked beside the bed and wall, trying to scramble back from me, but she’s as far as she can go. Sending a silent apology, I jam the needle into her leg and push the plunger, cutting her off mid-scream.
“Let’s go,” I tell the guys. Ryder walks over and scoops Nina up in his arms after I step back.
“Holden, bring the van to the house,” Ryder says, walking for the door.
“What?” Holden croaks.
“You can do it,Bello,”Ryder soothes. “Now move.”
I hear rustling, and then a door shutting. We make our way downstairs, and I survey the damage as I go by, kicking one of Viktor’s guards’ guns. The asshole couldn’t even equip his guys with the best; they are cheap semi-automatics, and why they resorted to tackling and punching people when they jammed.
We hit the porch, and my eyes immediately search out Micah. That hit he took scared the shit out of me. I can’t lose him, and in an instant, I almost did. Evander has him leaning against the side of the porch, crouched protectively in front of Micah, gun at the ready. He swings it our way when he hears our boots scuff and immediately lowers it when he sees it’s us.
The van’s headlights flash across us before it comes to a screeching halt in front of the porch. Holden jumps out and opens the back doors for us. I climb in, and Ryder gently lays Nina down on the floor with her head cradled in my lap. The rest of them pile in with Ryder and Dex up front. Everyone pushes their hoods back, pulling off their masks. I’ve never been so grateful than this very moment to see everyone’s face.
“Damn, Pretty girl,” Gage says from his spot in front of me. “Who got your face?”
I gently touch my nose. “Some asshole downstairs.” Evander is stripping Micah’s hoodie off and then loosening his vest, Micah groaning the whole time. “Micah?”
“I’m okay, shithead,” he says, then groans again when Evander pulls the vest over his head.
“Sorry, man,” Evander apologizes. “I need to see how bad it is.”
“It got the vest. It will just bruise like a motherfucker. I’m fine,” Micah says harshly, trying to push Evander’s hands away.
“Or you can quit being a dick and let me look,” Evander says evenly.
The rest of us exchange a look that witnessed what happened earlier in the kitchen before our eyes are pulled back to them. I’m more than intrigued at this point.
Micah drops his hands and huffs. Evander takes that as his cue, pulling Micah’s t-shirt up and hissing between his teeth. The bullet hit Micah right in the middle of the chest, and the bruising is spreading rapidly. “Fuck, man,” Evander says hoarsely, raising his hand like he’s going to touch Micah before dropping it to his side.
“How long to Marcella’s?” Micah asks, groaning again when Ryder hits a bump in the road wide open.
