“You heard it too?” She mumbles, yawning yet again.
“Yes, I’ve already called Cove. We don’t even need to tell him to bring more people.”
Aria nods, pushing her bushy hair away from her face. “How many people do we already have watching the place?”
“Seven,” I respond immediately, glancing out the balcony door. “I’ll send two for Mom. just in case. She still needs to rest, and if my suspicions are correct, we have roughly ten minutes before they burst the door down.”
Aria nods, a serious expression takes over her features. “I’ll put a mask on, just in case.”
I lift a brow. “A mask? Whatever for?”
“Freya supplied all the ventilation systems with sleeping gas. In case something goes to shit, I can turn them on with a press of a button. Everyone will fall asleep, and I’ll kill their men before you all wake up.”
“When the hell did this happen?”
“During one of your nightly excursions to stalk Blair,” she shrugs. “Speaking of which, how is she doing?”
“It wasn’t stalking,” I drawl out. “It wasprofessional following. I was just making sure she was safe with Kaya. The bitch can be impulsive, and I didn’t want to risk Blair getting hurt because of it. But I think she’s doing okay.”
“Good, that’s good,” Aria breathes out, her eyes falling to the balcony door. The wide, tall glass is making it easy to see the outside. “We have an advantage here, we know this house inside out. They don’t.”
“All lights off.”
Aria nods. “I’ll rip the switches off the wall if need be.”
“I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” I chuckle. “But do be careful, Aria. I don’t know how many of them are coming.”
“One thing I am certain of,” she turns to look at me, just as thunder hits the outside. For a split second, her face flashes, and the ominous glint in her eyes makes me confident that tonight will go in our favor. “Flint will be coming, too. Either he got scared and is in a rush to get rid of us, or he’s working under immense pressure from Simmons. Regardless, he wouldn’t want to miss the opportunity to witness us dying.”
“And Dad’s death gave him courage because he believes without Hudson… we’re nothing.”
Aria nods. “I’ll show him just how much of my father’s daughter I am.”
I approach her, ruffling her hair. “You’re just like him, Squirt. But be careful just in case though, yeah?”
Aria smiles. “Will do.”
“Let’s go now. Keep the remote for the ventilation on you at all times.”
With a quick nod, Aria walks around me, her footsteps fading into the background. I use the spare time; before the roaches make themselves known, to send two of our men to Mom’s door, one inside, one on the outside. Despite her state, I have high hopes she’d be able to defend herself if someone were to break into the bedroom, but I’m praying no one does.
We haven’t spoken since we visited Luna’s grave earlier today. She needs time, and I need to come to terms with the fact that my mother may not look at me the same, ever again. It’s a painful thing to imagine, but the fault is all mine, and this is nothing if not the consequences of my actions.
The lights inside of the house start turning off one by one. The moonlight sneaks through the balcony doors, and the windows are the only source of light. It’s dim, but it’s just enough for me. I know my home like the back of my palm, and even in pitch darkness, I know my way around.
These bastards don’t stand a chance.
I get downstairs, and head right for the entrance. I’m a couple of feet away from the door, my gun loaded, the safety turned off and aim. Ready for whoever walks through the door first, they will be the example to them all, of what happens when you cross a De Santis.
The insatiable monster in me is after blood. The fact that Flint is coming here to me, saving me the job of having to go and look for him, is the best gift I could’ve asked for right now. Kaya thinks it’s Simmons who put up the bounty hunt for Blair’s head, however, I have a feeling it was Flint’s idea. Simmons is on the run from many things. From my family, from Blair, but most importantly, for every possible intelligence service. From the FBI, CIA and even some branches of the Army, to the private detective offices. He pissed off a lot of people during his reign, and the moment his crimes were revealed to the public, he became the target. However, just like always in these situations, he still has followers – people, monsters who are just as bad as him.
Those can drop dead for all I care.
The only silver lining is that I know my Butterfly will be the one to kill him. He’ll be put six feet under, very, very soon. She’s not naturally a brutal person, but for that man? She’ll turn into a fucking beast, who will willingly bite his head off with no remorse.
And shewillbite his head off. He should consider himself lucky if that’s all she does.
My eyes dart to the side, glancing at the clock.
