“Do it,” he murmured.
A gunshot rang out, and a man shouted in pain.
Eddie glowered at Seth. “You’ll pay for that.”
Seth gave a hand signal. “Bring it, old man.”
The operatives tucked and rolled in various directions as gunshots rang out. They landed in a crouch and pulled the triggers of their weapons almost in sync. Men all over the compound staggered and fell. Some groaned. Others rolled on the ground, fighting the pain of their injuries. Still others just dropped and remained still.
Iona bent to check the MC member at her feet for a weapon. She snatched the Desert Baby Eagle from his lifeless hand and tossed the weapon into the thick underbrush on the other side of the fence.
When she turned to check another MC member for weapons, Eddie wrapped his arm around her neck in a quick strike and pressed his weapon to her head a second later.
“Hold,” Seth shouted. The operatives paused. “Put it down, Eddie, and let her go.”
“Never. Elias, drop your weapon and come to me now, or your Old Lady dies.”
“Dad, don’t do this. She has nothing to do with what’s between us.”
“She’s the key to your cooperation. Drop your gun, Elias.” He shoved the barrel of the gun harder against Iona’s temple. A trail of blood dripped down the side of her face and neck, then into her shirt.
One glance at the fury in Iona’s eyes told him what she wanted. He couldn’t do it. She didn’t understand how determined his father was to accomplish his goal. With threats, Eddie Knight didn’t bluff. He meant every word he spoke. He would kill Iona to punish Elias, then kill his friends one at a time until Elias gave in to the inevitable.
“All right. I’ll do it. Just don’t hurt her or my friends.” He tossed his Sig to the side, making sure the weapon was far enough away from his father that Eddie couldn’t use it against Elias and his teammates.
“That’s better.” Eddie relaxed. “Come to me. We’re leaving. Lucky for you, we’re taking your Old Lady with us. I have plans for her.”
“No.” Elias shook his head. “Iona stays here, or the deal is off.”
“You have nothing to bargain with.” He gestured with the weapon, then pressed the barrel against Iona’s temple again. “That way. Get moving. You’re already going to the punishment chamber as soon as we reach our destination. Apparently, Sarge didn’t have enough time to tame your independent streak, so I’ll remedy that myself. Just like old times.”
Nausea built in Elias’ stomach at the memories swamping him. Hours and hours spent in the punishment room eachweek, all because he couldn’t and wouldn’t be what his father demanded, a copy of himself. “Fine. You have me. I’ll do whatever you want for as long as you want. Just don’t hurt Iona.”
“That’s more like it.” He inclined his head toward a faint trail leading deeper into the forest. “We’re going that way. You go first.”
Elias forced himself to follow the trail, stumbling over roots and loose rocks. He righted himself time after time and stumbled on until his legs gave out and he sank down on all fours in front of a tree.
He hoped to catch his breath for a few seconds, but nausea got the better of him and he upchucked repeatedly.
“You weakling.” Eddie cursed at him. “I suppose I’ll have to go back to Plan B and use Dutch as my heir. Why did you have to take after your mother?”
Iona pulled Eddie’s arm away from her neck and took a deeper breath. “Sorry, Eddie. You’re out of luck.”
He scowled. “What do you mean?”
“If you’re expecting good old Dutch to resume his place as your heir, he can’t. He’s dead,” she said flatly.
“You killed him?” His voice echoed in the night.
“You bet I did. He was aiming a gun at Elias. I took him down with no regrets.”
“I’ll kill you for that,” he roared. “He was family.”
“Yeah? Sure couldn’t tell by the way you treated him or Elias. Some father figure you are.”
Keeping his hold on her wrist, Eddie spun her away from him and slapped her face. The impact of the blow split her lip, causing blood to trickle down her chin.
“Knock it off, Dad,” Elias snapped. “Hurt her again, and our deal’s off.”
