My hands balled into fists, and my jaw clenched so tight I thought I might crack a tooth. Jessica Fitzgerald was mine, and no one took what belonged to me.
Kade placed a hand on my shoulder. “We will get her,fratello.Right now, we need to focus on getting Lily to the hospital. I’ll get Bohdi and the team ready for an extraction.”
I nodded, not trusting myself to speak. I looked at the frail young girl wrapped in a blanket, talking to Zombie. Her eyes met mine, and I could see the fear in them. She was scared, no doubt about that, and worried about her sister. I would make sure Lily never had to fear anything again.
I would destroy Miguel Stefanos.
“I found her!” Phantom called from the van fifteen minutes later.
I darted over, watching as Phantom’s fingers danced over the keyboard. On the screen was a map with a red dot. She wasn’t far from here. It looked to be another abandoned warehouse about three miles away.
“Let’s roll,” I called out to the team as we all filed into our vehicles.
I knew we needed to get Lily to a hospital, but she refused to go anywhere until her sister was found. I didn’t blame her. I saw Badger’s ferocity echoed in the young girl’s eyes.
The drive felt like it took forever as we navigated the quiet streets. As we pulled in near the building, I looked behind me to see Lily biting her nails.
“Stay in the car, and whatever you do, stay low. This is dangerous, Lily, I need you to promise me you won’t get out of this car.”
She gave me a steely stare. “I promise.”
With that, I nodded and got out of the car, meeting the rest of the team several feet away. We already had a plan. I was the bait. I walked into the warehouse quietly, using my military training to guide me. As I got to the main part of the warehouse, I saw her.
She was tied to a wooden chair, her hair a mess, and it looked like she had been crying. Her mouth was gagged, instantly making me see red. Someone dared to touch her and do this to her. As if sensing me, she opened her eyes and tried to communicate, but was muffled by the rag.
“Freeze, dog.” Stefanos’ heavily accented voice rang out throughout the warehouse. “Hands where I can see them.”
I did as I was told, raising my hands and giving Badger a reassuring look. This guy wouldn’t get the jump on me again. I was prepared.
“Dumb of you to come alone, Machine,” Stefanos taunted.
“You really think I came alone?” I asked with my hands raised.
I heard the click of the trigger before the gunshot. Stefanos went down somewhere behind me, bellowing in pain. I turned around to see Kade holding up his gun, smoke curling from the barrel. Stefanos lay on the floor, holding his right shoulder. I kicked his gun away, making him yell in frustration.
As Kade and Bohdi went to work on getting Stefanos out to the van, I ran to Badger and started cutting the ropes that bound her. The rest of the team ran in and did a sweep of the building to ensure it was empty.
As soon as her hands were free and the gag removed, Badger wrapped her arms and legs around me. I ran a hand down her hair and tried to soothe her shaking body.
As we made it outside, I walked over to my Durango and set Badger down. She looked up at me with hopeful eyes. I nodded my head yes, knowing what she was asking. I opened the rear door to reveal Lily wrapped in a blanket, out like a light. Badger’s eyes filled with tears before she wrapped me in another hug.
“Thank you, thank you so much, Evan.”
At the sound of her sister’s voice, Lily jolted awake.
“Jessie?” she cried.
Badger spun out of my arms, leaving me feeling empty. She leaped into the SUV and wrapped her arms around her sister. They both cried and held on to each other as I walked to the team to give them privacy. After giving them several minutes, I walked back up to the open door.
“We need to get you both checked out. We are bringing you to the hospital,” I said.
Badger nodded her head as she buried her face in her sister’s neck. I think she would have agreed to just about anything at that point. I closed the door and got into the driver’s seat before driving off to the hospital. Once the girls were seen, I would meet Kade to finish Stefanos once and for all.
FORTY-SEVEN
BADGER
As I held onto Lily in the hospital bed, I wondered where Kade had taken Stefanos. That pig needed to pay for what he did, and I had no doubt that Machine and Kade would take care of him. Phantom, Buddha, and Chief were with us, not letting us out of their sight. Monte was outside the hospital, standing watch for any more trouble.
