My gaze flew up, saw the imposing mansion with gothic Victorian architecture and my heart somersaulted painfully. Someone with blonde hair was on the ledge where the roof intersected with the attic.
“Aralina,” I whispered. Theo parked in front of the mansion and ran out.
“Stay here,” he ordered.
That was the worst thing someone could tell me when adrenaline was pumping in my veins, but I interlocked my fingers together to keep still. Theo sprinted up the steps and tried to open the door with his keys.
Then I worried about the guys choppering in. I had to warn them. I did a group chat with Dom, Trevor, Kirill, and Sato.
Me
Aralina is on the roof. Don’t get too near with the helicopter.
Dom
Fine time for you to be responding, sis
Kirill
Are you all right
Me
I’m fine.
Trevor
Finding an alternate landing site. We have some men en route, but I don’t think they’ll get there in time.
Kirill
I need a little more than I’m fine
Dom
@K.Zahkarov, your tone indicates you have much to learn when dealing with my sister.
Despite myself, I laughed.
“Fuck!” Theo growled and sprinted around the structure. He was having no luck getting in and gave up.
“I guess Jeremiah changed the locks—what are you doing?” Chloe exclaimed when I got out of the vehicle. “Theo said to stay here.”
“They would need more than a battering ram to get through those double doors, but I have to try.” Aralina was running out of time.
My breaking-and-entering degree from the school of necessity was about to come in handy again. I’d been arrested a few times.
Sigh. Those were the incidents Dom was referring to when he said I skated into shit and expected him to bail me out.
I knelt in front of the door and brought out my lockpicks. Working while wearing a cast presented a problem. This lock was more advanced than the one in the cabin, but after a few minutes, I felt the tumblers release. I tested the knob, and itgave in easily. I cracked the door. No alarm. I recalled Theo saying something about disabling the alerts and cameras. Which reminded me—I silenced my phone. How many times in movies had someone texting or calling screwed up chances of survival?
I signaled for Chloe to get Theo, but I slowly made my way into the house and pulled my revolver.
I nearly retreated when I saw one of the bratva soldiers in the foyer with a pool of blood under him. The stench of copper permeated the air. I forced my feet forward and approached the body. Despite being a hundred percent sure no one would survive that much blood loss, I checked for a pulse. Nada.
Another was sprawled face-up on the stairs. His face was half gone. It looked like he had been shot repeatedly and in anger. These were signs of a madman at work. But was I going to let it stop me? I thought again of Aralina on the roof. I needed to buy her time.
I inhaled a couple of deep breaths, fighting back bile and nausea.
