The whine in his voice made Atlas hook an eyebrow. “How old are you, Robby?”
“Twenty-two.”
Well, shit. He wasn’t about to shoot a twenty-two-year-old kid who seemed to know fuck all about why he was here. “Your boss came here to buy a woman—my woman—who was kidnapped. Did you know about that?”
Robby’s eyes rounded. “No. Hell, no. He went inside. Ask him!”
“Does that surprise you?”
Robby lowered his gaze. “Not really. He seems like a sleazy guy, but up until now I haven’t been asked to do anything illegal. At least that I know of.”
“We need to get inside,” Havoc said, nodding toward the house.
“I’ll stay here with Robby boy,” Viper replied. “You two take care of Vinny. He’s the only straggler.”
Atlas nodded at Havoc. “Let’s go.”
Chapter
Twenty-Eight
Atlas stepped into the foyer. Knowing a woman lay dead in one of the bedrooms twisted his gut in the wrong direction. But as much as he was bothered by what had happened to that young woman, he couldn’t stop the words circling his mind:
That could have been Molly.
He moved through the house with his gun trained ahead of him. He didn’t dare turn on a light and alert Vinny—the bastard from the emails they’d found—that he was there.
Viper walked at his side. They swept the lower level then ascended the stairs and checked the kitchen and living room before turning toward the bedrooms.
As he made his way down the hall one step ahead of his comrade, the air grew thicker. Dense with the weight of death.
Viper inched closer as they entered the bedroom on the right.
Atlas couldn’t look at the deceased woman. Couldn’t think about how crushing it’d been to believe he’d found Molly’s body.
After clearing that space, they moved to the bedroom housing Willy’s body. The area was empty.
“Balcony,” Viper mouthed, motioning with his head.
Atlas stepped onto the concrete that overlooked the backyard. Movement in the corner of his eye made him swivel his rifle.
Crack!
Atlas ducked and a bullet whizzed by his head. The glass door behind him shattered. He lunged forward, driving his elbow into the man’s face. His attacker staggered backward, and his head hit the railing before he sunk to the ground.
Atlas wrenched the gun from his hands and glared at him. “You must be Vinny.” He hit the mag release, caught the magazine, stuffed it into his pocket, then dropped the weapon.
His gaze went to the coil of rope on the floor of the balcony. He picked it up. One end was tied to the railing, and the other was looped into a noose. He smirked. “Sorry to interrupt your party.”
“Fuck you!” Vinny spat.
“What, mad that you can’t rape any young women today?” Atlas said with disdain. Fucking tool.
He should leave this guy for the authorities. Abandon him on the island. But the slimy prick would just find another way to end his life.
He wanted the honors.
He pointed the gun at Vinny’s leg. “I’m curious. How long does it take to die once you hang yourself? Did you Google it before you tied the rope?”
