Page 37 of Hendrix
I looked up to see an ostentatious but attractive, red-bricked house with a slate grey roof. It was built over three stories with huge, oak double doors situated in the middle of the building and arched windows dotted along the first and second floors.
As impressive as it appeared, it wasn’t Anna. My woman loved cozy comfort. She liked slouchy furniture we could sprawl across while she lay on top of me, feeding me ice cream. My woman would take clean, crisp cotton over satin sheets every time. Anna needed welcoming, relaxed, and easy; she had explained to me once how she yearned for something that felt like home because she’d never really had a decent one before.
“Earpieces in,” I ordered. “Make sure your comms are working before we go in.”
The brothers followed orders and we tested the comms between us until I was satisfied everything was as it should be.
Colt parked the SUV at the bottom of the street, then grabbed his iPad from the holder on the dashboard before beginning to tap. “They’re in the kitchen,” he advised us. “Antoni and Leon Lis and their cousin, Filip, are all there. Looks like they’re snorting blow.”
“Where’s Anna?” I demanded.
“In her room. She’s certainly not roaming the place.”
A tight feeling enveloped my gut. “Can you see if she’s okay?”
“Nope,” he replied. “Don’t got eyes in Anna’s fucking bedroom. I’m not a damned pervert.”
My jaw clenched.
“Chill, Prez. We’ll be in and out of there within forty-five minutes,” Picasso assured me. “She’ll be fine once we get to her.”
“He’s right, Prez,” Gambit agreed. “Won’t be long now, and we’ll get her safe.”
Their words settled me somewhat, but I couldn’t stop the stab of worry from digging inside my chest. I should never have let Anna go. I’d told myself I wasn’t good for her and that she was happy. I wanted Anna to have everything I couldn’t give her, like marriage and a good life. Except now, I knew I wanted those things too, but only with her. She was everything I needed, but I just wished I could’ve come to that conclusion before I forced her to dump my ass and marry another man.
“Do we all know what we’re doin’ and where we’re goin’?” I checked.
A chorus of ‘yes, Prezs’ went up.
“It’s time,” I muttered. “Stick close and make sure your weapons are at the ready just in case they catch wind that something’s wrong.” My eyes went to Iceman, then Breaker. “You two good with the plan?”
Breaker pulled an army knife from under his shirt where he’d previously sheathed it. “I’m ready,” he rasped. “Time to play.”
A cold shiver went down my back at the emptiness in his eyes. During the journey, Break had gotten into the zone. All the humanity in his demeanor had gone, leaving behind something almost subhuman.
Ice’s face had also morphed into a blank mask. “Be careful,” he told me with a jerk of his chin before silently opening the door of the SUV and slipping out into the street with Breaker at his heels.
Picasso caught the door before it closed and looked at me expectantly. “Ready, Prez?”
I glanced at Colt, then Shepherd, and gave them both chin lifts. Then, with a deep breath, I pulled on my gloves, threw open my door, and slid out, waiting for it to shut quietly behind me.
I rounded the car toward Cass and Gambit, who had piled into the street, and we set off. Our generic, black sneakers flew silently over the sidewalk that led to our destination.
The house loomed before us, big and oppressive. Most of the windows were in darkness apart from one on the second floor at the front of the building. Quickly and silently, we moved toward the rear of the house, staying on the footpath to avoid leaving footprints.
As we neared the rear of the house, we were met by a tall gate at least seven feet high. Picasso leaped at it, just for a few seconds hanging from the rail at the top, then pulled himself up and over it, disappearing into the shadows of the large, landscaped back garden.
I crouched down and locked my fingers together, signaling for Gambit to use my gloved hands as a vault. He was a big guy at six feet five and two hundred pounds of muscle, so he needed a bit of help to get his ass over. The instant he pulled his body up and over the gate, I moved back a few meters, ran, and leaped. I easily reached the vertical metal bar at the top of the gate and, with one hand, hauled myself up, using the other to gain some leverage to vault over before dropping down catlike to the other side.
After quickly taking stock of my surroundings, I moved into the shadow of a huge Chinese chestnut tree where my brothers waited in a spot that gave us a view of the back of the main house but still allowed us to stay out of sight.
My heart thudded as Breaker’s voice came over the comms.“I’m in, and I’m clear.”
“Fuck me,” Gambit muttered. “That was quick.”
I couldn’t help but smirk. “Breaker’s a fuckin’ machine when he’s in soldier mode. He did some shady, dark shit in Afghanistan, brother. He’d fit in with us Virginia boys no problem.”
“How the fuck did Breaker get over the gate, scope the place out, and get inside without tripping any alarms?”
