sing his eyes, he pinched the bridge of his nose and gave a slow shake of his head. His stomach churned as he fought to force the words past the dry constriction in his throat.
“No. I can’t take that risk. Laychee might be banking on us to close ranks, and the last thing I want is to give him that kind of payday. You have your own fort to hold down. Keep your son and Monique safe. Just…whatever goes down, however things play out tonight, please make sure Taylor is okay.”
“I will. I got you, partner. Always.”
He hung up without answering. There was nothing left to say. The risk of not coming home again was something they faced every time they walked out the door. It was a risk everyone took whether they wanted to admit that fact or not. Even the average Everyday Joe stood the chance of getting hit by a bus when he crossed the street or wrapping his car around a telephone pole on the way home from work. When it came down to it, death was the only real guarantee life had to offer. As Marx so often liked to say, every day is just another game of Russian roulette. Some days you pull the trigger. Some days someone else pulls it for you.
A cold sneer stretched across Sebastian’s face as he pondered those words. Let the sons-of-bitches try. He’d be waiting, even if guns weren’t his usual modus operandi. When it came to eliminating a threat, he preferred a much more up close and personal hands-on approach. It was more intimate and gratifying that way. When he shot, he shot to kill.
Bullets were a last resort—a way to put a swift, merciful end to someone’s suffering. They were an act of kindness in his mind. One he preferred to do without. He liked time to toy with his targets and make them think about what they had done. Sebastian’s resolve deepened as he walked into the bedroom and put his uniform on. If he had his way, Laychee was going to be thinking long and hard when all was said and done.
After dressing, he crouched beside the bed and brushed his knuckles across Taylor’s forehead. A small smile played on his lips as he watched her lashes flutter against her cheeks before she stirred and peered back at him through the shadows. She stretched beneath the comforter with a quiet grunt before reaching out to wind her arms around his neck and draw him closer. Sebastian gathered her against his chest and held her tight, savoring her delicious smell.
“I have to go, baby,” he murmured into the silky haven of her hair. “I just wanted to tell you how much I love you.”
“I love you, too, Seb. Please be careful.”
Smiling, he kissed her temple. “I will. Stay safe, darling. I’ll see you soon.”
Darkness stretched across the overgrown yard, crawling between the empty shells of abandoned truck trailers and rail cars. Seeing them only sparked his anger. The last trip he’d taken to the warehouse had almost proved fatal. Sebastian cracked his neck and tightened his jaw. He did not intend to repeat that unpleasant debacle. His gaze narrowed as it traveled the length of the chain-link fence lining the perimeter before roaming across the obscure grounds. There was still no sign of Laychee or any of his goons.
Dominic shifted in the seat beside him, his attention trained on the computer monitor. Casting him a sidelong glance, Sebastian fought to keep both glare and scowl at bay. The car shimmied with the antsy bounce of Chase’s right foot. Despite his inability to sit still, the man was too rigid and apprehensive. His anxiety bordered on fear, only serving to heighten Sebastian’s suspicions. Rage threatened as he wondered what kind of simpleminded fool his teammate mistook him for. The thought made him want to gut the man now and spare himself the trouble of having to do it later.
Sighing, he forced his attention back out the window. He really didn’t want to stain the Benz’s interior. The car was brand new and blood was a pain in the ass to get out.
“I’m starting to think you dragged me out of bed just so you could spend a little quality one-on-one time alone with me, Agent Chase,” he mused in a soft voice.
The man’s nervous laugh echoed through the car. “No, sir. I assure you this wasn’t my idea. It was Marx’s.”
Sebastian gave a stiff nod. “So you claim.” He kept his expression passive and his stare trained out the side window while his teammate turned to search his face.
“You don’t care for me very much, do you?”
He fixed Dominic with a pointed look. “Why should I?” he asked flatly. “You’ve done nothing but disrespect and challenge me since Todd’s unfortunate mishap.”
The man’s broad shoulders stiffened and he balled his fists in a brief show of fury. “He was my partner.”
Sebastian issued a humorless huff and turned his attention back to the dilapidated yard. “Perhaps you should have kept your partner in line if you valued him so much.”
“Yeah? And what about you, Sebastian? Who’s there to keep you in check, huh? Who the hell do you answer to? Because it sure as hell isn’t Josh.”
He twisted in his seat with a tight smile and the cold glint of challenge in his eyes. “I answer to Marx, and Marx alone. It’s not your place to question the chain of command, Dominic, only to follow it. The disciplinary actions I face may not seem like much to you, but you are more than welcome to take my place if you wish. We can see just how true that rings.”
“You take shit too far.”
Sebastian offered an impassive shrug. “According to Marx, I don’t take things far enough when it comes to the members of this team. I think I’ve been more than gracious in regards to your behavior and lack of protocol. Perhaps too much so. That remains to be seen.”
“Trust me, mercy and compassion aren’t words that get tossed around with your name.”
“Good. I would find it deeply disturbing if they did.”
Taylor tossed and turned, her mind refusing to shut down enough for her to fall back asleep. The king-sized bed seemed to swallow her whole. It felt too big, too empty, and cold without Sebastian in it. Curling up with his pillows didn’t help. All it did was make her miss him more. As hard as she tried, she couldn’t stop wondering what he was doing and if he was okay. She watched shadows creep across the walls for what felt like hours before throwing the covers back with a frustrated huff. It was pointless. She wouldn’t be able to sleep again until he came home.
After sliding into a pair of lacy hip huggers and a long, stretchy tee, she snared her silk robe off the hook in the bathroom and cinched it tight. A slight wince crossed her face as she padded through the vast master suite and sitting room. Sebastian’s latest reminder was going to stick with her for a while.
She was halfway down the stairs that led into the kitchen when a shout near the back of the grounds caught her attention. Faltering, her hand tightened around the smooth wooden banister. Her brow knitted as she tried to swallow past her dry throat, her ears straining. It wasn’t the first time something spooked the security team. More often than not, it turned out to be some random animal moving beyond their scope of vision. Once, it had turned out to be the old man who lived down the street, the only neighbor they had for miles, walking his dog at some ungodly hour. Sebastian had headed outside to handle that one.
She frowned. Now that she thought of it, she used to see Mr. Davies walking his dog every afternoon, but she hadn’t seen him since. Not that she blamed him. If she saw armed guards standing in someone’s yard and was confronted by someone as intimidating as Sebastian, she would’ve found a different route, too. Quite possibly a different neighborhood.
Taylor wondered if having an uber scary Special Agent type living up the road was a selling point or if it detracted from the property value. She could almost hear the realtor now: “No, really, he’s a nice guy. Just don’t walk your dog past his house at two in the morning.”
The thought made her giggle. Seconds ticked by without hearing anything else. Her mouth was so dry; it felt like someone had packed it with cotton. Unable to bear it anymore, she descended the last few steps. The cool stone tiles shocked her feet, jarring her slightly more awake as she made her way to the fridge. Her fingers had barely finished curling around the gleaming stain
less steel handle when a bright flash erupted and a deafening blast sent her splaying on the floor with a scream. The ground shook. Everything pulsed in and out around her, and the house itself seemed to rock as if struck by a cannon. Or a bomb.
Her heart hammered, fluttering in the base of her throat, robbing her of breath. Dazed and disorientated, she struggled to make sense of what had just happened and regain her senses. There was no way she was going anywhere near the back windows to find out. Shaking, she started to inch across the floor when two more blasts followed in quick succession, the rapid flickers similar to lightening—blinding, fast, and followed by explosions that rattled her to the core. Her head, teeth, and chest vibrated with the deafening percussion. Her ears rang. Nothing made sense. In the distance, she could hear the wail of her car alarm, though it sounded as if it sat parked miles away.
Dimly, she wondered if the gas lines were erupting.
Shouts echoed in the backyard, this time in earnest. She couldn’t make the words out, but a chill zipped down her spine hearing the faint notes of panic riding the men’s voices. Rapid flickers of light lit her field of vision, adding to her confusion as gunshots peppered the night. It all faded beneath another blinding explosion. Only this time, the patio glass doors blew inward in a deadly hail. Shards of glass sailed through the air and rained around her as she scrambled for the foyer. Her thoughts came in a frantic jumble as she staggered to her feet in a running crawl. She had to get to the front door, but how would she ever make it out the gates before someone gunned her down or blew her to smithereens? The shrill car alarm was only adding to her panic. The office. There was a phone in there and a pistol in the top drawer. The bedroom. Sebastian kept a gun stashed in his nightstand.
Glass crunched behind her and the front doors bowed inward beneath a heavy blow. Wide-eyed, Taylor spun to her right and stumbled backward into the living room. Gruff male voices called out around her, violating the safety of her home. Fighting to keep her breathing as quiet as possible, she pressed back into the shadows. The sheer size and layout of the house worked in her favor. If she could edge her way back through the living room, there was a good chance they would pass right by her on their surge to the front. Maybe she could wrap back around through the kitchen and make an escape as they searched the upstairs.