Khane
We burned up the secure phone lines, calling in reinforcements. Going up against the FA wasn’t child’s play, even for a group like us who ate fear like it was a snack.
Four hours and twenty-five minutes had gone by since Desiree had taken off. We were assuming she hadn’t avoided the FA since her cousin Mecca had called us informing that she had located her car along the interstate, the doors left open, and her purse and destroyed phone on the ground. It appeared my fiancée was just as resourceful, if not more so, than we were.
Tywin glanced between Arjen and me for the hundredth time, taking in our bruises. “I have someone who’s willing to give up some information on the FA and their compound. The FA shot him five times and threw him in a shallow grave in the middle of the desert. He survived it, and now he plays Russian roulette with his life selling FA secrets. He claims he still has ties to a man on the inside that may be able to confirm if the FA has taken a woman. I’m going to link up with him to gather intel.”
Neither Arjen nor I replied, only nodded. Until we received confirmation, we had to assume that it was the FA that had taken Desiree.
“I’m going to the armory,” I informed them, standing and heading out without making eye contact with Arjen. We owned several armories, one inside each of our houses and several scattered throughout the area. The biggest was inside the basement of my house. Although Desiree knew I had a basement, she didn’t know of the multiple caverns it opened to. Only Arjen knew of the arsenal of weapons and incendiary devices I kept there. He also knew that the space was a secret underground prison. He and I had kept and tortured several of our enemy there.
“Good,” Arjen replied. He didn’t bother asking which armory I planned to crack open. He knew I wouldn’t go too far away in case we received a lead and had to leave in a hurry. “Bring enough to take out a whole fucking army,” he talked at my back as I was walking away. “It wouldn’t be wise to underestimate the FA.”
“Us either,” I called back over my shoulder before exiting the door.
Later, Arjen and I geared up with ten of our best men, preparing for what could be a one-way mission. The best option was to gas up the plane we rarely used and make the journey to the FA compound to take Desiree back.
We were prepared to negotiate, but if it was a fight they wanted, we were equipped for that as well. If Desiree wasn’t at the FA compound, our next move would be to capture and torture until we found a new lead. It would also mean we’d started a war with a Mexican cartel on their turf.
* * *
Arjenand I had our issues, but once we were focused, nothing or no one could turn it off. Tywin hadn’t joined us because he had worked tirelessly to get us the confirmation we needed to proceed with our mission. His connect at customs and border control had confirmed that members of the FA had transported an African-American woman across the border into Mexico.
Our briefing and plans were short, concise, and to the point. We had all been in battle before, in one form or another, so we knew the consequences going in. We also knew what had to be done if we were to get Desiree back in one piece.
Each of the twelve of us had taken our places near the FA compound, our weapons ready, with backup weapons pressed against various body parts.
My night vision goggles were strapped on tightly, giving me a glowing view of the men circling the compound with their weapons strapped to their backs, versus being aimed into the darkness like we expected.
“I have a visual on the package. I repeat, visual on the package.” The voice sounded through my earpiece: Linc confirming that Desiree was inside the compound.
After we had landed, we picked up the vehicles and additional equipment we’d needed to go up against the FA from members of our secret syndicate team in the local area. Death-dealers, assassins, and hitmen. It didn’t matter what you called us, we were all specialists at dispensing death in some way, shape, or form. Our ability to work together was profoundly empowering, as I believed we all harbored a sick fascination with killing.
The trip and gathering the additional equipment we needed had taken hours. Therefore, dusk was starting to settle upon our arrival and staging near the compound. The sun continued to peek, seemingly unwilling to let go of the daylight, preferring to shine light on what was about to go down. However, the persistence of night prevailed.
The screaming harmony of insects enveloped us, singing to the night. Dusk settled down on us like a weight. It flexed its savage darkness, fitting in like it was one of our deadly group members.
I turned into the direction where Arjen observed the distant view of the compound. “They don’t appear to be waiting for us. Either they’ve underestimated our ability to find this place, or they’re leading us into a trap.”
“Could be a trap, but it won’t stop me from going in there,” Arjen replied. He was in beast-mode, thinking like a savage animal. And they called me ‘The Kannibal.’ My brother had a savage nature about him too, but people saw a well-manicured man in a suit and were immediately tricked into thinking he was soft and cuddly until they found themselves staring into the eyes of the devil. The enemy rarely saw him coming until it was too late, an advantage he cherished like a family heirloom.
That Angel Ramirez had the both of us at his door was either his downfall or ours. At this point, someone was dying.
“I think we should observe their behavior patterns before we go charging in there. They could be using Desiree as bait. We could get her killed if we’re not careful.”
Even in the dim lighting, I noticed the glaring, angry eyes that Arjen flashed in my direction. I was never the one to suggest hanging back from any fight, but the idea of us jeopardizing Desiree’s life had me stalling for every possible outcome our defensive actions might produce.
“And we could get her killed if we don’t go and get her. It’s been twenty-four hours,” he replied with a devious side-eye that bent the moonlight to reach me. “Since the two of you have fucked, I’d think you would want to get her back as soon as possible. All she is now is an investment. A ten-million-dollar fucking investment that managed to turn my own brother against me.”
“I’ve not turned against you, Arjen. I slept with a woman that you keep calling an investment. One that you don’t love, and only wanted to marry because of what her family could bring to the table.”
“It doesn’t matter why I was marrying her. I would have liked the fucking chance to see if we could have become something more. She was the only woman that I wanted to do more than fuck, and you took that opportunity away from me.”
There was no need for me to reply because he was right. As much as I cared about Desiree, I was wrong to cross the line with her.
“We’ve got movement on the south side,” came the voice in my earpiece. The men hadn’t complained about Arjen and me bickering back and forth even though we had been going at it like two heart-ravaged teens since leaving Colorado.
We didn’t keep secrets from each other, no matter how embarrassing or deadly. Therefore, the men had been caught up on why we weren’t as solid as we normally were.