“What the fuck do you want?” Maksim asked, irritated.
“The others are here.”
“About fucking time.” He picked up his phone and dialed a number.
“Where should I put them?” the guy with the crutch asked. He glanced at me.
“I want them close when I need them. I don’t give a shit what they do until then. They can sleep wherever they find a spot.”
The Crutch nodded and turned, taking his time to leave.
“He annoys the living shit out of me,” Maksim said to Aleks. “I should have shot the fucker when he came back looking like that.”
“You should be happy Viktor didn’t kill him,” he commented. “At least it gave you a leg up.”
“Don’t make it sound like he was of any use to me,” Maksim growled. “Getting your hands on the woman only bought you a bit of grace. You’re not special.”
“I was just saying.”
“When I want your opinion, I’ll fucking give it to you,” Maksim snapped. He turned back to his computer system.
Aleks crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against a wall a short distance away from Maksim, sulking. Maksim clearly wasn’t a good boss, nor was he the good man he claimed to be.
I understood Viktor more than I had before.
Viktor
I was not letting Maksim get away with this. The son of a bitch had forced me into hiding for long enough. I’d stayed away because it had been easier than facing him, better for me to be removed from society altogether.
But everything changed. Angela needed me. And I refused to let my past ruin her future. I wouldn’t let her be Maksim’s victim.
She was mine. I was going to get her back. And I was going to fuck Maksim up for just looking at her, let alone whatever else he had in mind. This was Maksim’s last day on this earth.
I stood in my gun shed. The gaping hole Angela had kicked into it had let in all kinds of forest creatures looking for a place to hide from the night, and they’d scattered when I’d pulled open the door. I grabbed guns and knives and ammunition from the boxes and drawers I’d crudely set up when I’d come here. I hadn’t needed to use any of it. Now, I strapped myself up so that I looked like fucking John McClane, ready to take back what was rightfully mine. Yippee ki yay, Maksim.
When I was ready, I headed through the trees. I was on the hunt. I’d slipped back into my old skin. The cold, hard killer had returned for one last mission. When I moved through the trees, I was nothing more than a shadow, melting from one dark patch to the next. I’d checked the radars before suiting up. Maksim and his men weren’t far off. Their trackers had lit up my screen like a Christmas tree.
And I was going to be the gift that just kept on giving. Bang, bang, motherfucker.
When I’d walked away from Maksim, I’d laid down my guns and told myself that I would never do anything to hurt another human again. I would never presume to judge people, decide that they had to die.
Now, it was different. I was ready to dish out what was coming to them. I still knew exactly what I was capable of, and Maksim was going to learn just who he had fucked with. He had no fucking idea what was coming for him.
My ugly side was showing again. The monster had woken up. This time, though, it had nothing to do with my past. It had nothing to do with who I thought I should be, and what I thought others deserved.
This was about Angela. About the woman who had in a very short time become everything to me.
And about Maksim, who did not deserve any kind of mercy.
For the first time, I was going to use my skills to save someone. I was going to use my skills to do something good.
The rush of triumph at that thought was overshadowed by the fact that Angela was in danger. What if something happened to her? What if Maksim hurt her before I got there?
Or killed her?
I didn’t trust the asshole. His words meant nothing. And he loved inflicting pain. He loved calling the shots. Maksim was the kind of man who believed he could play God.
I was going to show him what it was like to bleed.
The place where he’d taken her was a short distance away from my cabin. Across the valley and up on the other side, nestled away in a thicket of trees. It had been a house once, but it had been abandoned for years. I’d looked to hide out on that side of the mountain at first, but because of the structure already being there, I’d decided to move further away from where humans had been. Just to be safe.
I knew exactly how to access the place, though. I remembered the layout. When you were in the business I’d been, you trained yourself to notice the important things. And you didn’t fucking forget. It could mean life or death.
And now, it did.
When I found the place, I moved up against the hillside a bit and squatted next to a tree, scoping out the building. It was dead quiet in the middle of the night, with little movement. But there was life at the old building now. Lights were on here and there, and the roar of a generator from the back room explained how they’d managed it.
Inside, there was movement. The building had two large rooms and a few storage rooms around the side. The windows – mostly broken now – were large and supposed to offer a beautiful view. I doubted anyone was enjoying the view now.
Movement caught my eye. Dark shadows walked slowly in a pattern. Guards, patrolling.
I counted five of them around the building. No doubt a handful more would be sleeping in order to take over the next shift. I’d counted more than ten chips being tracked on my radar. But he could have hired local muscle to help, and there wouldn’t have been a tracking light for those.
It was safe to guess at least twenty people, aside from Maksim and his inner circle. He always moved with at least two people at his side. I used to be one of them.
I shifted my weight from one foot to the other. I was as quiet as the dead. The guys down there had no idea I was here.
Adrenaline pumped through my veins, and my pulse was fast. But my breathing was slow and steady. I was calm.
One of the guards lit a cigarette. The flame made a bright flash for a moment, and then the red cherry glowed as he inhaled. He said something in a low voice to the other, something I didn’t quite catch. He took a few steps away from the rest of guards toward me.
I held my breath as he came closer. Any closer, and I would have to break his neck.
He unzipped his pants and pissed against the tree. He was so close, his urine splashed on my boots. I gritted my teeth and remained still. I wanted to break the fucker. But if I did it now, it would give away my location before I was ready to act.
Finally, he zipped up and walked back to the building. He sucked on the cigarette one more time, threw down the butt, and stubbed it out with his toe.
Silently, I crept after him. I was a shadow in the night. I stayed hidden in the dark until I was close enough that none of them would see me coming.
The first guard blinked sleepily. He wouldn’t have seen me coming even if it was daytime, he was so far off dreaming. I snapped his neck and slowly lowered him to the ground.
The next guard was more alert and saw me coming. I slapped him against his ear. He reeled, searching for his balance. He pulled a gun on me. I turned the gun around and pushed it into his chest. It had a silencer on the muzzle, and the bullet left the chamber with nothing more than a quiet thump. I lowered the second body to the ground.