When we return to the barn, Bry is there, helping Caz to prepare a late lunch. Although Saint didn’t answer Bry the other day, there’s an unspoken ceasefire between them, and they are mostly making the effort to get along. To be honest, it’s shocked the hell out of me, but it only further highlights how far Saint has come. I’ve been telling him all along that Bryant isn’t a bad guy, and I’m glad he seems to have accepted him now.
After we’ve eaten and loaded up Saint’s Land Rover, we make our way to the northern end of Lowell, parking in the staff parking lot of the apartment building owned by Sinner’s friend. Bry follows in his Chevy, pulling into the empty space alongside Saint.
Having an extra pair of hands helps, and we are set up on the roof in next to no time with plenty of time to spare before it all kicks off.
Although there is a small, enclosed greenhouse up here, this isn’t a functional rooftop, and the apartment residents don’t have access to it. We’ve been told it’s occasionally used by staff, but we don’t have to worry about unexpected guests at the wrong moment today.
Theo distributes earpieces he got from Diesel. “Check to ensure they’re working,” he says as he hands them out, and we test it back and forth for a couple minutes. “I’ll be in an office on the first floor,” he confirms. “The Wi-Fi signal is stronger there. I’ve disabled the cameras inside the building, but I can’t deactivate the cameras out on the street until the last possible moment in case we tip the cops off.”
The commissioner will have a team with him today, as is usual, but none of them are privy to the plan, because this needs to look real.
“Break a leg, babe.” Theo pecks me on the lips before exiting the roof.
“I’m gonna take a piss before shit goes down,” Caz says.
“I’ll come with.” Galen strides across the roof toward the door, spinning around at the last second. “You need anything from inside?”
“Grab a few bottles of water,” I say, kneeling on the cushion and bringing my eye to the lens of the AR-15 rifle, checking the angle again.
“He’s coming from the Lott Lane direction, right?” I ask Saint, double-checking because you can never go over the plans enough.
“Correct,” Saint assures me, dropping to the ground a few feet away. He leans his back against the small wall that rims the perimeter of the roof, bending his knees. At this height, we shouldn’t be spotted or heard, but we’re not taking chances.
“I’d like to learn how to use one of those,” Bry says from his position at my side, nodding at the mounted rifle.
“I’m sure Diesel could show you when all of this is over.”
“You really trust that guy, huh?”
I lift my head, arching a brow in his direction. Saint toys with the gravel, tossing a few stones across the roof, feigning nonchalance, but he’s paying attention to every word. “I do. Is there any reason I shouldn’t?”
“Howie doesn’t trust him.”
Saint snorts. “Of course, he doesn’t.”
Bry shifts uncomfortably, but he doesn’t snap at Saint like he previously would have. They are treading on eggshells around one another, and it’s kinda funny to see.
“There are rumors of corruption within VERO,” Bry continues. “He suggests that you should be cautious.”
Now it’s my turn to scoff. “Every fucking organization is corrupt, especially the ones at the top. That doesn’t surprise me, and Howie doesn’t know Diesel like I do. He wouldn’t betray me.”
“I hope you’re right.”
Saint throws a few stones in the air. “I can’t stand the prick, but—”
“Why doesn’t that surprise me?” Bry chuckles, turning his head around and grinning at Saint.
Saint flips him the bird. “I was going to say, before I was so rudely interrupted, that he’s come through for us. He—”
The door to the roof crashes open with force, the metal creaking as it slams against the wall. “No one fucking move or you’re all dead,” a familiar voice says, and I internally groan.
CHAPTER 39
YOU HAVE GOT to be kidding me. Darrow Knight has the worst fucking timing. Or the best if you’re him, I suppose.
“Turn around slowly, bitch,” a familiar female voice says from behind, and I cast a quick glance at Saint.
Oh, hell to the no. This is not going down now.
Determination zips through me as I pull out the dagger strapped to each side of my thighs, and I spin around, aiming both at Taylor Tamlin as I let them fly. My fast reaction doesn’t give her enough time to retaliate, and she’s also distracted by the commotion at her side as Caz and Galen burst onto the roof, a split second later, wrestling Darrow to the ground.
Taylor screams as a dagger embeds in each of her shoulders, automatically dropping her gun as her hands fly to the entry points, and her fingers touch the blades stuck in her flesh and bone.
Saint darts forward, snagging Taylor’s gun while Caz and Galen easily subdue Darrow. He’s sprawled across the ground on his stomach, and it’s embarrassing how quickly they gained the upper hand.
Galen presses down on Dar’s wrist as he stretches his arm, fingers straining for his gun. Bones crunch, mingling with Dar’s agonizing roar. Bry stalks across the roof, snatching the gun and pointing it at his ex-buddy’s head. “Shut the fuck up, Knight.”
Theo is screaming in my ear, blind without any cameras, and I take a second to reassure him we are okay, and we have the situation under control.
“Fuck you, traitor!” Dar hisses, and Bry hits him across the back of his head with the gun. The blow lacks intent, because Bry knows not to knock him out yet.
Saint has Taylor’s arms pinned behind her back, and with his free hand, he presses the muzzle of her gun against her head. Blood oozes from the wounds in her shoulders, and it’s a glorious sight. Taylor emits a frustrated screech, glowering in my direction. I stalk toward her. “Shut up, bitch.” She spits in my face, and I backhand her a few times. Ripping the end of her shirt, I use the material to wipe her gross DNA from my face before shoving it into her mouth, ensuring her screams don’t carry in the air, alerting anyone on the ground below. “Time?” I ask aloud, knowing Theo will respond.
“ETA in fourteen minutes. Wrap it up quick,” he says in my ear.
Smiling maliciously, I grab the handles on both daggers, rotating them in Taylor’s shoulders, digging the wounds deeper. Tears leak involuntarily from her eyes as her screams of pain are muffled by the obstacle in her mouth. “You know, I thought you were smarter than this.” I punch her in the stomach. “We gave you a lifeline, and you chose to throw it back in our faces.” I punch her in the face, and blood spurts from her nose. “You don’t get another chance.”
Dismissing her, I crouch down in front of Dar, lifting his chin and arching his head back at an awkward angle. “Now you, on the other hand, are not smart. But this is still disappointing. Did you seriously think you could sneak up on us and get the upper hand?” I stand, hovering over his pitiful form. “Turn him over.” I shake my head. “I’m embarrassed for you, Dar. How the fuck did you end up junior chapter leader when Bry is worth a million of you?”