Chapter Twenty-Eight Min

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT: MIN

"Don't just stand there! Get her!" Fenhua shrieks at his goons.

They shoot him twin looks of contempt as they nurse their wounds. Interesting. I file that information away as they stalk toward me. I gesture for the girls to move further down the hall. We all step over Blankenship's body, putting it between us and them.

"When they attack, run," I whisper to Thea and Jessica. "I'll keep them busy. Get into the car, lock the doors, and go get help."

I don't wait for their agreement, as I assume a defensive stance, my knife at the ready. One's limping while the other can't open his right eye. Combined with the close quarters, I have the advantage. So I'll use it.

The limper swings at me, but I dodge it. Grabbing his arm, I use his forward motion to propel him into the wall. The drywall crumbles on impact. Before he can regain his footing, I kick his knee. The pop of torn muscle, coupled with his screams of pain, is satisfying. With my thoughts on the girls, trapped and scared only feet away, I yank his head back and slice his throat. Turning, I focus my attention on the weeper.

He lunges toward me, his arms wide as he tries to wrap them around me. But his eye-hand coordination is off. I feint to my left, kicking out with my left leg. The blow lands on the left side of his face, snapping his head back. I jab the knife into his exposed neck. He gurgles and clutches at the wound before dropping to the ground. I turn toward Fenhua and stop.

He has an arm around Thea with a knife pressed against her throat. How the hell did he get her? She and Jessica should be driving away from here.

I stalk toward him, carrying the bloody knife. Images of me slicing his throat have me grinning in anticipation. He must see my intent, because he tightens his grip around Thea and presses the knife until a drop of blood appears. The sight of her blood stops me.

"Let her go."

"I don't think so. Drop the knife or I'll cut her." He applies enough pressure to make Thea squeak, so I drop the knife and kick it toward the wall. "One of those assholes has zip ties on him. Grab one and bind your hands, or my knife finds a new home. Do it!"

I share a glance with Thea before kneeling to search Blankenship's pockets. Finding the zip ties, I pull one out along with something that might prove useful. Using my teeth to tighten the zip tie, I show my bound hands. "Now, let her go."

"Not a chance. She's my way out. Grab another tie and bind her hands, too."

I follow his instructions, looking for an opportunity to separate Thea from his grasp. But the knife is too close to Thea's jugular. If he cut her, she'd bleed out before I could save her.

"Step back," he orders when Thea's hands are bound in front her. "Now, call out the little girls. I know you hid them in one of these rooms. Do it!" He shouts when I don't move.

"No," says Thea. "Kill me and Min will take you apart. I'll impale myself on your knife before I let you get near those girls."

"Don't think I won't kill you," he snaps back.

"If you hurt her, I'll take you apart by pieces," I threaten him. "Let her go and I'll let you leave. That's the best offer you'll get."

He snorts. "I hold all the cards here, not you! Your hands are bound. I'm the one with a hostage and a weapon. Should have killed you that day."

"Yeah, you should have. But you didn't. Your brother rescued me."

He sneers. "Dailin is weak. He's always been weak."

"He beat you. I'm surprised you're still alive. I understand the Triad doesn't accept failure."

"You bitch! I'm not a failure. Dailin failed when he didn't kill you. He turned his back on the Triad. We would have made a good team and risen in the ranks, but he rejected us. He rejected me. Now that I have you. I'll find him and kill him. That will fix everything."

"You should hope you don't find him, or more accurately, that he doesn't find you. Dailin is not the same man you remember. He's no longer Dailin. He goes by Ghost now and he has an army behind him."

"What army?"

"You'll find out soon enough."

"He wouldn't dare attack me. He knows that will mean his death. The Triad is more powerful than any army he could find. Once they know who they're up against, they'll leave him to us."

I snort. "You have no idea how little they fear you, or what's left of the Triad."

"What?" I have Fenhua's full attention now. He's shifted so that the knife is no longer touching her skin, but it's still pointing to her throat. I need make him forget about her.

"The Triad is done."

"You know nothing about the Triad."

"I know they crashed a wedding and died for their hubris. I know they were lead by your parents and that their bodies will never be found. We saw them under the grotesque masks they wore."

"Dead? Impossible. No one can defeat the Triad. We are legion."

I shrug. "Maybe not all the Triad are dead. But their leaders are dead, along with twenty of their warriors. I saw the bullets go right between their eyes. They made a mistake and went after the Demon Dawgs MC and the Cortez Cartel."

The shock gives Thea her opportunity. She pushes Fenhua's arm away and rushes over to my side.

"You're lying." Fenhua asks, oblivious to the changed situation.

"I'm not. Ghost and I confronted them. They came to San Diego looking to avenge the deaths of those blown up here in Chicago. They made the same connection you did. The connection between Standish and Vivian Chambers and her son. They followed the trail to San Diego and planned their revenge. But they didn't know who they were up against. Just like you don't."

While we were talking, I heard what Fenhua didn't. The roar of motorcycle engines coming closer. The sound of doors being busted open and shouts fill the space. While Fenhua's reacting to the surrounding chaos, I jump forward and jab the syringe I stole off Blankenship into his arm. Pressing the plunger, I lock eyes with Fenhua in triumph.

I can feel Babe before he reaches me and wraps his arms around me. I close my eyes, revealing in the feel of him. Only opening them again when I feel him cutting off my bindings.

"You came for me," I whisper to him.

"Always."

I glance over and see Thea is free, too. Standing with her is Jessica.

"I thought I told you to run," I admonish Thea and Jessica.

"We couldn't leave you and the others. I thought I could circle behind and at least grab the girls."

"We need to get the girls to the hospital and call the police. Although, how I'm going to explain killing four men…"

"We're not calling the cops," Chrome says, joining us.

"We have to," I protest. "They need to know Billings and Blankenship are dead."

"We can't trust the cops," Babe says. "I know some of them are working for Jordan. That's why you didn't get backup at the hospital. We can probably trust Schwartz, but I'm not risking those assholes arresting you for murder. We need to come up with a different plan."

"We burn the place down, along with the bodies," Scorch says. "The cops can identify Billings and Blankenship by their dental records."

"That's a good idea," Babe says. "Take the girls to the hospital. Tell the cops that you escaped and rescued the girls. Don't admit to killing anyone. Do you think the girls will back up your story? Where are the other girls?" Babe asks.

"In the last room," Thea says. "We should go check on them."

"Don't let them see the dead bodies. Get them out of the building and into the SUV," Babe instructs her.

Thea and Jessica nod before turning away. Thea turns back. "We won't tell the cops that Min killed anyone. We'll tell them that Min escaped and freed us before we all took off in the SUV. Do what you have to do to protect her. We owe her our lives and much more."

I smile at her as Babe squeezes me closer to his side. "You are a fucking badass."

Chrome chuckles. "I'll say. Four kills. I've got guys in the club who don't have that many." His face clouds over when he shares a look with Babe. I feel like I'm missing something, but before I can ask, Chrome turns away and starts shouting orders.

"What's going to happen?"

"We'll burn the place down."

"What about Fenhua?"

"We'll take him back to the clubhouse. Why?"

"He knows what happened in San Diego at Dante's wedding. I told him. I'm pretty sure he was behind the kidnappings and murders of those who used to work at Chambers Medical Group. He was following their trail. Cicely is probably safe now. But I want a piece of my cousin," I tell Babe. "Just one chance to kick his ass before you end him."

"This asshole is your fucking cousin?" Scorch asks. "Families, huh?"

Babe grins at me. "I'll see what I can do. In the meantime, try to buy us some time. Don't give the cops an address. Just give a general description of the location."

"Got it."

"Is any of that blood yours?"

I glance down and wince. Shit. My jeans and shoes are clean, but my jacket has blood down the front and my hands are covered in it. Taking off my jacket, I hand it to Babe. "Take this. I'll wash up."