39. Kael

39

KAEL

That fecker Cormac better not be shitting me because I will kill him.

I am coming up to the third warehouse, and I have no idea what to expect.

Hope wants to flutter around in my chest, but I can't afford to let it. This is the last spot, the last call, and I have to find Paige. She has to be here.

But if I let myself believe she will be, and she isn't, it'll destroy me.

I can't afford anything but uber-focus until she's safe, preferably in my arms.

I drive by slower than I usually would, but at a speed that won't raise suspicions.

There's a car in the parking lot, but there'd been a couple in the last warehouse's parking lot, too. Lots of people who leave the bars late at night park in these industrial areas so that their cars won't get stolen.

There's a man on the roof—likely a sniper.

Now we're talking.

I park about half a block away. I'm armed and ready, gun in the small of my back, another in my ankle holster, a couple of knives as well, all duly checked, loaded, and in working condition. But I need to get closer because I don't have a long-range weapon.

So, I get out of my car and start strolling up the street. Someone casually walking raises less interest than someone running or lurking around.

As I stroll by the warehouse, I find a semi-hidden spot and easily jump the low fence.

Making use of shadows and blind spots, I walk closer to the building.

As soon as I get my back against the wall, in a shaded, hidden spot, I check if all my weapons are still in place, and when I get confirmation, I check if the guns are duly charged again. Always check and recheck. Better safe than sorry.

I slither to one of the corners and peek around it before making the turn. A few yards from me is a man, his back to me.

I draw my knife out of my pocket and weigh it in my hand to get the perfect grip.

I need him to turn to me, need the perfect angle for the perfect hit, so I get the knife ready to throw, holding it back over my shoulder, and clear my throat.

He spins on his heel to face me, and I let the knife fly, straight at his throat.

It hits its mark, going straight through his voice box.

He goes down, clawing at the wound.

I approach him and finish the job, pushing the knife deeper with my foot.

None of these monsters deserve to live after taking my princess.

Once he stops squirming and breathing, I lean down to take my knife back. It's one of my favorites, no way this fecker deserves to keep it.

I wipe the knife clean on the dead man's clothes. His blood, his fault, he should be the one cleaning it.

One down, god knows how many to go.

The snipper needs to be next, though, so I put the knife away again before climbing up the ladder to the roof where the sniper's looking through the scope.

I make sure no one else is on the roof before climbing all the way on it and unsheathing the knife again.

Tiptoeing to him, I'm careful not to make a sound. I want to take out as many men as possible without alerting anyone to my presence.

My knife is tight in my hand as I slide it through his throat as I hold his head back by his hair. A swift and quick strike.

A red line appears along his collar, and blood starts to gurgle out.

As he stops breathing, I pull him away from the gun.

I clean my knife on his clothes, like I had his colleague, and then I take the gun, unload it, and dismantle it. If I miss one of Murphy's men, there's no way I want this gun used on me or Paige.

Leaving the big pieces of the gun scattereed, I put the bolt in my pocket and move on to the man's backpack. Crouching beside it, I look inside and find a few smaller caliber guns, ammo, and a set of knives.

Nice!

I place the bolt inside the pack and put it on my back, making sure it's secure, and tight enough. I peer over to the roof next to this one. A few feet to my right, below me is a man leaning against the wall, smoking.

A slacker. Lucky me .

With as many men as I am seeing here, I'm definitely in the right place. I went through the other buildings, just as I am this one, and there was just one man guarding each. ‘Was' being the operative word.

Knife in hand and positioning myself just right, I jump down on the other side of the roof, right on top of the man, and shove the blade through his neck.

Quick, silent. Easy.

After making sure there are no more men in this roof or any of the surrounding ones, I peek around all sides and see no one, so I go back down and approach the front door.

Voices come from just inside.

"…crazy! We can't move her to the second location," a male-sounding voice says.

"We have to. Boss says?—"

"I don't care what boss says. She's been trying to get out of here since we brought her in. How are we supposed to take her?"

That's my princess!

"Knock her out again."

Again? These feckers touched her? They're dead men walking.

I take a deep breath, trying to keep my wits about me. Rage threatens to take over, but I need to keep my head on my shoulders. At least until I find Paige.

I draw my gun, pull the door open, and take aim at the two pieces of shite there.

Fatty gets it first, right through the ear.

The skinnier man gasps, drawing his gun.

I duck behind a crate as he lets off a few shots.

Peering around the crate, I take aim and take him out at the knees.

He screams, blood pooling on the ground .

I shoot him in the hand that has the gun as I growl, heading toward him.

After picking up his and Fatty's guns, and checking both for more as I keep my aim on him, I pause, looking around the room.

"Where is she?"

He's still screaming, looking down at his ruined knees as he holds his bleeding hand. If he lived, he'd be in a wheelchair for life. Lucky for him, he isn't going to.

I grab him by his hair and pull his head back to face me.

"Where is Paige?"

"Fuck you!"

"Okay, I'll find her myself." I drop his head, shooting him point blank in the face.

He slumps over, a mess on the floor, and I run toward the back of the building.

There are four rooms, and she could be in any of them.

" Feck ."

I need to get her and get out of here fast, before Murphy shows up. He'll know his men aren't checking in.

Gun drawn and ready, I open the closest door, securing the room.

Empty.

I close the door and move to the second door.

Chances are a man may be guarding her, and he heard the shots, so I need to be careful and thorough.

Room two is empty too, so onto the third door, keeping my gun handy. When I open it, someone screams and comes at me with a chair leg, hitting me on the thigh pretty hard.

I point my gun down, but it's none of Murphy's men. It's a woman. Her face is all swollen.

I lower my gun, cursing. "Paige? "

Oh, my god, what have they done to her? Her eyes are practically swollen shut, her face is a mess of bruises.

"Paige, sweetheart. It's me. It's Kael."

Her screech stops halfway through, and she looks up at me, but I'm not sure she can see me.

"Kael?" she croaks. "Is that really you?"

"Princess…" I scoop her up in my arms bridal style.

I want to kiss her poor, hurt face, but she cries out when I pick her up. "I'm so sorry, princess. So sorry, but we have to get the hell out of here."

She leans her head on my shoulder. "Kael, I have to tell you something."

"What is it, princess?" I walk as fast as I can as I carry her, but her moans of pain are tearing me apart.

She goes quiet, and I wonder if she's passed out.

I realize that she has when I put her in the passenger seat of my car, buckling her seatbelt.

She wakes up when I start the car, screaming, and I have to touch her face, cupping it in my hands.

"It's me, princess. It's me."

The screams stop, but she starts sobbing, and I hate that I have to let her go. "I'm sorry. Have to get you to the hospital."

"Can you take me to All Saints, please? Please. I have to see Da."

I can't believe she's still worried about her father after all of this.

All I want is for her to get checked out, though, so I just nod, hauling ass to All Saints, which is on the other side of town.