Page 55 of Marked

“Just tell me you’re not banging her,” Dare said.

Cole’s hackles rose. It’d be a miracle if he made it out of these woods without killing one of his own kin. “Wanna say that again?”

Dare held up a palm. “Dude. Shit, you’re edgy.” He sidled around Cole and continued walking.

“He’s too miserable,” Nash mused aloud. “Can’t be getting laid.”

Cole’s temper racked up a notch. “Jesus. Do you want me to knock you all out?”

“Just saying that’d make things a shitload more complicated,” Dare said. “If you’re not in bed with her, then maybe you can sever whatever ties you have after this.”

“It’s none of your damn business what I do.”

“Kind of is,” Nash said, nudging him with his elbow. “She’d be pretty pleased to have all of us behind bars.”

“That was before.”

Dallas snorted and Dare let out a hoot.

“Conversation is done.” Cole kept his voice even, not daring to raise it in case one of the guards had strayed from his post. But finality clung to his statement. He’d be damned if he let any one of them bring up his personal life again—unless they wanted to meet his fist.

“Look. I’m glad we’re here and getting this kid out. Cop or not, no one should have to deal with a kidnapped child.” Nash’s words trembled slightly. Undoubtedly because Lexi was pregnant. Just the thought of his own child being harmed surely drove him wild with worry.

“Quiet,” Dallas shushed. “We need to split up here. Put your earbuds in and signal when you’ve got the first guard down.”

Cole nodded, and Dare and Nash headed east.

Cole’s and Dallas’s footsteps fell into sync along with their silence. Being with Dallas was as natural as being by himself. He could sense his brother’s actions, his next move. Hell, half the time they didn’t even need to speak.

After they’d walked a good quarter mile, Cole stopped to glance at the GPS on his phone. “Guard post is about fifty feet ahead.”

They stomped swiftly through the forest. The sun had fully set, and darkness shrouded their approach. The ember of a cigarette caught Cole’s eye, and he pointed.

Dallas grunted his acknowledgment and broke away from the path. As per their plan, he’d move in at another angle while Cole hit the guard head-on. His brother’s body disappeared from view. Cole pulled the gun from the small of his back and kept it trained ahead. If he were smart, he’d take the guy out from a distance.

But dammit, he wanted the fucker to look into his eyes and know who’d come for him. To know why.

“Hey!” a man bellowed from near a large oak tree fifty feet ahead. “Who’s there?”

Cole stormed forward.

“Stop! I’ll shoot!”

Cole aimed but didn’t risk firing. The last thing he needed was to warn the other guards of his presence.

“Shit!” The guard spotted Cole’s weapon and dove to the ground.

Cole raced forward and booted the gun from the man’s hand. The guard let out a protest and grappled for the radio at his waist, but Cole delivered another kick—this time to the dude’s chin.

The man hollered and blood pooled out of his mouth. One tooth fell from his lips.

“You fucking—”

Cole dropped to one knee and slammed his hand around the man’s neck, cutting off his words along with his breath. “This one’s for the kids.” He placed his gun on the ground by his knee and pulled a knife from a clip at his hip.

The guard’s eyes widened. He kicked and flailed, but Cole moved quickly, sliding the blade across the man’s jugular. Blood oozed from his neck, and his tongue thrust out of his mouth as he choked and sputtered, his eyes becoming lifeless in a millisecond. Radio static crackled the air.

Dallas moved out of the brush, a knife hanging at his side. “Beat me to it.”

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