Page 102 of Scornful

The gag muffles his whimpering. Kraken stands before him like a statue, waiting.

"We have the house," Runes announces. "And unexpected help from the cops."

"Too late." Marcus laughs weakly when Oskar removes the gag. "He's gone. Always one step ahead."

"We'll see about that," Kraken says quietly.

The calmness is more terrifying than the rage.

Runes nods to Kraken, who steps forward with the knife. "No more use for him."

What happens next is quick but brutal.

Marcus's screams cut off abruptly, and another body joins the pile.

We've all got blood on our hands now, but nobody sheds a tear for a man who bombs children.

Within thirty minutes, we're gearing up and ready to head the fuck out of here.

Runes sent Hakon to the spa with his EOD kit, Magnus and Rati along with him.

Hakon knows how to disable them, so I’m certain he’ll be fine.

Runes watches Kraken carefully, concerned about his state of mind.

Tor murmurs to Kraken as we put on bulletproof vests, then slide our cuts back on. "Keep it together, brother,"

"I'm fine," Kraken says, but his knuckles are white on his gun.

The group of us heads out, and we’re in the neighborhood before we know it.

It’s upscale—tree-lined streets, expensive cars, the last place you'd expect to find a drug lord.

The house is dark, no vehicles in the driveway.

These rich fuckers never see trouble coming to their doorstep.

Emil comments, "Looks empty."

Kraken’s already moving. "Only one way to find out."

We breach hard and fast, spreading through the house like we've done it a hundred times before.

But it's empty—recently vacated but empty.

The coffee maker's still warm, a cigarette burns in an ashtray, and the Patriot's gone.

Kraken loses control. "Fuck!"

He puts his fist through the wall, then starts destroying everything in sight.

Furniture flies, mirrors shatter, his rage spreading through the entire place.

We've all seen brothers lose it, but this is different.

"He was right here!" Kraken roars, throwing a chair through a window. "My boy's leg! My little girl, and he was right fucking here!"

We try to contain the damage, but Kraken's beyond reasoning.