Page 69 of Ma Belle Marguerite
The drive is only about five minutes away from here. This asshole has literally been under my nose this whole time. There’s no blueprints for the old warehouse he has been using. We are essentially going in blind.
I jump into an SUV with Josh and a few men who I recognize but don’t remember their names. One of them is Josh’s understudy; he’s barely legal age, but he tried to hack our systems when he was fifteen. Rather than kill a teenager who didn’t really know what he was doing, I decided to recruit him instead.
I don’t know if I will make a good boss since this has been happening for years, and I had no idea. Although, my father has no idea either. How can I ask men to follow me when I will be putting them in danger with my lack of awareness?
I feel a hand on my shoulder, drawing me from my thoughts. Fuck, I must have zoned out. “You ready, boss? You can sit this one out. You have a family to think of now. No one will blame you.”
I will not be the one who hides safely while my men run into danger. “I’m ready when you are. Just need a gun.”
“Here’s your go-bag, boss,” one of the men in the back passes me my bag.
“Thank you.” I quickly grab my gun and a spare clip and notice my knife in the bottom of the bag. I grab it and the sheath and put it in my boot. Nodding to Josh I get out of the SUV.
We round the back of the vehicle to put on bulletproof vests. My men are trying not to show shock on their faces and are failing as I put one on too. I used to run into situations and not care. I have others to think of now, finally something to live for.
It’s time to get my head in the game. They aren’t here—they are safe. Goal: find Cole and bring him ‘home’. I need to put an end to this bullshit.
Once we’re all geared up we spread out to our planned places. I have three men with me. This needs to end today. I want their blood dripping on my basement floor before lunch today. An example will be set: it doesn’t matter who you are, you will not harm my family and live to talk about it
I hear the sound of the duck call to tell my men to head in. It may be a strange signal, but it shouldn’t alert Cole or anyone with him, as people actively hunt around here. It isn’t duck season quite yet, but not everyone follows the rules.
I start a timer on my watch. The plan is to wait five minutes, and then start to head in as long as we don’t hear the signal to retreat. We will follow the first wave of men in and grab Cole and, hopefully, Amara. If we see anyone else we shoot to maim, not kill.
This has been the longest five minutes of my life, I keep checking my watch to see if it’s go time yet. Patience isn’t my best quality. I silence the alarm as it finally goes off, although they know by now that we’re here. I don’t want to give away our exact location just yet.
We keep to the edge of the bushline as we approach the warehouse. It looks more like an old, dilapidated shack. I can admit it is a good cover; I never would have expected that he would be here. It doesn’t even look usable.
As we enter the broken-in front door, we can hear yelling and guns going off below us. I signal to my men to spread out; we’ll need to find the entrance to the basement. The fact Josh couldn’t find blueprints bugs me that I was unable to check it out beforehand.
I hear a whistle to my left up ahead. I motion to the men behind me to follow. As we get closer the noises from below getlouder. One of my men is standing in front of a kicked in trap door with his gun drawn.
I step up beside him and tap his shoulder before he heads down the stairs. I’m right behind him. This part looks like it was more recently renovated.
Once we reach the bottom, it is chaos.
My men seem to be winning. A quick glance through the brightly lit room shows that it is mostly my brother's men laying on the ground. It is hard to concentrate with the sounds of gun shots and men screaming. I spot Cole in a corner in the back hiding behind a couple of men that look familiar. They were at the bar with him the night of D’s birthday.
Cole’s always been a coward, willing to let all his men die while he hides. I hear a grunt beside me and look to see one of my men clutching his shoulder but still firing with his wounded arm.
I push him towards the stairs to retreat but he shakes his head at me and keeps pushing forward. I need Josh to make sure we reward him for this if he makes it through.
I catch movement out of the corner of my eye and look only to see Cole trying to crawl towards a large vent nearby. This is my chance. I take aim and shoot his shoulder, hoping to maim him enough that he can’t get far.
He looks around scared, which he should be. He will die soon…but not yet.
Chapter 31
Isabella
That was the most awkward breakfast I have ever had in my thirty-one years. Remi put Rex through the wringer. I get that he was just being protective of me, but he acted like a father meeting his daughter's boyfriend for the first time.
Remi didn’t want to talk much after Rex left. Brielle on the other hand just changed the subject after saying while she misses her dad she approves then talked about cheer tryouts. I know I don’t need their permission to date but I want them to behappy too. I don’t know how the conversation will go when we finally tell them he is their biological father. Adrien will always be their dad, but Rex is their father.
The twins are very perceptive for their age. I could tell that they knew we hadn’t told them everything. The way they were side eyeing me made me feel like I was in the hot seat.I hate lying to them, even by omission. Hopefully, they understand it is for their own good.
I don’t know what to do today after I drop the twins off at school. Rex has some job he’s out on, and I don’t have one anymore technically. I guess I can spend some time in the kitchen. I haven’t had the chance to bake in a while. The kids really love my grandma’s chocolate chip cookie recipe with the secret ingredient. I will need to stop at the store on the way home and make sure I have everything I need.
“Mom, let's go! We are going to be late, and I don’t want to have to sit out of cheer practice because you’re slow!” Brielle is so impatient. There is plenty of time to get to school. I’m just glad she’s settled into her new routine so well, unlike her brother. Boys are easier than girls I was told, I beg to differ.
