Page 101 of Her Guardian
“Everyone back!” the detective orders. “Lower your weapons! They’re not here for us!”
He might be the smartest cop in Las Vegas. As soon as the police officers begin lowering their weapons, Massimo gives the order for our guys to do the same. I tuck my Glock into the back of my belt and run over to Rowan, blood dampening my leg with every heavy step. Massimo pushes the detective aside and nearly knocks me down when he gets to his best friend.
“Rowan, are you okay? Where’s Lea? What happened?” Massimo asks hurriedly.
“Boss… shit, it’s my fault,” Rowan slurs, still under the effects of the tranquilizer. “They ambushed us.”
“Was it Solitude? Same guys from before?” Massimo growls and Rowan confirms it with a nod.
I pull away from them and barrel my way into the Waldorf Astoria, pushing a few paramedics, firefighters, and police officers out of the way. Thankfully, they back up, because I’m in such a rage I would rip their throats out before I considered the consequences.
“Holy fuck,” I say, looking around at the carnage.
It wasn’t just an ambush. It was a massacre. Massimo’s security detail is made up of Rowan, his Bodyguard Capo, and a few soldiers. He tripled his detail when he assigned them to look after Lea. Rowan appears to be the only survivor. The rest of our guys are on the floor, darts sticking out of their bodies, and their throats have been slashed.
I grit my teeth, but step back as Massimo enters, letting the paramedics and firefighters get back to work.
“This one is still alive!” a paramedic calls out.
Massimo and I exchange glances as more of our guys come inside. We step across our fallen men to get to the paramedic, and I see Cadence on the floor.
“Cadence!” Massimo barks, leaning down. “Can you hear me? It’s Massimo! What happened to Lea?”
I look around for Sarah. I’m scared I’ll see her on the floor, throat slashed, like all our men. If they spared Cadence, maybe there’s hope, but I don’t see the woman I love anywhere amongst the fallen.
“They took Lea,” Cadence groans, her voice barely audible. “It was Solitude… Russian accents…”
“What about Sarah?” I ask, resisting the urge to shake the answer out of the dazed girl.
“I… I don’t know,” Cadence mutters. “They were scanning everyone. I got shot with a dart before… before I saw what happened to Sarah.”
“Get her some medical attention,” Massimo commands, pointing at the paramedic before he gets up.
“If they took Lea, maybe they took Sarah too,” I say. “I don’t see her anywhere.”
Massimo ignores me and pushes past everyone go back outside, so I follow him. He’s angry. Seething with rage, just like me. But we can’t lose our heads. Not now. He walks over to his SUV, and several of our guys follow. When he finally turns around, there’s determination in his eyes.
“Nobody sleeps until we find Lea and Sarah,” he says firmly. “I want every man we have on the streets tonight. Call in all our favors.”
“You got it, boss,” a Capo replies, then steps away from the crowd and starts making calls. The others do the same.
“Dante.” Massimo turns to his cousin. “Get some guys and clean this mess up. Call the lawyers, too. It’s too late to keep this out of the press, but lean on our contacts. Keep it as vague as possible.”
“Yes, sir,” Dante says.
“You need a doctor,” Massimo says, motioning to my leg.
“I’m fine,” I grunt. “Not worried about me right now.”
“I know, but I don’t need you to bleed out before we find these motherfuckers,” Massimo grumbles, walking toward his SUV. “Let’s go back to Salvalagio. The doctor can stitch you back up.”
“Fine,” I mutter, groaning as I drag myself into the SUV.
My leg is in bad shape, but everything else is fucked up too. My thoughts are spinning in every direction. Heart thudding in my chest. Stomach feels like it’s full of sour bile that will come up at any second. Felt something like this when my sister went missing. And I’m sure Massimo isn’t doing any better. He’s been through this before.
“We’re going to find them,” I say firmly, unsure if I’m trying to reassure Massimo or myself. “If they took them alive, they did it for a reason.”
“Which means they left Rowan alive for a reason, too,” Massimo growls. “They wanted us to know it was them.”
