Page 90 of Her Guardian
Massimo confirms the order, and I relay it to everyone around me. As soon as I do, I poke my head out and fire some lethal shots, aiming for necks and masks. I watch one drop, then another. The gas masks aren’t bulletproof, so we’ve got a fighting chance, even with so many guys down.
The Mafia Prince Killers seem to be communicating somehow, based on how they move. And there’s more of them than we can see, judging by the number of darts flying. Our guys finally get to the top of the stairs and hand-to-hand combat begins. I’m woozy, but stable, so I try to press forward. As soon as I do, I get a dart in my leg I rip free. Another hits the arm holding my Glock and it goes numb before I can get the dart out.
My size gives me an advantage, but I can’t keep taking shots. I switch my Glock to my other hand and give my guys some backup fire, which allows them to push forward.
There’s more of us, but we weren’t expecting them to have an army, too. I fire off several rounds and watch some guys in blacktactical gear hit the floor, but we’re taking losses, too. Hopefully, no fatalities, since it seems like these fuckers are sticking with their darts.
That’s what I think, at least, until an explosion at the top of the stairs forces me to grab the railing for support. A wall of fire erupts in front of me, blocking the way. A metal object bounces through the fire, and I see a grenade at my feet.
“Outside! Now!” I yell, turning and stumbling down the stairs. “They’ve got grenades!”
I pause at the door to make sure the guys who are still standing can get out. The second grenade explodes, tearing away most of the staircase and leaving rubble. I catch some shrapnel in my leg, but stay on my feet.
I’m groggy and catch several more darts in the back on my way out the door. These I can’t reach, and I hit my knees before I can ask for help. Through blurry vision, I see the fire spreading quickly in the Bellamy residence, right before another explosion shakes the ground.
Then everything goes black.
CHAPTER 34
Boyd
I gasp when I wake up.
My vision is blurry, but I can tell I’m in a room. There’s fluorescent light overhead. I try to sit up, and everything hurts, but mostly my skull. It feels like someone is pounding on the back of my eyeballs with a fucking hammer. I groan and feel a hand on mine.
Then my vision comes into focus, and I see pretty blue eyes, wet with tears and filled with concern.
“Boyd! Oh, thank goodness!” she whimpers, leaning down and hugging me.
“Sarah,” I rasp, still blinking away the fog. “Where the fuck am I?”
“Back at Salvalagio,” she answers, squeezing my hand so hard I actually feel the pressure. “The doctor just finished removing theshrapnel from your leg, but he left to check on the others. I’m supposed to let them know when you wake up.”
Sarah reluctantly lets go of my hand and runs to the door, flinging it open. I force myself to sit up, looking at the bandages on my leg. My suit has been mostly cut off me. There’s a mild ache where the darts hit, and there’s still tranquilizer in my system. I can feel it. Makes everything too slow, even my thoughts.
I try to stand, but it’s impossible, so I slump back into the bed. This is the infirmary in the basement of Salvalagio. It’s where we always treat our guys. The Morandi family keeps a few doctors on call. Doctors that know not to say a fucking word about what they see or who they treat.
Sarah returns with Massimo, Dante, and Lea trailing behind her. Lea’s baby bump looks bigger. Seems to be getting bigger every single day.
“Did we get the fuckers?” I ask, looking at Massimo. “Come on, boss. Give me some good news.”
“We didn’t take any of them alive,” Massimo sighs. “The explosions brought the cops, so we had to clear out. But we got some information. We know who they are—or at least who is behind it.”
“Who?” I mutter. “Give me a name and I’ll finish this as soon as I can get out of bed.”
“It’s not that easy, Big Boyd,” Dante says. “You ever heard of Solitude?”
“Uh, Russian hacker group?” I grunt. “They do all the vigilante shit, right?”
“Apparently they do more thanhack,” Massimo snaps. “Those guys we ran into were mercenaries, hired by Solitude and their backers.”
“And we know their backers really well,” Dante adds. “The fucking Bratva.”
“What? But why? Are they copycats, or were they actually behind the other murders?” My head is pounding with new information and the tranquilizer. Feels like I’m in a damn fog. I ground myself by finding Sarah’s eyes. “And one of the families they hit worked with the Bratva.”
“We don’t have enough information yet to have the full picture,” Massimo says. “But considering how difficult it was to believe that one guy was responsible for all of this? I’m guessing the Bratva has been behind it from the beginning.”
“Makes it easy to move into a city and take over if you wipe out several families first,” Dante sighs. “Especially if you distract everyone with a story about a vigilante killer. I guess whatever dealings the Bratva had with the Moreno family weren’t enough to protect them.”
