I almost died when he pressed his lips to mine.
Tears streamed down my cheeks as he kissed me and I started to shake.
He laughed at me and moved away again settling back on his hands.
“Sweet like honey,” he stated moving back. “I can’t wait to taste the rest of you. Later.
“Please no. I don’t want to. Please.” It was instinct to plead and continue to try even when there was no hope.
“You will Jia. You will want to. Trust me if I think anything other than that you’ll die quicker.” There was something maddening in his stare that reached out to me and terrified me more.
Uncontrollable tears spilled down my cheeks and all he did was laugh.
Chapter Fifty-Nine
Xander
“Here. I think this should do the trick,” I stated and tapped a few keys on the key pad.
Dorian smiled. “Holy fucking hell Xander. You and I have got to have some kind of play date when this shite is over.”
“Man I wouldn’t say no to that.” I chuckled and couldn’t believe I was laughing.
The last few hours had been a much needed distraction. More than anything we were moving, we were actually doing something and if it went to plan we’d truly be ahead of the game.
“Me either. Don’t leave me out,” Wes chimed in with a warm smile.
“Of course not.”
As if I could leave Wes out of anything.
I could imagine the three of us around computers getting up to all kinds of crazy. We were what you called very dangerous technically minded people.
Together that could mean destruction.
Destruction to certain people who wanted to keep things secret and remain unseen.
That was what we’d done here today.
Dorian brought some of his equipment and gadgets to the house. Some of the stuff was again things I’d never seen because he’d made them himself.
We’d tracked the location of where they had Jia in Twin Falls and realized the place wasn’t listed on any map. There was just desert land there. To the naked eye.
The place was an underground facility. It spanned the distance of a few acres of land seemed to have all sorts happening there.
I thought it was some sort of headquarters.
The security and surveillance being used was no mere set up. It was all state of the art and stuff I’d never come across. So I did what I usually did whenever I came across anything like that.
I created a virus. It was something I stumbled across by accident in college.
Most hackers could get through firewalls using specific software. I could do that too. That was like child’s play to me. But my specialty was reading codes and it didn’t take long for me to figure out how the algorithms were written and in cases like this write something to override the system by attacking it.
It was actually simple really, but I shared my secrets with no one, not even Wes. All I did was copy the code and create a flaw in one of the connecting structures. The key was to create the right kind of flaw. Mine was set to duplicate itself on the same connective coding.
The result would be to wreck the system and wreak havoc right under their noses.
I didn’t do it very often because it took away from the element of surprise and slipping in and out of somewhere unseen. Plus most places I had to hack didn’t use such state of the art tech.
It took me awhile to analyze the system then create the virus. We’d just let it lose and it was starting to work.
Wes started laughing as the firewall just crumbled down. Those fuckers on surveillance wouldn’t even know we could see inside.
Fucking assholes.
“Dammmmmmn,” Dorian said. He tapped the mouse and moved it over the different rooms in the facility. “We seriously got in. Okay, I’m going to admit your talent definitely exceeds mine.”
“Nah, I don’t think so. Think it’s the same, we’re just good at different things,” I assured him.
“That’s what I tell myself,” Wes chuckled.
Everything was as clear as day. The place was huge, huge and where we’d started looking just had people milling about in a large warehouse space with tons of crates. These guys were workers. Ra workers. They were packing the crates with guns.
Fuck.
I was sure those were all illegal arms. All stolen shit.
It was insane. There were so many crates.
“Well the Feds are gonna have a field day with that. Or whoever we contact.” I shook my head at the scenery. It was unbelievable that something like that was going on right underground like it was all so normal. Who knew what the plan was for those weapons.
We moved to a different section of the warehouse and saw a lot of vehicles. Trucks, cars, bikes.
There was a ramp that led to a large door that looked like it opened upwards. I imagined that they drove up there from underground.
That wouldn’t be the best way in for us.
The best way to find the best way in was to find Jia first then go from there. The place had so many rooms though.
“This may take a while,” Wes stated. He pulled up a chair and sat next to me. Dorian was to my left.
“I hope not. I want us on the move in an hour or so.” I cracked my knuckles. It was eight now. It had taken us all day to get all this stuff together and do what we needed to do.
I’d planned for nine as a ball park time, maybe ten to iron out the plan. Leaving then would give us time to get to the facility under the cover of night fall.
I didn’t want us rushing in, and I didn’t want us to go over the time either. It would take about four hours to get to there as it was situated at the furthest end of Twin Falls. Right there in between Rocky Creek and San Jacinto.
The terrain there wasn’t the best and with the facility not listed on the map it meant we’d have to harness our own map reading skills when we got to a certain point. That meant we needed to be clear from now on our entry points.
“There,” Dorian pointed to the section of the facility listed as Executive. “Maybe it would skip out a few areas if we looked there.”
I tapped on the section and it brought up fifteen rooms on the screen. They were all meeting rooms though.
The section above that was listed by color and called zones. I clicked on the blue zone and that was when the rooms looked more house like.
I would have clicked past a bird cage like structure in a bedroom if not for the sudden movement inside the cage that caught my attention.
Hair of platinum. Bright in the sunlight, silver in the moonlight.
It swished and I saw her face and fury roiled within me.
Jia.
She was in a cage?
She was in a fucking cage!
I growled and balled my fists. Rising to my feet I backed away from the screen.
Wes came over to me and tried to calm me but I backed away further shaking my head.
“They have her in a cage!” I growled. “He locked my girl in a fucking cage! Like an animal.”
Instantly I remembered Giovanni threatening the same. I very nearly hit him when I heard it. Now look. It didn’t if it was some ironic cruel joke the universe had cast my way. Allowing me to see her that way and be so far away I couldn’t do shit.
“Xander, calm down please. We need you calm if this is going to work. Come on bro. I know it’s hard but try to cool down.” He flicked his palms over and pressed down.
I knew I wasn’t helping by losing my head. I just hated the helplessness.
I moved back to my seat but Dorian had taken the mouse and started hovering to the other rooms. It was an actual house.
“I think you’re going to have to get in somewhere in the basement section of the meeting rooms,” Dorian surmised. “Going any other way won’t cut it.”
He tapped on a section below the meeting rooms that led to some tunnels. It always came to that. It was the best route though. The most practical.
“We can go
through there and get across into the house, get her and go back the way we came,” I brainstormed.
“That’s the easy way.” Dorian smirked. “I’m not so sure it will work out so well though. I have a few things that may come in handy. These guys fight dirty don’t they?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“Bombs of sorts. Sleep bombs. Just in case you need to clear a path and there’s too many people in the way.”
“Thanks.”
Jack opened the door to the study and came in. He had a heavy scowl on his face.
“We got another visitor,” Jack declared with mock sarcasm.
I was the first to get up.
I followed him out to the living room, to where Frankie held a gun at Armand’s head and Giovanni looked him over with delight.
“Found him snooping around outside,” Frankie chanted in a sing song voice.
I was already, ready to kill. Seeing this prick here on my turf, in my playground was not good for him.
“I was simply looking for the boss.” Armand tried to defend himself. He had his hands raised.
“Oh yeah?” Giovanni asked and got up in his face. “Why didn’t you just call me?”
“I wasn’t sure you’d answer,” Armand replied. It was the first that I’d seen the man look so terrified.
If Giovanni had a gun he would have probably ended him. He didn’t need to have a gun though to mess him up.
I stepped forward and he looked to me.
“So Armand, we don’t have time for shit, so I’m just going to cut to the part where you’re a rat,” I accused, just launching in for the kill. No time to ask questions. “You are the fucking rat and you’ve been playing both sides all a long.”
“No, I can explain,” Armand shook his head.
Giovanni landed a fist in his face.
“You fucker, how I hoped it wasn’t you,” Giovanni balked. “How I wished it wasn’t you, even when I knew it had to be. Look at all I did for you.”
I understood where he was coming from. It was the result of being too trusting.
We’d all been guilty of it. In his case I had no sympathy. Giovanni may be here and we may be working together but it was all for Jia. I was doing it for her. I had no allegiance or compassion for him. Things were not okay, or even cordial between us.
And, he could kill Armand for all I cared.
“I never knew it would get this far.” Armand tried to defend himself again.
“What are you really doing here?” Giovanni asked.
“He’s watching us. He’s part of whoever is watching us. He was just too stupid to do it properly.” I answered the question and stared Armand down. He looked to me now. “You, I’ve nearly killed you once before.” I pulled my gun and aimed it at him thinking of all he’d done and facilitated.
Even this, as in what was happening. He’d had some hand in it. He was to blame too.
I pulled the trigger back. It would be so easy to let it go. All I needed to do was recall how he tried to force himself on Jia. It was enough in my head to deserve death. This bastard had done so damn much. Too damn much to be allowed to live.
“Please, no. I was approached by Ethan. He needed someone on the inside watching.”
“So you thought that should be you?” Giovanni spat.
“No, it wasn’t that.”
“Money. It was money wasn’t it?” Giovanni asked the question as if he was innocent when it came to being tempted by money.
“I’m sorry.”
“Sorry? And yet you are here,” I pointed out.
I stepped closer, getting up in his face too.
Armand looked like he was going to shit himself. his skin turned pale and his eyes bulged with fright. He knew I’d do it. There would be very little to stop me and there was enough hatred in me to end him.
I hated this guy. I truly hated him and all that he stood for. My finger moved away from the trigger readying to let go.
Jack’s hand on my shoulder however made me look to him. I hadn’t realized that I was shaking.
Jack shook his head.
“Don’t. Don’t do it,” Jack cautioned, his gaze clung to mine.
I grit my teeth and bit down hard. “Jia is being kept in a cage,” I stated. While I kept my gaze trained on him, I noticed Giovanni snap his gaze to me. “This guy helped make that happen. Balthazar Kane is keeping Jia in a Cage. That’s what he does. He takes the women he likes and keeps them there so he can do whatever he wants to them.”
That was what I’d read. It was fucking Ethan that gave me the synopsis. Tales of disgust was more the fitting description of what that was. Balthazar didn’t just rape them and be done with it. it was constant, until they begged for death and even then he would continue and kill them after in the worse possible ways. That was who we were up against. Armand here who was just as bad in my eyes deserved death.
“Xander. It’s not our way. It’s not worth it. Don’t do it boy. I can see the resentment you have for this man. It’s not worth it. His blood on your hands is not worth it. let me deal with him.” Jack promised. “I’ll deal with him in the manner he deserves. Save your energy and strength for what you have ahead. You need a clear mind when dealing with people like Balthazar, and remember its’ not just him. You have the Spades and Ethan. Ra people. This guy isn’t worth it.”
If it was anyone else besides Jack, they might not have been able to reach me. To reach inside me to the person I was and speak to that guy. I hadn’t been him in so long I forgot what it was like.
It wasn’t our way to kill the way I was going to kill Armand. If I killed him now I knew it would be on my mind. I squinted and pulled in a ragged breath then lowered the gun and walked out of the room.
I went outside for some air. I needed it. I just needed to clear my head so I could focus.
Patience wasn’t one of my strong points at all.
I hated having to be patient and I hated having to wait or have obstacles in my fucking way.
Jack followed me out. I looked to him and instantly felt ashamed for the way I was going to kill Armand. Although he would have deserved it.
“You cool?” he asked me.
“I’m trying. I’m trying. Jack I just need to get her back.”
“We’re working on it. You are working on it.”
I nodded. Then I thought of Balthazar.
“Jack, when I see Balthazar, he’s dead. I won’t show the same compassion I just showed Armand.” I just had to let him know.
He agreed. “Son, nobody would stop you from killing that motherfucker. Definitely not me. He killed Claire.”
I drew in a deep breath and moved to go back inside. I had to finish up this plan and get it on the move.
Balthazar’s blood was calling to me.
Chapter Sixty
Xander
We left at nine like I hoped, in a party of two trucks.
Two teams.
One would stay on the outside. The rest was going in for the rescue.
One truck had ten marine recons Jack had commissioned for this black op mission.
He’d gotten the best. Guys would were the best in what they did. We had three snipers, two gunners and the rest were front men. Jack gave them their own specific orders.
My truck carried me, Jack, Giovanni, Frankie and four marines who were going in with us. Wes and Dorian stayed behind as planned to be my eyes.
It was a good team. There were some seriously skilled men here. All put together I would say we had a chance.
I just hated it. All of it.
It all reminded me of the last time. It was too much of a reminder of what happened last time. My thoughts were consumed with the memory for the whole journey. The whole time I went over everything that had happened.
It was most likely down to the fact that last time was when I actually had a battle with the Ra.
I never even got close to Balthazar.
All I did was see him kill Claire and throw the gr
enade that took me out.
That was it, and previously I never got close either. Not close enough to land a fist in his face, get a good shot, or anything like that.
Of all those times –and they were really terrible times –this felt like the worst.
All those other times he’d never had anyone close to me from the beginning. It was always a surprise attack that knocked me for six.
The first memorable time was when he kidnapped Vlad Hanflick and blew up the orphanage. The next that stood out was of course when he lured my team in by taking one of our own and killed everyone.
This time I’d already experienced the damage. He’d taken Jia and I didn’t know what he could be doing to her or what he could have done.
Frankie nudged me in my side and I looked to him.
I was sitting away from everyone. Closer to the driver. I’d done that on purpose so I could think. Frankie however took it as an invite to sit near me.
Jack was at the far end of the truck going over some stuff with the marines and Giovanni sat by himself.
“I don’t like the quiet,” Frankie stated. “Not when shit’s going down.”
I glanced at him. I preferred quiet especially in those times. I also wasn’t the best person to talk to.
“Sometimes it’s good to reflect,” I answered hoping he’d take the hint that I didn’t want to talk.
He didn’t. I suspected that was on purpose too.
“Sometimes you do too much reflecting. See that’s the difference between mafia guys and the others. We talk it out and act as a unit. That’s us. We know what’s on the other guys mind so we have his back before he can even ask.”
“I’m not like that. And…” my voice trailed off as I glanced over at Giovanni who was just staring over at the wall. In his casual wear he looked so different from what I was used to. His presence was making me worse. I had the prints in my backpack. I’d keep them close to me.
Frankie followed my gaze and shook his head. When he looked back to me he sighed.
“Kid, I get it,” he said with an uneasy smile. “I do, but right now we’re in this together. We’re going in for the same goal, same cause. I’ve been watching over Jia since she was a little girl. It gets to me too that this has happened. It’s why I’m here. We just have to work together.”
Game of Love : A Mafia Romance Page 48