Lily: Captive to the Dark (33 page)

Chapter 44

Zain

The buzzing of voices went on and on, coming in and out as I tried to focus on the numbers. No matter how hard I tried to block them out completely, it just wasn’t happening today. All I could think about was my slave and how I kept telling her I’d be there for her, when in truth, I kept getting pushed further away. I couldn’t stand it.

I pushed back from the desk and spun to the other side, grabbing my bottled water. As I began unscrewing the cap, I paused, taking in what the hell everyone was going on about.

“No, I just heard about ten minutes ago. Pete, from downstairs, said Mr. Robert’s guard tore out of here in a rush. Said he heard something about a shooting.”

I jerked to face the cubicle, but didn’t get as far as letting it come into focus before I was already standing.

“Who said that?” I broke around the wall, scanning the surrounding cubbies. “What happened with Mr. Roberts’s guards?” Silence had my heart racing even faster. “You,” I growled, “who said that?”

The man who sat directly across from me pointed to the side of him.

“You,” I stormed toward the heavyset man in his mid-fifties, “what happened?”

His mouth opened and closed in shock and what looked to be fear. “The guards. They raced out of here. Something about Mr. Roberts’s limo getting shot up. Pete said he heard a call come in over the scanner about a few people being injured. Even dead. It fit the description of the rumors floating around.”

My skin turned cold as I raced for the elevator. The longer it took, the more I slammed my palm against the button. I reached in my pocket, grabbing my phone and hitting Lily’s number. It went immediately to voicemail.

“God dammit!” I took a step back, charging forward the moment the doors opened. The ride down was the slowest in my life. When I broke into the lobby, Brace, Marcio, and Terrance were nowhere to be seen. I headed for the entrance, dialing Slade. Before I could finish, my phone rang.

“Hello? Hello?” My greeting came rushed and panicked. I jogged through until I broke to the entrance of the parking garage. I hit a dead sprint to the car as I waited for someone to talk. “Hello?”

“Lily is fine. She’s talking to the police now. She wanted me to call you in case you’d heard anything.”

My legs almost gave out at the sound of Slade’s voice.

“Fuck. What the hell happened? Some guy in the cubicle across from mine broke the news.”

Slade took a deep breath and I could hear his shoes against some type of flooring. “Terrance is dead. Vanessa and Charlie, two of my team leaders, are also dead. Another was shot in the arm. Marcio says it was white SUV that hit us from behind. When he stopped and they both got out to check the damage, three men exited the vehicle and began firing. The accent they had would have this pointing toward you.” The blame was clear as he ground out the words. “What have you discovered on your uncle, Zain? I thought you had this taken care of.”

I pulled open the door and froze. I had locked that door, now it was unlocked. The realization had me slowly lowering down to look under the dash and the underbelly of the car. I left the door open, reaching under the seat where I had my gun and knife hidden under the flooring. Once I pushed them into the waistband of my slacks, I turned to head out of the garage. “I suspected he might be here, but he’s staying under the radar.
We’re
not, though. Call the bomb squad and get them to remove that bomb strapped to Lily’s car. You might want to have your building evacuated too. Fuck,” I breathed out, stopping at the ground level entrance. “You have to leave. Take Lily and Mary and head to your estate. San Francisco isn’t safe.”

Slade’s voice sounded distant as he told Brace to call his building, then the volume increased as he came back to me. “You know Lily won’t leave without you.”

My free hand fisted. “She doesn’t have a choice. You tell her I said to. End of story. Now, I have to go. I’m ending this once and for all.”

“How are you going to do that?” There was a slight edge to Slade’s voice that had me questioning my sanity. My slave’s brother was too close of a connection to her. He represented what I could so easily lose. My brain told me to me to get home. To face the men who were waiting and finally get my revenge. My heart told me to think smart and call the only backup I trusted.

“Let’s just say Saul may be stealthy, but he’s a lot like my father. He’s a creature of habit. I know his next move and I plan to turn the tables on him. He might think he has me where he wants. He may even suspect that I know what it is. What he fails to see is that I think outside of the box. I cover every possibility and I calculate the best outcome. I know what I have to do.”

The footsteps returned and I assumed Slade began pacing again. “Just make sure you wear the damn vest. I swear, you should just leave it on with the rate you’re going.”

“You don’t know Saul. He’s not going to be aiming for the chest, brother. He’s going for the head if he or his men take a shot. It’s the kill factor. They don’t chance survivors. If they’re pulling the trigger, they want you dead.”

“Wear the damn vest anyway,” Slade snapped.

Cars thickened as I stared at the traffic. Was one of Saul’s men out here waiting for me? Or did they assume I had been in the limo? It was hard to say when I didn’t know whether they’d witnessed the group crowding to get inside. If I knew one thing, it was that Saul was already in my home, waiting to see if I came back. He’d know my new residence. I was betting my life on it.

“I have to go. Tell Lily I love her.”

“You should get your ass here and just tell her yourself. I can’t stand her always being in the middle of this. You should let Blake or Gaige take care of it.”

My jaw tightened and I hung up the phone. Slade would never understand why I had to do this. He didn’t live my life or see the things I had. Saul’s death deserved to be painstakingly slow. I wanted him to suffer. Just like his slaves had. Just like he hurt Lily. Bloody...brutal…

Sirens echoed in the distance and my arm shot out, hailing a cab. As I spouted off a road a few streets over from my house, I let my plan work out in my head. This had to work. It would. If it didn’t, I was fucked. And if something happened to me, they’d come for my slave. I couldn’t allow that to happen.

The blur of colors helped my mind race. So clearly, I could see what was going to happen. I wasn’t naïve. I knew things rarely played out like in one’s thoughts, but as different scenarios flashed, I embraced each one, letting them feed and burn into my mind so I’d be prepared for anything.

I closed my eyes, focusing on the pressure at my hip. My fingers pushed into my thigh and I could feel a smile pull at my mouth. This would be the last time I had to kill and I’d enjoy every moment of it.

The pull of the brakes had my eyes opening, I took out my wallet, paying the fare. The sound of the door closing had the new Zain retreating. The old one surged through me and my ears adjusted to my surroundings. Cars passed. Pedestrians talked and laughed as they went in and out of homes. I walked two blocks, letting myself just…feel. For what was about to happen, a calm sensation cloaked around me. Death had been my forte. I’d spent my life living it, and all I had to do was commit the act once more. There was a sadness mixed with my blood lust. The finalization to my past hit me hard and I pushed away the sense of grief I felt. This was for the best. For Lily.

I stepped onto my block and looked down at all the stairs aligning the connected homes. Potted plants rested by some doors. Others had welcome signs. When I got to my landlord’s, I peered up at his closed door. Was he alive inside? Dead?

My feet bounded up the concrete steps and I pulled out my keys, sliding one into the lock. From slow to fast, my pulse increased. I turned my wrist, unlocking it, and pushed the door open. In a quick turn, I put my back to the outside of my home and waited. The soft muffled sound of shots going off were almost undetectable. Just like my own—silent. I pulled my gun, crouched, and turned into the entrance.
Bang.

A man fell at my shot and I moved back out of range. Two total and the other wasn’t my uncle. Shit.

“It’s him!”
was shouted in Arabic. From the sound of the voice, I could tell he’d moved further toward the stairs where the bedroom rested. I spun back to the entrance and rushed inside, yanking the door closed behind me. Multiple shots rang out as I sprinted toward the kitchen. I only had to pull my trigger once to drop the last visible guard. Warmth coated my side and I cursed myself for not wearing the fucking vest. I hadn’t even considered taking it from the trunk of Lily’s car. I knew it wasn’t bad. More of a scratch than anything, but I’d been damn lucky.

“Saul!”

I flipped the table onto its side as I slid to a stop. Scraping sounded on the floor while I angled it to the front door and the stairs. If he came down, I’d have perfect view of his feet before he could even see me. But the big question was, if…

I switched to Arabic, hoping to at least get a response. The man had been yelling at someone. There was a chance my uncle wasn’t even here, but I wasn’t betting on that. Saul wanted me dead. He wanted my slave. This had to have been his plan.

“Saul, come down. I know you’re up there.”

The echo was loud in the silence of my home. If the guard wouldn’t have made it obvious, I would have assumed no one else was here. But…there had to be. I rose the slightest amount, peering at the open space around me.

“Saul!” A growl poured from my lips and I stayed low, running deeper into the kitchen. Weapons were spread around my house at random locations, but that wasn’t what I was after. I stood, swinging the cabinet open and grabbing the gauze. As I made my way back to the table, I took off my jacket and pulled my shirt open, not caring about taking the time to unbutton it. Button’s spun around the floor and in fast wraps, I circled my stomach. The scratch from the bullet was deep, but nothing I’d need stitches for.

Annoyance mingled with impatience and I looked back up at the stairs while I finished fastening the bandage. “You better be praying,” I yelled out. “By the time I get up there, you’re going to wish you would have.”

“Always so sure of yourself. Not this time, Zain.”

My hands dropped and I grabbed my gun, aiming it for the stairs. From my angle, I couldn’t see the top, but I kept it trained to where he’d first come into view.
If
he decided to do so.

“Really? Are you sure, because I think it is. Listen to your gut, Uncle. What does it tell you?”

A laugh was followed by footsteps from above. I glanced up, but stayed focused on the stairs. There was no telling whether he was up there alone.

“Zain, Zain…” Again he laughed. “You know, I have to admit, this is going to be rather fun. Had I known how much, I think I would have done this a lot sooner.”

What sounded like a soft voice had me tilting my head to get a better angle. Whispering buzzed and I couldn’t make out what was said. The sob that followed had me standing. It was feminine, making my heart drop. Slade had said Lily was at the hospital. She was supposed to be safe. If this wasn’t Lily…then who?”

I took a step, my feet seeming to weigh more with each inch I grew closer.

“No?” Saul laughed quietly. “You know, I’ve done this before. You’ll thank me, I promise.” The sobbing increased.

“Saul!” I placed my foot on the first step and gripped my gun tighter while I keeping it aimed above. All he had to do was peek his head over the side and I’d blow his brains out. But from what I could see, he wasn’t by the edge.

“Did you finally decide to join us?”

My jaw tightened and I hated that he knew I was approaching. I walked faster, my finger remaining on the trigger.

“Come on. Come say hello.” There was a drawl in his tone. Almost as if he were coaxing a young child. My head came to the top of the opening and I counted to three before I took a quick look. Time stopped as I pushed my hand to the wall for balance. So, that’s what he’d meant.
He’d done it before
. Rage had me seeing red and I felt almost disconnected as I took a step higher. My hand slid into my pocket and I pulled out my phone, hitting Slade’s number. I didn’t even raise the phone to my ear. I placed it on the top step, out of view, and walked the remaining distance until I was standing in the room.

Rope was strewn over the rafter above and Mary’s arms were bound high enough to where she had to stand on her tiptoes to stay balanced. Tears stained her face and blood was smeared along her mouth and chin. The swelling on her cheek had me circling the room for a clear shot. Saul was standing behind her, holding the knife to her throat, one hand on her slightly rounding stomach.

“Mary, it’s going to be okay. Just don’t move, okay.”

“Za-in.” My name came out broken as her eyes closed and more tears spilled out.

Saul’s finger splayed and his fingertips pushed in, gripping the fabric of her loose, light blue dress. Mary began noticeably shaking as she let out an angry groan. It was followed by more sobs.

“Let her go. This is between me and you. No one else.”

“Wrong,” Saul snapped in English. “When one becomes the enemy, everyone they’re connected to is fair game. I believe
this
would be sorely missed if it were taken away. What do you think?” His hand rubbed over her stomach again and Mary tried to move to the side. The shift had her gasping. Blood ran down her neck and I stepped in closer, moving my barrel up and down, trying to find a shot that would work. Where he stood, there was no way I could take him out without risking Mary’s life. One wrong move and she could be dead.