Infinite Surrender: 2 (Blood Feud)

by Gayle Donnelly

  “Why don’t you try Sam again?” Tre brought her attention back to the immediate issue at hand.

  Chapter Twenty-Six

  The afternoon dragged on endlessly, Chloe’s fears for Sam’s safety increasing with each interminable minute. By the time night had fallen and the team, minus Darrius, returned to the house, her nerves were ready to shatter. She hadn’t spoken to Talon since this morning yet felt his eyes on her no matter where she moved throughout the room. Juvenile maybe, but she refused to meet his gaze.

  The men were seated in their now familiar places at the kitchen table and breakfast bar, reviewing all the information they had gathered so far. MaKane had narrowed down a handful of locations where the crushed oyster shells could have originated. This could hopefully lead them to the Valta’s location. Sam’s revelations were added pieces to the puzzle but they needed to get her to safety in order to figure out just how those pieces fit into the overall picture. Chloe noted that Gabriel stood apart from the rest of the group, leaning a heavy shoulder against the wall, somewhat removed.

  “Still no luck contacting Sam?” Daniel’s low voice in her ear startled her as she turned to face him. He grinned and held out a glass of wine but his eyes couldn’t hide his concern.

  “Don’t sneak up on me like that, Danny.” She took the wine and smacked him half-heartedly on the shoulder. “And no, my calls still aren’t going through.”

  He twisted the top off his own beer and took a step back. His grin disappeared. “I think we need to be prepared for the possibility she was taken, Chloe.” He said in a low, somber tone.

  Chloe’s phone rang and she nearly dropped her glass. She set it on the counter before looking at the display. Unknown. She quickly answered, praying beyond hope Sam was on the other end of the line. “Hello. Sam?”

  “Hey, Red. Remember me?” She felt the blood drain from her face at the familiar voice. She gripped the phone to the point of pain and stood in stunned silence. All eyes in the room were now intently focused on her. And for the first time since his return, her gaze locked on Talon.

  She forced a sense of calm to wash over her then allowed her anger to seep in. “Sure I remember you, Blondie. By the way, how’s the face?”

  The low growl she heard over the phone gave her a small note of satisfaction. “Don’t worry, bitch. You’ll be paying for that soon enough.” Then his voice evened, the sickening smoothness sent a shiver through her body. “See you soon…pet.” The call disconnected.

  Chloe stared at the phone in numb silence until David stepped forward. “How the hell did he get your number, Chlo and what did he say?”

  She took a deep breath before relaying the conversation. She paused and looked to her team. “I messed up.” She admitted. “I shouldn’t have goaded him. I should have asked about Sam or tried to set up a meeting.” She shook her head at her own stupidity. “I’m sorry, guys.”

  The men immediately began a barrage of protests to her apology and over the clamor she saw Talon stand and start to approach. Before he could reach her, Chloe’s cell rang again. She nearly cried in relief when she looked at the display.

  “Sam!” She exclaimed. “Where are you? Are you all right?”

  Sam spoke so softly, Chloe had to strain to hear her. She put the phone on speaker and turned up the volume so everyone could listen. “I’m so sorry, Chloe. My car broke down so I hitched a ride and only just made it back into town. My phone lost charge and I wasn’t able to call you.” She paused and Chloe heard a rustling sound in the background. “I picked up a rental car and a car charger for my phone but I think I’m being followed. I don’t know how they could find me in a different car though. I can’t see anyone but I feel it, Chloe.” There was another long pause. “I’m hiding in my car in an old metal building on the north side of the logging mill just ten minutes north of Bud Bay. I’m scared, Chloe.”

  Chloe let out a breath she didn’t even realize she was holding. Sam was safe, for now, and she was close. “Sam, listen to me.” Chloe began. “Stay where you are. We’re coming for you. You’ll be safe. Stay in your car with the doors locked and we’ll be there in less than ten minutes. Do you understand?”

  “Just hurry, Chloe,” came Sam’s hushed reply. “And be careful. I still feel danger surrounding you too.”

  “We’re going to focus on you right now, hon.” Chloe reassured. “Now sit tight and we’ll be there before you know it.”

  Chloe didn’t hesitate to turn toward the front closet, ready to grab her boots and head out. A strong grip on her arm stopped her progress.

  “Not happening.” Talon’s deep, authoritative voice shredded the last bit of her control.

  She jerked from his hold and turned to face him. “Like hell.” She shouted. “I’m part of this team. Sam trusts me. I’m going.” She said in her own authoritative tone, although admittedly hers didn’t seem to have the same impact as Talon’s.

  Daniel took that opportunity to step forward. “He’s right, Chlo. Are you forgetting the earlier phone call? It’s obvious they’re just waiting for a perfect opportunity to get to you. You’ll be safer here.”

  “Danny,” she began but Talon interjected.

  “Take your emotions out of this and think, Chloe. They could be playing with Sam in the hopes of you running to her rescue, giving them the perfect opportunity to take you.” He stepped forward and gripped her shoulders. “I’m not going to let that happen. You’ll stay here where it’s safe and we’ll bring Sam to you.” He ordered.

  The force of his determined gaze nearly had her walking into his hold but thankfully, she held herself in check and moved back out of his grasp. She absolutely hated that he was spouting orders at her and she absolutely hated that he was probably right. “Fine. But if this could be a trap, then all of you need to go so there’s enough back-up if needed.”

  She saw Daniel look to Talon and nod in agreement.

  Gabriel stepped forward, speaking for the first time that evening. “I’ll stay with Chloe so she’s not left unprotected.”

  Knowing they were wasting precious time and eager to get Sam to safety, Chloe moved to Gabriel’s side. “Fine. Decision made. Now go and get Sam and bring her back.”

  The men quickly filed out the front door with Talon bringing up the rear. He paused at the door and looked over his shoulder to where she still stood with Gabriel. “When this is over, Chloe, we’re going to have that talk.”

  She schooled her features and didn’t reply then watched as he closed the door behind him.

  * * * * *

  The logging mill was deserted and quiet yet Talon’s senses were warning him of impending trouble. They split into two groups to take each side of the building Sam had indicated she was hiding in. Talon led Daniel and MaKane through the front while Tre led Michael and David through the back entrance. Each man held their blades ready as they crept silently into the darkened interior.

  Talon held up his hand to stop their progress. There, in the middle of the vacant building, sat a beige sedan. He moved without sound and opened the unlocked driver’s side door. The interior light of the vehicle illuminated the space. Talon reached in and pulled out a cell phone that had been left in the front seat. Other than that, the vehicle was completely empty. He listened intently to the silence. Sniffed the air. Then all hell broke loose.

  Valta came at them from all sides. Talon felt the piercing sting of a blade slice down his back. He roared in fury as he deftly spun back around with a lower leg sweep, bringing down his attacker. Without hesitation, he drove the heel of his boot down hard into the man’s chest, hearing the resounding crack of his sternum. In one swift move, Talon plunged his iron blade into the Valta’s heart and twisted as he watched the man’s startled expression turn lifeless in an instant.

  He rose and quickly assessed the situation. Each member of his team was engaged and handling their own as he witnessed one Valta after the other drop. Movement in the back corner of the building caught his attention as Talon s
aw David raise his blade high for a killing blow. “David, stop!” he shouted.

  David turned to look over his shoulder and released the half-conscious Valta from his grip. The man dropped to the dirt floor like a stone.

  Tre came to Talon’s side. “T. Something’s not right, man. This was too damn easy.”

  Talon had just been thinking the same thing and a sick feeling of dread rolled over him as he looked around the cavernous metal building to see at least ten dead Valta lying in the dirt. David was dragging the lone survivor over by the leg.

  The ringing of Talon’s phone deterred any reply he was about to give Tre. He pulled it from his pocket and read the display before answering. “Little busy right now, boss. I’ll have to call you back.”

  “Talon, listen to me.” Mathias thundered. “We just found Simon.”

  Talon’s blood ran cold.

  “His throat was sliced from ear to ear and his heart cut out of his chest. He was stuffed in the back of one of the caves about twenty minutes north of the castle.”

  At Talon’s continued silence, Mathias roared. “Talon, did you hear me? It was Gabriel all along. He set this all up for Simon to take the fall. Where’s my sister?”

  A murderous rage the likes of which Talon had never known reverberated through every pore of his body. “Fuck!” He roared, as he disconnected the call and ran toward the front entrance.

  “David,” Tre was already following, having easily heard Mathias’ loud voice through the phone. “You, Michael, and MaKane wake this prick up and get some answers from him. We need to know where their base is. Now.” He ordered then looked over his shoulder at Daniel. “Daniel, you’re with us.”

  Within minutes, Talon burst through the unlocked front door and came to an abrupt halt, Tre and Daniel right on his heels. His heart skipped a beat at the sight he saw. Furniture was overturned, pictures and photos lay in their broken glassed frames on the floor, and there was blood spatter on the carpet. He moved farther into the house with numb precision until he turned at Tre’s curse.

  He followed his friend’s line of sight to the kitchen wall and he felt his blood turn to ice. There, on the back wall in large letters, a message was written in blood. Chloe’s blood. Talon knew that fact to the depths of his soul as he read the message meant for him alone. ‘YOU LOSE’. It was the exact same message Talon had left for Luca when they had rescued Mina. And now Talon had handed Chloe right over into that sick fuck’s hands.

  The roar of rage and agony that escaped Talon’s chest shook the windows in their frames. He felt his canines explode from his gums and his claws erupt through his fingertips as he turned to look at Tre and David, who were now carefully backing away from him.

  Tre brought both hands up, palms out. “T. Calm down, man. Losing it right now isn’t going to help us get Chloe back.” He said calmly, trying to bring his friend back down.

  Talon took deep breaths, knowing his friend was right but too far gone at the moment to listen to reason. He paced from one end of the room to the other, willing himself back in control. It was Daniel who brought his focus back to where it needed to be.

  “Talon. We’re with you on this. What are your orders?”

  Talon took one last calming breath and stopped pacing. He turned to the two men in front of him. “First we find out where that momma’s bitch Luca is holding Chloe then we get her out. After which, I’ll have the pleasure of ripping the fucker into so many pieces, there won’t be enough left of him for even the buzzards to snack on.” He took a step forward. “And finally, I’m going to peel the skin off that fucking traitor Gabriel’s body strip by strip before I burn him alive until he’s nothing but ash.”

  Tre stepped forward and laid a heavy hand on Talon’s shoulder. “Welcome back, man. Now let’s do this.”

  “What the fuck?” A deep voice rumbled.

  The three men drew their blades and faced the front door at the unexpected statement. Standing just inside, Killian and Dev looked around the room in stunned silence before turning their gazes to Tre, Daniel, and Talon.

  Dev stepped farther into the room and crossed his arms over his chest. “I’ll ask again, gentlemen. What the fuck?”

  Killian took that moment to shoulder past Dev and stop directly in front of Talon. “I’ll tell you what the fuck, Dev. This egotistical, traitor’s son did just what I knew he always would. He put his own agenda first and now Chloe’s paying the price.”

  Daniel stepped in between the two men. “You’re out of line, General. Back off.”

  Killian’s gaze narrowed and he drew his shoulders back. “What did you just say to me, warrior?”

  Daniel looked to Talon then back at Killian. “I said, General…back the fuck off.”

  Killian raised his fist to strike but Dev was too fast as he gripped Killian’s wrist, halting the blow. “Enough.” He ordered and waited until he felt Killian’s arm relax before he released his hold. He turned to Tre. “Bring us up to speed.”

  Tre relayed all of the recent events, including the trap at the logging mill, the discovery of Gabriel as the traitor, and finally Chloe’s abduction. Talon remained silent throughout but the pure rage rolling off him was overpowering. Tre noticed Killian’s accusatory glare never strayed from Talon’s direction and he wanted to slam his fist in the arrogant ass’s face, general or not.

  Dev looked around at the utter destruction of the room. “It’s obvious she put up one hell of a fight.” He shook his head in frustration before he continued. “So are we to assume the Valta have both Chloe and this Samantha woman?”

  “That’s what we believe, General.” Daniel answered. “Her car was exactly where she said she would be hiding and only her cell phone was left behind. She felt like she was being followed so we can only assume the Valta found her and removed her before we made it to the scene.”

  Dev stood and moved to the fireplace. “And do we have any idea where Luca might be holding them?”

  The sound of the front door opening stopped Tre’s reply. David, Michael, and MaKane entered. Bloodied and out of breath. Daniel had called them earlier to let them know what had happened back at the house. It was obvious by their physical appearance they all got a little overzealous in taking out their frustrations of losing Chloe on the last surviving Valta.

  “Tell me you’ve got something for us.” Daniel demanded.

  One side of David’s mouth turned up in a malicious grin. “Oh yeah, we got something all right.” He stated with deadly intent. “It’s time to go bring our Chloe-girl home, boys.”

  Chapter Twenty-Seven

  Back at the mill, it hadn’t taken long for David and the others to extract the information on Luca’s location out of their prisoner. But they admitted to taking a bit more time when it came to sending the man to his death—his very slow and painful death.

  Three hours after Chloe had been taken and with their plans in place, the team was crossing the Sound in a high-speed Bayliner cabin cruiser. Armed with enough weapons to take on a small country, they headed northwest toward the small, supposedly unpopulated land mass known as Terseley Island, about fifteen miles out from the mainland.

  Talon stood motionless at the bow. The cold air and splashes of icy sea water went unnoticed on his hardened features. Tre approached. “T, we’re going to get her back and she’s going to be fine. You have to believe that, man.”

  Talon kept his eyes focused ahead as he replied with cold conviction. “Do you know what a sick fuck like Luca could have done to her by now? Do you know how much pleasure he would take in hurting her beyond pain?” He then turned hard eyes on his friend. “Do you understand this is my fucking fault, Tre?”

  Killian moved in behind Talon, having obviously overheard the conversation. “Look at it this way, Talon, if we aren’t able to save Chloe, maybe as a consolation prize you’ll run into your little brother in there. It could be a family reunion of sorts.” He said lightly but his tone was one of pure contempt. “Maybe since he’s working w
ith the Valta, he can even bring you up to date on what dear old dad has been up to. Yeah,” He shook his head. “Quite a family you got there, Talon.”

  “You’re a real ass, Killian. You know that?” Dev’s booming voice thundered over the wind and waves as he stood from the bench he’d been sitting on to approach the group. “What the hell are you doing? I spoke to Roderick before we left the house to inform him about Chloe. I know for a fact you sent Darrius to escort O’Connor back to the castle for further testing and questioning. In fact, you know damn well it’s already been determined he had no idea of his bloodline and wasn’t involved in any of this shit.” He took a step closer. “So what’s with the fucking mind games?”

  As Dev’s words registered, Talon exploded toward Killian and grabbed him by the shirt. “You sick son of a bitch! You kept this information from me?”

  Without hesitation, Killian landed a hard blow to Talon’s jaw. Talon’s head snapped back from the sheer force but he brought his head slowly back around to meet Killian’s cold stare.

  “I told you before, General, the next time I’d hit back.” Talon slammed his fist into Killian’s face, blood spurted from the other man’s nose as Dev and Tre struggled to pull the two apart.

  “Enough! Both of you. You can settle whatever this shit is later. For now we need to focus on what we need to do here.” Dev ordered.

  Killian was breathing heavy as he jerked out of Dev’s hold, fury still radiating off him. “He’s fucking trash, Dev. His whole damn family is arrogant, treasonous trash. He brings nothing but destruction to everyone he touches.” He paced to the side of the bow and turned to face the group once again. “Why do you think he hasn’t made general yet? Roderick knows. He knows he can’t risk this little bastard following in daddy’s footsteps. He knows Talon defied his direct orders to remain in Germany and came here instead. He knows the shit he pulled with my niece ten years ago and now he’s playing the same fucking games with Chloe and look what happened. She’s probably dead right now because of him.”