Taigen pulled himself out of the ropes, centering back into the middle of the ring. Out of breath and tired, they were not yet finished.
Marcus wiped his brow and turned to get another drink when Taigen jumped him from behind. Plunging toward the mat, he managed to roll, softening the blow, and threw Banvard off.
“Damn, man.” Taigen smiled from five feet away, flat on his stomach. “How’d you do that?”
“Training.”
“You need to teach me that.” He stayed motionless as Marcus walked over and extended a hand.
“Sure.”
They left the ring, grabbing towels to dry off.
Marcus’s thoughts kept turning back to Adelaide, the woman who’d been through so much to obtain her freedom but was kept at the side of another tyrant years later.
“Spit it out,” Taigen interrupted.
“I can’t understand why she stays here,” he said, speaking his mind. “You’re telling me Adelaide escaped that compound because of the things Harlow made her do, that she would kill him because of those things, but she’s here, with Wren, doing the same things. Killing. Still more of a slave than a bodyguard.”
Taigen lowered his bottle of water and stared at Marcus. His expression went dull and distant. “She is a slave.” Waiting a few seconds before continuing, he nodded in confirmation. “He saved her life.” He smiled, shaking his head. “Christian is the one who called the cops that night.” He paused again. “They came, giving Adelaide just enough distraction to escape, but Christian didn’t think she would leave without him.”
Marcus took another sip of water loudly, bringing Taigen back to the present.
“She ran to Mexico City and hid in an alley for two weeks.” He gulped the water in his hand. “When he found her she was so exhausted, she could barely open her eyes.”
“Exhausted?” Marcus asked.
“She’d had to fight off other homeless and she hadn’t eaten in more than a week.”
“What happened after that?” The story had taken an intriguing turn and he wanted more.
“Well,” Taigen said and started toward the door. “Christian nursed her back to health, took her to doctors, gave her a place to stay. He saved her life. He even got a degree in psychology to help her.”
Yeah, sounds like a real saint. “And how did you find her?”
They walked down the hallway toward the kitchen as Taigen continued. “A year after she was taken we got our first lead. We found out her kidnapper was a member of the Mexican Vicente Mafia and was holed up somewhere in Mexico.”
“Harlow Vicente?” Marcus asked.
Taigen nodded as they reached the kitchen. Opening the refrigerator door, he poked his head around for a few seconds. “By then Adelaide had been gone for a year, but it was the only lead we had at the time so my dad and I left.”
Marcus took a seat on one of the bar stools, listening intently.
After making himself a sandwich, Taigen took a large bite and spoke through the food. “It took us two months to find the compound, but once we did, there was no going back.” He swallowed and stayed quiet for a few seconds, staring at the floor. “My dad was so gung-ho about getting her back that he’d never made a plan as to how to do it.”
“He just went barging in?” Marcus asked, trying to imagine the man who’d spent the last two decades in a basement gung-ho about anything.
“Pretty much.” Taigen took another bite of the sandwich and flinched. “Damn, man. You really nailed me.” He held the right side of his face as he chewed slowly. “Needless to say, he got caught.”
He tried not to laugh as Taigen winced in pain, proud he’d been able to bring down one of Wren’s primary bodyguards on his own.
“My dad was stuck in that hellhole, forced to watch his little girl kill others for six years because of one stupid mistake.”
“A mistake?” Marcus asked, enthralled. He already knew the basics of this story, but details made cases. If he could use this information against Adelaide, she just might lead him deeper into Wren’s private rabbit hole.
“My dad was in a nasty bar fight a while back. He killed the guy. He was sent to Desert High for ten years,” Banvard explained. “Harlow’s father killed my mother out of revenge.”
“You’re telling me all of this started with a reckless bar fight?” Obviously Harlow hadn’t told Marcus the entire story.
“This whole war started with my father,” Taigen stated. “He got his daughter kidnapped by a sociopath who turned her into one herself.” His chest rose and fell rapidly with emotion, but he visibly tried to control his temper.
“What happened to him?” Did they know their father was now just as anxious as they were to escape this mess? To go on with a life of their own?
Taigen shook his head, his lips creasing into a thin line. Shoulders sinking in defeat, he seemed to be releasing his pent-up anger. “I don’t know. I never heard from him again.” His electric blue eyes connected with Marcus, then he chuckled.
The change startled Marcus. “What’s so funny?”
“We were after the same bank,” he said, completely off subject. “That’s how I found her again.” He smiled. “She pulled a gun on me and I haven’t left her side since.”
“How’d you know it was her?” he asked.
“Her white hair. She’s had it since she was a child, unlike mine.” Taigen scraped the crumbs from the counter. “I’ve been trying to persuade her to get out of this mess for six years. If you haven’t guessed already, Christian uses her for his dirty work, but she just can’t seem to let go of her debt to him. She might have a chance to get better if she didn’t have to kill anyone.” He shook his head, looking up with a sad smile. “You ready for another round?”
Marcus forced a smile, not really in the mood to fight, but sure Adelaide Banvard was the woman he wanted.
* * *
Adelaide’s job seemed easy enough, but for some reason she just couldn’t get the movements right. She only had to climb to the sixteenth floor, disable the security system and meet Christian before she went to the roof. From there, she’d rappel to the office she wanted and retrieve the copy of the ledger rumored to be there.
Christian had gone through the routine with her over fifteen times, but it still wasn’t perfect. She had trouble gripping the edge of the makeshift windows replicating the originals.
Her feet remained in place, grounded on the ledge, but her fingers couldn’t keep hold of the slick surface of the window. She fell again, the third time in the past hour, and she sensed Christian’s impatience as she hit the thick mat beneath her. Adelaide stared up at the ceiling for a moment, inhaling in frustration.
You always were a failure, the delusion said, gripping the window perfectly. That’s why we’re still in this position. You don’t have the guts to kill him.
In full gear, weighted down with the shoulder holster and 9mm under her leather jacket, she pushed the gun away from her ribs. She got up from the mat, ready to try again.
“You can do this, Adie,” Christian said from behind.
Adelaide didn’t have a choice. She had to get this down or come up with another plan, which would take even longer. The longer those documents stayed out of their possession, the higher the risk of getting caught. Christian refused to push the opportunity off any longer.
From his reflection in the window, she saw him looking down at his watch, following the movement of his lips as he spoke again. “I know you can do better.”
Uh-oh. The figment of her imagination jumped down with a smile, waiting to see the end result and Adelaide’s reaction.
Fury rocked her entire body. She wasn’t trying to fail. Anger welled in her chest, not quite as hot as it could get but close enough to make her want to scream. Her body tensed. Ready to attack, she realized they weren’t alone.
“Windows?” Taigen asked with a note of surprise in his voice. He turned to Adelaide, then back to Christian. “She’s not using a rope or a har
ness. I hope you’re not planning to send her in that way.” He crossed his arms over his chest, trying to intimidate Christian. It never worked.
Adelaide waited for Christian’s answer for a full two breaths, still staring at their reflections in the window.
“She knows what she’s doing.” He turned toward Marcus. “Are you ready? We have a lot of work that needs to be done.”
Marcus stepped forward, a blank expression on his face. “Just point me in the right direction.”
“Adelaide needs a break. She will show you how to arm the explosives.” He looked directly at her reflection in the windows, the ones she’d been using to watch him for the past few minutes.
She didn’t have the time or motivation to deal with Marcus’s sorry excuse as a Marine, but a feeling in the back of her mind told her Marcus knew more than he let on. Frustration burned inside her chest again. She needed to focus on her climb. They only had two days left until she would need the movement perfect or risk falling to her death. There weren’t mats in the real world.
“Yes,” Christian said, answering some unknown expression presenting itself on her face.
She couldn’t remember what she’d been thinking about.
Adelaide motioned for Marcus to lead the way, studying his feet as he passed by. Casting a backward glance at Christian, she watched as he pulled her brother by the shoulder in the opposite direction, getting him ready for his part in this play.
She sped past her new assistant, leading Marcus to one of the numerous garages.
It wasn’t the largest but would work. The cement flooring had been newly washed, the white walls clean. Empty except for a table and a row of bins, the space gave them the privacy they needed.
He lied to me. He’d promised her the bank would be her last job. An echo of the fury simmering in her chest flared—
“So.” Marcus slapped his hands together over the table, interrupting her thoughts. “What’re we doing?”
Adelaide inhaled calmly, letting his voice sink to every level of her being. Her fingers relaxed first and the feeling continued up her arms and into her torso. Her heartbeat slowed, the pounding behind her ears softened. She pointed to a closed gray bin in the corner of the room.
He headed over to it, grabbed each handle and lifted with his legs as he swung around, placing the bin on the table in front of her.
She nodded in thanks and opened the plastic container. Adelaide threw the lid to the floor and peered inside. She counted at least fifty stacks of brown-paper-wrapped rectangles, a smile crossing her face.
This could be fun, the monster whispered, appearing once again by her side.
Adelaide had to agree.
“Is that what I think it is?” Marcus asked, leaning over the side of the bin.
She smiled slightly and reached inside for a rectangle. Four inches wide, six inches long, and two inches deep, the explosive would do the job nicely. She nodded, feeling the weight in her hand.
“Do we really need so much?” His curiosity mixed with a hint of fear.
Adelaide shook her head and motioned inside the bin; they’d only use half now and keep the other half stored.
“You plan on using this stuff for something else?” He asked too many questions and she shrugged, storing the knowledge away for later use.
C4 had many uses.
“What now?”
Adelaide searched the garage for the wire Taigen had left behind. She pushed away from the table, searching. More gray tubs lined the perimeter, but she ignored them. They would wait for something down the line.
“Is this what you’re looking for?” Marcus asked from behind.
She turned abruptly, nearly running into a wall of flesh. Adelaide hadn’t noticed how close he’d gotten. Bothered by the fact she’d let her guard down, she stepped back.
He offered the spool of wire she’d been looking for.
Taking it from him without a glance, she moved around him and back to the table. She’d already picked up the wire cutters during her search and now started to measure out the length of fuse she’d need for each explosive.
Marcus walked back to his spot on the other side of the table, mimicking her hasty measurements. “How many do you think we’ll need?”
She motioned to half the box again and continued cutting the fuses. Six inches. Snip. Six inches. Snip. She kept her focus on the fuse and the cutters as they worked in silence.
Her monster began singing by her side, hissing the words. Adelaide recognized the tune, mouthing the words to herself.
Marcus cast glances over the table at her. “What is the wire for?”
Without hesitation, she removed a rectangle from the gray tub and inserted a piece of fuse into the far end.
“Oh.” He started cutting again. “And you need it this long to give you how much time?”
She gave him an exasperated look. Surely he knew all of this. He’d been a Marine. Didn’t America teach its soldiers these kinds of things?
He put his hands up in surrender, gripping the wire cutters in one hand. “Sorry. Sorry. I’ll keep my mouth shut.”
Adelaide lowered her head back to the fuse in her hand and found herself trying not to smile. The silence wasn’t uncomfortable. Hardly anybody had been willing to speak to her, afraid she would react violently. She could even sense the skittishness Christian exhibited at times. She didn’t want to be a monster, something people feared. Adelaide wanted a normal life, and for the first time she felt a taste of it when Marcus came around. She watched him through the curtain of hair surrounding her face as she worked.
He ground the cutters a few times before the wire separated from the spool. Clumsy. Trying to shove the fuse into the C4, Marcus couldn’t get past the packaging every so often, wasting time.
Adelaide leaned over the table as he tried again. She grabbed his hand in mid-motion and felt him freeze under her touch. He tensed, but she wouldn’t hurt him. Not if she could help it. She took the wire and C4 from him slowly, watching for his reaction as she reached for the wire cutters and clipped the end of the fuse at an angle. She slipped the wire into the explosive effortlessly and handed it back. The remnants of his touch coated her fingers. He’d been warm and she wanted more.
For a moment, he seemed stunned, but shook himself back to reality. “Don’t know why I didn’t think of that.” He swallowed loudly. “Thanks.”
She gave him a nod, turning back to her own pile. Only a few packages stood between them and finishing when the garage door opened. Adelaide automatically reached for her weapon. Her arm aimed the gun before she knew who’d interrupted the party.
“Cool it, Adie,” Christian snapped and sauntered to the table. “How are we doing?”
She motioned to the finished stack at the far end of the table then the last two they’d started working on.
“Good. Get these into the car when you’re done, Marcus,” Christian ordered. “Adie, I have a present for you.”
She looked up to meet his eyes as she holstered her gun back under her jacket.
“Come with me.” Without waiting for a response, Christian turned on his heels, heading back the way he’d come.
Chapter Twelve
“Yeah, it’s me,” Marcus said into the phone. He’d waited a full five minutes before he had the guts to dial, making sure he wouldn’t be overheard. “They’re using C4.”
“What for?” his partner asked.
“I don’t know yet.” His eyes darted across the garage, landing on the garage door leading to the house. “And I have a feeling they don’t plan on telling me either.”
“They don’t trust you yet,” Brent stated. “Do you have any idea of what they’re doing?”
“They’ve only been planning this for a couple weeks. They probably don’t even know what they’re doing.”
A chuckle resonated through the phone.
“Adelaide is something,” Marcus commented, his eyes drifting to the door she’d exited through.
“You better not, Marky.” Brent’s voice sobered, sounded guarded. “From what I’ve researched, she ain’t all there.”
“Any progress?” he asked, ignoring his partner’s warning. “Did you find anything we can use?”
“Ah, yeah.” Brent cleared his throat, riffling through what sounded like paperwork in the background. “William Roberts had an office in the federal building, of course. Turns out there’s a safe in his office. Might be something you should look into.”
Footsteps sounded just outside the garage. “I have to go. Keep me updated with anything else you find.”
“Wait—”
He slammed the phone shut as the garage door opened. Shoving his phone down toward his pocket as quickly as possible, Marcus missed his target and the phone clattered to the floor.
“Marcus,” Christian said, stepping into the room for a second time.
“Yeah?” He tried to push his cell behind his right foot with his left without drawing attention to his actions, but Wren wouldn’t be fooled.
“I thought I heard you talking to someone.”
“I was talking to myself. Singing actually.” The phone disappeared and Marcus continued his work. Reaching to the far end of the table, he grabbed two blocks of C4 and placed them in an empty bin in front of him.
Christian stepped even closer. “I was just discussing with Adelaide how much we all need a break from training and preparations. Would you be up to a night on the town?”
“What did you have in mind?” he asked tentatively, trying to keep his hands busy with Wren’s stare burning into him.
“It’s Taigen and Adelaide’s birthday. Nothing awful.” He smiled at Marcus. “Taigen suggested this club he visits every so often. Supposed to be some pretty nice girls there.”
The strip club, Marcus thought. He didn’t want to go to a strip club. “Ah, I—”
“You what?” Christian asked, handling one of the bricks on the table. “Have to work?” He set the block into the bin. “We’re leaving in fifteen minutes. Meet you out front.” He turned, leaving Marcus alone in the private garage with over twenty pounds of explosive. “And Marcus?”
Let Me Out (For Me, #1) Page 12
