“Addie, wouldn’t you like a drink?”
My little sister looks confused, bowing her head while trying to hide the tears in her eyes. I can’t imagine how helpless she must feel right now with all these men towering over her. There are fewer guards than I pictured, but the two behind her are all stocky muscle and I’m positive they could reach her faster than I can.
“I’ll have a drink with you,” Alex offers. “Let her go, Darren. She’s just a girl. She’s scared.”
“They’re so much more fun when they’re scared.”
I clench my fists at my sides. “You bastard. What the fuck have you done to her?”
“Nothing at all, dear brother,” he teases while popping open the champagne bottle. He pours two servings and pushes a glass in front of Addie. “I’m not that sick.”
“I wouldn’t put it past you.”
The Persian is in the middle of taking a swig when he pauses to glare angrily in my direction. “You’ll do well to take that back. My family is made of wealth older than your parents, and such a rumor would be doing them a great disservice.”
“Then maybe you shouldn’t kidnap little girls.”
“I only did it because you’ve been meddling where you don’t belong. You confronted me, Mr. D’Hautpoul. Don’t forget your silly little mistakes so easily.”
While I lock the Persian into an argument, I drift close to Alex and slip her the gun she handed me in the elevator. The Persian marches toward me while tossing his glass aside, reaching out to grab me as Alex raises her gun at the guards behind Addie.
“Addie, duck!”
Shots ring out in the expansive suite as the Persian tackles me to the ground. We grapple on the floor for a while as I hear Alex shouting in the background. Adelaide’s feverish cries cut through the chaos and fill me with dread. I hear Alex grunt and then choke, something hard hitting the carpet.
“Alex!” I shout. “Get Addie and get out!”
The Persian growls. “Not without a gift from me, Mr. D’Hautpoul!”
He raises his fists into the air and aims them at my face. While he’s distracted, I jab his gut a few times, knocking him off balance. I wiggle my body and send him flying to the right, scrambling to stand as he attempts to recover his position. I get to my feet and yank my gun from my pants, pointing it at his forehead.
“Allow me, Mr. Park.”
I unload a clip into his face, watching what once resembled flesh turn into a mess of flesh. When I’m done, I tuck the gun away, acutely aware of how Adelaide cries uncontrollably behind me. Alex rushes past me toward the door. She grabs my sleeve and yanks me after her, urging, “Come on, baby. We have to go.”
She has Adelaide tucked under her arm while she points the gun into the hallway, rushing us toward the elevator. Though the cameras are out, I’m sure someone will report the gunfire. Once we’re in the elevator, I slap the button for the garage and pray that we aren’t stopped on the way down.
We get to my car in time for me to panic as I shove the keys into the ignition. “Holy fucking shit! Weren’t there supposed to be more guards or something?”
“I don’t know,” Alex admits while holding Addie in the back seat. “Just drive, Tommy.”
I peel out of the parking garage, jumping onto the highway just as police sirens wail behind us. Red and blue lights flash in the rear-view mirror but don’t pursue us, inspiring me to hunch over the steering wheel while my sister cries in broken sobs behind me.
“Fuck, Addie,” I whisper while flipping around. “I’m so sorry I scared you.”
Alex waves for me to turn back around. “She’ll be okay. She’s just in shock.”
“They hurt me, Tommy,” Addie wails. “They hurt my arms!”
Alex shushes her. “I know, sweetie. They’re never going to hurt you again. I killed them, okay? And your brother killed the Persian. It’s over. It’s all over now…”
Hearing those words makes my heart skip a beat.
It’s all over now.
The Persian is dead. His henchmen have been slaughtered. If he had more guards, they’ll soon be summoned to identify his body in the morgue. Though my plan backfired slightly, everything else happened as it needed to happen. Alex acted as the perfect bait while I handled business.
“We did it,” I tell her. “We brought it to an end. Fuck, finally.” I scrub my forehead as I slow the car, feeling better now that I have my girls in the back. “Remind me to kiss you both when we get home.”
“Kiss us both,” Alex whispers shakily. “Don’t forget, Tommy.”
“You got it, doll,” I promise her. “As soon as we get home. As soon as I park this fucking car, I’m doing it.”
The highway stretches on endlessly, making it feel like I’m driving through a vortex. My muscles manipulate the vehicle and get us home before I know it, the steel fortress that belongs to me looming over my head as I yank my girls into my arms and pepper them with kisses. It’s a mixture of joy and sorrow, tears and laughter, shaking and giggling that produces the strangest sensation.
I feel invincible with Alex by my side. It’s something I hope to carry with me into the future—no matter what happens next.