Savage Love (Savage Trilogy 3)

“Drive this bitch like she’s the only beautiful woman you’ve ever ridden, man.”

“To which house, Savage? Your father’s or Tag’s?”

I shoot him a scowl. “Were you sleeping through those hours of planning? Drive the motherfucking car.”

He curses and starts driving. “Do you really think, based on that fire, that Tag’s just going to be sitting there in that house he’s renting, waiting?”

I don’t even have to think about my answer. Any hesitation I’d had back in that stairwell is gone. “Tag didn’t start a damn fire. The last thing he wants is to distract me from my mission. The last thing he wants is to piss me off before I complete my mission. Stick to the plan.”

He pulls us out of the hotel and onto the highway. “If he didn’t set the fire, who did?”

“My father’s a damn drunk. He probably left a cigar burning on the damn carpet. He’s at the party.”

“Adrian’s team can’t find him.”

“He’s good at hiding while he throws up.” My cellphone rings and I glance at the number to find Tag calling. “Speak of the devil. It’s Tag.” I answer the call. “What’s up, Dumbo?”

“Am I to believe that you’ve left the party to go and save your piece of shit father?”

“Is that what you wanted when you set his house on fire?”

“I didn’t set his fucking house on fire, and he’s at the party. If I was going to set the damn thing on fire, I’d do it with him in it and after I put a bullet between his eyes. Arrogant as fuck bastard. Do not deviate from your mission over a stupid fire. You do what you were meant to do before that prick hugging your woman fucks us and her. Again. We both know he’s fucked her over and over. And we both know he enjoys licking her—”

“Stop now you, bastard, or I will make you eat your own fucking fingers.”

He laughs low and deep. “Do the job and you lick her yourself. Tonight, or her father dies. I’m out of patience.” He disconnects.

Adam cuts me a look. “Well?”

“He just wanted to make sure the fire doesn’t distract me from killing Pencil Dick Gabriel. He threatened to kill the general if I didn’t come through tonight.”

Adam smiles. “Damn, I like it when the plan goes our way.” He reaches to the side floorboard and hands me a bottle of Vodka. “For old times’ sake?”

“Hell no. I don’t want to forget killing Tag. And I’m done with the bottle man. When this is over, Candace is not tasting that shit on me.”

“That’s a new you,” he says, tossing the bottle in the backseat and turning us onto the residential street where Tag has been staying. Another two streets over, he pulls into the drive of a vacant house, the heavily treed area allowing us their cover.

I dial Asher. “We’re in position,” I say and when he answers I place him on speaker. “You have me and Adam on the line.”

“You have five men in the living room,” Asher says. “One of those is Tag. Two at the rear of the house. One east. One west.”

I don’t ask how he knows. I told him I didn’t need help. I told him to stay the fuck away from this, and yet he pushed and pushed for me to accept help that just keeps expanding. We have a recon team on the ground. I don’t complain but he proved my point. Tag’s men deserve to die. Not one of my Walker compadres deserves to die. They are my brothers, in a way not even the military gave me brothers. I will protect them, and Candace, by killing Tag’s men. “I’ll take care of the backdoor, and meet you inside,” Adam says.

“I’ve got eyes on the backdoor,” Asher says. “I’ve got help one minute from activation. You can bitch at me later, Savage. Right now, hold on. I’m making contact with the rest of the team.” He goes silent a moment, and then he’s back. “Adrian has Candace in close reach. Reynolds is on the ground in Iraq inside Prince Yasmin’s castle. We’re a go in three minutes. Get the fuck in and out, so we can all go home and kiss our women. Well, except you, Adam. You don’t have a woman.”

I disconnect and motion that “go” to Adam. We don’t speak another word. We’ve done all the talking there is to do. We have a plan. That plan is now in play. We both open our doors and get out of the vehicle. I shut mine. He leaves his open. I walk around the car and climb behind the wheel. By the time I’ve shut the door again, Adam is already gone, disappearing into the darkness. I give him a full sixty seconds to strategically position himself in a spot to end those backdoor guards.