Relentless (Option Zero 2)

“Of course I’ll come. I’ll catch the first flight out and text you my arrival time. Okay?”

“Thank you.”

“And don’t you worry. We’ll figure this thing out. There’s got to be some kind of mistake.”

“I don’t think so, but having you here will make things so much better.”

After reassuring her cousin she’d be there as soon as possible, Aubrey ended the call and immediately clicked on a travel site. She booked a flight leaving in an hour and a half. She went to the bedroom to pack, thinking about all she needed to do. Liam had already told her he likely wouldn’t be home until after the weekend. It was only Tuesday. She could fly to LA, settle Becca down, and be back before he returned home.

Thankfully, he’d left her the keys to his SUV, so she didn’t have to depend on a taxi. Packed and ready in fifteen minutes, she quickly texted Liam to let him know what was going on. And since she knew he would worry, she added that the threat they were concerned about no longer existed. He would know what she meant.

Five minutes later she was out the door. As she drove away, her heart ached a little, almost as though she were leaving for good. That was silly. She would be back in a few days, and then she and Liam would make good on all those delicious promises they’d made to each other.

Bogota, Colombia

Assessing the threat before him, Liam considered his chances of coming out of this without serious injury. They weren’t great. Two against one was almost a fair fight. Three against one was a little much. He figured he’d faced worse odds, but he’d usually had some backup. Unfortunately, he was on his own for this gig. His fault and no one else’s. When he’d spotted Drury going into the bar the day before, he had decided to do this alone. Bringing the whole crew here to bring down only one man had seemed excessive.

He’d called Ash and told him he was doing this solo. Ash had been relieved. They’d gotten a call about a possible assassination attempt in Hamburg, Germany. Ash and the team were on their way there now.

He and Drury had fought hand-to-hand before, and Liam had always come out the victor. Problem was, Drury traveled with a posse these days. Liam should have done more surveillance. That’s what he got for half-assing an op. The excuse that he wanted to get back to Aubrey wasn’t a good one. Not when there was a possibility he wouldn’t return home at all.

Cocky was helpful only when it was mixed with intelligence. The dumbass move of not looking to see if anyone had followed Drury was going to cost him.

The back alleyway of a bar was not going to be the place he died. Not when he had Aubrey waiting at home for him. No way, after searching all these years and finally finding her, was he going to let a low-life, scumbag take that away.

The alley was filth-ridden, even by alley standards. Liam assessed his chances of finding a weapon. Liam’s gun was now beneath a dumpster. The big guy standing behind him had been the one to relieve him of his weapon. He’d make sure to retrieve it as soon as he handled this situation.

The knife in his boot was insurance. It was well hidden and he’d pull it out at an opportune moment. Revealing it too soon could cost him. For now, Liam preferred to improvise.

One man was behind him, another was to his left. Drury stood in front of him. Though the smirk on his face was infuriating, Liam had to give the man credit. It was well deserved.

“Well, well, well. It finally happened. Liam Stryker is going to get the ass-kicking I’ve been dying to give him since we had our first dustup in Mexico.”

“‘Dustup’ is such a mild word for the bloodied mess I made of you, Barney. I should’ve let you bleed to death instead of calling for help. I won’t make that mistake again.”

“And neither will I. My friends and I will ensure you never get out of Colombia.”

“I’m still surprised you have friends. How much do you have to pay them?”

“Insulting me is only going to make your pain worse.”

“I’m going to do much more than insult you, Barney. I’m going to put you away for good. What you did to Myron was unconscionable.”

“He ratted me out.”

“He was trying to save lives, slimebag. You were selling human beings.”

Drury shrugged. “We all got to make a living. He chose his path, I chose mine.” He grinned and added, “Mine pays better.”

If he was trying to piss Liam off, he was doing a good job. There was nothing Liam wanted more than to shove this bastard’s teeth down his throat. First he had to get rid of the two Neanderthals before he’d even get a chance at Drury.

Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted his first break. A plank sticking out of a garbage bin. Liam took a step back.

“Retreating, Stryker? Not surprised. You’ve always been more talk than action. I—”

Not giving Drury time to finish his sentence, Liam grabbed hold of the wood and, whirling around, slammed it into the closest guy’s head. The man dropped like a rock. Taking advantage of their surprise, Liam surged forward and rammed the plank into the other man’s gut. Unfortunately, that seemed to only piss the guy off. His fist swung upward, clipping Liam’s jaw and sending him a couple of feet back and onto his ass.

Scooping a fistful of dirt on the way back up, Liam was on his feet in seconds. He took a running start at the man who held out his arms and planted himself, waiting, almost like he thought Liam might throw his body at him like a ballroom dancer. If he had a second to think about it, he’d laugh. A foot from his target, Liam threw the dirt into the guy’s face. Snarling a curse, the man clawed at his eyes. Liam struck hard. Fist to chin, fist to gut, double kick to the groin. One last punch to the face and the man fell like a giant oak.