Finding Faye (K&S Securities 1)

He hasn't mentioned her being pregnant.

I'm pretty sure that is going to be a shock for him since Faye told me he only fucked her the one time. I’ve considered telling him, but there hasn’t been a good time. I don’t want to just blurt it out.

From somewhere down the hall the faint sound of raised voices reaches my ears. I step closer to Xavier, our shoulders almost bumping into each other as we watch the rows of doors extending down the hall. Wherever the fight is taking place, we can’t see it.

The angry sounds stop without the addition of gunfire, so I'm confident that Mike and John contained the problem without much trouble.

The sounds from the altercation did echo enough to draw the interest of the goons in residence, and a door halfway down the hall opens. X and I are ready to roll.

Two guys in jeans and dirty undershirts rush out of the apartment they had been holed up in. The smell of takeout and cigarette smoke drifts down the hall as they glance around, looking for the source of the angry voices.

We are almost on them before they see us coming, and it’s clear they were not expecting visitors. Especially not the hostile kind.

They push at each other in their haste to get back into the apartment they just vacated, most likely to get to the weapons I’m sure that they left inside.

I make first contact, grabbing one by the arm and spinning him toward my waiting fist. His nose crunches and blood blossoms, flowing down over his mouth and down the front of his shirt. He's a fighter, it seems, or fancies himself one. He stumbles back a step, squaring his shoulders and lifting his fists and takes a wild swing toward me, his eyes dazed and angry at the same time. The angle of his nose tells me it’s broken, and I feel a surge of satisfaction before I step back toward him, my fists ready. He narrows his eyes and rushes me, swinging again and making contact this time.

The blows barely faze me. I barely register the pain as I get in close and release an onslaught of rapid punches. I rain blows to his face and torso, his hits taking on a desperate quality as I feel him growing weaker. He rocks back on his heels and I see my opening. One last hard right hook drives him to his knees in front of me, his battered hands hanging limp at his sides; his head hanging low as blood drips down his face.

He’s giving up.

He’s lucky I want information more than I want to beat his sorry ass into a pulp. Looking around to see if we have attracted any attention—by some miracle we haven’t—I yank his arm up behind him and use the pressure on his shoulder to steer him into the apartment.

The sound of Xavier pounding on the other man greets me as I enter and close the door quietly behind me.

“Where. The. Fuck. Is. My. Wife?” he growls between savage blows. His left eye is swollen and discolored. He must have taken one hell of a hit. A trickle of blood seeps from the corner of his mouth. He looks enraged. The man under him is nearly unconscious and bleeding freely. He seems to be missing teeth.

Don’t know if that’s a new development for him or something that happened before he tangled with Xavier. I chuckle darkly and say, “Remind me never to piss you off.”

His lip curves up in a feral smile as he looks up at me.

“Fucker wouldn't tell me where my Ana is,” he grumbles as he pushes to his feet.

“Only because he can't,” I gesture to the limp form under him. Pulling zip ties out of a pocket on my pants, I press the man I subdued into a chair and secure his hands and feet.

“Why don't you ask this one?” I offer, stepping away from him. The bloody thug glares up at us before glancing at his friend. Something like shock passes over his face as he takes in the destruction Xavier wrought in just a few short moments.

He's gonna talk, I can see it all over his face. Men like this one are loyal only to themselves. He won’t think twice about telling us everything he knows.

Xavier takes a knee beside him, a wrathful scowl twisting his face into a menacing mask. “You will tell me where those women are being held.”

The man shakes his head, opening his mouth to speak.

“Don’t worry about Dominic,” X grinds out, “since he won’t be in any position to come after you when this is over. But I WILL kill you if you don’t talk.”

His voice holds no mercy, no compassion. It is the voice of a killer. This is the man who was raised to follow in the footsteps of his mob boss father. It’s the first time I have seen this side of him. It’s fucking impressive.

The man nods once, clearly weighing his options and realizing that Xavier is serious. “Apartment 205,” he finally spits out.

I'm a little surprised it was that fucking easy. I knew he was going to talk, but thought for sure that it would take a little more persuasion.

“Thanks,” Xavier says his fist crashing down, knocking the bound man out. Working quickly, we gag the unconscious man and bind the other one before dragging them into the filthy bathroom and locking them inside.

“Dominic's men aren't very loyal,” I observe with a small amount of humor. I’m still a little high on adrenaline and it makes me find things funny that aren’t. But I’m ready to get moving and find my girl. The likelihood that I will get to fuck up a few more asshole along the way is just a perk.

X rolls his eyes at me. “Dominic’s a douchebag. You get from people what you give, and he isn't loyal to anyone but himself. I’d be surprised if any of these guys don’t roll over on him.”

“Nice of him to make it easy for us.” I shrug.