Buttons and Blame (Buttons 5)

“Good idea,” Crow said quietly.

“It can detect a pulse too. That way we know…you know.”

“Yeah.”

We prepared ourselves for the attack, stocking up on ammo, grenades, and guns. I had a pistol on either side of my holster, a knife in my boot, and I was going in with my machine gun. I wasn’t messing around, and I was going with only one intention.

Killing everyone in that compound.

I couldn’t let a single man escape. I couldn’t let a single phone call be made. I had to wipe out every last man in that complex so no one would know it was us. It could look like a random hit, a robbery.

And I could get Adelina the hell out of there.

I hadn’t slept much that week. It was a miracle that I was still functioning at that very moment.

I had sixty mercenaries recruited for the operation, all skilled men that I trusted to have my back. Even if Tristan were ready for us, he would have a difficult time defeating us. We would get in and get out quickly, taking Adelina to safety.

I couldn’t believe I let her go in the first place.

I didn’t want to think about all the suffering she had already endured. She might be dead for all I knew.

Bran rounded the men into the Hummers and then came back to Crow and me. “We should get going if we want to be there by three.”

We were driving all the way there since flying wasn’t an option with our kind of artillery. “Last chance,” I said to my brother.

He turned his eyes to me. “Let’s do it.”

* * *

Hours later, we were a mile from the house.

Crow was in a different Hummer with his own team of men. We were executing this in waves. The first group of us were supposed to take out as many men as possible silently. The second wave was backup, taking down all the men once they were aware what was going on.

I wasn’t sure exactly where Adelina would be. I suspected she would be in her room. If she were, that would make this operation a lot easier.

I pressed my fingers to my ear. “Crow, you there?”

“Loud and clear.”

“Alright. Let’s move.”

We drove to the compound with the lights off. There were no gates around the mansion because he tried to blend into the coastline. When there were gates and fences, it looked more suspicious than leaving it totally open. Plus, it made a strong statement.

Two men were already on foot, taking out the guards that were posted outside.

John came on to the mic. “All four guards down. We’re clear.”

“Roger that,” I said back.

The cars pulled into the asphalt entryway that was as big as a parking lot. We parked two hundred feet from the house, not wanting the sounds of our engines to be a dead giveaway to anyone who was sleeping. We killed the engines, and it turned silent.

The ocean waves were in the background.

My team got out of the cars and moved in.

My heart was beating so hard.

So much adrenaline.

So much ferocity.

My woman was in there—and I wasn’t leaving without her.

I frisked both of the men at the entryway and placed one of their mics directly into my ear. Now I had radio communication with the enemy. I tried the door and was surprised it wasn’t locked.

What kind of idiots were they?

I stepped inside the pitch-black house. There was a large entryway opening to a living room.

No one in sight.

My team moved farther inside and examined every room. Guards that were posted were looking at their phones, so they were easy to take out silently. But I wasn’t naïve enough to think that was it.

Then someone screamed.

Gunshots fired off, and the war began.

I sprinted down the hallway and opened the first door.

A gun was pointed right at my face.

But I fired first. I took out two men then cleared the room before I moved forward. My goal was to find Adelina. Everyone else’s goal was to kill anyone inside that building. I searched more rooms, killed more men, and then finally made it to the final bedroom on the bottom floor.

There she was.

Naked.

Dirty.

Her ankle cuffed to the wall.

There wasn’t time for tears or emotions. There wasn’t even time for anger.

She covered herself with her hands when I first stepped into the room, but once she recognized me, her hands slowly dropped. “Oh my god…”

I shut the door behind me and got to work. I didn’t have a key for the chain, and I wasn’t going to bother looking for one. “Don’t move.”

“What are you going to—”

I shot the chain until it snapped in half.

Adelina let out a scream.

“Come on.” I grabbed her hand and pulled her up. There was nothing to cover her with, but her nakedness wasn’t important right now. I had to get her out of there. “Stay behind me.” We moved back into the hallway and walked over the dead bodies back to the front door.