Royally Broken by Elle Boon Page 0,66
slaughter.
While the second man stood off to the side, thinking she was hurt and laughing as he looked in the open window toward the other man, she looked around the rapidly lightening parking lot. Keys and bike and her SUV were in the front, but if her memory served her right, the men Keys had spoken to had been out back. A black SUV with tinted windows looking like something sinister caught her eye. The two men didn’t look like they owned something so, dark and expensive.
A light inside flashed briefly. Had she not been looking directly at the vehicle she would’ve missed the subtle signal. The second man grabbed the other one, pulling him halfway into the open window. Blows were being exchanged, giving Palmer a chance to scoot away from them. She looked around wildly. Dammit, where was Keys?
KEYS STALKED THE FUCKER through the woods behind the B&B. He’d roamed the town like a wraith years ago. It felt like another lifetime though as he slid behind a tree, moving silently in front of the man. He watched as the asshole looked behind him, his heavy breathing a clear sign he was in no shape to be running through the woods. Keys waited until he was a foot from him, throwing his arm, clotheslining him.
Satisfaction filled him at the yelp and gasp the dirty little bastard called out when he fell to the ground grasping his throat. Maybe he should’ve felt bad, instead, he squatted down, getting his first close look at him. The man was more than just dirty, he was filthy and stank to high heaven of alcohol and unwashed body odor. “What the fuck were you doing outside my room?”
The man slurred something unintelligible. A sense of wrongness began to filter through him. He pulled his cell out of his pocket, hitting the number for Dragon as he kicked the drunk in the side. “Brother, you got eyes on my rooms?” he asked at once.
“Well, let’s see. I see a woman on the ground with a bundle in her arms while two dumb shits fight a couple feet away. Seriously, how the fuck do they plan to kidnap properly if they can’t even keep their squabbles in check until after they fuck up their kidnappee? Losers is who.”
“I agree. Fuck up kidnap victim then fuck each other up I always say,” Katana agreed.
“Shut the fuck up and get to my woman. Kill the fuckers if you have to but make sure she and my boy are safe,” Keys roared.
“Now, is that any way to ask a brother a favor? Especially when it comes to killing. Not that I don’t mind killing, you see.”
Keys could see the deadly brother and his calm façade. Hell, he knew the asshole could and would skin a man while he was alive without a problem and fuck the man’s woman while he watched. Dragon was a law of his own and Katana the man’s best friend. None of that mattered. He’d kill them both if they stood by and watched as Palmer and Jaxson were hurt.
“Listen, save your threats, brother. We got eyes on them both. You gotta see what kinda grit your ole lady has. If she’s gonna be a part of this life, she’s gonna need to show she can stand on her own two feet. You feel me. Now, hurry on back here. I think there’s gonna be a family reunion real soon.”
Dragon didn’t give him a chance to speak. The asshole was really good at hitting the end button. Keys was going to show him how good he was at hitting, only it wasn’t going to be a button on the fucking phone.
He kicked the drunk bastard in the side of the head, knocking him out cold so he could come back afterward. Whoever hired him would be answering to him.
Taking off at a run, uncaring of the amount of noise he made, Keys was hellbent on getting back to Palmer and Jaxson. His boots kicked up leaves and dirt as he dodged tree limbs. The first he realized he wasn’t alone in the woods was a slight crack of a limb several yards to his right. He didn’t slow his pace or do anything to alert whoever was keeping pace with him that he was aware of their presence. He didn’t like being prey. As a boy he’d been one because he was too small and young to be anything else. Now, he was gonna