the paramedics start to prepare Cassie for transport. “I need to go to the hospital with Cassie. I have a man there who might be dead by the time I arrive too.”
“You’ll be hearing from me, and this isn’t something I’m going to let go lightly,” Yorkshire says. “I expect to be owed for this.”
“Owed?” I ask, genuinely dumbfounded at his arrogance. If he’s British Intelligence, then he understands the links I have in this nation.
He smiles, and it’s one I recognize. The smile of a predator. “I don’t care who you know, Konstantin. Your pally dinners with the PM won’t save you now. You either help me, or you face me and my team, digging into your life with unparalleled zeal. Do you understand?”
“Understood.” I don’t have time to argue with this fucker now, but he’ll soon learn that people don’t get away with threatening me.
“What’s your name?” Andrius demands of him.
“Marcus.” He faces Andrius totally unafraid, which not many people do. Christ, this guy has balls the size of a bull.
I turn and follow the paramedics who are loading Cassie into the ambulance on a stretcher. I can’t help but smile as the sound of her complaining that she’s perfectly able to walk reaches me.
“You coming, Andrius?” I ask.
“Yeah, need to speak to a plastic surgeon about my nose,” he grumbles.
“You need checking too,” a paramedic says to Reece, who gives a nod and follows us. We all head outside, with Liam and his team member, Luka, following us.
Liam holds me back for a moment, as the paramedics get our wounded into assorted ambulances. “I’ll stay and try to clear things up with Marcus, our new friend, but it won’t be easy. Can I offer him anything from you two?” Liam asks me and Andrius.
“You can tell him we want the Armenians gone too, so we’re on the same side. I presume the British Intelligence service aren’t so choosey as to care whether the Armenian leaders are jailed or dealt with in a more Russian manner?” I say. “If they are causing havoc here in the UK, then our goals align in wanting them gone. The Brits don’t have to get their hands dirty because we’ll do it for them. Marcus would have spent another year of his life trying to get intelligence on the top man. Whereas we are going to take him out.”
“You’re going to take out the top Armenian?” Marcus appears at the door, his face set in an incredulous expression. “How will you get to him? Fucker is the most paranoid bastard you could ever wish to meet. Never lets anyone into his inner circle he doesn’t know, trust, or need something from. He’s surrounded by military grade security. I’m in that inner circle, fucker. And yes, our interests do align. They’ve been involved in human trafficking. Not the sex ring kind, but the forced labor, working on illegal farms picking crops for nothing more than a sleeping bag in an empty stable and a cold shower with a hose every morning, kind. It’s disgusting some of the shit we discovered when we raided a farm, and the Armenians are the ones facilitating it. Most of them are working in the north, but they also bring in domestic servants; the kind who find their passports gone after they arrive, and they’re expected to work for years to pay off the debt of getting here. So, yes, our goals align. I want these fuckers stopped, but you would need an army.”
“We’re SAS and SBS,” Liam says, pointing to his men. “Konstantin and Andrius are Spetsnaz. We aren’t afraid of how well trained his men are. If we can get to him, we can deal with him.”
We? Is Liam saying he and his men are in on helping us with this?
“We?” Andrius turns to Liam and voices my thoughts.
“Not happy about having people traffickers operating with impunity. These guys will be only one amongst many, but if it’s a big operation and we take it down, that’s lives saved. No? It’s what we signed up for when we joined the military. My men can decide whether they want to be in on this or not, as it will be dangerous, but I’m here to help when I can. I have other work, and commitments to fit around, but I’ll do what I can.”
“Yep.” That contribution is from Ethan, and Luka nods.
“I don’t like the fact they’re operating heavily in Yorkshire,” Liam adds. “I live there, and