let that happen.”
Holy shit. Liberty McCoy’s been holding out on us.
Son of a bitch.
And by the murderous look on Levi’s face, Wick should’ve kept that last tidbit to himself.
Wick started to make his way to the door, stopped by my side, and lowered his voice. “Whatever it is you’re feeling right now, that worry I see in your eyes. Let it go. You tell them what you need to tell them and you’ll find you’re in good company.”
Goddammit.
And with that, Wick left the room, closing the door behind him.
It took approximately two seconds for Drake to break the silence. When he did, the walls shook.
“What in the fuck?” he roared.
“Liberty wasn’t used for bait, she was marked. Berkshire fucked that up thinking he could mastermind some scheme, bringing down multiple players at once.”
“Are you saying that fuckwad Davidson put a hit out on my woman because he didn’t like her?” Drake seethed. “And gave that hit to her commanding officer to carry out?”
“Yes.”
“You’re shitting me,” Nick grunted.
“I think Dr. Davidson didn’t like Liberty calling him out. But more, he didn’t like that she wasn’t willing to break the rules. That made her a liability. And since he’d expressed his desire for her and her team to break those rules to complete the mission that made her a bigger liability. If what Liberty says is true, and I’ve seen it firsthand so I believe her, he had a huge problem with her being a woman and in a position of power. Wick said Berkshire was conniving and Davidson’s known for running a shady operation. I can’t say I understand the plotting, planning, and extreme effort it took to put that kind of operation into place when personally, I wouldn’t have gone through the hassle.”
“What’s that mean? The hassle?” Jason asked.
I took a moment to consider lying to Hadley’s brother, which would have the added benefit of not making myself sound like a cold-blooded killer in front of her dad, uncles, cousins, and the men who I needed to work with.
But in the end, I didn’t need to say anything. Clark did.
“Because four bullets would’ve been faster, easier, and cleaner with a guarantee Liberty, Roman, Lore, and Roman’s uncle were dead. Setting up that mission was risky, and as it turned out, didn’t work. Liberty was left alive and so was Roman until he showed up here. And there wouldn’t have been casualties.”
Clark was correct, I would’ve simply taken out my targets. Berkshire fucked up planning that mission, though he might not have had a choice.
“Davidson took out Berkshire for fucking up?” Logan asked.
“That’d be my guess. Or he took him out because he was pissed he fucked up and Berkshire was stupid enough to threaten Davidson or push back. Making Berkshire a wildcard so Davidson put him down.”
“Where’s that leave us with Liberty?” Carter asked.
“Doesn’t leave this room that we know—”
“Jesus Christ, Levi. I’m not letting my woman outta my fucking sight until Davidson’s put down!” Drake shouted and stood.
Animosity clouded the air as the two men faced off.
Two men who fiercely loved Liberty. Her father and her man.
“No shit,” Levi snarled. “She gets called out on a mission, you’re her shadow. It’s gonna piss her off and I don’t give the first fuck. That will be on me and I’ll deal with her.” Levi turned to Dylan and continued. “I want both of her phones tapped. Personal and work.” He took in a long inhale through his nose that didn’t look like it did much to clear his mind. “Pissed as shit at Wick. I get it but I’m still pissed, and part of that is because he’s right. We have to give Liberty her head the same way we’d give any man in this room his. But that doesn’t mean she won’t have backup if she needs it. No one mentions what Wick said. That’s gonna suck for you, Drake, but you’re gonna have to find a way. When this is over, she’s gonna be pissed, but you have my word I’ll take your back on that and let her know it was my idea.”
“We done?” Drake asked, not bothering to try to conceal his anger. It rolled off of him, filling the room so thick it was hard to breathe.
“We’re done,” Levi confirmed.
Drake moved to the door but stopped with his hand on the knob. “It goes without saying, respect all around but I want this shit done. I wanted it done months ago before Liberty went back