He promised to always save me.
Where was he?
“Hunter.” It was the barest whisper, but in the darkness of my prison, it screamed, echoed of every single wall.
He wasn't here.
I'd been here forever.
Why wasn't he?
I needed him. I didn't care he'd lied. I didn't want to be here anymore.
I wanted him.
Needed him.
Hunter?
Chapter Twenty-Six – Hunter
“Stop,” I hissed to Gaige.
He was moving too fast. He didn't know this property the way I did. We needed to go slow, get in when no one could see us. It was already bad enough because I knew Addy was so close. She was so fucking close that if I ran, I could be with her in mere minutes, but it wasn't that simple. Going too fast would only put her in danger.
Sometimes the guards were inside the basement walls. If we went storming in...
I didn't want to think about that.
I gripped my gun tightly. I'd seen no one so far. That bode both well and badly. Either all the outer men had been removed, or they were all inside. “Anything?”
Gaige shook his head once more.
Fuck. The Pontarellis needed a mafia masterclass.
I snatched the phone from his grip. It was locked. Fuck me. “Unlock it.”
He paused.
“Fucking now.”
He unlocked it and passed it back.
I brought up the contacts and dialled Angelo. It rang and rang, so I called again. And a third time.
He finally picked up. “What?” he snapped.
“What the fuck is happening in there, Pontarelli?” I demanded, keeping my eyes on the doorway of the house.
“Carlo?” he asked.
“No, the fucking Sandman.”
“Hold on.” A few seconds passed with the shutting of a door. “All but a few, but I'm pretty sure they're working on my side. They've refused to leave and know she's downstairs.”
“Don't assume with these fuckers. Can you get her up?”
“Without her being shot? I don't know.”
“Can we get in?”
“Without shooting someone? I don't know.”
“Don't know a whole fuckin' lot, do you, Pontarelli?” I snorted. “See you in around sixty seconds.”
I hung up before he could say another word and shoved the phone at Gaige.
“Ross—”
I slapped my hand over his mouth as I saw Anthony Rossi pass us. When he'd disappeared, I kept my hand there. “If they look like they want to kill you, they're gonna fuckin' kill you, so kill them first. Make sure your gun is ready to shoot. Hell, kill them even if they don't wanna kill you. I'd rather you kill someone on our side than be killed.” I tightened my grip on my gun, grabbed his jacket, and tugged him after me, still keeping my voice at a whisper. “I don't know what we're gonna find in there, but I know how to get to where she is with my eyes closed. Follow me.”
“Got it.” He pushed my hand from his jacket, but when I looked back, he was following me.
I stopped us and peeked over the bushes when we reached the front of the house. There was still no one around, so I looked through the softly frosted front windows. Again, nothing.
It looked silent.
I motioned for Gaige to follow me, then ran for the door. I opened it quietly and slowly, making sure to keep my senses on full alert for everything around me. It was quiet. Almost too quiet. Like someone was waiting.
I didn't know if I was being paranoid or smart.
Both options were equally fucking viable.
I glanced behind me. Gaige's stance was much the same as mine, gun out, eyes scanning the wide open hallway. He was closer to my side now, and it was hard not to get distracted.
I was so close to Adriana now.
Even if I was still so far away. We were close.
The bullet sliced through the air, lodging itself in the wall just three feet away from us. A warning shot.
We'd only get one.
It was all I needed. Idiots just told me exactly where they were.
I raised my gun right as someone came running around the corner. I had no idea who it was as instinct made me pull the trigger and shoot my own bullet into their chest.
They dropped.
Gaige shot behind me, and I moved forward. One down—I wondered how many more people I'd have to kill to even get to Adriana.
Five. Ten. Fifty. I didn't care. I'd take down an entire country for her if that's what it took to keep her safe.
I moved down to hall to where I knew the locked entrance to the basement was. Maybe fifty people would be a few too many—I needed a bullet