Adam covered my free hand with his and stroked his thumb along the side of my hand. The gentle caress eased my grip, but didn’t relax it entirely. As much as I wanted to cover my reactions, I didn’t seem entirely capable of it anymore.
Or maybe Adam just knew.
I leaned my head against his shoulder. Without a word, he turned and pressed his lips against the top of my head. Yes, he knew. I flexed my hand around his and he continued to offer his strength.
Milo covered my hand in his with another hand. His support as steady and determined as Adam’s, Bodhi’s, and Ezra’s. We would look after each other and together we would figure this out.
Then as if summoned by the deep breath I took, our fleet of vehicles turned into a driveway that would take us up to the private house King owned. Or at least, the house he was using.
Location was everything, the fact he was here in Brooklyn and not on Long Island had to chafe. It also gave him some distance from the families he’d sought to control for so long.
We were not the first out of the cars. That was the twins. They had been behind us but now they were ahead. The last time we’d all moved on a target, there had been others with us, this time, it was quiet.
Just family.
The two key players were Milo and Em. They’d discussed what they were going to do a few times. The siblings were equally determined to protect each other. Not a doubt existed within me that they were each capable of killing King if it saved the other.
No doubt at all.
At the same time, I wasn’t sure either really wanted the burden. Then again, that was why all of us were here.
“Ready?” Bodhi asked as the Vandals left their vehicles behind us.
“Absolutely,” I told him. I was. This “reckoning,” for lack of a better term, had been a long time coming. Adam lifted my hand and kissed it once before he opened his door. Milo squeezed my hand, then nodded toward his side.
It would put the car between me and the house. Adam had already closed his door and opened Ezra’s before Ezra could. The brief, albeit sharp, flush of pleasure in Ezra’s reaction made me smile wider.
Good things still happened. The tidal waves of darkness threatening our position would not be allowed to drown us. Frankly, I’d always wanted to learn how to surf.
Milo continued to hold onto my hand as we gathered. I slid the purse strap over my shoulder and then eyed the building. It wasn’t a bad house. Though it definitely needed touch-ups.
He’d gone ostentatious, but you could see the cracks in the pavement. The paint on the trim was chipped. Even the landscaping showed signs of neglect. The bushes were a little too tall and intruded on the railing along the porch.
The grass was uneven in places, particularly along the longer drive as though the shade from the trees interrupted the growing cycle. It was a huge house, designed to project security, wealth, and entitlement.
Unfortunately, the message was utterly undercut by the myriad of little things that confirmed the illusion was wearing away around the edges. Somehow, I doubted that money was the issue where all of this was concerned.
King had the money.
He just lacked the acumen to make it happen. Perhaps he just failed to bring in the staff who could handle it. Needless to say, he was failing.
We were here to see the wax wings melt and send him plunging back to Earth.
“No security,” Ezra commented, his disdainful sniff echoing a dismissive opinion. “How the mighty have fallen.”
“Don’t get cocky,” Adam warned him with a clap against his shoulder. “And stay with Lainey.”
With his back to us, Adam didn’t catch Ezra rolling his eyes or the way he shot a look at me. Adam’s protective instincts were never going to let Ezra or I go first.
“Behave,” I mouthed, loving the way his eyes lit up and his smirk. But I still shook my head. He could give Adam shit later. Not now.
Not here.
Huffing out a breath, Ezra winked at me and then focused on the house. Em was out of her car and she stood framed by four of her guys. None of them looked any happier about being here than Milo did.
“Shall we?” I offered, heading for the front doors. We’d given King enough of a show with all of us gathered out front. While his estate wasn’t as large as Der Sonne or Waltham Corners or Harrow’s Park, it was definitely set back and away from the streets.
The only way to continue to observe us would be with cameras. We had a little surprise for that too. I’d just pressed the doorbell when my phone buzzed.
Fletcher: You’re all clear. I’ve intercepted his cloud feeds. Happy hunting, Cos.
Impeccable timing, as always. No one answered the door immediately. Unsurprising. I gave it a solid sixty seconds before I rang it again.
“Well, this is a surprise,” King greeted us via the intercom. “Though I thought it was just going to be you and Emersyn, Miss Benedict.”
“No you didn’t,” I countered. “Because you are not stupid. Now, are you coming down to invite us in or should we continue with our other plans?”
One thing about men in power. They didn’t like subversive challenges to their control. You’d think they would dislike overt ones more, but no—those gave them a chance to flex and prove something.
Subtle digs, such as the fact he was alone in the house and didn’t even have the staff to let us in would sting his pride. The reminder that we didn’t have to be here. We didn’t need him, he needed us. The salt for the wound.
“Come in,” he invited and there was a sound of a buzzer and then the door clicked as it unlocked. Not a servant, but he didn’t come out either.
While not a full point, he had taken the first serve and sent it back. Adam was through the door with Ezra moving in his shadow. Bodhi followed, then Milo eased his grip so I could go as well.
Awareness of the Vandals moving with us kept my focus ahead. Kellan fell into step directly behind me. They would watch our backs. The guys had worked it all out in their planning.
The wide foyer faced a grand staircase head on and opened into three other rooms. A walkable mosaic circle decorated the center of the foyer. Everything else was framed around the Venetian marble.
