He walks further in, crouches down in front of me, and tosses the gun between his hands. To my surprise he flicks on the safety and places it on the floor, followed by the rope. “Bear’s busy.”
My gaze goes straight to the weapon on the floor and back to Zander. “Have you been with her since she left?”
“We haven’t got time for this, but yes, I have. I can’t tell you why or how.” His lips widen into a broad grin. “And I know you’re thinking of picking up the gun and killing me.”
“You know me well.”
“No, Noah. I don’t think I know you at all. But what I do know is you are going to let me tie your hands behind your back and then you’re going to let me take you out into the arena.”
I eye the gun again. “What makes you so sure?”
“Because, for all you said out there, I know the woman locked up in the dorms means everything to you. You won’t leave here until every last one of the guys who hurt her is dead.” He rubs his hands down his thighs. “I also know you won’t be able to help her from in here.”
I meet his gaze. There’s no point pretending he’s wrong. “I thought you said you didn’t know me?”
“I haven’t seen you in a long time, Noah. The man you are now isn’t the one I last drank with.” He stands up, leaving the items on the ground. “So you have a choice to make. What’s it going to be?”
Again, my mind processes my chances of success. Taking Zander down now would seem like the best option, or is it?
I rub my hands down my face, caked-on dried blood under my fingernails. The reminder of the betrayal from my friend, which stings more than I thought possible. He checks his watch. “You’ve got about thirty seconds left to make your choice.”
My mind made up, I get to my feet, turn around, and put my hands behind my back. He makes quick work of binding me. The knot is tight as I tug against it, but it’s not unworkable.
“I think you dropped this.” He picks up the weapon, pulls the magazine, checks the rounds, and then shows it to me. “Seventeen rounds, Noah, that’s all. Make them count.” Then like Jase, he pushes the gun into the back of my jeans.
“Tell me what the fuck’s going on.”
“No.”
I can’t fucking stand not knowing who’s on whose side. When I think I have it figured out, it gets all screwed up again.
He leads me from the dead room through the maze of the slaughterhouse and back out into the arena. My steps falter when I see Lizzie once again, bound, gagged, and blindfolded in a chair. Zander leads me to a seat opposite her and forces me to sit.
Lizzie’s lips tremble around the fabric strung across her mouth, her body visibly shakes, but she doesn’t make a sound. I try to figure out if that’s a good thing or a bad one. The helplessness which overruns me almost makes me give up hope. But there is no chance I can leave her here. Zander tenses in my peripheral and it pulls my gaze from Lizzie. I need to get my brain in the game, because while I was distracted, the room has filled with men.
Have they touched her? My gaze falls back on Lizzie; her chest heaves and falls, each breath laboured and shallow. Lowering my head, I close my eyes and let the fire return. Allow it to burn me up inside. When the inferno is fierce deep inside me, I roll my neck. Keeping my head down, I reopen my eyes. The first person my gaze lands on is Archie. Nothing but pure hatred fills my blood.
With him are four men I have never seen before. Accompanying them are the two from earlier and Bear’s team, including the bastard himself. Fourteen men. I size each of them up while they take their places around the arena. All of them except Zander stay in front of me. Archie’s obviously rattled if he needs fourteen fucking men for me and my girl.
I eyeball Archie as he drags over another chair. He flips it around and sits with arms folded over the backrest. “You had a good sleep, son?”
Discreetly, I fumble with the binds on my wrists, each pull and twist having the desired effect of loosening the rope. “I’m not your son. Just cut to the fucking chase. What do you want from me?” As I speak, Lizzie’s head lifts a fraction. All I’ve said to her and my voice still gives her… hope? I’m not sure.
“Well, Alberto wanted a little revenge for the son you took from him.” As Archie speaks, Bear moves closer to him. Adrenaline pumps through my muscles at his proximity. “I was happy to hand you over once I located you. But when I found out who you were, my plans changed.”
“Lucky fucking me.”
“Oh, you are lucky, Noah. You see, when you were just meat, you were expendable. Being my son changed things.” Bitterness rises in my throat as I stare the bastard down, but I say nothing.
My wrists break free of the binds and I sense Zan move closer in behind me. I take a breath and hold it a fraction, waiting, but he does nothing. Bear glances over and a look of recognition passes over his face as he meets his cousin’s eye. Again I’m left wondering.
Archie bends forward so I can smell his stale breath. “You were the best in the squad, Noah. Why did you get caught?”
My gaze flicks to Lizzie. A response I can’t help. I take a breath and realise I have nothing to lose. Bear knows everything, so the chances are every man here does too. The only person who I know for sure doesn’t is her.
“I didn’t think I had anything left to live for.”
“What could make a man have nothing left to live for? Especially one like you. The only thing that can do that is if you lost everything, but you had nothing in the first place.” Archie gets up and crouches to the side of Lizzie. He touches her face with his thick fingers, and she flinches, a small whimper escaping her lips. “Or did you?” It takes a strength I didn’t know I had to remain in my seat.
“I lost everything I ever wanted. Or rather it was taken from me.”
“So you chose to be tortured to death?” He sounds surprised.
I heave a sigh. “Yeah.” This is worse than the fucking debrief. All my demons lay bare.
He stands up, moving away from Lizzie, and my chest releases a fraction. “Hmm. Barry, Daniel, untie the bitch for me.”
They move quickly, untying Lizzie. What should be something to celebrate causes nothing but further concern. The last item to come off is the blindfold. Her wild gaze flickers around the room until it finds mine, and the storm in her eyes settles. She holds my stare as if it’s my hands. Never letting go for a second. If this is all I can give her, she’s having it. All pretence is gone.
“So, let me get this straight. Because of this bitch screwing you over, you decided to commit suicide?”
Lizzie’s questioning gaze never leaves mine. It takes massive effort to maintain eye contact with her and not look away. I don’t want her to see into my soul and witness the pain buried there. “For fuck’s sake, where is this going?”
“I’m getting there. So, she means more to you than just shooting your load into her?”
I refrain from answering him. Lizzie breaks her hold on me and glances to the floor. She’s either disgusted with me or angry; I’m not sure which.
“Okay, so now we have a plan.” He claps his hands together and begins to whistle. I ease the gun from the back of my jeans and rest it on the seat behind me.
“I’ll release her on this condition. I need to hand you over to Alberto. But, then you need to take him down.”
“Why?” It’s the only answer I want. Why would he go to all the trouble of bringing me back in, using Lizzie as bait? Why would Bear turn his back on years of brotherhood to betray me?
“Because when you’ve killed him I’m going to take over his empire. I’ve been using the Dogs to run most of his rings anyway, so this just means I’ll get to reap all the proceeds instead of just being fed peanuts.”
“What if I die? Then you’d get nothing.”