Page 106 of Lord of Ruin
After the majority of soldiers had been taken out, they allowed the boats to dock, coming in from several directions.
“Can I have my favorite tool?” I asked my brother.
“Of course.” He yanked the rifle from my hand, replacing it with the hunting knife Phoenix had given me when I was a kid. I’d kept it sharpened, the handle polished. It had been my favorite gift of everything I’d received as a child.
As Brogan advanced, handing me another device some of his guys had created, only then did I hunker down. “While I understand you might not be able to comprehend what happened here, let’s just suffice to say that with having an alliance with several members of powerful organizations who in turn have connections that rival that of the infamous Death Squad, very little gets by us.”
I threw out the name because I’d know by the look in his eyes if he had been approached.
His look was blank followed by confusion. This time it would appear our concerns about the Death Squad being involved were wrong. However, I would continue to do some digging, especially since I would become the head of the new assassin group. The decision had been made the night before. The man was genuinely uncertain what I was getting at. I didn’t think he was that good of an actor. I lifted the handy dandy infrared device, allowing him to see the screen.
“You see, I have many gadgets at my disposal, including one that allows us to see every person inside this house because of their body temperature. While you do have your lovely cousin in a cold environment, her secret location is no match for millions of dollars. Now, I’m going to give you one last chance at asking for forgiveness for what your father did to our family.”
He glanced over my shoulder at the other men, obviously realizing he wasn’t getting out of here alive. “Fuck you.”
“I was sincerely hoping that’s what you’d say.” While there was no one I wanted to punish more than the bastard sitting on the floor in front of me, I didn’t have the time and my baby didn’t deserve to stay in the prison she’d been shoved into for any longer than necessary.
I jammed the knife under his throat with precision, twisting it as he gurgled, his eyes opening wide. Before the life faded from his eyes, I jammed it as deep as possible, hopefully hitting his pea-sized brain.
His body jerked a few times before he took his last garbled breath. Only then did I pull it free, slowly standing and wiping the bloody blade on my pants.
“We found her,” Constantine said seconds later.
Nothing would have kept me away from her. As I was led down a hallway to a set of stairs, I couldn’t get down them fast enough. One of the soldiers was already there using a bolt cutter to break the lock.
Jenna squealed as soon as she saw my face, already fighting to get out of the cramped space.
As soon as the door was flung open, I pulled her into my arms, lifting and cradling her against my body. We were both shaking, her tears matching mine.
“You came for me. Again,” she managed to say.
“You had to know I’d walk through hell and back to bring you home to me, to the man who loves you.”
I was cognizant we had an audience, but I didn’t give a shit. The moment she placed her trembling hand on my cheek, I almost lost it, a single tear slipping past my lashes.
“You love me?” she asked.
“More than the sun and the moon combined.” As I captured her mouth for a tender kiss, the group of people started clapping and whistling.
I’d never been a man who wanted romance but right now, I couldn’t imagine anything better than having the woman I loved in my arms.
EPILOGUE
Jenna
“You’re blushing,” Stavros whispered in my ear, growling afterward.
“I’m not blushing. I’m beaming.” My retort was enough to make him laugh. We were still holding the traditional Greek candles, waiting as the common cup was brought to us. While we’d wanted to elope, both sets of parents had denied that request, even going as far as to take our passports. That had been Phoenix’s idea and task, something I would never allow him to forget.
While we’d acquiesced after two months of prodding, allowing my mother and his mother to fawn over the proceedings that had taken them a full six weeks to put together, we were finally celebrating our love in front of our friends and family.
Every Greek relative had arrived from Santorini, which made the representation from my side of the family much less, but that hadn’t dampened my mother’s spirits.
I noticed Christos standing close by, his grin as wide as Stavros’ two brothers’. I was grateful he’d tried to save my life, the two of us becoming friends. There was something to be said about having a huge family.
As the wine was presented, we stared into each other’s eyes, each taking three sips of Elena’s wine.
The moment we did, she shoved two fingers into her mouth, whistling like a crazy woman. That prompted my bestie and my maid of honor Charlotte to do the same. We’d chosen Philly as the location to get married, determined to stay in Stavros’ house for the time being.