Page 47 of Sebastian

“Ryan, let me handle this,” said Jeffrey.

“Get them to open the fucking door so we can get our shit,” growled Ryan. Jeffrey stared at him, then back at his three remaining friends. Suddenly, Myrtle stepped forward, gripping his hand.

“Jeffrey. Don’t. Don’t do it. We should leave now before this gets out of hand. We’ll do another bank. Not this,” she pleaded.

Without a thought. Without hesitation, Ryan put his gun to her temple and fired. Helen and Ed both screamed. Jeffrey jumped, cursing under his breath.

“You fucking idiot! Honestly, do you believe they’ll open that door now? They see us. They see all of us.”

“Eyes on the target,” whispered Sebastian.

“Fire when you have a clear shot,” said Emelia calmly.

He had Ryan in his crosshairs, and without a second thought, he fired, hitting him in the back of the neck. He dropped, and gang members started firing wildly in the air. Jeffrey grabbed his brother’s shirt collar and pulled him to the side of the building.

Two men turned to Ed and Helen and fired a bullet into their chests, then ran along the side of the building.

“On your left,” said Chase from the building beside them. “We’re jumping to the next building and getting closer. Stay where you are.”

Jeffrey stared down into the face of his brother. The bullet missed his skull but hit the top of his spine. He knew that he was paralyzed, but his fucking mouth sure wasn’t.

“I’ll kill you when I get out,” he seethed.

“God, you’re such a fucking dick, Ryan! You did this, not me! Do you see this fucking mess? You did this! All for your damn drugs and guns.”

“Don’t forget my money,” he smiled with a bloody grin. “Get me out of here.”

“I’m not leaving without the others.”

“The others are dead,” he slurred. “I told them to kill everyone if something happened to me. My men follow orders.”

“Your men? They’re not your men, Ryan. They’re a bunch of drug-addicted derelicts who are in it for the powder and the cash. That’s all. That’s why they stay, not out of loyalty to you.”

“Fuck you,” he gasped. It would be the last words his brother ever heard from him. As two of his men walked toward him, he knew it was over. He was glad.

“Boss said to blow your brains out,” smirked one of the men. “I’m going to enjoy this.”

Jeffrey didn’t close his eyes or look away. The bloody head of his brother was still in his lap, soaking through his trousers. He heard two shots fired but felt nothing. Looking up, he was shocked to see the FBI agent.

“You?”

“Yeah. Me,” said Emelia. “You’re under arrest, Jeffrey Banks.”

“I’ll be dead by morning,” he said, shaking his head. “Do you know how many of his men are already in jail or prison? By now, they all know to kill me if I show up.”

“They’ll put you in solitary,” said Sebastian. Jeffrey just laughed, shaking his head.

“You really don’t get it, do you? Between him and Mom, they have an entire platoon of people waiting to take me or anyone else out. Anyone who ever did them wrong in their eyes.”

“I wish I could feel sorry for you, but I can’t,” said Emelia. “You broke your oath. You took advantage of these people.”

“I helped them. I helped them to get the money they wanted and needed, and in turn, we helped dozens, if not hundreds, of people get the care they needed.”

“Keep telling yourself that story,” said Chase, walking up to them.

“I need to tell you something,” said Jeffrey, staring at Emelia. She kneeled beside him and his dead brother as the man whispered to her. She jerked back, not believing what he was telling her. Shaking her head, she didn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe it.

They heard the door to the warehouse creak, and two DEA agents stepped out. A third was behind them, and Milo saw the weapon.