Page 114 of The Brigadier

I would beat the man to death if he laid a finger on her.

Vadim got off the phone and hissed. “You were right about the shipment. The cargo ship is on fire.”

I was almost ready to laugh. I felt like saying an eye for an eye, but the diamonds honestly didn’t matter. Not now. “The bastard was making sure and covering every base.”

“Yes, he was. Other bad news. The storm is getting worse. We may not be able to cross the bridge.”

“Oh, we will cross that motherfucking bridge one way or another. Period.”

The wind was rough, but the rain was horrific. Seeing the road was difficult but I was determined. As we approached thebridge, there were all kinds of warnings, flashing lights and signs forbidding anyone to cross.

As usual, I ignored all the rules, heading blindly onto the bridge.

“You are nuts,” Vadim hissed.

“I’m in love. And that bastard isn’t going to marry her off to Kaskov’s son.”

“Ah, fuck. I hadn’t thought of that. Well, hurry or it’s going to be washed out.”

I did my best, the sports car certainly not the best in this weather but I persevered. The bridge was swinging, the rain blowing us from one side to the other, which made the two miles treacherous.

But we made it across as did the other men following us.

There was no stopping me now. What I knew in my gut was that someone else had betrayed me. Another blindsiding. If I had to guess, I’d say it was Maxim. It had to be. The use of Russian had cemented it. The why didn’t matter.

When we approached the house, it was easy to tell the lights were out. Not possible. Another inside man had been used.

I raced out, finding the first dead soldier by tripping over him. The second was face down in the muck, the weapon still in his hand.

“What is the plan?” Vadim had to halfway yell.

“Vissarian will be inside with both Chantel and Damien. Take some men to the back entrance through the kitchen. We’ll go in through the front. We need to flank him before he can do anything stupid.”

“We’ll do it but I hope you know what you’re doing.”

“So do I.”

I was soaked but couldn’t care less, making it to the front door without incident. I sensed there were enemy soldiers watching and some of my men had been instructed to pick them off. By the point I’d walked in, the shooting had begun.

Maxim appeared as if on cue, an assault rifle in his hand. “You’re not welcome here.”

He appeared entirely different, his shirt covered in blood. “How many did you kill?”

“Enough.”

When I took a step closer, he pointed the weapon at me. “I wouldn’t do that.”

“Is my brother paying you well for the gig because I assure you that’s all this is. You’re untrustworthy, damaged goods that will be eliminated.”

I’d hoped I would catch him just enough off guard. I’d been right, the man making the fatal mistake of very quickly glancing toward the direction where I knew Vissarian was located.

That was all the time I needed. I put a bullet between the man’s eyes. As he fell, the tension on the trigger was enough a dozen shots were fired into the ceiling. The entire house would soon be a disaster. Who cared?

Huffing, we stepped over him. Another loss, but this one didn’t hurt quite so badly.

I knew my brother couldn’t care less about losing men. They were nothing more than collateral damage. He was more of a ruthless bastard than I’d originally believed.

The glow drew my attention, obviously coming from the fire. I walked in, men trailing behind me; I threw out my hand for them to stop. I certainly didn’t want the asshole to have an itchy finger.