Page 55 of The Bratva's Bounty
"On it! Got some nearby. What orders do you want me to give them?" Bao nearly instantly replied.
One thing I really appreciated about Bao was his efficiency with everything, despite how laissez-faire he was as a person. Yet, when the time came, he always kicked his ass into the right gear. Well, guess that was one thing that ran through his family. Both he and Nicole had their work modes that were pretty intense if I had to say anything about it.
"Tell them to chase until they can't. Do anything and everything to shoot at least one of those boats down, and if they can snag anyone to be a prisoner, then better." I gave Bao thecommand to relay to the pursuers. "And tell them that if things get too dangerous, like crossing paths into another territory or Coast Guard, then retreat." As shitty as it was, I'd rather have live men than none or deal with a huge mess with the damn coastguard. The police were one thing, but the Coast Guard was a whole different ball game we weren't a part of.
"Want me to have one of them swing by and pick you and some of the others up?" I could barely make out Bao's voice through the crackling fire that made it sound like my head was in a damn microwave while a bag of popcorn was being made. The crashing water didn't help any either because it made it all the harder to discern the distressed shouts of the victims.
Gritting my teeth, I mentally debated my options, darting my head back and forth between the shrinking boats and the victims in front of me. "Blyat'!" I hissed under my breath.
Sighing heavily, I replied to Bao, "No, it's too dangerous to swing a boat around this dock right now with the flaming wreckage and live bodies in the water." The last thing I wanted was for someone alive to be crushed or chopped up by the boat swinging into the place just to take me for a high-speed water chase. "Just keep monitoring them through your drones and what feeds you can, and keep me updated." I had to make do with living vicariously through Bao's nerdy little eyes, err words?
A loud bang rang out, and the whole place seemed to freeze for a moment as nearly everyone ducked out of fear of being hit. "Tell them to chase after the second one in line. I got a shot into it before it took off too far, and it's leaking," Stepan informed us, breaking the tense silence.
"You couldn't have given us a warning,Styosha? I swear, I'm going to shove that rifle up—"
"Ah blap blah blap! Nope! I do not want to hear you finish that!" Bao blurted, making a whole lot of us wince a little from the sheer volume.
"Hey, nothing wrong with enjoying some extra fun elsewhere," Arseny quipped with a laugh. "Come on, we still have people to get out of the water before they freeze to death or drown," he reminded us with a sigh before bendingback over the dock.
"I hate fishing," I grumbled after a while to no one in particular, growing rather tired of hauling men, women, and children out of the freezing cold waters of the ocean.
Taking a breather, I peered down at the floating bodies that churned about with the water. An ache settled itself along my jaw as my whole body clenched up from the rising anger at seeing the needless destruction before me. So many lives lost, and for what?
As destructive as I was in the field, it was never mindless or bloody pointless. No matter how much shit I gave my brothers, it was to get on their nerves because how else was I supposed to show them affection or get their full attention and such? Either way, whenever I had my fill in the field, I was more than conscious about keeping casualties, especially ones of innocents or bystanders, to a minimum. Environmental destruction fell under the same rule. Nothing ever got blown up or torn down unless I was absolutely sure no one innocent would reap the consequences.
I might not have the best brains out of the bunch of us, but it worked where it mattered.
Shutting my eyes tightly, I took in a deep breath to calm myself before turning around to face the shivering victims we managed to save so far. "Stepan, Arseny, talk to those you can, to see if you can get anything useful," I said with a heavy sigh.
My body jarred a little from the sudden impact to my shoulder, and in my peachy mood, I snapped back at the person. Shooting my arm out, I smacked the whole thing against Stepan's chest, winding him and making him grunt. "Asshole." He strained out a cough and laugh before punching my shoulder again. "Just go home before you crash on the way back. We got the rest handled," he urged me with a sure smile and somewhat sympathetic eyes. "You need it, so go," he said in a firmer voice.
That tone of his meant there was no arguing. I would be going home, whether it be in my own car or in the back of one of the others.
Knowing better, I relented with a huff and glared at my older brother. "I hope Hanna shovesthat—"
"Ey! What did I just say?" Bao piped up before I could finish, making me crack a smile.
"Well, keep me updated. I want to know about the whole shit show."
Chapter 26
Lev
Guilt ebbed around inmy chest on most of the drive home because I felt bad about canceling on Nicole after working both of us up before I left, but I was exhausted.
Fortunately, I didn't have to pull out one of the lame apologies I cooked up. I don't know how or why, but when I was about a block away from home, a sudden surge of energy woke me.
It was like I'd snorted a line!
All I could think about then were the ways I'd take Nicole the moment I got my hands on her… and where I'd take her. Maybe I should drag her out back and fuck her in the garden under the moonlight; it was nice out tonight. The kitchen sounded like a nice idea, too. I mean, I was kinda hungry after my little frenzy; maybe I gotta hike her onto the island and feast on her until I was satisfied.
Fucking hell… So many places, so little time and loads. As pumped as I was, I doubt I'd be able to hit my usual three tonight. Actually, the more I thought about it, how the hell did I even make it to three loads nearly every time we screwed around? I mean, I was always exhausted and passed out nearly right away each and every time, but thefact I hadn't kneeled over and died yet was a shocker to me.
Whatever thoughts muddled my mind flushed down the drain the moment I pulled into my garage and killed the engine after throwing the car into park. Theonlything on my mind now was Nicole.
Where the fuck is she?
My heart rammed against my chest in anticipation as my wild eyes frantically searched every inch of our house while my feet moved on their own.