Page 81 of The Bratva's Bride
CHAPTER 34
Nikolai
Tense silence filledthe van as my brothers and I sat there observing an apartment complex that came apart from the seams. One quick look and no one would think the place was habitable because it looked so abandoned. I was skeptical when the location was given to me, but seeing flickers of light and bodily movements confirmed there were bodies occupying the crumbling place.
“Pretty stupid to stick around after committing a crime, but also pretty stupid that he hasn’t been located until now. Bastard really makes hiding in plain sight a real thing.” Lev scowled as he checked his magazine for the umpteenth time.
He started to get a little antsy along with the rest of us. I couldn’t blame him. If I was reckless then I would have charged into the damn complex guns blazing. But I was better than that. Charging in blindly would be suicide.
“Don’t know how the hell he runs a successful crack den out of this dump. But damn, oh how the mighty have fallen. Successful chemist to a low life crack maker and dealer. Honestly, if he wasn’t a piece of shit then I’d say we could try to recruit him. Too bad his sins are too unforgivable.” Arseny’s sarcasm made me snort softly as I reached for my shoulder holster. My fingers itched with anticipation as I brushed them against the smooth, cold metal of my gun.
Taking in a deep breath, I let my anger ebb as I pulled my gun out. “Remember, we take the bastard alive.” A reminder to myself more than for my brothers. No matter how much I wanted to put a bullet through the eyes of the bastard who harmed my wife, his fate rested in Angel’s hands.
“Unfortunately.” Lev grumbled with a roll of his eyes. “We gonna bust his door down now?”
“Everyone know their positions?” Confirmation never hurt, and there was no such thing as overly cautious when it came to my brothers.
Once I got a verbal confirmation from everyone, the five of us filed out of the van once the patrolmen rounded out of sight. Pressed against the side of the building next to the door, I gestured at Arseny and Stepan to split and take care of the guards around the perimeter. Then, when they darted off, I looked at Lev with a nod and glanced at the door.
Lev got into position to kick down the door, waiting for my signal to act. I waited until I felt the familiar squeeze on my shoulder from Alexei—letting me know he was ready—before holding up three fingers and counting down.
The moment my fingers sank down into my fist, a loud thud and bang disrupted whatever operation went on in the lobby of the complex. The stunned silence didn’t last a millisecond before gunfire started to go off from both sides, with us being the instigators. The first shot came from me the moment Lev breached the door, and my bullet met the head of some poor sap who dared to raise his gun at me.
All hell broke loose after the first shot.
People started screaming and scattering as we exchanged fire with, who I assumed to be, the guards.
One quick look and it was clear this base level of the complex was the production area with all the little knick knacks they had set up in the area. The cooks wasted no time scrambling out of the line of fire, cowering behind crates and various equipment.
Shot after shot our guns went off, every bullet from our side hitting its mark dead on. Can’t say the same for the other side; they were lousy shots. Good for us that their aim was worse than a child’s. Also, we weren’t worried much because we had bulletproof vests on. So, unless they got really lucky or went for a headshot, we weren’t going to die in this amateur gun fight. We’d live with a few scrapes and grazes.
“Runner!” Alexei shouted, pointing his head at the back exit that opened to let in a stream of light from the outside.
“Don’t shoot! That’s our target! I got him! You two clear and secure the building!” A foot chase would do well to run the buzzing adrenaline pumping through my body.
Tucking my gun away in its holster, I took off after my target. He had a head start, but it didn’t matter since I was faster. I gained on his scraggly ass with a few large strides, his body tumbling to the ground when I tackled him with a grunt. At least the idiot made it easy by running in a straight line through the empty alleyway.
“Hey, hey, hey, I’ll give you the money I owe, I got it, I got it.” One look at his glazed eyes and I could tell he wasn’t fully here. “Come on just—wait, you’re not Richard.”
It’d be so easy to kill him right now. I could pull my gun out again and put a bullet between his eyes. Or I could kill him with my bare hands, strangle the life out of him, or beat him to death and get bloody. I had enough anger and adrenaline to beat him to hell. I wanted to inflict a fraction of Angel’s suffering onto him.
Scowling, I kept my murderous rage at bay. I had to remind myself he wasn’t mine to kill. Angel would be his judge, jury, and executioner if she so wished. “You’re going to wish I was.” I grumbled as I hauled him to his feet and dragged him back to the abandoned apartment complex begrudgingly.
Dragging him behind me made me wonder how I didn’t crush him under me with my tackle. The lanky asshole was barely half my size.
It also made me wonder what the heck Angel was thinking with this... Scum bag. The struggling twig in my grip didn’t deserve to be classified as a man.
“If ya ain’t Richard then who the fuck are you? The fuck you want? Wait, do I owe you some supply? Listen, if you’re after something I owe, I got it, I swear.” Good, he was too high to have an idea as to who I was and what was in store for him.
“Want me to put a bullet in his mouth?” Lev asked with a cock of his gun. His annoyance written clearly on his face as all of us were subjected to a desperate criminal’s musings.
Fortunately, Alexei came prepared. “Hey! What are you doing!?” The man started to struggle in my grip when Alexei approached him with the needle. “What is—ow! That hurt! The fuck did you... Stick me...” The body went limp in my grasp before we made it fully to the van.