Henry parked the car as close to the location as he could. King and Henry then both got out of the car, using the city they were familiar with to maneuver their way closer.
The car tailing them was being dealt with, so they wouldn’t be expecting King to show up. They had put too much faith in King not striking against them because of Evie.
He had backed off when they had taken his sister, and she had been butchered. The same wasn’t going to happen to Evie.
King and Henry managed to get close enough to see Ramos and Moran enter the warehouse in different vehicles. Rabbit was inside Moran’s car. Rabbit had been the one who had taken Evie to make sure his lucrative cut of the deal was a success. He had been gaining a steady reputation of seeing deals of this caliber involved no bloodshed to those paying for his skills. Unfortunately, he had left a trail of victims like Evie to realize his goals.
Evie had placed too much trust in Rabbit because they had been in the military together. She had also trusted King not to hurt her, afraid of being hurt. Both of them had let her down. She clung to The Last Riders for a reason—she would never have been in this position with the club.
King saw movement behind the warehouse as the Predators moved in. Jackal and Ice were in the lead, giving directions and spreading the men around the warehouse. After Jackal used the darkening sky to get closer to the building, unlocking a side door and going inside, Ice and Max followed behind.
King and Henry used the cars parked outside to hide, making their own way to the door. He reached out to touch the handle when the first shot could be heard from the inside.
“Shit.” King jerked opened the door and stepped into Hell without a second’s hesitation.
* * *
Evie tried to loosen the tight zip-tie around her wrists, but she quit when two cars pulled into the warehouse. Men climbed out of the cars, holding guns casually by their sides.
Rabbit got out of one, casting a look of apology in her direction. Evie had already figured out he was the one behind her being taken as insurance against King. She had played right into his hands when she had asked for his help in finding out the information she wanted.
Evie was watching as the drugs and money were exchanged when the one who had been left standing guard over her suddenly fell to the concrete floor next to her. Evie stared at him blankly before looking up to see Jackal pulling a knife covered in blood out of the man’s back.
When Jackal put his finger to his mouth, telling her without words to remain quiet, Evie nodded her head, showing she understood. Jackal then bent over her chair, cutting the cord at her wrists.
He jerked her from her chair as a bullet struck it, toppling it backward. A small scream passed her lips as Jackal pushed her down to the floor, covering her body with his while grabbing his own gun and returning fire. The men scattered like ants, each running to their own cars.
They didn’t make it. They were gunned down steps from their cars. The one who had kidnapped her was one of the first to be killed. Ramos and Moran were each next.
Once their bosses were no longer in control, their men fought unsuccessfully for their own lives. All thirteen of the men were killed. The only one spared was Rabbit, who had hunkered down by the table and didn’t move.
When no one was left moving, Jackal helped Evie to her feet. “Are you hurt?”
Evie started to shake her head but dizziness overcame her; only Jackal’s hand on her arm kept her from collapsing.
“I was hit on my head.”
“Can you walk?”
“Yes.”
He didn’t take his hand away. “We have to get out of here.”
“Evie!” King grabbed her, hugging her close. She tried to move away from him, though. He didn’t let her go, yet he allowed her to put some space between them.
“Let me go.”
King’s arms dropped from her at her cold request.
“King, we need to leave,” Jackal ordered. King nodded, stepping back.
It was completely dark when they left the building.
“I’ll get the car.” Henry jogged off.
“King, thanks for having my back,” Rabbit said.
“How did they know about Evie, Rabbit?” Kings harsh voice had Rabbit coming to a stop.
Evie looked at the man she’d thought was her friend. He was going to try to talk his way out of it; it was what made him so good at his job.
The Predators were coming out of the warehouse behind them. Max was carrying the bags containing the drugs and the money.
“What about my cut?” Rabbit asked, as if he had been the one to rescue them.
“You're not—” Evie began angrily.
A shot rang out in the night; Rabbit fell backwards, a hole in the side of his head. The Predators ran for cover, trying to figure out where the shot had come from.
Instinct set in. Evie threw herself into King's arms, pressing against him as tightly as she could. “Don’t move!” Evie yelled to everyone around her.
They were under the scope of a cold-blooded killer, and any move they made could be their last.
Chapter 20
“Evie...”
“Don’t move, King.” Evie pressed against him harder.
King’s car pulled up to them and he reached out, opening the door. “Get in. If he shoots me, it’s what I deserve.”
Evie glanced around. The Predators were all escaping, blending into the night. They weren’t his target, though; King was. “Get in the car first.”
“No.”
Evie reluctantly let him go, turning to the direction the shot had come from and staring into the darkness. “Please,” she mouthed, no sound escaping. She felt the hair on her arms stand in warning. “Please, don’t.”
“Evie, get in the car.” King was resigned to take his punishment for endangering her, but Evie didn’t budge until she saw a brief flash of light and knew she had temporarily bought King a stay. Only then did she finally slide into the car with her head pounding.
King closed the car door, lighting a cigar with a shaking hand. “Do you need to go to the hospital?”
“No, I have a concussion. I need to lie down and take it easy for a while, but I will be fine. I guess I won’t be catching my plane in the morning.”
“You booked a plane? You were going to leave without talking to me?”
“I have nothing to say.”
“Evie, I’m sorry I jumped to conclusions.”
“You’re full of shit. You’ve judged me from the moment you met me, just like you did Shade. You’re the one who’s fucked up. I trusted you. I thought you were smart enough to step away from that deal. I was wrong. The next time you screw up, I won’t be around to save your ass.”
“I did step away. I told Ramos to do his business and get out of town, then Rabbit called and said Ramos had you. He didn’t trust me not to interfere. I spent most of my life building my reputation, and it almost got you killed!”
“Thank God, it wasn’t Lily.”
“You’re just as important as Lily is to me, Evie.”
“Don’t lie,” Evie seethed.
“I’m not lying.”
Evie turned away, not willing to argue with him. That’s when she noticed Henry had pulled up in front of King’s building. “Take me to Penni’s.”
“Stay the night. At least let me make sure you’re okay. You can sleep in the spare bedroom. You have to be checked every so often because of your concussion.”
“Penni is there.”
“You want to explain to her what happened?”
No, she didn’t. It would be hours before Penni would let her sleep if she did.
Resigned to her fate, Evie tiredly got out of the car, moving away from King's touch. Silently, she followed him into his penthouse. She knew the way to his spare bedroom and that’s where she went, closing the door on him before he could speak.
She toed off her shoes before lying down on the bed, not bothering to turn down the blankets. Curling
on her side, she stared at the emptiness of the bed beside her and fell asleep within minutes. She hadn’t slept through the night since her fight with King.
Later that night, King woke her up with a cold drink. When she sat up, gratefully taking a long gulp, he gave her some ibuprofen which helped with her headache.
She was about to go back to sleep when she realized she didn’t have her purse. She started to get out of bed.
“What are you doing?”
“I need my purse; it has my phone.”
“You’re going to leave in the middle of the night for your phone?”
“I need my phone,” she said stubbornly.
“Get back in bed. I’ll send Henry after it.”
“Thank you.” Evie lay back down, falling back asleep.
* * *
Sometime later, she felt her head prodded.