Poisoned Rose (Dark Roses #1) (17 page)

              ‘I don’t know what’s down there.’

              He could hear bars rattling and shots ricocheting off metal as Johnny and Jamie called out to their brothers.  She had seen the gore in the kitchen and living room but what was in the basement would be different.  The victims wouldn’t be strangers.  She raised her chin and squeezed his hand.

              ‘My brother’s down there.  Come on.’

Twenty Eight

              Aurora stepped through the hidden door with Hawk and was accosted by the scene.  Her chest cramped as the full weight of what she was seeing sunk in.  The basement had been turned into a prison with two cells.  Flickering fluorescent surfaces provided little light, and a lone chair leant against the wooden staircase beside a fireman’s hose.  The smell was overwhelming, a mix of human sweat tinged with blood and urine.  She could only imagine the horrors that had gone on over the past few months.

              Dante’s hair had grown long, the curls reaching past his shoulders from the back.  His once pressed pants were ripped and torn, his shirt and shoes discarded in the corner of his cell, his muscles shrunken and his face gaunt.  His nose was broken and there were cuts on his arms where he had been tortured.  His cell contained a stained mattress and a toilet.  His hands gripped the bars to his cell as he watched Johnny cock his gun and shoot at the lock.  He pulled the bars open and Dante fell into his arms.  Johnny hugged him and Dante buried his face in the crook of his brother’s neck.  There were more cuts on his shoulders that disappeared onto his back, and he was weeping, a sound that cut through her deeper than any weapon ever could.

              Dallas De Matteo was also free and hugging his brother.  His cell was identical to Dante’s and his appearance was the same.  He stepped back after the hug but Jamie kept his hand on the back of Dallas’ neck, their heads close together.  Both had tears in their eyes as they spoke in hushed tones.  She felt sick… and angry.  She wanted to hunt down the man who had done this to them and slice him limb from limb.  She wanted to see his eyes when she ripped out his heart, and she wanted to brand his forehead the way his soldier had branded her.  Then she wanted to bury him, each limb in a different location so that even when he went to hell he would never be whole.  From behind her she heard Hawk ask if she was ok but she couldn’t respond.  Her head was ringing, the rage too intense for her body to contain.

              ‘John, it was all a set up, I’m so sorry, Dad had faith in me and…’

              Johnny cut Dante off.

              ‘We need to know everything Carlos or any of his rogues said to you.’

              From across the room Dallas spoke up.

              ‘Carlos is one of Juan’s soldiers, he’s gone rogue and taken a chunk of the underworld with him.  He was a Da Silva captain for ten years before Juan replaced him with Quinn and gave him The Joker’s Lounge to manage.  The guy wants revenge.  He came down one day and started waving his gun at us and telling us how he was running with a new Family who appreciated him, only with the way he was behaving and the nobodies he had with him, there’s no way he’s at the top of the food chain.  He’s got to be working for someone, someone who not only knows what they’re doing, but who are damn good at it.’

              Johnny nodded.

              ‘I remember him.  Did he say anything about who he might be working with?’

              Dante and Dallas shook their heads and Aurora winced as all hope that what the man had said upstairs was false evaporated.  Hawk’s face was unreadable.  She moved to take his hand but Johnny spun around.

              ‘Hawk, can you call your boy and find out if Carlos went to The Joker’s Lounge? We’ve got to get to him as soon as possible cause if all this is what it looks like, the rogues may know what’s happened and are gonna be looking for him.  If they get to him first, they’ll kill him before we can get anything out of him.’

              Hawk gave a quick nod, took out his cell and took the steps two at a time to make the call in the kitchen.  Johnny turned back to the others.

              ‘Jamie is gonna take you back to the Family surgeons, get you some medical attention and find out everything these bastards did to you.  The rest of us are gonna track down Carlos and his henchmen.’

              Jamie put his arm around Dallas and Johnny stalked past her up the steps.  Cross followed but as she turned after them, Dante called out her name.  It was a question and he was looking up at her as if she was a mirage.  She gave a half laugh half cry and made her way down to him, where he wrapped her in his arms and hugged her.  Her fingertips brushed the carvings in his back where his tattoo was and the tears started to fall.  She was so grateful that he was alive and a deep part of her, the part she had ignored, was relieved that he wasn’t a traitor.  He stepped back and held her at arm’s length, taking in her appearance.

              ‘You’re a Rose aren’t you?’

              She knew he’d aimed for nonchalance but defeat laced his words.  She nodded and waited for him to say something.  He pulled her in for another hug and apologized.  She shook her head.

              ‘This is the way it was always meant to be.’

              Then she squeezed him and stepped back, unsure of how to tell him about their father.  Dante wiped his eyes.

              ‘It’s ok, you don’t have to say it.  Dallas told me that Dad’s dead.’

              ‘It’s not your fault, none of us think that and you shouldn’t either.  We couldn’t have known what was going to happen…’

              ‘But if I wasn’t such a screw up then they never would have been able to get to me…’

              ‘D, that’s enough.  We always knew you were innocent and we never stopped looking for you.  Now go get yourself looked at ok, I’ll see you when we get back.’

              With one last smile at Dante, she ran up the steps in time to hear Hawk confirm that Ty had tracked Carlos to The Joker’s Lounge.  Johnny took the lead, heading out the back door as Bo tucked his gun away and raced to catch up with him.  Honor and Vivienne followed suit and Cross gave her a smile that was almost imperceptible before walking out and leaving her in the kitchen with Hawk.  She closed the distance between them, grabbed Hawk’s tee and kissed him, a kiss that was filled with need and promise.  She needed him to know she was there for him, that they would face everything that was coming together.  She had seen a glimpse of the demons that haunted him and she refused to let them destroy him.  He grabbed the back of her neck in response and returned the kiss.  She could hear the police storming in through the front door as she pulled back.

              ‘No matter what happens, I won’t leave you.’

              He stared at her, three unspoken words hanging between them.  But they could already hear Halo and Vince doing their thing in the foyer and knew they had to get out of there.  Instead of replying, Hawk grabbed her hand and they rushed out the back door just as the police burst into the kitchen.

Twenty Nine

              No sooner had the SUVs pulled up in front of The Joker’s Lounge than the bouncers at the door started yelling at everyone to leave. The swarm of patrons trying to sweet talk their way into the club paid no attention, until Ty stepped out of the shadows and shot one of the bouncers in the head.  The crowd started to scream, the alcohol in their systems evaporating.  Hawk didn’t have the time or the patience to care if the strangers were scarred, he just wanted them to do what his rogue soldiers had instructed and get out of there.

              As the crowd rushed to disperse the two remaining bouncers reached for their guns, managing to each get a shot at their captains before they were killed.  Hawk and Honor were at the front of the group and while one bouncer missed, the other managed to graze Honor’s arm.  Ty pumped six bullets into the soldier’s body while Hawk shot the other soldier in the neck.  Vivienne and Cross yelled at the remaining patrons to leave, smashing any cell phones that were recording the scene, Vivienne with her stilettos and Cross with his bare hands.

              The heavy front door had been locked from the inside when the onslaught started. Hawk and Bo slammed their combined weight against it and crashed through with their guns blazing.  His bullets ripped through his rogue soldiers and he grew angrier by the second, gunning down faces he had trained himself.  He couldn’t believe how many rogues from different Families were present, all stepping forward to try and prove themselves.  He could see how big the operation was and it made him sick to know that Masons were behind it.  Bo had put away his gun and taken out his knife.  The guy had found a group of rogue Romanovs and was slicing through them one after the other without breaking a sweat.  He reminded Hawk of Honor; they had way too much fun when it came to killing.  People were screaming and running to get out of the way.  As he shot a rogue Da Silva execution style, he caught sight of Cross and Johnny grabbing hiding patrons by the scruffs of their necks, half pushing half throwing them towards the door.  Collateral damage was something they tried to avoid when possible.

              The temperature in the club was rising as Vivienne and Ty brandished welding torches and set the place on fire.  Where they’d got them from he didn’t know but at that moment, he didn’t care.  Spilt alcohol was dancing in flames and spreading throughout the club.  It would only be a few more minutes before the whole place was burning.  Honor stepped out of the club manager’s office holding a laptop but when she looked over in his direction, she dropped it and whipped out her gun.

              ‘Hawk behind you!’

              Honor’s bullet hit the bulky figure who had been about to stab him in the shoulder and Hawk slammed him into the bar.  Honor hadn’t missed, she’d left the rogue for him to finish off.  He recognized the rogue De Matteo and they struggled, Hawk smashing the butt of his gun into the man’s bullet wound again and again.  The man cried out and tried to headbutt Hawk.  He grinned as the rogue fought back, letting him get in a couple of punches to his torso just for fun, the adrenaline pumping through his veins making it almost impossible for him to feel the blows.  He savored the brawl Honor had handed him, knowing his back was covered and he could punish the man for his failed attack.  He made a spectacle of it, feeling hidden eyes watching him, and when he grew bored, he took out his knife and stabbed the man in the neck.

              As the blood spurted out, he let the body sag against the bar.  The soldier’s legs buckled and Hawk held him up long enough to give the knife a final twist before yanking it out and turning to seek out his audience.  It was then that he saw Aurora racing towards the back door, her eyes focused on the older man that had been watching him.  The man turned to escape but Aurora was too fast, grabbing and slamming him against the wall of the back alley.  Hawk caught Johnny’s eye and they both ran after her.  They found her with her forearm pressed against the man’s chest and her knife at his throat.  As the man struggled, Ty burst through the back door.

              ‘That’s Carlos! Fuck she’s going to kill him!’

              Aurora dug the knife into Carlos’ skin and blood started seeping down his neck.  She was focused and unaware of anything else that was going on around her. It was a dangerous state, not for Carlos but for her.  It left her vulnerable to an attack and if they hadn’t been there she could have gotten herself killed.  He called out to her but Johnny grabbed him by the arm before he could approach her.  He spun around to find Johnny glaring at him with his yellow eyes.

              ‘If you touch her she’ll think she’s being attacked and she’ll kill him.  She’s not as experienced as the rest of us.  She’s too focused and not taking in her surroundings.  She shouldn’t have come.  We need to try and talk her down without freaking her out.’

              He knew Johnny was right.  Aurora hadn’t seen her first birthday as a Rose and yet here she was with a boss, four captains and two second-in-commands.  She wasn’t ready.  He gave Johnny a single nod and Johnny let his arm go.  Sirens were approaching and he knew they had to talk her down fast.

              He turned back in time to hear her say, ‘Don’t even think about it.’

              Carlos stopped struggling.

              ‘Who are you?’

              She pressed the point of her knife deeper into his throat.

              ‘The Grim fucking Reaper.’

Thirty

              Aurora stared into Carlos’s eyes and felt a thrill go through her body.  His life was in her hands.  Even with all the smoke that was lacing its way out the back door, she could still smell the blood she had drawn.  She inhaled the metallic scent and found herself wanting to slash the knife across his throat to draw more.  She wanted to watch it pour down his neck as he struggled for his last breaths.  In the distance she could hear police sirens but the sound of her heart pounding overshadowed everything and she wanted to take the time to etch the moment into her memory.

              ‘You killed my best friend.’

              Even if he hadn’t been the one to pull the trigger, he had played a role in Mike’s death.  Carlos didn’t respond but she wanted him to.  If he spoke, his Adam’s apple would move and her knife would dig in deeper.  She wouldn’t even have to twitch, he’d be killing himself.  He stared down at her, his breath shallow as he tried to stay still. She twisted her knife and drew more blood.  She watched as his eyes widened and she felt his body tremble under her arm.  She could hear someone calling her name but she had everything under control.

              ‘Then you killed my father.’

              Her grip on her knife was getting stronger as she stared into his eyes, wanting to carve them out of his skull.  She hadn’t thought she could get angrier but she’d been wrong.  She bared her teeth.  It was a primitive act and some part of her wanted to rip his throat out.  She finally understood why Bo preferred his knife and why Vivienne’s weapon of choice were Sais.  It was the thrill of hand to hand combat, the opportunity to feel the life of your opponent slip away.  She heard her name called out again.

              ‘But that wasn’t enough for you.  You tortured my brother…. Oh, wait a minute,’ she slid her knife down his throat as she watched the sweat drip from his forehead, his skin turning raw from the sharpened blade, ‘that wasn’t really your doing was it? You’re a puppet Carlos, a nobody who’s easier to play than a fucking tambourine.’

              He opened his mouth to speak and she pushed the blade in deeper, the blood starting to trail down his neck in a steady stream.  People were talking to her and she began to recognize them one after the other.  Johnny, Bo, Cross… and then Hawk.  It was only when he spoke that she replied.

              ‘I know what I’m doing.’

              ‘I know you do, but we need him.  After we’re through with him you can cut him up into as many pieces as you like but not yet.  We need to know what he knows.  Aurora, your boss is asking you to pull back…’

              Johnny said that? She hadn’t heard him…

              ‘… and when your boss asks you to do something you listen.  You need to put the knife away and let us take him in for questioning.  Now.’

              She swallowed but didn’t move.  She had ignored a direct order from Johnny and she knew she was in serious shit.  She hadn’t even heard the order to begin with! She sensed that the others were in the back alley and had been for a while but until Hawk had spoken, she’d heard no one.  It’d been his voice that had brought her back.  Up until that moment, she’d thought her and Carlos were alone.  She’d let her guard down.  She’d run after him with no back up, putting herself and their whole mission at risk, and as if all that wasn’t bad enough, she’d almost killed the one person who could tell them what they needed to know. She was out of her depth and drowning fast.  But she didn’t want to hand him over because once she did that, she was sure Johnny wouldn’t let her finish him off.  That would be a reward and there was no way he was going to be rewarding her any time soon.  Then she thought of a way to leave her mark.

              She grinned, pulled her knife away from Carlos’s throat and rammed it into his thigh.  He screamed out and her grin widened as she pulled the blade up through his muscle before twisting it and yanking it out.  As Honor and Bo jumped forward to haul him to the SUVs, Hawk pulled her back, the sirens blaring, the police cars having reached the front of the club.  Vivienne looked at Hawk.

              ‘Cross and I will take this one, I know how to run it.’

              ‘Do you have cash?’

              Johnny cut in, his eyes locked on Aurora.

              ‘Cross has more than enough, we need to get out of here now.’

              She swallowed as Cross started running up the alleyway to get around to the front of the club.  But instead of following him, Vivienne gave her a shove with her shoulder and a quick salute coupled with a wink before taking off after Cross.  Johnny stepped forward.  Aurora looked up at him even though her knees were almost knocking, showing that she was ready to take whatever he was going to throw at her because really, that was all she had left.  If she shied away, it was the end of the line for her as a Rose.

              ‘Never do that again.’

              Johnny’s voice was lethal.  She tried to apologize but he wouldn’t have it.

              ‘Shut up.  I don’t want to hear another word come out of your mouth tonight.  I’ll decide what to do with you later.’

              Then he told Hawk and Ty he would ride with her and Bo and leave them to ride with Honor.  It was a show of trust.  Johnny was letting them know that he believed they’d played no hand in the matter, despite the fact that their relatives were behind it all.

              ‘Follow us, there’s an empty Hannam apartment nearby, it’s more private than a warehouse and a hell of a lot smaller.’

              Hawk and Ty both agreed and as Ty made his way to the Escalade, she began to follow.  After a few steps she realized that Johnny had grabbed Hawk’s arm and that they hadn’t moved.  She cringed, wondering if Johnny was going to ask Hawk about what was going on between them, but the thought left as quickly as it had arrived.  The alley behind a club that they had just destroyed was not the place to play big brother, especially while their only lead was waiting to be questioned. She resisted the urge to turn around.  She was in enough trouble as it was.