DAMIR
I don't think I've ever driven this fast in my entire life. The tires screeched against the pavement, the city's night lights bleeding past in blurred streaks, but all I could think about was Eli. My mind replayed that godforsaken video over and over again, his eyes widened in horror, that choked scream as they forced that chemical down his throat. My hands tightened around the steering wheel until my knuckles went white.
Lian sat beside me in the passenger seat, a trembling wreck. He had barely been able to speak ever since he burst through my gates with his phone in his hand, showing me the same video I had just received seconds before. I saw the moment the horror settled into his chest like a parasite. He kept mumbling things like "We shouldn't have split up" and "I should've stayed with him." He kept trying to dial Eli's number over and over, even though he knew it was futile.
"Lian," I said, voice low and sharp. "Breathe. I need you with me."
"I…I'm sorry, Damir," he muttered. "I didn't know this would happen. He…he just wanted to play. I should've…fuck…i should've waited till he got home. We promised to text when we got home and…"
"Don't," I cut in. "You two were just having fun. This isn't your fault."
But it was someone's fault. And someone was going to pay for it.
I tapped my earpiece and connected with Lan, my chief of security.
"Lan, update me."
"We've tracked the signal to an abandoned industrial warehouse thirty minutes outside the city," Lan responded, voice crisp and deadly. "We've already sent a tactical team ahead. Do you want us to engage before you arrive?"
"No," I snapped. "Hold position. No one lays a finger on anyone until I get there. they hurt him…" My voice broke slightly, and I clenched my jaw to steady it. "I want them breathing when I get there. I want to see the life leave their eyes myself."
Lian's face turned toward me, pale and silent.
"They fed him acid," I said, quieter now. "They fed him fucking acid, Philip you fucker"
Lian's body tensed. He looked like he was about to throw up.
My heart was beating in erratic patterns, my breath too quick. Everything inside me wanted to scream, to break something, but I had to stay calm. I had to stay focused. Because Eli was still alive. I was sure of it. He had to be.
The car went silent again, only the whoosh of wind and the hum of the tires carrying us forward. And then, a moment later, my phone buzzed with another message.
Another video.
I shouldn't have opened it. But I did.
It was Eli. He was shaking, just lying there, barely able to breathe. His lips were cracked and bloodied, and I could see red burns down his neck…chemical burns. They'd done more. They'd done far more. I didn't even realize I had let out a roar until Lian flinched beside me.
"Damir…!"
I threw the phone against the dashboard, shattering it.
"They're going to die," I said. "Every last one of them."
"I'm with you," Lian muttered. "Whatever you need."
We were nearly there. The warehouse's location appeared on the GPS, and Lan's voice returned in my ear.
"We've surrounded the building. There's movement inside, but we haven't confirmed visual on the target."
"I'll confirm it myself," I hissed.
We pulled up behind the blacked-out SUVs that lined the warehouse perimeter. My guards were already suited up, bulletproof vests, guns drawn. The air was thick with tension, silence, anticipation.
Lian and I jumped out. I threw on a vest someone handed me and nodded once to Lan.
"They're inside?"
Lan gave a grim nod. "Two men at the entrance. Five signatures inside. We think Eli's being held on the second floor."
I drew my gun.
"Then let's go get my boy."