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“Mr. Thorne!” Jake growled afterhim.
“See to our cargo,” Grant threw over his shoulder. He heard Jake pass the order to Tyler, but his security lead stuck to him like white on rice. He descended the steps of the plane and saw Liam heading straight forhim.
Aggression was evident in every line of the man’s body. Jake picked up on the hostility and stepped in front of Grant, but he pulled his man back. If there were a score to settle, he’d rather get that over with so they could focus on findingBlaire.
“Stand down. No matter what,” Grant put a hand in front of Jake’s chest. “I meanit.”
Jake’s eyes passed briefly over Grant before narrowing at Liam inwarning.
When his bodyguard stood back, Grant turned to Liam who was upon them. Pain exploded at the side of his jaw and he staggeredback.
Grant threw a hand out reminding Jake not toengage.
“Mr. Thorne,” Jake grittedout.
He faced Liam again and the man threw a second punch and jarred the other side of hisface.
Grant swore, shook off the pain, and glared at the older man. “That’s all your gonna get until you tell me where Blaireis.”
“I should kill you,” Liam said hoarsely. His face was contorted in ravaged lines that set off alarms in Grant’shead.
“Is she alive?” he asked the one question he didn’t want to ask, and yet it was the one question he neededanswered.
Liam nodded with difficulty. “But those fuckers hurt her.Bad.”
A tide of fury ripped through his body, but Grant reined it in. “As long as she’s alive, nothing else matters.” And that was the truth. Just before their plane landed, he woke up to a nightmare that had shaken him to the core. Grant wasn’t a religious man but he’d found himself bargaining with God. Blaire could return to him a damaged woman … all he wanted was for her to be alive and breathing. If he had the ability to absorb her pain for her he would. He didn’t care if it took a lifetime to make her whole again. He would always stand by her. His face must have shown his determination because Liam’s face softened to adegree.
“She’s a fighter,” Liam said gruffly and then he turned to Jake. “The contents of the storage unit are in that crate.” He nodded to an eight-by-eight pod beside theHummer.
“You had it all along, you son of a bitch,” Grant snarled, getting into the other man’sface.
“Calm your shit, Thorne,” Liam snarled back. “You don’t know what I sacrificed to get this. While you were busy playing real estate mogul in Manhattan, I had to make decisions whether to let a person live or die. To save Blaire, there was only one choice. If she dies, I’m coming afteryou.”
“You’ll have to come through me first,” Jake snapped, this time shoving himself between his boss andLiam.
“Easy, Donovan,” Grant said grimly. “I’ll face your kind of justice,Watts.”
Jake turned his head and glared at him. “Respectfully, sir? You’re a pain in the ass to workfor.”
Liam smirked. “I like thisguy.”
Grant exhaled in exasperation. “So what’s the plan? What are we going todo?”
“Not we. My men and I. You guys stay here. This could get messy, and Blaire will have my ass if I involve you in thisshit.”
“I’m already involved in this fucking shit,” Grant gritted through his teeth. “I go where yougo.”
“Boss …” Jake started,frowning.
“Have you ever killed anyone, Thorne?” Liammocked.
“No, but I’m a pretty good shot,” he returned. “You say it like taking a life is equivalent to a badge ofhonor.”
“There’s nothing honorable about taking a life, but if it comes down between them and us, there’s no time to hesitate,” Liam turned his eyes on Jake. “How about you, Donovan, ever killedanyone?”
Jake’s expression turned to stone. “I don’t talk about it.” Jake Donovan had been a marine in the last Iraq war. Grant was sure he had hiskills.
“See, that right there is a soldier,” Liamapproved.
