Page 44 of Hades

“Yep, and you love me anyway.”

“Maybe I do.”

She hugged me tight. “See that wasn’t so hard to admit. Now just tell Hades and you’ll be good.”

I rolled my eyes, but I hugged her back just a little tighter.

Chapter Twenty-Two

Hades

“How the fuck did they find us at not one but two safe houses?” Now that I was behind closed doors with my brothers, my frustration poured out. I smacked the table with my palm and looked all around the room.

“Once could be good luck but I don’t buy that bullshit,” T-Bone said, shaking his head. “But twice is suspicious as fuck.”

Around the room, everybody nodded their agreement. The room vibrated with anger and fear, but also with a determination to end this shit. “I agree. We intentionally didn’t disclose which safe house Hades and Raven went to after the first one was compromised. So it means someone knows where our safe houses are,” Diesel’s voice was low, forcing us all to quiet down to hear what our Prez had to say. “That is a problem we need to address right fucking now.” He turned to Slate. “You got anything for us?”

“Not yet.” He shook his head, seeming as confused as the rest of us for once. “First thing I did was check the burner I gave Hades before they left to prevent this exact fucking thing. No one hacked it or even attempted to. The metadata is clean so however they found them, it wasn’t digitally.”

I snorted. “I guess that lack of electronics was worth it then.” Not that Raven and I hadn’t found other ways to fill the endless hours that stretched out in front of us.

“I know your bike was clean because we checked it when Fang brought it back. But what about the car?” Diesel asked in a serious tone. “Did you check it for trackers?”

I nodded. “Yeah. I checked every damn day. I even checked when we stopped for gas last night just to be sure. Nothing.” During the journey home, I’d had plenty of time to think and there was only one conclusion to draw.

“We have a mole,” Falcon said bluntly. His hands were balled into tight fists, his knuckles turned white and his face was bright red. “Right?” He looked around the room, his eyes wide and pleading. “That’s what we’re all thinking? We’re dancing around this shit because of what it means, but that’s what this is, right?”

The room fell silent, Falcon’s accusation bounced off the walls like a stray bullet. It was a heavy accusation, one none of us wanted to make, but it was the only thing that made sense. “If that’s the case,” Diesel sighed. “We’ll find out who it is and we’ll deal with it.”

“Fuck!” Falcon’s agonized roar filled the room.

“Slate, dig into everyone, starting with the prospects—Banger, Fang, Danny, and Reaper. They’re the weakest links at this point but don’t limit your search to them. Anyone who has access to our properties and knows our business. Got it?”

He nodded. “Got it.”

The room fell into silence but it wasn’t calm, and it fueled the anger and helplessness I felt. I hadn’t been able to keep Raven safe and last night she almost died. I needed to do something more. “We need to stop waiting for those goddamn Russians to attack us again. We have to stop responding and start acting.” Everything in me wanted to run out and hunt down every Russian I saw and put them down.

“You’re angry,” Rocky said. “We get it.”

“Of course I am. You didn’t see her last night with that asshole’s blood and brains all over her.” My eyes slammed shut and I took a breath. “Look, we have to do something to draw Viktor out into the open. Based on everything Raven said, he’s a powerful man who’s used to a layer of protection between him and his dealings.” He was a fucking pussy, that’s what he was. A coward.

Slate nodded eagerly. “I agree, but when we find the mole, we’ll have more intel to help us find them.”

It was a good point, but that could take days, maybe even weeks.

“We still need to come up with a plan other than waiting out the Russians.” Diesel nodded, his studious gaze bouncing around the room. “Do we have any idea where Viktor is? I know you’ve been keeping an eye on him.”

Slate rubbed his face as if he was already exhausted. “I can’t confirm if he was here when that girl was murdered, but that means nothing with the Russian mob. He could have ordered the hit and one of his lieutenants would have carried it out. He has several private jets and usually travels with two of them, so his true location isn’t revealed. But he’s definitely been in Russia, and was spotted in London two weeks ago. Both of his planes recently landed in Los Angeles, one in Burbank and the other in Long Beach, so it’s safe to say he’s back in southern California. He has a place in Marina del Rey.”

“Have we got any eyes on him?” Rocky asked.

“No.” Slate shrugged. “My guess is he left London around the time those goons spotted you two out at that steakhouse.”

“We have to move faster than we are right now,” I insisted. “Viktor and his Russian fucks are going to invade our town within a few days.” My worry for Raven was heightened because I had no fucking clue how she would react to having Viktor so close. “We gotta get this asshole.”

“Yeah,” Falcon snorted. “We realize that, man.”

“No,” I shook my head fiercely. “We have to end this soon or Raven will never have any fucking peace.” My hands curled until my nails dug into my palm.