LOGINJared stared into the man’s eyes, seeing nothing but resolve in them. These were the eyes of a man with nothing else to lose. "Everyone hold your fire!" Hayden barked into his earpiece, his voice sharp. "If you’re in the building, step outside immediately and stay at a safe distance. The bastard has the entire place rigged."The man’s head tilted. “Very smart.”Beck suddenly sucked in a loud, choking breath as he tried to get air back into his lungs to prevent choking. Hayden's and Jared’s eyes snapped to him.Jared’s eyes returned back to the gunman within a split second. He coughed hysterically, spitting out mouthfuls of fine dust."That was... fucking horrid," he wheezed out, his chest heaving as his eyes blinked open.Jared almost sobbed from sheer relief. “Baby...”Beck blinked several times before finally focusing on him. “Hey,” he whispered, his voice hoarse but soft. Then his eyes widened with surprise as he shifted to Hayden. “What… How are you here?” He squinted his eye
“No,” Jared whispered, his breathing coming out in broken, uneven pulls. "God, please, please.”“B, hold your breath!” He yelled, his bloody fingers slipping on the glass as he clawed at it. “I will find… Fuck, I don’t know what to do!”He stared at the wiring again, no longer noticing the sweat soaking through his shirt and the tears running continuously down his face. His palms were covered in blood from everything he had tried to break, and his entire body trembled from exhaustion.He slammed his bloody fists on the glass, his entire body trembling from exhaustion and devastation. “Beck…” He sobbed. He could not do this. He could not watch him die. But if he tried anything, whatever failsafe the bastard had set up would do it quicker.The chamber suddenly shuddered beneath his hands, and he jolted, his hand immediately moving for the knife tucked in his waistband. Someone was here. And if that bastard was back, killing him would bring him so much fun. He turned sharply, his e
Jared threw his shoulder against the frame of Myla's chamber, hauling on the steel seam with all his strength, hoping that it would make an opening, even if it was a tiny separation from the glass that he could work with. But nothing budged.There was no handle, exterior latches, or any hint of mechanical emergency releases."Fuck!" he roared, his eyes darting frantically around the vast room.He needed a sledgehammer, a crowbar, a heavy iron pipe—anything. But the room was completely bare, scrubbed clean of any useful item.He moved a few feet away from the box, then ran back at it full force, dropping a heavy, crushing kick straight into the center of the glass.The impact sent a shockwave of pain up his l
"I'm not Troy?" the man sneered, his eyes glinting with pure amusement above his face mask. "Who says so, Sergeant?"Jared’s jaw clenched hard, hot and volatile anger bubbling in his veins as he stared at the man standing ten feet away.He had known Troy Strauss for years. Even fucked him a couple of times.He knew the man’s physical profile like the back of his hand.Yes, a man could drastically buff up, but he could not magically add inches to his skeletal frame.The man standing before him was slightly taller, carried broader shoulders, and held an entirely different posture.And though he sounded hauntingly like the Troy he had known, the na
“Mr Oakley is safe, sir,” Marcus said, relief thick in his voice. “They were able to get the traitors before they caused any harm.”“Oh thank goodness," Jared muttered, wiping the sweat off his brow. “How about Myla?”Marcus winced. “I… I’m sorry, sir,” he stammered out. “They got to her first.”“Fuck!” he snarled. “How?!”“They said she left the estate, and unfortunately, the people she left with were three of Troy’s men.” Marcus swallowed nervously before continuing, his voice heavy with dread. “And… I have lost her signal, too.”“It just keeps getting better and bette
Ambrose turned in his seat again, looking at Hayden. "Sir,” he said, eyeing his boss’s stiff countenance. “Is everything alright?"“What kind of stupid question is that?” Hayden snarled, maintaining his angry, frazzled expression even as his heart hammered against his ribs like a sledgehammer. “My wife is in danger from God knows what, and you are asking me that?”Ambrose flinched, his eyes guilty. “I’m so sorry, sir,” he apologized again. “I shouldn’t have let her—”“Save it,” Hayden cut in, moving the phone to his second ear because his palm was getting too sweaty from nervousness. “Wait, have you tried reaching Colette?”Ambrose nodded, sweat beading on his fore







