Page 25 of Sleeping with the Dark (The Righteous 3)
The guard rolled up his sleeves, and a large smile spread across his tattooed face. “I’m not the one dying today.”
A fist flew at Cody’s face forcing him to leap out of the way. The guy came again with a relentless flurry of fists. For such a large man, he sure as hell could move fast. Cody ducked and landed a hard blow to the kidneys and smiled as the man groaned and bowed away from the hit. The guard spun, darted forward a couple of strides, and grabbed Cody by the vest. With a massive force, he was slammed into the wall, his helmet going askew with the impact. Fighting this guy was like trying to wrestle a rhino.
The guard yanked him forward only to slam him against the wall again, all the air forced from his lungs on impact and the helmet clattering to the floor. Clenching his fist tight, he brought it up as hard as he could in an uppercut to catch the man in the jaw with the vicious strike. The guard paused in his attack but didn’t release him as he’d hoped.
Another slam against the wall, and Cody was gasping for air. He needed to put distance between them. Cody reached out and slammed his hands against the side of the guard's head, boxing his ears. The man groaned and stumbled back, holding his head as he released the vest—Cody leaned against the wall a moment to catch his breath and clear the stars behind his eyes.
“What the hell was that noise?” Alejandro called out.
Cody couldn’t let this man warn Alejandro. He freed the knife from the sheath on his vest and dove at the guard as he was straightening. The guard managed to move at the last moment, and the fatal blow ended up slicing his arm.
“Son of a bitch,” the guy hissed and grabbed for the deep wound as blood flew from the wound and landed on the floor.
Cody allowed rage to consume his body as he attacked again, the guard opened his mouth to call out, and he flipped the blade in his hand to backhand it as hard as he could toward the man’s throat. The blade was so sharp that even though Cody knew he’d hit his mark, he hadn’t felt the impact. Forgetting his wounded arm, the guard grabbed at the gaping wound forming across his throat. Blood flowed freely through his fingers as his mouth opened and closed, but no sound came. The eerie light cast the dying man’s shadow on the wall and then flickered as droplets of blood landed on the little light of the fallen phone.
Cody took a step back as the man dropped to his knees. “You should have joined me instead.”
Cody grabbed the man’s hair, forcing him to look him in the eyes. “No one comes after my family.” With a violent and precise strike, the blade sank into the man’s open mouth. His arms fell limp, and eyes blank as death took him. He pulled the blade free and kicked the man in the chest. His breathing was hard, his chest rising and falling with the burst of adrenaline. His hand shook as he bent and wiped the blade off on the man before returning it to its home and retrieving his helmet. The little lens had a wave behind the partial crack, but it was still working. He could see the red dot of Alejandro pacing a small line.
Straightening, he turned toward the entrance. Nothing and no one was stopping him from saving Trev.
Cody palmed the handles of the guns as his long strides ate up the distance to the entrance, but he faltered as Arek’s voice startled him.
“Hold your position.” Arek’s earpiece crackled, halting him mid-stride.
“What are we waiting for?” he whispered. The anger seeped into his voice as his mind screamed to keep going.
“I said hold your position.” Cody ground his teeth together as Alejandro yelled for his guards. They were wasting time. What the hell was Arek doing? “Lights will come back on, on my command. Get Alejandro to face you, and if at all possible, to step around Trev.”
Cody could hear Arek softly counting, and as soon as he said zero, the lights flashed then flicked back on. Doing as he was told, he flexed his shoulders as his Ice Man mask was pulled into place. He casually walked through the open doorway, and his heart fell through the floor. Trev was covered in blood. What could only be whip lines stretched from his shoulders to the top of his pants. The little bit that he could see of his face was swollen and caked with blood. He clenched his fists and took a small step, ready to race across the space and kill the man that had done this.
“Know your job,” Arek said.
Cody swore under his breath. The guy was getting on his nerves. Taking a steadying breath, he focused on his task. He stuffed the one gun back into his pants and rolled his shoulders. Showtime.
“It’s about fucking time. Now get your asses back in here, or you’re going to miss the show,” Alejandro yelled.
“Hey, Alejandro,” Cody leaned against the wall, and he tapped the gun casually against his leg. Alejandro spun in his direction, and the man’s eyes narrowed as they stared at one another. He made sure to keep the gun down. It allowed him to portray the illusion of being less threatening. “It seems your men are a bit indisposed. I do hope they weren’t your favorites,” he smirked.
“You’re working with him?” Alejandro pointed to Trev. Cody lifted his shoulders in a non-committal way. “The rumors are true then. You took out Tyson? Did you really cut his balls off? That is hardcore, brother, even for you, Ice Man. I wouldn’t have pegged you for the sort that could do that.” Alejandro waved a hand in the air as he tried to find the right words. “You don’t have the right je ne sais quoi.”
Cody pushed off from the wall and took a step toward Alejandro. “What can I say? Tyson had it coming.”
“Maybe, maybe not. So is it you that is attacking and killing my men?” Again, Cody lifted a shoulder but smiled at his opponent. “Why are you attacking me? We never had any beef?”
“Keep him talking, and get him to move forward. I don’t have a clear shot,” Arek said in his ear.
Cody took a couple of steps to the side, looking around like he was interested in the warehouse and what it had in the large brown crates.
“I have my own aspirations. We don’t have beef, per say, Alejandro, but you do control the west side of the city. That is a big area to have all to yourself. I thought it was about time you learned to share. Tyson was too weak to go after what he wanted.” Cody paused in his slow stroll and looked Alejandro in the eyes. “But, I’m not.”
Alejandro laughed, the sound grating and making Cody’s teeth grind together. “You think you’re the one to teach me the lesson?”
“You don’t think I can?” Cody took a few more steps to the side, and Alejandro was forced to move or lose sight of him around Trev’s hanging body. Cody could now see the front of Trev’s body, and every instinct was telling him that he didn’t have long. He was clearly out cold, his muscles hadn’t twitched, and his fair skin was turning an unnatural shade.
“I think you’re too attached.”
“To what? To him?” Cody nodded toward Trev. “Not really. He just found my offer more beneficial to him than yours was.” Cody had no idea what deal Trev and Alejandro had struck, but he was hoping that he could bullshit his way through this.
