Cataclysm (Four Horsemen #4)(33)

“I understand why you scarred me,” she said after a moment. “Your little warrior needed a battle scar from her warring horseman.”

Even though I’d always thought that fucking moniker was ridiculous, it was fitting for the five of us. The horsemen and their warrior woman. We would ride into battle upon four horses, white, red, black, and pale, with the goddess of the night in our wake. And we would destroy our enemies for good. Nothing would be left standing in our way now.

“Will you go to war with me if I asked it of you?”

“Always.”

I pressed a kiss to her hair.

“I’ll make the world safe for us,” I whispered. “I won’t let anyone hurt you. None of us will.”

She snuggled even closer, pressing her lips to my chest.

“I want to burn his empire down and dance amongst the ashes.”

“You will. I’ll make sure of it.”

Scarlett closed her eyes and wrapped her arm around me.

“Did she ever stop fighting for me?”

She was referring to Lylah. My heart twisted for her. My poor girl never got a chance to see her mother again or say goodbye. After everything she’d had to endure, that was a fucking travesty I couldn’t forgive. I was glad Scarlett had avenged Lylah’s death by killing Mason.

“No, never. She was advocating for you until the very end. She loved you with everything she had, little Scar. There’s nothing in this world she wouldn’t have done to get you back. Nothing at all. And we continued that fight for her. We brought you home.”

She nodded, shifting in my embrace before settling down again. I stroked her arm as I watched her fall asleep. My perfect little woman in my arms. And I promised myself I would do my best to keep opening up to her. To keep being vulnerable. If there was anything in this world she deserved, it was that. She deserved to be treated like my partner. My equal in every sense of the word. If she could be open with me, I could do it for her.

I pressed one last kiss to her hair before settling down to sleep myself. And wondered as I drifted off if Stuart would enjoy the little package he would have delivered on his doorstep tomorrow. After all, it wasn’t every day you were sent a severed head accompanied by pictures of his affair with your wife. If only I could be a fly on the wall when it happened, but I would settle for knowing it would fuck with him. And we’d continue fucking with Stuart until we could end the man. He deserved nothing less.





Fifteen


Drake





I stared down at the phone for a long moment after being informed we had a guest. Well, I wouldn’t exactly describe Garrett Jones as a guest, but we would be treating him like one. After all, it wasn’t every day you had a personal visit from the Met Police Commissioner. The fact he’d come alone spoke volumes. He would have sent officers if he was here to arrest us.

Standing from my desk, I straightened my suit jacket, dusting off a piece of lint on the sleeve. I sent a group text out to the boys and Scarlett. I took a breath then strode out of my office towards the lobby where our guest would be arriving shortly. Scarlett peeked her head out of her office. I paused when she stepped out.

“Do you need me?”

“Get the rest of them into the meeting room before I bring him in, then make yourself scarce. We don’t need him to suspect you.”

She nodded, moving away to Prescott’s office as I continued down the hallway.

I knew exactly why Garrett was here. It might have taken him a few days to turn up at our offices, but we’d known he would come. There was no way he would let what we’d sent Stuart go unanswered. I smiled to myself as I waited by the desk in the lobby. Quite the present we had delivered on his doorstep by Penn’s men. It wasn’t as if they could trace it back to us, but they would know we’d done it all the same. No two fucking ways about it.

My features were schooled when the lift doors opened and out stepped Garrett Jones, his light brown hair slicked back, blue eyes dark with irritation. He wore a pinstripe suit with a trench coat over the top of it.

“Good afternoon, Commissioner,” I said, giving him a nod.

He came to a standstill near me. I didn’t offer my hand since I knew he wouldn’t take it.

“I’m not here for niceties nor do I offer them in return.”

“No, of course not. Please come this way.”

I put my hand out towards the hallway before leading him towards the meeting room. If he didn’t want niceties, I would endeavour not to give him any. He would probably hate us even more by the end of his time here, but who gave a fuck.

As I entered the meeting room, I found the other three sat at the table. Francis had a pile of documents in front of him. I waved at a chair as I crossed the room to sit next to Prescott, but the Commissioner remained standing. He looked over at the four of us with narrowed eyes.

“I expect you are aware of why I’m here.”

“Why don’t you enlighten us… Commissioner?”

He’d asked to see the four of us directly. It meant he had no idea of Scarlett’s involvement. I was counting on that.

“Let’s not play games,” he ground out, leaning on the table with one hand flat on the wood. “I should have you all arrested.”

“On what grounds?”

“You dare ask me that? I shouldn’t be surprised.” He straightened and glared. “You were never ones for telling the truth, even when you were boys.”