“No! Don’t you die on me! Goddammit! Derrick! No. Please. No. Don’t close your eyes.” Jase’s tortured voice echoed in the night, carrying on the chilly breeze. Ashlynn’s sobs added to the pain that filled the air.

There, lying on the porch, was Derrick, his eyes closed, blood dripping from the corner of his mouth. The glow from the porch light allowed Leyton to see him clearly. Bullets had riddled his body, giving him no chance of survival.

Rock appeared at his side, along with Teddy, Leo, and Cowboy. Leyton glanced at the bodyguards briefly.

“We took out three of theirs. Two got away,” Rock informed him, his eyes hard.

“How’d they get up here?” he asked, still watching Jase.

Cowboy rushed over to Derrick and Jase, dropped to his knee, and pressed his fingers to the pulse point on Derrick’s bloody neck. When the older man’s eyes slid up to Leyton’s face, he knew that Jase’s brother was indeed dead.

“They plowed the gate,” Teddy offered. “Took the whole thing down.”

Fuck.

“Where’s Sal?” Leyton asked, meeting Rock’s gaze.

The grim look on Rock’s face said it all. Sal was dead.

Fuck.

Rock touched Leyton’s arm. “We have to get her outta here, boss. If they come back, we’re sittin’ ducks. Not to mention, the cops’ll be here soon.”

Leyton looked down at Jase, his heart aching for him. He knew exactly what Jase was going through because several months ago, Leyton had thought he’d lost Max—the closest thing he had to family—after Max had been gunned down in front of him.

Only Max had lived.

And Derrick … he hadn’t. And neither had Sal.

Leyton wanted to howl, to let go of the rage and hatred that filled him. Inhaling deeply through his nose, he unclenched his teeth and turned to Rock once more. “You and Teddy bring the Escalades around.”

“Yes, sir,” Rock growled, grabbing Teddy’s arm and urging him into the house.

Leyton approached Ashlynn. “Honey, we’ve gotta go. You know we do.”

Ashlynn’s red-rimmed eyes peered up at him from where she kneeled beside Jase. She was lost, and he knew just what she was feeling.

“Come on.” He held out a hand to help her up. “Jase, man, the cops’ll be here soon. We’ve gotta get her to Max’s.”

Jase’s crystal-blue eyes shifted to him, but Leyton knew he hadn’t heard a single word he’d said. Instead of waiting for him to comprehend, Leyton pulled him to his feet, never letting him go as the two Escalades squealed to a stop in front of the house.

“Go with Ashlynn,” Leyton instructed Jase. “Get her to Max’s now.”

Jase stared blankly back at him. Leyton grabbed Jase’s face, pulled him close until their noses touched. Lowering his voice, he spoke as gently as he could. “I’m so fucking sorry, but we have a job to do. And we have to fucking do it now. I’ll be right behind you.”

Jase nodded but didn’t pull away. Leyton shoved him toward the Escalade as Leo opened the door. Leyton stuck his head inside. “Don’t fucking stop for anyone, you understand? I’ll call Max, let him know you’re on your way.”

Teddy nodded, and Leyton slammed the door closed behind him.

When he turned back, Rock was out of the other Escalade, the back hatch open, and Leo and Cowboy were coming out of the house. Apparently following whatever protocol they’d set up for this, they were carrying bags and computers, shoving them into the back, then running back into the house. Leyton took one last look at Derrick lying dead on the front porch, and he again fought the urge to yell, to hit something.

The next thing he knew, Rock was forcing Leyton into the Escalade, Leo and Cowboy running back into the house. When they returned, Cowboy was carrying two more bags, Leo hefting what looked like a small safe.

They left once more. This time, they lifted Derrick’s lifeless body, moving it farther out away from the house. That was when Leyton saw it. The orange glow that came from inside the house.

“It’ll burn,” Cowboy stated somberly when they hopped in the backseat. “That’s what Ashlynn wanted.”

Her house would burn to the ground with everything in it. Leyton hated to see it happen, but he understood. The Feds would have a fucking field day taking apart the house otherwise, because it was now a crime scene. They couldn’t risk them finding anything.

“You get everything?” Rock asked them.

“Everything we’ve been instructed to get, yes,” Leo confirmed.

As Rock peeled out of the driveway, Leyton stared out the window. He hated that they’d had to leave Sal’s and Derrick’s bodies there, but he hadn’t had a choice. They would retrieve the bodies, give them a proper burial, no matter what Leyton had to do in order to accomplish that. But the Feds would be brought in on this one, and they would need an alibi, so getting to Max’s was crucial.

What had started out as the best night of his life, thus far, had just ended in hell on earth.

And from there, Leyton knew it would only get worse.

Chapter Fifty

Payback would soon be forthcoming.

Jase wasn’t sure who was consoling whom at this point, but he wasn’t willing to let Ashlynn go as they sat in Max’s living room. Chaos had ensued, tempers flared hot and bright, and Jase was relieved to see that Max was in the process of determining his own brand of vengeance for what had happened.

Derrick.

God.

His brother was dead.

Fucking dead.

And Sal. He couldn’t forget Sal.

Shit.

He still couldn’t believe that Derrick was gone, but he’d seen it with his own eyes, knew it was true despite the fact it seemed like nothing more than a horrific nightmare that he was fighting to wake up from.

Ashlynn’s face pressed deeper into Jase’s neck, and he tightened his arms around her. She had stopped crying, but she was still trembling. As for him, Jase was numb. From head to toe, he didn’t feel a single thing except for the rage vibrating in his gut. The need for revenge.

“Y’all need anything?” Courtney asked when she joined them in the living room. Ever since they’d arrived, Courtney had been ensuring everyone had what they needed. All of Ashlynn’s brothers and her sister had been sequestered to the house for their safety, all except Aidan, who was still at an undisclosed location with double the security on him at Max’s order. They weren’t willing to take any chances at this point.

Jase shook his head, not bothering to look at Courtney. He appreciated the gesture, but he didn’t have enough energy to respond.

When she took a seat on the edge of the chair next to him, Jase let out a breath.

“I’d tell you how sorry I am, but it won’t mean a thing,” Courtney began, her tone carrying the sympathy she claimed she wasn’t expressing. “But I promise you this … they won’t go unpunished.”

Jase knew they wouldn’t, because Max had assured him of the same thing when they’d arrived a few hours ago. At the time, Jase hadn’t cared for the platitudes, but he’d seen the sincerity in Max’s golden eyes.

How the hell was he going to explain this to their mother? It wasn’t as though any of them had really been close, but Jase knew he would have to tell her sooner or later. He hadn’t seen her in nearly four years, hadn’t talked to her in months, but he’d sent her a birthday card every year despite her insistence that he stay as far from her as he could. Their relationship was certainly strained. Nevertheless, she’d been a little closer to Derrick. At least in recent years, it seemed.

Jase hadn’t had much interaction with Derrick for the past decade, ever since Jase had dropped out of high school. Five years older, Derrick had already been out on his own, doing his own thing. He’d gotten in with the wrong crowd, succumbed to drugs and booze, and it’d taken him a damn long time to turn his life around. At that point, he’d come to Jase, asking for his help.