Varys' voice haunted Max even in his waking moments. So what if he'd been childhood acquaintances
with Hope? That wasn't about to stop Max from finding her and getting her away from that madman,
that killer.
How could he live himself if he left her there?
Max glanced up as he heard the click of a shoe on his dummy tile. The office was empty except for
him, so that left only one answer; intruders.
Max slipped his hand into his desk and pulled out his gun, loading it in one smooth motion as he
nudged a button to turn on his cameras. His monitor flashed before showing him all the security
footage. Three of the visible cameras had already been taken out, but none of his hidden ones had,
yet.
The group of men were armed with a variety of things. Guns of course, but also baseball bats covered
in wire, and brass knuckles that glinted in the fake light.
He had company, and from the way they were heading, they'd be at his office soon.
It was a good thing they were going after him rather than Vincent. Better his business get wrecked than
the coffee shop. Max smirked. These men were going to get the surprise of their life for thinking they
could just waltz in and take him out so easily. These couldn't be Varys men, they were too stupid.
Max nudged open another panel and watched as the group strode down the hallway. As the men with
guns passed by the dual paintings of wispy women, Max pushed the button. Twin plumes of fire burst
out of the portraits and the men leading the group were set on fire as the blazing heat consumed them.
The others paused but a moment before pushing forward and leaving their comrades behind. Though
they moved with a lot more caution this time, and several went back for the fallen men's weapons.
Scavengers.
Max's hand flew over the remaining buttons and a trio of darts flew through the air before landing in the
stomach of the one now in charge. The man grunted before collapsing to his knees.
Just two left now.
Unfortunately, Max was out of his little traps. What he'd already sprung was going to cost the office a
year of pay, but it'd been worth it. He ducked behind his bullet-proof desk and waited. His door was
thrown open in moments and the two men barreled in.
"What the fuck?" one roared. "Where the hell is he?"
"Calm down, we know he's here because of the traps. He's probably hiding beneath the desk. No real
man would have traps like that if he was worth anything."
"I don't know," the first answered. "I heard rumors about this guy."
"Rumors are always overblown," the second sneered. "Come on, I'm going to shoot that damn desk."
Max braced himself and held still as the gun went off before the first man cursed and the second
laughed.
"Who the fuck has a bulletproof desk? What's with this guy?"
Max popped up and, taking aim, shot the man with the gun in-between his eyes in moments. The other
lifted his bat and glared at Max. "I don't know who you think you are, but this isn't over."
"Not for me, but it's over for you," Max replied as he squeezed the trigger once more. The bullet
exploded from the gun and yet another of Ethan's men went down leaving Max alone.
Still, Max didn't relax. He didn't trust that he'd got them all. The security camera feed was clean, but
he'd stayed alive this long by trusting his instincts. "You can come out now," he called.
The young man stepped out of the shadows and smirked at Max. "It's no surprise you've lived so long
and have quite the reputation. But I'm afraid your luck runs out now." He held up two fingers. "Two
minutes is all I need to be able to finish this job and get back to my employer."
Max nodded to the dead bodies of the others. "And what about these guys? Why are you hired by the
same man that hired those buffoons?"
The stranger chuckled. "You're trying to buy yourself time? No matter, those buffoons as you call them
are quite good ad their job. Their success rate up to this point was very high. Nothing compared to
mine, but credit where credit is due."
Max kept his gun trained on the other. "Say you do manage to take me out, what's your orders then?"
He has an inkling, but he had to be certain.
"I'm pretty sure you already know that, Detective."
"Please, enlighten me, Henchmen," Max returned. He didn't want to waste a shot in case things went
wrong. Something warned him against shooting just yet.
"After we have concluded our business, I have an appointment to find and detain my boss's wife. And
get the pleasure of punishing her, since I'm the only one left from this mission."
A sheen of red clouded Max's vision, and his finger reflexively squeezed the trigger.
The man dropped to the ground and his leg kicked out at Max's entangling it and throwing the other
man off balance and to the floor.
Max was no stranger to martial arts, he flipped himself over before the assassin could drive his heel
into his prone body.
"Most would have been shocked when the bullet missed me, and end there. I will give you credit for
lasting a few moments longer."
Max snorted. "I don't need your accolades." He circled the man as he glanced around his office. Was
there anything of use he could grab? He didn't want to waste time or risk this man escaping and going
after Hope. Even if Varys had her now, he doubted he had the manpower to keep her safe if Ethan got
serious. Or rather he doubted that Varys would care to use enough men to do the job.
"I told you, two minutes." The other man's hand flashed as he grabbed his own weapon, a series of
blades.
Fuck, this was going to hurt.
Still, Max wasn't about to let an opportunity to win pass. As the knife left the other man's hands, he fired
another bullet and took the blades all in his arm.
A splash of blood exploded from the younger man's body before he was thrown backward and
crumpled to the ground. Max pulled the knives out with a wince from each one. He'd have to get this
stitched up or he could risk serious damage. Fucking Ethan. He'd make the man pay for this botch of a
hit job.
AUTHOR’S NOTE:
I am doing an upspree of 10 or more chapters of Escaping the Mafia Queen today! Get ready for the
fun ride
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