Hard Bounty (The Snake Eyes Series Book 5) Read online

  It was stolen.

  Fox Fitzpatrick. A sniper from my big brother’s squad. I met him a few times. Quiet, handsome in that boy-next-door kind of way, but he didn’t belong. Dante couldn’t see that, though. He and Fox were friends, or as close to friends as you can get to someone you occasionally travel the world and kill people with. Drinking buddies, mostly.

  When he disappeared nine months ago on a mission, something didn’t feel right. They found traces of his blood in a warehouse in Rome and everyone assumed the Russian mobster he was sent to kill got to him first.

  A squad of Snake Eyes agents was wiped out in Russia shortly after, sending up red flags throughout the entire organization. Dante’s squad tracked down their cargo plane in the woods outside of Moscow. The vocal recorder in the cockpit had been destroyed but our tech team managed to retrieve three seconds of audio.

  “We thought you were dead.”

  “I am.”

  It was Fox. Two little words gave him away.

  The Lutrova crime family started picking off agents one-by-one after that. They weren’t quiet about it, either. They wanted us to know who they were, what they were doing, and why. No agent was safe.

  That’s when we discovered the data leak. When Fox took off, he didn’t go empty-handed. He took the master file with him and he traded it to the Russians to save his own skin.

  A traitor and a coward. Just like I always suspected.

  Afterward, Dante was sent to Chicago to infiltrate the notorious Zappia crime family. The Lutrovas and the Zappias have a rich history and it was possible the Russians passed their Snake Eyes knowledge on to the Italians. The rest of us got to work. The entire organization united under one common goal: Find and kill Fox Fitzpatrick. We have a special term for when a rogue agent needs to be put down.

  It’s called a Code Black.

  Months went by and the Boss got impatient. She put more pressure on the leader of Dante’s squad, Mercer, to fix the problem he started when he recruited Fox in the first place.

  Mercer and his squad headed to Los Angeles where Fox grew up to go after his family and lure him out of hiding. It worked but, in the end, Fox’s famous stepsister ended up in the hospital and Fox disappeared again, leaving little trace behind.

  If I were a betting woman, I’d wager that they found Fox but they didn’t live to speak of it. Mercer was taken down by the killer he created. It’s almost poetic.

  I think about how easy it could have been for Dante to be there and it makes me sick. They may have been drinking buddies once, but I’ve no doubt in my mind that Fox would have put a bullet in my brother’s brain without a second thought.

  Elijah pushes open the back door and holds it for me. We step into the house and ancient memories flash in my head the moment I inhale a breath. Sitting at the dinner table with my brothers and our grandparents. Sprawled out on the couch watching cartoons on one of the four channels we got out here. Sprinting down the dock to cannonball into the lake. A happy childhood to anyone on the outside looking in, but it wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, I’ll tell you that much.

  “Hey, guys. You hungry?”

  I smile at the girl standing in front of the stove. Brown-haired, green-eyed Lucy Vaughn. My big brother’s girlfriend and honorary Hart — until Dante makes it official. And he will if he knows what’s good for him.

  Lucy grabs a package of bacon from the fridge and sets it down to pick at an itch beneath the bandage on her wrist.

  Elijah points a firm finger at her. “Stop doing that.”

  Her hands quickly rise in surrender. “Sorry… it just tickles.”

  “If you didn’t want to deal with itchy bandages then you shouldn’t have dislocated your own thumb.”

  Lucy opens her mouth to argue but thinks twice. “Okay, you have a point.”

  I set my mug down on the cabinet next to the coffee pot. “Don’t scold her for being a badass,” I spit at Elijah. “I would have done the same if Dante pulled that crap with me.”

  He glares. “As a medical professional, I have an obligation to urge members of my family to stop hurting themselves.”

  “And as a woman that used to be outnumbered by her brothers, I have an obligation to stick up for the new girl.” I smile at Lucy beside me. “You go, Lucy. Girl power. Fight the man.”

  She beams back at me. “Thank you, Lilah.”

  Elijah sighs. “Fine. Do what you want. Just don’t expect me to stitch you up every time.”

  I scoff. “Yes, you will.”

  “You’re right. Damn this familial love thing.”

  “And to answer your question, Lucy,” I say, “yes, I’m starving.”

  “Good,” she says. “Bacon and scrambled eggs are coming soon.”

  “You…” I point at her as I pour myself a fresh cup of coffee. “I like you.”

  “The way to the Harts is through their stomachs,” she chuckles.

  I grin back at her. I never had a sister — and never really wanted one, either — but I adore Lucy Vaughn. Elijah is right. She couldn’t have come into our lives at a better time. After two decades of taking care of us, Dante’s finally found someone worthy enough to take care of him. It makes the idea of us separating again much easier to swallow.

  Elijah points over his shoulder. “I’ll go grab my medkit,” he says, casting a quick glare at Lucy’s now imperfect bandage. “Don’t fiddle with it anymore until I get back.”

  She winks at him. “Okay, Elijah.”

  He walks off, slightly stomping as he makes his way up the creaky stairs to the second floor.

  We wait until he’s out of earshot before laughing.

  “He really takes his work seriously, doesn’t he?” she asks me.

  “Oh, that’s nothing,” I say, waving a hand. “You should see him if you accidentally rip out your stitches.”

  She flinches. “Ouch. You’ve done that?”

  I nod as I sip my coffee. “It was an unfortunate career hazard… but I guess those days are over with.”

  Lucy cracks a few eggs into a mixing bowl. “What are you guys going to do now?”

  I’ve spent my entire adult life as an assassin for Snake Eyes. Daily life was a mystery. Any mission could have been my last. I never thought I’d live to even get the chance to experience a seemingly normal life. I’m not even sure I ever wanted to.

  I shake my head. “I have no idea.”

  ***

  “Does that hurt?”

  Lucy doesn’t flinch as Elijah presses into her purple wrist. “No,” she answers.

  “Not even here?”

  She winces. “Okay — yeah — that’s a little tender.”

  I pour the rest of my coffee down my throat and my tongue twitches for another cup. “Jeez, Eli. Give her a safe word or something.”

  Lucy laughs. “It’s not as bad as yesterday.”

  “Good,” he says, snatching a fresh wrap from his medkit. “I’ll give you this, Lucy Vaughn. You heal fast.”

  “Ballet has beaten me up since I was a kid,” she says, keeping her smile. “I imagine that’ll come in handy hanging out with you guys.”

  “Oh, yeah,” I say. As I stand to move towards the coffee maker, I hear the soft thud of feet coming down the stairs.

  “Hopefully not as much as before, but…” Elijah nods. “Yeah.”

  Dante emerges from the stairwell and I smile at him. It’s odd how much some things never change. It’s been years since I’ve watched him bound down those stairs but the result looks exactly the same. His dark hair sits sloppily to one side. His sleepy eyes shy away from the corner window facing the sunrise. Wrinkled clothes and puffy cheeks.

  “Good morning!” Elijah says, keeping his focus on Lucy’s wrist.

  “Hey, big brother,” I add, fighting my own yawn as I sit down in front of my laptop to finish booking our hotel rooms.

  Lucy tilts her head upward and smiles at Dante. “Hi.”

  One little word and my brother melts. Even my heart w
arms a little as I watch him lean over to kiss her forehead. A tough brute like him brought down by a damn ballet dancer. It’s actually kind of sweet.

  Dante takes the seat next to Lucy and gestures towards our bags stacked up near the front door. “Going somewhere?” he asks.

  “We have a little business to tend to,” Elijah says, finishing the wrap on Lucy’s wrist.

  Dante flashes a suspicious eye. “What kind of business?”

  I swallow a healthy sip from my mug. “Nothing to worry your pretty, little head about—”

  “Lilah—”

  “Seriously. It’s nothing,” I laugh as I close my laptop. “More than anything, we just want to give the two of you some privacy.”

  Lucy shakes her head. “You don’t have to do that. This is your house more than it is mine.”

  “We disagree,” Elijah says.

  “And…” I shrug. “We need to take a little time for ourselves. Snake Eyes was a part of us for so long. Living off-mission feels… strange.”

  Dante nods. “I know what you mean.”

  “Maybe it is time to start over,” I think aloud. “Build a new life somewhere.”

  Dante reaches for Lucy and lays a thick hand on her shoulder. “Maybe it is.”

  A new life. I have no idea where to even start.

  Elijah reaches into his bag and pulls out a cellular phone. “We set up a secure line for all of us to keep in touch,” he says, sliding it across the table at Dante. “Just in case.”

  “Exactly what everyone needs when easing into civilian life,” Dante jokes.

  “It’s an interesting transition.”

  Dante scoops the phone off the table and pauses with that I’m about to give you orders look in his eyes. He’s always been responsible for us, ever since we were children. When I beat up a kid on the playground at school, it was always Dante who sweet-talked him out of telling on me. When Elijah and I went on missions alone, it was always Dante who stuffed an extra clip of ammo into our side packs while we weren’t looking. I think I might miss it.

  “We’ll be careful,” I smile.

  “I know,” he says.

  I stand up from the table and move closer to him to wrap my arms around him. He returns the embrace, wincing at my strong squeeze.

  “Take care of each other,” he says.

  I pull back and look between him and Lucy. “Ditto.”

  Elijah slides in. “Please stop letting Lucy hurt herself…” he scolds him with a smile. “My medkit is only so big.”

  “I would if I could,” Dante says, staring daggers at Lucy’s devious face.

  She laughs and shrugs her little shoulders. “I’ll try and behave.”

  “Liar,” he says.

  I offer Lucy a hug and I lean close to whisper in her ear. “Give him hell, girlfriend.”

  “Oh, I will.”

  We chuckle and I move away to allow Elijah to give her wrist a final perfectionist tweak before heading for the door.

  I stand for a moment in the living room, glancing around at the house I grew up in. Coming and going from this place has always been bittersweet. I feel the need to stand and memorize every detail because any time could be the last time I see it. Sure, things are different now. Snake Eyes is gone, for all we know. We’ve barely heard anything from them since February. There are no more missions. No more bullets to be dodged or stitches to tear loose. There’s just life.

  I’ve never felt so unsure. So utterly directionless.

  Elijah nudges my arm on the porch. “Ready?”

  I exhale the breath I’m holding and reach into my bag for the keys to my bike. “As I’ll ever be.”

  A cool wind eases through the trees around us, combating the early summer warmth lingering in the air. My spine tingles, but after taking several steps towards my motorcycle in the driveway, I realize that it’s not the weather giving me goosebumps.

  I spin around and scan the woods for watching eyes.

  We’re not alone here.

  “Lilah?” Elijah glances at me from his bike. “You forget something?”

  I shake my head, taking my time looking from one tree to the next but I see nothing out of the ordinary no matter how many times I check.

  Finally, I give up. We’re five miles from any semblance of civilization. Maybe I need a vacation more than I thought I did.

  “No,” I answer, securing my duffel bag to my bike. “I’m good.”

  I pull my helmet on and turn the keys in the ignition, feeling my bike purr with life beneath me.

  Chapter 3

  Archer

  Well, that was close.

  It’s a good thing my reflexes are still good as ever or else I’d probably be pinned beneath Lilah’s boot right now.

  I keep still behind the tree, pressed hard against the bark with my breath drawn in tight, listening to the rumble of their bikes as they roll down the long driveway.

  I found them. All three Harts, but the twins look as if they’ll be gone for a long while. There’s no time to celebrate just yet. This house wasn’t exactly easy to find and I have no way of tracking them, wherever the hell they’re going.

  I wait until their bikes disappear into the distance before grabbing my bag.

  The front door bursts open and I freeze again as Dante walks out onto the porch with his phone pressed against his ear.

  Shit. I don’t have time for this. If I don’t run now, Lilah will slip away again and I’ll be back to square one.

  “Fox Fitzpatrick.”

  I pause as my curiosity peaks. It’s not every day one gets to eavesdrop on a conversation between two deadly fugitives.

  “How did you get this number?” Dante asks, scanning the tree line around the driveway. I drop back. “So I heard. What do you want?”

  An echoing engine roars in the distance, reminding me of my real objective as Dante continues to bicker on. Part of me doesn’t want to hear this at all. It’s Snake Eyes business and I’ve already witnessed my fair share of that before.

  Dante chuckles, looking angry. “And here I thought you called to threaten me.”

  I look to him again, hoping that he doesn’t suddenly come pacing in my direction.

  “Cut the crap, Fox,” he says. “I haven’t done shit to you but what you did brought a great deal of pain on me and my family and that’s not something I’m prepared to forgive. Actions have consequences.”

  My phone chimes in my pocket and I rush to silence the alert tone. Thankfully, Dante’s running so high on adrenaline he doesn’t hear it.

  I relax into the tree and smirk as I read the message.

  One new charge on their grandmother’s card. Two rooms booked this morning at the Botsford Plaza Hotel in St. Louis. The twins are headed south.

  Gotcha.

  Finally, a young woman appears on the porch to beckon Dante back inside. Brunette, athletic. Very cute. Not bad at all, mate. Not bad at all.

  He joins her on the porch and whisks her up into his arms to carry her inside.

  I seize the opportunity and sprint through the woods towards the highway.

  See you soon, Lilah.

  Chapter 4

  Lilah

  “Lily? Eli? Is that you?”

  There are few things in this world that make me feel better than my grandmother’s smile.

  “Yeah, Grams,” I say, stepping into her room. “It’s us.”

  She throws her book to the floor and pops up out of her chair by the window, grinning wildly as she crosses the room towards us. “My god.” She reaches me and cups my face. “What happened to my babies?”

  I hug her, being extra careful not to squeeze too hard, but I can’t help it. This woman raised me. “You look amazing, too, Grams.”

  She releases me and slides over to Elijah. “And who’s this handsome creature buried beneath the bangs of a 90’s sitcom character?”

  I laugh and he rolls his eyes.

  “Fine,” he sighs. “I’ll get a haircut.”

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p; “That’s my good boy.” She turns back around to her chair. “And where is Dante?”

  Elijah and I pull two chairs free from the small table in the corner.

  “He’s traveling,” I answer, keeping it vague.

  Our grandparents aren’t aware of our activity in the most dangerous criminal organization in the world — and they never will — but we still have to account for all the traveling we do. Volunteer work for me. Doctors Without Borders for Elijah. International trade deals for Dante.

  “Still?” She shakes her head. “Boy needs to settle down.”

  “He’s traveling with his girlfriend,” Elijah adds. “So, he just might be doing that very soon.”

  Her eyes grow wide. “Really?”

  I nod. “She’s nice. You’d like her.”

  “What’s her name?”

  “Lucy.”

  “Lucy, Lucy,” she repeats. “I like that. What does this Lucy do?”

  “She’s a dancer.”

  Her smile twitches. “Exotic?”

  “Ballet,” I chuckle.

  “Oh, that’s okay, then.”

  Elijah clears his throat. “Where’s Gramps?”

  “Oh, he’s out back playing golf with the guys,” she answers. “But I’m sure he’ll ditch them if he knows you’re here.”

  “I’ll go surprise him,” he says, standing up.

  “Don’t give the man a heart attack, now. He owes me a back rub.”

  “I won’t,” Elijah laughs on his way out.

  Grams looks at me with a serious expression lining her wrinkled face. “Now, what’s with the bruise?”

  I sit back, wondering for a second what she means, and then I recall the purple shiner above my right eye. Cuts and bruises are such a common thing for me that I don’t even think twice about them anymore.

  “Oh…” I brush my hair away to poke at it. “This was nothing. Just a stray punch in my self-defense class.”

  “You’re taking self-defense classes?”

  “No, I teach one.”