Chapter 76
stay M
-Interlude
-Talon
I never liked the docks, Too many ghosts down here. Men I’d known, men I’d fought, men I’d buried all of them left a mark on this place.
Salt in the air, rust on the steel, and that old stink of diesel that never quite washed off. But this afternoon, the ghosts were restless. You could feel it in the wind.
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I tugged the hood of my sweatshirt down further over my face as we moved silently through the shadows. River was on my left, his posture low and alert, while Link and Dex flanked me.
We’d left the bikes a mile back, tucked away in an old storage yard to avoid drawing attention. Too risky, letting the rumble of engines echo over the water.
Everything about this place felt off today. Too still. No ships coming in or out. Even the air felt hollow.
We moved in silence, slipping between old warehouses and rusty shipping containers. The usual hum of activity was absent
no clatter of tools, no fog horns, no voices. Just the creak of metal and the occasional cry of a gull.
It was fucking eerie. Like the docks had been abandoned overnight.
“Something’s wrong,” Dex muttered quietly. I glanced over my shoulder at him and nodded, my hand closing on the handle of the knife at my belt. “Keep your hoods up. Heads down.”
We checked the first warehouse, slipping through a gap in the corrugated steel. Inside, there was nothing but shadows. No signs of life, no crates, no tools left behind.
Link kicked over an empty cardboard box. “What the fuck is going on?”
Wish I knew,
“Keep moving,” I said, my voice low. “Stay sharp.”
The next eleven buildings were the same. Vacant and silent. Dex tested the door of the office shack, and it swung open with a rusty groan. Dust floated in the air, but there was no one inside.
River crouched by the edge of the pier, scanning the water. “No ships. No crews. This feels like the start of a wicked horror movie.”
He was right. The docks were never empty knew exactly who.
–
not even on Sundays. Someone had cleared the place out, and I had a feeling I
“Let’s check the marina,” I said, gesturing toward the end of the wharf. “If Benny’s not here, maybe he’s over there.”
We kept our heads down and moved as one. The marina was just as deserted. No fishermen, no signs of life, Just waves lapping against the pilings.
As we reached the edge of the property
Then I saw him. Benny.
That old bastard was still here, still holding post like some grizzled sentinel of the river. I motioned for the guys to hang. back and approached him alone, my boots crunching on the gravel.
20:46 Sat, Jan 3
Chapter 76
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Benny was leaning against a post, staring out at the water. Like hd done for as long as I could remember. But something looked off about him, too. The wind tugged at his jacket, but he wasn’t moving.
My gut twisted as I got closer. His hat was tilted low, casting a shallow over his face. But I could see his eyes. Open. Fixed. Like he was lost in thought. But he wasn’t lost in thought.
Benny was dead.
I reached him, and my hand hovered over his shoulder like I could wake him up with a shake. But I didn’t need to touch
him to know.
My eyes landed on his forehead, and my stomach churned. A single bullet hole, clean and precise, right between his eyes. The blood looked fresh… he couldn’t’ve been dead more than a few hours,
“Oh, Benny,” I muttered.
My jaw clenched as I stepped back, scanning the area again. No sign of whoever did this. Whoever left him here like some kind of message.
I say ‘whoever,’ but I knew it was the Russians.
When I turned back to him, I saw it. A Russian coin, balanced perfectly on the brim of his hat. Like a goddamn calling card.
I grabbed it. It was cold in my hand. This was a warning. A declaration.
I knew Benny hadn’t told them anything. He wouldn’t.
If he had, we’d all probably look like him by now.
I turned, nodding to the boys to bring them closer. I held up the coin so they could see it
and Dex cursed under his breath.
We stood there for a minute as the weight of it settled over us. Benny had been a fixture here for decades drunk who knew more about the wharf than any other soul alive. I loved him like an uncle
–
a grumpy old
And now he was gone. Left as a grim reminder of what we were up against.
“Let’s get him down,” I said finally, pocketing the coin and nodding to Link. “He’d hate standing for so long. We’ll give him a proper send–off.”
River and Dex moved to help, untying the ropes that held Benny in place. We laid him down next to a stack of crates and closed his eyes. We’d bring the van back to get him out of here.
As we headed back the way we came, Dex paused, his hand going up in a silent signal.
Up ahead, a figure stepped out from behind one of the warehouses. Tall, broad–shouldered, wearing all black.
I motioned for the others to stay back, slipping my hood lower over my face as I stepped forward. The figure turned toward me, and for a second, we just stared at each other. Then he spoke.
“You’re not supposed to be here. Leave now.” His accent was thick and unmistakable. Russian.
“You the one who killed our friend?” I replied, my hand resting on the grip of my knife.
He smirked. “The old man saw too much.”
Before I could respond, he lunged, blade flashing in the sunlight I sidestepped, catching his wrist and twisting hard.
He grunted, dropping the knife, but he was fast. His free hand swung toward my face, and I barely dodged it, countering with a punch to his gut.
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Chapter 76
River and Link were on him, dragging him to the ground. Dex kept watch, his eyes scanning the area for more of them.
“Who sent you?” I demanded, kneeling beside him. “Anatoly?”
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He reached up, yanking the zipper on my hoodie before I could stop him and exposing the patches on my cut underneath.
“Heh… Warriors. Of course.” He bit down hard on something between his teeth. “You will find out soon enough.”
He laughed as foam started seeping out of his mouth. Then he went still and his head slumped to the side.
Dex cursed, checking his pulse. “He’s dead.”
“Poison,” River said. “He fucking poisoned himself. What the fuck are we dealing with here?”
I stood, wiping my hands on my jeans. “Let’s go.”
We disappeared into the shadows, carrying the weight of Benny’s death and the Russian’s cryptic words. Whatever was coming, it was bigger than we’d ever dealt with.
And it was closer than we thought.
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AD
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Sara Lili is a daring romance writer who turns icy landscapes into scenes of fiery passion. She loves crafting hot love stories while embracing the chill of Iceland’s breathtaking cold.
