Total pages in book: 38
Estimated words: 33577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 33577 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 168(@200wpm)___ 134(@250wpm)___ 112(@300wpm)
I found Ghost as he entered the room, his gaze automatically searching for me. He yelled out orders for the men to get on me, to have my six. A flash of irritation surged through me. I could take care of myself. I was more concerned about the women. Honey, in particular.
Ghost made it to my side, directing the others as he came. I was already charging through the crowd, fighting my way to the last place I saw Honey and Wren.
I shoved through bodies, sending people flying as I carved a path toward Honey. The first Copperhead who stepped in my way caught my fist square in his throat. He dropped like a stone, gasping and clutching his crushed windpipe. I didn't slow down.
"Get the women to the back!" I roared as chaos continued around me. The music cut abruptly, replaced by shouts, screams, and the unmistakable sound of flesh meeting flesh.
A flash of copper caught my eye. Snake, the Copperhead's sergeant-at-arms, grinned through his filthy beard as he swung a pool cue at me like a baseball bat. I ducked under it, feeling the whoosh of air above my head, then drove upward with my elbow, connecting with his jaw. Bone cracked beneath the impact. I followed with a right hook that sent him sprawling across a table.
"Jack!" Ghost shouted, tossing me a length of chain he'd ripped from somewhere. I caught it one-handed, wrapping it around my fist as I continued pushing forward.
Three more Copperheads converged on me. I welcomed them with a savage roar. The first one caught my chain-wrapped fist in his teeth, spitting blood and several teeth as he crumpled. The second lunged with a knife that glinted under the harsh lights. I pivoted, catching his wrist and twisting until the bones snapped. His scream was cut short when I drove my knee into his solar plexus, folding him in half.
The third was smarter, circling me with caution. "You're dead, Mason," he spat, copper rings flashing on his fingers as he clenched his fists. "Shipment's ours now. We’re takin’ over."
"You ain't takin' shit," I growled, letting the chain unwind slightly to give it more reach. I swung it in a vicious arc, catching him across the face. The metal links tore open his cheek, blood spraying across the floor.
I caught movement in my peripheral vision. Honey faced a copperhead with a skull tattoo covering half his face. She backed against the wall, shaking her head as the guy advanced on her.
I spotted Wren moving toward Honey, but a Copperhead intercepted her, shoving Wren hard against the pool table. I covered the distance in three long strides, catching the first Copperhead by his jacket and spinning him around. His eyes widened when he recognized me. "Bloody Ja—"
My fist connected with his jaw before he could finish, bone giving way under my knuckles with a satisfying crunch. I didn't watch him fall, already pivoting toward the next threat.
The Copperhead coming at me with a broken bottle went down with my knee to his gut. I slammed my elbow to the back of his neck when he doubled over. An instant later, another guy came at me, this one with brass knuckles.
I dodged his first swing, then trapped his arm, dislocating his shoulder with a sharp twist. Blood sprayed across my face when I headbutted the next attacker. The warm splatter felt familiar, almost comforting. This was a language I spoke fluently.
Through the melee, I kept Honey and Wren in my periphery. Honey hadn't run, instead pressing herself harder against the wall, her chest heaving. The second her gaze clashed with mine, Honey gave me a wide eyed look of terror, begging me to save her. Freed, Wren stomped on her now downed attacker’s balls. The guy grunted and tried to cover his crotch only to have Wren stomp down on him again, this time the guy rolled over, trying to get to his feet, but Wren stomped on his hand, which he’d braced on the floor when he tried to get up. The crunch was audible.
My priority was to protect Wren since she was my VP’s ward, but I was torn. Wren had things well in hand, had already yanked a knife from her attacker’s belt and stabbed him three times in quick succession in the side of the neck before dancing away as the guy tried to strike out with his good hand. Ghost fought his way to Wren and the second he was within striking distance, I turned my focus completely on Honey.
"Fuck!" I barreled through the melee, my battle roar drawing Copperheads in the immediate vicinity except the man who had Honey cornered. As I fought my way to her, I watched the Copperhead reach for Honey, his tattooed fingers nearly grazing her face. The look of terror in her eyes lit something primal in me, a rage that surged through my veins like liquid fire.