Chapter 66 Blood Demands Blood
The next few days at the cabin felt different.
Elena and Pierce moved around each other with a new ease, the tension that had been with them was replaced by something solid and real. Pierce made coffee the way she liked it, Elena reminding him to change the bandage on his arm from the warehouse fight, both of them existing in the same space without the weight of unspoken conflict.
Derek's recovery was nearly complete. He'd graduated from limping to walking normally, the gunshot wound healing well under Elena's care. He spent his mornings doing physical therapy exercises while Pierce worked on his laptop and Elena reviewed company reports.
It was almost almost peaceful.
Elena was in the kitchen making lunch when Pierce's phone rang.
She saw his expression change immediately when he looked at the screen, It was Marcus.
"Give me a minute," Pierce said, stepping into the office and closing the door.
Elena continued chopping vegetables, but her attention was on the closed door. Something in Pierce's tone had been off.
Five minutes later, the office door opened. Pierce stood in the doorway, his face ashen.
"What happened?" Elena asked immediately.
Pierce's jaw was tight. "Marcus, get over here, Now. We need to talk in person."
He hung up and looked at Elena. "Rodrigo attacked one of our operations last night."
Elena's stomach dropped. "What?"
"The warehouse on Fifth Street. He burned it to the ground." Pierce's voice was controlled but Elena heard the rage under it. "Three of my men were inside."
"Are they..."
"They're all dead." The word came out flat. "All three."
Elena set down the knife, her hands suddenly unsteady. "Pierce..."
"It's retaliation for Xander." Pierce moved to the window, staring out at nothing. "Rodrigo's sending a message."
Derek appeared in the doorway, his expression grim. "I just got Marcus's text. How bad?"
"Three confirmed dead. Tommy, Vic, and Diego." Pierce's hands curled into fists. "The warehouse is completely destroyed."
Elena watched Pierce's face, seeing something she hadn't witnessed before.
"I'm sorry," she said quietly.
Pierce didn't respond. He Just stood at the window, his shoulders stiff with tension.
Thirty minutes later, Marcus arrived. He walked in carrying a laptop and a file folder, his expression dark.
"Boss, I'm sorry. We didn't see it coming." Marcus set up at the dining table. "Rodrigo moved fast. He hit the warehouse at 2 AM when security was low."
"How did he know the location?" Pierce's voice was ice.
"It was through xander." Marcus pulled up surveillance footage on his laptop. "Before we grabbed him, he must've passed along our safe house locations. Rodrigo's been sitting on the intel, waiting for the right moment to use it."
Pierce swore viciously. "What else did Xander give him?"
"I'm working on it. But we have to assume he knows about at least three more locations." Marcus looked at Derek. "Including this one eventually."
Elena felt cold wash over her. "He knows we're here?"
"I don't think so. This location is new, I don't think Xander knew about it." Marcus pulled up more files. "But we can't stay much longer."
Pierce moved to the table, studying the laptop screen. Elena joined him, looking at the surveillance footage of the burned warehouse. The destruction was a lot.
"What do you about the men," Pierce said quietly. "Their families?"
"Tommy has a wife and two kids, vic has a mother and santos was single, but he has a sister in California." Marcus's voice was somber. "I've already started the arrangements. Full compensation packages, covered expenses."
Pierce nodded, something breaking in his expression. "I want to speak to them personally. Tommy's wife especially."
"I'll set it up."
Elena watched Pierce, seeing the grief he was carrying beneath the controlled exterior. Three men dead with three families destroyed. All because of his war with Rodrigo.
"We need to hit back," Pierce said finally. "Where is Rodrigo operating from now?"
Marcus pulled up a map on the laptop. "We've narrowed it down to a man base he has on the south side. It's heavily protected. It has security at every entrance."
"How many men are they?" Pierce voice was sharp.
"It's about fifteen to twenty armed, trained and loyal men." Marcus zoomed in on the building. "It's a former factory with three stories and multiple exit points."
Pierce studied the map, his mind clearly working through scenarios. "What about intel from Xander's phone?"
"We've got some, like the supply routes, contact names, financial accounts." Marcus pulled up another file. "But nothing on his day-to-day movements. Rodrigo's smart, so he keeps changing locations."
"Except this base." Pierce tapped the screen. "This is operational and active."
"Yeah. But hitting it will be a full assault, boss." Marcus said. "We're talking serious firepower."
"How many men do we have?" Pierce asked.
"For something like this? We can pull together twenty, maybe twenty-five if we call in everyone." Marcus looked skeptical. "But we'd be going in matched or outnumbered."
"Then we don't go in matched." Pierce's voice was cold. "We go in smart, it create advantages."
Elena found herself leaning over the map, studying the building layout. Her medical mind automatically analyzing the structure, seeing patterns.
"What about access points?" she asked.
Both Pierce and Marcus looked at her.
"The building," Elena pointed to the map. "It's a factory, right? That means it has ventilation systems, service entrances, loading docks. Places security might be lighter."
Marcus pulled up building schematics. "She's right. There's a service entrance on the east side. It looks like it's used for deliveries."
"It would be less protected than main entrances," Pierce said, his eyes sharpening. "We could use that."
Elena continued studying the layout. "Since it's a three stories, that means stairwells, meaning there's chokepoints where you could control movement."
Pierce looked at her, something shifting in his expression. "You're thinking tactically."
"I'm thinking about reducing casualties." Elena met his eyes. "Especially yours."
Marcus and Derek exchanged glances.
For the next hour, they planned. Pierce and Marcus working through tactical details while Elena contributed where she could, making suggestions about medical supplies they'd need, pointing out possible vulnerabilities, asking questions that made them think differently about the approach.
Derek watched with barely concealed amusement. "Never thought I'd see the day the boss planned an assault with his girlfriend's assistance."
"She's got good instincts," Pierce said, not looking up from the map.
"She's a doctor, not a soldier," Marcus said, but his tone was thoughtful rather than dismissive.
"You know doctors understand anatomy, weak points, how systems work." Pierce's hand found Elena's briefly. "It's a different perspective."
They worked through scenarios until the sun started setting. Finally, Pierce sat back.
"We move Friday night, that gives us two days from now." His voice was firm. "We hit the south side operation. Marcus, pull together everyone we can trust. Derek, you coordinate communications from here, your leg isn't ready for field work."
"Boss...."
"That's not up for discussion." Pierce said, cutting him off.
Marcus started packing up his laptop. "I'll coordinate with the team. It will be Friday, 10 PM."
"Elena." Pierce turned to her. "I want full your full communication abilities here and the medical supplies ready."
"I'll handle it," Elena said.
After Marcus left, Pierce stood at the window, staring out at the darkening forest.
Elena moved beside him, sliding her hand into his.
"You're thinking about them," she said quietly.
"They trusted me." Pierce's voice was rough. "And now they're dead."
Elena squeezed his hand. "Then let's make sure friday counts."
Pierce looked down at their joined hands, then pulled her close.