A Duet of the Soul

Chapter 42: The Next Step

*Justin's POV*

It didn't take long for Sean and Ryan to fill us in on what happened after I left to pick up Greg and Monica. I gritted my teeth as I listened to how this man broke into my home and went after my woman. My fists balled against my side; I couldn't wait to get my hands on him.

"That mother fucker's going to regret every choice he's ever made when I get through with him," I grumbled as I marched past my brothers towards the basement stairs.

"Hold your horses, we ain't done talking just yet," Sean grabbed my arm to stop me from stomping down to the basement and finishing him off.

Ryan glanced up the stairs before adding his two cents. "Besides, you wouldn't want your sweet, innocent lady to see you covered in that guy's blood now, would ya?"

I glared at my brothers, fighting every urge in me that wanted to beat the shit out of both of them for stopping me from finishing this bastard off. "Fine," I growled, "but when it's time, I'm the one who's going to shoot the son of a bitch."

"Alright, alright, let's get back on focus," Greg jumped in. "What'd he say about Adam?"

We all turned to look at Sean for an explanation. He cocked his head, gesturing us to follow him back into the kitchen. Once we were sure that Maria and Monica couldn't hear us from upstairs, Sean turned back to us and listed off the information he had gathered.

"First, Adam did in fact set him up to come after Maria. Originally, he was supposed to make sure you were subdued then go after Maria, but when he saw you leave without her, he thought this would be a good chance to make his move. He climbed through one of the thin basement windows to make sure he could shut the power off, then once it was off he shimmied back out the window and ran to the back door, which you know what happened after that.

"Second, he's a hired hitman, so it's not like there's anyone else whose life is in the balance based off of if he was successful in his mission."

"Pretty shitty hitman," Ryan scoffed.

Sean nodded in agreement. "This is only the second time he's been hired. Guy doesn't have his technique figured out and it's gonna cost him."

"Anything else?" I asked through clenched teeth.

"Yeah, once he finished his task he was supposed to call Adam and put it on speaker phone so Adam could hear your cries after Maria was dead. I'm thinking we could likely pinpoint where exactly Adam was located if we used this guy's phone to make the call and go after him tonight before he expects us to retaliate."

We thought in silence about this possibility. It did seem like a good opportunity to seize, and Adam likely wouldn't expect it. If we could take him by surprise tonight, then our mission would be over. We would be done worrying about our safety, and no one else would be killed by the Culture Killer. I slowly nodded my head. "I think that's the best option. Greg can stay here with the ladies while we go after him."

A look of relief appeared on Greg's face, and I knew that was the right call. Although he wanted his family safe, I shouldn't have to drag him into harm's way to do so. He'd be better off staying here to fight for them in case something in our plan backfired.

"Alright, you need to go let your lady know what the plan is," Ryan insisted. "Sean and I will take care of this guy. We'll save Adam for you, alright?"

I heaved a frustrated sigh but agreed to their decision. Greg followed me upstairs to the bedrooms. At the top of the stairs, he grabbed my elbow and pulled me to a stop. "Seriously, Justin, you need to be hella careful, alright? Don't make any rash judgements and don't get yourself killed. You got a lady here who needs you to come back to her. Don't let her down by trying to be some macho hero, got it?"