Rémy felt the chill of premonition snake across his scalp. This was going to get bloody very quickly unless they could neutralize the threat. Feeling the cool stone against his back, taking in soft, even breaths, he pulled his gun free from his waist, but an iron grip clamped over his wrist. Startled, he glanced into dark eyes. Masters shook his head, pushing the gun back into place.

The message was clear. Too noisy. Their gazes clashed in a mute battle of wills that Masters easily won simply by not caring what Rémy thought. Letting go, he signaled for Rémy to make a circuit around the perimeter of the house. He would go around the perimeter of the yard to make sure no one had gotten past them. Whoever was out there was in for a nasty surprise.

Neither man was in a forgiving frame of mind.

Watching his footing, Ji eased off the porch, staying in the darkest shadows along the wall framing Ikeno's property. Insects had fallen silent, leaving the slightly cool air void of sound. His heartbeat felt abnormally loud, blood rushing in his ears as his practiced gaze swept the silvery yard. Nothing moved, but the experienced operative could almost feel the intruder's presence.

A slight movement caught his attention, and he froze, eyes darting that way. Within a shadow, something moved. Something big. Moonlight glanced off something metal, flashing white.

Hands flexing to loosen the joints, Ji shifted silently on his feet, crouching low. Every muscle in his legs coiled, prepping for action. Rémy was at the corner of the house, facing the other way, his broad shoulders and head highlighted against the darkness. The intruder made a slight, calculated movement, light flashing across the gunmetal.

Ji lunged forward, throwing his full weight against the silhouetted form of the shooter, ignoring the burning in his shoulder. A soft pfft was followed by a hard grunt as Ji's shoulder dug into the intruder's ribs, throwing them both forward. They land hard in the grass, rolling heavily to a stop.

A brutal shot to the chin slammed his head back, the heel of the shooter's hand catching the soft spot in his throat. Choking, he grabbed at the man's face, fingertips tearing into delicate eye sockets. Abrupt movement warned him just in time. Shifting his weight prevented a knee jab to the groin that would have momentarily crippled him. Off balance now, the shooter shoved him sideways, slinging a leg up and out.

It would have wrapped around Ji's neck, slamming him to the ground. He was a fraction faster. Strong hands caught the shooter's ankle mid-swing. In a violent move, he tucked the writhing leg against his ribs and wrenched around. The bones inside the ankle snapped, breaking through the skin.

Flailing, both arms surged toward his face, but Ji was in full control now. Cold. Effortless. Catching one arm by the wrist, he jerked backwards, hauling the shooter off the ground before ducking under the outstretched limb. Still clamping the wrist tight, he snapped upright, the taut arm bending against his back and shoulders.

Another joint popped, the shooter screaming behind clenched jaws. Without letting go, Ji wrenched sideways, his weight keeping the shooter immobile. A sickening scream pierced the air as the socket tore free, leaving the right arm dangling uselessly when Ji dropped it. Clamping a hand around the intruder's throat, panting, he narrowed his eyes.

"Who are you."

A soft gurgle answered him, the esophagus working against his palm. Not buying it, Ji squeezed harder.

"Who are you."

"...Masters..." the hoarse croak whipped his attention up. Rémy was on the ground, black staining his shirt but his hand was lifted, pointing. Half-turning, Ji didn't have time to react. The impact sent him staggering backwards. A soft pop echoed in his ears as shattering pain rippled through his entire body. An instant later he felt like his blood had been set on fire, his eyes sizzling as enough electricity to knock down an elephant coursed through him.

***

Ginny woke to loud shouts and heavy thumping. Panic surged through her so fast she didn't pause to even think. Scrambling out from under the bed, she sprinted for the window, fumbling with the latch before shoving the panes open. The bang of the bedroom door flying open had her lunging desperately onto the sill, but a fierce grip latched onto the back of her shirt. Yanked violently back into the bedroom, she hit the floor hard enough to knock the breath from her lungs.

"Geneviève," the familiar voice washed over her skin like acid, physically painful as she whimpered, wheezing for air. Watery brown eyes regarded her with quiet disappointment, but she knew the anger lurking in the background. Darche knelt over her, tracing a fingertip across her cheek. "You haven't been eating enough."

"... Gabriel," managing it with a heavy tremor, she didn't dare move.

"So, you remember me." Predatory, his gaze didn't waver from her face. "I had begun to think you'd forgotten,"

"No! I would never!" They tumbled from her mouth, words that had been beaten into her for years, the only weapons she'd ever had against him. To placate. To submit. To surrender. "Please, Gabriel..."

"Oh no, my sweet," his tone dropped, turning frigid. "No amount of begging will save you. This time, Geneviève, you've pushed me too far."

"Please..." beginning to shake, she cried out as he fisted a hand into her cropped hair, hauling her upright. The slap wasn't unexpected, though the force of it made her knees buckle.

"It's bad enough that you ran away from me, but to find you in this squalor, in such a disgusting state, I won't be kind if you even so much as make a sound. Understand?" Her frantic nod was enough. Dragging her from the bedroom, she had to squint against the bright lights of the rest of the house, horrified at seeing the others already pulled from their beds, under guard by armed men who worked for Gabriel. It was like a bad dream, but she couldn't wake up.

Rémy was on his knees before Jean-Luc, head hanging slightly on a tilt, the heavy, thick stain of blood dark on his shirt. His eyes were closed to slits. Tony sat nearby, arms hooked around his knees, a fresh cut along his temple, given to him by an ill-tempered-looking Louis. Ikeno and Ana knelt together across the room, huddled under the menacing gaze of Jules. He was mean and had no qualms about hurting women. Among them all, Tony looked the most unaffected.

Her quick, darting glance found no sign of Ji.

Gabriel took them in with a look of disdain, his thin upper lip curled in disgust.

"Who is going to tell me why I had to come halfway across the earth to retrieve what is mine?" Stiff silence answered him, so the mafia lord turned slowly to where Ana knelt. A long, piercing gaze made her cringe. "You, you will talk to me."

"I don't know anything-!" Ikeno's silent tug on her arm went ignored as the Colombian struggled to her feet in angry protest. "I'm not involved in what's going on here!"

"Cut her finger off."

Ana's shriek of alarm was ignored as Louis moved to grab her arm, Jules pulling out a switchblade, the metal catching the light. It was done with a swift, violent move, Ana's scream echoing against the walls as her removed digit fell uselessly to the floor. A crimson river bubbled from her hand as she wailed, spilling down her arm.

"Does anyone want to allow her to keep the rest of her fingers?"

Feeling sick, oily bile clogged the back of Ginny's throat an instant before she doubled over, vomiting. Gabriel danced away to protect his shoes, glaring at her in undisguised fury.

"Stupid girl! What is wrong with you!"

"... I'm sorry..." Trembling, wiping her mouth, Ginny recoiled as he lifted his arm to backhand her.

"Stop," Ikeno wasn't looking at him, and had not moved. "I'll tell you."

"A wise choice." Darche snapped his fingers. "Well?"

"They showed up on my doorstep, seeking help. At the time, I had no idea who they were, only that they were needing help to get out of the country." Soft coffee-colored eyes flicked up. "I have modest talent at helping people with any documentation they might have misplaced. So, I agreed to help them. That is why they are here."

"And him?" A stiff finger singled out Rémy. "My former faithful lieutenant... I find him loitering here, with my property and the man that kept her from me."

"He did not know about the girl, and only shortly before you arrived did he find out about the man. This is my house, and I have no compulsion to discuss my business with anyone if I choose not to."

Darche's calculated gaze lingered over Sousa's features for a long moment until finally he shrugged.

"It may be as you say, or not. Either way, none of you will dare to cross me again." Just as he finished speaking, a deep roar echoed from somewhere in the house. Rémy scowled, dipping his chin a little tighter to his chest while Tony frowned, subtly looking around. Only Gabriel had a smug, knowing look on his face and in that instant, Ginny knew. Throwing herself at his feet with a loud cry of anguish, her mouth opened.

It was met with a stiff, brutal slap that shot stars behind her eyes, slamming her sideways to the floor. Darche's lips were pulled back, teeth bared in a wicked snarl.

"No! Not a word! You let him touch you, Geneviève! You let him, when you belong to me! Now he will suffer!"

"Gabriel, no, please-!" Turning, he kicked her savagely, the toe of his shoe digging into her abdomen as she screamed, folding over like a wet rag.

"Don't say another word! I'll make you sorry you ever put eyes on him! Stupid girl!"

Curled into an agonized ball, Ginny couldn't move as Gabriel kicked her a few more times before snapping brief orders at his men to stay with the captives. Rémy's dark eyes narrowed to slits as a whimpering Ana and a pale Ikeno were hustled away behind closed doors under Jules watchful eyes. Louis moved to where Ginny rocked in pain, looking down at her with a snort of disinterest as Gabriel strode away, descending the short set of stairs leading into what was Ikeno's computer area.

"You should never have done it," his nasal tone was vaguely irritating as Louis glanced up. "She's not worth your life, Rémy."

"I didn't do it for her."

"No? Then who? Your little Argentine fairy?" The cutting remark stung but other than a slight flex of his nostrils, Rémy didn't rise to the bait. He wasn't about to discuss Ikeno or anything else remotely personal with Louis.

"What I did was for myself. No one else."

"Gabriel is going to kill them." Shifting to face his former superior, Louis smiled. "You know he will. He'll make you watch it."

"Is that why you volunteered to come back? To make me see it?"

"I'm here because you got lazy, Rémy, and if you're not going to be Darche's second in command, I will."

"I wish you the best, Louis," Dark blue eyes shifted as Jules came from the room where Ikeno and Ana were suspiciously silent. "I hope you get everything you deserve."

Ginny cringed then went utterly still as another bellow of pain echoed throughout the house. Opening her eyes, she met Rémy's flat look as the sound cut off abruptly, leaving an unnerving silence. Jules smiled, leaning his thigh against the arm of the sofa as Louis moved to follow the way Gabriel had gone.

"Jean-Luc, watch them. I want to see how long the American lasts."

"Oui," the younger mobster moved closer to the center of the room, missing how Tony's eyes flicked toward him. "Bring me a drink from the kitchen first."

"Get the whore to do it," Louis' footsteps were hurrying toward the stairs leading down into Ikeno's colder computer rooms. Jean-Luc slanted a cold look at Ginny, gesturing with his gun.

"Something to drink. Now."

"... I can't," whispering the words, Ginny tried to uncurl herself, grimacing as white-hot pain nearly blinded her as her stomach twisted into a shaking knot. Gabriel's brutal kicks had done damage.

"Now!" He barked, striding over to kick her. Barely managing to deflect the blow, Ginny cried out through clenched teeth as another bolt of pain seized her and she twisted over, vomiting on the floor.

"Jean-Luc," Rémy's cool voice was soft-spoken, freezing the mobster an instant before he swung around. Too late. Powerful hands caught his wrists in vice grips, blue eyes glowing with electric fire as the lights flickered wildly. "You should never turn your back on your enemy."

Jean-Luc went down without a fight. Rémy dropped him with a savage, short chop to the throat that crushed his vocal cords, snapping cartilage that severed his artery. Tony took advantage of the surprise move and caught Jules in a headlock, giving a violent, precision twist that snapped his neck. The two glanced at each other, then toward the feral sounds growing louder from where Gabriel was having Ji tortured.

"The police will come with any more noise like that."

"I'll go get him," Tony breathed. "You get everyone else out of here."

"You don't know-"

"Benji and I go way back." Firm, uncompromising, Tony glared at the Frenchman. "I'll go get him. Get everyone out."

Taking the gun from Jean-Luc's limp fingers, Tony had taken a single step when a strong grip on his ankle brought him to a halt. Staring up at him from the floor, Ginny's features were twisted into a mask of feral anger and fear. Burning in her eyes was the look of a person shoved past their limits, unable and unwilling to put up with one more moment of suffering.

"I'll get him."

"Ginny," the gangster's expression said he didn't understand, but Rémy did. His voice was calm.

"Give her the gun, Tony."

"But-!"

"Give it to her."

He reluctantly put the weapon in her hands, curling her fingers around the handle before laying her finger alongside the trigger guard. A sideways glance at Rémy said he wasn't sure this was a good idea, but the Frenchman merely returned his look.

"Squeeze when you're ready to shoot and watch the slide. It'll cut your hand if you're not careful. It has a strong kick, so you'll have to re-aim to fire again." Skin crinkling at the corners of his eyes gave away Tony's misgivings. "Are you sure about this?"

"Oui." She ignored the hand he offered to help her off the ground, but when she stood, lifting her head, her expression was rigid with hate. Rémy moved toward her, watching her carefully.

"Point and shoot. Like your finger. Empty the clip," he paused at the flash of confusion on her face. "Keep shooting until no more bullets come out. Be sure they're dead before you take your eyes off them."

"... bein,"

"Bonne chance, Geneviève."

Arms shaking, fire burning through her belly, Ginny gritted her teeth as waves of painful nausea surged through her. The amplifying sound of Ji's pained yells drove her forward, her feet moving of their own accord as she embarked on a mission she never thought herself capable of. She was going to save Ji and herself by killing Gabriel Darche.

Shuffling to the basement stairs, she paused to look into the gloom, faintly illuminated blue, expecting to see someone ready to stop her. The short flight of steps was empty instead, so she eased down them, leaning heavily on the wall as a violent cramp seized her, folding her body forward as she swallowed a moan. A hot trickle ran down her inner thigh, but she didn't bother to look. A loud bellow jerked her head up as she panted, her heart nearly bursting with the need to reach Ji. To stop Gabriel from hurting him.

Staggering down the hall toward the glowing blueish-white light coming from the room ahead, she shivered as the temperature in the basement sank into her skin. Bare feet and legs prickled with cold, lifting goosebumps on her back and shoulders. The gun was heavy in her hand, her palms slick with sweat, her throat so dry it was impossible to swallow.

"Not quite so arrogant now, are you," Gabriel's oily tone halted her as it drifted from the room ahead. "I'm only getting started with you, Masters. By the time I'm done, you'll be begging me for death."

"I doubt that..." Ji's voice was hoarse from screaming and pain but still laced with defiance. "I might beg you to stop bragging, though. It's pathe-"

Ginny cringed when Ji suddenly gave a sharp howl of pain and everything went quiet. Gabriel's chuckle was malicious.

"Like I said... I'm just getting started. Henri... break another rib." Ginny forced herself to move forward as a solid fleshy thunk indicated the savage blow, but Ji didn't make a sound that she could hear. Knowing Gabriel would be displeased by that, remembering how he liked his victims to show their misery, she knew Ji's time was running out. "Henri... again."

Slipping to the doorway, Ginny peered in just as Henri swung a bloody steel mallet toward Ji's side. The impact was brutal, Ji's stiff features contorting with agony. Although his lips pulled back in a snarl of pain, he gave only a low grunt. Seeing him like that, time slowed down to a crawl, seeming to freeze as her blood turned to ice.

Entirely naked, his full body was on display, arms tied behind his back, his ankles secured to each front leg of a metal chair. One eye was swollen shut, deep purple and bleeding. A gaping cut bled from above his other eyebrow. What had been a smooth, beautifully muscled ribcage was now jagged and uneven on one side, his breath hitching with effort.

Skin dripping wet, he had multiple pairs of scorch marks across his chest and stomach, naval, and lower, indicating torture she hadn't seen yet. Then Henri moved to pick up a two-pronged wand, a cord running to the electrical circuit on the wall and she realized they were electrocuting him with the house current, and felt abruptly sick. Before she could really take a breath, Henri swung the mallet, hammering another savage blow against Ji's exposed ribcage.

Jaw clenched, teeth bared in a snarl, Ji made a suffocating, gargling noise. Gabriel lifted his hand and Henri paused. Ji had gone white in the ghostly light from the panels of computer screens behind him, his eyes rolling back as he nearly passed out. The vibrant coils of the snake tattoo glowed, shifting and rolling with his muscles, giving life to the artwork.

"Not so fast," Gabriel signaled to Jules, who picked up a full glass of ice water and threw it in Ji's face. "I'm not done hurting you yet."

Droplets cascaded down his skin, his muscles twitched uncontrollably in pain. Panting raggedly, Ji barely retained consciousness, a hard turquoise eye flicking uninterestedly to Gabriel.

"Still defiant," tone neutral, Darche circled the chair where Ji was slumped, motionless. "That's impressive, Mr Masters. Most others would have broken by now. You must possess a natural talent for enduring pain."

Although he heard and could have burned energy responding, Ji chose not to. Truthfully, his body was at its limit. Searing pain radiated between his temples, making his eyeballs throb, his broken ribs cutting off his ability to breathe. Some of the jagged ends had punched through his skin. Every muscle was tingling, and the extremities of his hands and feet were numb. His heart would give out if he endured much more.

The only thing keeping him conscious was Ginny. If he died, she would be in Darche's clutches and that was unacceptable. Which meant whatever he was going to do needed to be done. Now. The problem was a feather was enough to knock him over in his current condition.

He needed a break. Time to recoup, but it was time he didn't have.