Rebecca Zanetti - Sweet Revenge

The other two men stopped moving. Shit. They must’ve been using the sensor system Jory had developed years ago. On mission, their vitals were transmitted to each other. If one of them went down, the transmission alerted them.

Even so, he could hear their heartbeats, even through the damaging storm. So he angled toward the guy trying not to breathe and was on him within seconds. They landed on the wet pine needles, and the soldier caught Matt with an impressive choke hold.

Matt punched him in the eye, and the hold loosened. Death was quick and painless.

A crack sounded just before Emery ran around a tree, already firing. The first bullet impacted Matt’s arm. The second, his shoulder. He rolled to the side and behind a tree, the rain piercing his eyes.

“You shot me?” he growled out. “Pussy.”

Emery laughed, the sound grating above the rolling thunder. “I’ve always wanted to fill you with lead.”

Matt glanced down at his bleeding right arm. “Guess you can’t take me in a fair fight.” Yeah, the bullet had surprised him. He’d always figured they’d do this hand to hand, and may the best soldier win. Measuring blood loss because he refused to feel the pain, he quickly slid between two trees and angled slightly to the north, his movements silent as he circled around his enemy.

Seconds later, several shots ricocheted off the tree where he’d caught his breath. He smiled.

Emery’s muffled curse echoed beneath the rain pummeling down.

Matt hunted quietly and with determination, his senses on high alert. He heard Emery before he smelled him. With a roll of his injured arm, Matt flipped around a birch and tackled Emery in the midsection.

Emery punched out even as they flew through the air, his fist catching Matt in the throat.

Matt jerked his head up and brought his forehead down on Emery’s nose. The crack of cartilage breaking filled the air right before they crashed to the muddy trail. Matt’s right arm was weakening, so he used his left to knock the gun from Emery’s hand. The weapon spun through pine needles and landed at the base of a swaying conifer. Lightning struck a tree with a resounding clash, and branches pummeled them from high above.

The scents of ozone and blood permeated the night.

Emery bashed his knees into Matt’s hips and threw him to the right. Matt rolled to one knee and kicked Emery in the face just like Emery had done to Jory once.

Matt shoved to his feet as Emery did the same. They both stood to well over six feet and had spent years honing their bodies into fighting shape. Except for the genetic eye marker that showed their lineage, they might have been brothers. But Emery had the deep brown eyes of his family, and they weren’t brothers. Not even close.

“Why?” Matt asked, circling around, using his senses to predetermine every time Emery decided to move.

“Why do I hate you?” Emery dropped into a fighting crouch.

“Yeah.” It didn’t make sense. They’d both endured hell, and while Matt had fought their handlers, Emery had embraced them.

Emery feinted to the left and settled his stance. “You’re an asshole who never got it. Never understood how fortunate we are. To be gifted. To be enhanced. To be gods.”

Matt tested his damaged arm. Not good. “You’re a god?”

Emery spit out blood. “We’re as close as possible. Created by geniuses with superior genes? Yeah. Instead of fighting who you are, you ran.”

“I ran to get freedom and safety for my brothers.” Matt waited for the opening he knew would be coming. “Why didn’t you? I’ve never understood why you’d sacrifice your brothers if necessary.”

“We didn’t have a choice.” For the briefest of seconds, vulnerability flashed in Emery’s eyes.

“Yes, we did.” Matt shook his head, ready to strike. There had to be more to life than orders and killing, and he’d found that with his brothers. Love and loyalty had shaped them as much as military drills. Maybe more.

“No. You’ve always been headed down this path because of your self-destructive need to protect your brothers. They’re your weakness, and now it’s bringing you to heel,” Emery spat.

Sorrow for Emery’s younger brothers flowed unchecked through Matt. His family gave him strength and a purpose. “Even if I lose, I’m not alone.”

“I won’t lose.” Emery smiled.

The soldier enjoyed inflicting pain and always had. “You like the killing.”

“I have no problem being a soldier and fighting for our cause.” Emery slid his arm behind his back.

Matt lunged for him before he could grab whatever weapon was stashed. They impacted a pine tree, and needles battered them. “What cause?”

Emery shot an elbow into Matt’s gut and clamped on the bullet wounds in his arm. “Whatever the commander decides it is.”

Matt bit back a growl of pain and wrenched his arm free to leap to his feet. He tugged the unloaded weapon from his waist. “You’re crazy.”

“We’re all crazy.” Blood dripped from Emery’s teeth. He kicked out faster than Matt expected, and the gun spun through the air. “Possibly we were designed that way. I mean, you have to be nuts to fight the way we do. To survive almost anything.”

“Speaking of which, where’s my youngest brother?” Matt reared up and kicked Emery in the chest with both feet and backflipped to land easily.

Emery flew backward, turned, and dropped to a crouching position before striking for Matt’s knees. “Jory is dead. Way dead.”

Matt’s knee buckled, and he swung to the side. Pain slammed through him. “Bullshit. I already know he’s alive. What I don’t know is where he is.”

“Come back, and I’ll take you right to him.” Emery fingered a cut along his jawline. “The shooter didn’t aim as well as she should have.”

So it was true. Jory was shot by a woman. Hope tried to flare in Matt’s gut, but he couldn’t allow it. Emery was as good a liar as a soldier, and he could just be playing with Matt. “Did Dr. Madison pull the trigger? She’s a crappy shot.”

“True. But she was an incredible fuck.” Emery reached popped his shoulder back into alignment with his free hand. “Wasn’t she?”

“Dunno. I always said no.” In fact, the woman had scared the shit out of him.

Emery dropped into a fighting crouch. “You missed out. I’m not going to tell you who pulled the trigger—yet. Let’s finish this so I can go find that bitch of a doctor you have been screwing.”

Two men rushed out of the forest in full combat gear. Hell. Matt had been concentrating so hard on Emery, he hadn’t focused.

With a battle cry, Nathan leaped from the west, straight at the soldiers, a sawed-off in his hand.

How many shells did he have? Matt kept his focus on Emery. Nate could handle the other two. For now.

Matt punched Emery in the jaw, and the fight was on.

The sounds of brutal punches, grunts of pain, and snapping bones filled the small clearing. Matt knew the second Nate snapped one of the soldier’s necks, evening up his fight. Matt and Emery traded hits and kicks as Matt’s arm slowly weakened. He needed to get those two bullets out. Now.

A rapid heartbeat caught his attention.

Around a tree, a soldier all in black dragged Laney into the clearing, a knife at her throat.

All movement ceased. Everyone still standing turned toward the duo.

Emery threw back his head and laughed, the sound gurgly from a lung that must be collapsing. “Where did you find our little rabbit?”

“Tree line by the shore,” the solder said, his brown eyes dead. “She tried to stab me with a steak knife.”

Matt exhaled, his gaze on his woman. She stood, her face pale, wet hair matted to her head. Her pretty green eyes were wide with both fright and anger. She elbowed the soldier, and he tightened his grip.