There!
Decklan could see a tattoo on the wrist of one of the men. He couldn’t make out what it was but it looked foreign, perhaps a word in a different language: Смерть. What does that mean?
Then, without warning, everything went black. He was knocked unconscious for the second time in as many hours. As soon as he came to, he realized he was alone and the murderous bastards who stole everything from him were gone. As he went to move, he noticed that his hands and feet were free. They had cut the zip ties off, but why? Why leave him alive? Why not finish the job and take his life too? Unless the job was to leave him alive. Someone out there wanted him to suffer immensely, and they had succeeded.
No time to grieve. I will grieve when their murders have been answered for. Blood for blood. A life for a life. Or in this case, as many lives as it will take.
Only one thing mattered to Decklan Jennings now…
Finding the men responsible and making sure they paid the ultimate price!
CHAPTER 2
He headed directly for his gun safe hidden away in the back of his walk-in closet. As soon as he opened the bedroom door, his body suddenly stopped moving. He felt as if time had stopped and his body was stuck in a freeze-frame and he had no control.
He stared hopelessly at the bed that he once shared with his wife. The bed that they had just shared together the night before. Now the bed seemed pointless and without purpose.
Who needs a bed when you won’t be sleeping? Who needs a bed when you don’t have someone to share it with?
He continued to stand there, still unable to move his body.
Snap out of it, you idiot; you don’t have time for this.
Finally, he regained control of his body and headed for his safe. It was the kind of safe that was meant to store the weapons of an ex-Army Ranger. He needed enough room to store all kinds of guns, ammunition, and tactical equipment. Although it had been years since he last needed to use lethal force, he always made sure he had the necessary means if a situation ever arose…and now was that time.
He gathered everything he needed. His bullet-proof vest, an AR-15 specially equipped with military sights and armor-piercing rounds, his SIG-Sauer P226 9mm handgun, and finally, his M2010 Enhanced Sniper Rifle. He knew a sniper rifle wasn’t necessary in most situations, but he wanted to be over-prepared rather than under.
He laid his guns on the bed and put on his vest. He made sure everything was properly equipped and loaded and grabbed a couple of extra mags for his AR and handgun. He still didn't have a plan or even the slightest idea of where to start.
The only positive thing he had going right now was the connection he had on the inside. He pulled out his phone to make the call but saw he had three missed calls from the chief of police. Or little brother, as Decklan knew him.
“Hey Deck, I heard what happened. I’m so sorry. Please call me as soon as you can,” his brother’s voicemail said.
Decklan knew his brother was his only hope right now, but he also knew that his help would have to come by police procedure. He wasn’t interested in that. He wasn’t interested in having these guys arrested and put on trial where they could potentially get off free or spend years behind bars. No, he wanted to take matters into his own hands. He wanted to deal with it like he would have when he was in the forces. He wanted to make sure these bastards paid for what they did. Plus, how did Parker know that something had happened? He hadn’t called and reported it yet, and anyone who would have been able to hear or see anything was out of town.
Who the hell called this in? Decklan thought.
He contemplated for a few minutes whether he should call his brother back or not. He knew he needed to at least let his brother know that he was okay. That was the least he could do since he had just helped him move some stuff at his house less than twelve hours ago.
Then again, why did he owe anybody anything right now? His whole life was just ripped away from him. To hell with everyone else and their feelings. He had a singular focus and he couldn’t let anything or anyone break him from that.
As he started making his way back downstairs, he noticed some people walking through his front door, which until now he didn’t even realize was wide open. It was the police, a forensics team, and a couple of detectives. They were here to try and gather any information or evidence they could to help with the case.
There was only one problem: There was no evidence left behind. These guys were pros and knew exactly what they were doing. They didn’t leave so much as a drop of blood behind.
The only thing they left was the gruesome recording. The video that shows his family’s last moments on this earth. They must have left it behind on purpose because they wanted him to have to relive the nightmare for the rest of his life.
He didn’t want to stick around while all these strangers poked around his house and violated what little he had left of his family. Plus, he wasn’t in the mood to answer questions and he had nothing to give them anyway. He wanted to get out of that house and try to
