He’d never realized what he’d revealed in those telling moments that he and Radovich had faced off against each other. Even after Lily had run to him, he’d been thinking the terrorist wanted her because of Heller. But it’d been because of him.
Son of a bitch. He couldn’t deal with this now. Had to somehow shove it down with all the other shit he would have to face once this fucker was no longer breathing. It didn’t matter that Rado had the guns. He wasn’t going to let this bastard win. If he had to give his own life to save Lily’s then he would. He had no qualms about dying to keep her alive. But if it came to that, he was taking the jackass with him.
“And what now?” he asked, curling his lip in a sneer. “Are you really such a pussy that you’re going to just shoot me?”
Radovich lifted his bushy brows. “What do you suggest?”
His voice was low and controlled. “Put the gun down and fight me, man to man.”
“Last time we did that, you didn’t fare so well,” Rado drawled, eyeing his scar.
Ryder gave him a sharp smile. “Then what are you afraid of?”
Color rose in the terrorist’s face and his eyes narrowed. “I’m not afraid, Mr. Ryder. But I’m also not stupid.”
Going straight for the bastard’s ego, he shook his head and laughed. “I know a pussy when I smell one, Radovich. What’s the problem? Are the years catching up to you? You just don’t have the balls to fight me now, do you?”
Radovich came a step closer, radiating cold, deadly rage. “I think, instead, I will enjoy putting bullets in your most vulnerable body parts, one by one, to make up for the shit you forced me to live through after stabbing me in the heart. I spent nearly six months in a coma, then another three in recovery. Almost a year went by before I could climb out of bed and deal with the scum that had tried to take over my crew while I was healing. And finally, when I was once again at the top, I knew it was time to come after the man who had tried so hard to destroy me.” Rado’s gaze slid to Lily, and his eyes gleamed with malice as they came back to Ryder. “But first,” he snarled, spittle spraying from his wide lips, “I wanted to take away everything that had ever meant anything to him. I wanted to start with what meant most. Which is why I plan on leaving you alive just long enough for you to watch me take your woman, ripping her into pieces, before I finally take your life!”
“Better yet, asshole, why don’t you just drop the guns?” Mike rasped, the barrel of his 9mm pressed against the back of Rado’s head. “Drop them and kick them over to Ryder. Now! Before I decide these walls will look more lively with your fucking pea-sized brain splattered all over them.”
The pistols made a heavy clunking sound as they hit the floor, Rado’s kick skidding them toward Ryder, who stopped them with his foot. “Take it,” he said to Lily, after picking up both weapons and holding Rado’s out to her.
Slipping his own gun into the back of his jeans, he shot a glance at Mike, thankful as hell to see him. “The others?” he asked, wondering about the terrorist’s men.
Mike’s voice was flat, his gaze hooded. “Dead.”
Cracking his knuckles, Ryder said, “Hear that, Rado? Your dumbass goons failed. It’s just me and you now.”
“Scott,” Lily whispered, touching the back of his arm. “You don’t have to do this.”
He looked at Mike. “Get her out of here.”
“No!” She moved to the far side of the room, holding her hands out in front of her, as if she could stop Mike from grabbing her. But she was looking at Ryder as she said, “Please, don’t make me leave you.”
Mike forced a furious-looking Radovich into the bedroom ahead of him, his gun still pointed at the fucker as Mike made his way over to Lily. But he didn’t try to force her out. He simply positioned her in the open doorway, and put his body in front of hers, making it clear that he would protect her with his life. Satisfied that she was safe, Ryder turned his attention to the man he was going to enjoy the hell out of killing. “Now we deal with this in a fair fight, you ugly son of a bitch.”
He would have been lying if he’d said he thought it would be easy. He knew from the intel he’d collected on Radovich that the terrorist had grown up on the streets in one of the poorest cities in Eastern Europe, where he’d had to battle daily for survival. The man also had nearly three inches on Ryder and outweighed him by a good fifty pounds, with a right hook that felt like a fucking wrecking ball. But Ryder had speed and training on his side, and the bone-deep determination to wipe the floor with the asshole for what he’d done to Lily and her family. They traded a dozen punches, landing hammering blows to the other’s ribs, kidneys, and face. A stream of red poured from the terrorist’s nose, while Ryder’s lip was busted open, his tongue tasting the sharp, metallic tang of his own blood. He could tell Radovich was tiring, his fondness for vodka taking its toll on his stamina, and Ryder moved his head from side to side while retaining his fighting stance, anticipating the bastard’s next move. When Rado suddenly rushed him, trying to take him to the floor, Ryder spun to the side and rammed his knee into Rado’s belly, doubling him over. He followed with a swift uppercut to his chin that snapped his head back, then a powerful right hook to his jaw that sent the asshole crashing to the floor. Radovich groaned, looking dazed, not even trying to get up.
Taking his gun from the back of his jeans, Ryder aimed the barrel at the center of Rado’s greasy forehead. Then he lifted his gaze and looked at Lily, who was peeking around Mike’s arm. “Go to my room.”
Tears filled her eyes, her gaze darting to the scar on his cheek. “I don’t want to leave you with him,” she whispered, the words thick with fear.
“I know. But I need you to do this for me, Lil. And I don’t need an argument. Please. Just go.”
She frowned, but nodded. She didn’t look back as she made the short walk across the hallway, then closed the door to his bedroom behind her.
“I’ll wait in the hallway,” Mike said, making it clear that he didn’t object to what was about to happen.
When they were alone, Ryder looked back down at Radovich. “You can’t shoot a man who’s already down,” the terrorist said with a gritty laugh.
A cold smile twisted Ryder’s mouth. “That just shows how little you know me.”
“You’re a lawman. A soldier,” Rado sneered in his thick accent. “Your honor ties your hands and makes you weak. Your mercy makes you pathetic.”
“You came after my woman and you think I’m going to show you fucking mercy, you miserable piece of shit?”
Radovich wiped at the blood on his face, his upper body twisted to the side as he braced himself on an elbow. “You don’t have any choice,” he muttered.