Devil on the Rooftop [Book 1]

Chapter 92 - Khaleel -

Zander arrived at Jackheights in a taxi. I didn't bother asking him about the details of his escape, because we had other, important shit to discuss. I gave the driver the address and told Zander to ignore all incoming calls from Loyal. The playboy was happy to comply. He said it was payback for keeping him out of the loop last time.

I, personally, didn't want Loyal intervening in the fight. Not until Zander and I finished settling our personal vendettas against Dobberman. Zander was going to make sure he lost Tomasia's number for good, and I was going to get him back for what he did to Hino and Arisa. I would never admit it aloud, but I also wanted to make sure Dobberman stopped fucking with Loyal. If that guy was seriously thinking about leaving Jackheights, then he needed some breathing room. As mad as I was at my friend, I wouldn't be able to live with myself if anything bad happened to him.

The taxi pulled up to Pinecrest Grove and let us out. Zander paid the driver for his time and we walked off into the developing neighborhood. Kumar's associates were responsible for our extraction. If it took us more than fifteen minutes to pull Dobberman out of the house then I instructed the associates to intervene. If they made any move without consulting me first, Kumar would definitely hear about it.

"What do we do if he's got people in there with him?" Zander asked me.

"If you're feeling confident about grabbing Dobberman then I'll leave him to you," I replied. "If you're second-guessing yourself then you take care of the hired help."

Zander took a second to think about it. "You're faster," he admitted. "And your punches are heavier."

"I lost Dobberman the last time he ran," I admitted. "And your hits are strong too."

Zander scoffed. "Arisa Hoffman was able to stop my hits."

"Your call," I insisted, not in the mood to coddle his insecurities.

Zander nodded. "I'll do it. I'll finish what I started and you handle the assholes who put hands on Arisa."

"Cool," I said walking ahead.

Zander caught up and we walked along the gravel street until the house came into view. No one was lounging on the porch this time. I spotted the associates' sedan parked down the street. I was sure they could see us too, those guys were no amateurs when it came to stakeouts. My eyes flashed in their direction before focusing on the front door. Zander and I took the steps up and turned the knob, surprised to find it locked.

"Through the back," Zander advised.

My friend led me around what would eventually turn into the front lawn, and all the way to an open, unfinished backyard. There were stacks of construction tools and gardening equipment pushed to one side, and a big square hole dug on the other. I assumed it was to install an underground pool or a jacuzzi. We walked up to the back door and stared into the white living room. Inside, we spotted Dobberman, Nook and the rest of his crew hanging around the kitchen and drinking alcohol out of solo cups. Zander got a handle on the sliding door and opened it. The idiots didn't notice us right away.

Then, one of them locked eyes with me. "Oh shit!" he yelled.

I acted first. My eyes connected with Nook, who almost fell out of his chair, fear-stricken. He jumped up and was quick to disappear upstairs. I didn't blame him. He received a good beating the last time I got a hold of him. As promised, I went after the underlings and left Dobberman to Zander. My friend zipped by and chased the asshole around the house, while his goons launched themselves at me. I got a hold of a wrist and whipped it out of the way, slamming the body into the kitchen counter. I dodged a fist from striking me and sent a kick to the owner's face. I whipped around and pulled one of them by their hair and shoved him outside the back door, letting him fall down the steps.

Three more faces were left but they didn't look eager to fight me. "Don't make me anticipation shit," I beamed. "Give it all you got, dick-heads."

It took me another five minutes to work my way through the room. The goons were persistent, I could admit that, but I didn't have time or energy to waste on small fries. My real target was upstairs, and after Zander was finished letting his frustrations out on him, it would be my turn.