Venomous King (Venom #2)

27. Stella

Chapter twenty-seven

Stella

“Unity is strength... when there is teamwork and collaboration, wonderful things can be achieved.”

Mattie Stepanek

M y eyes narrow on the two idiots before me as I exit the private plane, and incessant rage fills my blood, causing my whole body to light up like an explosive about to detonate. One is dressed in all black from head to toe, a standoffish and insulting look on his scarred face, as he meets my glare. He is a demon right out of my worst nightmares, coming to ruin the legacy that I have worked my entire life to attain. The other is entirely contradictory, in his pressed light blue dress shirt and dark khaki slacks, and he has the frightened expression of a confused and lost boy, that almost makes me want to reassure him that everything will be alright. Almost, but not quite. Light and dark are what my granddaughter has chosen for herself, and she is a fool. Neither of these men are worthy of a Stratford heir, or of my bloodline.

I warned her that these two would spell disaster for her and her daughter, but did she listen to me? Of course not. Love, that pesky emotion that has corrupted both my granddaughters, seems to demolish any good senses they may have had, leading them into danger for these worthless men. I should murder them all, and wipe the slate clean. My granddaughters would eventually forgive me, wouldn’t they?

I don’t hesitate as I take the last step to the ground. My hand flies out and makes contact with that rough, scarred cheek, and the sound echoes into the still night sky. I hear Clark’s footsteps, as he readies himself for retaliation, but I know better. This villain will take what I dish out, and more, if it means I can bring my Isabella back to him. She is his greatest desire, and that is the only reason I haven’t had him murdered since he reappeared in her life. Perhaps it is time to remedy that.

“Welcome back, Stella.” His sinister lips quirk upwards as if I didn’t just slap the shit out of him, and my hand isn’t currently imprinted on his skin. Asshole . He’s always trying what little patience I have with his unwavering need to one-up me.

“ Demon , look at what you have caused. My precious granddaughters are in your enemy’s hands. How could you have allowed this to happen?“ The need to keep hitting him flows through me. I want to tear him to pieces, and rip his beating heart out of his chest, but I know doing so would mean losing Isabella forever. She believes herself in love with this unworthy monster. He, more than the others, rattles me; death permeates the air around him, as if he wears it as a thick cologne.

“I was careless, and I believed us safe. I let my guard down, but it will never happen again, and I will slaughter anyone who took part, and ensure I send a message to the rest of the world to stay away from what is mine,” Diego growls out, and I watch from the corner of my eye as Kai reaches forward and grabs his arm to restrain him. Diego doesn’t immediately shrug off the hold, inhaling deep breaths in an attempt, I’m sure, to calm himself. He knows he will get nowhere with me if he rants and rages. It’s amusing, and frightening, that these two have grown closer over the past weeks. They have unerringly put aside their differences for Isabella and Julia. I should be proud of that meager accomplishment, and that my granddaughter demands that respect and compliance from them, but right now, all I can think about is my girls are trapped in the hands of Diego’s enemies.

“Pretty words, but a bit too late, don’t you think?” I glance at Kai, who looks pale and unsettled, and he drops his grasp from Diego’s arm. “Stella, now is not the time to hurl blame. We already know we failed. Please help us get the girls back.”

An unladylike snort flees me at that statement. Failed? These fools haven’t just failed; they have lost the only two things preventing them from falling into an abyss of destruction. Isabella and Julia, my precious, beautiful girls. Diego is mere moments from becoming the feral animal I have always feared he was. That makes him more than dangerous; it makes him unpredictable, and I can’t have that if I am to get them back.

“Update me immediately, but do not think this discussion is over. I will have my pound of flesh from both of you, for allowing this to happen in the first place.” If I am truly fortunate, they will both perish in this rescue of my granddaughters, then they can be free of them once and for all. Neither are worthy, just look at all the misery Isabella has already suffered.

That’s not true, and you know it. She has been different since she returned from the jungle; stronger, more resilient, and less likely to falter. She has finally grown into herself, and these two have had a hand in that metamorphosis. My mind plagues me with images of the Isabella from before, the one who was weak, and gave in to her addictions so readily. The one I feared would languish in an early grave. She used to live life as if it was burdensome, a curse to endure, instead of the precious gift it truly is. They helped change her, and forced her to come into the light, and for that, I will always be indebted to them, not that I would ever utter those words aloud.

Heavy footsteps making their way down the metal stairs of the aircraft have me further grimacing, as a reminder of who else insisted on traveling here with me. I am overrun with psychopathic assholes of late. Jaxon, my love, please give me strength from the beyond to endure all these men who have made their way into our girls’ lives.

“I knew she’d strike him before we even left the tarmac, you owe me a hundred k, fucker,” Carter’s annoying, cheerful voice reaches my ears, and I roll my eyes at his words.

“I didn’t say she wouldn’t strike him, the bet was whether or not she would shoot him, and she hasn’t... yet,” Theo’s deep, irritating tone replies, and my hackles immediately rise.

“What the hell are they doing here?” Diego demands, the fury on his face bringing me a minute amount of joy. Ah yes, the rivalry between these two idiots never did cease. I should try to play them against each other, kill two birds, or rather, two future grandsons-in-law, with one stone.

“We came to save our sister-in-law, prick, no thanks to you.” Carter approaches and attempts to place an arm around my shoulder in familiarity. He immediately steps back and gulps at the death glare I give him. I might like the fool, but not enough to allow him to become comfortable in my presence. “Sorry, Grammy.” I bite down hard on the inside of my cheek, to avoid bloodying this fool who keeps calling me that, regardless of how many times I have told him to stop. Remember, he produced two heirs, don’t kill him yet, he might still be useful.

“I don’t need your help, prissy rich boy . We can handle this on our own,“ Diego counters, looking offended at the mere suggestion that he needs their assistance.

“If that’s so, where is Issy now, hmm ?“ Theo steps forward, occupying the immediate space in front of Diego. The latter doesn’t back down, he straightens his broad shoulders, and his body tenses, preparing for a fight. “That’s right, she’s once again a captive, this time your enemy’s prisoner, and you couldn’t get her back with just your own forces; you need grandma here to help.” Theo’s chest bumps Diego’s, and before I can utter a demand that they both stop with their antagonizing toxic male shit, Clark places himself between them.

“Stop this now, it’s not helping, and if you two come to blows, I will personally shoot the both of you,” my silent but deadly shadow utters.

“He’s right,” Kai groans with frustration. “Leash your shit, Diego; this is wasting valuable time. We have to find the girls, and we could use all the manpower we can get. If they are here to help, let them.”

Diego grumbles under his breath but steps back, his eyes never wavering from Theo’s face. “Where is your queen? The two of you can’t usually be more than a few feet away from her, like loyal dogs at her beck and call.”

“She’s... umm tied up... at the moment, hopefully . Finn and Mateo are ensuring she stays behind and remains safe.“ I narrow my eyes in Carter’s direction, but he won’t meet my glare, and seems to choke on his own saliva. Is he truly admitting that he has my granddaughter confined somewhere? I should slit his throat right here.

I rub at one of my pounding temples; I refuse to acknowledge any of the kinky fuckery that goes on in that house. What the five of them do behind closed doors is none of my business, even if I think having four husbands is absurd. “Get back on task, you worthless fools. My granddaughters have been abducted, and are being held by the enemy. You can attempt to outdo each other with your caveman toxic masculinity later.”

“What new information do we have since I boarded the plane?” Anxiety is like a viper in the pit of my stomach, coiling itself tighter and tighter with worry for my girls. Are they being abused? Is little Julia having one of her episodes? I swear to all that is holy, that not a single member of that cartel will survive my wrath. I will hunt all of them down to the ends of the world if I have to.

“We have a possible location where they are holding Issy and Julia. It’s surrounded by thick forest, but with your additional manpower and weapons, it can be taken.” Diego’s green eyes sear into mine. “None of them will live to draw breath another day when I am done with them for taking our girls.”

“Good, let’s go to war.” I stride off toward my armored vehicle, leaving them all behind without a backward glance, and prepared to battle this cartel that thought it wise to enrage a Stratford. A Stratford never forgets or forgives. They have unleashed monsters now. I hope they are all ready for all the pain and suffering they will experience before they die. The Sanchez family won’t exist after tomorrow.