“Take a breath,” Giselle instructed as she switched her pen on. A buzzing filtered through the air, sending my heart racing.
“Yeah, because it’s going to hurt like a mother.” Sterling chuckled from behind her.
I flipped him off. A witty comment built on the tip of my tongue, but it never left my mouth, because Giselle touched the needle to my wrist, and a fire broke out across my skin that I thought would never dim.
Chapter Eight
Once she was finished, Giselle placed her tattooing pen on the table and then pressed her wrist against mine. She closed her eyes and whispered words flowed past her lips. I had no idea what she was saying. It sounded like another language. All I knew was that whatever she was doing was putting out the fire that burned across my skin.
“Done.” She pulled her wrist away from mine. I watched as she gently rubbed her wrist with her thumb. Was there a painful residue she felt from taking away my discomfort? “You should be hidden from anyone seeking you in a harmful way who comes from the underworld now.”
“Thank you.”
“You’re welcome.” She flashed me a smile. “I hope you take advantage of the second chance you’ve been given. Lorenzo told me your story.” She gathered her equipment, placing it back in the black bag she’d carried in with her. “It is a rare thing when one of us from the supernatural world is given a second chance at being human. Some of us never know what it’s like to be human, having been born into this world of the supernatural. Use yours wisely. Trust that the eye on your wrist will keep you safe and live a blessed life.”
I nodded to her and flashed a crooked grin. I did understand, more than she knew.
“Great. Awesome. Giselle, can we please talk now?” Sterling insisted.
He stepped closer to her, and her body tensed. Her eyes flashed, and I assumed she was at her breaking point with him. Sparks were about to fly, and not the good kind.
“About what really happened? The truth? Sure. I’m all ears.” She zipped her black bag and shifted to stand tall. Her arms folded over her chest as she narrowed her eyes on Sterling. “Talk.”
Sterling glanced around, his eyes shifting from me to Lorenzo, and then back to Giselle. “Somewhere private?”
“Lorenzo was there for me after you left. No, left is too nice of a word to describe what you did—after you abandoned me. He took me in. He gave me a home. Because family sticks together. No matter what,” Giselle insisted.
Family? Was this his sister? I’d been under the impression they had a romantic interest in one another, not a sibling rivalry.
What the hell?
I glanced at Sterling. He seemed as dumbfounded as I was by her choice of words.
Sterling’s brows pinched together. “Family sticks together?”
A cell phone rang from inside Giselle’s black bag beside me. She reached inside to retrieve it. “Good morning, sweet girl. Did you have fun?” she asked as she answered her phone. Her eyes landed on Sterling, and I swore I saw his entire world explode.
“Sweet girl?” he whispered. “Did I? Is that? Am I?”
Giselle ignored him, placing her back to him so she could better focus on her daughter. “I’m glad you had a good time, honey. You’ll have to tell me all about it later tonight. Mommy needs to get back to work right now, okay?”
Sterling spun to face Lorenzo. “I have a kid? That’s why you wanted me to come back. That’s why you’ve been so pissed at me all these years.”
Lorenzo didn’t speak. He continued to sip his coffee, offering Sterling only a single nod.
“Love you too, sweetie. See you soon,” Giselle said before she hung up. “Now you know that when you decided to leave—for whatever reason—you didn’t just leave me behind, you left your daughter too.” Her entire body seemed to tremble with her words. “I’m so pissed at you, I can’t even see straight.”
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Sterling asked, shifting to face her.
Giselle’s eyes darkened. “Would it have mattered?”
“Fuck yeah, it would have!”
She shook her head. Tears glistened in her eyes. “No, it wouldn’t. How many times have you told me you prefer to be a free bird than a caged one?”
“This is different. I didn’t want to leave you,” Sterling insisted. He stepped closer to her, not stopping until they were close enough that he could place his hands on her hips. She didn’t pull away. I figured this was a good sign. Maybe there was hope for the two of them yet. Even though I didn’t really know the guy all that well, I still believed he deserved a second chance.
Everyone did.
“Oh yeah? Then why the hell did you?” Giselle spat.
“Because, I allowed myself to care too much for you. I was scared. I didn’t want to be hurt,” Sterling insisted as he held her stare.
“So, you just decided to hurt me instead? You didn’t give me the chance to not hurt you. You just assumed I would hurt you and left? That’s not fair.”
Sterling shrugged. “You wanted the truth. There it is. Now, can we please talk about this somewhere else?”
Giselle exhaled a slow breath. “Fine. I’ve been staying in the carriage house outback. You’re welcome to head home with me so we can talk through this.”
“Thank you.” He released his grip on her hips and waited for her to gather her things.
The two of them left the room, leaving me alone with Lorenzo.
“I knew fate would pull the two of them together again. She can be a tricky bitch, but she’s always right,” he said, surprising me.
“Who can?” I asked, wondering who his derogatory statement was about—fate or Giselle. If it was Giselle, he was an ass.
“Fate. She’s not one to mess with.” Lorenzo set his mug on the coffee table and then leaned back in his leather chair. His eyes fixed on me. “Now that you’re hidden from those who seek you, how else can I help you?”
My gaze dipped to the fresh tattoo on the inside of my wrist. The pain was gone, but the skin around it still looked angry.
“You’ve already done enough. Thank you.” God, I was getting sick of saying those two words. Today had been a record.
“And you have already done much for me. Thank you,” Lorenzo said. I glanced at him, wondering if he would elaborate. What had I done for him that was so damn spectacular? I didn’t even know him. “I have no doubt you desire to leave soon. This town. This state. I have the means to get you out quickly. Where would you like to go to begin your new life?”
It was such a weird question. One I’d never thought in a million years anyone would ever ask me. I chewed the inside of my cheek, thinking. There was only one person I wanted to spend this second chance at life with—Alayna.
“The Outer Banks. Do you have a way to get me there?” I asked without thinking about how big of a request it was considering we were currently on the opposite side of the United States.
“I do. Is that where you wish to go?”
I flinched at the mention of that word. I’d be glad to never hear it again. “Yeah, it is.”
“I’ll let my pilot know.”
Pilot? I didn’t know why hearing he had one on hand surprised me, but it did.
“Okay, great.” I took a sip from my coffee because it was something to do.
After we finished our coffee, Lorenzo motioned for me to follow him outside. We went through the back of the house and off a long patio to a gravel path that led across the massive backyard. I scanned the area for his wolves, but didn’t see them. Did they only hang out at the front of the property? Or maybe they only patrolled at night?
A white two-story carriage house caught my eye as we walked. It was off the gravel path dead ahead. Giselle and Sterling came to mind. I couldn’t hear any shouting coming from the house, which I took as a sign they were working things out well. Beyond the carriage house was a large garage. I was positive Lorenzo kept his plane there.
“Hawk has been my pilot for years. He’s an eccentric man
, but he’s one of the best,” Lorenzo said, finally breaking the silence we walked in. “He will see that you get to the Outer Banks safe and sound.”
I wasn’t sure why, but his words gave me a jolt. Should I be trusting him as much as I was?
We continued walking as we drifted into silence again. The silence unnerved me, giving my mind too much room to run wild with crazy thoughts.
“Do you travel often?” I asked, unable to stand the quiet any longer. “By plane?”
“More for work than pleasure.”
“What do you do for a living?” It was a stupid question; I knew it the second the words came from my mouth, but I couldn’t help asking it. My curiosity had gotten the best of me.
Lorenzo cast a glance at me. Mischief flickered in his dark eyes as a smirk curled the corners of his lips. He either thought I was brave for having asked or stupid. It was hard to tell.
“That’s not a question I prefer to answer,” he said.
I nodded, and made a mental note to not ask any more personal questions. Hell, maybe it was best if I just kept my mouth shut the remainder of the time I was here.
When we made it to the garage, someone mumbling something captured my attention. The clanking of metal against metal had me flinching as we rounded the corner and stepped inside the garage. A single-engine airplane took up most of the building, as did multiple tools, a cluster-fuck of metal piled almost to the ceiling, and a man I presumed to be in his late forties to early fifties standing to the right of all the metal.
“This damn thing,” the guy grumbled. He pounded a hammer against a rusty nail, attempting to attach an old piece of metal flashing to his pile.
“Good morning, Hawk,” Lorenzo said, amusement hanging in his tone. “Adding to your masterpiece, I see.”
“Only because it’s still not right.” Hawk glanced from the formation to Lorenzo. The guy’s words were rough around the edges, and one look at him let me know that so was he.
He wore combat boots, dark camouflage cargo pants, and a plain black T-shirt with a pocket. His hair was graying, curly, and wild. He looked as though he hadn’t shaved in days, and his skin was weathered by the sun and age.
“You’ll get it. You always do. I have faith.” Lorenzo smiled. “Let me introduce you to my new friend. This is Ryan Blythe. He’s a friend of Sterling’s, and therefore a friend of mine. He needs to make a quick exit out of town.”
Hawk set his hammer down and shifted his full attention to Lorenzo. His muscular arms folded over his solid chest.
A soldier awaiting instructions.
“Where are we flying to?” Hawk asked.
Lorenzo glanced at me.
“The Outer Banks. North Carolina,” I said.
Hawk didn’t seem concerned with flying to the opposite side of the States. “And, when do we leave?”
Okay, so this guy was used to flying long distances to places at the drop of a hat. What did Lorenzo Angelo do for a living? My curiosity was piqued yet again. This time, I kept my mouth shut though.
“Preferably within the hour. I have a previous engagement to attend to,” Lorenzo insisted.
Hawk shifted his gaze to me. His eyes were cold and penetrating, they had a way of making me wiggle within my skin. “Gather whatever things you have, use the restroom, and let’s get moving. I’ll roll Bessie out and prep her for the trip.” He nodded to the single-engine plane on the other side of the garage. Bessie, I presumed.
“Uh, sure.” I scratched my head. I didn’t have anything to gather, but I might as well use the restroom while I could. I should probably say goodbye to Sterling and thank him for getting me out of Dickhead’s lair too.
“Feel free to ask Vinchenzo to make you a lunch. I have some phone calls I need to make.” Lorenzo squeezed my shoulder. “It was nice meeting you, Ryan. I hope you have a safe journey and life treats you well this time around.”
“Thanks,” I said, hating the words as they crawled up my throat for yet another time while in this man’s presence. But what else was I supposed to say?
Lorenzo left the garage then, leaving me with Hawk.
“It won’t take me too long to prep old Bessie, then will be out of here,” Hawk said. He reached into the pocket of his T-shirt and pulled out a silver flask. He unscrewed the top and poured some of the contents down his throat before holding the flask out to me. “Need a drink?”
“It’s a little early for me.” It was barely ten-thirty in the morning.
Hawk shrugged. “Suit yourself.”
He took another swig from his flask before pocketing it, and then walked past me to Bessie. I watched as he wheeled a ladder to her side.
“I’ll be back,” I said, feeling awkward.
“Take your time,” Hawk insisted. “Old Bessie needs to be shown a certain level of love before she can make a trip that long. We’ll still be out of here within the hour like Boss wants though, make no mistake.”
Within the hour.
The words repeated in my head. While I didn’t want to overstay my welcome, I did think it was an odd request. I decided then Lorenzo’s business had to involve drugs. He was part of the cartel or something. It was probably best to be out of here within the hour. The guy was doing me yet another favor.
Chapter Nine
Gravel crunched beneath my shoes as I made my way back to the main house, taking in the scenery as I walked. Lorenzo’s estate was impressive. Besides the carriage house and massive garage, there were also a few storage buildings that looked more like warehouses, a large greenhouse, and another two-story building. Was it apartments? Maybe that was where Hawk and Vinchenzo lived. Or his guards.
As I passed the carriage house, the front door swung open. Sterling stepped out. He exhaled a slow breath and ran his fingers through his hair before he noticed me.
“I’m a dad,” he said. “I have a two-year-old. A little girl. I can’t believe it.” He started toward me and together we continued to the main house. “I could really use a cigarette. Have one?”
“I don’t smoke.”
“Of course you don’t.” He exhaled a loud breath. “I can’t believe I’m a dad.”
“I’m sure it’s a shock,” I said, trying to imagine what it must be like to be in his shoes. I couldn’t.
“That’s a bit of an understatement.” Sterling smiled. “She’s cute. Beautiful, really. She’s got my eyes and her mama’s little nose. She has Giselle’s wild hair too.”
“Will you get to meet her soon?” It seemed like the right question to ask.
“I need to find a way to show Giselle I’m serious about her. About being in my little girl’s life and not continuing to be the fuck up that I am. I’ve told her all this, but she doesn’t believe me.”
“Sometimes when words don’t hold as much meaning as we want them to, we have to rely on our actions to prove it to others.” I didn’t know where the words came from, but I knew they were true.
“That’s deep.” Sterling slapped me on the back. “I thought you used to be a genie, not a damn fortune cookie.”
I flipped him off and laughed.
After our laughter died down, Sterling asked, “So, what’s your plan next? Now that you have the tattoo, there’s no need for you to stay here. You definitely don’t need to get sucked into my brother’s world.”
“What kind of world is that?”
Sterling came to a standstill. I watched as he debated whether to answer my question or ignore it. “What’s your theory?”
“Drugs.”
“Good theory.” Sterling glanced around, making sure no one was listening. “Ever heard of Venom?”
“Like a snake’s venom?”
Sterling grinned. “Close. This is just as deadly, if given in too large a dose.”
“What is it?”
“A drug made specifically for shifters. It heightens abilities and their shifter form becomes more powerful. Lorenzo makes it. He’s the second largest supplier in the U.S. Greed was number one.”
My eyes widened. No wonder I wasn’t running up a tab with the guy. I’d inadvertently made him a lot of money by getting rid of his competition.
“Yeah.” Sterling nodded. He started walking again, and I did the same. “So, what’s your plan? Decided where you’ll go?”
“The Outer Banks. North Carolina. There’s someone there I need to find.”
He wiggled his brows. “A female someone?”
“Yeah.” I grinned.
“I hope you find her, man.” He cut to the side of the house instead of heading up the back porch steps. “Hey, let’s get Greed’s bag from my car. We never did get a chance to go through it. Let’s find out what’s inside?”
I’d forgotten about that bag.
“Sure.” I hoped there was a shit ton of money inside it and that Sterling agreed to split it with me. Then, at least I’d be able to get a room when I got to the Outer Banks. Some food and basic necessities too.
Sterling’s car was still parked in front of Lorenzo’s mansion. I glanced around, looking for the wolves, but didn’t see them. Sterling popped the driver door of his car open when he reached it and grabbed the bag from the backseat. He placed it on the hood of his car before opening it.
“Jackpot,” he said, flashing me a wide grin. He reached in and pulled out a few stacks of money. “He definitely lived up to his name, even in his final hours. There has to be at least a quarter of a million in here.”
I laughed. “I want to say I’m surprised, but I’m not.”
“Me either. Let’s take this inside. I’ll get my half, and then you can keep the bag with the other half. I’m sure Lorenzo wants you out of here sooner rather than later, right? That’s how he works. Don’t take offense to it.” He started up the stone steps at the front of the house. “He’s worried you’ll see or hear something you shouldn’t. Paranoia is part of his personality. I think it comes with his line of work, though. It was one of the reasons I wanted out of here. I didn’t like looking over my shoulder all the time, but what I realized is even when I wasn’t a part of all this, I still had to look over my shoulder because of my last name. The hazards of having siblings.” He chuckled.
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