My grumpy Janer mate. He was coming to terms with Yunez and Rand joining our LL, even if he didn't want to admit it. Hell, he practically thrust me into their arms. It was almost as if he was holding onto his dickishness out of habit.
I don't know, I kind of loved that about him.
Again, everyone chuckled, and Rand even tossed an arm around his shoulder. Sage didn't shrug him off, merely raised an eyebrow as if to say, really?
Rand smirked when our gazes met. He was definitely happy with the turn of events. And, it seemed he was not going to let Sage keep him at arm’s length either.
“Ah, yes,” Yunez glanced around the room. “It's time now.”
As if on cue, the doors on the opposite side of the hall burst open and Cabbie led the way, with his Cherries following behind. I couldn't hold my grimace in.
They were not in their floss, but not in their leather ass kicker outfits either. This was more of a cross between the two. I had the urge to tell my guys to look away, but when I glanced at them, they were looking past the Cherries as if they weren't even there.
“Mehki?” Egan yelled as he jumped up out of his seat.
Egan leaped over the table and ran straight for Mehki, who was walking at the back of the procession. The rest of my lusty legion save Rand, followed after Egan.
“Ralina?” Rand belatedly shouted as the guys crashed into a laughing Mehki.
Rand jumped off the stage and seemed to blur as he ran across the hall, sweeping his sister up in a crushing hug.
“They look happy, do they not?” Yunez bent into me with a conspirator sigh.
A small smile tickled the edge of my lips, “They do, thank you for bringing their friends and family to them. I know they appreciate it after the weeks of stress we've had.”
“Well, I can't say I had only innocent motives.” Yunez tapped his fingers on the table. “While there has been some improvements to the last several training sessions, you all are not nearly as far along as I want you to be. The boys have always been very competitive. I thought a nice reunion and little competition would be good for the soul. Especially your original LL. They have a really bad sore loser streak. Mehki has been through the Manno training purely because he was one of my double agents, and it was safer for him. Your guys will have a hard time besting him. But, they will do their damnedest to impress you.” He beamed at me.
Yunez was the sneakiest person I knew, and I wanted to be just like him when I grew up. “Why not put the guys through the Manno training from the beginning? They said they had seven years with you.”
He tapped me on the cheek with one finger. “Ah, but that would have made them suspicious before I was ready to impart secrets. Their training as it was, gave them an advantage over others and was enough to keep them alive. If they had gone through the rigorous and sometimes deadly Manno training, they would have thought I was trying to take over the world.”
“You could if you wanted, couldn’t you?” He never would, because that wasn’t who he was, but the possible outcome was there.
“That, my dear, is one thread that I never fostered.”
In front of us, Mehki allowed the guys to lead him up to the stage. Behind them, once Rand set down Ralina, she gently pushed him away as if she didn't like the public display of affection. Nonplussed, Rand ruffled her hair and brought her up to our table, too.
An older man in the white robes we’d seen on everyone here, appeared out of thin air with three more chairs. He arranged them in front of us so the newcomers' backs would be to the room.
Ralina sat down with a polite but distant smile when I said hello. Mehki bypassed the chair and cleared the end of the table, sweeping me up into a big bear hug.
Reminding me of old times, Egan growled at my back. “Really, Mehki? Did you learn nothing last time?”
Mehki squeezed me tighter and twisted me away from Egan. “I learned that life is short, and you never know when you’re going to be attacked. I’m hugging her because I’m glad she’s alive; deal with it.”
He gave me one more squeeze for good measure and then released me, slowly making his way back to his seat on the other side of the table, watching Egan with a come at me, bro face. Cabbie settled his Cherries on the other side of the hall, at a table I hadn’t realized until now had been completely empty. Mannos started circling around them with too much curiosity. I kind of felt bad for them. I mean, Mannos were badass, but there was no doubt the Cherries would eat the Mannos up and spit them out. They definitely seemed like spitters.
I facepalmed. Where did these thoughts come from? I blamed Yunez.
Nato leaned around Egan and trailed his fingers over my back. “What’s wrong, Isolde?”
I shook my head. Now was not the time to share my naughty thoughts. “Nothing,” I glanced at Mehki and Ralina. “It’s good to see you all again.” The last time I’d seen Mehki, it was after I was stabbed. A nice little scar was left behind as a souvenir. As for Ralina, it was as at Rainer’s place before the attacks.
Ralina dipped her head, but Mehki smiled wide. “You guys are a sight for sore eyes.”
Yunez filled his glass with a pitcher full of some kind of cider. “I am immensely glad you both made the journey without any hiccups.”
I didn’t even have to wonder how Yunez knew that. He just knew everything. Almost. And, wasn’t that a scary thought. One day I, and possibly the others, could share those powers.
“I brought you here because I needed word of what Rainer has been up to. I would have simply requested a message, but recent events have led me to believe it would not have been safe. I take it Jan concealed you?”
Cabbie pulled out the chair between Mehki and Ralina, turquoise glitter sparkling from his eyelid. “Oh, Jan is here?” He twisted around and perused the hall with a sultry gaze. “Please do tell where I can find that scrumptious man morsel?”
Egan chuckled. “I will track him down for you if you promise not to do any more grab ass with me.”
Cabbie turned around with a pout and a twinkle in his eye. “You’re no fun, but I’ll take the offer. Rand’s ass is just as tight, and Sage’s ass is perfectly round. I think I’ll be okay without yours.”
The whole table rolled with laughter. I shot Rand and Sage a grin and stuffed a seasoned potato in my mouth. The cooks had done an amazing job. We should definitely eat with the Mannos more often.
Down the table, Rand shrugged good-naturedly, but Sage grimaced as if in physical pain. He must not have realized the slight mean streak in Cabbie. The man wouldn’t pick on him if he wasn’t so easy to rile up.
“Back to important things,” Yunez finished filling both his plate and mine with chicken and vegetables. Look at him being a gentleman. “What has Rainer been up to? We have heard some surprising rumors about Rainer’s progress in the Earth realm.”
That killed the happy go lucky vibe of friendship we had going on. My stomach dropped as both Ralina and Mehki closed down. One hundred percent blank faces.
“Ah, hell, that isn’t good,” Jari tossed his cloth napkin on the table, fortunately missing the plates of food and pitchers of cider and water.
“Well…” Mehki drawled. “I haven’t been at his place as much as I wanted to be, because it would have made Rainer suspicious if I was suddenly there twenty-four-seven, but I’ve popped in as much as I could.”
“Wait, wait, wait.” I tossed out a hand. “Are you a Manno?” The thought just occurred to me since he was sitting here in the Manno castle.
“What?” His face scrunched up in confusion.
Yunez sighed. “I might as well tell you, but be warned, I will not explain anything now. Knowing what Rainer is up to is too important. We can reconvene after dinner. Way after dinner.” He winked at me, and flames covered my body. The damn man had sex on the brain.
Grunts sounded from every single one of my Lusty Legion. Ha! They were cracking me up and I wasn’t even sure why; maybe it was just their surliness.
Yunez continu
ed. “There is another house that has been hidden for the last couple thousand years. It is a house that has mastery over all of the core houses very much like the Mazza. Only, where the Mazza is always a female, this house is comprised of men.” Ralina scrunched her nose as if she were trying to make sense of what he was saying, and Mehki studied Yunez like he knew Yunez was part of this secret house. How could he not be when he was so powerful? “We call ourselves…” He paused for theatric effect, and all three of our guests leaned forward. “Mannos.”
Cabbie gasped, pressing his fingertips to his chest. His eyes were as large as dinner plates and his mouth made the perfect ‘O’. Then he grinned and slapped Mehki on the back, “I’m just kidding. Yunez shared this big revelation with me when I arrived.”
Ralina rolled her eyes like she was not impressed, but Mehki at least chuckled.
“Cabbie,” Egan dropped his head in his hand, doing little to hide his smile from me.
“Okay,” Yunez clapped. “Now tell me what’s been going on; Continue Mehki.”
With huge owl eyes, Mehki picked back up where he left off, “From what I can tell, he’s had some success infiltrating the U.S. government. The men that were there the day of the attack,” he gulped as if it was still hard to think about. “Rainer has Lavi constantly manipulating their memories, leading them to believe there’s this big threat to the U.S. and they need to ferret it out. I’m pretty sure I overheard a conversation between Rainer and Lavi that he’s started to pull information from them that’s completely classified, and he’s also tapped into their processes, secretly monitoring their communication.”
He’d actually done it. Rainer was slowly succeeding in infiltrating the government. I don’t know if it was a good thing he hadn’t gotten any farther, or so, so bad that he was already so ingrained.
“Ralina, anything you’d like to add?” Yunez propped his chin in his hand.
She nodded and passed an apologetic glance at Rand before bringing her attention back to Yunez. “After he found out that Rand was with you, he went crazy. I mean, like rabid dog crazy.”
Rand reached across the table and gripped her hand. “I’m sorry, Lina,” he murmured. It dawned on me, from her astonishment at the big Manno reveal, she had no clue Rand was one. A vein in his forehead lightly throbbed as he stared at her. Knowing him as I did, he probably had massive amounts of guilt for leaving her behind. Hopefully, he would find the time to bring her into his confidence soon. It would make him feel better to have no giant secrets between them.
She shook her head. “It’s okay, I’ve made myself scarce anytime it would have spilled over to me. But he’s gotten unpredictable. Metal twists and bends whenever he passes any, and he’s killed three of his most trusted men for ridiculous reasons. The only time I’ve seen him sane is when he is working on his spies. Those stupid men are only going along with him because they know what he is, or at least that he has powers they don’t and they believe he’s going to light the way for them to take over the top government positions.”
If these men were that greedy, mind manipulation wasn’t even needed. Not that I condoned any of his plans at all, but disappointment slithered through me at their lack of regard for human life. Nothing they had shown me would have made me think they felt otherwise, but it still disappointed me.
Nato rubbed his eyebrow with a forefinger. “So, we know he’s unpredictable and dangerous, and on the verge of outing us to the humans.”
“Sounds about right,” Mehki said.
“Yunez, how long do we have before life goes to hell in a handbasket?” The teasing glint left Jari’s face, leaving him completely sober.
Yunez held his gaze for a solid twenty seconds, then closed his eyes. They were moving beneath his eyelids as he searched for the answer.
Finally, he opened his eyes, and his gaze was drenched in regret and frustration. “I do not know. And that means we do not have long. We are going to double our efforts tomorrow to get ready. There’s a long road ahead of us, and we need to make sure we are strong enough to be the victor.”
We all nodded and tucked into our dinner. I wasn’t very hungry anymore and ended up pushing my food around more than eating it.
“I, for one, am very impressed with Isolde’s skill with the nipple clamp nunchucks.” Cabbie dabbed the corners of his mouth with his napkin.
I groaned. “Please don’t bring this up at dinner.”
“But doll, you do me proud. The offer still stands on becoming a Cherry. Why Nins ordered an extra floss outfit, as you call it, for you, just in case.”
“Like hell,” Sage muttered and Egan surprisingly nodded his agreement. Or I guessed it shouldn’t surprise me. He was just as territorial as Sage due to his house.
Yunez leaned forward, “Do tell what these floss outfits are.” A sparkle lit his eyes.
Now, wait a minute. “You’ve never seen the Cherries in their floss?” Because he seemed to know everything.
“Why no, my love. I knew you were in my future long before Cabbie created the Cherries. If I had gone to any of those girls, it would have made you uncomfortable and frankly, been unfair to you. So, I stayed away from Cabbie’s establishment unless we had business. And even then, I always took the back door and went straight to his office or suite.”
Oh, my gawd. Seriously?
I narrowed my eyes at Sage and Rand, who both turned beet red. Rand had the good grace to look sheepish, while Sage rolled his eyes to the ceiling as if asking why him?
“You are now officially my favorite person, ever.” I leaned in to kiss his cheek, but at the last second, he turned his head to meet my lips. Soft, pliable lips, sensually caressing mine.
“All right, all right.” Egan grumbled beside me, tugging me away. He tilted my head toward his and devoured my mouth as if to erase Yunez from memory. “Yunez, I love you like a brother, and you’re one of the few people that mean more to me than my own life, but seriously! Cut it out. I’m fine with you joining our LL. I even welcome it. But you’re acting like a horny teenager with his first crush.”
The rest of my Lusty Legion cheered and banged their hands on the table. My jaw dropped in shock, and some weird donkey braying noise escaped me. What had gotten into these guys?
“You all need to calm down,” Yunez tossed up his hands in exasperation. “I let you all have your time with her. Now it is my turn. She knows nearly next to nothing about me.”
“She knows your lips pretty well I’d say,” Jari cracked a smile. His personality was so fluid and easy going, he would never be one to hold a grudge.
I held up a finger, “Wait, I want to go back to this conversation about Yunez,” I turned to him. “Are you telling me I will never have to run into any of your previous lovers?”
His brows raised. “Did I not tell you I loved you before I even knew you? Yes, I am old enough to know I did not want to have you constantly running into my bed partners. I have loved no one else, so why make things harder for us than they needed to be?”
I couldn’t help it. I totally sighed dreamily, then cast dirty looks at the others, no real heat behind them, “You bastards wanted a Mazza for your own since you were kids, but none of you stayed celibate.”
Nato pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers. “Did you want us to come to you virgins? It would have been horrible for you if we had.”
The grin broke free. “Nah, I was just messing with you. Although you’re going to have stiff competition if Yunez makes you all look bad. He’s coming out ahead, and he’s only been in the game for two minutes.”
Mehki laughed. “You guys are so screwed, Yunez is damn near perfect.”
“Fuck off.” Rand flipped Mehki the bird. I laughed at the uncharacteristic move.
“Is it too late to vote Yunez off the island?” Jari peered around at the guys, who all shook their heads vigorously.
“Don’t worry, Darling,” Cabbie purred. “You can always join me in the pleasure house.” He winked at Yunez and heav
y laughter filled the table.
This camaraderie, this fun, light atmosphere with people I cared about was what I had been waiting for my whole life.
And, as an injured man, sporting many slices on his skin with blood coating half his body, ran in, the weightless contentment faced its end.
The man collapsed before he made it halfway to the stage. Two men from the closest table knocked their chairs back in their haste to keep him from hitting the ground.
They didn’t succeed.
Lowering him to the ground gently, blood already pooled around him. Not a lot, but enough that I could see it from where I sat. A loud thud echoed over the now silent room as Yunez sprinted to his side; we all followed. This man was known and loved here, I saw it in every face that blurred by as I followed Yunez to his side. Who was this guy, and how did he get so injured?
Fuck.
The Shadow Society could be on our doorstep this very instance. Had they found us? My gaze shot around the room, but everything else was unchanged. No shouts rang from the outside; no other warriors ran into the hall.
“Wen, is he okay?” Yunez squeezed between the two males.
The bigger of the two men shook his head, even though his eyes were closed in concentration. “It will be close. In addition to his cuts, he has massive internal damage. I don’t even know how he was running.”
“Ado? Can you hear me?” Yunez felt for his pulse as if to confirm for himself that this man was alive.
“He’s unconscious,” the other said.
“Wen, Kedo, take him to his room; we’ll follow behind you.” Immediately, the two men picked up the newcomer with as much care as possible and headed toward the door.
Jan pushed his way through the crowd, his seemingly distressed eyes following the party in front of us, “Damn it.”
Yunez nodded and circled his hand in the air, gesturing for us to follow behind him. The buoyant vibe in the dining hall turned solemn as the Mannos stood to watch us leave. I caught up to Yunez, an uncontrollable desire to comfort him, but he ignored me.
Secrets of the Mazza: A Paranormal Romance (Mazza Series Book 3) Page 14