by Lucy Smoke
Someone groaned, but I couldn't tell who it was. Bellamy stuffed another slice of pizza into his mouth while Marv quirked a brow at me when I looked at him. Texas sulked over his own plate.
"I don't–"
"No, hold on," Knix cut me off with a raised hand of his own. I let mine drop. "Alex was the one who suggested you. I believe he wanted to recruit you on his own, but he's a bit overworked at the moment."
"He hasn't been by the diner as much as he used to," I agreed. That still didn't explain why and what Alex would have recruited me for.
"As for the information that we've gathered…" He paused with another sigh. "We needed to make sure that we weren't getting into anything we couldn't handle."
"So, you what?" I demanded. "Stalked me? Sent Bellamy to kidnap me from school with the intention to interrogate me?" Okay, maybe that was a little dramatic. But still…
"We ran a background check. School and medical and any possible police records checked." Texas' voice drifted closer as he stood and moved back into the living room area. "Your SAT and ACT scores – which were considerably good. I do wonder why you took them if you aren't going to college."
Feeling defensive, I straightened my back. "They were free because of my mom's lack of income and I thought if anything changed, then I'd need those scores."
"You mean if you somehow found a way to go to college?" Knix asked.
I stared at my lap
"You could," Texas said, shrugging as he scooted a pizza box over on the coffee table and took a seat there. "If you wanted."
"So, you're the cyber stalker then?" I clarified. "Find everything you needed?" I added sarcastically.
"Yup." He smiled, though the expression didn't reach his eyes. "That's me, the cyber stalker."
"And yes, we did find out what we needed to." Knix moved closer, picking up one of my hands and held it between his. He leaned closer, eyes meeting mine with a seriousness that startled me.
"You need us, Harlow. You need what we can offer you. All we want to do is help you. Think of this as an internship, a job opportunity or whatever you want. All you need to do is agree to work with us and you'll see that we can change things for you. Change them for the better."
"What do you need me for?"
I was perplexed. I wasn't particularly strong or talented. I certainly didn't have the connections that Marv apparently did. I didn't have Texas' cyber stalking skills. I wasn't as large and imposing as Knix, or as sweet and intelligent as Bellamy. Why would they need me? They had said something about skills and dispositions.
"What kind of skills do you think I have?" I asked. "Why is my disposition so important?"
"Harlow, do you remember when Bell talked to you about your gymnastics?" Knix's voice was soothing as though he was trying to keep me calm.
"Yes, but how does that–"
"Every person has a set of skills that make up their talents," he continued. "Sometimes those skills may seem innocuous or even unoriginal, but they can be twisted and molded into tools used for bigger purposes. We want to do that with you if you'll agree to be a part of our program."
"Why me?" I stared back into Knix’ eyes and tried to fathom why they would want to mold me. What had I done that was so great it had caught their attention?
"Do you remember when you jumped out in the middle of the road to save a cat that wasn't even yours?" Marv asked.
Knix never took his eyes away from me even as I shifted to look away.
"She's mine now," I defended.
"I assumed you'd keep her." Marv smirked. Knix reached up and smoothed back a lock of my hair that had fallen in front of my face and I blinked, distracted, even as Marv continued. "The point I'm trying to make is that you're different. You're different because of your decisions and actions. It's not the talents and skills that people have that make them unique. It's what they do with them."
Marv folded a hand down his chest and smoothed his dress shirt. "Most people would have ignored that little kitten and kept walking. You didn't. The inherent qualities of you as a person, your character, define who you are. It's what makes you so valuable to us. It's why we chose to recruit you. We take on some pretty rough jobs as a team and we're looking for a softer piece in our box of tricks."
"Why?" I asked as Knix straightened and pulled away from me. Despite the distance, I still felt his warmth.
"Pure force is not always the best way to get a job done," Bellamy answered.
The room fell silent as I took in their expressions. They watched me with unreserved interest and hope.
"What do your instincts say?" Texas prodded. "Does your gut tell you that we're bad guys? That we're going to hurt you?"
"I don't believe most people get hurt because someone planned it," I replied quietly. "But..." They held a collective breath. "No. I don't think you want to hurt me."
"So, will you give it – give us – a chance, Little Bit?"
I closed my eyes and counted to three before I opened them again. "Okay."
All eyes were on me.
"Okay?" Marv clarified.
Texas' lips quirked.
I nodded. "I'm not saying I'm trusting you indefinitely. I'm not saying I'll do whatever you ask of me. I'm just saying I'll try whatever it is that you're offering."
"That's all we ask," Bellamy said.
"But I do find it curious," I continued. Marv arched one brow. "What would a group of guys like you need with a girl like me?"
"We–" Knix began.
I touched the wrist closest to me, stopping him. "You explained that you need someone willing to be trained, but what will I be trained for?"
I released his hand, pulling into the thoughts swirling in my head. Words began to form on my lips almost as fast as they appeared in my mind.
"Iris," I said. "That was on the black card that Bellamy gave me. It's the name of your organization, right? If Bellamy has a tattoo of the flower, he's been in it for at least a few years. Iris is the name of a Goddess, isn't it? The Greek Goddess of the Rainbow–"
I stopped when Bellamy slapped a palm on his thigh. His face was red as he held back what was quite obviously laughter. When he opened his mouth to take a breath, as it looked like he had been holding it in, he released a hoot of unbridled amusement. It wasn't long before Texas, Knix, and even Marv were chuckling along with him.
"I told you." Bellamy gasped. "I told you she was perfect."
"She's damn smart, Bell," Knix replied. "I'll give you that."
I waited for them to finish laughing. It dragged on for some time even as I frowned at them in confusion. What was so funny? Knix collapsed onto the couch next to me.
"So, what?" I snapped. "I'm right then, and this is about some Greek Goddess that you all worship as some cult or something?" I didn't actually believe that assessment, but I felt like the butt of a joke and didn't like it.
"Of course not, Little Bit." Knix shook his head. "We're part of an organization called Iris. It's more of a nod to the system that we go by. You're right, Iris is the Goddess of the Rainbow and I suppose the organization was named that in deference to how our teams are split."
"How are they split?" I asked.
Knix put a palm on the back of his neck and leaned to the side, stretching and cracking the muscles there. "We can't tell you more until we're sure you're committed. The only thing I meant by how teams are split, is that they're defined by color. No cults, I promise."
"Alright, then, tell me the rest." I crossed my arms over my chest and sat back against the cushions, waiting. "I'll agree to be committed.” Knix flicked a glance at the guys.
"It's a bit more complicated than that," he replied, looking back at me.
"Uncomplicate it then."
He sighed. "I can't do that."
"Well, then what the hell am I doing here?" I stood up. "You drag me out here to talk and then you won't tell me anything. What was the point in pulling me away, huh? What was the point in even trying to recruit someone if you won't tell them what it is
exactly that you're recruiting them for?"
Knix watched me with assessing eyes. "I want you to talk with Tex," he announced suddenly. "He's much better at explaining some of these things. He knows what he can and can't answer and he'll do his best to clarify what he can."
"Delegating tasks then?" I frowned.
"That's what we're about, Harlow." He rose from the couch, arching over me with this massive frame and bulging muscles. I knew I was small to begin with, but next to him I felt even tinier, and I wasn't sure if he was using an intimidation tactic or if he simply couldn't help it. "We work as a team. This is a part of Tex's job, and I won't take that from him."
The man in question stared at me from his position on the corner of the coffee table before rising to his feet. He held out one long-fingered hand, palm out, waiting.
"I don't bite," he said with a smile. I narrowed my eyes at him. I knew that he wouldn't bite me. He was an adult for goodness sake, but when I let my hand drift up and those fingers closed over mine, he leaned forward and whispered close to my ear, "Unless you ask me nicely."
I reared back, but my hand was firmly in his grasp and he simply tugged me along behind him. I felt more than a little out of control, but as I glanced back over my shoulder, I realized that I wasn't scared. I had been honest when I admitted that I didn't think these guys would hurt me. More than that, I thought that I could trust them to protect me if I really committed to being part of their team. It was an odd feeling for a girl who hadn't ever had someone else to rely on.
Chapter 7
Texas didn't drop my hand when we entered the bedroom. Instead, he held it and led me to the double bed pushed up against the wall under the only window the room boasted. The comforter covering it was smoothly laid over the mattress. Clean and pressed and smelling like vanilla, the dark blue was a contrast against the bare white walls of the room.
"Alright." Texas sat on the bed, tugging me along until I did the same. "Let's get to it, shall we? What do you want to know?"
I paused for a moment, glancing around the room at the plain, gray walls and lack of decor. His fingers tapped a staccato rhythm against his leg as he waited. A lingering scent of heated vanilla reached my nose as his coffee brown eyes watched me.
"I guess I'd like to start with Iris," I finally decided.
"Okay," Texas released my hand, using his own to rub at his pants' legs before standing up and striding across the room to a computer desk. "Well, to start, Iris is a not-for-profit organization that builds connections for members of the community."
"What community?" I asked as he flicked on one of the computers set across the desk and began typing.
"That's confidential," he replied as the printer hummed to life.
"That's not even a major question." I frowned, crossing my arms over my chest.
He shrugged. "I'm sorry. I can't answer that."
"Fine," I huffed. "Go on."
"If you decide to join us, you'll need to sign a non-disclosure agreement–"
"Principal Wiggins said something about that, is he a part of your organization?"
He hummed for a moment, tilting his head to one side and cracking his neck. "In a way, I suppose," he replied.
Great, I thought. Information as clear as mud. Instead of snapping at him, which had proved to have little to no effect, I took the opportunity to check out the rest of the room while I debated another question.
The computer desk was actually two tables pushed together in the diagonal corner of the room with wooden drawers that appeared hand-made underneath. The top of the desk was loaded with cords, wires, screens, hard drives, and a bunch of other techy-whatnots. The walls were bare, but not unclean. There were no marks, no scratches. Not even where the bed might have been moved in from.
"Harlow, are you listening?" I had taken so much time in quietly dissecting his room that I didn't notice Texas was still talking
I shook my head. "Sorry," I mumbled.
Instead of huffing in frustration or annoyance, he merely smirked at me, the lip near his beauty marks curving slightly upwards.
"I said that we would come back to the non-disclosure agreement later. Right now, you're more of a temporary, trainee recruit. We're feeling you out. You're feeling us out. We're finding out if we click together." The way he said that had blood rushing to my face and his smirk bloomed into a full grin.
The printer began to spit out leaves of paper while he turned back to his desk and rummaged through a couple of the drawers, looking for something. When he found what he was looking for – a dark colored phone model – he popped open the back and checked something inside, then went back to searching through his drawers.
"So, I'm temporary..." I said. "Does that mean that I won't actually get any information?"
He shook his head as he opened another drawer, leaving the first open with papers and cords poking out of it. "No, you'll eventually decide whether or not you want to join Iris. When you get to that point – like we all do – we'll tell you everything."
"So, when I’m officially a member of Iris, you'll tell me what I want to know?" I clarified, my brow furrowing.
"Precisely," he said.
The printer stopped.
"Because that makes perfect sense." I huffed. “How am I supposed to know if I want to join if I don’t know what it is?”
Texas shut the drawer and turned back to me. "That’s why I’m telling you what Iris is.”
“A nonprofit organization,” I stated.
He nodded. “Yes. There are plenty of opportunities that will become available to you if you take this job with us." His stare was intense, eyes heavy and deep.
"But that still doesn't answer what you need me for."
"I'll tell you three things," he replied. "Number one: what you stand to gain if you say yes. Number two: what will be expected of you if you say yes. And Number three: how Iris can change your life."
"Like it changed yours?” I guessed.
Curiosity ate at me. What had given him the intensity in his expression that both scared me and drew me in? He was obviously well off enough to afford the tons of tech supplies scattered around his room. I knew computers didn't come cheap even though they were required for necessities like job hunting, college applications, and even school work.
His condo was filled with various things that guys liked – the big, flat screen I had seen in the living room, the Foosball table, the refrigerator full of food. It was also relatively clean. No matter how normal Texas and Knix and Bellamy dressed – I had a feeling Marv didn't dress in t-shirts and jeans often – there was no concealing the fact that they had money. Or maybe Marv was the only one with money and he didn’t mind helping his friends out. I didn't even have a phone. What I did have were electricity and water and rent bills waiting to be paid back home on my kitchen counter.
He shook his head. "I think that's a story for another time." The door creaked and we both looked up. Bellamy lumbered in before dropping onto the bed next to me.
"How far have you gotten?" he asked.
"I'm getting to it," Texas replied.
Bellamy blinked lazily and yawned. "Okay, I just came in to hang. Ignore me." He winked at me and I felt myself flush before I turned to face Texas once more.
"There are a lot of opportunities working for Iris, Harlow. Job opportunities if you'd like. Schooling. Connections. Safety. Friendships. Family," Texas said as Bellamy leaned back and began to play with the ends of my hair. "These are the benefits."
I nodded my understanding as he continued. "Of course, pros never come without cons. Some of the work we do, it can be a bit tricky.”
"What do you–" He shook his head as Bellamy leaned forward and put his hand over my mouth to stop me and in a fit of frustration, I opened my mouth and licked his palm. Bellamy laughed as he leaned forward and looked me in the eye.
"Bellamy told me that you attacked a man much larger than yourself today," Texas commented with a frown as he watched on. "I can be
lieve it."
"I didn't attack him," I said as Bellamy pulled his hand away. I barely punched him, for all the good it did. My thumb was still sore.
"Nevertheless." He turned back to his computers and pulled the stack of papers from the printer before rifling through them, double checking the paper tray and adding more. "Why'd you hit him?"
"He was hurting someone. No one else was willing to stop him." A fact I was still mad about.
"It could've been dangerous." Bellamy leaned back against the bed again and I felt his fingers on my hair.
"And?" I mimicked his tone. "You weren't there. I asked someone to help. He didn't. If I hadn't stepped in, who would have?"
"I'm not saying it was a bad thing, Harlow." Texas set the papers on top of one of his computers and turned towards me. "Just that it was a risk. Weren't you embarrassed?"
"Embarrassment isn't worth someone's life," I snapped. "My school isn't exactly the nicest or the safest. But life's that way. If what you need is someone to do what you tell them to, no questions asked, you might as well take me home now. That isn't me."
A moment of quiet stretched between us before Bellamy coughed to cover his laughter. I spun to face him, my mouth opening, ready to tell him off too. Texas' quiet laughter made me pause. I rotated, frowning.
"What's so funny?" I demanded.
Texas' hand covered his mouth as he chuckled. "You are," he said.
"I don't understand." Bellamy leaned forward, swiping two fingers under each eye, before putting one hand on each of my shoulders.
"You're perfect, Harlow. You are exactly what we need. We need someone willing to jump into situations that aren't exactly safe," Bellamy said. "We'll undoubtedly need to train you a bit – I've seen you rubbing your thumb. You tucked it in your fist when you hit him, didn't you?"
Baffled, I nodded absentmindedly.
"Rookie mistake. Don't worry about that, though. We'll start you on some PT and self-defense. I think we'd prefer if you could take some courses, but we don't really have the time for that. So, Knix and I will likely be the ones going over basics with you. We'll start you on that next Monday, though. You can relax this weekend." His palms squeezed my shoulders reassuringly before releasing me.