Catalyst: Book 2 of The Dark Paradise Trilogy

by Isadora Brown

  “Now, why do you need another suit?” she asked as her eyes flitted over the different shirts, ties, and blazers. When her eyes saw a random price tag, her mouth dropped open in horror. “This is ridiculous, Jack. Why would you spend this amount of money on a pair of socks when you have fifty pairs of them at home?”

  Jack chuckled, seeing an offended frown touch the shopkeeper’s lips. The shopkeeper’s eyes narrowed in Andie’s direction, and if it wasn’t for the fact that she was with Jack, he would have easily asked her to leave. “I think you upset Bernie,” Jack told her, walking over to her to get a better view of what Andie was peering at.

  “So?” Andie asked, glancing up at him. She hadn’t expected him to be so close, and as a result, had to clear her throat before continuing. “We’re the ones who should be offended! Selling a silk tie for two hundred dollars. Are you kidding me?”

  Bernie the shopkeeper, an older man probably in his later fifties, cleared his throat rather obtrusively. He didn’t want some random girl, his best customer was, uh, “dating,” to scare Jack off. It was obvious she hadn’t been born in Jack’s class, and briefly wondered what they were doing together. “Uh, Mister Phillip,” he said in a feeble voice and briefly threw a hardened gaze over at Andie. “We have some of the tuxedos you requested waiting in your usual room, whenever you’re ready.”

  “You have a usual room here?” she asked Jack with an amused smile.

  Jack said nothing as he headed into the room. Andie’s eyes spotted a tuxedo on a manikin and briefly pictured him donning such a suit. She had to hand it to the man; he could most definitely wear a suit. So much so in fact, that there was one occasion Andie briefly entertained the thought of removing said suit and having her way with him. She blushed at such a memory and shook her head, hoping to rid herself of such a scandalous thought. But it wasn’t exactly her fault, was it? As though Andie could help the fact of how delicious Jack looked …

  “I talked to my mom today,” Andie said, turning to face Jack’s closed door. She didn’t know why she brought it up, but she did.

  “Oh yeah?” Jack asked, pretending not to sound interested. However, a few seconds later, he popped his upper torso out of the door and locked eyes with Andie. “Well? What did you guys talk about?”

  It took a moment for Andie to realize what he had asked. All she could see was Jack’s incredibly broad shoulders, those nice, big biceps of his, and a toned chest hidden by a tight, white undershirt. Oh my God, Oh my God, Oh my God … It didn’t help the fact that she had yet to answer because Jack walked out of the dressing room, crossing his arms over his chest, and how is it possible those arms can get bigger??

  “Oh, well, nothing really,” Andie said, glancing away and hoping Jack didn’t notice her very new red features. She had seen him the same way this morning, but it appeared that every time was like the first time when it came to Jack Phillip. When she glanced back, she saw a very nice white, long-sleeved collared shirt hanging on his shoulders. He seemed to be having trouble buttoning it up, so without thinking clearly, Andie walked over to him, pushed his hands away, and began to button it for him. “No news on Keirah.” She hoped he didn’t notice her shaking fingers, or at least believed it was a result of the cold. When she looked at her handy work, she frowned, noticing that she had skipped a button so the shirt looked lopsided. Quickly, she unbuttoned the shirt.

  “I’m sorry, And,” Jack said, nodding as he watched her. “You know we’ll find her. I won’t let anything happen to her.” A grin overtook his lips. “You’re pretty good at unbuttoning shirts, by the way.”

  Andie rolled her eyes. “Oh, shut up,” she muttered, nudging his shoulder with her palm. She was sure Bernie was wallowing in horror at the wrinkles that might be accumulating on the very expensive dress shirt. “Don’t try to use that Phillip charm on me. It’s not going to work.” She looked at her handy work and rubbed her lips together. Yes, Jack could definitely wear a suit.

  “Well, maybe if you listened, it might,” he said, throwing her a cocky grin and heading back inside his dressing room.

  At that moment, Andie’s phone began to ring. Upon answering it, Carey’s frantic voice responded to Andie’s inquiry of a greeting, but after calming the young woman down, she managed to decipher that Reese’s house was burned down, and as of yet, there was no word on whether or not there were any survivors. Nothing on who started the fire or if it was a fluke accident, either.

  “Don’t worry, I’ll be right there,” Andie assured her friend before hanging up. Her hands shook as they slid her phone back into her pocket. Reese was still camping with Ollo, right? “Hey Jack, I have to go; it’s an emergency. Carey says that news broke of Reese’s house being burned down or on fire or something like that. ”

  “Take the car,” he said in an authoritative voice.

  “I can walk,” she called back, and before he could argue, she slipped back onto the cold Onyx street.

  Andie knew she probably should have taken the car. It was cold and her mind was busy. But walking meant she was actually doing something, and she would probably make it to Carey’s on foot faster than if she drove due to the rush hour traffic. It was a twenty minute walk, at least, but she’d be on busy streets the entire time, streets she was quite familiar with. What she wasn’t expecting, however, was running into somebody. Somebody she knew and didn’t want to ever see again unless she was forced to.

  “Andie,” his voice said, crisp and clear-cut. Andie hated how fear flooded into her bloodstream and turned it cold, but it was her natural reaction to her ex-boyfriend. Looking up, she saw his hard golden eyes glance around her before sliding back onto hers. “Well, I don’t see your new boyfriend around. Mind if we talk?”

  “Actually, I do,” Andie said, hoping to walk around him with ease.

  Aaron grabbed her wrist with his thick fingers and coiled them around her in a grip that matched a snake’s. “Actually, I don’t care,” he said. “I was just being polite. I want—need—you to listen to what I have to say.”

  “Aaron, you’re hurting me,” Andie said through her gritted teeth, and tried to yank her wrist away from him. He was strong, however, despite being somewhat bulky.

  “Listen, you’re fucking the richest guy on the fucking planet,” Aaron said darkly. “I get it. But there are things that need to be said before I can walk away from you. You will listen to me. It’s only fair. I am your boss, after all.”

  “Aaron, you’re hurting me,” Andie said through gritted teeth again, though this time there was a little shakiness to her voice. “Let me go.”

  “Not until you listen to me,” Aaron all but shouted. It was a wonder people weren’t stopping to help her, but this was commonplace for Onyx.

  “No,” Andie said, wincing. And with that, she jutted her palm up until it hit Aaron’s nose. He immediately dropped her hand to cup his now bleeding nose, cursing her with such extremities that people began to stare. Seeing her chance, Andie hailed the nearest cab and hopped inside it before Aaron even realized she was gone. She was slightly breathless and her wrist was throbbing, but she was away from Aaron, at least for now.

  When she reached Carey’s, she decided to not mention Aaron and focus all her attention on Reese and what was happening there. Carey turned up the news and caught Andie up with the details. Reese was still on the campground with Ollo, but due to lack of cell phone reception, there was no way to get ahold of them. Andie only interrupted when she needed something clarified, but all in all, it sounded as though there were no updates on casualties. It was clear somebody had purposefully started the fire. There were no suspects yet, however. Andie stayed with Carey for a few hours, ignoring phone calls she was sure were from Aaron. It was only when there was a knock on the door did Andie realize how late it was. She stood a little too abruptly, warily making her way over to the door and praying to God that it was not Aaron. Seeing the familiar face, however, caused the young woman to purse her lips.

  “What’s up?” A
ndie asked after opening the door to a very tense and somewhat aggravated Jack Phillip. Why wasn’t he out as Black Wing, trying to figure out what, or who, burned Reese’s house down?

  “You haven’t been answering any of my calls,” Jack said, narrowing his eyes at Andie as she shut the front door gently as to not wake up her friend. “I wanted to make sure you were okay. I mean, it’s ten thirty.”

  “Shouldn’t you be on—”

  “Don’t you know how dark it is?” he interrupted. Once they were both in the car, he shut the door behind him and the driver proceeded to head back to the manor. “I mean, Andie, how long have you been living in Onyx for Chrissake? You know this city’s reputation; you are a young woman walking alone at night here. Do you have a death wish?”

  “Didn’t you hear me when I said that Carey was going through some problems?” Andie asked as she slid into the backseat of the moving town car, giving Jack a sideways glare. She scowled at him, crossing her arms over her chest. “You think you’re so perfect? I am not yours in any capacity. I can do whatever I want, and I don’t need your permission.”

  “What the fuck is this?” Jack asked, glancing at her wrist. He grabbed her forearm and turned on the backseat light so he could get a better glimpse of it. His eyes gleamed with anger once he recognized that it was a bruise. “You didn’t have this before you left; I would have noticed this. Be honest with me, Andie. What the fuck happened?”

  For whatever reason, Jack’s tone prevented Andie from reverting back to defense mechanisms, and instead, decided to tell him the truth. “I ran into someone from my past,” she told him without looking at him. “He wanted to talk, but I told him no. I-I … He’s my boss, Jack. Somehow, my ex-boyfriend with no college degree who barely managed to graduate high school is my superior.”

  “God, Andie,” Jack said, releasing his grasp on her and shaking his head. “Why didn’t you tell me? What the fuck is wrong with you? Walking around at night alone when the guy knows what you’re up to now? Fuck, Andie, I can’t be expected to constantly babysit you when I have incredibly important things I need to do!”

  “I never told you to babysit me!” Andie exclaimed, her pale green eyes flashing with fury. “You know what Jack? Just because my mom did a shitty job at being a parent doesn’t mean you can step in and fill the role. And you know what? You’re absolutely right. You have way more important things to do than to mess around with me, so you know what? I’m done. I don’t want to be around you right now. You don’t have to worry about me anymore. I’m sorry that I turned out to be such a fucking burden.”

  “You’re really done with me?” Jack asked in a terse, clipped tone. “You’re really done with us?”

  The car pulled into Jack’s driveway, as Andie answered. “Yes, I am,” she told him stubbornly. “There was never an us, Jack.”

  Jack glared at Andie who returned his glare with one of his own. It was only when the car came to a stop that Jack moved. He unbuckled his seat belt, hastily exited the car, and slammed the door shut behind him. Andie released a breath she didn’t realize she was holding upon seeing him enter the manor, and slowly made her way out of the car.

  “I am so sorry,” Andie murmured to the driver, who had opened the door for her. She seemed paralyzed, unaware of what she just said until she heard the echoing slam of the front door. “That fight was really inappropriate.”

  The moment she entered the manor, she knew Jack was gone. He had patrols to take care of, people to inspire. Black Wing was needed more than Jack was right now.

  “Since you won’t listen to me by choice,” a rough, familiar voice snarled in her ear, catching her by surprise, “I’ll make you listen to me.”

  Andie swallowed and furrowed her brows. She was definitely scared at the moment, but her fear produced adrenaline, and before she realized just what she was doing, she managed to elbow Aaron in the stomach. He gasped and released her, but Andie’s freedom was short-lived. Aaron grabbed her, even though he had not yet reclaimed his full balance, and as a result, Andie was pushed over, knocking over a nearby vase that shattered on the marble floor. The young woman had no time to brace herself, and consequently, knocked her head against the floor hard. Immediately she was knocked out cold, making it much easier for Aaron to slip her out of the manor unnoticed.

  22

  Keirah wasn’t sure she was ready for this. It was late; the banks weren’t even open any more.

  When Noir said he was going to have her tag along with him whenever he robbed banks as more than just the getaway car driver, she really didn’t think too much of it. But she really, really should have.

  It was the next day, and Noir had told her to get ready because they would be robbing a bank that day.

  In all honesty, Keirah had thought that he would be training her with just how to protect him, like helping her learn how to shoot a gun and how to hide her emotions and all that other bad guy stuff. But apparently, Noir wanted her to wing it.

  He really was a sociopath.

  What if her lack of experience got him killed? Hell, what if it got her killed?

  Her fingers were shaking as she dressed herself in the outfit she had bought specifically for this sort of occasion, but she never thought she’d be wearing it as soon as she was. Maybe he was kidding. Maybe he just wanted to see if she would do it.

  She couldn’t help but throw up the contents of her stomach. When she finished, she quickly brushed her teeth and looked at herself in the mirror. What had happened to her? From this point on, she would be a criminal. There was nothing Commissioner Jarrett could do to save her. She had chosen her side. She would have to say goodbye to her mother, Andie, her dream of being a criminal psychologist, of going to the University of Onyx, or ever having a normal relationship with a guy, of starting a family. She would never be free. She would never be safe again.

  And yet … Regardless of how nervous she was knowing she would give all of that up, she couldn’t let Noir go in there alone. Though he had his henchmen with him, he was still alone. Anything could happen to him. And she couldn’t, in good conscience, let him do it alone, even though he had done it so many times before her. Things were different now. She loved him, and in his own twisted way, he loved her. Now was her chance to prove it.

  She gathered a breath and headed down the stairs.

  Noir had been conferring with his right hand man, but before they could finish, the man just stopped talking and stared up at the staircase. Smacking his lips together, Noir cocked his head so he could see just what the man was staring at, and his mouth dropped open.

  When he had told her to get something distracting, he didn’t mean … He bit his bottom lip and raised his brow as he allowed his hazel eyes to take in just how his new bodyguard looked in this particular costume. He smirked. She really took the sexiness seriously.

  Noir had never seen Keirah this way before, and if he was being honest, the sight of her excited him. She looked like a sexy version of gun moll, plucked out of her mundane life and kept in his own personal Chicago. He could not help but allow himself a good once-over, since it simply wouldn’t do if he were the one distracted, and began at her feet, clad in impossibly high heels. Heels he would make her keep on when they inevitably fucked afterwards.

  Noir smirked when his eyes finally reached her face, and he gave her a wolfish smile. He would probably kill his men for staring so blatantly at her, but he knew they couldn’t exactly help themselves. She perfectly encompassed sexiness and innocence.

  “Well, well, well,” he drawled as he approached her. The henchmen took this as their cue to leave, get stuff ready, and start the car. Noir didn’t even notice they had left. “Look at you.” And he did once more before reaching out and gripping her hips in his hands. “And the J looks absolutely breath-taking with your outfit.”

  Keirah blushed causing Noir to chuckle and hold her close to him. If they had more time, he would take her right there, on the staircase. He wouldn’t even have cared if his m
en had caught them.

  “You look so, hum … delicious,” he murmured against her neck, before licking the slender column of her throat.

  Keirah had to grip his forearms to ensure that her knees wouldn’t buckle from underneath her as she tilted her head subconsciously, giving him better access to her throat.

  Abruptly, Noir pulled away from her and stepped back. He reached behind him and pulled out a small Glock with a holster made of Velcro so it could wrap around her thigh.

  “Do you know how to handle this thing?” he asked her as he knelt down so his head was the same height as her waist.

  “You point and shoot?” Keirah guessed, her voice unsteady due to his current position.

  Noir chuckled as he slowly reached up the skirt of her dress and wrapped the material around her thigh, opposite the garter. Occasionally, his fingers would brush lightly against the folds of her sex, covered by a pair of white boy shorts, and Keirah had to grit her teeth to make sure she didn’t get too distracted. He did this on purpose, of course, just to tease her.

  She loved when he teased her.

  But now was not the time.

  Before she realized it, Noir was standing. He wrapped his arm around her waist and led her out the door and into her first adventure.

  The bank was somewhat empty, with three different security guards scattered across the lobby of the building. Noir pulled up to the side before getting out of his car with six other men and Keirah, leaving two men behind to guarantee a quick escape. One henchmen knelt down and proceeded to unlock the door to the bank with ease.

  Keirah’s heart began hammering in her chest as though a woodpecker was incessantly thrusting his long beak against it. She didn’t even care how ridiculous she looked in her costume. All she could feel was the cool metal pressed against the inside of her thigh, and her mind was consumed with prayers that she didn’t have to use it. Noir had promised she didn’t need to engage in robbing the bank nor did she have to threaten or harm anyone. She just had to make sure that if somebody was sneaking up on him or if someone was threatening his life in some way, she would take care of it.