by Elise Jae
“I can, but I’m going to need a little more information.”
“Someone shot Hazard as we were leaving our appointment, and there’s an officer here who needs convincing that I wasn’t the one who did it.”
There’s a beat of silence. “You’ll have them in a moment. And if that bastard thinks he’s getting you out of that outpost… well, ask him for me what kind of flowers he wants at his funeral.”
When I hang up, I don’t ask him. No point in getting Margot in trouble too.
Hazard and the officer are still arguing, and the man looks cowed. But I don’t want to give him a reason to call in any of his cronies.
It takes that moment Margot promised, but I open the message when it comes through and pull up both of the feeds she sent over.
“Security footage?” Core asks moving beside me, his baby asleep in his arms.
“Yep. There’s no place safer for a woman on this planet than at Margot’s.”
I hear the officer swallow and when I look at him, his eyes are a little narrower, his brow even more pinched.
I’d guess I’d find him on the tapes if I chose to go on a hunt.
But I’m not going to piss him off.
The two angles are synced, so as I push the bar at the bottom to the right, scrolling toward the correct time, both angles—out into the lot, and from a light pole back toward the building—move together.
I stop as the door to the club opens, and Hazard steps out.
Then I do.
He pulls me close….
“Right there. Muzzle flash.”
I pause it the second Core say it.
This time, it’s Hazard who calls her. “Hey Margot. Got anything with a view of the west side of the building? Looks like someone was on your roof today.
I hear a muffled response.
“Even better. Send it over.”
The attachment she sends is a much shorter recording. She chopped it down. But the face, fully visible on the roof camera is one I would like to have forgotten.
Hazard is rigid beside me. Not wanting to move. “He’s the same man I saw when I went by the house after Noa died. The same one who…. But who is he?”
“He’s one of Noa’s business partners.”
“Do you know his name?”
“She doesn’t have to.” My attention snaps to Core, but his focus is on the officer. “Does she?”
“No.”
“Who is he?”
“That is Elias, the deputy general of the continental security force. Technically, he’s this guy’s boss.”
What kind of business did Noa have with a man in that position?
Everyone watches the officer as he watches the video again.
“Are you going to actually handle this?” Hazard asks, seemingly snapping the man out of his trance. “Or do we need to talk to someone higher up?”
“Or the media?” Cindy asks thoughtfully as she packs her kit back up.
“No. I will deal with it.”
Something in the way his face pinched was troubling. But until I was proven wrong, I’d consider this off my hands.
All my focus was better served for Hazard.
Nineteen
HAZARD
I let Hannah sleep late the next morning. The wound is healing quickly—not as quickly as it would for Ric, but we weren’t all that lucky—and I know that my restlessness only made it harder for her to get any sleep of her own.
The news flits through its usual stories, but I pay attention when they get to what I was waiting for.
“An as of yet unnamed ranking official in the continental government has been placed on administrative leave in relation to a shooting that took place outside of Margot’s this week. At present, no more information has been provided, but we continue to report as this case unfolds.”
It’s vague, but I didn’t expect anything else.
I feel Hannah stir, and my limbs lose some of the weight they’d had as she slept. It’s enough to get me moving.
The coffee pot—something Kimba called a wedding gift—is easy enough to use, and it’s ready when she shuffles out to me.
Wrapping her arms around my waist, she holds tight to me and places a soft kiss to my spine. “How long have you been up?”
“Not too long. I’d hoped you’d be able to get in a few hours without me trying and failing beside you.”
She murmurs something that sounds like an agreement and takes the cup I offer her.
The drink is too bitter for my liking, but she drinks it hot and “black” as she calls it, and the warmth of it reaches me through the bond.
“Did you take the medication Cindy gave you?”
“Yeah.” I don’t like it, but if I’m in pain, Hannah’s in pain, and I won’t let her feel any more of this than she has to. “Next dose is in three hours.”
She nods and takes another sip before looking up at me with a faint smile. “Sian healing times are faster than ours. Something I’m going to be very glad you’ll be passing on to our children.”
“I take it that means you want me to get off the stopper.”
“Yes please.” She sets the cup down—already half gone. “I want everything Hazard. And now that I have you….”
Hopping up to sit on the counter, she raises a brow and crooks a finger. “Life’s so close to being perfect, I don’t know how I’ll be able to bear not taking everything I can get.”
I step between her legs, dragging her forward and kissing her as deeply as I dare. “You have something you have to do today, don’t you?”
When she pulls back it’s to glare at me, but it’s accompanied by a smile and I can feel the humor she feels.
“It’s stranger than I thought it would be,” she says.
“Which part?”
“Just the things you can get from the bond. I thought it would be vague emotions, not knowing when I’m thinking about specific things.”
“It isn’t. But you’re distracted… and I’m shirtless. That’s usually all you need to focus on what we could be doing.”
Chuckling, she swats at my chest.
“I need to go to the house and get the last of my stuff packed up and then I’m supposed to meet with a realtor later today. It should just be a key hand-off, but who knows.”
“I’ll come with you.”
“Is D going to be okay with that?”
“I’m on the wounded list, remember? Cindy’s told me to stay out of the Zone for a few days. If Drift gives me any shit, I’ll sic her on him.”
“Do we need to get anything on the way?”
Shaking her head, she lifts her arms and I scoop her up so she can wrap them around my neck. “I swung by the other day and dropped off everything else I’d need.”
We only get distracted twice before we’re out the door.
“Am I going to have to get a piece of plexiglass installed in the car to keep you from crawling into my lap while we’re driving?” I shoot her a laughing glance
“I’ll behave myself… well, I’ll try.”
She gets in the passenger side and makes sure I see her sit on her hands before I close the door.
But they’re out and in use as soon as I sit beside her.
Luckily, she’s content with holding my hand. It’ll be dark by the time we get there if we keep this up.
She might not have expected me to be able to fake reading her thoughts, but I hadn’t expected the level of contentment that filters through.
We’re half way down the mountain before she shifts in her seat so she can snuggle against my arm.
I love her.
I’ve loved her for longer than I thought possible. And now that she’s mine, maybe that perfection she wants really is within reach.
“I love you too.” She squeezes my arm and then sits up to look me in the eye. “You’re not the only one who can read minds.”
“I do love you. I know that some people think they don’t have to say it out loud, because their bond
mate will feel it… but I need to say it.” And I needed to hear it. How much, I hadn’t realized.
“Well, then, lucky for you, we can both say it as much as we like… We don’t have to keep those feelings locked up tighter than one of Margot's rooms anymore.”
I pull into her old bondmate’s garage and lean across the car to kiss her as the door closes. “Let’s put this part of your life to rest.”
“The sooner the better.”
I follow her in, distracted. That’s the only explanation for why I don’t see the man waiting for us. Or maybe it’s the meds.
Elias on his own isn’t menacing. The gun in his hand, however.
It makes me think twice about doing anything… just yet.
“That’s far enough.” Elias adjusts his grip on the gun.
But I don’t freeze, I drag Hannah behind me.
The man rolls his eyes. “Noble, but we both know you have to die now too.”
I keep my grip on Hannah as she tries to move out from where I’ve placed her, as rage boils over and into me.
Not that I need it.
But of the two of us, I’ve had practice keeping a lid on that particular emotion.
“Killing us isn’t going to get you the payday you think it will.”
“Of course not. But don’t worry, I’ll take care of that sex peddler too.”
“You’re going to kill three people, and you think you’re going to get away with it?” He clearly had no idea what Kimba was capable of in retaliation, let alone the rest of them. “The brotherhood won’t let you live to enjoy the money.”
“I’ll kill every last one of them and all their bondmates and children too, if I have to.”
Glancing back at Hannah, I wonder just how much money Noa left her with.
“Noa was supposed to kill her months ago. The bastard. I’m the only reason he even had you. Then the idiot decided to fall in love with you.”
“That wasn’t love.”
He shoots a patronizing glance toward my right side and I know Hannah has poked her head out.
“Sacrificing his happiness by distancing himself from you as much as possible? He didn’t want you to grieve him. By the time I figured it out it was too late. You might have hated him… but that was by design.” He laughs bitterly. “He used to say no one hated him more than he did himself. He was wrong.”
Hannah might argue, but in Noa place…. No, I wouldn’t have done the same. But I can understand why he might have thought it was his only choice.
“But because he couldn’t pull the damn trigger… more people are going to have to die.”
“Did you kill him?” I ask, a tangle of Hannah’s curiosity and my own, pushing the question from my lips.
“Of course not. I needed him to live longer than her to keep this mess from happening.” He stands. “But I have no compunction against killing you.”
“I wouldn’t.”
Elias head jerks to the side, but I don’t look away from that gun. I don’t need to. I recognize Riann’s voice easily enough.
Hannah’s grip tightens against my back.
“What are you doing here?” Elias asks, his voice has pitched and I see a different kind of fury and fear in his eyes.
“Not letting you go through with this, that’s for sure.”
“You can’t stop me.”
“I can. But I’m not the one you need to hear this from. I intercepted this before you got it. I’d hoped to save you some pain, since there was no reason you’d need to know… but you’ve forced my hand. ” This time I do look at Riann. He’s pulled a tablet and has turned it toward Eilas.
It’s the first time I’ve seen Hannah’s previous bondmate. And I feel like I should feel something. But there’s nothing… not even coming through the bond from Hannah.
The video starts and I shift on my feet. If Riann can keep him distracted….
“Your actions have made it impossible for me to continue to operate as we once did. I won't let you kill my bondmate, and don’t deny that you’ve tried. I know. I know all of the attempts. You can stop. If you kill her, you’ll gain nothing.
He shifts on the screen. “I changed my will today. Everything goes to her, and the document is clear. If she predeceases me, the money goes to whoever her beneficiaries are. You will get nothing.
“I won’t let myself be the monster she likely already thinks I am. This deal we made was a gamble and it didn’t pay out.”
The screen freezes on the man’s glare.
“He wasn’t your friend, brother.”
I feel Hannah’s shock a moment before Elias shorts a derisive laugh. “Of course he wasn’t my friend. It was business and I am owed.”
“How much?” Hannah asks from behind me. “How much do you think he owed you?”
“He owed me everything. I broke every law imaginable for that man and he broke our contract.”
“That’s the problem, isn’t it?” Riann says, a little too calmly. “When you deal with criminals… they usually act dishonestly.”
His shoulders drop and it’s all the opening I need. I take that final step toward him and I twist. The sound of breaking bone is one I’m familiar with when dealing with the other monsters that live on this planet.
The scream he lets forth… not so much.
But when he passes out, hitting the floor with a crunch, an unsettling calm falls over the house.
We all stare at Elias as if waiting for him to spring up and tell us he was acting.
Riann is the first to speak, scowling down at his brother.“You’ll want to tie him up. Just in case.”
HANNAH
Riann stands beside me, watching as Hazard ties Elias up.
“I’ve already called the correct officials. They’ll be here soon.”
“But will they do anything? I’d bet he has friends in high places.”
“My friends are higher. Besides, the news outlets will get here first. They won’t be able to hide him. Especially since I may have mentioned your involvement.”
“What do I have to do with it?”
Riann looks at me for a long moment. “You don’t watch the news, do you?”
I shake my head and lean into Hazard when he comes back to me. The news was just another layer of depressing my life didn’t need.
“There are three reporters you’d definitely recognize, and they all have a problem with the idea of you being taken from this world. In any way.”
“Popularity has its perks.” Hazard says it from above my head and I bury my face in his chest again, needing to feel his solid warmth.
He probably already knows, but… “He shot Hazard after our session.”
“What?” Riann’s gaze shoots to Hazard, tracing over him—as if hazard would let a weakness show. “Where?”
“In the arm. I think he was trying to hit her, but I got in the way.” Hazard holds me a little tighter. “Based on where I was hit… she wouldn’t have made it.”
“Saints.” Riann curses under his breath and drags his hand down his face. “He’s been nagging and needling me about Margot’s for a week. I just thought he’d finally decided to actually go, I didn’t know he’d….”
Riann looks at his unconscious brother on the floor as if he’d like to kick him. But the door chime distracts him.
“You two stay put. I’ll sort everything out.” He gives us both a lingering glance and then goes to answer it.
“At least that’s over.” I let myself melt fully into Hazard. “All we have to do is get rid of this place and it can really be just you and me, without Noa’s ghost hanging over us.”
Riann really does take care of everything. He directs the officials and they do everything he says.
When I peek out of the window, I count five of their strange cameras pointed on men who are clearly there to report on the matter.
It feels almost coordinated.
“Who are you?” I finally ask when Riann comes back.
With a laughing sm
ile, he takes off his jacket, turning it inside out and pulls a pair of frames from his pocket.
In a move that is too Clark Kent to ignore the comparison, he changes into someone else all together when he redresses.
“That’s a handy trick.” Hazard says, his voice darkly quiet overhead.
“It’s incredibly useful.”
I’ve seen this Riann before. His face is on the flickering bulletins throughout town.
“Remind me to give you a call the next time the governor pisses me off.”
“Do, I’ll make sure you can tell him how you feel directly.” Riann glances sharply to the door. “I’ll go give a statement and then everyone will leave. You don’t need to worry about anything else.”
“Is it going to be hard?” I ask, “Putting your brother away?”
“No. It would be harder to let him go free, knowing he’ll still want to kill one or both of you. Even if we never… hook up again, I can't stand the thought that my inaction might be your end.”
“Thank you.” Hazard holds out his hand and Riann takes it. “Let Hannah know when you’re free next.”
His lips twitch in a smile that’s almost sad. “You don’t owe me anything for this.”
“No.” Hazard’s smile is wicked. “But I think you owe us.”
He pulls Riann forward and I hug them both close.
It takes a moment, but Riann sighs. “I really do have to go out and make a statement.”
When I let him go, Hazard hesitates, but only long enough to look him in the eye, once more, and say “Thank you” as he brushes his lips over Riann’s.
Groaning. Riann adjusts his pants. “Stop making me want to ignore my job.”
I laugh as he goes. “See you soon.”
“Yes, you will.”
Hazard doesn’t release his hold on me, he pulls me closer as he moves to the low couches I’ve never sat on and pulls the control pad from the coffee table I’ve never used.
Punching through the standard sequence, he pulls up the news, and we watch as Riann provides a polished, if edited, version of what occurred. Condemning his brother for the actions today… the shooting… and at least three other attempts on my life.