Burning for an Assassin

by Serenity Snow

  “That bracelet you’re always wearing, is it a charm too?”

  She looked at the memory locket that contained the boosters for her spell. “Sort of.” The spell had worked better than she’d thought in bringing her lust, and she was gaining some confidence in herself.

  She had a ways to go yet before she was comfortable with her body, but being with Sabrina was helping.

  “Do you belong to a coven?”

  “Not anymore,” Veda replied. “My father does, but I’m not a member. They give me training whenever I ask for it.” She brought the gold chain with the charm back to the bed. “This is a protection symbol.” She pointed to the rune. “It’s called eolh.”

  Sabrina touched it and the symbol glowed gold for a moment. That was a good sign. The protection was still activated on the piece.

  “Just keep it on at all times.”

  “I will,” she assured her and Veda moved behind her on the bed to secure the chain in place.

  Veda kissed the nape of her neck and wrapped her arms around Sabrina in a quick hug before falling onto the bed next to her.

  Sabrina kissed her again. “How about that breakfast now, little seductress?”

  Veda smiled. “I think we can make that happen.” She stole a quick kiss and headed for the bathroom.

  ****

  Sabrina shook her head and climbed off the bed too. Her cell phone’s ring drew her to the chair where her pants hung neatly. She pulled it free and glanced at the display. No name.

  “What?” she asked coldly.

  “Instead of screwing around you should be retrieving my property,” the mechanical voice said. “We’ll meet in three hours, so climb off your girlfriend and get dressed.”

  “Where?” she asked.

  “Café Sprig. My man will be wearing a red ball cap and shades. Don’t try to get him to take them off. Hand off the cards and move on.”

  “I only have one.”

  “Don’t fuck with me,” he snarled. “I want them all. No games.”

  “You should have gotten the truth from Pamela before you killed her,” Sabrina told him airily. “Then, you’d know where she’d been keeping them. Now you have to pray whatever you’re trying to hide dies with her and Westmore. I know I am since she didn’t give me what I paid for.” She ended the call and tapped in Ace’s number.

  “In an hour,” Ace said. “We’re still watching, but you’re right. What I have so far will hang The Hatter and his old pal Lowell Grande.”

  She snorted. “See ya then.” Sabrina ended the call and lightly gripped the rune charm. The damned thing might come in handy before the day was over.

  Sabrina dressed and headed out to her car to retrieve her bag. She didn’t sense anyone watching her, but she quickly headed back inside.

  When Veda came out of the bathroom she cleaned up and padded out into the bedroom to dress. Veda was talking to someone in the kitchen she supposed from the distance of the voices.

  She hurriedly dressed and headed out to snickers.

  “Carmen,” Veda said. “Just go.”

  “I’ll be back in an hour to change the sheets then,” the other woman said. “I hope you used protection.”

  “It’s not like she can get me pregnant.”

  “But there’s still STDs and—”

  “I’m good, Carmen,” she said sternly. “Go.”

  The other woman laughed. “You’re glowing. You must be falling in love. I want to meet this woman who put the light in your smile.”

  “Another day,” Veda said softly.

  “You promise?”

  “Yes. We both have to get back to work anyway,” she said.

  “Okay. Although I think your father would be very interested to know you left for a little morning de-light.”

  Sabrina smothered a laugh and heard Veda’s choked laughter.

  “Goodbye, Carmen,” she said sternly.

  Sabrina exited on hearing the door close. “So you do this kind of thing often, huh?” she asked in a teasing tone.

  “What?”

  “Entice women into your bed for a morning romp,” Sabrina replied with a questioning look.

  “No!” Veda’s caramel skin colored and her blue eyes were frantic. “Sabrina. Tell me you didn’t hear any of that.”

  Sabrina laughed. “I was kidding, Veda,” she said. “Come on.” She went to her, taking her hand and kissing her knuckles. “Sounds like she cares about you.”

  “Carmen’s my housekeeper, and I’ve known her since I was fifteen.” She shrugged. “She knows I’m a lesbian, and she tries to get me through my dad’s craziness. You know, date this man, date the other. All you need is the right man. He’ll do it to you so good you’ll wake up straight.”

  Sabrina gave her an amused smile. “Sounds like you need to have a serious talk with him.”

  Veda shook her head. “He’s a good father. He just doesn’t get it.” She led Sabrina into the kitchen. “I have fruit salad and yogurt dressing or oatmeal with toast.”

  “Option A sounds good.” Sabrina smiled.

  “Great.” Veda’s gaze slid over her then and she cocked a brow. “Don’t approve?” She was wearing a fitted button down with a low-neckline. The look would be fine once she grabbed her jacket at the office.

  “No. You look great.”

  “But so do you, Veda,” she murmured. “You have a great style.” The dress she wore was sleeveless with a scooped neckline and a split at the calf. Veda wore a black crystal pendant on a silver chain with silver sandals.

  She smiled. “My stepmother helped me pick out most of the clothes I have now.”

  Sabrina frowned. “What shattered your confidence in yourself, Veda? I know you weren’t always struggling with your self-esteem.”

  She shrugged. “No.” She retrieved two bowls from a cabinet and spoons and set them on the center island. “I had a lot of trouble fitting in when I was young. My father’s white, a Frenchman and my mother was black and part Native American Indian. She grew up on the reservation and ran as far away from it as she could when she turned eighteen.”

  “And she met your father,” Sabrina said.

  Veda nodded. “She was twenty-three, an artist, and she was thin and very confident.” Veda frowned and then she said, “I wasn’t always accepted by the black kids or the white ones. I had trouble fitting into either world and I turned to food. Pretty soon I was ridiculed for being too fat.” She retrieved the fruit and yogurt from the fridge.

  “Things spiraled out of control?”

  “Then my mom died and I was thrown into a white family where I wasn’t always accepted. My mom had a few relatives from her dad’s side of the family that I was in touch with, but like I said I was the enemy to most of them. I was part white and a child of privilege.”

  “You’re finally starting to accept yourself?”

  She nodded. “Professionally, I’ve been on solid ground for a long time. I knew what I could do and had no problems letting the world, but otherwise I always picked the women who I thought I was lucky to have even though they made jokes about me being fat. They were with me for my money.”

  “I bet your stepmother taught you better than that.”

  She smiled. “Yeah, but I couldn’t see past being ugly until six months ago when my therapist suggested I do a makeover and keep a journal. I thought she was crazy, but I think it’s worked some. I approached you.”

  “You never would have?”

  She laughed. “No. Eight months ago I would have taken a look at you and known you turn me down because I wasn’t attractive enough. I’ve lost some weight since then though.”

  “Are you happy with the way you look, Veda?”

  Her brows furrowed and then she nodded slowly. Her eyes shone with honesty. “Almost. My goal is a size twelve and I’m a sixteen.”

  “A sexy one, baby,” she said softly. “No matter what anyone says, Veda, you have to be comfortable with what you see when you look in the mirror. If someone el
se doesn’t agree, they can go to hell.”

  Veda gave her a tremulous smile and averted her gaze. She picked up a grape and brought her gaze back to Sabrina’s. Veda held the grape to her lips, and Sabrina opened to her. She nipped her finger and Veda smiled.

  Sabrina caught the grape between her teeth and Veda withdrew her hand. “I’ve only known you a few days, but you’re good for me.”

  “Ditto.”

  “So you should keep me a little longer and see where we end up,” Veda said softly, giving her a shy look.

  “Maybe I’m planning on it.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  An hour later, Sabrina pulled into the parking lot of Perfect Charm and cut the engine. Veda glanced at her, warm and tingly all over. Something was different, and she knew what it was.

  She was happy, and in love. She knew it was love because she’d never felt quite like this before. She knew it was crazy, it was too soon. However, she didn’t think it was the spell. Freya, the goddess of love and fertility as well as strength had opened the door and she was standing on the threshold. She could take the chance or run away.

  The wise thing would be to run. Sabrina’s issues might get her killed, but the cartel would come after her even if she did break things off. At least, that’s what she believed. Veda hoped Sabrina had been honest with her about the important aspects of the situation.

  “I want you to be aware of your surroundings, Veda and listen to Blade. She’s been doing this job for a long time.”

  “Okay.” She stared out the windshield watching Blade climb out of Sabrina’s car.

  “She’ll keep you safe.”

  “I do have powers, Sabrina,” she said. “I can protect myself to a degree especially against mortals.”

  “Humor me,” she said insistently.

  Veda looked at her, amusement thrumming through her. “I am.”

  “I’ll see you tonight. We’ll be staying at my place because you have a housekeeper you’ll have to explain things to. Besides that, I don’t want her hurt unnecessarily.”

  “You don’t think giving them what they want will be the end of it?”

  “It never is,” she murmured. “People like this want nothing less than blood and bodies.”

  “Sabrina, have you told me everything? Been honest with me about Pamela and your connections to her?”

  “Not everything, but that has nothing to do with why I’m in this mess,” she said looking out the windshield now. “She was blackmailing me about my first kill. Instead of paying her off, I stole the evidence and a little something else too. I thought it was all connected to that night and I didn’t want to leave anything to chance.”

  Veda contemplated the words, rolled them around in her mind. “It was personal wasn’t it?”

  “Yes.”

  Her stepfather. He must have brutalized her as a child otherwise she didn’t see Sabrina going off on the man and killing him. Veda put her hand on Sabrina’s. “Sabrina, will you look at me?” she asked softly.

  Sabrina met Veda’s gaze after a long moment. Her stare was guarded.

  The dean’s daughter had had that same guarded look when anyone mentioned her father and Veda found herself swallowing tightly over a lump as pain sliced through her. If it was true…

  “I’m putting my trust in you, and I’m counting on you to be careful in dealing with these people. I want you alive. I mean, what chance do I have with a dead woman?” She cracked a little smile as she leaned toward Sabrina.

  Sabrina rested her forehead against Veda’s. “You’re too good to be true, Veda.”

  “Then, don’t throw me away.”

  ****

  Sabrina headed to the meet place with the SD card in her pocket. Ace was going to back her up, but Sabrina had her own gun and was more than ready to use it if need be. She didn’t want to take any chances with Veda in her life now, but she wouldn’t take any prisoners either. That was the way she’d always played the game.

  The cats who’d come after Veda today were as good as dead, and The Hatter would soon follow for bringing her into this mess.

  She pulled into the restaurant’s parking lot, and went ice cold. She always shut down when it was time to work—this kind of work anyway. She felt nothing, couldn’t allow herself to feel. Emotion was a liability in this line of work.

  Sabrina pulled into a space and immediately the back of her neck prickled. She cut the engine and touched the rune charm around her neck smiling before wiping it off her face, letting the warmth fade.

  She climbed out and looked around the empty lot. A man in a red ball cap was leaning against a beat up pick up and one was going into the restaurant. Immediately she knew something was up.

  “Ace.” She said under her breath as she touched her right ear. Ace had given her an ear piece that was linked to a communications network for easy communications during the hand-off.

  “Set up,” she said. “Take it easy. There are three men with red ball caps and two of them are out here with us. Black truck two o’clock and the one leaning against the vehicle.”

  The man leaning against the truck pushed off it, and strode toward her, toothpick in his mouth. His beard was neatly trimmed but his lips were thin. He wore worn jeans and a t-shirt.

  “You got the goods?” he asked stopping in front of her.

  She reached into her pants pocket and removed the case and handed it to him. He removed the card and popped it into his phone.

  He removed the toothpick from his mouth. “Where’s the other one?”

  “I told your boss that was all I had,” she replied coldly.

  He looked at her. “Copies?” His eyes were hard.

  She lifted her brows at him. “No, but the feds have the other card because your boss was fucking with me instead of allowing me to retrieve it before the feds could get it.” She’d met with Jansen and Crow thirty minutes ago at her office where she gave them a copy of what she’d given toothpick.

  “My boss isn’t going to be too happy with that,” he said. “Now, your girl’s going to have to lose a leg and she’ll get something broken until you get us that card.”

  She nodded. “See I knew this was going to be a mess,” she murmured. “What next? I get the card from the feds then what?”

  “Then you and your girl might live,” he said with a purse of his lips.

  She averted her gaze, picking up something out of the corner of her eye. Sabrina blinked and narrowed her eyes and the man moved out of sight.

  “Is Charles behind this?” she asked.

  “Charles who?” He grinned.

  She didn’t like the tone of his voice. “Charles Cain.”

  There was a brief flash of recognition in his eyes before it was gone. She could easily believe Charles was involved in this and had dragged his sister into it with him. The FBI was the perfect cover for such a despicable side job.

  His father had been a cop—decorated and loved.

  “Your brother? Why don’t you ask him yourself?” He gave her another grin. “Better yet ask your woman after that broken leg. You should have stayed out of this.”

  She hit him in the mouth and drove her knee into his stomach.

  “Bitch,” he snarled and swung at her. She ducked certain she didn’t want to take a single blow from the bigger man. He stepped back and whipped out a gun.

  Sabrina moved quickly, on reflex. Her fingers curled around his wrist and shoved his hand up while with her free hand she reached out and jerked the clip free. She took a step back and he gave her a stunned stare.

  Sabrina kicked him in his knee and it cracked. He cried out and went down. “I want you to give your boss a message,” she said as she reached behind her to jerk the Bowie from its holster. She drove it into his heart.

  “Get down, babe or you’re dead.” Ace’s voice was cold in her ear.

  Sabrina pushed the man down, lying on top of him. A bullet struck the car near them. She rolled off the dead man and came to her feet knowing the
shooter was dead. Ace was too efficient for him not to be.

  “Get out,” Ace ordered. “The other one’s coming out. Leave the card with the body.”

  Sabrina did just that striding back to her car. As she did, she glanced around for signs of Charles.

  When she saw nothing, Sabrina climbed into her car expecting to find something, but all she heard was the wail of sirens. Sabrina started the engine and backed out of the space as patrons poured out of the café eager to gawk at the dead body. None of them had seen a thing because the waiting area was all that faced the lot, but they’d all have a story to tell the police.

  She pulled out and passed a police car as she cruised down the street.

  “I saw your brother,” Ace said into her ear. “He didn’t look too happy with the way things went down but since he didn’t try to bust you, nine times out of ten, he’s working both sides of the fence or trying to cover his ass.”

  “What’s your best guess? You saw the footage.”

  “I think he was trying to cover his own ass. He’s going to jail if the FBI gets that footage,” Ace told her.

  She didn’t want to think it was more. Sabrina had a feeling the son had grown up to be as low-down a piece of shit as the father.

  “Your opp, I’ll take my cue from you,” she said. “I do want to see this through.”

  “I can use you on the team,” Ace said. “Besides, you’re in the game whether you want to be or not. The Hatter’s marked you and probably your girl. You fight, run, or die with this guy.”

  “I could break up with her.”

  “You could, but he’ll merely assume she’s really important to you. Then, he’ll kill her instead of breaking body parts. Best to keep things like they are for now,” Ace advised. “Blade’s like you. She blends in, and she does her job quietly. You want a safe house?”

  “We can’t hide. We both have jobs to do,” Sabrina replied. “Let’s just get this done.”

  “Devin’s out of town with a client, so I’ll be working up a plan to take down The Hatter. With what you gave me, we can get it done in a few days.”

  “Good. Then, I can resume real life.”