“They just fed you what you wanted to hear. There is no cure for what we are. You said it yourself—it’s a part of you, down to your DNA. I don’t understand how you can trust one thing that comes out of their mouths.”
“Maybe there isn’t a cure. But we already know about the serum. We don’t need to trust them to know it exists—we’ve already tasted it. So whether or not we trust them doesn’t matter. It’s not personal. We each have something the other needs.” Was any of this getting through? “Think of it like a business transaction, nothing else. We go back there, they do their little tests to find out how freaky we are, and then they give you the serum.”
He sneered. “That’s how they said it would go down?”
“You once told me that people lie, it was just something that I needed to accept. And if I didn’t, all I was doing was making my life harder. Do you remember?”
He shrugged. “I say a lot of things. What’s your point? That I was right then and I’m right now? Great! Then we’re all done here.” He walked to the door.
“Stop running away! We’re not done.”
“Yes, we are. And I’m hungry. Chinese anyone?”
“Sounds delish,” she spat. “But while you’re placing the order, ask them if they’ve ever lied to you, slipped some MSG into your food without telling you.”
He whipped his head around. “Are you seriously going to compare the two?”
“My point is that you don’t need to have a personal relationship with people you do business with. Do you trust all of your clients? Is that necessary? If we go into this deal, I trust that The Clinic are in it for themselves, only seeing what they can get out of it, and that their own interests are well, well, well ahead of ours.”
“And that’s how you see this—as a business transaction?”
“Of course. I’m not stupid. I know better than to trust them on a personal level.”
He tapped the floor with his feet. “Let’s pretend for a moment that you’re right and that I even want what they are offering. That it’s possible to make some kind of deal with them, giving them what they want for what you want. The problem is that we’re not a team against a team. Because we”—he motioned between the two of them—“are not a team. Because I only have your word on it. Granted, the whole team-thing is new to me, so I could be wrong here. But aren’t you supposed to trust your team…mate to have your best interests at heart? That they’ll at least weigh your opinion or best interests in their decision-making?”
“Of course.”
“So what’s your angle? What do you get out of it if I agree to be their monkey?”
“You. I get you.”
He blinked, his eyes shining. Though she really couldn’t tell if his emotion was caused by anger or hurt or something else entirely. He was just too much an enigma to her still. Until he lied. Funny, the only way to know anything about him was to back him into a corner he had to lie to get out of. Because then she would know what he was really feeling.
“Do you want me back, Mitch?”
“No,” he said firmly. “I want her back.”
Even her sigh sounded depressed. “And if she no longer exists?”
His pause was long. “Then I suppose only the first part of the answer works.”
The first part. No. She looked at his cheek, praying she’d see the little dimple that would tell her he was lying. He needed a shave. But other than that truth, there was nothing else on his face.
“Okay,” she said quietly, swallowing her pain. “What you think about me…is what it is. I can wait.”
He flicked his head, staring at her with a furrowed brow. She didn’t know what he saw, what he was thinking. But it didn’t really matter anyway. There were no choices, no decisions to make. He would learn to accept her or he wouldn’t. But yelling at him wouldn’t help.
After Mitch left, Landon pushed off the wall. “Well, that went better than I expected.” He’d been so quiet, Eden had forgotten he was even there.
“Why didn’t you say anything? I needed your help!”
“Do you have any idea what I’ve done to get through to him? And nothing ever works.” He sighed. “I think you’re the only one who’s ever done it. So…you just need to keep trying until you do it again.”
The only way she could help him was to convince him of something he was unwilling to do—to work with The Clinic. How hard could it be to make the world’s most stubborn person do a 180-mind-flip and play nice with his worst enemy?
“What if I can’t change his mind, Landon?” Before his time ran out?
“When a man’s not thinking straight…” He shrugged. “Well, sometimes a woman’s gotta do it for him.”
CHAPTER XVI
“You need to bring her in, Bertram. You need to bring her in now.”
“I don’t understand why you’re so angry. She’s exactly where we want her to be—with Turner.”
“And?”
“And…she has one more day to either come back with him or we go get her.”
“You’re a bunch of goddamn idiots. She’s not only with Turner. Because Turner is living with a cop. No one thought that was a problem? That I might need that information?”
“We’ve taken care of Landon. He’s not a cop anymore.”
“So you think that, by taking away his badge, you also took away whatever fucking personality traits that made him want to become a cop in the first place? She’s seen the facility. She knows what all of you look like. What are the chances the topic never comes up?”
“I don’t think she’ll say anything. She has too much to lose, mainly Turner.”
“I give as much of a shit about what you think as I do about Turner. Do you have any idea how much damage she could do to us? We’re not exactly ready for prime-time viewing. If what we’re doing goes public, we’re not going to just get detention.”
“I know.”
“Then do your goddamn job. We’ve spent decades on this project, and I’ll not have it ruined by a little girl who wants to play house with her boyfriend and pretend they’re normal. She comes back now—willingly or unwillingly.”
“What about Landon?”
“Remember that shit I didn’t care about? That goes for Landon as well. They all need to be brought in now. Because of your ineptitude, none of them can be out there. We don’t know what she’s told them.”
“I’ll see to it.”
“Oh, and Bertram?”
“Yes?”
“Only she needs to come back breathing.”
§ § §
She was on top of him, straddling his waist, pressing his body deeper into the mattress. Her hand was over his mouth. He couldn’t speak.
It would have been a great dream if he’d been asleep. But he wasn’t.
She stared down at him with wide eyes, a look of intensity on her face.
“What the fuck?” he said, the sound muffled. “How’d you get out of your cage?” And into mine? And what was she planning to do with him? Did she honestly believe he’d want to be with her like this? How many times had he told Chastity ‘no’?
She pressed her hand tighter to his mouth. “I made a key. Now shut up. I’m going to uncuff you now.”
“I am not in the mood to fuck you, Chas.” As soon as his hands were free, he grabbed her arms and flipped them both over onto the floor. Her body was rigid under his. And damn it, if a part of his didn’t react in the same way. “Not now. Not ever. Got it?”
“Would you please keep your mouth shut for once?” she asked in a whispered shout. “They’re here.”
That stopped him cold. He listened, ignoring the pulse of his body. And then he heard something. Footsteps in the living room, an occasional bump as whoever-it-was navigated the house.
Probably just Landon, too drunk to think of turning on the lights.
“It’s just—” Then he heard another bump. Unless the cop had invited a lady-friend over, which he knew Mitch would kill him for—this was a no-h
appiness zone, after all—that meant that there was more than one unwelcomed person downstairs. And that wasn’t good.
He scrambled off her and quickly pulled on his pants. No man should fight naked—it just gave his opponent a better shot at grabbing something vital. She jumped off the ground and went through the open door of the cage.
“Stay here,” he told her.
“Oh please,” she snapped. “As if that’ll happen.”
He glared at her, hoping that in the darkness, she could still see the dissatisfaction on his face. Then he crept to the door and nudged it farther to check the hallway. Should he go warn Landon? His room was in the opposite direction of the stairs. Hell, if the fight turned into what Mitch wanted it to be, Landon would hear eventually. Hopefully, he wouldn’t be too unhappy about getting to the party late.
Damn it, they’d better be from The Clinic and not just some stupid kids trying to swipe his electronics. But, actually, they’d have to be some smart kids because the alarm system that he and Landon had installed was definitely not available at Walmart. So whoever was downstairs had hacked their way in, or bells would be ringing and the house would be singing.
When he stopped at the top of the stairs, he felt the heat of her body right behind him. He could only afford a momentary warning glance at her. They were too exposed. And if anyone started walking up to the second floor, they’d see them both. So he didn’t waste time shooing her away. Maybe he was getting nicer. Nah. It probably was because most of his night had been filled with prime, Grade-A porn starring the two of them. And that made him feel slightly magnanimous towards everyone. Except the assholes who’d broken into his house and forced him out of a fantastic dream.
He crept down the stairs, his back against the wall. She followed. Damn her. In a fight, he wouldn’t have time to worry about her. The bastards had already taken her once, and there was no way in hell they were taking her again.
As soon as they hit the first floor, she stepped in front of him. He reached for her arm to pull her back, but she was already turning the corner. She was going to get herself killed. By an unknown amount of enemies.
“Evening, gentlemen,” she said, smiling.
Okay, there are at least two.
Her gaze didn’t stray. “Are you looking for me?”
She was out far enough that Mitch would be able to see someone attack her just before they got to her. The element of surprise is a fairly good item to pocket in a battle, so he stayed where he was. But he silently cursed at her…because it made him feel a little better.
“We were sent to make sure you were alright,” someone said.
They were talking. And they didn’t know he was there. This is gold. Finally, an honest conversation he could eavesdrop on.
“Alex sent you?”
The guy may have answered, but he didn’t do it vocally. All Mitch saw was a scowl pass over her face.
“So you decided to break into the house?” she asked impatiently. “Don’t you know Mitch’s phone number?”
The floor squeaked and the intruder asked, “Where are Turner and Landon?”
“Upstairs sleeping. Like I was and would like to be again.” She shrugged nonchalantly, letting out a yawn. But her body was in a fighting stance, taut and ready.
A fucking beautiful thing to behold and...Behave, asshole. Mitch wiped his hand over his eyes. This was not a good time to lose focus. So he only took one more long, appreciative glance before re-centering.
“So…now that you know I’m okay, you can go.” She flicked her head to the front door and started walking backwards toward it. “Do you want me to show you out?”
He heard the footsteps on the other side of the wall and readied himself. Then her face changed.
“What’s going on?” she asked warily.
“You need to come with us.”
“No. They said I could leave whenever I wanted. And I wanted.” She shook her head. “Tell Alex not to wait up. I’ll swing by when I can.”
She looked honestly bewildered. As if she’d thought she could trust them, but they’d just proven her wrong. Mitch had no idea what was on the other side of the wall, but whatever they were doing wasn’t gentlemanly. Therefore, he could be as fucking brutal as he wanted to be and whatever happened would be one of those ‘all’s fair’ kind of things. Wonderful.
“You need to come with us.”
“Um…you already mentioned that,” she said. “And I very politely said, ‘thanks, but no thanks’. When I’m ready to go back, I’ll call you for a ride. Or maybe Mitch will bring me.”
Mitch could tell she was trying to lure them out, trying to coax them closer to where he stood. It was actually quite impressive how calm she was. And quite different from how both Eden and Chastity operated.
Fuck, what if she’d been telling the truth? Worry about that later, asshole. If you’re still breathing.
“Turner’s coming too.” The voice came from about a foot away, with only some two by fours and drywall separating them.
“Really?” she asked, her eyebrow raised. “Have you asked him yet? Because he doesn’t usually agree to…” Her eyes darted around the room as she searched for the right word. But when she looked at him, the message was clear. It was only a brief glance, but held a confidence, a fire, and a get-ready-to-kick-some-ass warning in it. “Well, he doesn’t usually agree to anything. Let’s leave it at that.”
“We aren’t planning on asking him.” The guy rushed her, grabbing her arm and twisting it.
Before Mitch took a step, she’d ducked under her attacker’s elbow, spun, and kneed him in the groin. Confident. Cool. Fucking fast. And really fucking hot. No fear in her movements or on her face as she downed the guy and stepped over his writhing body. Then she turned towards the intruder Mitch couldn’t see, her stance wide and ready.
“Alex should’ve sent more than two of you,” she said.
Bingo. Only two. Her eyes didn’t stray towards him, but he knew she’d just sent him another message. She knew what she was doing. Not Eden-ish in the slightest.
“Did you bring a lot of backup?”
“Yes,” the man said.
A grin spread across her face. “Being surrounded by liars has made me a lot better at reading them. Still far from perfect, but you’re an easy guy to read.” Then her smile disappeared. “You coming, or what?” She egged him on with the flick of her wrists.
On the floor behind her, the guy she’d just ball-busted—literally—reached for his weapon. Mitch pounced. Flying through the air, all he could think was, ‘Oops’. Blinded by his dumb-ass desire to protect her, he’d left his back exposed and was now hurling himself towards her legs. He tightened his abs, trying to twist away. But he was too big to avoid hitting her unless she moved.
Her foot connected with the man’s face, and she jumped out of away right before Mitch landed. The guy’s head smacked onto the wood floor. Something cracked—maybe wood, maybe skull. Mitch’s hand already grasped the man’s arm, preventing him from withdrawing his weapon. But it didn’t matter, the guy was out. Like, a-ventriloquist’s-dummy-without-a-hand-up-his-ass out.
Jumping to his feet, Mitch saw the other man aiming a weird sort of gun at them, jerking it from him to her and back. Her hands were up in submission, her feet moving forward. There was no way she could take him down. Not without ending up with an extra hole in her body.
“No!” Mitch yelled. He grabbed her by the shoulders, wanting to stop her or be in front of her. If anyone was going to end up dead, it sure as hell should be him. Well…he’d much prefer it was the guy holding the gun, but that didn’t look all that probable.
Time slowed as it often does in times of too much chaos, not enough logic. Each movement so slow, he wondered if anyone else noticed. If anyone else felt it too. But instinct is impossible to combat sometimes. And this was one of those times. He would protect her, even if he died doing it.
She whipped her head towards him, silver-blue eyes filled with ang
er. He swung her in a half-circle, so that he was closer to the gunman. She tripped over the lump-of-asshole on the floor and barely caught herself before she fell. Her eyes widened at whatever she saw over Mitch’s shoulder. Then she reached out, screaming, “No!”
Maybe should’ve thought about that for one more second first. Pretending to be heroic had simply given the guy a larger, easier target to hit—his back. But at least it wasn’t hers.
The last thing he felt was a pain unlike any other he’d ever experienced. Like he was being stabbed in the back. By a thousand arrows. No shock, no diminishing, no end. Just ongoing agony spreading from the point of impact to the rest of his body—the pain was a flame and his skin was gunpowder.
The last thing he heard was her scream. A wail of anguish, of wanting to go five seconds back in time but not knowing where the rewind button is.
The last thing he saw was a look of horror mar her beautiful face. The disappointment, her open palm held out towards him. Close, but not close enough. Never close enough.
And the last thing he knew was that his life would end in regret. Not being there when Eden needed him. Not giving the woman who stood in front of him a chance. Because he was so fucking afraid.
Did this moment make up for all the others? No. He wasn’t sure anything ever would. And now, it was just too damn late.
CHAPTER XVII
Eden rushed forward, stepping over the man who’d attacked them. But she didn’t stop to look. All she saw was Mitch, his body convulsing, both arms reaching out to her as if he was already worlds away.
“Don’t touch him!” Landon yelled from somewhere outside of her tunnel vision. “It’s a Taser, Eden! Don’t touch him!” Then over Mitch’s twitching shoulder, she saw him tackle the gunman.
Frozen where she stood, she watched Mitch drop to the ground, every limb jerking, every muscle cramped and seizing. He was being electrocuted right in front of her, dying right in front of her, and she couldn’t even touch him. Be with him. Help him.
She slid down to Mitch’s still-jerking body. Her hands hovering above him, wanting desperately to touch but her mind refusing to let them. Not until it knew she was safe.
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