“Come to bed, Quinn,” Elijah sounded muffled. “Discover the secrets of the world tomorrow.”
“Fine.” He pushed off the window and slid into bed next to Elijah. As Elijah drifted to sleep, an arm thrown carelessly over Quinn’s abdomen, Quinn absorbed the feel of Elijah’s magic. Warm, like a low-burning fire, and masculine, something to fight the chill that he’d experienced with Sawyer’s.
He paid the most attention to how magic felt, out of all the members of the team. Elijah, warm and masculine. Vincent, still and calm, almost not there, even though he was strong. Vincent had the most control over the flow of his magic, so Quinn didn’t pick it up very often. Jasper’s magic was airy and peaceful. Zander’s magic was like him, reckless. It was really the only way to describe it.
Elijah’s arm tightened, and Quinn pulled him closer. Quinn ran his fingers through Elijah’s light brown hair slowly.
“Go to sleep,” Elijah mumbled, and Quinn stopped playing with his hair.
“You go to sleep,” Quinn whispered.
Elijah growled and pushed up on the bed to stare down at Quinn.
“I’m trying, but you’re thinking too loud.” Elijah put his forehead to Quinn’s. “My wet dreams are more important than whatever you’ve got on your mind right now. Go to sleep.”
“I’m trying.” Quinn pushed him off and bounced a little when Elijah’s huge body hit the mattress.
“Liar,” Elijah mumbled, his head now stuffed under a pillow. “If you are going to keep me awake, we might as well burn off whatever excess energy you seem to have.”
“Not feeling it tonight,” Quinn sighed. “Too much on my mind.”
“Worry tomorrow,” Elijah’s speech was slurred, and Quinn knew he was out the moment a soft snore began.
He touched the connection to his wolves and smiled at the happiness they felt. Sawyer was sleeping just fine. With that, he rolled into Elijah’s back and finally found some sleep, himself.
22
SAWYER
Sawyer stared at the Range Rovers with a frown as Elijah and Zander threw in a couple of suitcases.
“Do I really need to go?” She looked to Vincent, standing next to her.
“Alas, yes,” Vincent sighed. “The entire team is required to go, which means we can’t leave you here alone.”
“Fuck,” Sawyer mumbled.
Atlanta, Georgia. It wasn’t a bad city, not really. She’d grown up just outside of it with Zander and Jasper. She didn’t like it, though. She loved New York more, and she wanted to keep her distance from the secrets Atlanta held.
“We’re ready to roll, someone just needs to find Quinn,” Elijah called. Vincent looked over at her and she rolled her eyes, walking off to find the feral man.
It didn’t take her long. He was stretched out on the back porch with his wolves, both of whom were asleep.
“We’re ready to go,” Sawyer told him, looking down on him. He normally wore jeans, but no shirt and no shoes. Today he was in his official uniform, the simple, all black outfit every IMPO agent wore when on duty.
He looked wonderful in it. Black was definitely his color, though Sawyer thought black was everyone’s color. She was a little biased.
“Fantastic,” he growled, opening his ice-blue eyes. Sawyer thought they looked more vibrant when he was wearing black. Yeah, it was definitely his color. She stepped back, giving him space to stand up. “I hate the city.”
“Atlanta?” She frowned. “Why?”
“All cities,” he growled, snapping his fingers and making the wolves jump to attention. Sawyer was seriously impressed with his command over them. She had never had such obedience from… She stopped the thought before it continued.
“I’m sorry?” She wasn’t sure what she was sorry for, but it felt like the right thing to say.
His look told her that she needed to walk away. She did just that. That movie night had been really fun, but she felt like she spoiled it with her whiny shit at the end. She normally didn’t do that, talk like that while she was drunk, but she was nearing a breaking point. The secrets, the nightmares, her body’s reaction to these guys. It was overloading her and getting drunk had seemed like a good way to forget it. She hadn’t counted on the fact that alcohol also had the tendency to amplify emotions, and, once she’d gotten to her room, those emotions flooded her.
She didn’t have any nightmares that night though, so that was a plus.
“We shouldn’t be staying the night, but it’s good to be prepared,” Vincent was whispering to Elijah. “I don’t like this. I don’t like any of it.”
“Me neither, boss but the big guys say we need to sit down with Jon and review our capabilities to do the job we’ve been tasked,” Elijah groaned.
“He’s been on our ass since day one with Sawyer,” Vincent snapped. Sawyer raised an eyebrow. Really? “And then there’s the fact that we have evidence of Axel’s people in New York, of all places. They didn’t cause any trouble but it’s concerning.”
Sawyer stopped, still out of sight of Vincent and Elijah. No. Axel’s people couldn’t be in New York. Her chest tightened.
“I know,” Elijah mumbled. “Have you told her?”
“No,” Vincent growled. “Are you mad? She’ll make a run for it to go back and save them, even if they aren’t in any danger. And they probably aren’t. There’s no reason for Axel to target a bunch of non-Magi children and a retired healer.”
Damn right, I would, she thought, feeling a bubble of anger well up in her.
“And now we need to take her Atlanta, near the fucking airport of all place,” Vincent sounded frustrated.
“You shouldn’t eavesdrop,” a growl came from behind her. She jumped and mentally cursed herself for letting Quinn sneak up behind her. “It’s rude.”
“You all have been keeping secrets from me,” she hissed quietly.
“Of course,” Quinn made it sound like she was stupid for not figuring it out sooner, “and you have no idea how many.”
He walked past her, and she followed him. Vincent’s eyes went wide when she met his stare. That mother fucker knew her people in New York were in danger and didn’t fucking tell her.
“Don’t do anything stupid,” Quinn growled back to her.
“Why would she do something stupid?” Elijah’s eyes narrowed on her, and she winced at that. She didn’t like that even he was suspicious. He was normally one of the guys saying she was alright.
“She overheard you both,” Quinn told him mildly as opened a door to one of the Range Rovers. Sawyer watched Shade and Scout jump in and climb to the cargo area, where they looked at everyone through the back window.
“Sawyer,” Vincent whispered. “Please. We’ve got it covered.”
“You should have fucking told me,” she snapped. “I had the right to know.”
“And if I could trust you not to run, I would have,” Vincent snapped back. “Get in, we’re heading out. You are riding with Quinn and me.”
“Whatever,” Sawyer mumbled, climbing into the Range Rover. She was a little mad that he didn’t trust her, but he was also right. Knowing about the potential danger only made her want to find a way to escape them, damn the consequences, and go help her people.
“See you there, Elijah.” Vincent nodded to the cowboy, who was wearing his cowboy hat with his uniform. Sawyer wished privately that he accidentally set it on fire or something.
The long ride was silent. Sawyer listened to the audiobook that Vincent put on, but she didn’t follow the story because it was bland. It was also in Italian, which annoyed her.
“Is Italian your first language or are you one of those people who’s obsessed with the language of your forefathers?”
“I was born in Rome,” Vincent told her softly. Quinn had fallen asleep within the first ten minutes of the drive. “So, yes, Italian is my first language.”
“I haven’t been to Rome in years,” she sighed. “Gorgeous place.”
“It is.” Vincent nodded. �
��When were you there?”
“I’m not telling you that,” Sawyer mumbled. Axel once had his home base there, and she’d lived there with him until he decided to move them. Her heart squeezed for a moment. Midnight was buried there. Two thoughts about her in a single day. Sawyer wondered what special hell she was in.
“Of course,” Vincent mumbled with disdain. “You know, life could be easier for you if you just… talked to someone.”
“We have a deal, Vincent,” she hissed.
“I know,” Vincent sighed, turning the audiobook up. She leaned into the window and watched the trees fly past.
She didn’t sleep this trip, her mind going a mile a minute about what was going on.
“What happens if they decide you aren’t fit for my protection?”
“Jon will take you into his custody and back to wherever they would hide you,” Vincent told her as he pulled off the freeway. “We’ll go and pack all your things up and arrange a place to give them to Jon’s team for you.”
“Why did we come all the way to Atlanta?” She was curious. Not many people knew too much about the special IMPO teams that people like Vincent and Jon ran.
“Our homes are secure, even from each other. Only the team knows where they live. Only the top five people in the IMPO know where we live. And our handler, James. You haven’t met him yet, you will today.”
“Oh goodie,” Sawyer sighed. “So, it’s not normal for me to know where you all live.”
“No, it’s not normal, but we wanted you as secure as we could make you.” Vincent turned them into a parking garage. “I’m going to make a simple recommendation. Do not engage with Jon or his team. If you have to, bother Special Agent Hamble. He’s the nice one.”
“Alright. Can I get a smoke before we go in?”
“Yeah,” Vincent parked them and tapped Quinn. “We’re here.”
She got out and met Vincent at the back of the Range Rover. She opened the back and let the wolves out to stretch as Vincent lit two cigarettes.
“Here,” He handed her one and she took a drag.
“Why did these guys come?”
“Quinn doesn’t like leaving them home alone.” Vincent scratched Shade behind an ear.
“I just realized something,” she chuckled, “I haven’t met your raven.”
“Really?” Vincent raised his eyebrows. “He’s always close by.”
“Seriously.” Sawyer flicked ash off the end of her smoke and took another pull.
Vincent whistled, and Sawyer narrowed her eyes. A huge black bird soared into the parking garage and landed on his shoulder. Its head tilted to the side as it stared at her.
“Why has it taken weeks for you to introduce yourself to her?” Vincent turned to the bird, and it bumped its head to his forehead. “You know better than to follow people around where they can’t see you. I didn’t want you spying on her.”
The bird gave a shake, puffing up. Sawyer’s heart broke a little as she heard Quinn finally get out of the Range Rover.
“Kaar.” Quinn smiled, reaching out to the raven. It nipped his hand, but Quinn didn’t seem to mind. “Keep an eye on everything, will you?”
“Don’t tell my raven what to do.” Vincent slapped Quinn’s hand away. “He’s getting fat since you keep giving him food.”
“I like spoiling him,” Quinn chuckled.
“Spoil the wolves,” Vincent glowered, stepping away from Quinn.
Sawyer watched the exchange with a raised eyebrow. Kaar was hopping around on Vincent’s shoulder like he was trying to dance. Vincent looked regal though, with the large bird propped there. Vincent and Kaar were both sleek and professional while Quinn and his wolves were very much the opposite.
“I’ve been here for nearly an hour!” Elijah walked over to them, grinning. Sawyer sighed.
“Thanks for not making me ride with him,” she whispered to Vincent, who actually laughed.
“Yes, I felt the day was too serious for you have to endure that hell,” Vincent whispered back. Sawyer watched Elijah frown and grinned at him.
“What? Couldn’t find something to do to pass the time?” She winked making Elijah sputter a little. She started laughing after that. She found herself too funny sometimes.
“Heartless woman,” Elijah put a hand over his heart, putting on the wounded cowboy act.
“There’s Zander and Jasper,” Quinn jerked his chin.
Sure enough, they parked right next to Vincent and jumped out. Jasper came to her side and Zander stood next to Elijah.
“We’re not going to let them drag you off,” Jasper whispered to her, and she nodded silently. She hoped not. She had grown to like the unruly bunch, even if she did want to stab all of them several dozen times on occasion. Like right now.
“Don’t keep secrets from me,” she whispered back after a moment. “Ever again.”
“We’ll talk about that later,” Jasper sighed. “It was Vincent’s idea.”
“I figured as much.” Sawyer rolled her eyes.
“Let’s go,” Vincent said loudly, interrupting the different conversations that had started up. Zander and Elijah looked like they had been plotting something. Sawyer didn’t ask. She knew it was going to be bad for her. Female intuition.
She walked in the center of the little pack. They left the parking garage and went into a boring little office building on the other side of the street. She was crammed into the elevator with all of them, her back flush to Vincent’s chest.
“Did we really need to all take the same elevator?” She growled, trying to push Jasper away from her front.
“No,” Zander laughed, grinning at her. Elijah was snickering. Were they serious about this? Sawyer realized they just liked putting everyone in uncomfortable positions. How cute.
“This is a serious meeting,” Vincent snapped. “Cut the shit.”
“Yes, sir,” they said in unison.
They got off the elevator without incident and Sawyer was ushered into a meeting room. Vincent sat her down next to him with Elijah on her other side. Quinn took a spot at the end, where his wolves lay down on the floor, out of the way. Jasper and Zander flanked Elijah and Vincent on either side.
She met Jon’s stare and shifted uncomfortably. She didn’t like this. Something seemed off. She chalked it up to her lack of knowledge on the entire situation, but the moment she stepped off the elevator, a sense of foreboding hit her.
“We’re here today to discuss the matter of Sawyer Matthews,” said a woman at the end of the table.
“Let’s cut to the chase,” Jon sneered. “These kids aren’t in the place to be handling such a flight risk or this dangerous of an assignment. On top of that, two of them have a previous relationship with her. They aren’t going to be willing to use her for her purpose.”
“And what’s her purpose?” Vincent snapped. “Bait? You going to drag her through the streets until Axel shows up and tries to kill her?”
“And if that’s what is necessary?” Jon growled. “Is it a bad thing to do whatever is needed to bring him to justice?”
“Axel would never fall for a ploy so childish,” Vincent said with disdain. Sawyer agreed with him. Axel would see that trap coming from miles away and would just undermine it or ignore it until a more opportune moment arose for him to get what he wanted.
“Says Vinny,” Jon hissed. “The world’s ‘expert’ on Axel. I feel like you just say things to get your way.”
“Both of you,” the woman tried to cut in, “please, allow me to continue.”
Sawyer looked around at Jon’s team, all of whom were watching the exchange except one. He had brown hair and a reddish beard. He was moderately attractive and probably the youngest on Jon’s team, appearing nearly a decade younger than the rest of them. He wore a scarf and she raised an eyebrow at it.
“Scarf in August in Georgia?” She inquired, making the table go silent.
“Ah… hickies from my girlfriend,” he smiled sheepishly at her and she couldn’t
stop a small smile. “I’m David… Special Agent Hamble.”
“Nice to meet you,” she reached across the table and they shook hands. “I hear you are the nice one.”
“Damn it, Sawyer,” Zander coughed, hiding a laugh.
“You should sit down, thief, or I’ll request that you’re handcuffed to the chair,” Jon growled. She raised both her hands to appear non-threatening.
“My apologies,” she smiled at Jon as she sat back down. “I was just trying to be nice.”
“I think she should go to another room,” the mediator sighed. “She doesn’t need to be here for this right now.”
“I don’t like that.” Vincent shook his head. “She’s required to stay under supervision at all times, and I won’t have it said that I bend the rules for her.”
“Well, she likes David,” Jon waved a hand around. “Let him take her somewhere else.”
“No,” Vincent’s tone was steel, and Sawyer shivered.
“You are attached,” Jon chuckled. “Why’s that, Vinny? Don’t want big b-”
“Jon, you need to correct yourself,” Vincent growled, “before I come across this table and correct you myself.”
“I don’t need a Castello telling me to fix myself,” Jon growled. “Don’t think I forget who you are.”
Sawyer went still. Castello. Castello. Rome. Axel. Vinny.
“I have a younger brother, Vinny,” Axel chuckled, pulling her close. “Good guy, a few years older than you, but he’s a fucking stickler for the rules, the freak.”
“Is that why I’ve never met him?” She nuzzled into Axel’s chest.
“Hmmm, if you ever meet Vinny, run.” Axel kissed her forehead. “He’ll do his best to send you to prison. He’s on their side.”
She turned to Vincent, hoping her face gave away nothing. How had she lived with them for weeks and not learned his last name? She didn’t know Quinn’s either, now that she thought about it.
Olive-green eyes. Axel had said he got them from his father. Vinny must have too.
Sawyer mentally backed up on what she had just learned. The Castello crime family had imploded on itself over a decade ago. The head of the family was found murdered in his office by one of his own family members. They had destroyed themselves in the fight for power when none of Giovanni’s children stepped up to take the reins. In the end, another family devoured and absorbed the Castello family, leaving it a footnote in criminal history.
A Life Of Shadows Page 24