A scrawny man in his early twenties emerged from the exit to the cubicle maze. He was good-looking if you liked toothpicks, James supposed.
This is the guy that Shay was willing to risk her life to save. That’s got to mean something, even if he’s good at computer and research shit.
“As I live and breathe,” the man drawled in an exaggerated Southern accent, fanning himself with his hand. “It’s the James Brownstone.” The accent disappeared with the second sentence, replaced by vague hints of upper-class New England.
A funny guy, huh? That’s almost as annoying as bounties with nicknames.
Shay gestured toward the drawler. “Brownstone, this is Peyton.”
Peyton grinned. “It’s kind of weird, you know, seeing the Scourge of the Harriken in the flesh. I thought you’d be taller.” He held up his hands. “Not that you’re not totally intimidating. I bet you look at guys and they wet themselves.”
“Well, not all of them. Just a lot.” James shrugged. “Soon a lot more.”
The researcher laughed.
“Really, I’m just a bounty hunter who was minding his own business until those Harriken assholes had to make it personal. If they would have left well enough alone there’d be a lot more of them around. But once we take out their headquarters they won’t be a problem anymore.”
Fuck. At least I hope they won’t. Those assholes are stubborn, I’ll give them that. Hope I don’t have to fly all over the world to kill every last one of them.
Peyton nodded. “Yeah, don’t kick the dragon in the nose and then whine when he eats you. Totally get it.” He stared at James. “Really, you’re even more of a badass in person.” The man nodded at Shay. “Look, she kicks a lot of ass, and you give her a major run for her money. I mean, I don’t know that she’s ever cleared an entire building by herself.”
“I killed who I was paid to kill.” Shay rolled her eyes. “And anyway, I was there for the second Harriken raid, asshole. I killed plenty of those dicks.”
Peyton shrugged. “I said ‘by yourself.’”
She crossed her arms over her chest. “Whatever. I apparently try harder to make sure entire criminal organizations aren’t after me. Brownstone’s solution is just...a little more direct.”
“Yeah, which is why you had to fake your death. Right now I bet you there are a bunch of Harriken faking their deaths because Brownstone is coming for them.”
James chuckled at the idea as he stepped toward the cubicle maze. “I can’t fake my death. It’s too fucking complicated. It’s annoying enough having to rebuild my house.”
The smile disappeared from Peyton’s face. “Oh, yeah. Sorry about your house.”
“Don’t worry. I’ve made them pay, and soon they’ll be paying more.”
Peyton pumped his fist. “Damn right. You take it to them, Brownstone.”
Shay rolled her eyes. “I know one man’s death I shouldn’t have faked. Don’t fanboy all over him. It’s embarrassing.”
“Don’t worry about it, sweetheart.” Peyton grinned at Shay. “I’m just showing my respect.”
“Sweetheart?” Shay glared at the Peyton. “Don’t make me pull a gun on you again.” She glanced at James nervously.
Oh. This is the kind of guy Shay likes? Didn’t expect that. Maybe I’m crowding them. Should give them a little space before I drag her off to Tokyo to kill assholes.
“Sounds like you two have some stuff to catch up on.” James glanced between them. “I’m gonna look around a little if that’s okay. Your warehouse is bigger than mine.”
Shay smirked. “It’s not the size that matters, it’s how you use it. But feel free.”
Once Brownstone had disappeared behind some crates at the other end of the warehouse, Shay yanked Peyton behind a cubicle wall and glared at him.
“What the fuck was that about?” she hissed.
The researcher blinked several times, his face the perfect mask of surprise. “Huh? What are you mad about now?”
“Since when do you call me ‘sweetheart?’”
Peyton shrugged, the surprise on his face slipping into confusion. “I thought I was being funny.”
“Did you hear anyone laughing?”
“Well, not every joke lands.”
Shay groaned and stepped back. “You’re gonna...give Brownstone ideas. He’s gonna think we’re together, the way you were talking.”
Why does that thought make my heart beat faster? Fuck, I’m pathetic.
Peyton chuckled and shook his head. “Now this is something I never thought I’d see.”
Shay narrowed her eyes. “What are you talking about?”
“You totally at a loss.”
“Who said I’m at a loss?”
“You didn’t say it. You’re showing it.” Peyton shrugged. “You’re smart, brave, beautiful, and can kill a man a dozen ways without a gun, but you have the relationship skills of a lump of cold oatmeal.” He nodded. “Mmmhmm. It’s all becoming clear to me now.”
The tomb raider was too confused to respond. She blinked and wondered if a throat punch would be an overreaction.
Okay, maybe an overreaction, but it would be fun.
Shay cleared her throat. “What’s clear?”
Peyton rolled his eyes. “I’m not going to claim I’m the best guy with relationships given my almost non-existent history with women—and let’s not even get into my family situation—but even my awkward and lonely self can see you are totally into Brownstone.”
“That’s... What? Bullshit!”
“Really eloquent response, Shay. Practically Shakespearian.” Peyton shrugged. “Nothing wrong with liking the guy. He’s a badass who can bench press a sumo wrestler. The guy’s got websites devoted to him, and is cool enough to have Marines help him capture hitmen. If I were going to switch teams, I’d go after Brownstone.”
Shay’s fingers twitched and it took all her self-control not to slam an elbow into her assistant’s throat. “You have no fucking clue what you’re talking about. No fucking clue at all.”
“I’m not trying to fuck with you. I’m trying to help you.”
“Help me? Really?”
The man sighed and put his hands up. “Shay, I’ve got your back, and that means I’ve got your back on your love life too. Unlike Bella and those other chicks you hang out with, I know your past, so I know when someone might work out for you. Considering we’re both fake dead people, I probably understand you better than almost anyone else.”
“Okay, okay. Let’s talk about this.” Shay looked away and took a deep breath. “Why are you so convinced I’m into Brownstone?”
“Don’t you think I haven’t noticed how you’ve been a lot nicer since you started working with him? How you break a lot fewer random dudes’ fingers?”
Shay snorted. “Idiots just aren’t trying to grab my ass as much. The city changed; I didn’t. I’m still a hundred-percent badass bitch when I need to be.”
It was Peyton’s turn to snort. “Yeah, I’m sure all the horny idiot dudebros in LA spontaneously decided not to harass a beautiful woman, because they’ve become enlightened.” He smirked. “Let’s say that’s true. You’ve also been nicer to me since you started working with Brownstone.”
“Nicer? I tell you shut the fuck up about five times a day and I threaten to kill you at least three. I threatened to pull a gun on you earlier.”
“Yeah, but it’s down from ten times a day.”
No, no, no. It’s just me admiring Brownstone from afar and liking a few muscles here and there. I can’t help it if the man obviously had an Enhance Abs spell cast on him. It’s nothing more. It’s nothing…
Shay sighed and slumped against the wall. “Damn it. Is it really that obvious?”
“Are these toys disguised transmitters?” Brownstone called from the other end of the warehouse.
“Just crap that was here when I bought the place,” Shay yelled back.
“Oh, okay.”
Shay poked Peyton’s chest.
“If you tell anyone I will kill you.”
“Again?”
“This time the death will stick.”
Peyton looked thoughtful for a moment. “Also going to give you another little tip as your helper or wingman or whatever you want to call me.”
“I’m not sure I should be taking advice from you, but what the hell. I can always ignore it.”
The researcher leaned closer. “Look, I’m slow when it comes to women, but it’s obvious that I’m Einstein about relationships compared to Brownstone. Which is why you’re doing this whole weird bashful shit instead of just taking your clothes off and boinking him.”
Shay’s hand went to the holster under her jacket. “I swear, if you ever use the word ‘boink’ again in relation to me and Brownstone I will cut you into a hundred pieces and feed half of them to some werehyena on Oriceran.”
“Geeze, sensitive much? The point is, you’re into him, but it’s obvious to me that you’re going to have to take point on this because he’s clueless.”
“So you don’t...think he’s maybe just gay?”
Peyton peeked around the wall. “It’s not like I’m an expert on gaydar, but no. Why do you think he’s gay? Just because he’s not all over you like white on rice, Your Royal Hotness?” He chuckled. “And I thought I had a big ego.”
Shay gritted her teeth. Beating the shit out of Peyton for seeing through her personal failings would be unfair, even by her aggressive standards.
“He...likes cooking,” the tomb raider forced out. “He’s whined to me several times about the signed cookbooks he lost when his house got blown up. He lives alone. Uh, I’ve never seen or heard about him being with a woman.”
“He’s around one woman a lot—you. And what kind of cooking does he like?”
“Barbecue, mostly.”
Peyton snort-laughed. “I don’t know on what planet liking barbecue makes you gay, though I’m sure plenty of gay guys like barbecue.”
“But, he, uh, went to Wicked with Alison.”
“Oh, so, he took a girl whose is practically his daughter to a musical she might enjoy? That could make him gay, or it could, you know, just make him a good father.”
Heat climbed Shay’s cheeks, a sign of something she’d not felt in a long, long time: pure embarrassment.
Damn it, how the fuck did I end up in this conversation?
“My girlfriends told me he might be gay,” Shay insisted. “That’s he compensating with all the ultra-macho stuff.”
Peyton stared at her. “Yes, the women who don’t know anything about your true past or anything at all about Brownstone are totally the best people to ask for opinions on his sexuality. As far I’m concerned, if it looks like a Light Elf and sing-talks like a Light Elf, you don’t say it’s a Willen.” He shrugged. “Look, I just think he’s clueless. He’s got...that feel about him. Call it man’s intuition.” He winked.
Shay rubbed the back of her neck. “Okay, okay. You win.” She sighed. “And thanks. Glad to have someone on my side who knows everything about me and maybe, in some small pathetic way, can help me. And I know you can keep a secret.”
“Glad I can help.”
“That’s a free ‘I’ll kill someone for you’ card in the future, okay?” They shared a chuckle and Shay stopped first. “I’m not kidding, you know. Seriously.”
Peyton raised his finger and opened his mouth, but Brownstone appeared around the corner. “We should get going soon if we want to pick up that shit from the Professor.”
Shay shot a meaningful glance at Peyton before nodding to the bounty hunter. “Okay, let’s roll.”
16
Two hours later James was sitting on Shay’s surprisingly comfortable leather couch, checking through the Japanese National Police Agency Bounty Awareness app on his phone. The English offered by the translation options could have been a little better, but all the main points were there for him to search for good ass-kicking candidates.
James and Shay had booked tickets for an early morning supersonic flight from LAX to Narita, which would get them into Tokyo by early afternoon. Even on a supersonic plane, the flight was a little longer than James would have preferred.
“If man was supposed to fly, God would have given us wings,” the bounty hunter muttered.
Fuck. Next time I start a war against a gang, better make sure they are based out of Des Moines or something. Original Gangster Disciples of Corn or some shit.
The stairs creaked under Shay’s steps as she went down to the first floor. “So your decoy is on the way, and he’s packing my perfect fake ID. That should stir up our remaining assassins.”
James only offered a quiet grunt in response.
Shay glanced down at his phone. “Reading anything interesting?”
“Looking for some high-level bounties.” James held up the phone. “If I commit to three level-four or higher bounties we can ship our weapons legally, and then we don’t have to worry about extra bullshit.”
“We’re flying in under fake IDs?”
“I can use a ‘registered agent’ to commit to the bounties it says. So I’ll just use the fake me as the registered agent.”
Shay sighed, a faint look of disappointment on her face. “Having you around is occasionally a good thing, I guess.”
James chuckled. “We’re going to Japan because of me.”
“True. Don’t get a big head about it.” Shay shrugged. “What’s the big deal? I smuggle stuff internationally all the time. In some ways it’s easier when you’re going from a place like here to Japan, because they are expecting less of it than when I go to and come back from Mexico.”
“Why smuggle when we don’t need to? Besides, the last thing I need is some Japanese AET team busting down my hotel door with some fancy exoskeleton suit or whatever.”
Shay smirked. “They aren’t called AET there. I’ll spare you the Japanese, but they are TEK units. You’re right, though. They do have fancy exoskeletons.”
“Whatever. Same difference. AET hates my ass in LA, and the only reason they haven’t come after me is because other LA cops have my back. I don’t have a Sergeant Mack in Tokyo.”
Shay furrowed her brow. “So let me get this straight... We’re flying halfway across the world to take on four high-level assassins, and after that we’re planning to storm Harriken headquarters and kill every single motherfucker there, but you’re not worried about any of that. You’re worried about the cops?”
James shrugged. “The point is, no reason to do it illegally if I can find us a way to do it legally. Illegal shit complicates everything, and this situation is complicated enough as it is.”
The tomb raider shook her head. “Sometimes keeping stuff simple in the short-term makes it more complicated in the long-term. Maybe that’s something you should start seriously thinking about.”
James swiped the phone screen, narrowing his eyes at one of the bounties. “I never wanted any of this. I just wanted to do my job and be left alone with my dog.”
“You sure about that?”
James looked up from his phone with a frown. “What are you getting at? You saying this shit is my fault?”
Shay made her way to the couch and dropped onto the opposite end, then placed a hand on James’ shoulder. “Look, Brownstone, I’m just saying… If you wanted a low-profile job that didn’t bring trouble you would have been an accountant, not a bounty hunter. Especially not a high-end bounty hunter going after some of the toughest assholes out there.”
“I didn’—” The bounty hunter shut his mouth at the touch of Shay’s finger.
“I’m not blaming you for those Harriken pieces of shit or going after them for killing your dog. I helped you against my better judgment because I thought it was a dick move on their part. I’m just saying you have to face the reality that your life is not gonna be simple if you’re taking on necromancers and international criminal gangs. Sometimes just kicking ass isn’t enough. I wish it were.” Shay shrugged.
J
ames grunted, tension suffusing his neck and shoulders. He didn’t have a good response to that. It wasn’t like Shay was wrong, but it wasn’t like he was going to quit and take up gardening.
Is this about Father Thomas? About wanting to protect people? Or is that just bullshit?
A feeling he couldn’t describe burned in the back of his mind. Using his strength to help others felt deeper than just being a product of his childhood experiences. It was like he was doing what he had always been meant to do.
Nah. That’s the shit everyone tells themselves to justify their crap. I’m not special just because I can kick more ass.
James decided the best strategy for the moment would be to push the conversation back toward something more comfortable.
“We don’t have to smuggle,” the bounty hunter rumbled, “because I’ve already found three bounties that should work. I’ll have to check in with the police on arrival to get the permits and officially they’ll all be for me, so don’t get caught by the cops. They take gun possession very seriously over there.”
Shay rolled her eyes. “I’ve been to Japan more than a few times. Have you?”
James shrugged. “I’ve watched movies and read books set in Japan. I’m not totally clueless.”
The tomb raider laughed. “Brownstone, don’t ever change.”
Trevor folded his hands on the table in front of him as his gaze traveled between the other three remaining assassins.
And here I was half-worried that John would kill Brownstone and get all the money.
“I have to say,” the man began, “I thought John would give a more impressive performance.”
“Are you sure about the information you received, mate?” Connor asked. He stared at the tapered silver wand he was rolling between his palms. “Maybe the American cops are just trying to cover for Brownstone. They’re practically bloody blowing him in LA, from what I’ve heard.”
Trevor shook his head. “Even though there’s no video of the fight I could get my hands on, I’ve got video of the crime scene. Candle’s the only dead one there, very little blood that’s not his. I’m not even sure if he hurt Brownstone.”
Bring The Pain_An Urban Fantasy Action Adventure Page 12