An Echo of Darkness (The Redemption Saga Book 4)

by Kristen Banet

  “Elijah,” Rogers called out as they continued eating. “May I speak with you?”

  “Sure?” Elijah sounded as confused as Sawyer felt. He got up and walked away to Rogers, who stood in the door that must have led to the kitchen in the back. She watched them carefully but couldn’t hear what was said.

  She could see Elijah’s eyes get big. When he came back, he sat down silently and seemed to be pouting sheepishly. “The waitress thing was my fault, apparently,” he mumbled.

  “Oh really?” she asked, insane curiosity over his admission flooding her.

  “I might have fucked a friend of hers once and never called back.” Elijah pushed his food around with a fork. “I’ll admit now, I haven’t been in any sort of real relationship since Taylor. Flings and Quinn have been my life for years now.”

  “Well, we all make mistakes. Look at mine. Hell, the one I made with you got me arrested.” She pointed her fork at him until he grinned at her, nodding.

  “True, though let’s keep talk of that part of our history pretty quiet. Rogers knows we’re IMPO, but nothing else.”

  “Ahhh.” She sighed, shrugging. “One day, I’ll be able to talk about anything I want, anywhere I want, and no one will hate me for it. Maybe.”

  “Now isn’t that time.”

  “Don’t I know it,” she replied before taking another bite of her steak.

  Dinner continued with aimless conversation, the talks of dating and feelings dropped for lighter topics like the muscle car. They debated between the pros and cons of the Mustang as Elijah paid the check. As they walked out of the restaurant, she was having a better time than she had on the ride to Atlanta.

  “So, there’s a band playing?”

  “There is! One I really like actually. So the valet here doesn’t just do the restaurant; it’s open for anything on the block. We can pick the truck up later and we’ll just walk to the bar. If that’s all right. I know it’s a bit cold and you didn’t wear a jacket.”

  “I’ll be fine.” She appreciated the thoughtfulness, but she didn’t find it that cold with the sweater on. In fact, as they walked into the bar, she figured it was going to get too hot. It was packed and the band wasn’t even on stage yet. She let him guide them through to a staircase, past a bouncer, and up onto the balcony, where they found it quieter and less crowded.

  “VIP section,” he told her with a grin. “I only stayed down there when the guys and I were hunting.”

  “Women,” she said plainly. “When you were hunting women.”

  “Well, I also hunt for men, and please, like you’ve never hunted for one of those,” he retorted. “I do think you hunted me the night we met.”

  “I do think I was actually your mark. Actually, I know I was, so what I was there for doesn’t matter.” She resisted smiling, resisted letting herself fall into laughter.

  “So that’s how we’re going to play this? You can prowl around for a lay but I can’t?” There was a light teasing to the question and she grinned. She never held such an outrageous double standard, but it was fun to joke about.

  “I don’t need to prowl. I’m popular enough that men just flock to me.” She wiggled her eyebrows. Four boyfriends and whatever Elijah was. She didn’t need to go on the prowl.

  “And now she gets an ego.” Elijah laughed, throwing his head back hard enough that she would have guessed his cowboy hat was going to fly away. It stayed as firmly planted on his head as the grin he had on his face. “You know, little lady, I wish we had met under different circumstances. As in, I wasn’t there to…”

  “I wish that had all gone down differently too. As in, I got my orgasm before you decided to handcuff me.” She smirked, looking away from him and down to the stage, where the band was walking on and getting ready.

  A large hand touched her lower back before moving around to her side. A soft tug pulled her into the broad barrel chest. “We could fix that. I can make up for that,” he whispered, hot down into her ear. “We might be bad at everything else, but I’m pretty sure we could bring the damn house down.”

  There were moments in a woman’s life where the idea of stripping and fucking in that exact spot seemed like a great idea. Elijah had one of those voices that made her want to do that. Then again, he’d always exuded that hot, sexual energy that made her more than a little wet. She didn’t know where her heart lay with him, but she knew what her body wanted.

  “You don’t know when to quit,” she retorted, disliking that something had made her go soft and airy. She wasn’t some simpering little girl. She wanted to climb him like the tree he was, not wait for him to make a move.

  “Quitting is for people who don’t have what it takes,” he fired back.

  She turned up and found herself much too close to a mouth she knew was very good at stopping rational thought. “And you have what it takes?” she asked.

  “Do you?”

  She leaned just a little more. As their lips touched, that possessiveness she knew was in her roared to life. She had no idea if she loved Elijah, but he damn sure belonged to her. Because no matter how good she got, no matter what good she did, she was still greedy. She wanted everything she could have and that included him.

  As they battled for dominance through a kiss, his hands found their ways to her hips, holding her flush against him. She ran her hands up his massive arms to his shoulders, then to his face, holding his cheeks.

  A couple of people were bold enough to whistle at them, making Sawyer pull away, her face warmer than she would have wanted. She wasn’t one to get embarrassed, but that was also the most public display she’d ever been a part of.

  “I think I was right,” he crooned.

  He was. They were bad at dating, certainly, but there was still enough sexual chemistry there to set the fucking bar on fire. And now she knew who he belonged to.

  “I’m so greedy,” she whispered against his lips.

  “Are you?”

  “I’ve always liked nice things, and now I have five of them.” She chuckled, pulling back a little more, before he could seduce her back into another kiss. “I’m a greedy person who wants it all and to leave nothing for the rest of the lovely girls out there.”

  “I think a love-starved heart wants whatever it can get, and there’s nothing wrong with that.” He moved a hand to wrap it around the back of her neck. She couldn’t turn away from him now. “And if the ones you claim are okay with it, then there was nothing for the other women to have anyway.”

  Love-starved. She liked that, in a perverse way. She was like her damn jaguar, a cat. They had put food at their door, offered her a warm place, and she had never left, even when she could have easily found a way to walk away. They offered her affection she had grown used to never getting.

  And she hadn’t gotten it. Her kids relied on her for affection and love, for comfort and safety, but she knew better than to rely on them. She could rely on the guys, on the team.

  So she stayed. She would keep coming back for more, even if it killed her.

  “I’m glad you already know,” she said softly.

  “Know what? That I’m yours? Oh, little lady, you think we can’t all see the possessiveness in your eyes? We know. We know that you’ve finally found something with us that you’ll never let go of. If anything, what happened, what you went through to get home with the Druid just proved it.” He kissed her jaw. She tried to turn and kiss those experienced, full lips, but he held her in place. “I’ll say that it was one of the things that scared me about you. You own people, Sawyer. You find ways to fill missing pieces of who we are and live there, refusing to move. You then push and grow and get too fucking big for the spot you claimed and take over.”

  “Hearing you say that, I feel bad,” she admitted.

  “Why?”

  “Because I don’t know where you fit,” she reminded him.

  “Let’s try between your legs first,” he teased, shifting until she could feel his bulge pressed against her lower abdomen.
“I’m a big man.”

  She swatted his chest for that comment, causing him to laugh. She was grinning, knowing he’d meant it to be a joke.

  “How about next to me, then?” he asked. “Just next to me. It’s about time to see what we are. What we could be. I should have started much earlier, and I’m sorry I didn’t.”

  “Thank you for finally telling me what was wrong. Really, Elijah. I don’t know how to appease your fears, or ease your heart, I don’t, but I’m glad I know. If anything, I understand better than you think.”

  “I know, and it makes me feel like a fucking idiot for not saying anything sooner, let me tell you. Now let’s enjoy this band, and please tell me you know how to grind that ass-”

  She cut him off by turning around doing exactly what he wanted, swinging her hips to the beat starting. She laughed at the groan she got in reply.

  “Fuck me,” he mumbled.

  “We’ll get there,” she promised him.

  “I’m glad we’re on the same page.” He grabbed her hips again to hold her ass to him. She tried to move it, to continue to tease him, but he just held her. “Let’s not get me to bust a fucking nut in the middle of the bar, please.”

  “You asked for it,” she reminded him, grinning over her shoulder.

  “I should be more careful what I wish for then, huh?” He chuckled and turned them so she could see the band again. He pushed her up against the rail of the balcony and kissed her neck as she watched the band.

  They danced there as well, rocking to the drumbeat, each sway making her wonder just how good he was in bed. She had her guesses, her belief that he would blow her mind if she tried to claim that ride.

  And she had every intention of claiming it. Tonight, she decided. Tonight, they were going to get rid of the itch.

  8

  Zander

  Godfather was a great movie and Zander was glad to finally see it playing in their house. Seeing Quinn completely engrossed in it was a good sign and even Vincent was enjoying it, making comments about how ‘that’s not how real crime families do things.’

  He’d be the one to know.

  What worried him was Jasper, who sat silently for most of the movie. When they moved on to the second movie, Jasper tried to excuse himself. Zander grabbed him, knowing his best friend was running off to hide. He hit pause on the movie before saying anything.

  “What’s wrong?” he asked, demanding an answer. He didn’t care if Quinn and Vincent were around. There wasn’t much the team couldn’t say in front of each other.

  “Just…tired, I guess.”

  “Don’t lie to me, man. Come on. You’ve been sulking; what’s going on?”

  “It’s nothing. I’m going to go crash. It’s not a big deal.”

  “First it’s nothing, then it’s not a big deal, which means there is something and it’s a big enough deal to bother you.” Vincent looked up to the ceiling, leaning further back in his recliner. Zander resisted a smile. Vin knew how to nail someone to the wall over a mistaken comment.

  “Is it time for therapy?” Zander asked, the grin unable to be held back. “Come on. Sit back down and let’s talk.”

  “I’m worried about me and Sawyer. It’s not anyone’s business except mine and hers. I’m going to take her on my own date later this week, so it’s not a big deal,” Jasper explained, falling back into his seat. Zander was glad they didn’t need to try and drag it out of him further. “Let’s just keep watching the damn movie.”

  “Good.” Zander pressed play and went back to Godfather Part Two. With that out in the open, they could all go back to ignoring it. He would talk to Jasper about it later.

  They didn’t make it very far in the movie though, before Vincent’s phone began to blow up. Then his and Jasper’s.

  “What the fuck?” he mumbled, pulling his cell out to frown at the screen.

  “Oh fuck,” Jasper gasped.

  “Anyone else seeing this?” Vincent sounded like the world was ending…and there was no way to stop it.

  On his screen was a Magi news release, one that was probably being seen by every Magi with a cellphone, computer or had access to any sort of news.

  “How did this happen?” Jasper asked, looking up. Zander didn’t have an answer, and it seemed neither did Vincent, who stayed quiet in response.

  Sawyer’s face was staring back at him. A picture of her and Elijah at dinner came on next.

  Words. Shadow’s identity confirmed. On date with IMPO agent. Government corruption. Untrustworthy IMPO, fraternizing with criminal who should be behind bars.

  He nearly dropped his phone. He wasn’t sure how to take this. It sent a variety of emotions through him, like confusion and fear. But really, Zander felt angry. He was furious for her, knowing this was about to blow up in their faces. Knowing that her night was ruined and she deserved some quality time with the cowboy.

  Knowing that the news was going to wreck her, hearing people tear her down.

  “What are you all talking about?” Quinn demanded, standing up to see one of their phones.

  “Sawyer was outed.”

  “And they are being spied on. We need to get ahold of them.” Vincent jumped up from his seat and began dialing. Zander knew he was calling either Elijah or Sawyer. “One of you call Sawyer and the other call James. How the fuck did this happen?”

  “I got Sawyer,” Zander said, hitting her face in his contacts without skipping a beat. He listened to it ring.

  And ring.

  And ring.

  “I’m not available. Sorry. Tell me which one of you called and I’ll get back to you.”

  He cursed, resisting the urge to throw his phone. He grabbed the remote instead and changed off the streaming movie to a news channel from Atlanta. He knew someone would be covering it live.

  “Breaking news. Contacts in the IMPO have leaked that the infamous assassin is Sawyer Cambrie Matthews, who has been living under the cover of being a new Special Agent with the IMPO,” a brunette said to the camera before turning to her male co-host.

  “You know, Heather, it’s even crazier when you hear which team she’s on. She’s apparently under Vincent Castello, Axel’s younger brother. What were the WMC and IMPO thinking?” The guy looked like he was going to laugh and Zander wanted to strangle him through the fucking screen.

  “I’m not sure, but thanks to some timely leaks, we know she’s currently out in Atlanta of all places, having dinner and drinks with one of those teammates, Elijah Grant.Now, we generally don’t follow the Special Agents of the IMPO, due to trying to maintain their privacy, but this seems to be crossing a line I can’t imagine.” Heather was much more professional. Zander wouldn’t kill her if he ever saw her, just chew her out.

  “It is crossing a line. We’ve been talking for months about how we all thought the WMC’s sly, no-questions-allowed press release concerning Shadow was a terrible move on their part. How does anyone trust someone who had been wanted for murder to come to the good side? And now look, she’s compromised a team of our best.”

  “What do we know about the leak? It must point to many inside the organizations having problems of their own-”

  “Of course they have problems! The people who pay attention have problems. You know, if the WMC wants to step away from rumors of corruption, maybe they shouldn’t have kept an assassin out of prison for their own reasons. She should be behind bars, on her way to a speedy execution, not having a fancy dinner with one of the very people we rely on to keep peace and order.” The man took a deep breath.

  He tried to call Sawyer again. He knew Elijah took them to a bar, to see a band.

  “I’ve got Elijah!” Vincent called out. “You need to get Sawyer into a secure location, out of the public eye. Someone outed Sawyer and is spying on you. They have pictures from the restaurant. Her face and name are all over the fucking news. They know.”

  “This had to be done by multiple people,” Jasper whispered. “There’s no way one person knew who Sawye
r was and that she was going to be in Atlanta tonight.”

  “You’re right,” Zander agreed, snapping his fingers. “Who is that guy Elijah uses to get stuff in Atlanta? He’d go to him for everything.”

  “He would know where Elijah and Sawyer are, but how in the hell would he know who Sawyer is?” Jasper asked in return.

  “They are getting his truck and getting out of the city as fast as they can,” Vincent declared. “Anyone reach James yet?”

  “No, I got his voicemail. He’s probably asleep right now,” Jasper replied.

  “I’ll try him. He never misses my calls,” Vincent muttered, dialing another number.

  “This is bad,” Quinn whispered. Zander was impressed by the guy’s control and his understanding of what had happened. “I’m going to kill whoever betrayed us for this.”

  “I’ll be right there with you.” Zander patted his shoulder as they continued to watch the two news anchors discuss the ins and outs of Shadow, Sawyer, and the IMPO. They dredged it all up - all the public information they could. Her hits, her crimes, Axel’s crimes, his infamous organization, the members of it.

  “This is ugly. I really hope it wasn’t Rogers, but I don’t really see who else it could be,” Jasper said, sighing as he sank back into his seat. “He’s never been a problem before. He knew Jon’s team too and never made any issue for us before.”

  “Rogers…Do you have his number?” Zander asked. They could all hear Vincent yelling into his phone at James, but he didn’t focus on what was being said, his mind locked on the task of finding who outed Sawyer’s last line of protection. Her privacy.

  “No. I can search Elijah’s room for it, but I’m pretty sure I won’t find it.”

  “I don’t,” Quinn said as well, still watching the screen.

  Zander glanced back at the news and didn’t like seeing Elijah and Sawyer, live, walk out of the bar. Her eyes were hard and cold. Elijah looked furious. What he did like was that they kept their chins raised. There was no point in hiding now.

  “At least they don’t know one thing,” he mumbled. “This isn’t nearly as bad as it could be.”