by J Bree
Ash develops a fucking eye twitch, but he manages to hold it together. Harley smirks at the look Atticus gives Illi and Blaise outright fucking roars with laughter, throwing his head back and just fucking shaking with glee.
I slip my hand into Avery’s and give it a little squeeze, the smirk on my own face directed at the Bear. “I don’t see why we’ve sat around waiting for the intel, only to send a single guy in. If we’re going to do that, I’ll just go in myself.”
I can feel three sets of eyes glare daggers at me but I keep my eyes focused on the Crow. He smooths a hand down the front of his jacket, something rich people must do a lot because I always catch Avery and Ash doing it, and then he leans back in his chair.
“The Jackal is on high alert. He has thousands of loyal men and every last one of them will be on the lookout for you. Your trip to the Dive to see the Viper was a fluke; there’s a bounty on your head and every last one of the Jackal’s followers want it. You cannot go after him. We are outnumbered, unless I call in all of my own men which I won’t do. Therefore, we send in one shooter. Take him out quickly and quietly, then clean up the mess his organization is in.”
It’s not going to work. “I’m the best there is. No one else will come close.”
Avery catches my eye. “You would have been better off getting Luca to kill him, then plead your case with the Twelve.”
Atticus shakes his head at us both. “Anarchy is what has gotten us into this mess.”
I huff out a breath and shut my mouth again. No point trying to argue with the holier-than-thou, pretentious, arrogant fuck. He might have struck a nerve with me. Just fucking maybe.
When the meeting is finally over, shitty plan and all, Avery stands before anyone else and moves to the door. Ash stays in his chair, his eyes glued to the Crow, so I wave the others out and stay with him. If he needs to have a showdown to get this out of his system then fuck it, we’re having a showdown.
Lord fucking help us.
“Anything else?” The Bear snarls, and the Crow shakes his head at him, dismissive as though the Bear is a disobedient child. It’s funny as fuck to see and my little dark stained heart soaks it the hell up. They all stand and make their way to the doors.
Atticus gives us a hard look, but his steely gaze means nothing to Ash. “Is there something else you need?”
Ash reaches into his pocket and pulls out a scrap of fabric, soaked in blood, and he throws it down on the table in front of the Crow. I stare at it and try not to let the shock show on my face. What the ever-loving fuck is that?
“You might want to vet your men a little better from now on, Crawford. It wasn’t that hard for me to find the Jackal’s mark. You’re really not doing a good job of proving me wrong. You’ll never be worthy of Avery. Never.”
Atticus unwraps the fabric and sure enough, there’s a piece of skin with the Jackal’s insignia on it. Holy freaking shit.
I stand before all of the words streaming through my head burst out of my mouth and I pull Ash up with me. His hand is steady in mine as we leave the Crow behind, pausing by the door when he calls out to us.
“The Coyote needs to do another sweep of Avery’s ranch. You should all stay here tonight to ensure it’s safe. I’ve had rooms set aside for you all.” He says in a blank tone, and I nod.
No matter how much I’d like to tell him to shove it up his ass we have a job to take care of. “Thank you, we will stay but we only need one room.”
Then we head back towards the reception room to find the others.
“Where the hell is he? What if someone finds the body?” I hiss at him the second I’m sure we’re alone. Fuck me.
Ash tugs me into an alcove by the painting Illi hated, his eyes like icy blue pits. “Obviously I didn’t leave anything behind. I’m not fucking braindead, Mounty.”
I give him a hard look and his mood sours even more. “I called Illi to get rid of the body and my clothes, then I had a fucking bleach bath. I’m a little fucking insulted you think I can’t do this.”
My eyes dart over his face, taking in his ire and his fierce protective look. “I’m not doubting you. I’m not good at letting you guys take the lead. You know that already. I can’t handle something fucking happening to one of you.”
His hand wraps around my throat and squeezes until my head tips back and our lips meet, rough and desperate. Fuck, the taste of him is addictive and fucking poison.
He breaks the kiss and whispers to me, his lips brushing against mine, “Illi asked me why I was calling, not you, and I told him that when I said I was all in, I meant it. That means if someone is threatening you or our family, I’ll fucking deal with it.”
I stare up at him with a whole new level of respect and adoration. Fuck me.
He leans forward and pins me to the wall, covering me entirely with the hard lines of his body. Sweet merciful lord, I do not need to turn into a puddle here and have the fucking Crow find me looking weak and pathetic.
“Knowing I can use all of the twisted, fucked up shit my family has taught me to keep you safe… well, I feel a little less fucked up because of it. Knowing that it turns you on is just icing on the fucking cake.”
Chapter Fifteen
I wait until Avery is asleep before I decide I need some answers. I’ve never felt so watched as I do inside the Crow’s fortress. I don’t call it that lightly, it’s a fucking stronghold and I know I’m going to go to sleep tonight without the slightest fear of having one of the Jackal’s men climb through my window.
The room we’re put in has no windows.
Blaise and Harley steal a mattress from one of the neighboring rooms and Blaise locks himself in the bathroom to get high enough to sleep soundly. Avery bitches him out but she’s asleep before he’s finished. Ash takes up watch by the door, one of his guns resting in his lap while he cleans the other. Harley snickers under his breath in pure delight at the whole thing.
I find it less amusing.
At some point, this is going to blow up and I need to make sure Avery isn’t going to be kidnapped or some shit. I manage to convince Ash to stay behind and drag Harley back downstairs to hunt for the Crow. We need to have it out and draw some fucking lines.
He can’t keep dismissing her ideas, just to ‘keep her safe’.
The moment we find him in the formal sitting area, Atticus tips his head towards the bar and I nod. Yeah, his fortress has a fucking bar, complete with staff and bowls of nuts.
Fucking rich people.
I take a seat at the booth and Harley slides in next to me, keeping himself firmly between the Crow and me. It’s sweet and entirely unnecessary, but I let it go.
“We need to discuss Avery.” The Crow says, and I see the member of the Twelve slowly slip away until we’re staring at Atticus Crawford.
He flicks a hand at the bartender and we’re served our drinks of choice, only I never told them what I wanted. Harley’s beer is even his preferred brand. I raise an eyebrow at Atticus and he flicks a dismissive hand at me.
“It’s my livelihood to know everything about everyone.”
I decide that if he’s going to be himself then I’m going to drop all of the formalities as well and tell the fucker some home truths. “Well, you’re failing. For someone who’s known Aves her whole life you fucking suck at really knowing her. You keep cutting that girl so deep she’s never going to forgive you.”
He sips his bourbon. He has it the same way Ash does, so it must be the preferred drink for all pompous assholes.
He sets the glass back down on the table and says, “Everything I’ve done is to keep her alive. I couldn’t always keep her safe, not completely, but I did what I could to keep her breathing long enough that I could get her out.”
My eyes narrow. “Oh yeah? How have you done that? Built yourself an empire, trade in information, but how has that done anything for her? Because I’ve gotten her out and safe. I’m guarding her, I’ve killed and bled and tortured for her. What have you done?”
<
br /> His lip curls into a snarl at me and Harley palms a knife. Illi taught him well and Atticus could be bleeding out in a fucking second if Harley doesn’t keep his cool.
“Her father has already sold her twice. The buyers are both dead, because I took care of it. Her father was going to split the twins up, he was going to send her to finishing school across the country where he could have her killed without Ash’s protection, I stopped that. I walked into the fucking slums of Mounts Bay and became the Crow for her. If I took her away then I would have had to leave Ash behind. I think you’re underestimating Joseph Beaumont’s reach. Everything you do for Avery only happens because I take care of the officials. I’m running out of information and bribes to keep her safe. I’m doing everything I fucking can to keep her and Ash safe. I know he hates me, I know that he won’t ever trust me, but I’m trying to get him out too.”
Fuck.
Dammit. I like him, and from the look on Harley’s face he does too. Jesus, what a mess.
“Alright. I’ll help. We can work together.”
Atticus snorts at me. “I know exactly how loyal you are, Wolf. It’s why I didn’t put a bullet between your eyes when I found out you’d become friends with her.”
Harley’s eyes narrow again and I give Atticus a stern look. “Maybe not the best idea to threaten me while you’re asking for my help.”
Atticus shakes his head. “I’m not threatening you and I’m not asking for your help. I know you won’t do anything for me without speaking to Avery about it. Like I said, you’re loyal. I’m only telling you what she won’t listen to, which is that I’m trying to get her out of this alive and sometimes that means I have to treat her like she’s made of glass. I ask her not to come to meetings because I can’t keep my fucking eyes off of her and the Jackal will notice. He was looking for my weaknesses to exploit and I’ve aggressively kept her away from me and the Bay for that exact reason. I had to weigh up the benefits of having her inducted to you very carefully. The Jackal knows about her now but she’s a little bit safer from her father. It’s a fucking constant battle, walking through landmines and praying I’m not mis-stepping and losing the only fucking reason I have for living. So don’t underestimate me, I know exactly who Avery Beaumont is. I know how strong she is. I’m willing to have her hate me if it means I can get her out of this mess alive. I’d rather have her alive and happy with someone else, than selfishly keep her only to have her die because of it.”
I finish my whiskey in two gulps and say, “Right. So, what threats are you dealing with for her and what do you need me to do? I’ll take care of anything.”
“I told you, I don’t need your help. If I did, I’d ask.” He says in the sulkiest, asshole tone but little does he know I’m fucking immune to it.
I do spend a fuck-load of time with my guys and they’re the kings of this shit.
“Explain exactly how you managed to have one of the Jackal’s men get through your security then? I thought you’d vetted everyone you put into the school?”
His jaw clenches and he gives me the slightest nod, like he’s conceding the point or some shit. “I’ve pulled everyone from Hannaford. There’s a whole new batch of my men, and every last one of them has been personally vetted by me. I’ve called in an old friend; he’s going to stay on top of things. I will find out how the spy got through, then I will deal with it.”
Atticus finishes his drink and straightens his lapels uselessly. “She’ll forgive me. Someday she will understand the depths I’ve reached to keep her safe.”
I hum under my breath, watching Harley’s hands flex as he reins his temper in. “She will. But first you have to stop treating her like a delicate princess and remember she’s been waging her own war for years. She can handle your empire, better even than you can, if you’d just cut your shit out.”
He shakes his head at me like I’m dense. “It’s not about handling it. It’s about surviving it. What kind of a monster would I be if I asked an eighteen year old girl to step into a criminal empire?”
I give him an ice cold look. “One that recognizes she was born into a den of monsters and survived it.”
I stand up to leave before he says something else that makes me want to rip his arrogant face right the fuck off, and Harley takes my arm to help me out of the booth. A server comes over to refill Atticus’s drink and clear our empty glasses. I run through his story in my head again, and sigh.
“Atticus?”
He looks up and, without the mask of the Crow he looks fucking miserable.
I blow out a long breath. “You have my vote. We don’t work on a hierarchy or whatever, we vote on shit like a family. If it comes down to it, I’ll vote in your favor.”
His eyes flash and when he looks at Harley they harden. My golden god shrugs with a haughty smirk. “Two votes to three still means you’re fucked, Crawford.”
Atticus grits his teeth then relaxes, lifting his glass to his lips again. “What will your vote cost me, Arbour? I’ll pay it.”
Harley tips his head back and roars with laughter. “You’ve already got it, dickhead. Avery never backs down, though, and she’s going to hold out on you until the bitter end just to prove a fucking point. Ash fucking loathes you, and Blaise always votes with Ash. On everything, except Lips, so you’re fucked.”
I shrug and smile. “Illi and Odie might decide to vote, you’ll have to make a plea to the Butcher. Good luck with that, he’s very fond of our Ice Queen.”
Atticus gives me a disgusted look but nods. Harley tucks me under his arm and walks us both out of the bar, up the stairs and into our room.
Avery is tucked into the bed, her cheeks red like she’s been scrubbing at them the whole time we’ve been downstairs. Ash is sitting in the armchair, watching her with a dark look and my gut clenches.
There’s no way he’s going to let Atticus in.
* * *
There’s nothing quite like getting back to the mundane normality of Hannaford after the break.
We get in late, shuffling upstairs and passing out wherever the fuck we land. When my alarm sounds in the morning I kind of want to smash it to pieces but mostly I just want to cry.
Avery gives me a knowing look and declares, “French toast in the dining hall sounds perfect, Mounty.”
Fuck yes, it does. “Avery Aspen Waverly Beaumont, marry me.”
She startles and then cackles like a witch, happy in a way she hasn’t been for months. “How the hell did you know my full name? Harley’s going to be heartbroken you chose me over him, you know.”
I slip my arm into her’s and ignore the grumbling bullshit around us. “Chicks before dicks, Aves.”
Blaise gets me the biggest plate of breakfast I’ve ever seen and I’m sure I’ll puke if I eat the whole thing but fuck it, I’m always up for a challenge. Ash is softer with his sister again, carrying her tray and helping her into her chair.
I ignore the chatter around us like I always do, trusting Avery and the guys to tell me if I need to take more notice, so I don’t notice the excitement until Harley glances up and snarls, “What the fuck?”
The chair next to mine scrapes back and Luca folds himself into it, swooping in to kiss my cheek. “Morning, princess! Missed me?”
A grin bursts across my face, I’m sure I look like a psychotic toddler. “I kinda did. How’s things? You enjoying being out of the Jackal’s den of evil?”
He cackles at me, ignoring the looks of loathing my guys give him. All three of them. Fuck my life. “It’s been quiet, that’s for sure. I’ve been working on a new project for our mutual friend… the non-psychotic one. Apparently, someone is getting gifts from a secret admirer?”
Ugh. “Have you had any luck in your search?”
He shrugs and winks at me, tipping his head back to drink his iced coffee and I think a few of the freshman girls around us swoon. Huh, ok maybe that’s why Harley is looking so… snarly.
“There’s been a few leads. Whoever is sending them is go
od… like, fucking good at this. I’d be worried except they’re obviously obsessed with you. Thinking about adding to your little harem, princess?” He says with a little sly smile. Ok, bordering on flirty but that’s just how he is. It doesn’t mean shit.
“You’re going to stand the fuck up and walk away. Right now, before I drag your ass across this table and beat the life out of you.” Harley snarls, and for once, Blaise doesn’t make a joke. He just nods along like it’s the acceptable thing to do.
Avery rolls her eyes. “Just leave him. They’re friends, it’s the same as Illi and you don’t go all Neanderthal on him.”
Harley cuts her a look. “Illi is family. This dick might be a Crow spy but he lived with the Jackal for too long for me to trust him.”
Luca leans back in his chair, nonchalant but he doesn’t quite pull it off like Illi does. “I saved your girl’s ass last year. Isn’t that enough for you to cut me some slack? The Crow is your ally.”
Ash snorts and stands, tugging Avery out of her seat and then he grabs my arm to haul me up too. Jesus fucking wept. He gives Luca his most vicious glare and says, “Were you there when the Jackal was torturing the Wolf? Did you stand by and watch it all, collecting your information and telling yourself that absolves you from taking responsibility for that?”
Luca smiles at him, shaking his head. “You only care because you’re in love with her. Any other girl and you wouldn’t give a fuck. How many girls have you buried for your father?”
Ash leans forward until he can whisper in Luca’s ear. “Enough to know you’re doing a shitty job of protecting the Wolf, and my sister, and you’re not fucking welcome here.”
And then he drags us to our classes for the day.
Fuck me.