by Lisa Edmonds
My blood turned to ice.
Monroe continued, “Should Ms. Worth fail to fulfill the terms of the agreement, that contract will be put up for sale. Mr. Bell would have the first option to buy it outright.”
I was standing before I realized I had moved. Suddenly everyone was on their feet and every security person in the room converged on their employers. The tension in the room skyrocketed.
“You son of a bitch,” I ground out. “That contract is not transferable.”
Monroe was unperturbed. “I am assured the matter of whether it could be transferred was not agreed upon, and therefore it is at Madame Valas’s discretion whether to keep it or sell it.”
My hands shook with fury. There was something in Monroe’s expression—a kind of satisfaction—that told me this was punishment by the Court for me not backing off when he told me to. He’d just kicked my feet out from under me to show me he could. I wondered if it had been his idea or Valas’s. Either way, she must have agreed to let him put the contract on the table, which meant I would have to rethink everything I thought I knew about the nature of our deal.
Bell folded his hands on the table. “These terms are more to my liking, I think. We might be able to make a deal, provided Ms. Worth can calm herself enough to work out the particulars.”
“Perhaps we should take a short break to confer,” Charles suggested smoothly. “Shall we say ten minutes?”
“I second,” Bell said, giving me a satisfied smile. “Take all the time you need, Ms. Worth.”
I wanted to cut him in half where he stood. Instead, I took a few steps back from the table. “Ten minutes, then,” I said, my voice tight.
Sean and I moved to the far side of the lounge as the others broke into small groups to talk quietly. His fury and worry sizzled on my skin, but my own anger was so powerful I barely noticed his.
Ben and Jack formed a wall between us and the others, with Ben facing the conference room and Jack facing us. Their faces were cold, their eyes bright as they guarded us. I sensed Malcolm next to us as well, but he stayed silent.
Sean bent his head so he could put his lips next to my ear. “We can leave right now,” he told me, his words barely audible. I was very aware of all of the sharp ears in the room. “No one’s agreed to or signed anything. You are not obligated to trade yourself for Aden and the others.”
I took several deep breaths, inhaling through my nose and out through my mouth, to calm myself and squash my anger. I kicked myself for letting Monroe get under my skin with his unexpected betrayal—and for not anticipating it. I should have known he’d find a way to get back at me for not backing off when he told me to. Even if I had, though, I never would have anticipated Valas would put our agreement on the table and hint it would be for sale. I’d thought what I’d agreed to do for her was significant enough to make that impossible.
It would appear I had miscalculated.
“I’m not leaving.” My voice was softer than a whisper, since his werewolf ears would easily hear me. “Aden and Jana will be released. I have every intention of fulfilling my part of the agreement, so Valas will have no reason to put my contract up for sale.”
A muscle moved in Sean’s jaw. “Now that Bell knows there’s a contract, he may try to buy it anyway, and Monroe just signaled Valas might be willing to sell.”
He was careful not to voice his thoughts about either the head of the Court or her representative, given the likelihood of being overheard, but I saw unbridled fury in his fiery golden eyes. No doubt he’d have some choice words about Valas and Monroe once we were alone.
“I know.” I squeezed his hand. “I’ll have to deal with that later. Right now, I need to know if you still think I should do this.”
He didn’t respond right away. If he said no, it would be the first time since we’d reconciled that I would have to decide whether to go through with something against Sean’s wishes. On the one side would be the lives of Aden and the rest of the nulls, and on the other, my relationship and my heart. As much as Sean meant to me, how could I give that side of the equation more weight than a dozen lives? I didn’t think I could.
Sean’s hand tightened on mine. “If you say you can break those wards, then I believe you and I’m with you. However, I don’t want you to risk your status as a favorite of the Court. I think you should let Bell hand Aden and Jana over to the Court as part of the collateral.”
I kept my face expressionless, but I was sure he sensed my anger. “I want Aden and Jana away from Bell, away from all of this.”
“I know you do. You have every intention of fulfilling your part of the agreement, which means the Court will release the remaining nulls and Aden and Jana go free. They’ll only be in the Court’s custody for an additional day and they won’t be in Bell’s hands.” He read my eyes. “Unless you’re concerned the Court won’t let them go.”
“If Monroe signs on the dotted line and says the Court will release them, I don’t have any reason to think they won’t,” I said. “The Court has been honorable in its dealings, to the best of my knowledge, but I don’t want Aden and Jana in custody one more minute. I don’t want to even risk Bell or the Court finding a loophole and hanging onto them, Sean. I want them to walk free tonight.” I’d already set things in motion to ensure their safety after their release and those plans did not include letting the Court hang onto them for an additional day.
He pressed his lips to my ear. “I want them freed too, but I need you to be safe, Alice. I am not giving you an order or an ultimatum; the choice is yours to make. You asked me what I think you should do and that’s my answer.” His voice and expression became as hard and cold as steel. “I will not let you fall into Bell’s hands or anyone else’s. You will never belong to anyone ever again except yourself, and someday me if we decide we belong to each other. Your power, combined with your alliance with me and the pack, may be enough to ensure your safety, but as Vaughan said, your status as a favorite of the Court is the most significant deterrent for people like Bell. I don’t want you to risk that, even for Aden and his mother.”
“I can’t,” I told him softly. “I can’t let Aden and Jana stay prisoners one more minute and risk them being returned to Bell if it’s in my power to free them now. I was a prisoner once. I want to follow your advice, but I can’t.” I searched his face, hoping to find reassurance.
He touched his forehead to mine. “I understand,” he murmured. “I don’t agree, but I understand.”
I felt a cold touch on my shoulder. Alice, remember what Suriel said about you saving Aden regardless of the cost? Malcolm said in my head. I sensed his worry. I think this is what he meant.
Do you think I’m making a mistake? I asked him.
A pause. No, I don’t. I get where Sean is coming from, but I’m with you. I don’t like the Court holding Aden and Jana as collateral. I smell a rat and I think your instincts are telling you there’s something going on we’re not aware of. I say we both go with our guts on this one. It’s your call, though. I’m with you either way. He let go of my shoulder.
“The vampire is coming over,” Ben said softly over his shoulder. His voice was uncharacteristically growly. I was sure both Ben and Jack remembered all too well how Charles had smashed through the front door of Jack and Delia’s house the night I’d died to free Sean from the cuff, and it wasn’t likely any of the werewolves would forgive his intrusion anytime soon.
“Let him pass,” I said.
Ben said nothing as Charles walked around him, but I heard a brief, low growl from Jack. Charles chose not to acknowledge it.
I expected Charles to touch me so we could share our thoughts, but to my surprise he didn’t. He leaned close enough to put his lips near my ear. “We are nearing the end of the ten-minute recess,” he murmured. “Do you wish to proceed, and if so, what are your instructions?”
I tried not to notice that his scent was nearly intoxicating and how his blood surged in my veins like tides under the moon. He sensed my
disquiet. The corners of his mouth turned up ever so slightly and his eyes glittered. There was the Charles I recognized.
“Jana and Aden, along with half of the nulls and their families, must be released as soon as the agreement is signed,” I told him, my voice equally quiet. “In return, I agree to allow the Court to hold the remaining nulls as collateral, and Monroe may rescind my status as a favorite of the Court if I don’t fulfill my obligations as outlined in the contract.”
Charles’s eyes flashed silver. “I do not endorse this course of action.”
“You’re not the only one,” Sean said. “But it’s Alice’s decision to make, not ours.”
The vampire made a low hissing sound. “Very well.” He lowered his head again. “Other instructions?”
I spoke into his ear. “I want an ironclad agreement that the moment the wards break, or we determine that’s not possible due to circumstances beyond my control, the rest of the nulls will be released by the Court. If they are not, I will become the Court’s worst nightmare, and you can quote me on that. If Monroe doubts it, tell him to ask Valas whether I’m capable of following through on that threat.”
Charles studied me. “You are aware such a threat will be taken quite seriously?”
I spooled magic and let my eyes glow. “It should be.”
He inclined his head. “Anything further?”
I put my hand on his. I sensed a surge of golden shifter magic from all three werewolves. They didn’t like me having physical contact with Charles and I couldn’t blame them, but I had questions I couldn’t say aloud.
What concerns you? Charles asked in my head.
I ignored the surge of heat and power kindled by touching him and hearing his voice in my head. I smell a rat in regard to the Court’s offer to hold half of the nulls as collateral, I told him bluntly. What’s Monroe’s plan?
I know of no plan, but I too suspect his motives. Charles’s voice was grim. Is this why you insist on procuring the release of the boy and his mother?
Partly, but the main reason is that Aden is just a kid, and no kid deserves to be a prisoner of either a cabal or the Court. I met his eyes. Do you have any recommendations or warnings I need to hear, given what’s been discussed so far?
He nodded gravely. By revealing the existence of your contract, Valas has implied she is willing to sell, regardless of the outcome of your efforts. I am troubled by this unexpected development.
I felt a little better knowing even Charles hadn’t anticipated Valas’s move. You and me both. I’ll have to cross that bridge if and when I come to it. Tonight, my priority is reaching an agreement with Bell and the Court and getting the nulls released. I’ll have to worry about my agreement with Valas later.
A voice interrupted our silent conversation. “Ten minutes have elapsed,” Ezekiel Monroe said from the conference table. “Is Ms. Worth prepared to resume our discussion?”
Charles glanced at me. I gave him a nod.
“We are,” my vampire representative replied. He gestured for me to walk ahead of him.
In my mind, I pictured my side as the head of the table and the others as supplicants in my presence. My gut twisted. Moses walked into every room in just that same way, as Bell had done when he arrived: like a king before his subjects. I’d hated that about my grandfather—hated it with every fiber of my being. But if I’d learned anything from Moses, it was what power really was and how to wield it.
If I wanted to, I could raze this building to the ground and walk out without a hair out of place, and it was about damn time the others in this room acknowledged it.
Head high, with Sean and Charles behind me and Ben and Jack bringing up the rear, I strode to my chair. My aura crackled and I made no effort to hide the power I carried. For the first time in a very long time, I dropped the façade of Alice Worth and let a room full of people see the cold power and even colder eyes of Moses Murphy’s granddaughter.
Bell and Monroe rose as I approached the table. I saw something in their eyes that hadn’t been there before: wariness. I was willing to bet Bell regretted giving me that ten-minute recess. I’d had the chance to regroup—and remember who I was.
From her spot behind Bell, Nora Keegan smiled, as if to say, A-ha—there you are.
I let the corner of my mouth go up ever so slightly. Come get me.
Sean stood just behind me, his golden eyes moving around the table, studying each face in turn. The air felt thick with power—Sean’s and mine.
I put my fingertips on the conference table. Tiny sparks crackled against the polished wood and the table vibrated at my touch. “Gentlemen, the time for games is over. These are my terms.”
Three hours later, I used Charles’s gold-accented fountain pen to add my signature to those of Darius Bell and Ezekiel Monroe on the last page of our agreement, which had swelled from forty-nine pages—plus addenda—to a more robust seventy-three. I took a cue from John Hancock and signed with a flourish, letting the A in Alice take up far more than its fair share of real estate on the page.
The revised agreement had been prepared by one of Charles’s staff and delivered to our conference room via the dumbwaiter. Once all parties had reviewed it, we’d each signed and our signatures were duly witnessed by Thomas, who we’d summoned using the house phone.
As I set the pen down, Thomas went to the mirrored bar. With great formality, he poured two fingers of Scotch whisky into three glasses, which he placed on a tray. He brought the tray to me. I took a glass and watched as Monroe and Bell took theirs.
I raised my glass. “To our success, gentlemen.”
They raised their glasses. “To our success,” Bell echoed, smiling as if amused by some private joke. We’d see who’d get the last laugh, I thought.
“May our victory be swift and final,” Monroe added.
We drank.
I turned to Bell. “Now. Release the nulls.”
21
Ben turned into the wide circular drive in front of The Casarina, one of the city’s finest hotels and one of Bell’s most opulent properties, and stopped under the porte cochère. The heavy rain had turned to a light drizzle.
A valet started to hurry toward us. He stopped in his tracks when he spotted Sean in the front passenger seat and returned to his podium next to the hotel’s revolving doors, studiously avoiding looking in our direction.
“I guess we were expected,” I said dryly.
A low growl came from beside me. Jack had been on high alert since we’d left Luciano’s and his unease prickled on my skin like porcupine quills.
Sean glanced over his shoulder as Ben put the SUV in park. “Stand guard outside, will you, Jack?”
With an affirmative grunt, the beta got out and took up a position near the back of the SUV, where he could keep watch for anyone approaching our vehicle from the rear or passenger side.
I drummed my fingers on the armrest. “Ten minutes to the rendezvous. I wonder what games Bell will try to play.” Despite his signature on what we thought was a pretty iron-clad contract, I fully expected the curveballs to start coming at us immediately.
The first one arrived less than a minute later, when Jack tapped twice on the back bumper and a luxury SUV pulled up next to us.
“If this is them, they’re early,” I said, frowning.
The rear door of the other SUV opened and Allan Garrett emerged, wearing a suit. His eyes met mine through my window.
“That’s Aden’s father,” I told Sean. “I’m getting out. I’ve got some questions for him.”
He got out and opened my door, offering me a hand to help me out of the SUV.
The windows of the other SUV were so darkly tinted I couldn’t see who was in the vehicle. The windows on this side of the car were down an inch, though—enough that everything we said would be overheard. Garrett wasn’t in shackles, but it didn’t take a rocket scientist to figure out he was on a leash.
I leveled a flat stare at Aden’s father.
“Ms. Worth.�
�� A muscle moved in his jaw. “I owe you an apology.”
A dozen angry words burned on my tongue. I swallowed them, spoke different ones. “So apologize.”
“I’m sorry.” He cursed and rubbed his face. “You tried to warn me.”
“Yeah, I did. But he has your kid, so I can see why you did it.” I paused. “You’re a horse’s ass, though.”
He sighed. “Can’t argue with that.”
I studied him. “What’s with the suit, Allan?”
“Mr. Bell offered me a job. I took it.”
I read his eyes. There wasn’t much he could say with the others in the vehicle listening, but I thought I understood his motives clearly enough. He hoped by going to work for Bell willingly, he could ensure Bell would leave Aden alone. He had to know Bell’s promises, whatever they’d been, weren’t worth much. He also had to know he’d just made a deal with the devil. Now that he’d taken a job with a cabal and they knew what he could do, he wasn’t likely to ever see freedom again. He’d given up his life for Aden.
For a moment, I saw despair in Garrett’s eyes. It disappeared, replaced by cold resolve. The last of my anger at him flickered and died.
I wanted to tell him I was sorry, but I was fairly certain he wouldn’t want to hear it. “Have you been told about my arrangement with Bell?” I asked instead.
He nodded. “Not the details.” Hope shone in his eyes. “Aden and Jana will be freed?”
“That’s the plan. They’re supposed to be brought here soon.” I wished I could sound more certain, but until I had Aden and his mother in my hands, I wasn’t counting on anything.
“Thank you.” His voice was steady, but I caught the flash of emotion in his face before he forced himself to school his features. “Watch over them for me.”
“I will.” I wanted to tell him my plan for keeping them safe from Bell, but I didn’t dare—not with listeners in the other SUV. Instead, I let him see in my eyes that there was a plan and hoped he understood.