by Tate James
The gala was being held in a staggeringly ostentatious mansion on the outskirts of Toronto, so Lucy, Elena, and Wesley were back in our hotel room listening in and generally just backing us up in case we needed tech help in a hurry.
“So?” I prompted Austin, and he gusted a long sigh.
“As soon as Caleb sets the diversion, you make the switch with the rings, and I activate the illusion spell. Simple as that. Should take no more than a few seconds at most.” He raised an eyebrow at me in a vaguely condescending way. “Do you have it now? Or shall I repeat myself? Again.”
“No need to be an asshole, Austin,” I murmured, smoothing a hand down the bodice of my dress and feeling the comforting outlines of my knives under the fabric. Not that I should need them, but it never hurt to be prepared.
“Oh, fucking seriously?” Austin snarled. “What the fuck is he doing here?” His gaze had locked on someone behind me, so I turned to see who it was. A slow smile spread over my face as I locked eyes with the granite grey ones staring back at me.
Vali was also immaculate in a tuxedo with his shoulder-length hair pulled back into a short ponytail and his usual stubble shaved clean off. He looked like utter sin, and my nipples tightened with desire just from looking at him.
“Let’s see what the hell he’s playing at and make sure he knows not to interfere with our mission,” Austin muttered, placing a strong hand on my lower back just above my Glock and steering me through the crowds toward my Romanian bad boy. As we came closer though, Vali held my gaze and gave a tiny, barely perceptible headshake, which I knew was him telling me not to approach. Clearly, whomever he was here with, they weren’t people Vali wanted me meeting.
“Actually, darling,” I said in a louder voice, turning to Austin and placing a hand on the front of his shirt. “Why don’t we dance a little? We always come to these things, and you never dance with me.” I pouted like a petulant trophy wife, and Austin’s emerald eyes widened a fraction. He flicked a lightening fast glance from me to Vali and back again before sinking into the character he was playing.
“Well, sugar pea, that’s because you can’t dance,” he responded, loud enough for the men standing near us to hear and chuckle a little.
“Darling.” I affected a whining, bored housewife sort of voice. “You know I’ve been taking lessons with the pool boy. Please?” I pouted, and Austin put up a good act of looking pained by my pleading. Or maybe it wasn’t an act. Either way, he sighed heavily and steered me out onto the dance floor where other couples were swaying though a formal sort of waltz.
Austin lifted one of my hands, placing his other hand firmly on my lower back and pulling me in tight to his body as he began to lead with surprising skill and grace.
“I wasn’t aware ballroom dancing was a class in Omega training,” I commented lightly, following his lead without missing a beat in my delicate heels. I’d attended a very snooty private school for five years, so learning to waltz had been a requirement, something I was actually glad of now.
Austin didn’t respond to my question, directing me around the dance floor like a seasoned professional while my full skirt billowed and twirled with each turn. As we moved, I spotted my backup placed around the room playing their roles as waitstaff, but their attention was entirely on us.
“I’m just going to duck to the bathroom quickly,” I whispered, and Austin raised an eyebrow at me. “Oh, don’t give me that look. Those glasses of champagne go straight through me, and the last thing you want is me bumping the alarm sensor because I’m busting to pee.”
“Fine,” he groaned. “Come on then.” He took my hand and started leading the way in the direction of the bathroom that we’d seen earlier.
“Did Austin just offer to take you to the bathroom like you’re a two year old?” Lucy snorted in my ear, and I rolled my eyes. They had no visuals this time, just audio, but I knew she was just stirring shit.
“Austin, I can probably handle this one on my own,” I remarked in a dry voice, dislodging my hand from his. “There was a bathroom out near the pool, if I remember correctly. It’s less likely to have a line waiting than the ones close to here.”
Austin gave me a long stare, then shrugged, like he didn’t give a shit either way. “I’ll wait just outside for you. God knows trouble will find you otherwise.”
“Suit yourself,” I snapped and brushed past him. He followed close behind as I made my way out of the ballroom and down some steps to the darkened pool area. There were low outdoor lights illuminating the path, so I could see where I was walking, but other than that, things were pretty dim. Probably to discourage guests from congregating outside and missing the auction at the end of the night when the jewels would be displayed.
“Here is probably far enough,” I told Austin, pushing open the door to the pool house bathroom and locking it behind me. Thankfully, I’d been right in my guess that this one would be unoccupied, and I was able to get in and out as quick as a flash.
Returning outside once more, I found Austin leaning against the low garden wall opposite the door, looking like something straight off a billboard somewhere. The way the shadows fell across his high cheekbones and strong jaw made him look more like a high fashion model than a secret agent.
“Done?” he asked, seeing me standing there gawking at him.
“Clearly,” I replied, like the snarky bitch I was. “Let’s head back inside. The auction should be starting soon, so the jewelry will be getting displayed.”
He nodded, falling into step with me as I made my way back along the path past the pool to head back inside. What caused me to look over at the shadowed pool, I had no idea, but something must have caught my attention, and I stopped short, peering through the darkness.
“What is it?” Austin asked, frowning into the shadows where I stared.
“I thought I just saw something move,” I murmured, stepping off the illuminated path and making my way closer to the huge pool. These mansions were insanely overdone, and the pool was no exception. It had to have been bigger than an Olympic pool or something.
Austin coughed a laugh. “It’s probably someone getting a blow job in the shadows, Princess; leave them be.”
“No, I mean in the water.” I picked up the front of my dress and stepped through the little garden bordering the pool area. “There was something...” As I stepped closer, it became clear what it was that I’d seen. Lying facedown in the water, a woman floated motionless, her pale blue dress fanned out around her.
“Shit.” I rushed over with Austin close on my heels. “Quick!” I dropped to my knees at the edge of the pool and stretched out to try and grab the woman, knowing that my huge dress would just slow me down if I got into the water.
She was too far away for me to reach, but Austin dove in without me needing to say anything, swimming a few short strokes over to her and dragging her back over to the side. With him in the water lifting her dead weight, I hauled her out by her armpits. My enhanced strength made the task easy, and within moments I had the woman on her back beside the pool while Austin clambered out to kneel on her other side and press two fingers to her throat.
“She’s still got a pulse,” he panted. “Just barely, though. We need to get the water out of her lungs.”
“Kit?” Wesley’s voice sounded in my ear. “What’s going on? Austin’s earpiece and mic just went offline?”
I ignored Wesley and followed Austin’s directions, placing my hands over the woman’s sternum and pressing down firmly in an even rhythm to try and dislodge the water from her. My earpiece let out a high pitched squeal, so I flicked it out and tossed it in the pool before continuing the chest compression.
“Nothing’s happening, Aus,” I muttered, staring down at the woman’s blueish lips. “She’s dying. I need to use my magic.”
“Christina. No,” he ordered, his gaze snapping up and locking on my face with an intensity that almost made me obey him. Almost.
We had all agreed during the planning of t
his mission that I would retain my full magic at all costs so that if anything went wrong, I wouldn’t be vulnerable. But we hadn’t anticipated this.
Cocking a brow at him defiantly, I let my mental reins go on the magic, and it rushed forward. The fizzing tingles hurtled down my arms and through my hands into the woman who lay dying between us.
“Princess, stop,” Austin commanded, tugging at my wrists where I pressed firmly to the drowning victim’s chest. “You agreed, dammit. We discussed this, and you agreed. No magic used unless it is absolutely necessary.”
“She’s dying, Austin. That’s pretty necessary.” My voice seemed to echo through my head, and I realized this was the first time I’d tried speaking while healing someone. It was a strange sensation, like my voice wasn’t really connected to me. Or like someone was talking through me like a ventriloquist dummy.
“It’s not. She might have been trying to commit suicide or maybe someone killed her or maybe it was just a damn accident, but news flash, baby girl—people die all the damn time, and it’s not up to you to save them all.” He tugged at my wrists again, but my strength was far superior, and I wasn’t budging.
“Fuck off, Austin. I’m healing her whether you agree or not.” I glared at him, making sure he damn well understood how stubborn I was prepared to be on this. I’d been given the ability to heal people, and I wasn’t about to just ignore it when someone needed me, just in case it made me a bit dizzy.
Okay, that was an understatement. As the magic poured from me and into her, forcing the water out of her lungs and bubbling from her mouth, I could already feel the heavy, lead-like feeling setting into my bones.
“That’s enough,” Austin growled, as the woman rolled slightly and began coughing up mouthfuls of pool water. This time when he yanked on my wrists, I no longer had the strength to fight him on it, and my hands fell away from the coughing woman.
With a hand like a steel band, Austin dragged me to my feet and away from the pool area so fast I had to run to keep up. I glanced back a couple of times, but the nearly drowned woman was sitting up, so I was confident she’d be okay.
“What the fuck were you thinking?” Austin snarled, shoving me into a study off the main hallway and slamming the door behind us. “Look at yourself! You’re so weak you’re practically shaking! How the fuck do you plan on making a sleight-of-hand theft when you are trembling like a goddamn shaved cat in winter?”
“Oh, quit with the dramatics, Austin,” I sighed, not really having the energy necessary to argue with him effectively. “The auction isn’t for half an hour yet. I’ll just go find one of the guys and get a quick recharge, and I’ll be fine.”
“Right, so you’re going to, what? Grab Caleb or Cole and go let them fuck you quick and dirty in the closet or something? Is that how this goes?” His lip curled in what seemed like disgust, and my blood boiled with rage.
“Is that a fucking problem for you, Austin?” I seethed. “Is it really so deplorable that I need a few minutes of sexual contact with my guardians in exchange for saving a damn human’s life?”
“Oh sure, like there’s nothing in it for you? I think you’re addicted to using the magic. You can’t seem to stop, even when you know you shouldn’t be doing it! I mean, how fucking dense can you be not to suspect there is something fishy going on with all these ‘accidents’ around you lately?” He was firing up now in response and crowding me against the desk. “So go on then, Princess. Prove me wrong.”
“What the fuck is that supposed to mean?” I spat back. “How the hell am I supposed to prove something that is a figment of your imagination? Fucking crazy person.”
“I’m one of your guardians, too. Use me.” He poked me in the chest, and my brows shot up.
“No.” I recovered from my shock quickly and glared death at him.
“No? Why? You scared you’ll like it?” he taunted, boxing me against the desk with a dripping wet arm on either side of my huge skirt.
“Not even close,” I lied like a big old liar. “Get out of my face, Austin. I’m not fucking you when you so clearly find me repulsive.”
“Oh, Princess,” he chuckled, a dark sound, deep in his throat. “You have no idea what you’re talking about.”
For a tense moment, neither one of us spoke. Our gazes were locked, our faces only inches apart, as close as lovers and yet not touching at all. From behind Austin, the study door opened and a woman stepped through.
“Do you mind?” Austin snapped, not looking away from my startled stare. “We’re in the middle of something.”
“Austin.” The woman spoke, and the blood drained from his face. “I thought that was you I saw come in here. Well, either you or Caleb, but he isn’t so rude.”
“You,” Austin breathed, stepping back from me and spinning to face the speaker who, I could now see, was a small, delicate young woman with short red hair.
“Uh, let me guess,” I smirked without amusement. “Peyton?”
“Who the hell are you?” The nasty bitch sneered, eyeing me up and down like something the cat just dragged in. I glanced to Austin, but he still seemed gobsmacked.
“No one.” I slipped out from behind Austin and brushed past the petite woman. “Absolutely no one. See you at the auction in thirty minutes, Austin.”
I didn’t wait for his response before sweeping out of the room and shutting the door firmly behind me with shaking hands. Fuck, maybe I was more drained than anticipated.
Chewing my lip nervously, I debated going back into the study and throwing that poisonous bitch out so I could take Austin up on his offer. But I knew he had been bluffing, and whatever was happening between him and Peyton was probably going to be brutal. Nope, I’d be fine. Caleb, Cole, and River were all out in the main party somewhere, so I just needed to find one of them. Easy, right? I was armed to the teeth with weapons too, so I should be just fine alone for a few moments.
Of course, all the weapons in the world weren’t going to help me if I was too weak to use them. Stupid, Kit.
24
One of these days, I would learn to listen to my instincts rather than let my stupid, stubborn pride rule my actions. Would it really have been so damn hard to take Austin up on his offer? It wasn’t like we hadn’t kissed before, and fuck knows I was attracted to him despite my better judgement.
Nonetheless, my pride held me back from returning to that office and demanding that bitch Peyton leave so I could balance out my magic drain. Oh yeah, that’s what I was calling it. Because to admit to myself that I really just wanted to rip that soaking wet tuxedo from his body and let him do me on the desk was just too much for my exhausted brain to process.
Picking up the front of my ball gown, I descended the few steps into the main room and scanned the crowd for my guys. Stupidly, I no longer had my comms receiver, so I couldn’t even ask Wesley where they were.
Just as I thought I’d spotted the back of River’s head across the far side of the room, a commotion broke out, and I was bumped sharply from behind. Exhausted as I was, I lost my footing and hit the floor hard in a puddle of dress.
“So sorry,” a man apologized. “Here, let me help you up.” His hand wrapped around my upper arm like a band of steel and hauled me to my feet like I weighed no more than a wet kitten.
“Do you quite mind?” I snarled, pushing weakly at the heavyset man to try and dislodge his hand, but sadly it seemed I also had the strength of a wet kitten too.
You raging idiot, Kit. My eyes darted from the hard-faced man holding my arm and past him to the shadowy figure lurking in a doorway with a grin on his slimy fucking face.
“You’re supposed to be in Miami tonight,” I snapped, not wanting to believe what I was seeing.
“Amazing what a few well placed bribes will achieve, isn’t it?” My old nemesis Mr Gray sneered at me.
My gaze darted around the room, looking for my backup, but whatever was happening on the far side of the ballroom had caused a crowd of people to block me from view. T
he coincidence was too great to be believable.
“Come along, then,” Mr Gray ordered, and the oaf began dragging me through the doorway Gray had been standing in while I dug in my heels and weakly tried to fight him off.
Twisting in his grip, I slipped my free hand into one of the many strategically placed slits in my ball gown and pulled out a knife. My exhaustion made my movements sloppy and slow, but I still managed to cut a deep slice across the goon’s wrist, causing him to yell and release my arm.
The second his hold dropped, I turned and ran, only to run headlong into another solidly built ogre who made a much better job of both disarming and disabling me, pinning both my arms with wrist locks and shoving me ahead of him in the direction Gray was heading. The fucking bastard must have known how weak I was because he hadn’t even paused to look back when I made my pathetic attempt at escape.
“You know you’re not getting away with this, you pathetic heap of shit,” I snarled at his back as he led the way through the sitting room to a small almost secret door concealing a narrow staircase.
“We’ll see about that,” he smirked, leading the way into a bedroom at the top of the stairs. Once inside, he held the door open for the oaf to shove me through with both my wrists still locked and immobile. “This here was a secret room that the owner of this property kept for entertaining his mistresses. That door at the base of the stairs has a bookshelf which my companion here will slide in front of it, hiding it from view, and there are no other ways in or out.” He grinned like a bloodthirsty Cheshire cat. “Oh, and it’s completely soundproof. So go on, scream. I dare you.”
Yanking against the goon’s grip on me, I briefly considered letting him break my wrists in order to get free, but what good would that do? I was already barely keeping my eyes open without then needing to heal two broken wrists and try and fight my way out of here. So in a nutshell, I was fucked.
“Check her for weapons,” Gray ordered his guys. “This little bitch has surprised me one too many times. But not this time, little girl. Oh, no. I took steps to ensure that not only would you be weak as a damn child, but also that your little friends downstairs were well and truly detained for the foreseeable future. No one is coming to rescue you, Foxy Girl. Not even yourself.”