Chapter 14

Blake sat down and sighed. Noah had interrupted his time with Sophia, and he was a little cranky as he had been just about ready to strip off her leggings for a quickie in the bathroom.

Bastard.

He had taken the seat to Noah’s left, while Titus and Justice sat to his right. Justice seemed very comfortable around Titus, while Blake would have preferred the fucker to have a hole or two in him. Hence, he rested the gun on his lap, pointing it at Titus. If he tried anything, he’d end up bloody.

“So, Titus, Justice seems to think you’re an honorable male. I disagree, but he keeps telling me I’m wrong. Care to tell me why?” Noah asked.

Titus stared at the table and ran his hand through his hair. As Blake waited for an answer, he tried to recall the previous times he’d seen Titus. He’d been physically bigger, and hadn’t said much. He either hid something, or he would prove to be one of the quiet ones who needed to be worried about.

He didn’t meet Noah’s gaze as he spoke. “I told you already. Simon approached Blake and Nico about taking us in, and we were denied. We were forced to remain with those psychopaths, Micah and Jael. We just went along with everything for self-preservation.”

“Tell me what happened when Simon died.”

He stared at Titus, and swore he saw tears brim his dark eyes.

“Micah called, needing us at Sophia’s house. He shot Simon. I ran. He shot at me, but I kept going. I don’t know how long I was out there. Justice found me in the desert.”

Blake bunched his hands into fists. Just thinking about what Micah had put Sophia through made him want to kill him all over again, but this time, slowly and painfully.

“He was near death,” Justice noted.

“Look, we’ve been through this before,” Noah said. “But Titus, give me a reason why I should trust you. You guys killed Talin. You tried to kill all of us.”

“Simon and I would never have done that. We never would have hurt you.”

“Then why all the swagger? Why all the taunts and promises of making our lives living hell?” Blake asked.

Titus shut his eyes. “We needed to keep up a front. We wanted out so badly, but we didn’t know where to go or how to survive. We felt safe in the numbers, and realized that we may be able to be part of your group, but we were denied.”

A heavy silence fell over the room.

Blake kind of felt bad for him, and when Titus laid his forehead on the glass table, his arms crossed over his head, the feeling almost solidified, but not quite. It had to be the Colonist in him because any normal human being would have pity for the guy, but not him.

The man looked broken. Completely and utterly shattered, and Blake realized he’d seen it before—when Abby left Noah, and when Talin had found out SR44 had been blown to shit and he’d lost his mate.

An SR44ian guy without his mate.

The thought stunned him, and he waited for the adrenaline to roll through his body. As he stared at Titus, he felt certain that’s exactly what he was seeing. Titus slept all the time, didn’t eat, didn’t bathe, and didn’t seem to have any real will to live.

Suddenly, Titus lifted his head, his gaunt face determined. “Look, Noah. I knew these guys wouldn’t make it in the bunker. Someone would find them out. I needed to get them to you so you could protect them. I knew you wouldn’t protect me, but I hoped you’d protect them. I’ve done my job, so do with me what you will. I don’t give a fuck. Kill me right now. Just take care of Justice and his crew. They’ve been very good to me.”

Titus laid his head down again, and Blake met Noah’s gaze, more certain that ever before—Titus had lost his mate.

But who had it been?

 

 

 

Ten minutes later, Titus had been led back to the gym and locked in. Blake listened as Justice outlined Noah’s plan to the rest of his group. They all sat around the big, glass table, and Blake found it odd to see new faces in the War Room. He’d liked the old ones just fine.

He realized he didn’t particularly like change, especially since he’d put his heroin habit behind him. Now, the arrival of these people had kind of thrown everything into a tailspin, and uncertainty seemed to be top dog.

“I’m in,” Chance said after Justice finished telling him Noah’s plans.

He still looked really angry, and Blake wondered if it would be a good idea to let him loose on the streets of Phoenix. They didn’t need a hothead; they needed calm and collected.

“Me, too,” Roman said.

A quiet guy, but he had an undercurrent of danger. He reminded Blake of Hudson, except Hudson liked to talk.

Axel and Kade nodded. The only one who hadn’t agreed was Macy.

As she picked at her fingernails, Justice spoke up. “You don’t need to decide now, Macy.”

“And even if you say you don’t want to help us out, that’s fine. You’re one of us, and we won’t abandon you,” Noah chimed in.

“Thank you.”

“If it’s okay with you guys, I’d like to bring in the other males and we can all get to work.”

They all nodded, and Noah stood, pulling out his phone. “Blake, can you call Jovan and Rayner, and I’ll hustle up the rest of them?”

“May I please be excused?” Macy asked.

Noah nodded, and Blake picked up his own phone and dialed.