Chapter Nineteen

Son of a bitch. Things had deteriorated fast. His sympathy for Bjorn had almost had catastrophic results. Asher wouldn’t let his guard down again. Jo was his priority.

“The great and scary leader of the Brotherhood is making an appearance. Should I feel honored?” Still naked as the day he was born, Bjorn crossed his arms over his chest and glared.

Ouch! The sarcasm was as sharp as a blade. Any hope the new arrival would prevent another fight, not cause one, vanished.

Maccus’s scowl reached epic proportions, his brows lowering, his jaw tightening. A muscle ticked in his face. “You’re fucking right you should feel honored.” He stalked forward, his gaze sweeping the room, seeing the destruction. Several chairs were smashed, and the sofa would never be the same again. “Redecorating, Asher?”

“Figured it was time for a change. Where’s Morrigan?” He couldn’t believe she’d stay behind, at least not willingly.

The elevator doors pinged open again. “I’m here.” She gave a little wave. “Wow, you guys don’t fool around, do you?” She strode forward as though she didn’t have a concern in the world. “I’m Morrigan.” She held her hand out to Bjorn. “Pleased to meet you.”

Maccus growled in frustration. Bjorn seemed bemused but proved how smart he was by waiting for a nod from the angel before accepting her hand.

“My, you’re a big one, aren’t you?” She looked him over from head to toe. Maccus wrapped his arm around her waist and lifted her away from the wolf. “I haven’t met a werewolf yet. Angels, demons, vampires, and assorted others, but not a werewolf.”

Jo gave a snort of laughter, catching Morrigan’s attention. “Hey. Glad you’re still alive.”

“Me, too. I was hoping we’d meet again, but I had coffee or drinks in mind.”

Morrigan tilted her head toward Bjorn. “What do you think?”

“Impressive.”

“For fuck’s sake, women, stop talking about me as though I can’t hear you.” He stalked across the room, grabbed his jeans, and pulled them on.

“Why not?” Jo asked. “Men do it all the time.”

Was Bjorn blushing? Asher thought he might be. Morrigan had a gift for diffusing tense situations. “Shall we retire to the kitchen since the living room is…” He tried to come up with something tactful to say about the state of his home.

“Wrecked,” Jo added, a smile teasing the corners of her lips.

“Yes, wrecked.”

“I should go.” Bjorn pulled on his boots.

“No, you should stay. We need to get to the bottom of this.” He turned to Maccus. “We need to communicate better as a group. The only reason this happened is because we keep to ourselves too much.”

“So, you want what? A corporate retreat?” he mocked.

“That’s a brilliant idea.” Morrigan beamed.

Asher ran his tongue over his teeth, wondering if he was about to get them knocked down his throat. “I wouldn’t go quite that far,” he added quickly. “But regular emails and alerts wouldn’t hurt. The message board rarely gets used.”

“While all this kumbaya shit is fine and good, we still have a big fucking problem.” Maccus had manifested a blade from his body and was currently flipping it end on end. Asher hoped he didn’t decide to use it on one of them.

“Someone is using me to get to the Brotherhood.” Hands on her hips, Jo glared at the rest of them. “And I for one am getting tired of it. And Bjorn, I’m sorry whoever is behind this used your grief for your family.”

He gave a curt nod, tension thrumming through him.

They were all on edge. They were three of the most powerful men in the world. It was only natural they’d all want to prove their dominance to the others, especially Bjorn. Part wolf, he knew the male struggled with issues he and Maccus didn’t have to deal with.

“Okay, we’ve asked the question several times before, but it bears repeating.” Jo pointed a finger at herself. “Why me? There must be something about me or my past that plays into this. If we can figure it out, maybe we can track whoever is behind this.” She looked to Bjorn. “Asher says you’re the best tracker in the world.”

“He said that?” Bjorn shook himself. “He’s right, I am.” His voice was gruff, but there was a note of pleasure.

“I don’t know what your talents are,” she told Maccus. “But I assume you have some. And Asher has proven time and again he’s not just another pretty face.”

He grinned at the other two men. “She thinks I’m pretty.” He batted his eyelashes, knowing it would make Maccus crazy. Maybe he was nuts, but it was his life mission to get the guy to loosen up.

“Maybe too pretty.” Maccus fisted his hand and raised it.

Jo stepped in front of him. “I’d like to keep him that way. If you don’t mind?”

“He is pretty, isn’t he?” Morrigan look at him in a way that made him uncomfortable, especially given the promise of mayhem and murder on Maccus’s face. “I much prefer the rugged type myself.” She patted the big guy’s chest. “But Asher is pretty.”

“I have a brain,” he felt the need to remind them. “When did we lose control of the conversation?” he asked the other men.

“We never had it.” Bjorn’s face softened in a way he’d never seen before. “My Anja was like that. She had a way about her.” His expression hardened again. “Someone tried to taint her memory by goading me to act dishonorably. I tender my resignation to the Brotherhood. I am not worthy to be one of you.”

“Oh, shut the fuck up,” Maccus retorted. “Not accepted. You’re one of us. Get your furry tail out of its knot and start working with us rather than against us.”

“My furry tail? I’m not sure if I should hug you or punch you.” He might tease, but Asher could see the pure relief in his Brother’s eyes.

“Why don’t we go out and find somewhere to have a meal?” he suggested.

“Isn’t that dangerous?” Jo asked. “All things considered.”

“No, he’s right.” Maccus slung his arm around Morrigan. “It’s a show of unity. Whoever is behind this will be watching or have a minion keeping tabs. Seeing us all together, not trying to kill one another, will send a strong signal.”

“Yeah, like ‘you failed, try again.’” Jo picked up the bolt she’d dropped on the floor and shoved it back into the holder strapped to her waist. “Sorry about that,” she said to Bjorn.

He shrugged. “Barely felt it.”

She heaved a sigh. “Great. By all means, let’s all go out together. All the paranormal people and the lone human.”

“I’ll keep you safe,” Asher promised. He wanted to pull her into his arms and kiss her senseless. The adrenaline from the battle still thrummed through his veins. Bloodlust was riding him hard. The fluttering pulse in her neck was a beacon that drew him.

“We’ll keep you safe.” Bjorn nodded at them. “I offer my services as reparation for what I did.”

That was a huge deal, and he was grateful. It was also the Viking custom and would go a long way to making the wolf feel as though he still had a place in the Brotherhood. He raised an eyebrow at Maccus.

“What? The two of you aren’t enough?”

“We’ll help where we can,” Morrigan assured him.

There was an itch between his shoulders, something nagging at his brain that warned this was far from over. He needed to be at his best. “Excuse me a moment.” He hated leaving Jo, but this couldn’t wait.

He zipped into the pantry off the kitchen and consumed two bags of blood as fast as possible. He had to be at full strength from here on.

He was back in the living room in less than thirty seconds. “Let’s go.”

Jo blinked at him. “Ah, you might want to change first.”

He glanced down at his ripped shirt and bloody torso. “Give me a second.” He hurried to the bedroom, stripped off the dirty shirt, washed, pulled on a fresh one, and was back in the living room in no time.

“Wow, that was fast.”

He winked at her. “I’m slow when it counts.”

…

Jo rolled her eyes. After everything that had happened, Asher was still teasing and making jokes. She was on to him, though. It was his way of dealing with the situation.

But there wasn’t enough levity in the universe to get her to relax. Not when they were leaving the relative safety of his home and venturing out into the world where their enemies lurked.

The ride down to the lobby was made in silence. She tried not to fidget but couldn’t help shifting from foot to foot. Bjorn was standing right next to her in the enclosed space. The guy had wanted to kill her less than an hour ago. Now he was some sort of self-appointed bodyguard.

Men were weird. He and Asher were suddenly best buds again, even though they’d been fighting to the death earlier.

She released a sigh and rubbed the back of her neck. “You okay?” Asher asked, not even trying to keep his voice down. Even if he whispered, the others would hear him.

“Not really, but I’ll deal.” Her choices were limited.

The elevator doors opened, and they made their way to the street. “Anyone have a preference for where we might eat?” Morrigan asked. Maccus had his arm around her, keeping her body to the inside where she was more secure.

“Pizza.” She could die. If that happened, Jo wanted her last meal to be pizza.

“Pizza it is,” Asher agreed before anyone else could object. “There’s a place a couple of blocks over.”

“We should pick a place farther away. See if anyone follows.” Bjorn was already scanning the streets. “I’m not going with her.” The wolf raised his voice and pointed at her. The abrupt change from calm to angry shocked her.

Asher moved in front of her. “No one asked you to.”

Bjorn pointed a finger at her as he backed away. “You can’t protect her forever.” The werewolf melted into the crowd.

Adrenaline coursed through her body. Jo took several deep breaths, not liking the small tremors in her hands. “What was that? I thought—” Asher’s mouth crashed down on hers before she could finish.

Heat blasted through her, driving away the chill of fear. His tongue slipped between her lips, tasting, teasing. She groaned, her toes curling in her boots. A warning pinged in the back of her brain. This is stupid. If she died it would be her own fault. They were on the middle of a crowded sidewalk, for God’s sake.

She pressed her hands against his chest and shoved, but he banded an arm around her and left a trail of hot kisses along her jaw all the way to her ear.

“There could be someone watching. Bjorn is going to circle around and see if he can track anyone.” The words were barely audible. When she stiffened, he licked her neck, dragging the tip of one of his teeth over her skin. Even as she jolted, her nipples turned to hard nubs and heat pooled in her lower belly.

“We need to move.” Maccus’s deep voice brought reality crashing back with a hard thud.

Asher circled his arm around her waist and tucked her to the inside, just as Maccus did for Morrigan. For a split second, she could almost believe they were simply two couples out for an evening on the town.

“So where are we going?” Rather than answer her, Maccus walked to the nearest subway station. I guess we’re taking the train.

It really didn’t matter where they went. The mission was to try to discover who, if anyone, was watching. Jo surreptitiously scrutinized the people around her.

Asher paid the fare for both of them, while Maccus did the same for him and Morrigan. Jo laughed. “What?” he asked.

She shook her head. “It’s just odd to see two such powerful men pay the subway fare.”

“Too many cameras and people everywhere.”

He was right about that. And most of them were watching their group, specifically the men. And why wouldn’t they? The two of them were a sight to behold. Asher looked as though he’d dominate any Fortune 500 boardroom, while Maccus would be more at home leading a biker gang. They were tough and exuded a confidence that was both compelling and sexy. And Morrigan was no slouch, either. She walked with purpose and total fearlessness. Being a former bounty hunter for Hell, there probably wasn’t a lot that scared her.

Jo might not belong with this group, but she was still badass. “My weapons,” she managed to get out. How had she forgotten about them? Security was tight everywhere these days. Getting stopped would mess with their plans. She hadn’t realized they’d be taking the train. When she was armed, she walked or drove or took the bus.

“Now that I can cover,” Asher assured her. “No one will question you about them.”

Taking him at his word, she strode alongside him to the platform to wait. The four of them automatically put their backs to the wall, giving them a better vantage point.

A bearded man in ragged jeans played a guitar not too far from them. His voice was mellow, the song a classic. Several people dropped some change in the open guitar case as they passed.

A woman in a power suit talked on her phone, while a younger woman stood five feet away with a crying toddler on her hip.

There were several roving packs of teenagers. One of them girls, who all looked to be around sixteen or so, another was a mixture of boys and girls, and the other one was a group of young men. They could be a potential problem.

In their late teens and a mix of races, they hooted and hollered as they shoved their way across the platform. People got out of their way or found themselves involuntarily moved.

She despised bullies. There had been too many of them in her life growing up. It was common knowledge that the more young men there were in a group, the lower the IQ. They were all raging hormones and anger. Never a good combination.

A security guard headed in their direction. He was a big white male with a buzz cut. While he could easily hold his own against one or two, a group was a different dynamic.

Beside her, Asher tensed. The clash was inevitable. The guard radioed someone. Probably backup. There was something about this group, some instinct that warned this was not going to end well.

“Keep out of it,” Maccus warned.

It wasn’t their fight. She got that. They had a much bigger enemy to worry about.

Still, she couldn’t pull her eyes away from the impending disaster. The hairs on the back of her neck stood on end. “Asher.” The sense of dread she’d experienced several times before was back. Their unknown watcher had returned.

“I feel it, too,” he murmured.

There was something else at play here, but what?

“You gentlemen need to wait quietly for the train or move along,” the guard warned. He was sweating slightly, his hand resting on his gun. “You don’t want any trouble tonight. And I don’t need the paperwork or the headache.”

She gave the guy credit for trying to diffuse the situation. Too bad the young men were itching for a fight.

“We ain’t doing nothing,” one of the young men told him. “Just making our way to the platform. Why you got to be hassling us? This here is police discrimination or profiling or some shit.” He nodded to the guys behind him, and they all muttered their agreement.

“Since you’re as white as I am,” the guard told the man, “I don’t see how this is racial profiling. Idiots come in all races and creeds. I’m equal opportunity.”

Jo gave a snort of laughter. Unfortunately, the young man heard it. His face turned red. His eyes filled with fury.

“Oh shit,” she muttered. No way could he back down now and save face. And at that age, it was all about looking tough in front of his buddies.

“You want us to wait for the train? We’ll wait.” He turned and made a straight line toward the edge of the platform. Right toward the woman and toddler.

Instinct had her moving hard and fast. Just as the male went to push the woman and child over the edge, she shoved them aside, taking the brunt of the push.

A woman screamed. A child cried out. People yelled. A spate of profanity followed. The tracks rushed up to meet her. The roar of the train was deafening.

In that split second of terror, her life flashed before her eyes. Always thought I’d go down fighting, not squashed like a bug.