They managed to make it out and back to their bikes without spotting a single hair of River Man or their mysterious shooter. Ruin wasn’t surprised. Between the care they took getting out of the building and Charity digging out the embedded slug from the third shot, it not only gave their prey a huge head start, but added another layer to his frustration. What the hell was she planning to do with the slug? After impacting the cement wall, there wasn’t much left.
Once at their bikes, he and Charity shared a quick conversation, came up with a half-assed plan and decided to head back into Kennewick. Since the Raiders were dead, and River Man was in the wind with a big old target on his ass, it left them with few options to accomplish their end goal. Better to do what their shooter was probably doing—use the Broker to get to Reznik.
Ruin kept up a silent litany of curses as he led Charity back into Kennewick. The conversation at the Carousel left him reeling, and he tried to fit the new pieces into his patchy puzzle of what the hell was going on. Their problems were piling up fast. First was the confirmation of Reznik’s role in this mess. He couldn’t even take time to relish in telling Charity he told her so. Her belief that Reznik couldn’t manage something this big always bothered him, more so the longer he worked with her. She had a knack for reading people, one that epically failed when it came to the New Seattle crime lord. Hell, it wouldn’t be surprising to find out the shooter was hired by Reznik. No honour among thieves and all that shit.
Then there was the bonus challenge of the traitor sneaking around Pebble Creek, and just in case that wasn’t enough to leave him longing for a straightjacket, there was an ominous twisting in his gut about the singular interest in the kids. It made him agree with Charity’s assumption something bigger was at play, and if they didn’t figure it out fast, they were fucked. The whole thing stank to high heaven. He needed access to a phone because Reaper needed to watch his back and keep a close eye on those kids.
With River Man being on the run, it wouldn’t take him long to start questioning who wanted him dead. Considering the Raiders fucked things up in Pebble Creek with Simon, the Vultures would rise to the top of his list. And since the Broker left the more questionable members of Kennewick pissing in their pants, it wouldn’t be long before he knew a Vulture was in town circling. Which meant going back to the Lodge was out. Instead, the two of them needed to get a grip on what was going down. That meant sticking to Charity’s side as she reached along her spider web of contacts for information on a possible hit on the Broker. Considering Echo’s earlier reaction to River Man, Ruin wasn’t holding hope for results.
As they hit the more populated edges of Kennewick, Charity took the lead. It was late morning and the roads were busy. He followed her twists and turns as she headed into the older section of the city, in the opposite direction of the Lodge. The crowds thinned and buildings became more and more decrepit. The echoes of their bikes became overly loud as they steered down alleys so narrow his shoulders almost brushed the sides. The hair at the back of his neck came on point and stayed there, quivering. He scanned their tight surroundings and caught flitting shadows in various openings. Yeah, they were being watched.
Charity finally stopped before scarred metal guarding a loading dock. She left her bike running, hopped off, and slipped inside the building through the fire-scorched door standing to the side. In moments the creak of metal joined the chime of heavy chains, and the loading dock door began to rise. Waiting until there was enough space to clear, he drove in. Dismounting, he caught the flash of Charity ducking back out. He went over, grasped the chain, and as soon as she drove in, began lowering the door back in place.
The solid thunk as it settled echoed in the cavernous space. He pushed his sunglasses up and looked around as Charity shut her bike down. There were bare bulbs hanging from long wires along the centre beams providing meagre light. Boxes and barrels were piled along one wall. Long tables with scattered, rusted tools took up space here and there, some were accompanied by thick chains suspended from beams. There were sections partitioned off, some decorated with faded, curled posters of long gone cars draped in nude women. Interesting decorations.
‘We need to move the bikes to the back.’ Charity began wheeling her bike.
He followed as she headed to one of the walls and disappeared around the corner. Coming in behind her, he realised they were in a small back room.
‘Park it here,’ she advised, motioning for him to set his bike next to hers as she stood over by the far wall. When it was in place, she tugged him back and grinned. ‘Now watch.’ She turned to the wall where an old electrical box hung. She opened the panel, flipped a couple of switches, a motor ground to life, and the floor under the bikes began to drop.
Colour him impressed. ‘Nice. Yours?’
Charity shook her head. ‘Way out of my price league.’
‘Let me guess,’ he drawled. ‘Not out of Lilith’s?’
‘Bingo.’ She kept an eye on the lift as it dropped into place.
‘You sure that shooter didn’t belong to her?’
She wrinkled her nose at his question, but her answer was solid. ‘Wasn’t hers. Too messy, and River Man’s still upright.’
‘Why dig the bullet out?’
She eyed him, then answered, ‘Snipers tend to use unique ammunition.’
Right, Havoc mentioned that once. Skilled shooters were paranoid about their bullets and tended to personally hand-pack their ammunition. ‘You’re thinking it’s a way to trace the shooter?’
She shrugged and flipped another switch. ‘It’s a long shot.’ What looked like a replica of the earlier section began to slide closed. ‘If we strike out here, it’s one I’m willing to try.’ The section slipped into place with a solid click.
‘You sure it won’t lead back to Lilith?’ As soon as the question came out, he knew he was reaching.
So did Charity. Done stashing the bikes, she lifted her head and met his gaze. ‘She wouldn’t want their end to be that quick.’
Yeah, that’s kind of what he figured, but Charity’s connection to Lilith still irritated him, forcing him to ask. He followed her back out front determined to set aside his personal hang-ups and get back on track. ‘Can you get me to a phone?’
She worried her bottom lip and gave a slow nod. ‘Yeah, but it’ll take a bit.’ She stopped by one of the tables and leant against it, her arms folded over her chest. ‘You sure you want to call in now? It’s not like we’ve got much to give.’
He opened his mouth but she cut him off. ‘Yeah, there’s a mole, but we don’t have a name or anything to go on.’
He rubbed the back of his neck. ‘It’s not just that, there’s the threat to the kids.’
Her face softened. ‘I don’t think anyone’s getting past Mandy, and that’s if they make it by Reaper first.’
She might have a point. With Lilith heading in for her daughter, Reaper would have those kids locked down. Ruin matched her pose. He was still making that call, though. ‘How sure are you that you’ll find a hit on River Man?’
A minute ticked by as she gave his question serious consideration. ‘Fairly certain. A job like that requires specialised skills.’
Curious about her approach, he asked, ‘So what’s the plan? You’re going to reach out and just ask who’s got a hard-on for River Man?’
She rolled her eyes. ‘As if that would work. You saw Echo’s reaction. If she’s running scared of him, no way in hell I’m getting anyone else to ‘fess up. I have to handle it with more subtlety than that.’ A tiny frown furrowed her brow.
Unable to resist, he reached out and used his finger to smooth out the lines, then drew it down and under her chin. With a gentle nudge, he tipped her chin up. There was no missing the calculating gleam staring back. His gaze drifted over her flushed features, only to stop on her lips. It was tempting, very, very tempting to kiss her, instead, he clawed his lust back and cleared his throat. ‘Your plan?’
‘I’ll put out word that Lilith has a job open.’ Her response was equally husky and went straight to his dick. Not a surprise since after last night pretty much everything she did was guaranteed to invoke the same reaction.
Reeling his reactions back, he dropped his hand and lost the heat of her. ‘We don’t have much time to wait around for responses.’
‘We won’t have to. I’ll make it a time sensitive job, give enough details to keep it close to the hit we just witnessed.’ She stepped back. ‘Between that and the specific skills needed, we should at least get a name or two to check out by tonight. It might get us something you can share with the others.’
He picked over her idea. Holding off a few more hours shouldn’t hurt. ‘Don’t you think your request would seem obvious coming on the heels of what happened?’
She shrugged. ‘It’s a chance we’ll have to take. Unless you have a better idea?’
The hell of it was, he didn’t. Which meant relying on Charity’s skills as a ‘Hound. ‘Not yet, but I’ll let you know if that changes.’
She laughed at his obvious disgruntlement. A genuine laugh that lit her face and left him stunned. ‘Gee, don’t get too excited.’
‘Too late,’ he muttered, trying to clear the dazed fog from his mind. He straightened and in a louder voice added, ‘Alright, let’s move. The longer it takes, the deeper he’ll go.’
By late afternoon Ruin’s feet were aching, but it was a dull ache thanks to the copious amounts of home-brew sloshing in his belly. Charity’s version of ‘putting out word’ equalled his version of bar hopping. He spent most of the time hanging back and gritting his teeth as drunk and not-so-drunk bastards risked their lives by putting their hands on her. Watching her work was pure hell. He didn’t know if he wanted to shake her or bend her over the nearest surface and stake his claim in the most basic way possible. Either way, it was so far off his normal love-‘em-and-leave-‘em attitude, he was teetering on a dangerous edge of temper, fuelled by, he hated to admit it, jealousy.
Despite his primitive response, he had no problem recognising that she was fucking brilliant at what she did. Every time she slipped into a group, she changed, morphing into whatever personality fit best. A crucial, but worrisome skill, in her line of work. There were no outright interrogations, instead, she finagled information with an easy laugh and encouraging smile. For the harder customers, her smile took a sharper, hungrier curl and her laugh left a few sweaty, pale faces in her wake. Either way, she walked away with another bit of information.
As they headed towards yet another damn bar, his glare was aimed at her ass swaying in front of him. He wondered how much longer he was going to last before he lost it and gave into the hunger clawing under his skin. Forcing his gaze away, he scanned their surroundings. Maybe he’d get lucky and find that another dumbass was trying to follow. He managed to run off two so far, but it hadn’t put a dent in his roiling frustration. Maybe the third time would be the charm.
He pulled up short when a soft weight landed on his chest. He looked down to find Charity standing in front of him, her eyes narrowed. ‘Is there something wrong with my ass, Ruin?’
‘What?’ It was difficult to get the word out, but he managed.
She leant in, her voice going to a near purr. ‘You’ve spent the last few minutes singeing my ass with your glare. So is something wrong with it?’
Her challenge tipped his control over the edge. He cupped the back of her head and dragged her close, using his other hand to squeeze the ass in question. He let a few seconds pass relishing the press of her curves against his aching body before giving her a quick, hard kiss. Not enough to satisfy, just enough to soothe the jealous beast inside. He lifted his head but didn’t release her. ‘Not a damn thing. In fact, instead of hitting another dive, I have a better idea.’
Her lips twitched, and she rubbed her hard little nipples against him in a slow drag. ‘Do you now?’
‘Mm-hmm.’ Unable to resist, he took another taste, a little deeper this time.
She gave as good as she got, her body shifting against his before slowly pulling back. ‘Thought you wanted to use a phone?’ There was a hint of breathlessness to her question.
He rested his forehead against hers, fighting for control. His dick ached and wanted nothing more than to stay right where it was, pressed up against her heat. ‘Right.’ Another deep breath and he managed to let her go and step back. ‘This time, I want food.’
The tease laughed and spun away. He followed her into yet another dive. At least this one appeared to be a step up from her previous choices. The bottles behind the bar appeared grime free, the noise level was tolerable, and the air wasn’t thick with smoke. The bartender was a middle-aged man that would fit better in a community school than a bar. Some of his tension dropped as he settled next to her at a battered, but clean table.
Within moments thick paper menus were laid in front of them by a kid just out of his teens. ‘Hey, Charity.’
She gave the kid one of her non-flirting smiles. ‘Hey, Max, how’s it going?’
‘Busy with the Faire and all, but worth it.’ Max followed the menus with two glasses of iced water.
‘Good tips?’
‘Hell, yeah.’ He jerked a thumb over his shoulder towards the bar. ‘Dad managed to talk Mom into investing in some of the good stuff. Want some?’ The bartender raised a hand in their direction.
Charity wiggled her fingers back and shook her head. ‘Tell your dad we’ll pass. Hey, is your mom free?’
‘Let me check in with a couple of tables and then I can go let her know you’re asking.’
‘No problem.’ Max rapped his knuckles against the table. ‘Need some time?’
‘Please.’
With that Max gave her a nod and left them alone.
Ruin picked up the menu and scanned the short list of offerings. ‘You think we’ll get any bites on our fishing trip?’
Propping her chin on her hand, she frowned. ‘Maybe. If nothing else we should get nibbles on who the shooter could be. Especially since it’s a well-known fact Lilith can afford the best.’
Too bad his belief in the possible results didn’t mirror hers. ‘And if our bait catches the wrong attention, or worse, no attention? You got a plan for that?’
‘Maybe.’
He arched a brow and reached for his water. ‘Going to share?’ He lifted the glass and took a long swallow, not missing her gaze drift and lock on his throat.
‘We corner Echo and force her to give up what she knows on River Man.’ The hard, unforgiving bite in her voice was at odds with her heated perusal. The strange combination was fascinating.
He set his glass down. ‘And that wasn’t your first choice, why?’
Her bright blue eyes locked with his. ‘I prefer my lines of communication remain undamaged as long as possible.’
Considering where those lines could lead, he could understand that. Which reminded him. ‘About finding a telephone.’
She shifted in her chair and sat back with a smile. ‘I thought you were hungry?’ She laughed at his mock glare. ‘Max’s mom has a working phone.’
To know that meant she was more familiar with Kennewick than he suspected. Add in the friendly reception, and he couldn’t stifle his curiosity. ‘How often are you here?’
Her humour faded, replaced by a careful wariness. ‘I stop in whenever work brings me by. Max’s family are good people.’
Something in her voice indicated there was a story there. ‘So they know who you work for?’
Her lips twisted with self-directed mockery. ‘Working for Lilith causes people to pay attention.’
Ah. ‘Your reputation precedes you.’
A tiny bit of colour drifted over her cheeks, and she reached for her water, mumbling, ‘Something like that.’ Then she took a drink.
He waited until she set her glass back on the table. ‘Tell me something.’
She met his gaze, her face tight with caution. ‘Depends on what you’re asking.’
Fair enough. He held her gaze and tackled the question driving him nuts. ‘What did Lilith do to gain your loyalty?’
She opened her mouth to answer, but before she could, Max was there. ‘You two ready to order?’
Ruin picked up his menu, while Charity gave her order. ‘I’ll take the BLT.’
‘Want a side?’
‘Apples and peanut butter, if you have it.’
Max nodded and turned to Ruin, who said, ‘Make it a double.’
The kid collected the menus. ‘Mom’s dealing with a delayed order, but she said she’d stop by when she’s done.’
‘Thanks, Max.’ Charity flashed a smile.
The kid flushed, nodded, and turned away. Ruin gave a silent snort. Looked like someone had a crush going on.
Once they were left alone again, he turned back to Charity, determined to pick up their conversation.
Correctly reading his expression, she held up a hand before he could say a word. ‘I’ll make you a deal, my story for yours.’
Surprised by her condition, he took a moment to think it over. Considering how bad his curiosity was, it was tempting as hell. It wasn’t as if he was hiding any deep dark secrets. Giving a mental shrug, he took it. ‘Sure.’
She began twisting the sweating glass of water in a slow circle. ‘My parents bounced around a bit, mainly sticking to the west coast territories, following whatever grift was working at the time. We landed in New Seattle about a year before I lost them. Things were good then, which is probably why they got sloppy.’ Her restless movements stilled and she visibly swallowed.
When she resumed the story, she continued to play with the wet rings on the table. ‘I finally made some new friends who wanted to hang, but my parents didn’t want me going out that night.’ She gave an awkward shrug. ‘I snuck out. When I finally came home, I walked right into Reznik’s payback.’
Despite her flat words, he caught the flashes of pain her memories invoked. Images of a younger Charity walking into a bloodbath scraped over his heart. He kept his voice gentle. ‘Rough scene for a teen to walk into.’
Her gaze flicked up, and she gave him a faint smile. ‘Yeah, rough’s one way to put it.’ Her lips twisted down, and she went back to studying the table. ‘Afterwards, I wasn’t in the greatest of shape.’
‘No surprise there, darlin’.’ As comfort it sucked, but it was all he had to offer.
She sighed and sat back, her hands dropping to her lap. ‘After their death I became rather obsessively focused.’
He’d have bet on that.
She continued. ‘Unfortunately I was so keen on taking out Reznik, I made a stupid mistake. Ended up in the wrong place at the wrong time.’ Her eyes lifted to his and held. ‘I went to where I thought Reznik had a deal going down, instead I stumbled into one of Lilith’s transactions with one of his lackeys.’ She winced. ‘My sudden appearance in the midst of a delicate deal left Reznik’s man jumpy. She talked him off the edge and managed to get what she needed. No harm no foul.’
Somehow he doubted that. ‘What? She just let you hang around while she finished up?’
That earned a chuckle. ‘Nope, she nailed me a good one that left me seeing stars and meeting the pavement up close and personal. Then she put her knife to my throat and told the Reznik’s guy she didn’t appreciate him trying to fuck her.’ Charity’s fingers drifted to a small scar on her neck and shook her head. ‘He was so worried she’d turn on him, he all but pissed his pants trying to convince her that he had no idea who the hell I was or why I was there. When he finally left, she turned her attention to me. She was quite explicit about what would happen if I didn’t answer her questions. Since I didn’t want to end up at Reznik’s feet in bloody pieces or in chains, I answered.’
‘I’m surprised you’re still breathing.’ Lilith wasn’t one to take interference lightly, whether it was intentional or not.
‘Me too.’ She frowned a bit as if still puzzled by Lilith’s behaviour. ‘In the end, instead of turning me over to Reznik, she offered the one thing guaranteed to get me to pay attention.’
He didn’t have to guess. ‘Revenge.’
She nodded. ‘In just that brief time, watching her was a revelation, the way she worked and went about getting what she wanted. The woman has mad skills.’
There was no missing the admiration in Charity’s voice. Ruin couldn’t help chiming in, ‘She’s also a cold-hearted, calculating bitch.’
This time Charity’s grin was cheeky. ‘Yes, she is, but the things I learned from her were worth every icy minute.’
‘Explains why you stayed, not why she didn’t dump you.’
‘Initially I think she took me under her wing because she viewed my obsessive need for vengeance as a potential tool against Reznik’s games.’
Ruin had to agree. Charity’s tenacity would go a long damn way if it was channelled correctly. She was a world away from that enraged teen, though. ‘And now?’
The grin softened. ‘Now she relies on my skills. I’ve worked hard to be who I am and I’m damn good at it.’ There was no missing her unapologetic confidence. There was a hint of mischief in her eyes as she leant forward as if sharing a deep secret. Unable to resist, he leant in, and Charity added, ‘Plus it’s fun.’
With mere inches separating them, he held her sparkling gaze. ‘Fun?’ His voice dropped low. ‘You admitting to getting off on danger?’
He didn’t expect her to reach out and tap his nose, but she did. ‘Don’t you?’
He blinked and gave her question due consideration. Since he currently sat across from a woman guaranteed to blow his world to smithereens with no urge to walk away, guess he should admit his addiction to adrenaline. ‘Is this where I do the ‘danger is my middle name’ shit?’
Her grin grew. A plate hit the table accompanied by Max’s squeaky, ‘Here you go.’
Ruin slowly sat back as Max set another plate in front of Charity with more finesse. While the little shit managed to sneak a glare or two at Ruin, he could barely look Charity in the face. Ruin stifled a sigh and hoped Max hadn’t spat in his food. After Max left, Charity nabbed an apple slice, swiped it through the generous side of peanut butter, and took a bite. He picked up half his sandwich and took a healthy bite. His stomach rumbled with appreciation. They continued their meals in companionable silence as they filled their stomachs.
When he was down to just a few apple slices and a plate covered in crumbs, she finally broke the quiet. ‘Your turn.’
He leant back in his chair. ‘Don’t remember much of my mom except that we lost her when Vex and I were about five. Know her death was hard on our old man. He wasn’t much for gentleness or smiles, but after Mom died, even those were rare. He was a hard-ass, but solid, and he gave us a good life. We lived outside of Portland, on the edge of the Dalles.’
Charity propped her chin on her hand. ‘Been through there, it’s beautiful, all those waterfalls and gorges.’
Yeah, the land was wild but gorgeous, and sometimes he missed it. There was a simplicity to his life before things went to shit, but he was old enough to recognise that what seemed great to a kid, wasn’t the same when viewed through adult eyes. ‘Just before winter, when we were about ten, he went out to hunt. He didn’t make it back.’ Catching the sympathy darkening her eyes, he forced an unconcerned shrug. ‘It took a bit before we finally admitted something bigger and meaner got a hold of him, but it left us on our own.’ That first winter had been hell, and there were quite a few times he wasn’t sure if he or Vex would survive until spring, but they did. ‘We knew we couldn’t stay put, so we headed out on our own. Eventually, we made it to Portland. We ended up joining one of the street gangs and ran wild for a few years. Eventually, a bigger group moved in and our little ragtag gang was given a choice.’
‘Join or die,’ Charity cut in.
He nodded and his voice flattened. ‘We liked breathing, but as things do, it didn’t take long before shit went south.’
Dark knowledge seeped into Charity’s face leaving a distinct shadow. ‘Let me guess, whoever ran things decided Vex was more valuable as a commodity.’
Even years later, his gut soured as memories of what almost happened to his twin came slamming back. Swallowing hard and shoving the sickness back, he gritted out, ‘Sounds like you know the feeling.’
Her lashes dropped, but not before he caught a glimpse of the same nightmares he saw in Vex’s eyes. ‘Yeah, seems as if females hold only one value on the street.’ She paused, both of them caught in things better left alone. ‘So, how did you hook up with Reaper and Havoc?’
Grateful for the conversational redirection, he latched on to it. ‘We fucked up. The head of our gang decided to send Vex and I in to repo their bikes.’
Serious thoughts flew behind her considering gaze. ‘His way of eliminating problems?’
Ruin shrugged. ‘Probably, but in the end it worked out.’
‘How so?’ Genuine curiosity coloured her question.
‘We weren’t as smooth as we thought we were.’ He scratched his chin, his lips turning up slightly as he remembered the outcome of their failed robbery. ‘After we picked our asses up, Reaper offered us a choice—go down with the gang or make amends.’
Disbelief left her blinking. ‘Wait, let me get this straight, you joined the Vultures as penance?’
When she put it like that …’Yeah, seems that way.’ Time to switch subjects. ‘Tell me how you met Boden.’
She took her time answering. ‘Didn’t Simon share?’
‘He said something about a cat, and alley and a woman.’
‘That about covers it.’
‘Really?’
She blew out an aggrieved sigh. ‘Yeah, I was heading home and ran into him—literally—as he was out in the rain looking for his current lady friend’s pussy …’ She deliberately paused and aimed a wicked smile in his direction, then finished with, ‘cat.’
There was no stopping his chuckle at her wit and no harm in joining it. ‘Chasing pussy’s a bitch.’
Heat and carnal knowledge crawled over her face. ‘You’d know all about that, wouldn’t you?’
The male beast inside him sat up and took notice of the jealousy in her voice. Hmm. Undaunted, he kept pushing. ‘At least I know how to make one purr.’
The heat in her face took on colour, but she picked up the last slice of apple, dragged it through the peanut butter, then leant in to offer him a bite. He took her offer and caught her husky, ‘Best be careful, Ruin, some of them come with sharp claws.’
Enjoying the sexual byplay, he nipped her fingers. ‘Screw being careful. Told you, I enjoy the added kick of danger.’
She gave a throaty laugh, drew her fingers back, and brought them to her mouth to lick away the traces of peanut butter. Damn tease. ‘That explains it.’
He wiggled his eyebrows. ‘Don’t knock it, babe, you do too.’
Suddenly she was all mock innocence, deliberately twisting his words. ‘Hate to shatter whatever fantasy you’ve got going, but women aren’t my thing.’
Enjoying himself, he snapped his teeth at her. ‘Not what I meant and you know it.’
Caught in the light-hearted moment, their gazes locked and something indefinable passed between them. Their smiles faded until they were simply staring at each other, neither one able to look away. Finally, Charity whispered, ‘Told you before, you’re dangerous for me.’
He reached out and covered her hand, stroking it gently. ‘Yet you’re still here.’
She tilted her head to the side and whatever thoughts spun through her head were hidden behind an impenetrable mask. ‘You expecting me to run for the door?’
Actually, he found himself hoping for a different outcome. As unsettling as the thought was, it didn’t stop him from asking her, ‘You willing to see how far this goes?’
She studied him and he found he was holding his breath. ‘I could ask you the same.’
Whether she meant it or not, it came across as a challenge. One he refused to back away from. ‘Think I can’t?’ Come on, darlin’, take a risk with me.
She narrowed her gaze. ‘Think you won’t.’
Three words and he knew he had her. Now it was just a matter of keeping her. ‘Going to be fun proving you wrong.’