The last one was ivory in tone, with dark hair cropped short. He was tall and wiry, with full sleeves of blue ink. His eye color was the same as Darien’s, and although he had features that were slightly more boyish, she knew the two were somehow related.
All three of them noticed her simultaneously, their laughter from the joke one of them had made fading into heavy silence. The girl with the white-blonde hair—Lace Rivera, Loren knew—gave her a once-over that felt like acid had been thrown in her face.
Loren gave an awkward wave. “Hi, I’m Loren. Darien said he told you I would be here.”
None of them said anything.
She started blabbing. Honestly, she had no idea what the heck came out of her mouth for the next minute, and then she said, “So, I thought I would just come down and introduce myself.”
Silence. The clock above the gas stove ticked loudly as the seconds dragged by.
Loren was debating throwing herself off the third-floor veranda when the tan one stepped forward and extended a large hand.
“Maximus Reacher,” he said.
Loren nearly wet herself at that name, and she wondered if he noticed how sweaty her hand was as he clasped it. She was shaking hands with Maximus freaking Reacher.
If it weren’t for the look in his eyes that promised death, his sheer size alone would be enough to convince most people not to challenge him to a fight. There were a few idiots who hadn’t heeded that warning, she’d heard, but not one had lived to tell of it—or perhaps simply hadn’t wanted to.
Maximus gestured to the other male. “This is Travis Devlin.”The Devlin Devil.A fan of blades, Travis’s kills were rumored to be as brutal as they were bloody. Travis merely nodded once in greeting, not bothering to conceal his frown.
Maximus gestured to the blonde, who was sizing Loren up. “And this is Lace Rivera.” As she’d suspected.
“It’s nice to meet you all,” Loren squeaked.
Maximus made to say something else, but Lace interrupted him.
“What’s your name again?” she sneered.“Lauren,is it?” Loren crinkled her nose but didn’t dare correct her pronunciation as Lace went on to say, “How long have you known Darien?”
Loren swallowed, the sound carrying far. “I met him today.”
“And yet you’re somehowhere.At Hell’s Gate.” The room was so silent, no one seemed to be breathing. Or maybe it was just Loren. “That doesn’t happen often. In fact, it hasn’t happenedever. And yet you’re in our home. Walking your scrawny ass around like you own the place.”
“Lacey,” Maximus warned.
But Lace drew a knife from the wooden block on the counter. And suddenly, there was no air in Loren’s lungs, no air in the room. No air in the whole world.
Loren began to back away.
Lace took a step toward her, the heel of her stiletto boot clicking on the floor. “You’re not welcome here.” She flipped the knife in her hand, the sharp edge of the blade gleaming like a wicked smile. “And as soon as Darien realizes whatever trouble you’re causing him isn’t worth his time, you’ll be cast out. And when that moment comes, you’d better hope I’m not around to see you out the door. Because I, for one, will not tolerate half-lifefilthin my house!”
Lace drove the knife into the counter—into the two-foot-wide section of butcher-block Loren had thought added some nice, rustic charm to the space. The wood swallowed the blade with ease, until only the hilt remained.
Loren felt like she was going to pass out as she watched the hilt vibrate with the force of Lace’s blow. Her legs were shaking as badly as that blade.
Maximus gave a low whistle, and Travis chuckled under his breath. “Do you have to be so dramatic?” the latter said.
“Okay.” Loren withdrew a step. Lace’s fingers were twitching at her sides, as if restraining from grabbing the knife again and lunging for her throat. “I can see that I’m not welcome here.”
Lace gave her a smug smile. “How very observant of you.”
“I’ll just…go back upstairs.” Loren turned on a heel and hurried for the staircase.
She barely made it up two steps—not quite far enough to drown out their voices—before they spoke again.
“Could it have killed you to be a little nicer?” Maximus whispered.
“She doesn’t belong here!” Lace hissed.
