Page 135 of The Defiant Curse

NO.

ONE.

So, since Elizabeth wasn’t here, and Ethan wasn’t here, the next person in the chain of command handled it.

Gene stopped this.

“He’s not fired. Because if you fire him, I’m firing you,” he stated, laying down the law. “We’re not losing another Archangel because your undies are in a bunch that he helped Ethan slip away. End of discussion, Ivan. Saint…Winn…put your gear back on. You’re not going anywhere. I have bad news for all of you. No one escapes this looney bin. Once you’re in, you’re in. We all go down with this ship. The S.S. Blackhawk can hit the iceberg and there are no rafts to abandon ship!”

As soon as he said it, Ivan stared at him.

But Gene wasn’t done.

He pointed at Chris.

“Unfortunately for you, Ivan, Chris gave Elizabeth the company that pays the bill for security. When she’s not here, this goes to Chris for his decision, and I’m married to him. So, to make this simple, I’m jumping in. Now, this is my rodeo too. If you cut Raph, you’re cut, and you can head home, too. Oh, and I mean DC home, not here. I don’t care how pissy you are, no one is getting fired because they disobeyed you.”

When Demeter opened his mouth, Gene went there.

“Except you because I’m not in the goddamn mood for jackassery now. Two of my spouses aren’t here, and that makes me a cranky bitch, so shut it. I will fire you just to prove a point if you stir the shit pot right now!”

Wisely, he did.

From beside him, Chris agreed. He’d been just about to step in when the man did, and he was glad he opted to handle it. They were NOT losing an Archangel, but more importantly, they were NOT losing family.

They’d lost Jet, and that was bad enough.

“Ivan, calm down. It would be weird if Raphael didn’t help Ethan. Clearly, he has, and he’s smart enough to know what the man can and can’t handle. We all trust Raphael with our lives, and now we trust him with this.”

Then, Chris focused on the Archangel.

“Son, is he safe?” he asked.

Slowly, he nodded.

Then, Chris shrugged.

“Well, then, I’m good,” he said. “It’s three in the morning, and I’m tired. Let’s call it a night, and everyone go to bed. Tomorrow is a new day, and who the fuck knows what’s going to happen.”

Truer words had never been said.

Only, like normal, Ivan wasn’t having it.

“Are you all insane?” he asked.

No one said a word.

“You guys can’t just slip away. You can’t play these games. It risks more than just one life. What is my whole purpose here if I’m told not to secure the people in this family when my whole job is to secure the people in this family!”

They knew he was stressed.

Hell!

They all were.

It had been a long week before Elizabeth even took off, as they waited on pins and needles to see if Devon killed someone close to them.

And he had.