AllFreeNovel
Share Us
I giggled quietly; I couldn’t help it. I knew this was a tense situation, and I should take it more seriously, but whenever Ansel used that gruff voice, it sent butterflies to my stomach. “I don’t see any gray from my angle,” I whispered into his ear. It was too dark to see anything, but I still took it upon myself to wrap my finger around a loose tendril like I was checking for him. His hair had mostly fallen out of the loose bun at the nape of his neck and bounced with each step, filling my nose with the scent of the coconut conditioner he used. I resisted the urge to dip my nose into his hair and inhale deeply. Nothing said ‘I’m an intimidating orc boss,’ like carrying a weird, hair-sniffing fae on your shoulders like a backpack.
Ansel stopped a few feet away from where Felix waited, and I took that as my signal to climb down. I slid off his back, landing on my left foot, and followed him the rest of the way. Once we reached Felix, Ansel kept his hand around my arm, forcing my body to stay mostly behind his. I could almost hear every muscle in Ansel’s body tensing, and I couldn’t tell if that was because I was here, or because of Felix.
I stole a peek from behind Ansel’s body to check out Felix. I had only seen him sitting down at the club, but when he stood up, he was almost as tall and broad as Ansel.
“Ansel,” Felix said in way of greeting. “About time you showed up. I was getting so cold that my willy almost disappeared inside my body—” He cut himself off as soon as he saw me peering at him from behind Ansel’s arm. “Hello there,” he said. He turned his attention to Ansel. “I thought I gave Robbie specific instructions for you to come alone.”
Shit. I side-stepped from behind Ansel. “Hi, yes, sorry. That’s totally my fault. He was planning on coming alone, and I forced him to bring me.”
For the most part, my eyes had adjusted to the dark, but I still couldn’t see the whites of Felix’s eyes. I could feel his gaze, though, burning two holes into my face. Maybe this was a bad idea after all.
Suddenly, Felix laughed, turning his attention to Ansel once again. “So, this is who you brought for back-up? Your faerie girlfriend?”
“My name is Skye,” I added weakly as Ansel shifted uncomfortably where he stood.
“Oh, I know your name, love. I know you quite well, actually. Skye Louisa Brooks, born October 1st, 1989. You live on 2727 Hoff Street, apartment B4, and you have been working at Wilkshire and Myers Corp for the past seven years . . . or you did,” he slowly dragged his attention from Ansel to me, “before you got caught up in this whole mess. But yes, I know you quite well.”
My head was reeling from everything Felix had said. They knew where I lived and where I worked? Not that I needed any more reasons to believe Ansel, but the fact that Felix confirmed his words—Gregor was hunting me just as much as he was Ansel—made me want to throw up.
“Leave her alone, Felix,” Ansel growled under his breath. His shoulders tightened, his fists balled, and I worried he might actually lunge at Felix.
Felix cocked an eyebrow at Ansel, completely unbothered by the younger orc’s defensive stance. “Gregor is upset about what happened at Nightshade,” he said to Ansel in an even tone. Ansel exhaled a heavy breath through his nose; his body slowly relaxing as he listened. “It seems your little faerie spy has created quite the stir. We’re Gregor’s underbosses, his right-hand men, and supposedly the most dangerous orcs in the city. Yet Skye managed to sneak in unnoticed wearing a tacky wig while you, Ansel, waltzed in through the backdoor like you owned the place and managed to slit Bram’s throat without anyone noticing until you were long gone.” Felix’s eyes brightened. “Let’s not forget about the lap dance.”
I let out a small gasp. Theyknew?Felix’s smile widened, turning his attention briefly to me.
“Yes, Skye, we all know about the lap dance,” he said briefly, before returning his attention to Ansel. “Add all that on top of the fact that you’ve been slowly taking out Gregor’s soldiers the past year . . .” Felix rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Your uncle is not happy with you. Whatever point you’re trying to make, well, you’ve made it.”
I was still trying to get my bearings; it felt like all the air had been knocked out of my lungs when Ansel growled, “I’m not trying to make a point. And you know that, Felix. I’m trying to avenge my parents and clean up my family name.” I had only seen Ansel this angry once before when he had confronted Liam for sending me to the club. And Liam got quite the shiner because of it. Felix wasn’t going to give us the intel we needed if Ansel was going to rage-out on him.
I placed a hand on Ansel’s back, silently willing him to relax. His muscles were so tense, they felt like stone under my fingers. The light touch must have helped because he took in a breath, his body relaxing only the slightest.
“I thought you were here to help us, Felix,” I said in a low voice.
Felix was silent for a tense moment. He took three steps forward, closing the distance between him and me. Ansel immediately side-stepped in front, blocking his path. “May I? I promise I won’t harm her,” he said to Ansel.
Finally, Ansel stepped away, clearing the path, but placed a large, protective hand on my shoulder.
Felix assessed me, slowly dragging his eyes up and down my body. I stood with my back straight, even though my insides were trembling with fear. Finally, he picked up the stone around my neck, moving it around so it caught the moonlight. “Hmm. This necklace looks familiar. I knew I recognized it. This belonged to Grace, didn’t it?” he said, turning his attention briefly to Ansel. “This is called tanzanite,” he said, speaking directly to me. “It’s a very rare stone found only in the mountains near the homeland. Rare only because it can be quite dangerous to get to them. These stones only form at the very top, and as you can imagine, the mountains are quite steep and hard to climb. I only know this because I helped Arran, Ansel’s father, locate a jeweler years ago who made this necklace. Those types of jewelers are very expensive and hard to come by, but I can be very persuasive when I need to be. Arran refused to buy her any other gem. He wanted to give Grace this necklace because he wanted to give her something that reminded her of home. She was always homesick and had the hardest time adjusting to America. You actually remind me a lot of her, Skye. Grace was always quick to act, always right there next to Arran to help him, no matter how much he tried to get her to stay home. No matter how dangerous it was. I think that’s why I decided to help, after all this time. When I saw Skye, it felt like I was seeing Grace.”
I could feel Ansel start to tremble with rage next to me.“How dare you say their names,”he snarled, low and deadly,“after you turned your back on them. My parents gave so much back to our community, and how did you repay them? By working for the orc that murdered them.”I tensed, waiting for Ansel to lunge. But he stayed frozen where he stood.
Felix dropped the stone and turned his body, so his attention was fully directed to Ansel. He folded his hands behind his back, frowning at the younger orc. “Do you know what is more motivating than money, Ansel?” He paused, but not enough time for anyone to answer. “Fear. Don’t get me wrong, Gregor pays just as well as your parents . . . but it’s fear that makes us stay. We all have families and those that we love, and Gregor uses those weaknesses to keep us compliant. You, out of everyone, know how important it is to protect those that you love most.” Though Felix didn’t say it outright, I had the strong impression that he was not only referring to his parents, who hedidlose, but also me.
“Then why are you here? Because if you’re not going to help us, then you’re wasting my time,” Ansel snapped. His tone was still biting, but at least his grip had softened around my shoulder.
“I was never here,” Felix said, dipping his hand into his pants pocket and retrieving a cell phone. He handed it over to Ansel. “As far as Gregor knows, Bram’s phone went missing the night he was murdered at the club. I’ve unlocked it for you. On it is the time and place of the next drop and the location of Gregor’s hideout. Remember, Ansel, you’ve taken out quite a lot of our men, so Gregor is sending everyone, including most of his bodyguards, to help with the next drop. He’s going to need all hands on deck with this next shipment, so to speak.”
Ansel turned the phone over in his hands before returning his gaze to Felix. “How do I know this isn’t a setup? That you’re not leading me directly into Gregor’s hands?”
“You don’t,” he said. He paused, as if that’s all he had to say, until he added, “I think about your parents a lot. They were good people, and they did so much for our people. When the elven bastards who control all the major banks wouldn't let me take out a house loan because I wasn't one of them, your parents lent me the money. I wish I was a braver man, and I could stand up to your uncle, like you. But I still have a family to protect.” He shook his head sadly. “I guess this is the closest thing I can do to help without putting them in danger.”
Felix started walking away from us, back towards the parking lot, but suddenly stopped, as if forgetting something. He turned on his heels to face me. “And Skye, I know you want to protect Ansel because you care about him. But don’t let feelings cloud your thinking. Love can be very dangerous, even deadly, in this line of work.”
Chapter twenty
Itwasreallylateonce we finally made it back to the warehouse. I half-expected to walk in and find Demie and Liam waiting up for us, but the main floor was empty when we arrived. Ansel had probably texted them earlier to let them know he had secured the runaway fae.
“You don’t have to carry me the entire way. My ankle is sprained, not broken,” I grumbled at Ansel as he carried me across the foyer like I was his newlywed bride. I was glad Liam and Demie were already asleep in their rooms: no one was here to witness my embarrassment.
