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“Mew.” Gizmo spies the ruined steaks and barrels over to inspect the remnants of our dinner.
“Nice to see you again, mate.” Gabriel embraces Eli, who looks a little shellshocked as he pats Gabriel’s back.
“What convinced you to come back?” I ask as I pull more steaks from the freezer.
“We had words,” Noah says.
Eli shakes his head. “Actually, it was George.”
I raise my eyebrow at my friend, and she winks. With George in my corner, I truly am invincible. She shuffles some of her papers aside and gestures at Eli to sit down. “Welcome to the madhouse.”
Eli slides into the seat. He still won’t look at me, but I can’t help doing a little dance of joy as I slap the meat down into the frying pan. The last piece of my secret heart had returned to me.
Now, I had to protect them all, at any cost.
Claudia
The drive out to Everlasting Hart Ranch is tense. George and Gabriel stay behind at Malloy Manor, with Tiberius watching over them. They both wanted to come, but I feel better knowing they’re far away from whatever happens tonight.
I’d feel better if Noah and Eli were back at the manor, too. This is between me and Antony and Brutus. But Noah seems determined to prove he can wade into blood alongside me, and Eli… he’s impossible to read. He says he wants to be here, and I don’t want to say anything to make him leave again. But he insisted on bringing his kitten with us and he still can’t bear to look me in the eye. I know things are still broken between us.
At least he’s no longer a danger. At least he’s part of the family again.
I just hope he doesn’t see something tonight that will make him run. We’re about to invade his personal space. His sanctuary. And I don’t know what will happen when I see Brutus. I can’t turn back from that.
Tough shit.
Brutus invaded it first.
Alea iacta est. He cast the die. Now he needs to play the game to the bitter end.
We pull into the towering gates. Weeds grow up around the stone pillars, and the words on the sign are so battered by the sandstorms that they’re nearly indecipherable.
Antony leans over the wheel as he slows the car along the winding, broken driveway. “This place is enormous. It’s going to take us hours to search.”
“Not necessarily.” Eli points to the collection of outbuildings behind the main homestead – three floors of broken panes and battered wood siding looming over us, with two dormer windows like eyes watching our every move. The outbuildings look in even worse condition – the barn had a giant hole in the roof and caved-in doors. “Last time I came out here, Gizmo was hanging around the outbuildings. She came back and didn’t want to eat her dinner, which almost never happens. I thought she’d been catching mice, but now I wonder if he’s been feeding her, which means she knows where he’s hiding.”
I peer at the tiny cat pawing at her cage. “You want to get her involved in this?”
Eli puts the cage on the ground and opens the door. Gizmo bounds outside and lifts her pink nose into the air, as if to say, “I’m ready for action.”
Eli gives her a nudge with her foot. Gizmo peers up at him with wide eyes. He bends down to pet her but she tears off toward the outbuildings.
Antony slides his gun into his holster. He holds out a second weapon to me. I shake my head, lifting my wrist to show him the knives. I want Brutus to believe I came unarmed, like the silly little girl whose innocence he stole.
I want to get up close and personal.
Noah grabs the gun from Antony. Eli lifts a rotting board in the porch and pulls out a locked case, from which he withdraws an assault rifle. My eyebrows go up. Noah’s eyes bug out of his head.
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Eli can’t help but grin as he engages the weapon. “I am from the South. I practically grew up on a gun range.”
“Yes, but—” Look at you, you’ve never pointed that gun at someone and considered pulling the trigger. But before I can say anything, Eli stalks after his cat, keeping close to the dilapidated stone buildings as he points the weapon ahead of him.
I rush after him, my heart leaping into my mouth. I flatten my back against the wall behind him. Eli’s body tenses as my arm brushes his. An electric charge shoots through my veins from his touch. Seeing him carry that gun is hot as fuck.
I’m completely messed up.
Luckily, the moon is high and full, and there’s no light pollution out here to obscure our vision. We have a clear view of the little tuxedo cat as she explores. Gizmo sniffs around in the weeds for a little bit, then chews on a blade of grass. She looks completely nonplussed with the four of us pressed up against the barn with our weapons at the ready.
