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I’d loved when he’d called me that before, but now it felt dirty. When he brushed his knuckle across my cheek, I reared back.
Sighing, he fisted his hand, taking a deep breath before turning away. “I’m certain you’re hungry. Take some time to shower and dress. I’ll be downstairs when you’re ready. If you feel up to it, I’ll show you around your new home.”
My new home. The words weren’t said possessively but I knew that’s what he meant.
He’d captured a fragile bird in a net, stroking her wings until the creature had trusted him. Now she’d be in a beautiful, gilded cage until he was finished with her.
As he walked out of the room, stopping long enough to glance over his shoulder, I was forced to face the fact the connection we shared would never be broken.
And in those fleeting moments, my body betrayed me as it had before. My heart began to sing.
* * *
Phoenix
The weight of the situation was attached with a thick strand of rope around my neck, heavy to the point I had difficulty breathing. Carrying her into my house and easing her into one of my beds, a place only one other person had ever been invited, had been damning. Or maybe cathartic. Either way, she served as a reminder of the past, a true beacon of hope in the darkness wrapped around my life. She was also a significant weakness, not just to be used by my enemies but by those considered close to the fold.
I found Jonas inside my office, pacing the floor impatiently. He looked up as I entered, annoyed from the wait as well as the cryptic call I’d made to him while on the flight.
“What the hell are you doing?” he demanded.
He was the only man in my employ that could get away with such disrespect. We’d been friends for far too long, often an issue when it came to challenging my decisions.
The afternoon sun streamed in through the bank of windows, highlighting the pool that I hadn’t enjoyed for almost two years. I’d had my share of casual events, family parties where everyone enjoyed the infrastructure, but I couldn’t remember the last time I’d taken a swim. The thought brought a chuckle to my lips. Whitney had gotten so far under my skin I was questioning almost every aspect of my life. That didn’t bode well for what the family would likely face.
“You wouldn’t have arrived for hours, Jonas. In that timeframe, the men Zakaryan hired would have been crawling all over the city with a single intent in mind. My extermination.”
“So you brought our business, our weakness into the forefront with someone else?”
He knew perfectly well that I was a member of the Brotherhood. Although I’d offered few specifics, he was informed as to how the alliance worked. For him to continue berating me was blasphemous. I moved in front of him, giving him a hard stare. This would be my one verbal warning.
“You were told she was returning with me. It would seem during my short absence that you believed yourself to be the leader? Should I remind you of your place?” He knew me well enough to realize he’d just crossed a line. The glare in his eyes slowly started to fade and he purposely looked away and down out of respect.
The man was as brutal as I was, trustworthy above all others, yet his taste for achievement had tainted him over the years.
Or perhaps I’d been too lenient.
“I meant no disrespect, but Zakaryan is looking for any avenue of undermining your authority.”
I couldn’t help but laugh as I walked toward the bar. It had been a difficult twenty-four hours, exhaustion starting to settle in. After watching Whitney for over an hour in the dark, I’d spent time in my office poring over financials of the various businesses, ensuring there was no blip in income or in services. The quickest, easiest way to begin the undermining process Jonas was talking about was to start from the bottom. Laying doubt. Offering protection. Stealing business. I’d yet to see such occurrences, but it was only a matter of time.
“And I’m in the planning stages of ensuring that doesn’t happen.”
“What do you have in mind?”
I poured a whiskey before answering him. “A strike where it will provide the most internal carnage.”
He eyed me carefully. “You want to hit them in their own territory.”
“Absolutely. But I don’t want loss of innocent life. Property I couldn’t care less about but no civilians.”
Jonas nodded. “It would seem your time spent with your… guest has softened you.”
Maybe he was right. Up to this point, I wouldn’t ordinarily care except I’d gone out of my way to ensure women and children were never involved. “We are not savages, Jonas. We are men fighting to maintain our place in history.”
I always made him laugh when I said something so outrageous. Today was no exception. “At least you’ve kept your sense of humor.”
“And news on the train?”
