by Tia Didmon
Jenner held up his hands. “I’m the last person who will tell you who you should date.”
Her head moved to the side. “Because you have the absolute worst taste in women.”
Jenner sneered. “True, but I still need to know more about the warriors and their code. I need to confirm they’ll keep Laura safe.”
Kiki folded her arms. “Agreed.”
They walked back to the body, joining Zane and Jordane.
Jenner took out his phone and sent off a text. “Kiki will liaison between the warriors and the squad.”
“Excellent,” Jordane said.
Zane swore under his breath.
Jenner turned to Jordane. “Don’t make the mistake of thinking I chose Kiki because she would hesitate to shoot you. She won’t. I chose her because you won’t touch her if she does.”
Jordane’s face was stone as he nodded.
Zane smirked. “I was concerned when you got purview over the death squad but perhaps it may have some advantages.”
Jenner looked at Zane. “I also chose her because she’s the only one here I trust.”
“I have never disobeyed a direct order,” Zane said.
Jenner stepped up to him. “Let’s see if that holds true when we catch your brother’s murderer.”
Zane’s hands flexed before turning to fists.
Kiki glanced at the LAPD officers watching the two men standing nose to nose. “For fuck sakes. If there were anymore testosterone around here, I would choke on the shit.”
Jenner glanced at Kiki before stepping away from Zane. “Find out who killed Jacque. This doesn’t look like a Ladon kill but they could have hired a professional.”
Kiki felt Jordane watching her. Heat bloomed in her chest as her nipples tingled. Damn demons. How was she supposed to be covert and investigate this guy when her body reacted the way it did? She had never failed at anything and the sexy warrior would not make her start now. She looked at Zane. “Jordane and I will investigate the Ladon and see if there is any connection to Jacque. You and the team follow up with PURE. Get Kat to do a deep dive into Jacque and see if there’s something in his personal life that could warrant an attack like this.”
Zane’s voice dropped. “So, you’re the boss now?”
Kiki shook her head. “Nope. Just following orders.” She turned to Jordane. “You’re coming with me.” She walked away, feeling him follow.
Kiki pulled into the shelter parking lot. She hadn’t said a word to the large man seated in her passenger seat. To his credit he hadn’t pushed her. He flowed out of the squad car with a grace a man his size shouldn’t possess. Jenner couldn’t have asked a worse person to get information. They called her into situations to be a hammer, not to finesse a perp. That was Laura’s job. She wondered if her best friend knew something Jenner didn’t. “Are you all settled in? Laura said you are building a home on the property.”
“Construction is coming along. We are building several.”
“I thought you guys had a pack mentality.”
Jordane looked at her. “We work together as a pack in all things except one’s... personal life. With the revelation that brides and mates exist amongst the human population. Every warrior wishes to be prepared for the opportunity to court his intended.”
Kiki stifled her laugh. “You call this courting? Wow, you’re worse at this than I am.”
His smile was slow in coming. “I admit this is new to me. If you were a demon female, I would have simply claimed you. Valen and Dante have warned me that such an action would...”
“Get you shot?”
Jordane lifted an eyebrow. “While your weapons could do very little, Laura has a power at her disposal that I cannot... disobey. She warned me not to push you into anything. That anything between us must be your choice. I have agreed to her conditions.”
“Laura said she could change people’s minds but I didn’t think that applied to demons.”
He frowned. “That’s interesting. It would make sense she has powers of the mind considering she is Valen’s bride but I was referring to something else. It’s a discussion for another time. My brother is at the home we are building.”
“We, as in you and Tovan.”
Jordane shook his head. “It is fortunate that my mate and her best friend inherited such a large, raw piece of property so close to the city. While we have the means to purchase land, this is a rare find these days.”
Kiki’s chest squeezed. “Ed’s death was not fortunate.”
Jordane stopped her. “I meant no disrespect. The former owner...”
“Ed,” Kiki snapped.
“Yes, Ed devoted his life to helping animals that no one else would. Like you, I can see their memories. He was a man I would have respected.”
She pushed away the pain in her chest. She’d never accepted her failure to protect the man that had made her feel like she was his daughter. “Yeah, he was. He was the father I wished I had.”
Jordane frowned. “You have no family?”
Shit. She never screwed up like this. Ever. She worked her whole life to keep those memories, those feelings of betrayal and pain at bay. Only one person knew the truth about her and Laura would never betray her. “No. I’m an orphan.”
Jordane’s jaw ticked. “You lied to me.”
Fear and anger mixed. She pushed her finger into Jordane’s chest, looking up at him with a scowl. “Back off Jordane, or I will shoot you.”
He looked down at the small finger on his chest. “If you shoot an innocent with the DK10, you die.”
Kiki backed up, dropping her finger. Bile rose in her throat. “What?”
Jordane pointed to the large weapon strapped to her back. “The crystal that powers that weapon was created to bond with its host. While I believe the bonding process is halted by the gun casing, the power of your weapon proves the crystal is intact. It will explode if misused.”
Her eyes darted around the parking lot. She wanted his words to be a lie but she felt the truth. The moment she’d picked up the DK10 she had felt different. As if someone, something was reaching for her. “We were told there have been incidents during the training phase. That two squad members... exploded. We were warned to be careful but we weren’t told any specific details.”
“I doubt the PIA has any idea what they’ve done. Those crystals were created to protect the demon species. They have mandated you to police them. The crystals will not allow the murder of an innocent. Demon or human.”
“You speak as though the crystals are alive?”
“We created them from the souls of fallen warriors that gave their lives to save the demon race. The crystals strengthen us, enhance our abilities, but we cannot coerce them into committing a wrongful act. If you knowingly kill an innocent with that weapon. It will destroy you.”
Kiki breathed away the fear. This was just another problem she needed to solve. This is what she did. Only this time she was protecting herself and she had taken a lifelong course in that subject. “Just so we’re clear, I wasn’t planning on pulling my DK10 on you. I’m well aware you can disable it.”
“Your hand gun cannot kill me.”
Her fingers grazed the handgun at her waist. “Who said anything about killing you? I just want to maim you a little.”
Jordane’s smile was slight. “So bloodthirsty.”
She nodded. “That’s right. You should seriously reconsider this mate business.”
His eyebrow went up. “What is it you humans say... not a chance.”
Part of her was relieved. It pissed the other part off, since she preferred anger she huffed. “Whatever. You’ll regret it.”
Jordane stepped up to her, touching one of the blue tips in her spiked black hair. “I don’t think so.”
Kiki backed away. “I’m not a relationship kind of person. I don’t do commitment.”
He shrugged. “While that may be true in your past, I am your future. While I know it is your nature to fight me, it will not chang
e the inevitable.”
“What is that?”
“You will be mine.”
Kiki snapped up her handgun, pointing it at Jordane’s chest. “Wrong answer.” She squeezed the trigger.
Chapter 2
The trigger paused on the cusp of firing. Jordane’s amused look pissed her off. Kiki moved her gun, aiming at his arm when the weapon heated in her hand, forcing her to drop the gun. It stopped in midair as Tovan shimmered beside her, giving her a disapproving look.
Jordane sighed. “There is no need to protect me from my mate. She was planning on shooting me in the arm. It wasn’t serious.”
“You believe she would have shot you?” Tovan asked.
Jordane nodded. “It seems she’s predisposed to violence.”
Kiki sucked in a breath. They couldn’t know just how true that statement was. It was a painful reminder how broken she’d once been. Possibly still was.
Tovan looked her over in clinical appraisal. “Your intended is aggressive.”
“She is a warrior.”
“She is, but she needs training,” Tovan said.
Jordane’s face hardened. “She is my responsibility. Mine to train. No other will touch her.”
Tovan inclined his head. “Of course. She is yours.”
Kiki held her stinging hand against her chest. “I’m right here, assholes.”
“She needs to learn some... restraint,” Tovan said.
Jordane flicked his brother a look of warning before taking Kiki’s hand to remove the pain. “I know what she needs. Leave us.”
Tovan shimmered out of sight but Kiki doubted he was far away. She glanced down as her cell phone chimed, pulling her hand from Jordane’s. “Shit. They abducted two women. We had one registered to the psychic talents list.”
“And the other?”
“Not sure. Jenner wants us to check if she was one of us.”
They arrived at the apartment of Julie Fuentes twenty minutes later. Kiki led Jordane into the organized suite. Cream couches with pale blue cushions accented the nicely decorated one bedroom. “This place is pristine. No visible struggle.”
Jordane walked to the glass dining table with an intricate metal decoration, shaped in a ball with intertwining metal ribbons. He picked up the strange piece of art.
Kiki watched him. “If you are looking for decor ideas for your new place, I don’t think that’s your style.”
“You have no idea what my style would be. You’re too busy pushing me away to know what I would or wouldn’t like.”
She glanced away, feeling the sting in his voice. “You like weird metal art. Got it.”
He turned the unique piece of metal in his hands, checking each folded ribbon. “Something molded the sphere without human tools. There are no seams on this decoration.”
Kiki walked over, looking at the strange sphere. “What are you saying?”
“She constructed this using a talent I haven’t seen since I was a boy, manipulating the metal with her mind.”
“Telekinesis?”
The metal artwork reflected the light as he turned it. “No, the metal was heated and shaped in its liquid form.”
“You have seen this before?”
Jordane returned the sphere to the table. “From a craftsman when I was young. He could liquefy ore and shape it into any weapon he chose. He was a weapons master. A creator. This talent has never belonged to a woman before.”
She glanced at her phone. “There’s no record of Julie in the psychic database. We can’t be sure she’s the one who sculpted that piece.”
“If she didn’t, she’s acquainted with someone who needs our protection. This is a rare gift and can’t fall into Ladon hands.”
“I will get Kat to deep dive Julie and see if she or one of her friends has been holding out on us.”
“Holding out?” Jordane asked.
“The PIA has made registration mandatory for all those with psychic talents. They want us all on the payroll in some capacity.”
“Not all psychics should be PIA agents,” Jordane said.
“No, but we need accountants, secretaries, all the regular jobs to run an agency of this size.”
“You don’t believe that this registration goes against your human rights?”
Kiki shrugged. She didn’t want to admit to a demon he was right. That she hated the registry and was working behind the scenes to get it abolished. “I will get Kat to check Julie’s background.”
“What is a deep dive?”
“It means Kat will look into her digital profile, find out everything about her. Bank accounts, social media. Kat will have everything on her, including what she ordered at the drive thru, by day’s end.”
“This Kat is a PIA agent?”
“No. She trained with us but is a private contractor. She’s the best at what she does and since she’s Zane’s sister... she gets certain liberties.”
“Zane’s sister?”
“Yeah, they’re close.”
“Family is important.”
Kiki felt the old sting of betrayal before she tramped it down. She liked Kat and the wily computer wizard had already lost one brother. “Sure. Remember that the next time you threaten Zane. He has a mother and a sister who adore him.”
Jordane inclined his head. “I will keep that in mind.”
Kiki hit Zane’s number. “We need to check on every woman in LA registered on the psychic database.”
Kiki scrolled through the file Kat sent her on Julie Fuentes. Her file was ordinary. Nothing in her life or her friends that disclosed a psychic talent. She focused on the screen as she walked in the PIA’s corridor. A man slammed into her, causing her to drop her tablet. “What the fuck?”
Colby, her fellow death squad member, sneered at her. “You should watch where you’re going, bitch.”
Kiki picked up the cracked tablet. “You bumped into me dickhead.”
He scowled. “You’re only on this team because you are fucking Zane.”
Kiki laughed. “If that’s how you get on the death squad, why don’t you tell me whose cock you sucked to get this posting? Was it Senator Baker?”
Colby raised a fist. “You slut!”
She stepped up to him. Defiance and anger fueling her moves. “Go ahead. I dare you.”
Colby backed away. “You would love to get me kicked off this squad. I won’t let some little tramp like you ruin my career.”
“You’ve done a great job of that yourself. If it wasn’t for Zane, the PIA would have bounced your ass for your many insubordinations.”
He pushed her up against the wall and leaned into her. “Fucking whore. I know who you are and where you come from.”
Kiki stilled. She hadn’t felt that kind of fear since she was a child. Not fear that he would hurt her. Colby lacked the fighting skills to take her on but the fear of him knowing the truth. That was debilitating. She searched his face, trying to figure out if he was lying.
Zane pulled Colby off of her, shoving the angry squad member against the opposite wall. “What the fuck are you doing?”
Colby gave Kiki a dirty look. “Nothing boss. It was just a misunderstanding. It won’t happen again.” He walked away.
Zane turned to her. His anger barely controlled. “Jesus fuck, Kiki. I have never seen you freeze up. You could have dropped his ass in seconds. Tell me you didn’t hold back because he is PIA. No man puts his hands on you.”
She never lacked self confidence in her work. Kiki felt numb but respected Zane too much to bring him into the mess that was her life. Will it come out anyway? That would be a disaster. “I don’t know what his problem is but I suspect he’s pissed he isn’t your favorite anymore.”
Zane huffed. “I don’t even like that asshole. I only tolerate him because he was my brother’s best friend.”
Kiki tramped down the regret. “I mean no disrespect but your brother had shitty taste in friends.”
Ethan approached them in full tactical gear. His han
d went to his weapon as he identified Zane’s anger. “We have a problem?”
Kiki folded her arms, trying to tramp down the fear and get her emotional barriers in place. “Yup. Asshole squad member.”
“Fucking Colby, I should never have let him on the squad. I’ll go talk to him,” Zane said, walking after Colby.
“Why bother? It won’t change anything,” Kiki yelled out.
Ethan looked after his friend. “What happened? Colby has always respected Zane.” He sighed when Kiki looked away. “He’s the only squad member that doesn’t like you though.”
Kiki shrugged. She liked Ethan and respected him. If things went sideways, she didn’t want him anywhere near her. “Can’t please everybody.”
Ethan nodded. “Colby’s a dick. Zane only puts up with him because...”
“I know why. I don’t blame him, besides Colby follows Zane’s orders without question. That’s all that matters.”
“Zane looked like he was about to kill Colby. What did he say to you?”
She shook her head. “Doesn’t matter. Colby isn’t the first person I’ve had to work with who didn’t like me. I doubt he will be the last.”
Ethan glanced down the corridor. “I’ve never seen Zane act like this.”
“Zane is usually pissed off at something.”
“He’s different with you,” Ethan said.
Kiki rolled her shoulders, not wanting to acknowledge that fact. She had noticed the small differences in the way Zane treated her compared to the rest of the team. He didn’t go easy on her but he was always respectful. “Zane would take a bullet for every member of this team, including the asshole he’s reprimanding right now.”
Ethan rubbed his eyebrows. “Kiki...”
“I have done nothing...”
“Except excel at everything you do. Hell, you’re a better shot than I am and I have fifteen years on you.”
Kiki huffed. “You’re not that old.”
“I feel it. If it wasn’t for Kat, I would have given this shit up.”
“She’s like a sister to you, isn’t she?”
