Sharpest Edge: Mercenaries and Magic

by Alessa Thorn

  “He went through a pretty traumatic event, D. He thought he was strong enough to handle it and then learned he wasn’t. Only time is going to get him through that.”

  “Yeah, but he doesn’t have to do it alone. We are all his friends. We are here to help him, and he just refuses to let us. He keeps saying he’s working on finding Gadal, but I haven’t seen him step foot out of the apartment since he moved in there,” Dante argued.

  Silas frowned. “How do you know… Oh, dude. You put cameras on him?”

  Dante’s cheeks flushed. “Doesn’t matter. He found them like half an hour later and disabled them. I’m just…”

  “Feeling guilty. I get it.”

  Dante had been twisted in knots ever since Scotland and wasn’t bothering to hide it. They were all tense, but he was usually the easy-going one. He pushed a hand through his sandy blonde hair. “I swear, Silas, I took my eyes off him for less than three minutes to get some asshole out of my way. If I had been more alert, Leo wouldn’t have been taken like that.”

  “Dante, he wanted to get taken. That was the plan that he put to us. He wanted to be bait. It wasn’t your job to stop him from getting picked up, only to follow him when he did.”

  “Doesn’t matter. I should’ve protected him better, and I didn’t. I want to help him, and make up for it, and he…won’t let me,” Dante grumbled, staring at his boots. “But if I leave him food, he might eat it.”

  Silas nudged him with his shoulder. “He’s going to be okay. He just needs some time to process stuff. I know he’s talking to Izabella, and he is working. Maybe you need to give the kid some space, and once he’s got everything straight in his head again, he’ll be back to hanging out at the warehouse and being his usual smartass self.”

  “I hope you’re right, boss. I don’t want to have to hold him down and beat it out of him,” Dante replied with a grin that said he absolutely would love to do that.

  Silas chuckled and shook his head. “If only everything could be sorted out with a good fight.”

  Dante’s eyes flickered to the two mugs and then to Izabella’s door. “What’s going on there?”

  “Nothing. Insomnia,” Silas replied, a little too firmly.

  “Uh-huh.”

  Silas raised a brow. “What’s that attitude about? It was.”

  “Sure.” Dante stared at him, and then his eyes went wide. “Really? If you two don’t fuck soon, I think I’m going to scream.”

  Silas groaned. “Good night, Dante.”

  “Seriously, old man. If you don’t make your move soon, you’re going to regret it. Iz is a beautiful woman. She won’t wait forever for you to get your shit together. You can’t just kill anyone who wants to date her.”

  The fuck I can’t. Silas drained his beer and dumped the bottle in the bin.

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about. Night, kid. No more being creepy and setting cameras up to watch Leo,” he said, heading for his bedroom.

  “I’ll stop when he stops,” came the reply.

  Silas collapsed face-first on his mattress and tried to get comfortable. He had a tingle in between his shoulders that told him a fight was brewing. He was going to need to be ready to take down the bastard that hurt Athena when she was a kid.

  He needed to be rested and focused on that fight, not the one he was constantly having with his dick where Izabella was concerned.

  He was restless; that was all. Domestic life had never been for him. He needed a nice quick job to get him out of the house before he went crazy. Something close that would give him some space to breathe. He smiled at the plan, put his pillow over his head, and prayed for oblivion.

  4

  Iz was dreaming of Silas’s hands all over her, tugging her hair and kissing her lips, his graying stubble marking up her neck. She was in his lap, straddling his muscular thighs.

  Her hand went under his grey sweatpants and wrapped around…her phone buzzed angrily on her bedside table.

  Iz woke with a start, her hand somehow in her own pants and too much adrenaline pumping through her. Her phone rang again, and she fumbled for it.

  “Qué pasa?” she answered irritably.

  “Well, good morning to you, grumpy pants,” Athena replied. “Who pissed in your coffee?”

  “No coffee yet,” Iz said, sitting up. And I keep having sex dreams about your dad. She shifted uncomfortably, the wetness in her underwear way too inappropriate.

  “That explains it. Julian is arriving in Istanbul in about an hour to check out the collection we took from Liddell,” Athena explained.

  Julian Burbank was their broker of things ‘acquired’ and occasionally hired them for jobs. That he would come all the way from London to Istanbul said that there was more than one item in the collection he wanted to inspect and buy personally.

  Iz donned her kimono. “And Julian turning up is a reason to wake me up because?”

  “Because he’s always nicer when you are around to distract him from being a dick, so I want you to put on a dress that shows off your fine tits and get over here,” Athena replied. And then added, “Pretty please, Iz. I’ll owe you, and I’ll love you forever and ever. I’ll be your best friend?”

  Iz couldn’t stop her laugh. “I’ll come. Just give me a chance to wake up a bit. And for the record, I don’t think Julian is going to be nicer because I am there.”

  “Maybe not, but I hope he wants to show off in front of you, so he’ll offer Kon a higher price for some of this stuff.”

  Iz shook her head. “Always the mercenary.”

  “Like I would want to be anything else,” Athena snorted and hung up on her.

  Still smiling, Iz stepped out of her room and collided with Silas, who was coming out of the bathroom.

  “God, you scared the shit of out me,” Silas started. He was shirtless, hair still wet from his shower, and Iz couldn’t stop staring.

  “Same. I mean, coffee. Is there any?” Iz said quickly, dragging her eyes up to his. His grin made her want to die.

  “There is. You okay? You’re looking flushed.”

  “Athena woke me up. Julian is coming for a visit, and she wants me there,” Iz said, heading for the kitchen.

  “I didn’t know he was due in,” Silas replied, following her.

  “It was probably a last-minute thing. You know Julian.” Iz made a happy sound when she saw the full French press of coffee. “Athena thinks if I’m there, he’ll be nice and give Kon a better price for his stuff.” She laughed and poured out a cup. She turned to offer Silas one and noticed his frown. “Ah, you want?”

  “Sure. Seeing how I made it,” Silas replied. He folded his arms which was never a good sign. “I’ve known Julian a long time, and he doesn’t know how to be nice. Although I haven’t seen him with you around. I think I’ll have to come with you and witness this miracle for myself.”

  Iz laughed a little awkwardly. “Don’t worry, I think it’s bullshit too.”

  “It’s not,” Dante said with a massive yawn. He sat down at the counter and stole Silas’s untouched coffee. “Julian becomes all smiles when Iz is around. He likes to watch her.” Dante waggled his brows at her.

  Silas’s eyes narrowed. “Is that so?”

  “It’s because I’m so charming,” Iz replied, grabbing her coffee and heading for the bathroom. She didn’t want to be overanalyzing every move Silas made, and she sure as hell didn’t want to stand there and debate Julian with him.

  Iz didn’t take Athena’s advice to wear a dress. Instead, she put on a tight wine-red button-up shirt with black roses embroidered down the spine and her black jeans. It was the end of fall in Istanbul, and the weather was finally cooling off.

  She hadn’t slept well after her midnight tea with Silas, so she was extra careful with her makeup to hide the dark circles starting under her eyes.

  Tucking her laptop and cards into her bag, she opened the door and found Silas waiting for her. He looked like sex in a tight black tee and leather jacket.
/>   “You’re coming too?” she asked, trying desperately not to think of her dream.

  “I need to have a chat with Julian. See if there are any quick jobs around us,” he replied.

  “You…You want to leave?”

  Silas looked her over then quickly away. “Just for a bit. I feel restless, and you know what they say about idle hands being the devil’s playground.”

  Iz did her best to smile and hide the sudden rush of unease through her. “Sure. Whatever you say, Jefe.”

  Silas stepped closer into her space, his eucalyptus and pine smell knocking her senses around. “Come on, Izabella, I thought you’d relish having one less guy in the house. You said it last night that you’re not used to having so many people about.”

  “I didn’t say it so you would leave,” she said, too softly.

  “I’m ready!” Dante called, charging out of his room. “Everything okay out here?”

  “Fine. Waiting on you, Hill,” Iz replied with a grin.

  Outside on the street, Iz tried to focus on the colorful Laleli district around her and not on the acid building in her stomach. Dante and Silas flanked her, and she felt guarded with them by her side. It didn’t worry her that they had all attacked and killed Liddell because of the feeling of safety they gave her. That he gave her. If Silas left, she would start obsessing, hacking every nearby CCTV, and watching the streets.

  After Ruslan, she had promised herself that no one would get the drop on her again.

  You could always move in with Athena. Iz dismissed the idea immediately. As much as she loved Cub and talking and debating magic with Kon, she didn’t want to listen to them fucking all hours of the day and night.

  Silas nudged her softly. “Hey, what’s wrong? You look like you’re freaking out all of a sudden.”

  Dante slung his arm around Iz’s shoulders. “She’s just nervous about seeing Julian.”

  “I am not,” she replied, poking him in the side. “You’re the one that falls all over himself, flirting with him…and everyone else for that matter.”

  “Aw, Iz, don’t be jealous. You’d be invited as our third,” Dante teased.

  Silas growled before disguising it as a cough. Dante’s eyes positively sparkled with delight.

  “You know we should probably stop by and get Leo. He should really meet Julian if we are going to be a crew for a while,” Iz suggested. Dante’s whole body tensed against her.

  “Absolutely fucking not. Leo has been through enough. The last thing he needs is fucking Burbank up in his business.”

  “Oh, it’s Burbank now? Iz is right. If Leo—” Silas began, but Dante shook his head.

  “I fucking said no,” he snapped. “Leo won’t even open the door for me. I’m not going to try and drag him out just to meet Julian.”

  Iz shrugged. “Leo seems okay when he’s talking to me.”

  Dante’s arm tightened around her shoulders. “Does he? Talk to you, I mean.”

  Iz had known Dante for four years, and she had never seen him so concerned about anyone. She didn’t have the heart to tease him when he looked like that.

  “Leo is doing okay. I check in on him every day. He’s busy digging into Gadal leads. The kid has all kinds of contacts and tricks. He’s incredible at what he does because he’s obsessive. Just let him do his thing,” Iz replied. “Don’t worry. Work will save him.”

  Silas looked sideways at her, green eyes soft. He had said those exact words to her when he had given her the laptop in her bag.

  One day she would be able to put into words what he had done for her, find a way to thank him, to make him understand that he really had saved her in more ways than one.

  Iz gripped the strap of her bag tighter. That was another reason she could never get the courage to make a pass at him.

  Silas knew her as the fuck-up who had gotten herself taken by traffickers because she had been too cocky. She was so grateful to him, but she also hated that she was another stray he had brought home to patch up.

  Before Ruslan, Iz had been unstoppable, a fucking force of nature that had struck awe into everyone she had ever met with how full of life she was.

  That Izabella Silversmith would have climbed into Silas’s lap without a second thought. She would’ve never run off to her room like a scared little girl.

  “I hope Kon is cooking breakfast. I’m starving,” Dante said, snapping Iz out of her head.

  “We should grab some simit or something on the way. You can’t just turn up and eat people’s food,” Silas chided.

  “It’s not people; it’s Cub. And it’s not like she hasn’t helped herself to my fridge any chance she’s gotten,” Dante complained.

  The warehouse in Eminönü never ceased to impress Iz on how ordinary it looked from the outside. The first time she had arrived there, she had thought Athena was hiding in some kind of dry dock for old fishing boats.

  It was, of course, what Kon Zalam hoped people would think.

  Inside was a treasure trove of weapons and antiques. With the addition of Liddell’s collection, it resembled a makeshift museum of treasures. Iz had no doubt that Kon had tucked a few of the more valuable things away and would never even dream of offering them to the likes of Julian.

  The man himself was studying a Greek vase when they arrived. He was a few years older than Silas, a silver fox in the making with a sharp haircut and a well-groomed beard. He was over six feet tall and built like the muscly thug he used to be.

  He had gotten out of that life in his thirties, trading brass knuckles for bespoke Brooks Brothers. He was now the most sought-after dealer in art and antiquities in all of the United Kingdom.

  Looking at the sharp smile and sharper blue eyes, there was no denying that Julian Burbank was still the Butcher of Belgravia underneath the expensive tailoring. And he didn’t want you to forget it.

  He was a total shark, and yet, it didn’t stop Izabella’s heart from taking a happy leap when she saw the broad smile he gave her.

  Julian closed the distance between them in three steps before taking both her hands and raising them to his warm lips.

  “Mi encantadora, I was hoping to see you this trip. Still the rose amongst all these thorny mercenaries,” he greeted.

  Iz smiled up at him, her cheeks heating. “It’s nice to see you too. You look well.”

  “I always like it when you notice.” Julian’s eyes flicked to the two men that came into the warehouse behind her.

  “Hey Daddy, new suit?” Dante greeted him with a sly once-over. “Is it the cut, or is your ass really as tight as it looks?”

  “Stop flirting with me, pup, unless you want to find out.” Julian winked at him. He gave Silas an easy smile. “How’s babysitting, old friend?”

  “You know me. I have to keep them out of trouble.” Silas casually took Julian’s hands out of Iz’s and shook one before steering the broker away. “You got a sec? We need to chat.”

  Julian raised a brow but nodded. Iz couldn’t tell how long the pair had known each other, but from what Athena had said, their debts to each other ran deep.

  Athena herself was sitting on the kitchen counter, a fresh cup of coffee in one hand and her arm leaning against Kon’s shoulder. The former was grinning over the exchange, but Kon’s eyes were carefully taking in the dynamic of the group, looking for any threats. Iz wondered if he ever switched the Basty of Istanbul off entirely. She doubted it.

  “Please tell me there is more coffee,” Iz said, pulling up a bar stool.

  Athena grinned. “For you, always. Thanks for coming. Julian didn’t even smile like that at me, and I’m offering him a veritable dragon’s horde to take his pick from. Rude.”

  “It’s probably because he knew Kon would try and cut his face off if he did,” Iz teased.

  “Very true,” Kon said seriously and slid a steaming cup over to her. “Although, I’m pretty sure Silas didn’t like that smile aimed at you much either.”

  Iz shrugged. “I don’t know what you mean.
”

  “Do you want me to enlighten you?”

  Athena laughed, pulling Kon in between her thighs. “Don’t do that. Then they might have to do something about it.”

  Iz waved a hand at them. “Hello, yes, I am sitting right here.”

  “And yet you’re still not listening.”

  Iz rolled her eyes to heaven. “Please, ancestors, give me patience.”

  Athena’s eyes tracked Silas on the other side of the warehouse. “What’s going on? He’s wearing his antsy face.”

  “Could have something to do with the fact he wants to get out of the city for a bit,” Iz replied, turning her back so she wouldn’t see him.

  Athena’s brow furrowed. “What? That doesn’t sound right.”

  “I don’t know. This morning he said he was restless and wanted a job.”

  “Did you guys fight?”

  “What? No, of course not. He said it, not me. I don’t know what triggered it. Maybe he is bored,” Iz argued. Both Athena and Kon looked suspicious.

  “I’ll talk to him after Julian has left. I need to anyway,” Athena said, frown deepening. Kon didn’t say anything, but Iz saw the way his arm tightened around her.

  “Something I should know about?” Iz asked.

  Athena opened her mouth just as the buzzer to the door rang through the warehouse. Both of them tensed, going from casual to murderous in a blink.

  Kon pulled out his phone and checked the security footage. He muttered, “For fuck’s sake.”

  An expensive black car had pulled up outside, and glaring up at the cameras was Altun Baruk.

  Iz had never seen her in the flesh, and one look told her that Athena hadn’t been exaggerating when she had described Altun as an exotic spider.

  Kon opened the door of the warehouse and smiled. “Altun, lovely to see you.”

  “Don’t start by lying to me, Konstantius. I’m already displeased with you,” she purred, stepping past him and inside without invitation.

  Altun wore a royal purple dress that showed off her curves and a black velvet cape jacket. Everything from her glossy dark hair to her stiletto ankle boots was perfect.

  Iz watched, fascinated, as Altun looked over the warehouse, a smile quirking her lips. She looked at Liddell’s collection, and her eyes narrowed.