Sharpest Edge: Mercenaries and Magic

by Alessa Thorn

  Kon’s eyes snapped open, and he looked around him. “She was just here, looking at the trees.”

  “Fuck. She’s gone into the forest. We need to find her,” he said, fear rushing up his spine. He searched the snow. “There’s her boot prints.” Silas swallowed back the bile creeping up his throat and followed the tracks under the trees.

  “Athena is smart, Silas. She won’t have gotten far,” Izabella tried to reassure him. It didn’t work. His mind was thinking of the last time he followed footprints in that cursed place. He paused mid-step. “Shit, I think I know where she’s gone.”

  Silas kept following the tracks until he saw the outcrop of rocks that haunted his dreams. Athena sat in a cleft in the boulder, the same place she had been the first time he found her. Her usually blue eyes were black and unseeing.

  “Athena?” Kon made to step towards her, but Silas’s hand shot out and grabbed him.

  “Don’t touch her, Kon. She’ll kill you. Trust me,” he said quickly. He had thought he imagined it that night, told himself it had been the darkness playing tricks on him.

  “We can’t leave her,” Kon hissed. “What the fuck is happening to her?”

  “I don’t know, but I brought something that might help. Everyone just stay back, okay?” Silas said.

  He reached into the side pocket of his pants and took out a small knife. It was a tiny thing, the kind of blade given to children for fishing. He’d had a leather sheath made for it, but it was the same knife she had been holding the night he had found her.

  Silas walked slowly over to Athena and crouched down in front of her. He gently placed the wooden hilt of the knife in her hand.

  Athena’s whole body shook, a wild, keening sound like a wolf’s howl rising out of her throat. Her grip on the knife tightened, and she bared her teeth and hissed at him.

  Silas held out his hand to her and said the words he had back then. “Hey, little one, you want to get out of here?”

  Athena whimpered and rubbed at her eyes. When her hand moved away, they were blue again. “Silas?”

  “Yeah, baby, I’m here. You okay?” Athena looked down at the knife in her hand, and her face crumpled. She tilted forward into his arms. Silas held her close, his own body shaking. “It’s okay. I got you.”

  “He was here recently, Dad. The man made of shadows.” Athena clutched at his jacket, and he helped her out of the snow and back onto her feet. “I can… I can still feel him.”

  “Did you see what he was doing?” Silas asked.

  Athena’s eyes widened, and she let him go. She spun about, looking up at the branches of the trees. She pulled the knife from the sheath and threw it with a screech of fury. Silas heard the blade connect, and then there was a smash as something hit the ground.

  “It’s a camera,” Leo said, moving to pick it up. He passed the knife to Dante, who gave it to Athena.

  “Where there is one, there will be more. We need to get the fuck out of here now,” Silas said, pulling his gun free. “You with me, Cub?”

  Athena took out the knife that Kon had given her. “Always. Let’s get back to the helicopter.”

  They came together in a group, weapons facing out. Silas made sure Izabella was behind his back before they began to move quickly back the way they came in.

  Silas could see the helicopter through the trees when he held up his hand. “Wait.”

  “What is it?” Izabella whispered behind him.

  Silas opened his mouth to say something was wrong when the helicopter exploded.

  Iz was suddenly on her back, Silas’s huge body covering hers. Bits of tree branches, snow, and ash were drifting down on them.

  “S-Silas,” she said, clutching at him.

  “It’s going to be okay. Up you get,” he said, getting to his feet and straightening. “Guns out, kids. We got company.”

  Headlights flashed through the trees, and two large SUVs drove into the clearing, people in white gear getting out with their guns raised.

  “Two cars. What’s that? Eight guys, ten at most?” Athena sniffed, flicking a burning ember off her jacket. “Insulting, really.”

  Silas grinned at Athena before passing Iz a handgun. “Just like we practiced. Stay behind me, Silversmith. Don’t shoot unless we go down and you have a clear line of sight.”

  “But I can do more than hide—” she began.

  Silas’s gripped her chin and lifted it so she could see the anger in his eyes. “Don’t fucking fight me about this. Just do as you’re told.”

  Iz took the safety off the Glock and took up her position. Embarrassment burned through her that he treated her like the weak one to be shielded. “Fine, but when we get back, we are going to talk about this bullshit.”

  “Looking forward to it. Athena and Kon right flank. Dante and Leo left. We stick to the cover of the forest as much as possible and work our way round to where they’ve parked. We need to take one of those cars, so don’t go blowing them up, Dante.”

  “And ruin my chance of having Leo sit on my lap on the drive back to Istanbul because there are not enough seats? Unlikely.”

  Leo had produced two handguns from somewhere and watched the men in the glade with calculating eyes. In the fading light and flames from the burning rubble, he didn’t look like the sweet hacker that Iz knew.

  “You better be able to shoot as good as you talk shit, Hill,” he said, his voice devoid of emotion.

  “Focus on your own shooting, nerd.” Dante lobbed something at one of the groups of men, and a small explosion had them screaming and firing into the trees.

  “That’s cheating,” Athena complained.

  Iz didn’t get to tell them they were all crazy when Silas started firing. She tried not to look around her to see what was going on. Instead, she was doing everything she could to keep up with Silas and watch his back. Another group of figures appeared through the forest and guarded the tree line.

  “We got more coming up behind us,” Iz shouted to Silas.

  “Shoot them,” he replied, ripping a rifle out of an attacker’s hand, smashing him across the face with the butt, and sending him to the ground. Silas shot him twice in the face before tossing the weapon back to Iz. “You were always better with one of these.”

  Iz lifted the rifle and started firing, taking down whoever appeared on the tree line. She shot one after the other with an accuracy only an Edgeworth could teach. Behind her, a car started up.

  “Get your ass in here, Iz,” Athena shouted and sounded the horn. Iz turned and ran. Silas was firing behind her as she bolted and dove into the back seat. She was the smallest, so she scrambled over the back into the cargo space.

  She peaked out of the tinted glass to see Dante heading for them. Leo was behind him with a spookily calm expression on his face and firing with both hands.

  “Hurry up, John Wick!” Dante shouted, climbing into the back seat and all but pulling Leo in beside him. Silas shut the back door, hung onto the roof rack with one hand, and stood on the sidestep. He banged on the roof, and Athena slammed her foot on the gas.

  Silas fired behind them. Kon leaned out of the passenger door with a machine gun he had gotten from somewhere, backing him up with a sweeping rain of bullets.

  Dante dropped the electric window and casually chucked something out of it. Iz ducked, putting her arms over her head as an explosion shook the car.

  “Dio mio, how many of those things did you pack?” Leo demanded.

  “I don’t know…five?”

  “If you blow this car up, Dante, I swear I will hunt you through all seven circles of Hell.”

  Dante ruffled Leo’s hair. “Just meet me in the Seventh Circle, partying with the sodomites, ragazzaccio.”

  When they hit the main road, Athena slowed long enough for Silas to climb in beside Dante.

  “Anyone hurt?” he demanded.

  “Only minor,” Kon replied, wrapping something around his leg.

  Silas turned in the seat. “Izabella?”


  “I’m okay, but I shouldn’t be.”

  He frowned. “Why do you say that?”

  “The guys that came up behind us in the forest. They could have opened fire on us and didn’t. They weren’t hiding, but they weren’t attacking.” Iz didn’t add that they didn’t feel real, but it could’ve been the fear and adrenaline that made her think something was off.

  “Then they were there to watch the show and see how we did against the others,” Leo said and passed the broken camera back to her. “We can try and recover data off that.”

  “Where to, Silas?” Athena said.

  “They knew we had a helicopter, and that can be traced back to Tyumen easily, so we head for Yekaterinburg,” Silas replied. “What a fucking nightmare.”

  “I don’t want one ‘I told you so’ out of you, old man,” Athena said.

  “Yeah, yeah.” Silas took off his heavy overcoat and passed it back to Iz. “Something for you to sit on. Wouldn’t want your ass getting bruised back there.” He gave her a long look, checking her over.

  “I’m fine, Jefe,” she replied, wrapping it around and under herself. She tried to hide the fear and exhaustion that was creeping over her now that the adrenaline had worn off.

  Iz clutched the broken camera to her chest, falling asleep as a warm hand came over the back of the chair to rest on her shoulder.

  12

  By the time they got back to Istanbul the following morning, everyone was tired and hollow-eyed.

  Kon had called in some favors, and they had gotten a flight from Yekaterinburg with a private shipping company. It had been an uncomfortable flight back, what Izabella had said about the men in the woods playing over and over in Silas’s mind.

  In Istanbul, Izabella had fallen back asleep on the couch while Silas had a shower. Instead of waking her, he had tugged off her boots and covered her with a blanket. Silas was too jittery to go to bed, so he sat down on the floor and rested his back against the couch to watch Izabella sleep.

  You knew in your gut that going back to that place was a bad idea, and you took her anyway.

  She had been poetry with the rifle he had thrown her, but having people shooting at her made him feel like he had a belly full of shattered glass. He turned the small broken camera in his hand, fighting the urge to grind it under his boot.

  Was Gadal watching the place or someone else? How did they know that they would come back, and when, in order to get that many men in the one area so fast?

  Liddell and the other Secret Chiefs were interested in magic. Could Gadal have foreseen their presence there? Fuck. Magic was an enemy that Silas had no idea how to fight.

  Silas woke hours later, the blanket now over him, and Izabella missing. He heard the shower going and ran a hand through his hair.

  “Oh good, you’re awake,” Dante said, coming out of his room with a duffle over his shoulder.

  “Where are you going?” Silas asked. He got up and stretched his stiff back, regretting not climbing into his bed after all.

  “I’m moving into the short-term apartment across from Leo’s. If I’m going to be training him, I want to be close enough to do it without having to go back and forth every day.”

  Silas shook his head. “I don’t know how much training he’s going to need. I saw that kid shoot yesterday. You don’t get that good without a fuck ton of practice.”

  “That’s a gun, not hand to hand,” Dante replied, shifting his weight. “I don’t… I don’t like when he is apart from us. He won’t move back into the warehouse with Kon, so I’m going to him. You saw those guys yesterday. They just fucking appeared, Silas. None of us should be alone right now in case they hit us again.”

  “It’s okay to be worried. I get it. Just don’t make it creepy, okay?” he teased.

  Dante rolled his eyes. “There’s nothing creepy going on. I’m going to be in a whole different place. But close enough if someone attacks him, he’s got backup. It’s strategic, and you know it. We all need to be more careful.”

  “I hear you.” Silas put a hand over his chest and pretended to get choked up. “It’s just that little baby bird is flying the nest.”

  “Maybe Daddy will finally start fucking Mommy now,” Dante shot back.

  Silas flipped him off. “Go on, fuck off then. Don’t let the door hit you where the good Lord split you.”

  “Hey, you better not have been leaving without saying goodbye,” Izabella called, coming out of the bathroom, looking flushed and downright delicious. She pulled Dante into a hug. “Don’t torment Leo too much.”

  “For fuck’s sake, I’m not moving countries. I’ll see you two tonight at Athena’s for dinner and a debrief,” Dante said and headed out the door with a backward wave.

  Silas locked the door behind him and checked that the alarm was set before turning around and looking Izabella over.

  “Now, you and I are going to have a talk about you wanting to argue with me in the middle of a firefight,” he said sternly.

  “Good idea.” Izabella’s dark eyes narrowed. “Let me begin by saying, just because we’ve hooked up a few times doesn’t give you the right to treat me like I’m made of fucking glass.”

  Silas crossed his arms. “Is that what you think? That I put you to watch my back because I am trying to give you some kind of special treatment?”

  “I can fight the same as any of them! You made sure of that, so don’t you dare start acting like I’m the weak one that needs to cower behind you,” she shot back.

  Silas groaned in frustration. “That’s not it, Bella. I put you there because Athena and Dante like to go off plan when their blood gets up, and Kon will always follow Athena into whatever dumb fuckery she does. I wanted you at my back because you’re the only one I trust to stay there and watch it for me.”

  The anger vanished from her face. “Oh.”

  “Yes, oh. No matter what else is going on between us, I’m still the boss in the field, and don’t you forget it. Don’t argue with me. It’s not a discussion. It’s an order.”

  “Whatever you say, sir,” Izabella said with a mock salute. “And nothing is going on between us.”

  Silas’s temper flared. “There’s been something going on between us for five fucking years, Silversmith.”

  “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Izabella said in a rush and started to back away from him.

  “I ought to fuck that lie right out of your mouth, woman,” he growled.

  Izabella put her hands on her hips. “If it’s a lie, why the fuck have you never said anything? Huh? I was right there. We’ve been alone plenty of times, and you’ve never once given me any indication you were interested.”

  “Neither have you. You were always determined to have your walls up as high as possible around me.”

  “Because you met me as a fucked up junkie mess! I was just another one of the broken people that you collected because of your hero complex.”

  “You know that’s not true,” Silas replied, closing in on her. “I’ve never seen you as a broken junkie, Izabella. You needed help, and I gave it to you because from the second I saw you, all I’ve ever wanted to do was take care of you.”

  “I can take care of myself,” she snapped back.

  “I know, but it doesn’t mean the impulse will go away so easily.”

  Izabella lifted her chin. “Promise me you won’t act like I’m the weak one if we get into another fight. I’m either a part of this team or not.”

  “Fine. Then you promise me you won’t lie and say that nothing is going on between us.”

  “And what is this something exactly, huh?”

  Silas couldn’t take it anymore. He lifted her up against the wall and kissed her, hard and hot. Izabella’s legs wrapped around him, moaning against his lips and sucking his tongue into her mouth.

  Silas pulled back. “That’s what’s going on, and if you don’t want it, you better fucking tell me now.”

  “Of course, I want it.” Izabella stroked his c
heekbones and twisted her fingers into his hair. “I’m just scared.”

  “Me too,” Silas admitted. She looked up at him in surprise. “It’s true. I never wanted anyone permanently. I had work and Cub, and I thought that was all I needed. Then Belarus happened, and as soon as I saw you, I knew I was wrong.”

  “Impossible. I was a mess in Belarus and months after. You know that,” she whispered.

  “Didn’t matter. I wanted you. It scared the shit out of me how much, and I didn’t know what to do with that feeling, so I let you go home to Barcelona without saying anything.” Silas pressed his forehead gently to hers. “I promise I won’t treat you like the weak one, but don’t ask me not to keep you safe as much as I can, Bella. I’m always going to put myself between you and the rest of this shit show of a world. I can’t help it.”

  “I know. It’s one of the things I love about you.” She pressed a soft kiss against his lips. “No one has ever given a shit enough about me to want to protect me. Nothing makes me feel safe like you do.”

  Silas’s grip on her tightened, his heart feeling so heavy in his chest with all the things he wanted to say to her. “You only have to tell me what you need, and I’ll give it to you.”

  Izabella kissed him, lips hungry and devouring. “I need you to take me to bed and fuck me, Silas. If—If you want to.”

  Silas let out a helpless laugh and ground his already hard dick into her. “When do I ever not want to? You drive me to distraction. Always have.”

  Her smile was wicked and wonderful. “I’m not sorry about that.”

  “And I’m not sorry for the funny way you’re going to be walking tomorrow,” he replied, kissing her all the way to his bedroom.

  13

  Silas carrying Iz to bed was one of the sexiest things that had ever happened to her. She was still buzzing from him admitting he had wanted her the whole time she had been pining for him.

  She wanted to open up, say the things that had been burning across her tongue for years.