I swallow the chocolate and it warms my insides. Despite my tough act, I’m not a winter person. But it’s not only the drink that has warmed me. I’m pretty sure Parker is the first person who has ever placed their trust in me without question. Even Dad looked at me as if I was going to stab him in the back.
Cain interrupts my thoughts, appearing at my side, but he speaks to Parker. “There’s been a change of plans. We need to leave right away.”
Her eyes widen. “Right now?”
He settles onto the seat beside her. “I know it’s sudden, but…” He produces his phone, turning the screen toward her.
Her face falls. “Oh. The reporters know about me.”
Cain hands me the phone. The newsfeed shows an image of him and Parker outside the café.
She looks up at him as I hand back the phone.
She asks, “Will it be any different in Austin?”
He grins. “I’m old news there. And the tabloids here will find something else to write about once I’m gone.” He hugs her. “I promise, this is a good change.”
She sighs. “You’re right. There are too many memories here. It’s time to make new ones.”
He smiles at her, brushing the hair out of her eyes. “Bring whatever you’ve packed already. I’ll have everything else packed and brought to us.”
His smile broadens. “I’m bringing Grace’s things, too.”
Parker’s lips part in surprise. “Grace is coming with us?”
“She is.”
Parker considers me for a moment. Then she smiles at her brother. She gives him a look I can’t decipher. It makes him arch an eyebrow at her.
She says, “Okay. Good.”
“Good?” he asks.
She grins. “Good.”
I look between them, not sure what their silent communication means, but Parker takes my hand and rushes me upstairs to find spare clothing that will fit me while I’m waiting for my things to arrive in Austin. The next ten minutes are a whirlwind of activity. Cain disappears to get changed, emerging in a white collared shirt that is open at the neck, gray pants tailored to fit his frame. Staff race around the house and Cain talks nonstop on his phone, organizing everything from a private jet to our transport when we get there.
I’m tuned in to the changes in his voice now. I can tell the difference between his conversations with civilians and when he’s speaking to his “people.”
I don’t know exactly who those people are, but something tells me it won’t be long before I find out.
6
We touch down at the airport, where several vehicles wait at the airport to take us to our destination. Cain explained during the flight that he has a small place in the city where we can stay for a while, but he wants Parker to choose their new home once she decides which college she wants to attend. Dr. Mathers and Cain’s regular driver, Spencer, came with us, along with a small number of his staff.
The vehicle I travel in with Cain and Parker is roomy, with seats facing each other so we can all sit in the back. Sarah takes the other car, telling us she’ll see us there. As I find my seat, my bag clutched in my lap containing the only worldly possessions I brought with me, my reckless decision hits me.
Cain asked me to come with him. He said he could keep me safe in Horde territory, but I don’t really know what that means. I replay the conversations he had with Parker on the plane—none of it involved an explanation about where I’m supposed to stay or with whom.
The flight here was a fairy tale, a hiatus from reality, but my guard is back up by the time the vehicle pulls out of the parking lot. All I know for sure is that I got a free ride out of Boston and Cain has promised to transport my things. I have no guarantees beyond that, and every time I try to ask, my throat clams up.
Why did I make myself vulnerable like this?
It makes me ache to realize that a small piece of kindness only leaves me wanting more. I tell myself to get it together. He’s not going to ditch me right away or leave me on the street. I’ll take whatever accommodation he offers me tonight and then I’ll find my own place. It’s nothing I haven’t done a thousand times before.
I sense Cain’s gaze on me as I stare resolutely out of the window, the cityscape passing by as I calm my nerves by memorizing street names. It gives me something to focus on and helps me reconnect with my tough side. Within minutes, I’m calm and in control again.
Then Cain’s phone rings into the silence.
He gives the screen a curious frown before he answers. Whatever the other person says, Cain’s first reaction is surprise. Then it quickly disappears as another short and cryptic conversation ensues.
Unlike his earlier conversations with his people, this one causes an edge of tension to tighten his mouth and crease his forehead. At one point, I’m sure he looks at me. My senses prickle, but when I raise my eyes, his gaze is fixed on the window. He hangs up and peers out at the passing streets for a long minute before he tells the driver to change direction.
Parker leans forward. “Cain?”
He turns back to her with a reassuring smile. “We need to take a detour to a … military facility that I own. It’s a training camp of sorts for civilian contractors. There’s a problem I have to sort out that can’t wait.”
His gaze lands on me and I don’t know how to decipher his thoughts. There are so many lies in what he said that my ears buzz. Parker might buy the story about a military facility, but I don’t. Knowing what I do about Cain, I’m immediately thinking assassins. Maybe a base of operations. Now, there’s a delightful thought.
Cain is tight-lipped after that, so I guess I’ll have to wait and see if my theory pans out.
We head into downtown Austin, travel through a maze of streets, and turn off into a parking garage signed as Capital Visitors Parking. I’m not familiar with Austin, but I think we’re close to the Texas Capitol.
We exit the vehicle into the parking garage and I’m momentarily disoriented when Cain leads us to a door on the far side marked “Authorized Personnel Only.”
Cain casually pulls Parker into his side as he takes hold of the handle, keeping her close. His free hand darts out at the last moment and catches my arm.
The door swings inward.
We step into an open courtyard and he releases me.
Our surroundings make me frown. It’s odd that the door led us straight outside. On either side of us, official-looking buildings squat at the side of a wide, pebbled entranceway. The courtyard ahead of us is expansive enough to host a large gathering. A high stone fence curves out from the door behind and around the entire space. Farther in the distance, a beautiful cathedral soars into the sky, a gorgeous contrast to the drab buildings located close by.
Men and women jog in military rows, weaving in and out of the buildings, and disappear toward the perimeter. They’re all wearing typical khaki green shirts and long pants. It certainly looks like a military camp, but I’m not convinced.
I sense Cain’s gaze on me, but when I turn, his focus is fixed on the cathedral. He points. “I need to go to that building there. Come with me, please.”
Parker and I follow him. The closer we get to the cathedral, the more on edge Cain becomes, his shoulders tense, and his responses to Parker’s questions shorter than normal.
I notice with curiosity that he leads us along the meandering pathway in such a way that the weaving joggers never encounter us. My senses buzz the nearer we get to the cathedral. This whole place feels off, but this particular building…
A dangerous friction fills the air that makes the hairs on my arms stand on end. A giant sandstone arch provides shade at the front, but the cold feels too cold.
I shiver despite myself as Cain draws us beneath the arch.
Once again, his gaze darts to me as if he’s trying to figure something out just by looking at me. That’s the third time he’s done that and it’s unsettling to say the least.
He says, “I want you both to stay right here for now. Th
is building houses a lot of weapons, so it’s protected by some very dangerous security mechanisms. Don’t try to follow me inside. I’m not exaggerating when I say that you could be killed. I promise I won’t be long. Maybe five minutes. Can I trust you to stay right here?”
His gaze bores into me, the edge of anxiety in his expression heightening my own.
I give him a very definite nod. There’s nothing I want to do less than venture further inside this building. “Parker and I will stay here.”
“Absolutely, big brother.” Parker smiles despite the brevity of Cain’s warning. “I have no plans to get dead today. I had enough excitement meeting that guy this morning. I’m happy to stay out of trouble.”
“Good.” He relaxes a little. Seeming satisfied that we will follow his instructions, he disappears into the dark recesses of the entranceway and beyond, his footsteps receding.
Parker leans against the side of the building, her dark hair spreading against the sandstone while I shift my weight impatiently, examining our surroundings for threats. If the people who live here are assassins, then I don’t want to meet them.
Parker’s hand darts out to snag my arm, but her touch is gentle. “You’re making me nervous, Grace. What’s wrong?”
I can’t tell her that we’re surrounded by assassins right now. And I sure as anything can’t describe how much I don’t like this building we’re sheltering against. There’s no way to explain the extent to which my senses are firing alarms at me. But, above all, my uncertainty about what’s going to happen after today bubbles to the surface.
I stop pacing and bite my lip. I can’t stop myself tapping my thigh. My anxiety has to go somewhere. “I’ve never done anything like this. Gone to a strange place with people I’ve only known for a few hours. I … honestly…”
My shoulders sag. Finger stops tapping. “Cain doesn’t owe me more than he’s already given me. In fact, he doesn’t owe me anything at all. I don’t want to overstay my welcome.”
Her gaze softens. She lifts herself off the wall. “I want to tell you something, but not because I’m looking for sympathy. I think it might help you understand what kind of man Cain is.” She bites her own lip in a way that tells me she’s about to open her heart.
She says, “Dad was agoraphobic. Do you know what that means?”
“He feared the outside world?”
“Basically, yes. It started after Mom died. At which time he also became very protective of me. To the point where … I was overprotected. I didn’t go out. Didn’t go to parties. He let me go to school, but that was all.
“When Cain came into my life, he changed everything. He got me into college, walked me to class when I needed him to, encouraged me to go on my own as soon as I was ready. He took me jogging every morning. At first it was just around the yard. Then around the city. The trip to the café this morning was supposed to be another step to get me back out there, you know.”
She takes both my hands. “You see … once Cain commits to something, he doesn’t back out. He’s all in. He asked you to come with us, and even though I don’t know what sort of trouble you’re in, I know he wants you to stay with us for as long as you want to be here.” A genuine smile graces her lips. “And you know what? So do I.”
I chew my lip. She has been so open with me. Kinder than anyone I’ve ever met in my life. I want to show her the same honesty, but I don’t know how to share the details of my screwed-up life. I also don’t know how to ask her why she wants me around. Anyone who ever helped me wanted something in return. I can’t figure out what Cain and Parker gain from my presence.
For now, I’m willing to take her statement at face value. My voice is small, no match for the warmth of emotion I feel right now. “Thank you.”
She releases my hands and tilts her head side to side. “I really need to stretch right now. Going straight from the plane to the car did not do me any favors. Do you think Cain’s mandate extends to the turf right there?”
She points at a patch of grass just outside the archway.
I purse my lips. “Cain was very specific…”
She contemplates the sky for a moment before she strolls outward into the sunlight. “He was, but it can’t hurt to take two steps this way, right? See, two steps. That’s all.”
I put down my bag and try to relax, too. I can’t help but smile at Parker. If she lived her life isolated like she said she did, then taking steps like this are acts of courage for her. I can’t squash that.
Her smile broadens as she holds her arms out for me to join her. For a moment, I glimpse the same carefree spirit I witnessed at the café this morning—a young woman who hasn’t lost her belief in good despite all the bad in the world.
She tips her head back, closes her eyes, and looks like she’s soaking up the sun for all it’s worth. It’s much warmer here, and I have to admit, I’m loving the fact that I’m thawing out after Boston’s cold.
I remain in the shadows where I belong.
Pounding footsteps draw my attention left.
The procession of running warriors charges around the corner, their current pace faster than their previous gentle jog. Their leader runs backward as she shouts orders at them. She doesn’t see Parker and she’s moments away from colliding with her.
I jump forward. “Parker, watch out!”
Parker twists. Her eyes fly open. She tries to get out of the way, but the woman crashes into her, knocking Parker flying.
Parker ends up on her bottom in the grass, just outside the paved cathedral entranceway, wincing as she thuds against the ground. She’s lucky she didn’t land on the stone pavement.
The woman teeters off course, wobbling violently in the opposite direction, but manages to stay upright. She comes to a halt several paces away, her face red, her sharp gaze landing on Parker—the culprit who knocked into her.
The soldiers pull up sharp when she screams at them, “Halt!”
I rush to Parker’s side, holding my hand out to her. Before I can help her stand, the woman crosses the distance, shouting at us as she moves: “What sort of clumsy losers are they sending me now?”
My gaze narrows. What…?
She is dressed like the others in a khaki shirt and pants, but she carries a baton at her waist, clipped to her belt. I’m shocked when she unclips it, raises it above her head, and prepares to swing it at Parker in one brutal movement.
Parker freezes on the ground, eyes wide, her face pale, a cry of fear on her lips. She isn’t trained like me to run or fight. She’s still learning to cope with the outside world. The coming violence must be nothing short of terrifying for her. She curls up, throwing her arms over her face to protect herself.
I dart between them, hunch and twist, taking the blow across my left shoulder.
Thwack.
Pain explodes through my upper arm, searing every nerve in my back.
Oh, hell, that thing is made of metal, not wood.
I roar out the pain, expelling it by focusing on the sound screaming out of my lungs, pressing my fingernails into my thighs. Stronger than pain, anger courses through me.
The baton would have cracked Parker’s cheekbone.
This woman hasn’t stopped to ask us who we are or why we’re here. She simply retaliated with violence. What kind of person is she? There’s no reason for her behavior. Other than sheer dumb arrogance.
But the answer is in what Cain revealed to me: this woman is an assassin. They all are. Violence is in their nature.
Well, I’m not afraid of them.
Parker’s wide eyes meet mine. “Grace!”
I don’t have time to reassure her that I’m okay. My pain-filled roar turns into a shout as I round on the woman: “Get the hell away from my friend!”
The woman’s hard features swing into view. She looks even more furious than before, adjusting her grip on the weapon, her knuckles turning white around it. She’s ready to swing it again. This time at me. “You will not speak to me like that, Novice!”
I don’t know what a “Novice” is. The way she says it, it sounds like some sort of insult. I don’t care right now. All I care about is protecting Parker.
I hear Parker scuffle backward, a sensible move that gives me room to defend her. I wish I could reassure her that I won’t let anything happen to her, but I need to keep my full attention on this woman and the asshole assassins who are all glaring at me.
I grit my teeth and splay my arms wide, turning myself into a shield. “You don’t want this fight. Walk away. Right now.”
Aggression pops from every angle of her face and the offensive position she’s taking. Instead of backing off, she raises the baton in a swift movement, this time aiming it for my face.
I grab the weapon mid-air, my fist closing around it so fast that she gasps, blinking at me in shock. I hold it tight, my hand clamped around hers. She struggles against me, but the harder she tries to break free, the firmer my grip becomes.
I’ve grabbed it with my left hand—the arm she hurt. Despite the pain shooting through my shoulder, a smile lifts the corners of my lips.
I’m holding a weapon.
Now the calm seeps through every part of my body, my arms, legs, heart, and mind. My vision becomes sharp, clear, and controlled.
Cain hasn’t reappeared, and even if he does, there’s no guarantee that he has any control over this woman.
It’s down to me for now.
The other assassins form a line that extends from one side of the cathedral, arcing around us to the other side. They completely block any escape in that direction, and there’s no way I’m running into the cathedral.
Meanwhile, the woman continues to push against me, but I’m in control of the baton now. It will take a mere twist to disarm her.
My voice is dangerously soft. “Back off or I will kill you.”
“How dare you threaten me, Novice!” she hisses.
Yep. Novice is definitely an insult.
I grin. “I thought so.”
Shadows and Sorcery: A Collection of Urban Fantasy and Paranormal Romance Novels Page 46
