by Faith Gibson
After finding a bag of peanuts, Natalia returned to the seating area. Mav held out his hand, and she took it. If anyone had told her a month ago she would be falling in love with her father’s murderer, she would have laughed. Hell, falling in love at all hadn’t been on her radar. She’d never known romantic love, but she wouldn’t discount what she felt for the Gryphon. Just meeting him for the first time in the grocery store had drawn her to him. It wasn’t only his looks. She’d had sex with handsome men, but not once had her stomach fluttered when she thought about them afterwards. When Natalia witnessed the way he panicked when he lost sight of Marshall, her heart went out to him. Being around them in their home, watching them interact, seeing the love he had for his sons in such a short amount of time, those were the things she admired the most.
Having met his parents, Natalia understood why Mav was who he was. Sutton and Rory didn’t hide their love from any of their kids, even though they were grown. She didn’t know how they had raised their children, but from the way his siblings came together to welcome the twins, it was evident the elder Lazlos had instilled in them all the essence of a true family. They might have taught them how to fight, but it was so they could do good in the world. Protect the weak, not prey on them. Like she told Maveryck and the others, she wanted to be part of that. Being an assassin went a long way in ridding the world of evil, but she wanted to do more.
When there was a lull in the conversation, she pulled away from Maveryck and sat down in front of the computer. “Lucy, were you able to get into Mikael’s accounts?”
Lucy’s face lit up. “Yes! I’ve transferred seventy-five percent of the money into the account Sutton uses to help with those they save from the Ministry. The other twenty-five I put into a separate account for the twins, like you asked. I’ll give you the account number next time I see you. I called Julian to help with a few other things, since he’s better at hiding his digital footprint. As of about half an hour ago, your cousins’ cars and the house were transferred into your name. This way, when you decide what to do with everything, you won’t have any issues.”
“That could have waited. I hate that you’re all working when you should be sleeping, but thank you.” She had worried the Lazlos wouldn’t accept the money considering how it was obtained, but Maveryck assured her it was welcomed.
Lucy waved her hand in the air. “We can sleep later. I’ve also been in touch with your leasing agent as well as your insurance company. The agent assured me they had insurance on your rental, and they were just glad you weren’t injured. Your own insurance company needs a list of everything you lost in the fire before they can do an assessment and cut you a check. And don’t worry. I did that during business hours yesterday.”
“Wow, I…” Natalia’s chest tightened. Mav sat down next to her and hugged her to him, kissing her temple.
“Thank you, Lucy. For everything,” Maveryck responded on Natalia’s behalf. “When this is all over, we’ll have you and Tamian over for dinner.”
Natalia really hoped she was included in the “we” part of that statement.
“You know thanks isn’t necessary, but I’m not going to turn down any opportunity to spend time with the twins. It’ll give me practice,” Lucy said with a wink.
“Is there something you need to tell us, Little Dove?” Ryker asked.
“Nope. Not yet anyway. I’ve got to learn how to be Queen before I can worry about little princes or princesses running around.”
“Fair enough. We should be getting ready to land soon, so we’ll call you back when we’re on the road.”
“Sounds good. I wish I was there with you. I’d really like to see Natalia kick this Cassandra’s ass.”
“I’ll video it for you,” Hayden offered.
Lucy laughed at her uncle. “You do and I’ll kick your ass. You have your Gryphon ready to create some havoc.”
“Will do. Talk soon.” Hayden turned off the video.
“What’s this about her being queen?” Natalia asked.
“Tamian’s father is the current Italian Gargoyle King. He’s ready to pass the crown to Tamian,” Mav explained.
“Do Gryphons have kings?”
“No. We’ve never needed something so formal to police our own. When someone like Digger betrays our kind, whoever is in charge of that area deals with them. Most Gryphons in the States formed Motorcycle Clubs back in the mid-nineteen hundreds as a cover for gathering our kind, and even though Sutton stepped down as President, he’s still the one other Gryphons in our area turn to when they need advice or for someone to dole out punishment. Just like with humans, there are good and bad in every species, but there’s less evil in the Gryphons. We were created to be good, and most of us are honorable. This is the first time I can remember one of our own turning on us.”
“What about Monk? Was that his name?”
“Yes. He didn’t turn his back on our kind. He had his heart set on Lucy, and when she didn’t return his love, he left to find his place somewhere else. To me, that was honorable.”
The pilot announced they were preparing to land, so the four of them fastened their seatbelts. Mav took Natalia’s hand. “When this is all over, we need to take the twins on a vacation. Just the four of us.”
“Really?” Mav nodded, and Natalia smiled. “I’d like that.” She raised her face, and Mav didn’t hesitate to kiss her. He pressed his palm to her nape and pulled her closer, deepening the kiss. Natalia forgot about Cassandra and Digger. She forgot about Mav’s two brothers sitting a few feet away. She got lost in the feel of his hand on her neck and his tongue making love to her mouth. When someone cleared their throat, Mav sighed into her mouth then kissed the tip of her nose.
“And very soon, we’re going to go away where it’s just the two of us. I want at least forty-eight hours without interruptions.”
“Just forty-eight hours?” she whispered.
Mav grinned. “You don’t think you’ll get tired of me by then?”
“I don’t think I could ever get tired of you.”
“Okay. Save the mushy shit for later. We’ve got asses to kick and an hour drive before we get there,” Hayden said.
Back before the near-apocalypse caused by the Ministry, there were plenty of airports servicing all areas of the country. As the world began rebuilding, not all business reopened, airports included. They could have landed at one of the defunct locations, but they had chartered a private plane, and as such had to abide by the rules. The New Rochester airport was an hour’s drive to the compound Josiah Talbert and his people had abandoned. It was the perfect place for them to lure Digger and Cassandra. The plan was to scout the area so they had the upper hand in knowing the layout. Natalia was intrigued by this cult. Not that she agreed with how they operated, but the fact that people lived off the grid in self-sustaining mini towns. Growing up with money, she’d never thought about where her food came from. She had everything she needed without question. And although she’d never really had a social life, she couldn’t imagine living somewhere there were no theaters or bars. Or where the men dictated how their world was run and the women meekly obeyed.
Wait. Yes, she could.
The original plan had been for War and the others to bring the twins to the Ministry compound. After Natalia told them who Cassandra was, they asked Tamian to take Maveryck’s family somewhere else. Somewhere neither Cassandra nor Digger would know about. That left the four of them to take on Cassandra and Digger, if they took the bait. Since Ryker wasn’t sure who he could trust within Nexus, if anyone, they let Lucy handle getting word out as to where they would be hiding. Natalia had no doubt Lucy would be successful. She was smart and good at what she did. Natalia could see them becoming friends, and that was something else she was looking forward to. It had been twenty years since she’d had friends, and she wanted that with Lucy, and with Kerrigan.
After transferring from the jet to the rental car, Hayden drove them to the first restaurant they came to open for breakf
ast. Natalia’s stomach had been rumbling for an hour, and it was getting ridiculous. Even Ryker chuckled the last time it happened. Natalia felt bad for the male. She didn’t know him well, but he seemed like a good person. She hated the fact that Cassandra had gotten her hooks in him. If he was meeting her monthly for sex, did that mean he didn’t want a relationship? Maybe he felt he’d had his one shot at love with Juliette. Natalia couldn’t imagine what losing a spouse would be like. She remembered when her mother died, and her father hadn’t been broken up about it, but Anatoly was not one to measure others by. Jenna had walked away from Maveryck, but that hadn’t been a death. From what little he told her, he had been hurt, but not enough to go after his ex.
After eating, they stopped at a Walmart to grab some toiletries, food, and bottled water. The males didn’t know if there was still running water at the compound, so they stocked up. When Natalia caught Maveryck in the condom section, she sidled up to him and whispered her contraceptive shot was good for another few months. She didn’t imagine them having time or privacy for sex with his brothers around, but she was glad to know he was thinking about it. She was too. Every time he touched her or kissed her, heat pooled in her stomach. Natalia had never thought of herself as a wanton woman, but Maveryck could turn her on with just a look.
When they reached the compound an hour later, Hayden parked on a service road half a mile away. While she and Maveryck waited in the car, Hayden and Ryker went in to scope the area, making sure the cult members hadn’t returned. When they deemed it secure, Hayden drove the car onto the property and parked in one of the barns. The little town was nothing like she had expected. Natalia felt like they’d gone back in time and were in the midst of an Old West setting. If she closed her eyes, she could imagine cowboys hitching their horses to posts outside a saloon and women dressed in bustles carrying parasols walking down the sidewalks.
Except there were no hitches or sidewalks. There was nothing except for empty buildings. She had never been anywhere so quiet. There were no noises, save a handful of birds calling to each other in their morning songs. It was almost eerie. When Hayden began whistling a song Natalia didn’t recognize, she was glad for the noise. As isolated as her home had been growing up, there was always someone talking or her father’s classical music coming from his office. Natalia loved music, but she had never been allowed to listen to the latest pop songs. One of the first things she did when she moved into her rental house had been to listen to all kinds of music. She had even purchased a subscription to an online music service that played all genres. The station Hayden had turned on in the car had been some heavier rock, and she found herself tapping her fingers on her thigh to the beat while Hayden sang along. She even caught Mav singing to himself a few times.
There were small buildings scattered throughout the compound. The four of them investigated each one. Cabins which contained bunkbeds lined several unpaved streets, and there was a larger house that sat back away from everything else.
“This reminds me of The Sanctuary,” Ryker said.
“What’s that?” Natalia asked.
“It was the compound where Mav and War found Kerrigan. Considering its leader, Gideon, is brothers with Josiah, the leader of this place, it doesn’t surprise me. They probably have a blueprint on how to build the perfect cult town.”
“That makes sense. If they’ve been doing this for over thirty years, they had to have learned how to create an efficient town.” Maveryck opened the door to the house, and Natalia stepped inside. Walking through the house, Natalia was surprised at how modern everything was. She had expected the inside to be as utilitarian as the small bunkhouses. There was a coffee maker in the kitchen which had leftover liquid inside. Green globs of mold on the surface had her cringing.
“Hayden and I can share the master if you two need your own rooms,” Ryker offered. Maveryck silently asked Natalia what she wanted.
“That’s not necessary. I wouldn’t want to be the cause of you two large men fighting over the covers,” she said.
Hayden chuckled, his eyes alight with mirth. “Right. Thanks for taking one for the team, Lolly.”
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Natalia
Natalia winked at Hayden. “I’m going to clean the kitchen. It looks like they left in a hurry, and that coffee pot is disgusting.” She knew they didn’t expect her to be the maid, but Natalia needed something to keep her mind off sharing a room with Mav.
Maveryck offered to unload the supplies they had purchased while Ryker and Hayden went to have a more thorough look at all the buildings. During their initial walkthrough of the compound, they discovered a well system for the water and generators for power. There were hordes of oil lanterns and candles as well. She was drying the last of the dishes when the three brothers returned from outside. Hayden placed a piece of paper on the island. She glanced down at a rough sketch of the compound.
“Did you do this?” she asked.
“Yeah. I always liked to draw, and it kept me from getting beat up when I was younger.” Natalia arched a brow, and he elaborated. “Being the youngest meant I wanted to do everything my brothers did. Seeing there’s such a big gap in our ages, the others didn’t always appreciate it when I followed them everywhere. Rory found ways to keep me occupied, and drawing was one of them.”
“What about Kyllian? He’s not that much older than you.”
“He’s a lot more outgoing than he used to be. Back then, he mostly stuck with Pop. Yeah, he played with me sometimes, but he has always been more focused than the rest of us. Even at ten, he hung onto every word our father said. Gaining every bit of knowledge about every subject. Straight-A student, top in his class. He’s smart. Observant. While he read everything he could get his hands on, I preferred to draw.” Natalia heard the pride in Hayden’s voice when he spoke of Kyllian.
Natalia hung the damp towel over the oven door handle and turned her attention to the map. She was impressed with the detail. “This is amazing.”
“Thanks. This is just the town proper. I want to shift and get an overhead view of the surrounding area. When we were here before, we were only looking for people. I want to find every access point. Every potential hiding place or trap.”
Ryker pushed away from the wall he’d been leaning on. “I’ll come with you. That’ll give me a chance to watch for Tank.”
The other Gryphon was coming to bring the bags War had packed for them. Since they didn’t know if or when Cassandra and Digger would take the bait, they could be waiting for days. While the two brothers headed outside to shift and take to the air, Natalia studied the map.
Maveryck stepped up behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. He looked over her shoulder. “I can’t imagine living like this. I can understand wanting to be able to survive simplistically if you have to, but to choose living this way without the amenities available on the outside isn’t something I would do willingly. Going camping with War was always a treat. Just the two of us would pack our bikes and hit the road. We would catch our food and cook it over a campfire. Sit around the fire at night enjoying each other’s company. Don’t get me wrong. I love all my family, but the bond between twins is special. I’ve already noticed it with Major and Marshall.”
“So have I. Do you think Major takes the lead because he’s older?”
“Not necessarily. I think that’s just his personality. Marshall is the quieter of the two, but with me and War, he’s older and has the same demeanor I see in Marshall.” Maveryck nuzzled her cheek with his nose, the small diamond stud scratching lightly against her skin. “I know we just met and haven’t been able to spend much time getting to know one another, but what I feel for you is real, Princess. I want the chance to see where this goes. No pressure here, but the boys love you, and I’m not far behind them.”
Natalia turned in his arms and threaded her fingers through his hair. “You think the kind of woman I am is who they need in their lives?”
“You mean someone who
se heart is as intense as her skills in the field? A woman who puts the boys first? Someone who makes them laugh and do little wiggly happy dances? Absolutely.” Maveryck ran his hands down her back, cupping her ass. He lifted Natalia and placed her on the island, moving to stand between her legs. “You’re a good woman, in spite of how you were raised. Maybe because of it. When you were talking about assassins having to hide from their partner, you don’t have to do that with me. And I don’t have to hide any part of myself from you. That’s the beauty of this. We are alike, you and me. I was drawn to you the day we passed on the sidewalk. My Gryphon recognized you as someone special. We didn’t know how true that was. Then in the grocery store…” Mav grinned. “My Gryphon was pissed when I didn’t get your phone number. But the boys had been in my life less than twenty-four hours, and I was still trying to come to terms with having kids I hadn’t known about. It wasn’t like being there when Jenna was pregnant, having the nine months to prepare for being a father. I was scared shitless. Still am. I needed to focus on them and not my love life.”
“What changed?” Natalia needed to know why he was willing to allow her in only a few days later. “It’s not like you’ve had months to get used to having them with you.”
“You changed. Well, not you as in your personality, but being around you, seeing how drawn the boys are to you, how drawn I am to you… It just feels right. I’m not glad your house was destroyed, but I am glad that gives me a reason to keep you with us in our home. And when I say our, I’m including you in that. We already know the sex is incredible, and that was our first time. It can only get better while we learn each other’s bodies. You’re beautiful on the inside as well as out. I want the chance to show you who I can be on the inside.”
