by Aleah Raynes
We stopped tickling Peyton and she took a deep breath. “You two are mean.” She kicked off her shoes and curled into me, hugging my waist. “Teleport me to your room.”
I laughed. “I can’t teleport.”
“Damn. Then carry me.”
Extracting myself from her hold, I stood and stretched. “Come on. You can nap on my bed.”
After a few incoherent grumbles, she got up and stumbled out of the room. I glanced back to Kent. “Whacha doing today?”
He shrugged. “Right now, I need food. But I think Sawyer is putting me on a rest day.”
I smiled. “Oh, food does sound good. Although I’m not sure how long Peyton can stay awake.”
Kent crossed the room and kissed me lightly. “Go, be Peyton’s doll. I’ll make breakfast and bring it in.”
“Thank you.” I hugged him tightly before darting off down the hallway to my room.
When I entered, Peyton had my closet wide open and clothes spread out over the bed. She stepped out of the closet with a few dresses. I cringed. I hid those in the back for a reason.
“I take it you’re not a fan of dresses.” Peyton smirked at me. The dark circles under her eyes made me wonder how long it’d been since she’d slept. Before I could ask, she said, “Well, you’re in luck. You can get away with wearing a pantsuit like you wore yesterday to meet your uncles and aunt.”
“That’s a relief. Do you promise to shoot me when the day comes I need to wear a formal gown?” God, I hope that day didn’t come. I skipped both my proms for that reason. It was a good thing I wasn’t interested in dating or cared…
“I can’t do that. I can make sure your formal wear is comfy, easy to run in, and has plenty of hidden pockets.” She winked at me.
“Peyton, what do you know about being bonded.”
She paused at the bed, then stared at me. “They told you, huh? Of course, they did. OR you found out. And I hope you reamed them one for keeping things from you.”
“And you are rambling because you don’t want to answer me.”
She sighed and sat on the bed, taking my hands in hers. I found it comforting that I felt so calm and at peace with her. Just like with the guys. Finally, she spoke. “The bond is permanent. The more you’re around them and the closer you get to them, the stronger it becomes.”
“I guessed that. Would I have known all along? I mean, before knowing about them and all this, I was never interested in dating or boys or girls or anything. I had friends, but nothing else.” At my words, she stared up at me. When a strand of her chestnut hair fell in her face, I tucked it behind her ear. Despite the level of dark power in her magical signature, she held light as well. Dalton had the same mixture of power.
“That would make sense. You wouldn’t be interested in anyone but your team.” A sadness entered her gray eyes, but was gone almost as fast.
“What about your team?”
She released my hand and playfully pushed me back a step. “I don’t need a team.” She rolled her eyes. “I’m a floater. I go where they need me. I prefer to work with Drew’s and Sawyer’s teams. They’re nice to me.”
An ache formed in my heart while dread slammed into my gut. “What do you mean?”
“When you’re a descendant of Satan, you’re not well liked. Dalton has thicker skin than me.” Peyton stood and picked up a purple silk blouse, then held it up to me. “I like that color on you.”
She was deflecting, trying to change the subject. She also didn’t know me well at all or how strong my intuition was. I could read between the lines. And it was no secret my family didn’t care for Dalton. “I’m guessing my family is among those who make it difficult for you.”
Peyton shrugged, but didn’t look at me. “I don’t care.”
Like hell. “I want to be your friend. My new family will accept that fact or they will find themselves a new princess to show off.” My anger was rising. I closed my eyes and breathed deeply. No need to conjure things or people. “Besides, I’m…almost dating the grandson of Satan. So, Uncle Joel will have to get over it. I don’t think Archangel Michael would have put me with Dalton and the others if he didn’t have a plan.”
Peyton faced me, a bright smile lifting her lips. “The angels always have a plan.”
She held up a black pencil skirt and I shook my head. “I need freedom to run if needed.”
“Ah. So, true. I have just the thing.” She held out a hand and conjured what appeared like another black skirt. “These are pants that look like a skirt. Super comfy and they have slits in the side for quick access to your thigh holster.”
“Thigh holster?”
Peyton smiled brightly. “Yes, you will be packing.”
A light knock on the door drew our attention to Kent. He carried a tray of food in. Quickly, I conjured a small round table for him to set it on. “That smells amazing.”
Kent’s cheeks tinted. “I can’t take credit. Sawyer cooked and left heating instructions before he left.”
“Well, thank you for bringing it to us.” I kissed his cheek and checked out the tray. There were plates of waffles, and bowls of different fruits and syrups with bacon and sausage. “Does he always make so much?”
Kent shrugged. “Sometimes. We usually have others from the Order over.”
Hmm. I hadn’t seen or heard anyone else here other than my guys and Peyton. “Usually? Is there something else I haven’t been told?”
Kent reached for me. When I swung away from him, giving him my back, he wrapped his arms around my waist. “There is a lot of info, and daily routines are crazy. It’s not like we are keeping things from you on purpose.”
Peyton waved a sausage link at me, drawing a fit of giggles from me. “They are guys after all. But it usually is crazy here. This apartment building is mostly Order Agents. It’s convenient. If we need something from another team, we go to their place. It’s not uncommon to gather in one apartment for meetings. We have to keep everyone in the loop on what Lucia is doing or not doing.”
A sigh slipped from my lips and Kent squeezed gently before releasing me. “Now, eat your breakfast before Dalton gets here to take us to the gun range.”
One corner of my lips lifted. I wondered if they knew Tyler and Dad had taught me to shoot practically when I began walking. Now I knew why.
Didn’t mean I liked guns, though.
“Do I really have to carry a gun to dinner?”
Peyton and Kent spoke at the same time. “Yes.”
Chapter 12
I learned two things about Peyton. One, she wasn’t on my side. She was as bad as my kidetos when it came to my safety. No matter how much I tried to convince them I didn’t need a gun, she insisted I wear one.
Two, she had a hidden talent for making clothes. The flared pants with slits in the sides were her creation. She told me all about more of her creative-kick-ass formal wear.
“Here.” Dalton handed me a .45 handgun. “Tyler said you can shoot better than me. I said I’d believe it when I see it.”
Mischief danced in his midnight-blue eyes, mixing with a challenge I couldn’t ignore. I took the gun and checked the safety, then picked up a clip and slammed it in. “We’ll see.”
His lips twitched and my knees almost gave out. He was handsome, and I never thought I was into the bad boy types. Then I met Dalton.
The training facility had both an indoor and outdoor range. There were also obstacle courses, biking and hiking trails, and other various stations. We were at the outdoor range.
Dalton pointed to a large tree several yards away. “Do you see the bottles hanging from the lower branch in the left?”
I squinted. “Is that what they are?” I was teasing him. They were tiny from the distance, but I saw them.
He chuckled. “Hit at least one of them without spending all your ammo.”
I rolled my eyes. Just as I was positioning myself and taking aim, I sensed my brother and two others move in closer. Most likely his team. From the sound of th
eir footsteps, I guessed they stopped next to Kent and Peyton a few feet behind me.
I ignored them and focused on my targets. Dalton said hit at least one before running out of rounds. Ha! He really needed to have more faith in me.
Releasing a breath, I aimed, steadied my arm, and fired four times. Each shot hit its mark.
I lowered the gun, released the clip, and laid it on the table. Dalton stared at the tree, then threw his hands up. “I’m done.”
Tyler chuckled from behind me. When I turned, I met familiar green eyes. The Thornehart eyes. I wasn’t sure how I knew that other than my intuition, which had never been wrong. The man stared back at me with a mix of curiosity and dislike. His dark blond hair was perfectly plastered to his head with more hair gel then the high school cheer squad could use in a week.
When he stepped forward with his hand extended, Dalton and Kent moved to block him. “I was just going to introduce myself.”
Dalton snarled. “You can do it without touching her.”
Tyler worked his jaw as if not liking this man. Or he’d heard something in his thoughts. Why did Tyler bring him there?
“It’s obvious you know who I am and that we are related.” I folded my arms over my chest and glared.
The man nodded. “I’m Kyle, your cousin. Amber’s son.”
I pushed between Dalton and Kent and offered my hand to Kyle. “Nice to meet you.”
My guys’ anxiousness touched my awareness. They were worried about my psychometry. I hadn’t needed to wear my gloves since I formed the shields. I didn’t think of bringing them with me. Yet, I was curious about this cousin. I let one layer of shields down like Cal had taught me.
When our hands touched, a zap of old power wrapped around them, nipping at my skin. I forced all emotion and reactions away. If Kyle was testing me, I wasn’t about to let my guardians know.
Besides the power coming from him, I didn’t get a vision or anything else. I wondered if he could block my ability. I’d have to remember to ask the guys later.
“I will see you at dinner tomorrow.” Kyle released my hand and stepped back.
His tone held a hint of a knowing tone. Like he had some inside information on a top-secret mission. My intuition said to stay clear. He was sneaky, like a snake.
“Yes, I’ll see you then.”
With a short nod and a glare at Dalton, Kyle handed him an envelope. Dalton stuffed it in his jeans pocket without looking at it or replying to the man. I wondered what it was but wouldn’t push even though I was annoyed at yet another secret.
Kent said, “I don’t like him.”
Dalton growled and packed up the guns. “Let’s go.”
I followed Dalton to his truck and waited by the passenger door while he spoke with Tyler. I could hear them and didn’t pretend I didn’t.
“Why was he here? I don’t think it was to hand deliver orders.” Dalton fisted his hands.
Tyler sighed and glanced at me. I raised a brow and he shook his head. “He followed me from HQ. He’s like a fucking gnat that keeps biting until you squash him.”
“I want to do more than squash him.”
“Yeah,” Tyler chuckled. “I texted Sawyer and wanted to hold a meeting. Peyton and Cal still have to brief everyone on The Club last night.”
Dalton turned toward the truck, meeting my gaze. He sighed and stopped inches from me. Instead of unlocking the door, he placed his hands on the either side of me, caging me in. “Didn’t you ride here with Kent?”
Was he trying to intimidate me? He had to try harder. “Yeah, but I thought I might ride home with you.”
He held my gaze before relaxing against me. “I can’t tell you what’s in the envelope. Please, trust me on this. It has nothing to do with you directly, and if you knew, Lucia could use your knowledge against you. I can’t put you in more danger than you’re already in.”
I placed a hand over his heart. He stiffened as if he expected me to use my psychometry. I didn’t. “Would she assume I knew, anyway? She can’t kill me without releasing Lucifer. That would spoil her plans. I don’t want secrets between any of us. We will be stronger as one rather than separated by half-truths.”
He lifted a hand and caressed my cheek with his knuckles. “So smart and beautiful. I don’t deserve you.”
“I don’t care that you’re Satan’s grandson. You are nothing like him.” When he began to shake his head, I framed his face with my hands. “I’ll be the judge of who is worthy of my attention.”
He snapped his gaze back to mine. The corners of his mouth twitched. “And stubborn. You are definitely Tyler’s sister.”
“Did you have any doubts?”
That drew a chuckle from him. “Not at all.” He pushed off the truck and opened the door.
I climbed in feeling like I won a prize. Dalton’s laugh.
The apartment was a little too full for my comfort. Dad and Tyler made it their mission to keep me away from large crowds my whole life. When I was little, I dismissed it, believing it was the acts of overprotective father and brother.
Dalton chose a spot in the far corner of the living room. There wasn’t anyone else over there, so I followed. A worn, black leather recliner sat in the corner. It clearly had seen better days, but I thought it had character.
Dalton sat on the arm and motioned for me to sit in the chair. I met his dark stare. “Thank you.”
When I sat, he placed a hand on my shoulders and gently messaged. “What’s wrong?”
I relaxed a little. Since leaving the gun range, I had a sinking feeling something wasn’t right. Thoughts of the vision I had when I first arrived at the apartment—the one where Dad died in an explosion—kept replaying in my mind.
Dalton must have felt my anxiety. I realized he wasn’t there when I had the vision. Neither was Tyler. Maybe I was stressed about the dinner party. There were too many unknowns. I didn’t know who to trust outside my and Tyler’s team. And I still didn’t know everyone on Tyler’s team.
I covered Dalton’s hand on my shoulder and squeezed. “I’ll be okay when this party is over.”
I hoped.
Dalton bent down and kissed the top of my head. “We’ll keep an eye on your dad too. Sawyer told me about your vision.”
I nodded and sat back in the chair with my arms around my middle. When I lifted my gaze to the crowd, I noticed Tyler was watching me and Dalton.
My brother offered me a smile before he spoke to the room. “Peyton, fill us in on The Club, then go sleep.”
Peyton rolled her eyes. “I don’t sleep. Not really.” She sighed and continued before Tyler could say anything. “Nothing happen, but there were a few new Capissians in the area. I didn’t get warm and fuzzies when Cal tried to make small talk.” Scrolling through her phone, she typed like sending a text. “I just sent everyone pics I snapped of two of them.”
Everyone’s phone went off and each one checked theirs. I’d left my phone on my dresser. I hadn’t thought of giving the guys and Peyton my number.
As if picking up my thoughts, Sawyer said, “Rylee needs a new untraceable phone. The only ones allowed to have her new number are in this room and her dad.”
Everyone nodded and Kent said, “I’m on it.”
I glanced at Tyler as he leaned into Drew. My heart warmed at their open affection for one another. Then another member of Tyler’s team eased his way to me. He had short black hair and darted his dark gaze to Dalton as if checking for his reaction. The guy stopped in front of Dalton. “Hi, Dal.”
“S’up.” Dalton replied. After a brief silence, he rolled his eyes. “Rylee, this is Ben, the computer genius.”
I held out my hand. “Hi.”
Ben smiled and relaxed while digging into his pocket. He pulled out a small credit card size envelope and dumped the contents in his hand. Three different size ear pieces, like small hearing aids, fell onto his palm. “Try out the fit for these.”
I glanced to Dalton then back at Ben. “What are they for?�
�
“So, you can stay connected with everyone. Your kidetos will be with you the whole time tomorrow night, but if you do get separated for whatever reason, you can contact them through the ear pieces. In turn, you will be able to hear them and everyone on my team.” Ben smiled, warm and friendly.
Still cautious of touching things, I let my fingers linger above each ear piece. When I didn’t feel any heavy energy surrounding them, I picked up the middle-sized one that was closer to the size of ear buds I used.
Relief rippled through me when I picked it up and had no vision. I was being paranoid.
I placed the device in my ear. It fit and was comfortable enough I wouldn’t notice it was there. “This one for sure.”
“Great.” Ben placed the larger one in his ear and tapped it. “Can you hear me?”
I jerked and gasped at the click sound followed by his voice. The apartment living room vanished and I was standing in the middle of a large great room, surrounded by people.
Loud voices came from the kitchen a moment before an explosion went off, throwing me and my guys, along with everyone in the room, back. Pain seared up my spine and inside my chest. Breathing was difficult and burned my lungs.
“Ry! It’s a vision. It’s not real.” Cal’s voice filtered through the pain and ringing in my ears. Where was he? “I’m here. We’re fine. Everything is okay.”
No everything was not okay. Then I saw him. The place I’d been, which I could only guess was my uncle’s house for the dinner party, fell away. Cal’s face came into view. His dark brows dipped and his honey-colored eyes were sad. His hands framed my face.
I took a deep, shaky breath and flung myself at him, hugging him tightly. He lifted me from the chair, then sat down and placed me on his lap. Dalton’s fingers raked through my hair. Their touches soothed me.
“What happened?” Tyler asked, much closer than he was earlier. When I glanced at him, tears filled my eyes.
We were all going to die. Not just Dad. “There will be a bomb planted at the party.”
It was all I was able to say. The feeling of dying, the pain, and inability to breathe still debilitated me. I was thankful Cal was there to translate my vision for them. Somehow Cal and I had formed a psychic bond when he showed me how to shield. I was grateful for that bond. I didn’t have to relive the vision by describing it to the others.
