Valeriya quickly found a pencil and lightly rubbed it over the paper. It wasn’t words that formed, but numbers. She returned the pencil to its exact location and then ripped the paper from the pad. She folded it and started to tuck it into her purse.
She stopped, pulled down the neckline of her dress, and tucked the small piece of folded paper in her bra. She hurried back to the foyer, making it just as her sister started down the stairs.
“Come. We have dinner reservations,” Karina informed her. “And I hate to be late.”
Valeriya obediently followed her sister out of the house and into the waiting car. The security team was already in position. Two of them rode in the car with her and Karina. The other two were in a car following them.
Valeriya couldn’t wait to have this family dinner over with so she could go back to her apartment and work. Her sister disapproved of her profession, but writing and illustrating children’s books had allowed Valeriya to carve out a life for herself, away from her sister and her expectations. Most of all, she wanted to have a better look at what was on the piece of paper she had tucked in her bra.
“I’m surprised to see you in New York. You rarely leave Boston these days.” Which was one of the reasons Valeriya lived here.
“Business,” replied Karina. “But you’re not interested in family business, are you?” It was a familiar argument, but one that still had the power to make Valeriya’s stomach hurt.
“You know I’m not.”
Karina nodded. The car stopped in front of a very exclusive and expensive restaurant. Valeriya would much rather have a burger than whatever overpriced gourmet food was served here.
Her sister paused just outside the establishment. “There may soon come a time when you’ll have to get involved whether you want to or not. I’ve indulged your childish whims long enough. It’s time to grow up and take your place among the Knights.”
“No.” She offered no explanations. She didn’t owe her sister any. They’d been over this a thousand times in the past decade. “I have a life of my own, and I like it just fine.”
“We’ll see.” Karina nodded to one of her men, and he pulled open the door of the restaurant.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Ezra’s home was simple but beautiful. Standing on about sixty acres, it was constructed of natural stone and thick logs and fit right into the landscape. He didn’t have a secret bunker like Tarrant.
Sarah stood on the front veranda and stared out at the water. It was soothing to watch the waves roll in and smash upon the rocks before rolling out.
It was late but she wasn’t sleepy. She’d slept for most of the drive here and was now wide awake and worrying.
Darius slid his arms around her waist and kissed the top of her head. “What are you thinking about?”
“The Knights and poor Father Simon. And Tarrant. This has to be hard on him.” She leaned back against Darius’s chest. He was so strong, reliable, dependable…and hers. “You should call him.”
Darius pulled out the new phone that Ezra had given him and punched in the number. “I’ll put it on speaker so you can hear.”
She half turned in his arms, wanting to be able to see his expression. His face was stoic, but she knew her man was hurting over the death of the priest.
“What?” Tarrant’s voice was flat and curt.
“Father Simon didn’t betray you.” Leave it to Darius to go straight to the point. He was as delicate as a sledgehammer.
“I know,” Tarrant fired back. “I don’t know how those bastards found me, but it wasn’t because of Father Simon.”
Darius dragged his hand over his face. “Portable GPS on the plane, likely belonged to the copilot. He probably turned it on when they were prepping the plane, assuming he was going to be flying. I didn’t notice it. That’s on me.”
“No. I should have told you to look for one. You’re not the tech guy. I am.”
Darius didn’t want his brother taking the blame. “It’s on the Knights. They have feelers out all over the country. The guy who drove us to see Father Simon betrayed him. As for North Dakota, it was just bad luck that someone contacted them about seeing the plane land there. I destroyed our phones and computers, but the portable GPS is on me. I didn’t pay enough attention. I never imagined they’d find the plane.”
Tarrant was silent for a long time. “I’m going to kill the motherfucker who murdered Father Simon.”
Sarah shivered at the determination in his voice. This was a man ready to go to war.
“Then I’m going after the rest of the Knights,” Tarrant continued. “I don’t care if it takes me the remainder of my days. I’ve got plenty of time. If I can’t destroy them, their children and grandchildren will pay for their crimes.”
Darius looked as worried as she felt. “Tarrant—”
“No.” Tarrant cut him off. “We’ve stayed out of their way. Tried to avoid them. What has that accomplished? Nothing. If we’d gone to war with them back when they first formed and wiped them all from the map, we wouldn’t still be fighting them centuries later. They had their chance to walk away and didn’t take it. I’m done.”
The line went dead. “Tarrant,” Darius shouted. “Damn it.” He grabbed the phone and redialed the number, but no one answered.
“I’m sorry.” She wished there was more to say, more she could do.
“Yeah, me, too.” Tension vibrated from his large body, but he didn’t move away from her. If anything, he moved closer.
Ezra pushed open the front door and joined them. Darius turned to his brother with her still in his arms. “You heard.” It wasn’t a question, but Ezra nodded.
“I did. I’m not sure what he’ll do. He’s known Father Simon for almost forty years. They were friends, and our brother does not make many friends.”
“And you’re a social butterfly living out here on your island.” Darius heaved a sigh and kissed the top of Sarah’s head. “I’m sorry, Ezra. That was uncalled for.”
Ezra’s turquoise-blue eyes were as turbulent as the sea that surrounded his home. His shoulder-length, dark brown hair was whipped away from his face by the wind. He looked more like Tarrant than Darius did, but all of them were big, strong men with wills of iron and an intellect that appealed to her.
“It’s okay, bro. None of us are what you would call sociable, except for Nic.” He turned his gaze out to the sea. “The water and her inhabitants are my friends. I understand them much better than I do humans.”
Sarah sensed it was a huge deal that he’d opened his home to her. His brothers were always welcome, she knew that all the way to her bones, but having her here couldn’t be easy for him. “Thank you for allowing me to stay. It won’t be for long,” she promised.
Ezra glanced at Darius before reaching out to cup her face in his big hand. “You’re welcome here for as long as you wish to stay,” he told her. The sincerity of his offer couldn’t be denied, and it touched her deeply.
“Thank you.”
“Your room is the one to the right at the top of the stairs.” Then Ezra walked down the porch stairs and headed for the beach.
“Where are you going?” she asked. She didn’t like the idea that her presence here was driving him from his own home.
“Swimming,” he called back.
“He’s kidding, isn’t he?” It was October, and the water had to be freezing.
Darius shook his head. “No, he’s not kidding. He swims all winter long.” He led her toward the door, but she glanced over her shoulder one final time. “He’s not human,” Darius reminded her. “He’ll be fine. He’s more at home in the water than he is on land.”
“Right. Water drakon. That makes sense.” And that was more than she could wrap her poor beleaguered brain around. She’d been forced to rethink everything she thought she knew about life in the past week.
Darius shut the door behind them and tugged her toward the stairs. “Still not tired,” she reminded him.
The smile he g
ave her was filled with sexual promise. “I know.”
“Darius.” His name was a breathy whisper on her lips.
“I love you,” he told her.
Tears welled in her eyes, and she placed her hand over his heart. “I love you, too.”
“Forever.”
“For as long as we have.”
He growled his displeasure. “Forever,” he insisted.
She sighed and nodded. “Forever.”
She knew the war wouldn’t wait, that the world was just outside the door, threatening what they’d found between them, but she wouldn’t let it intrude. Not on this special moment between them.
“I’m so glad I found you.” She smiled and patted his cheek.
“Sarah, I was lost and didn’t even know it.”
Her heart skipped a beat. Her drakon might be blunt and matter-of-fact most of the time, but there were moments like these when he was so poignant he broke her heart.
“So was I,” she assured him. She had no idea what their life would be like, or even how long they’d live, but she’d take whatever she could get.
Epilogue
Valeriya stared at the piece of paper she’d taken from her sister’s office. It had been two days since she’d had dinner with Karina, but the paper kept haunting her. The numbers weren’t right for a bank account. Nor were they a phone number.
She dropped the paper onto her sofa and wandered over to stare out the window. Manhattan was spectacular at night. She loved it here, but she missed the forest that surrounded the family home in upper New York state. Karina rarely went home, and neither did she. It was too empty without her parents there. Too many memories.
She was lucky to have this apartment. It had belonged to her father’s parents and they’d left it to her when they’d passed. She’d spent more time with them than Karina had. She’d always felt her sister didn’t like them very much, looked down on them because they were content to live their lives without getting involved with the Knights—unlike her mother’s parents, who’d both been active in the Knights until they’d died of carbon monoxide poisoning in their home. An unfortunate accident, the investigation had determined. She wasn’t so sure.
Valeriya’s office was perfect for her. The tall windows gave her plenty of natural sunlight to work by, and the view was stunning, day or night. The huge desk had belonged to her grandfather, but the bright blue sofa was all her. She had an easel set up in one corner, where she often painted or sketched. When she was working on a book, she used both traditional methods of illustration and her computer.
She was grateful to be able to make a living doing something she loved. She knew she owed that to her grandparents. Along with the apartment, they’d left her a small inheritance, enough for her to get by on as long as she was frugal. She’d run as soon as she was old enough to leave home, coming here and forging a life for herself.
But Karina wasn’t going to leave her alone for much longer. Valeriya knew it in her gut.
She went back to the sofa and picked up the piece of paper. She had to know what these numbers were. Maybe it was nothing, but she sensed they were important.
Karina was looking for someone. That was evident from the phone calls Valeriya had overheard in the short time they’d been together. Coordinates maybe. She went to her desk, pulled up a search engine, and plugged the numbers into it.
“Gotcha.” A map popped up and she clicked on it. “The Cascade Mountains in Washington State.” She’d been thinking about a new children’s series set in the forest. If anyone asked about her trip, she’d tell them she was going to do some research.
It didn’t take her long to book a flight online and pack her bag. She might live in the city, but she did have a few outdoor skills. She was no experienced hiker, but she could get by, at least enough to check out the coordinates. She’d probably find nothing, but if the person Karina was searching for was still around, Valeriya could at least warn them.
She loved her sister, but she’d never understand her lust for power and vengeance. Valeriya wanted no part of it, but she couldn’t sit back and do nothing and allow her sister to hurt an innocent man. And it was a man. What was it Karina had said? “I want him found.” She’d said his name, too. Valeriya tried her best to remember. “Varkas. Darius Varkas,” she repeated. She wondered who he was and how he was connected to her older sister’s mad schemes.
Valeriya slung her purse, which doubled as a laptop case, over her shoulder and grabbed the handle of her suitcase. She had three hours before her flight took off. Time enough to get to the airport, check in, and get through security, as long as traffic wasn’t too heavy.
She glanced over her shoulder as she closed the door to her home. The urge to run back inside and lock the door almost overwhelmed her. “It’s just a quick jaunt to the West Coast,” she assured herself. “I’ll be there and back in a couple of days.”
Still, a cold shiver snaked down her spine as she locked the door and headed for the elevator. Whoever her sister was searching for was probably long gone. She’d take some pictures, do some research, and come home with a clear conscience and plenty of inspiration for her new children’s series.
The elevator door pinged and she stepped inside. The door closed and she hit the button for the lobby. This was a quick trip, nothing more.
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Acknowledgments
Thank you to Heidi Moore for encouraging me to submit to Entangled Publishing. I love working with you!
Thank you to Liz Pelletier and everyone at Entangled for making me feel so welcome. I’m looking forward to working with you all for many more years to come.
About the Author
N.J. Walters is a New York Times and USA Today bestselling author who has always been a voracious reader, and now she spends her days writing novels of her own. Vampires, werewolves, dragons, time-travelers, seductive handymen, and next-door neighbors with smoldering good looks—all vie for her attention. It’s a tough life, but someone’s got to live it.
www.njwalters.com
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