Caught in the Aftermath

by Jami Gray

  She considered nailing them with the bowl, but with only one bowl and two of them, she couldn’t decide who deserved the first hit. Instead, she stood over them, glaring. ‘You two done?’

  ‘What the hell, Vex?’ Reaper lay on his back, wiping his eyes clear, one of which was edged in angry red. No doubt he’d be sporting a beauty of a shiner tomorrow. He shoved Math’s leg from his as he rolled to his hands and knees, shaking his head like a dog settling his wet fur. Somewhere in the fight, he lost his hair tie and his inky hair now fell around his shoulders in a damp mess. He shifted into a sitting position, pulling at his t-shirt, trying to find a dry patch to wipe his face.

  Next to him, Math wasn’t much better off. Since he had the misfortune of being on the bottom, he took the brunt of Vex’s impromptu shower, as evidenced by the borrowed t-shirt clinging with sodden resolve to his chest. He lifted his head enough to look down as he plucked at the material, pain and exhaustion painting his face in a myriad of white lines. ‘Dammit, Reaper, I think you broke one of my ribs.’

  His complaint earned a nasty grin from Reaper. ‘You’re lucky it wasn’t your skull.’

  With a muffled groan, Math shifted to his side and reached for the overturned couch behind him. ‘You’re a stubborn bastard.’ The last of his comment disappeared into a muffled groan as he lumbered to his feet, one arm wrapped around his ribs.

  Reaper thumbed blood from his split lip. ‘Pot. Kettle.’

  Eyeing Math’s weaving form with a smidgeon of concern, Vex decided to wade in. ‘Okay, boys, enough with the love fest. As fun as it is to trip down memory lane—’ and never had her curiosity wanted to continue the journey considering the family connection bomb, ‘—now that you two got that out of your systems, we need to get back on track.’

  When Math took a decided tilt to the left, Vex quickly moved to play support post, curling her arm around his waist. He draped the arm not occupied with keeping his ribs in place over her shoulders, plastering damp cotton and male heat along her side. The sensation seeped through her pores and caused a tiny—a very tiny—shiver, almost making her drop the bowl in her other hand. ‘Reaper, my books.’ She twitched her head to the side, indicating the books scattered just outside the spreading puddle of water.

  Reaper heaved a put-upon sigh and shoved up from the floor. ‘Reaper, my books, please.’

  Oh, for f—fragile male egos will be the death of me! ‘Please? You serious?’

  Reaper shot her a look as he gathered the books, before righting the end table and dumping the books on top.

  Vex guided Math to the chair untouched by the fight, and then settled his frame onto it. Math’s thanks came out on a pain-filled hiss.

  Now that the brothers had called a temporary truce, Vex turned and headed to the kitchen to dump the bowl. Brothers—a phrase she never thought to associate with Reaper. He’d given the impression of being hatched fully formed, free of emotional entanglements, such as family. Which made her wonder, what else was lurking in Reaper’s past? The man in question dragged her back to the present.

  ‘What the hell do you want from me?’

  Reaper’s bad-tempered query indicated her hope of a truce might be a bit premature. Behind her the tension resumed to near suffocating levels. Annoyed with both of them, she tossed the bowl on the counter. The clatter of impact echoed through the room. She turned to find both men watching her.

  Normally having the attention of two men (who, she could safely and silently admit, personified wicked temptation if one was so inclined to dare it) would be a source of amusement, but she’d endured a shitty week, and she was tired. Really fucking tired, actually. ‘I’m not spending all night watching the two of you circle each other like two dogs in a pissing contest. If you want to finish what you started, take it the fuck outside and leave me out of it.’

  In typical male style, the two idiots looked from her to each other and exchanged grins. For a moment, the resemblance between them was startling, but she shoved it aside to contemplate later, when they weren’t snarling in front of her. Tempting as it was to kick them out, she refrained. Setting her teeth, she grabbed a couple of hand towels and left the kitchen. She threw one to Reaper and found a dry spot on the floor where she could keep an eye on them both. Drying a spot, she sank down, put her back against the couch and waited.

  Not surprising, Math didn’t heed Vex’s warning. ‘Don’t want anything from you. I need help, from Fate’s Vultures.’

  Reaper swiped at the water on the floor, a muscle in his jaw jumped, but he gritted out, ‘Fine. What do you want from the Vultures?’

  Proving his intelligence, Math took his minor victory without gloating. ‘Greer’s holding one of my men at the Hole. I want him back.’

  Finished with the floor, Reaper sat, annoyance disappearing from his face, leaving it unreadable. ‘One of your men? You mean a Strix?’

  Math nodded.

  ‘Uh.’ Reaper rubbed his jaw, calculation alight in his dark eyes. ‘Going to be hard to find one man in that pit.’

  Vex refrained from rolling her eyes. Reaper, the reigning king of understatements. The Hole sat in the middle of what used to be the urban centre of Boise. Once the towering building would have been a proud nod to man’s materialistic accomplishments. Now it served as a home to rats, of both two and four-legged varieties, who scampered through the hidden depths doing business no-one spoke of above a whisper.

  With plenty of hidey-holes littering the place, finding one person would be a treasure hunt of epic proportions. Hell, the last time the Vultures cruised through, Vex had no choice but to drop at least two determined, yet questionable, bounty hunters on her way to pick up dinner, leaving their bodies where they fell. It was faster and safer than sticking around to bury them, and carried the extra benefit of sending a message.

  Reaper wasn’t ready to jump on Math’s bandwagon of certainty. ‘You sure that’s where your man—’

  ‘Cam,’ Math supplied, giving the faceless a name and making it personal.

  With a dip of his head, Reaper corrected, ‘Cam is being held? Seems Greer would have other, better options closer to home.’

  No doubt she did, but, ‘It makes sense,’ Vex cut in, thinking out loud. ‘Think about it. If she’s playing without Michael’s permission, it’s perfect. The Hole straddles Michael and Simon’s territories, and is ignored by both for the most part. Hell, even we ignore it unless we’re forced to pay attention.’ She met Reaper’s gaze. ‘God knows our attention is centred on the routes right now.’

  At that, Reaper dipped his chin in agreement, so she continued. ‘Besides, it offers her plenty of privacy to operate under Michael’s nose while giving her space to maneuver and maintain deniability. As long as she keeps some distance, it’s the ideal solution.’

  Reaper turned to Math. ‘Not sure I buy your theory of Greer going solo, but getting Cam out? Yeah, I get that.’

  She recognised Reaper’s backwards acceptance and wondered if Math understood. When the tension eased out of Math’s shoulders she knew the brotherly connection, no matter how tattered, still worked. Despite Reaper’s silently implied agreement, Math wisely kept his mouth shut, even when Reaper’s gaze sharpened, accompanied by a smug grin.

  Uh-oh, that didn’t bode well. She braced.

  ‘Vultures don’t do charity gigs. You want our help, you’re going to pay to keep the scales balanced.’ And because he was who he was, Vex wasn’t surprised when he added, ‘Nothing personal.’

  Math’s answering smile was all teeth. ‘Yeah, nothing personal.’ The grin faded, replaced by pitiless calculation. ‘What do you want?’

  Experienced with how Reaper’s mind worked, his ruthlessness when it came to getting what he wanted, Vex could see the writing on the wall. Silent curses erupted behind her locked jaw. Math’s unexpected presence was now a very convenient tool, so Reaper’s one-word answer came as no surprise. ‘You.’

  ‘Dammit, Reaper!’ The exclamation managed to escape despite Ve
x’s best intentions. Adding Math to the equation was an unwanted complication. ‘First you want to throw Havoc and Mercy at our visitors, now you want to sacrifice Math?’

  Reaper pinned her in place with a familiar look, it was the one that told her to keep her mouth shut. Folding her arms over her chest, she contented herself with glaring back. In her head, she pictured slugging the shit out of him. It didn’t help.

  ‘You want me to be mole bait for your uninvited guests?’ Instead of being offended, Math sounded remarkably calm, almost as if he knew this would be Reaper’s play. Correctly reading Reaper’s raised brow, he added, ‘Mercy mentioned you had a situation, when she was trying to convince me to make nice with the Vultures.’

  ‘Does everyone know about the mole?’ Vex muttered, temper simmering. ‘What the hell else did she share?’

  Her testy comment got Math’s attention. ‘Just to point out, Mercy worked for me when she shared that tidbit. It’s not like I’m known for sharing information.’

  Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever. It didn’t negate Vex’s point. ‘Check the ego, spy boy, I’m just saying.’

  Math shot her a frown, before turning back to an amused Reaper. ‘You’ve got a plan?’

  ‘Maybe,’ Reaper said. ‘Simon’s got a shipment coming in, one he can’t afford to lose. I want to keep the mole busy chasing his damn tail so he can’t snitch the delivery info. We leak your presence, keep it vague and suggestive, it keeps our unknown rat busy nibbling at your crumbs and blind to the delivery.’

  Math shifted, his wince there and gone, before he added, ‘And if my presence trips your city visitors up so they fall into your hands for a little information trading, all the better?’

  ‘A definite bonus in my book.’ Pleased with himself, Reaper rose from the floor, taking a moment to stretch, grimacing as his still damp t-shirt stuck to his skin. ‘Be nice to know if they’re here for you or our mole.’

  Good to know the brothers seemed to share an innate sneakiness. Didn’t mean their half-assed plan didn’t have holes deep enough to disappear into. ‘Hold your horses there, boss.’ Vex scrambled to her feet so she could face Reaper. ‘Those soldier boys go dark, and we may end up with more attention than we want.’ Say, like when good ol’ Michael caught wind the Vultures took out a couple of his men, he’d want payback. If they belonged to Greer? Well, then life would get real interesting. There was no anticipating Greer’s reaction. She proved that when she risked blowing her own ass to kingdom come in her attempt to take out Math, Havoc and Mercy. Woman was downright crazy, and everyone knew there was no predicting crazy.

  Reaper shot her a raised eyebrow. ‘Not everything ends six feet under.’

  ‘Really? Because when it comes to informants and spies, that’s not my experience.’

  ‘We’ll keep it contained.’

  Well that was nicely vague. She let out a disbelieving snort.

  He pinned her with a hard look. ‘I wasn’t planning on dragging Math through the streets and shoving him under their nose.’ He leaned a hip against the couch. ‘Figured we’d lure them in. Drop a whisper here, drop another there. Say he’s hunting a bounty and is willing to split the fee with us. We have Math make an appearance downstairs at breakfast, let the gossips take it from there. Our visitors catch wind and come sniffing. We let them trail Math when he goes after his man, which gets them far enough from Pebble Creek to take them down quietly with no-one the wiser.’

  Not that she wanted to admit it, but that made sense. They already knew whoever was feeding information was someone close to Simon and the inner workings of Pebble Creek. The same someone would make an appearance at Grave Hall in the morning since Simon tended to dole out daily assignments while nabbing breakfast. Whoever was behind the leak would be all kinds of curious about a stranger popping up and the murmurs of a bounty. What made the whole situation so damn nauseating was trying to figure out which smiling face was lying through their pearly whites. This hair-brained idea held a slim chance of success. Yet slim was better than none.

  From behind her, Math asked, ‘You’re going to paint me a bounty hunter?’

  Vex looked back over her shoulder at Math. ‘What? Too close to the bone?’

  ‘No-one needs to know it’s a rescue mission,’ Reaper said, regaining her attention. ‘We keep that to ourselves. You’re passing through, tracking your missing man. I’m sure you’ve got a workable cover to pull neatly in place.’ He didn’t wait for Math’s answer. ‘Figured you’d stop in, touch base with Mercy, see if she heard anything useful. Being the helpful sort, I’m going to offer a few of my connections and Vex’s tracking services.’ Grim amusement sparked in Reaper’s gaze. ‘For a fee, of course.’

  Math sighed. ‘Of course.’

  ‘Hold up.’ Vex wasn’t finding this at all amusing. ‘My services? Why me?’

  ‘Because you’re the one he’s spending the night with.’

  His implications rocketed through her, snapping her spine stiff. ‘Excuse me?’

  Reaper studied her. ‘The split between you and Simon. We’re going to use that.’

  Vex’s hands went to her hips and she narrowed her gaze. ‘What do you think you know?’

  Reaper’s lips curved in a hard smile. ‘You two have been dancing around each other for months while you try to make up your mind whether or not to let him in. When you returned from Page and started pulling a disappearing act every time he came into the room. Your decision is coming through loud and clear. So tomorrow, when Math comes down with you, to anyone watching, no more explanation is needed.’

  Temper overrode logic even as she ground her teeth in mortified fury. ‘Goddammit, Reaper, my personal life is no—’

  ‘You’re a Vulture, Vex, you don’t get the luxury of a personal life.’ The harsh response acted like a face full of ice water.

  She tamped down her snarl, even as his logic pierced her embarrassment. Reaper was right. She was a Vulture, and unmasking the mole was more important than the mess that was her personal life. It wasn’t as if Simon would care anyway. In fact, he’d probably be relieved. She shoved the bitter thought aside, kicking it into a deep, dark hole.

  Reaper gave her a second and when she held her tongue, dipped his chin in approval. ‘We’ve got too many balls in the air right now. We need every advantage we can get.’ He shot a look at Math, who watched them both from under lowered lids. ‘Got anything to add?’

  ‘Yeah, I need some clothes. And an alias.’

  ‘Clothes are easy. I’ll have some delivered in the morning. Name wise, what do you have?’

  ‘Crow.’

  ‘Really stretching there, aren’t you,’ Vex muttered. She caught Math’s steel blue gaze, unable to read anything but faint amusement. Uncomfortable with how fast things were slipping from her grasp, she decided to yank things back in line. ‘I’m guessing we want to bury the family connection between you two as well?’

  That wiped any lingering amusement from Reaper’s face.

  Taking the silent answer for what it was, Vex shook her head. ‘Yeah, thought so.’

  ‘Got something you want to say?’ Reaper’s question was laced with ice.

  ‘Got lots, but I’ll wait.’ When he gave her a puzzled frown and slow blink, she figured it wasn’t the answer he expected. If she wasn’t so tired and irritated, she’d have a good time with his reaction. As is, she just wanted shit settled so she could get a moment to herself to think. ‘We put you two in the same room, only a blind man could miss the family resemblance.’ Because when they were together, there was no missing the physical similarities. Similarities they could blur long enough to throw twitching noses off scent. The other similarities—the ones that ran deeper than the looks—could be explained away by their respective positions.

  ‘I’m not dying my hair.’ Math carefully dragged a hand through his tangle of black.

  Settling a hip on the couch’s arm, she folded her arms and studied him. ‘You don’t need to change the colour.’ Besides cons
idering how dark it was, it was pointless to try. ‘But we’re going to have to cut it back and ditch the beard.’ Hopefully ditching the scruff would be enough to fuzz the lines of blood.

  A muscle worked in Math’s jaw. ‘How short?’

  She wasn’t feeling nice when she smiled, and when Math paled, it grew. ‘Short, short.’

  Thunderclouds gathered on his face. ‘No buzz cut.’

  Giving him a faux pout, she couldn’t help but tease. ‘Not a buzz. I was thinking more along clean and smooth.’

  ‘No buzz cut, no clean and smooth,’ he repeated, adding a nasty look.

  ‘What’s wrong, Rapunzel? Afraid to lose your pretty locks?’

  ‘Who the hell is Rapunzel?’

  ‘Seriously?’ It was her turn to frown. “Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your long hair?” When he continued to give her a blank look, she sighed. ‘Haven’t you read any fairy tales?’

  ‘Why would I?’

  Before she could answer, Reaper cut in, reclaiming their attention. ‘Enough.’ He walked over until he stood in front of them, his gaze on Math. ‘She’s got a point. Best to keep our relationship quiet for now. You let Vex do your makeover.’

  Only because she was watching did Vex catch the flash of resentment and something close to pain in Math’s eyes before it was smothered. ‘Are you kidding me?’

  Unmoved, Reaper held his gaze for a long, silent moment. Layers of unspoken words flowed between the two men, and Vex’s curiosity was dying to translate.

  Not that she got a chance, because Math finally snapped, ‘Fine.’

  Reaper turned away and started for the door. ‘Vex.’

  Familiar with his tone, Vex followed him to the hall outside her front door. He waited until she pulled the door closed before speaking. ‘You up for this?’

  Caught off guard, as just moments before he all but ordered her to play the role of Math’s lover, her response was bitterly honest. ‘Don’t have much choice.’

  Reaper took a couple steps away, before turning back to her. ‘If this is going to mess you up, tell me now.’