Black-clad gunmen wearing ski masks swarmed the first floor, shoving guns in patrons’ faces. That was bad for business. Looking round, I saw half the security was down, the rest bound with magic-blocking rope. A few more screens showed similar-looking gunmen searching for more people on different floors. All of it seemed pretty well organized.
A flash of white came from the bottom right feed, and I clicked a button to enlarge it. Right there was my furious mate stomping down the hallway like a lioness about to defend her pride. Hair up in a messy bun, legs on full display, and a look on her face that said everyone was going to pay.I wouldn't miss that.
Picking my shirt up off the floor, I threw it on, half-buttoned it, and sped after her.
I found her in a flash, tapping on a large wall in a precise rhythm. The rest of the guys circled her and waited. A softbeepsounded, then a panel spun around, revealing a goddamn military-grade arsenal of magic weapons. Top-tier. Some that even circled the black market. This had her brother Calix’s name all over it.
She threw her head back and cackled, whispering to herself about how they would pay for attacking the Syndicate on their own turf. It was followed by a gleeful comment about how she now had people she could practice on with her toys. I wasn’t sure what she meant until she started pulling down weapons like a woman on a mission.
Alic stepped forward, trying to reason with her. “Aniyah, we should come up with a plan first.”
She didn’t even hear him, or if she did, she didn't say anything because she was too focused on the weapons at her fingertips.
I knew this was a high-risk situation, understood Alic’s concern to some extent, but that didn't stop the thrill coursing through my veins. This was the Syndicate queen I wanted to know. The firebrand under the glitter. I wanted every piece of her. Every crumb. Every scar. Just to make her mine.
“One step at a time, Lucus,” I whispered to myself. She wasn’t going to be an easy catch, but I was working the long game. She had to learn to trust me first.
She tossed two pistols at Van, who barely caught it. “Right shoots sleep darts. Left has heart-seeker bullets that explode on contact.”
Two massive shotguns followed. She lobbed them at Alic, grunting, “Fuck, those are heavy.” She pointed to the left one then the right. “Wind-throwing and bone-crushing. I trust you know how to use those.”
Turning back to the weapons, she finally answered Alic. “And I do have a plan.” She threw her thumb over her shoulder to the demon. “Mr. IT guy?—”
“Rasmus,” he cut in, placing his hand on his chest and bowing like she was royalty… and I guessed, in a sense, she was. When his head came up, he smiled like her words had lit up his whole world. She eyed him up and down before shaking her head and going back to the weapons.
“Yeah. Ras, here—” The demon's whole face transformed into utter bliss when she gave him a nickname, and my nostrils flared. “—told me that he saw a few men go into the sensory room on the sixth floor with a package that looked like a bomb. That's why he ran over to get me.”
That’s why he came, or, more accurately, he just wanted to save her. Did he have hopes of being her white knight and gaining her favor? If so, he needed to wait in line.
While Aniyah was handing the wolf a gun and a handful of small spheres, telling him which ones were made for distractions and which would knock out a room, Alic took over. He stepped up to Rasmus, a glare on his face, and towered over him. In a hushed tone, he growled, “And how didyouknow what was going on?”
Rasmus didn’t flinch. His smile turned sharp. Cold. All traces of the bashful boy vanished, his demeanor becoming blacker than his hair. My instincts prickled at the back of my head, telling me this demon was dangerous.
“I was being watchful. Protecting somethingprecious,” he said, stepping up to the towering troll with a cruel smile slashed across his face. “After how you fucked things up with Princess Mia, you’d think you’d be more grateful.”
Alic froze at the name. “H-how do you?—”
“I’m IT.” Rasmus smirked, wiggling his fingers like they were magic. “I know everything.”
Something about this had me on edge, so I took a step forward, ready to intervene.When the hell did I start caring if Alic got hurt?Just because we’d done a little sharing didn’t mean we were now buddies, ready to have each other's backs. I must be losing my mind.
Aniyah cut through the tension with orders. “Van, go to the sensory room on the sixth floor. Check that the magical patches you put on the structure are still holding strong. Alic and…I'm sorry what was your name?” She cocked her hip and pointed to the wolf still in his mask.
“Morino.”
Her brows pinched like she was trying to remember something, but the sound of shots being fired in the background focused her right up.
“Alic and Morino will sweep all the other floors and help any of the employees that need to get out. Ras and Lucus, you’re with me on the main floor.”
Her controlling tone grated on me, and my own compulsion reared its head, wanting her under my command. What if we could meet somewhere in the middle?Maybe she would let me fuck her while she was giving orders?
Everyone but Alic cocked their guns and nodded in response.
The troll's doubt-filled eyes flicked around, then he opened his stupid mouth and put his foot in it. “I think I should be the one to go with you to the main floor. I can protect you better than them.” Then he decided to put the nail into his own coffin when he straightened up, his lofty tone not the one I would’ve used, and followed it with, “It's my job.”
The demon smirked and rolled his eyes like he knew what he would say before it even happened. Me? I didn't give his condescending tone any thought. This asshole couldn't get it through his thick head that this stunning female in heels and a silk robe was probably the most dangerous of us all.
This was why I was a good businessman and not a soldier. Everyone had their strengths and weaknesses, and the only way to get yourself out of a sticky situation was to let those that knew what they were doing lead—not putting my personal feelings above the situation like some idiots.
