“He’s good. He’s not the kind of person we’re used to dealing with.”
“He can’t be that good if you got away.”
Yeah, about that… the more I thought about it, the more I wondered if he wanted me to get out. I mean, the guy used rope. He left my gauntlets right there. He didn’t secure me that well. “Unless he knew I’d escape, and he wanted me to.”
“Why?”
That, I really didn’t know, so I just shrugged.
This Jason guy might’ve been shrouded in an air of mystery right now, but sooner or later we’d find out more about him. I hated the thought of killing him, but if he worked for Tessa as a problem-solver, he needed to be taken out of the picture entirely. We couldn’t wait until he struck again.
As much as I wanted to say I didn’t think about the strange man during the drive, I’d be lying if I claimed that. Jason and his intensity—not to mention those very lick-able tattoos—held my thoughts in a chokehold even though he was nowhere nearby.
Oh, shit. I really was in trouble, wasn’t I?
Chapter Ten – Fang
I was certainly not expecting to see my princess so soon. It was early on a Monday, meaning she should be at school, in one of her classes, and yet right now she and Mike were on their way over. It begged the question of why. Something must have happened, something she didn’t want to get into on the phone.
I wouldn’t say I was normally an anxious person, I mainly stuck to myself prior to Laina, but I would be lying if I claimed I wasn’t at least a little anxious while I waited for them to arrive. In fact, by the time they got here, I had the alleyway door propped open and was right there to greet them.
Laina, for all intents and purposes, seemed totally fine as she got out of the car, giving me a wide smile when she met my gaze. Mike was much slower in getting out of the car and following her to where I stood.
“Good morning, Princess,” I purred out my greeting, taking the girl in my arms and leaning down to plant a kiss on those delectable lips.
She was pliant, but strangely stiff, which informed me something was on her mind.
In we went, and soon enough we were arranged on the couch, Mike and I surrounding her. “Is Kieran coming?” I asked, since I hadn’t heard anything from the man in question.
“Finally got ahold of him on the way here,” Mike said in a huff. “He said he’ll be over as soon as possible.”
With a nod, I leaned forward and glanced between Laina and Mike. “So, who’s going to tell me what happened?”
“Right after you dropped me off last night,” she started to tell the story, “I was kidnapped. Someone was in the house. They drugged Kelly, and then they drugged me. He took me somewhere else, to his house, maybe, and…”
Though I didn’t like where this story was going, I had to ask, “And?”
“And then when I woke up, he talked to me. His name is Jason, and he works for Tessa. And, yes, before you say something, we all find it a little weird he didn’t just kill me. If I can trust anything he said, it sounded like he wants to know the full story before deciding on how to solve Tessa’s problem—me.”
Hmm. That was odd indeed. I didn’t know what to make of it, or of this Jason guy.
Laina added, “He admitted he’s been watching me. He knows all about you guys. He asked how I was able to lure Kieran away.”
Brows furrowing, Mike muttered, “That’s new information. You didn’t tell that to Lola and the others, did you?”
With a shake of her head, she said, “No. It was like he assumed I was some siren that lured Kieran away from Tessa. As if. If anything, Kieran was the one who decided he wanted me first, not the other way around. I didn’t steal him from Tessa.”
I rubbed my chin, deep in thought. “Even if you did, why would it matter to him? If he’s only here to solve a problem… does that mean one of his ultimate goals is to reunite Tessa with Kieran? I don’t see how it would be possible. I doubt he could ever forgive his sister for what she tried to have done to him, and to you.”
Laina puckered her lips. “I know. It’s all so weird.”
“You’re here now, safe. That’s all that matters,” I told her, setting a hand on her lower back. When I did, she inhaled a deep breath and her tense shoulders relaxed somewhat. I could tell something was still on her mind, something pertaining to this Jason guy maybe, but if she didn’t wish to talk about it right now, we didn’t have to.
Her eyes fell to her left hand, to my contraption, the metal fingers in the place of the real ones she cut off nearly half ayear ago. She flexed her hand, bending the metal fingers with the ones made from flesh and bone. “He was… there’s something about him. I don’t know what it is, I can’t put my finger on it, but there’s just something.”
The look Mike gave her right then is one of confusion and concern, and his hazel stare was slow in moving off her and landing on me. He was probably wondering if I heard it, too—the awe in her voice. Almost like admiration, like… well, like she was intrigued by him.
My love was no prison. She could be intrigued by anyone she wanted. Mike, on the other hand, I did not think he was as open to such things as I was. I firmly doubted Kieran would be, too. It might be the one thing those two agreed on, besides their love for her.
