“Our brother,” Reaper said darkly. “And someone will pay dearly if he doesn’t show face soon.”
“Oh.”
“This is no longer a trivial matter. We need to tighten the ship.” He glanced at Calliope. “That means you, too.”
“Me?What exactly does tightening the ship mean?”
“It means,” Reaper spoke first. “Welcome aboard the Fury ship. You are moving in.”
“What?” If her eyes had been wide before, they were practically full moons now. “Why me?”
“You might have become a target to get to us.” As much as he loathed admitting the truth, he refused to deny the severity of the note she’d received.
Someone was playing with them.
“What us?” Knight muttered from behind the bar. “You.”
She shook her head. “A target? That’s absurd. Isn’t it?”
He wished that were the case. “Whoever sent that note wanted you in here. Standing among us. They probably wanted to confirm how we would receive you.” His voice dropped. “To question what you are to us.”
Dagger grunted. “That’s not the worst theory.”
Saint, Knight, and Reaper, for once, remained silent.
Calliope’s brows furrowed. “Oh? And what am I to you?”
“That’s irrelevant. Someone is baiting us, and you stepped willingly into their trap.”
“I didn’t know it was a trap,” she snapped. “I thought I was finally getting answers.”
His gaze sharpened, hunting for any tell. “To what exactly?”
She clamped her mouth shut.
“What answers, Calliope?”
Her chin lifted a fraction. “And why should I tell you?”
“Because I’m asking nicely.”
“This isnicely?” She scoffed, so did half his brothers, but she still said, “About you, if you must know. After I learned we share an acquaintance, I thought I’d ask if the opportunity arose.”
That was nothing he didn’t know. Nothing Rollings hadn’t told them. Nothing suspicious on the surface. Beneath, suspicious as hell. Why else would she be curious about him if she didn’t suspect their business?
Was she the woman of that night with Rollings or not? He had yet to broaden his search for the owner of the slipper beyond her, his gut still pointing to this little tenant enjoying a pint inhistavern.
“You could have just asked me.”
One brow ticked upward. “I doubt you’d tell me all I want to know.”
“Sharp as a blade, this one,” Reaper drawled. “And what do you want to know?”
She bit her lip, glanced at each of his brothers before meeting his gaze again. “Whether you all are the beasts of Brighton.”
Bloody Rollings.
“Beasts?” Reaper chuckled. “Could we consider ourselves beasts?”
