"No. It's a war. And in war, you take allies where you find them." Jagger's gaze shifts to Asher. "You said you know fighters. How many?"
"Twelve I'd trust with my life. Another twenty who'd show up if the price is right." He cracks his neck, a casual gesture that somehow manages to be threatening. "Enough to cover three of the four facilities. Maybe all four, if some of them bring friends."
"And they'll follow your lead?"
"They'll follow anyone who gives them a chance to hit back." Asher's jaw tightens. "We were all disposableto them. Entertainment like some modern day gladiator shit. Some of us want to be more than that. Some of us want to prove we were always more than that."
"Then you're in." Jagger extends his hand. "Welcome to the rebellion."
Asher takes it. The handshake is brief, firm, two predators acknowledging each other as equals.
Jinx makes a sound of disgust and stalks out of the room. A moment later, the back door slams hard enough to rattle the windows.
Asher watches him go. His expression shifts, just for a moment, into something that looks almost like regret.
"He always that friendly with you?" I ask.
"Worse, usually." Asher turns to face me, and for the first time, I get the full weight of his attention. It's like being assessed by a very large, very dangerous rhino. "You're the journalist. The one they erased."
"That's me. Jonah Chen. Recently un-erased and twice as annoying."
"My contact mentioned you, went through your file. You’re tougher mentally than your scrawny body allows for."
"I'll take that as a compliment."
"Sure." Asher glances toward the back door, where Jinx disappeared. "I should probably go talk to him. Before he breaks his fists on a tree or some dumb shit."
"You think that's a good idea? He looked ready to murder you."
"Wouldn't be the first time." His smile is rueful before the hard ass slams back in. "But he didn't kill me then. He won't kill me now. He had his chance and he chose different."
"What does that mean?"
Asher doesn't answer. Just heads for the back door, moving with that fighter's grace, and disappears into the evening light.
Later, when the chaos has settled and Asher has been given one of the spare rooms and Jinx has stopped breaking things in the barn, Jagger finds me on the front porch.
The sun is setting, later tonight than last. The air is cool but not cold, carrying the smell of spring. I'm sitting on the steps, watching the light fade, thinking about everything that's happened and everything still to come.
Jagger sits beside me.
"That was unexpected," I say.
"Most things are, lately."
"You trust him? Asher?"
"I trust that he wants the same things we do. For now, that's enough." He pauses. "Jinx doesn't agree."
"Jinx looked like he wanted to put his fist through Asher's face."
"That's how Jinx shows affection."
I snort. "That explains a lot about your family."
We sit in comfortable silence for a while. The sky darkens, stars beginning to emerge. Somewhere inside, I can hear Elliot and Jace talking quietly, the clink of dishes being washed.
"We're really doing this," I say.
