Chapter Twenty-Nine #2
“Jonas, stay on topic,” I remind him, steering him back to what he was saying gently.
“Oh right, um, Watchers are made to take anything that will make them able to blend in easily into their surroundings. A lot of them take method-acting classes their entire stay at Rayne-Moore no matter what they major in.”
“You think you saw him performing?”
“My sister is two years older than Raven. That guy, Arlo, would have been a senior. Let me go grab my phone and text her. Hopefully, she’s awake.
I know Olli woke us up every morning at six AM on the dot by jumping on our bed.
We had to start sleeping with clothes during our entire stay in London.
God, I can’t wait to have babies with Raven.
She was really great with them.” He leaves me for barely three minutes while I clean up the rest of the mess we made, and he comes down.
Soon enough there’s a ping on his phone.
“She’s up. She said to give her a minute but-“ another chime and he looks down again. “Yeah, that’s him.”
He shows me a picture of what looks like the same man we saw on the news, only with shorter hair and an actual smile on his face in the center of a crowd where people are wearing costumes.
But he reminds me of someone I used to see around Lorne Wood as a patient .
Shit.
Another chime and then, “Sis said he was majoring in political science.” He groans, rubbing his head. “That doesn’t fucking help. Almost everyone majors in political science there.”
“You think he’s A?”
Hazel eyes snap up to mine. “You’ve been thinking about this too, haven’t you?”
I shrug. “There’s one last person on that list and if A could be Arlo, then this is done and over with. We can move even before you graduate. Start getting settled in if we can all just agree on which house suits us better.”
Kronos comes into the kitchen and begins to put his head into Jonas’ hand.
“I’m fine, Keekee. Just a little frustrated.
” He sighs, and ‘Keekee’ sighs right back, plopping down next to his feet with a soft whine, Lucifer joins him not even ten seconds later.
“Can you do that thing you do and look up Arlo’s birth certificate? ”
“You think the father signed?”
He lifts his heavy shoulders and lets them drop.
“It’s a shot in the dark. Usually, Elders don’t recognize their half-breeds unless it’s to keep the mother quiet.
They’ll sign the certificate and give them a fuckload of money.
Or they don’t sign the certificate but keep their eyes on the kid until they need them.
Think about it. If Arlo grew up in the projects and then was given an opportunity to go to a prestigious college and all he had to do every now and then, was tail someone… . Wouldn’t you?”
I tilt my head side-to-side, seeing where he’s coming from.
That’s the thing about Jonas, it’s easy to underestimate him because he’s so nonchalant.
But he’s fucking smart, a trait I admire dearly.
“There was an Andres Marsalas that would place himself in voluntary hold every few months at Lorne Wood. He wasn’t my patient though; he was my colleague’s.
I never heard much about him other than my colleague was confused as to why he was back.
Suicidal thoughts and tendencies . That was the excuse each time.
But he seemed fine,” I grimace. “My attentions were always elsewhere.”
“Can you go back to that? Like, look him up? Do you still have access?”
“I’m going to try.”
Kronos perks up and when I think he’s going to bark, I hear a moan coming from the study. I jut my chin in that direction. “Let’s go.”
“Don’t have to tell me twice.” Jonas retorts, practically sprinting toward the sound.
What we walk into is beautiful chaos.
Raven is bent over the desk, hands tied behind her back with a silk tie, (mine) drool covering her chin, papers strewn and scattered everywhere.
Mav’s laptop barely balancing on the corner, slowly sliding off, (it’s fine he needs to use the one we purchased for him anyway) and Maverick holding on to her leash which is choking her.
The smile on her face is radiant, and the look on Maverick’s is sheer pleasure although he looks like a violent storm over a turbulent sea.
“That’s right, Siren, you’ve been such a good girl, warming my cock for hours in your perfect mouth. ”
I take this chance to speak up. “Actually, Maverick… our little bird was not a good girl. She took pleasure in seeing me tortured not even thirty minutes ago while she and Jonas sucked my cock.”
The smile that spreads across his face is sadistic. A hand comes down and he smacks Raven’s plush ass in three loud successions, which only makes her smile wider.
“Is that right, Siren? Was it amusing being a little cocktease? Hmm?”
“That was funny to you, wasn’t it, Amourette?” I ask.
Her dark brows pin together but the longer she takes to answer, Maverick smacks her three more times on the other cheek, driving deeper into her, every piston of his hips cause her ample breasts to jiggle and sway in a hypnotizing manner.
“No?” She chokes out, trying so hard not to let her eyes roll back but they do anyway.
“Should I tease you? Not let you come for days? Just edge you until you’re a whimpering, drooling, crying mess begging for one of us to let you come?” Maverick asks, “ To please, please let you come?” He mimics her voice in a condescending falsetto.
“No!”
Maverick drops the leash of her collar and what happens next is… art .
Without withdrawing from her delectable cunt, only shifting his feet, he has her on her back, thighs spread like the gorgeous slut she is, and he smacks her breasts until they’re red, squeezing them roughly, tangles his fingers into her hair by the back of her head, and yanks her up to him until they’re nose to nose.
More things are dropping to the floor, but Jonas and I don’t fucking move from where we are. Completely enraptured.
“Open,” Maverick growls. She obeys quickly and he spits into her mouth then shoves his fingers inside, not letting her swallow, fucking her mouth with his fingers in tandem with his strokes.
Raven moans around him, his fingers leaving her mouth only to deliver three sharp smacks to her clit, and he plunges them back into her mouth when she squeals .
His gaze snaps to mine as if to ask if I need him to punish her more or if that’s enough and I smirk.
It will never be enough.
He pulls out, sinking to his knees, devouring her.
Only when she’s vibrating, begging for release does he thrust back into her and we watch as her nectar rushes out of her, landing on his abs.
He pulls out, thrusting his fingers to make her squirt again and she screams. He dives into her one last time, forcing her face to his, locking eyes with her as he grunts.
Breathless and spent, he withdraws from her slowly, sitting back in his seat.
She doesn’t move. Doesn’t speak. Just tries to catch her breath while the beast takes his fill of watching his seed flow out of her abused channel. Without taking his eyes off of her juicy cunt he asks, “How long would it take for her to get pregnant if you cut that fucking thing out of her arm?”
Jonas whips his head around to look at me as does Raven.
“One to twelve months,” I answer .
He hums, reaching his arms out and pushing whatever leaked out back in then leaning to the inside of her knee and slowly inching upward, sucking and laving his tongue on the delicacy that is her flesh. “Do it.”
I look at Raven, so beautiful, glistening from sweat in a healthy afterglow, quivering as Maverick kisses and licks away at her soreness, hands still bound behind her back with nowhere to go. A tired, lazy smirk slowly starts on one corner of her plump, abused lips. Telling me yes. She wants it.
What a naughty, beautiful little bird.
________
That evening after dinner, it takes me forty minutes to hack back into Lorne Wood’s records and I find a picture of ‘Andres Marsalas’ aka Arlo Martinez, who has a shaved head.
I groan, scrubbing my hand down my face.
“What is it?” Maverick asks.
“That I’m guessing someone was sending Arlo into Lorne Wood to make sure Raven still wasn’t talking.”
“Start talking.”
So I do, not leaving anything out from what Jonas told me, to my findings, showing him the picture of Arlo with a shaved head.
“And the birth certificate?”
“No father listed and no bank records to show the mother was paid off.”
“What if it was in small increments? Barely noticeable?”
I groan, my eyes exhausted. “I’ll keep looking.”
“Let me know if you need help. I have an IT guy that can look up anything. He just recently helped me with a few cold case files. Syndicate stuff.”
“Is that why you’re constantly holed up in your room? Trying to find the links?”
He stays quiet as we listen to Raven and Jonas breathe deeply in their sleep. “Noticed that, did you? ”
I roll my eyes. “I’d have to be blind and deaf not to notice when you disappear for hours without a peep.”
He grunts and gives me nothing more.
________
“You’ll be there?”
“Yes, Pup, we’ll be there. We wouldn’t miss it for the world.” I promise, kissing him, and then Raven leans up on her toes to kiss him as well.
He looks at the door then back to us then back at the door, holding his duffle.
“ Go , Jonas. When we come back we’ll celebrate your birthday before we go to your mom’s for dinner.” Maverick grins.
“I don’t want to.” He drops the duffle and holds his arms out.
Raven wastes no time jumping back into his arms. As if she hasn’t already been clinging to him like a koala bear all morning.
It’ll be the first time they spend the entire night apart in a very long time.
“It’s only an hour away,” he says into the crook of her neck, inhaling our sweet girl’s sweet jasmine and berries signature scent.
“I’ll call Coach Sutton and tell him I’ll be there in the morning instead. ”
Raven nods like it’s the best idea she’s ever heard in her entire life.
“Pup,” I manage to say but the look he gives me kills me. There’s tears in his eyes. I groan internally when Raven looks back at me with tears in her eyes. I’m about to call Maverick for backup because I’m fucking weak. Fuck they kill me.
“Get your ass in the car, Jonas, or I’m driving you myself. Get into winner mode and get fucking right in the head. You have scouts from every northeastern team looking at you. Go make us proud. Have time with your teammates. Just, you know, don’t get into another fight.” He warns.
“Can I take her with me?”
“No.” We say at the same time .
“You guys are so mean!” She whispers something in his ear, but he shakes his head. “You don’t fit in there remember? We already tried.”
“Were you trying to take her in your duffle bag?” Maverick asks but there’s amusement in his tone and I bite back my grin. Of course they would try to find a way to sneak her away.
They’re adorable.
“We just wanted to see if she fit.” He explains.
I break out into laughter. “That thing is barely large enough for three sweaters and your cleats.”
“Wanted to cover all the bases.” He sighs heavily, (dramatically) “Okay baby. I gotta go. I’ll see you in the morning. Please don’t be late. I need my good luck kiss.”
The man doesn’t run on luck. He and Raven are the two most determined people I’ve ever had the pleasure of knowing.
________
He doesn’t care that they lost by one point.
He only cares that when he gets out of the locker room, Raven finds him.
He only cares that the next day, on January twelfth, while we’re out eating and celebrating his birthday, she’s holding his hand.
He only cares that when we wake up the next morning in his familial estate to see Elena, Raven wakes up between us so we can share her before facing the day.
When those scouts call one final time, he agrees to meet with them, which makes Maverick’s eyes sparkle with pride.
And me?
I’m the most content I’ve ever been in my life, which is why that nagging feeling the other shoe is about to drop makes me dream awful things, and I wake up in the middle of the night and inject Raven with one more biochip in her shoulder.
Just in case .
Then I tug her just a little closer, so those dreams don’t come back.
Because “Shadow” is starting to feel very real to me, too.