44
Oh Well
Amanda
I miss out on whatever wonderful, unidentifiable dinner they have. No one comes to bother me, and I fall into a fitful sleep. Even holding Jakob doesn’t help. Instead it gets added to a nightmare I barely remember on waking.
A firm knock comes at my door, something that was happening before I woke up, and I’m just now realizing it. I pull my phone close to check the time. Which one of the dipshits thought it would be a good idea to wake me at two in the morning for a chat?
That’s it.
I swing out of bed with Jakob clenched in my hand and swing the door open hard enough that it slams into the wall and tries to bounce back. My foot holds it open as I bring the weapon up.
The guy in front of me takes in the threat and raises one eyebrow. Other than that, he’s basically emotionless. His brown hair and nondescript features make him almost forgettable. If I passed him on the street, I would never look twice. His eyes are the flat emptiness of a killer.
“Mr. Matthias would like to speak with you,” he says calmly and twists to the side for me to leave the room.
I’ll beat the shit out of him too.
“Lead the way,” I insist with a sneer. I’m assuming he doesn’t mean Gabriel. He has the typical Shade air of fuck around and find out. It’s plausible that he’s one of the ‘good guys,’ but I’m not having him at my back.
“Of course,” he agrees easily. Now, he sounds like a butler.
He starts moving, and I have a short-lived debate on closing the door and trying to sleep. It isn’t going to happen. I let out a disgusted sigh and follow.
We head into the well-lit sitting room that Gabriel prefers for his meetings. The guy continues past the lone chair they have positioned across from the couch. They even moved the rest of the furniture out of the way in some bid to make it more intimidating. I wonder if this is how every meeting with him goes. An interrogation chair with bright lights. I’m too exhausted to be impressed.
The man seated in the middle of the couch is relaxed back, eyeing me with a distinct lack of expression. He’s an older version of Gabriel with his hair cut short and sliver on the sides. He has the same amber eyes and frozen-solid face. He’s handsome, but if he’s anything like his son, he’ll blow that impression as soon as he opens his mouth.
“Have a seat, Amanda.”
Yep, attraction at zero, not that I’m into him anyway. I’m gleeful that my impression was spot on. Even the frozen tones are the same. Are they clones?
“No,” I yawn in the middle of the firm word, ruining the effect.
His eyes narrow with displeasure. A micro expression as I take in the second guy behind him with his hands hidden by the couch. If I had to guess, he has a gun at the ready back there.
“I’d feel more comfortable with it.”
I give him a look of disbelief. Like I give a shit about his comfort when he had a guy wake me up in the middle of the night.
I prop an elbow on the back of the chair in silent refusal. You know, since he listens as well as his son does. I casually swing Jakob at my side and maintain eye contact. If they want bullshit intimidation, two can play that game. I doubt I’d get two steps in before I got shot, but it’s the principle of it.
“I’ll get to the point then.” He shakes his head with obvious fatherly disappointment. Sigh included. If this act works on Gabriel, he needs to be smacked on the back of the head.
“I have a safe house set up for you out of state. You’ll leave with Aspen and Kit tonight.”
I look at the guys he gestured to behind the couch and back at him without a change of expression. “Uh-huh.”
My complete lack of enthusiasm makes his lip twitch in disgust.
“You need to be safe and secluded from what’s happening here. You’ve gained the attention of people who aren’t afraid to kill. You’ve seen that already. Staying in town is idiotic at best.”
“Sure, sure,” I nod. He’s saying all the right things. If I wasn’t a raged-out fiend, I’d probably be all over this offer. Sadly, he’s stuck with my need to take out as many of these motherfuckers as I can get to before I die.
His head tilts as he takes in my lack of care. He’s obviously used to a lot of sass. He would have to be if he takes in disgruntled youths and trains them to be damn assassins.
Who thought that was a great idea? Hey, you just survived a tragedy. Join us and continue the torment. And people line up for it. Because they’re scared kids .
“You’ve had run-ins with how this is going to go,” he pointedly stares at my throat. Do you have any sense of self-preservation?”
“Nope,” I reply blandly, refusing to give an inch.
A muscle twitches in his jaw so subtly I wouldn’t have noticed if I hadn’t been paying attention.
“Then think of the people around you,” he tries a different tack. “You’re in my son’s house. These people won’t care about his status if they find out he’s harboring you.”
“You want me to worry about the man with four guys ready and willing to annihilate a threat? If they find out I’m here? The same douche canoe that tossed me in jail a few days ago with a smile? Yeah, I’ve got a ton of sympathy for him.”
“And here you stand because he fixed his mistake,” he retorts in a silky tone.
If he believes that, he’s delusional. I’m relieved that he hasn’t traced it back to Tera, though. He can think his son is a shining beacon of good. I don’t care. At least the real good people are safe.
My selfishness is causing a little turmoil inside me. I should be leaving. I’m a risk to the people around me. I’m not an idiot. But this need in me has to have an outlet. If I don’t get rid of all the demons currently haunting me, I will lose it. Not to mention, I’m petty as hell.
I’m not going anywhere this man wants. I don’t know what his stake in this is, but I don’t like how it looks.
“No means no, Senior Dick.”
“I wanted to be polite about this but I can see that isn’t going to sway you.” He looks over his shoulder with a nod, and the second guy raises a gun. Staring down the barrel of it causes an instinctive fear to try and take over. I can’t help the way I freeze up. I have no doubts that he’s ready to pull the trigger without remorse. I’m a threat, and I need to be removed. I get that a lot better than I did a few weeks ago.
That doesn’t mean I have to give in to the fear. I don’t have to stay frozen here. Or I could get shot, and he can finish off six years of build-up. I’m not going down without a fight.
“Gabriel told you that you could meet with her in the morning.”
Jake’s voice isn’t familiar with how unemotional it comes out. I don’t take my eyes off the gun aimed at me. He passes by my peripherals in a pair of pajama pants with nothing else on. The mask he wears to hide his real character is gone as he stares unrelentingly at Matthias. He takes a seat and pulls a large gun that looks like it can shoot a hundred bullets in seconds onto his lap.
The obvious threat calms Matthias into relaxing back on the couch with a sigh.
“You’re going to kill me, Jake? What would Gabriel say?”
“Good job,” he responds flatly. He gets a glare for that response.
“You were told several things at dinner that you’ve chosen to ignore. I’m here as a reminder that your normal lack of manners won’t be tolerated.”
“You realize she’s using all of you,” Matthias insists. “If not for money, then for protection. Getting her out of here will leave Gabriel in the clear. We can handle this, and you can go back to pretending you can live normal lives.”
This guy is so heartwarming. It really is hereditary.
The gun shifts in Jake’s lap to point at Matthias. The move doesn’t cause any reaction in him. The guys behind the couch are looking a little unsteady. I can see the darting looks between me and Jake, the gun is wavering slightly. Who should he aim at? It’s supposed to be me, but his boss is under threat. If he had any loyalty to the man, Jake would have a bullet in him already. Instead, the guy is so damn brainwashed he’s keeping it trained on me.
The bookshelf behind them shifts a little, catching my attention. A door opens silently, and Cade slips out, closing it behind him without making any noise. It’s impressive. I keep my focus on the gun, trying not to give away his position. We’ve gone from a not-so-friendly chat to imminent violence.
“Where was this sense of concern when you took us all in?” Jake presses with a raised brow. “Your son didn’t seem to mean much then.”
“That isn’t true, and you know it,” Matthias snaps, his cheeks turning ruddy with anger.
“I have no loyalty to you. That is reserved for the men that live here. The ones who saw me struggling to keep going and took me off the field. Your son. He recognized what was happening and added me to his roster without hesitation. I won’t reward that by turning my back on him.”
Cade watches Jake as if waiting for a signal, hidden in the shadows created by the blinding lights aimed at the chair Jake is sitting in. Mistakes were made in this interrogation setup. I’m taking notes.
“And Shade? What’s your excuse there? I’d love to hear it.” His finger slides from the side of the gun to the trigger without fanfare.
“If you do this, there will be an entire force ready to kill you over it.”
“If you do this, your son will kill you himself,” Jake tells him placidly. “We all know he has it in him, even if you can’t see it.”
Matthias’ reserve cracks under that assurance. I’m surprised myself. I can’t picture Gabriel putting out that much effort. His suit would get dirty.
Their eyes dart to the doorway, and the gun begins to waver harder, slightly lowering. A large, hot hand falls onto my shoulder as Mikael steps up behind me.
“Go back to bed,” he mutters to me, his mouth close to my ear.
“Did you wake Ace?” Jake asks without taking his attention off Matthias.
“I did,” Mikael says in a calm tone. “He’ll be joining us shortly.”
“Father,” Gabriel’s voice joins this mess with a frozen tone.
Mikael steps to my side and subtly starts pulling me behind him.
“None of you understand,” Matthias says raggedly. His cold act is cracking under the pressure. The fear-filled look he gives his son makes me pause to watch. “I won’t sit here and watch you make all the same mistakes I have.”
“I’m supposed to stay in a bubble of safety? When did you start caring?” Gabriel comes up on my other side and boldly steps in front of me. No subtlety. I hear the click of a gun, unsure which side it’s coming from. When Gabriel’s shoulders relax, I know the gun aimed at him has been lowered.
I’m not sure how to take this united front defending me. This isn’t an act. No one would go through this much effort to pretend they care. It confuses me.
“That’s not what I want for you,” Matthias protests. “You’ve seen what happened to Andi and Evan. I don’t want you to suffer through any of that if I can stop it.”
“You can’t stop it,” Jake stands, and Gabriel takes his place in the chair as he continues. “You may not have started the life we ended up with, but you certainly haven’t shied away from it. A lot of people have suffered based on your actions.”
“A lot of good has come from my actions, too,” Matthias growls. “We’ve saved countless lives by doing what is necessary.”
“True,” Gabriel acknowledges with a nod. “Despite everything, I know you want the same thing we all do. No more suffering for innocent people.”
“Then let me protect you now. She doesn’t have to be here. As soon as everything settles, you can bring her back.”
“Protect me? Who do you think you’re fooling?” Gabriel asks, a subtle hint of disbelief threading the questions.
If I leave here with his two goons I doubt very seriously that coming back here is in the cards. Next it will be a witness protection program ‘for my own good’ or a bullet.
I’m starting to notice the ‘if you don’t do A, then B is death’ trend. I’m not liking it.
This is turning into a ‘none of my business’ conversation. I’m going back to bed.
As soon as I turn to leave, the attention snaps back to me.
“Amanda?” Gabriel’s voice has gone tight.
“Not my business. Have fun hashing out your family issues,” I wave with a mocking smile. “Don’t call me back in here when you finalize where you think I should be because I don’t give a shit.”
Mikael chuckles as Gabriel sighs.
I pass Ace in the doorway. He looks beyond pissed and has a pistol in each hand, ready to go.
“Darlin’,” his eyes travel over me, looking for wounds.
I turn back to the room and snap, “If you fuckers kill each other, I’m not cleaning it up.”
Ace looks surprised for a second before his lips curl up in a smirk.
“Don’t smile at me. You’re as bad as all the rest of them,” I glare as I pass on my way to my room.
The door closes quietly behind me. Voices rise in anger, mainly Matthias and Ace. I ignore it to lock myself in my room.
Instead of falling asleep, I lay on my side with my eyes wide open, staring at the door. The fact that any of Matthias’ men could come through at any moment has screwed my sleep schedule more than it already was.
A knock on the door a few minutes later has me sitting up with Jakob at the ready to brain whoever comes in.
“Just me, meine Seele ,” Jake calls cheerfully before he picks the lock and lets himself in.
“Are you kidding me,” I grit out, keeping the stick held defensively.
“We should move your bed closer to the window,” he looks around and locks the door behind him. “Tomorrow. We need more sleep.”
I gape at him in disbelief.
He ignores it and gives a huge yawn. It’s like he can’t remember that he was ready to kill his boss’ dad a few minutes ago. He still has the intimidating gun in his hand.
I’m staring without words when he approaches the bed and lays the weapon on the nightstand.
“Scoot over. You’re on my side.”
The flat look he gives me is even worse.
“I didn’t invite you in here. At any point. Get lost.”
“We are sleeping tonight, meine Seele . I can already see you don’t feel safe enough for it alone. That’s why I’m here. Scoot. Over.”
I can’t argue with that. I want to, just to be a pain in the ass. Jake is the one I trust the most in this house based on his recent behavior. That doesn’t mean I trust him a lot, but it’s there.
I let out a sigh and scoot over, keeping Jakob in my hand as I lay back down to watch the door.
He joins me without another word and settles on his side just like I am. I keep a good distance between our bodies with Jakob in between us.
It takes a while, but I manage to fall asleep. Every time I startle awake, Jake is in the same position. His breathing is calm, but I don’t think he’s asleep. For some reason, that helps me get back to sleep every time.