56
2A
Gabriel
“I’m hungry,” Jake pouts on the couch.
“You had breakfast,” Cade glares at him. “Don’t start this shit.”
That’s new. Usually, when Jake starts complaining, Cade taunts him.
Ever since yesterday, he’s been behaving differently than I’m used to. They all are.
Ace isn’t as silent and moody. Mikael’s silence isn’t oppressive and he’s smiling at people. Jake is more relaxed.
Now Cade is moody and more take charge than usual. Gone is the playboy persona. He rarely allows his mask to slip, even around us. It was never a concern before. Until Amanda pointed it out.
The knowledge that I’ve kept them in a miserable holding pattern because I’ve been stuck there is shameful.
Amanda has twisted them all into better versions of themselves. They’re free to be exactly who they are without the walls we’ve built around ourselves.
I want my turn, not that I deserve it.
“Amanda should have been breakfast,” Jake says dismally.
Cade slams a fist into Jake’s chest and tilts his chin toward me with a frown. I haven’t looked up from the map in front of me. I suppose he thinks I’m not paying attention.
Ace reaches for a piece of paper, wads it up, and throws it at the back of Jake’s head. The paper hits and bounces off. Jake pretends nothing happened. Ace readjusts himself in his jeans, and Mikael clears his throat.
I hate them all right now. My focus is shattered as I picture her naked on the dining room table with her knees spread wide.
“They’ll separate us on their own,” Ace says as if the plan matters a damn right now. My dick is hard enough to knock on my desk.
The thought leads me down a wicked path as I remember Amanda confessing her fantasy of fitting underneath.
“Focus,” Mikael mutters.
I pop my neck and pay attention.
“I’m with Gabe,” Cade speaks up decisively. “Ace, go with Jake.”
That gets all of our attention. He and Jake never split up.
He’s facing away from me now, but he’s running a finger along his ear.
“But Cadey,” Jake protests in a teasing voice.
“No,” Cade shuts him down and twists to see me. “Amanda has my gut rolling. We’re switching it up.”
“You want me followin’ along with that tricksy fuck?” Ace asks in disbelief.
“Yes. We go in cold. You two bring in fire.” Cade looks so sure of himself. As if it’s a done deal.
Jake looks at Ace thoughtfully. Ace returns the look with a sneer.
“And Gabe gets a gun.”
My brows rise, an uneasy feeling sliding through me.
“You better be ready to kill someone, Gabe.”
The arguments Ace and Mikael throw out against it are white noise.
First, Amanda warned me and now Cade.
I don’t like those odds.
I’ll freeze up like I always do when it comes to it. That feeling of defeat will paralyze me before my finger goes to the trigger. The only place I’ve used a weapon is in a training room. No one has witnessed it but the people around me.
“Gabe,” Cade snaps, regaining my wandering attention.
My eyes meet his, my thoughts hidden behind a wall of ice.
“When it gets dirty, think about going home to Amanda. That’s the only thing that matters. Getting home . Got it?”
We stare at each other, no one speaking until I break the silence.
“I prefer knives.”
They glance at each other, stunned silent. I return to memorizing the map.
***
The meeting with Owen starts off in a normal fashion. Bootlicking with sparse information. Only Cade and Mikael are with me. When he asks about it in a much too casual tone, I inform him that they’re running errands that can’t be put off. It seems to put him at ease.
The problems begin as they usually do.
He wants to take us to the mansion and prefers to drive us.
We’re prepared for that.
What we weren’t anticipating was the limo that pulled up. Something too well fortified to be anything but a prison. It might as well be an expensive tank.
When we settle inside, Mikael at my side and Cade next to Owen on the opposite, things seem off. There should be a partition to separate us from the driver, with a window to lower or raise for privacy. Instead, there’s only a large monitor that appears to be a window at first glance. For some reason, the sight of it makes me uneasy.
We’re on our way without a word between us.
Owen’s face drops into a more relaxed expression now that we’re out of sight of the public.
“How’s your defection going?” He asks with mild interest.
I raise a brow. There’s only one defection I’m supposed to be a part of. It’s about my father. The less I say, the better.
When I don’t respond, he brushes it off. Or so I think.
“You might want to reconsider your stance. Mr. Matthias has a lot of intel that others can’t get easily.”
The knowing look he gives me has the hair on my neck standing up. He’s leading me somewhere. But where? The teams in town? Father’s odd knowledge and lack of action against the scum that’s been in this town, around his daughter no less, for years now?
Would it surprise me if Father was in this all along? Giving money to them?
Sadly, yes, it would. They stand for something that he has vowed retribution against. How far has he gone down in his pursuit of power to fight back?
“Am I not holding your interest?” Owen asks in a tight voice. His irritation is clear.
“If you spoke of something worthwhile, I’d be more likely to pay attention,” I casually glance out the window.
So far, we’re following a straight route to the mansion.
“I guess I need to up the stakes,” he replies with a smug smile.
He raises his phone and makes a video call. The screen comes to life, and my body tenses as a familiar number slowly appears, entered digit by digit. I’ve been hoping for it to show up on my phone—just one call or text—but it hasn’t yet.
How does he have Amanda’s number? And why is he calling?
I force myself to stay still, but I can’t tear my eyes off the screen as the call goes through.