Page 10

“Aw hell, never mind.” Liam waved his hand, leaving the past where it belonged. He and Liam rarely talked about Jericho’s dark history and the day Liam saved his life.

“You understand their kind can’t be trusted. Any chance she has you in her thrall?”

“What? Fuck no.” Liam lurched upright, dropping his heavy boots to the floor. “Know what?” He leaned forward, hammering his index finger into the desk. “Thisis why I didn’t tell you about her. Wasn’t her fault what happened to her. Her daddy got himself into trouble gambling. Couple bottom feeders came to collect his debt. Fuckwads roughed her up, made her bleed and discovered that thing that I know, you know. Since they’d killed her father, they figured they would recoup the loss by selling her on the black market. Once I got her out of the auction, I claimed her to make sure it never happened again.”

There was a rumbling of possession in Liam’s voice Jericho had never heard before. How deep had Alex sunk her claws into his old friend? Was he already too late? Given Liam’s reaction, it would be foolish to accuse her outright.

“Didn’t think you were into charity work. Strange behavior for a sell-sword who’s free of manipulation,” Jericho goaded, knowing he was one of few men who could do so and live to tell the tale.

“Soon to be retired sell-sword,” Liam grumbled, pointing a finger at him. “Don’t think I don’t see what you’re doing. You, of all people, should know, ain’t a creature on this planet powerful enough to fuck with my mind, not even that Queen Faerie Bitch.”

In the history of the underworld, none had been as powerful as the queen who’d enslaved the hearts and minds of thousands. After all, the only thing more dangerous than a rabid dog was the master holding its leash. Though few of the faerie remained, Queen Rayna’s much weaker descendants were no less treacherous.

Liam leaned back in his chair, folding his hands over his stomach. “Look, Alex needed protection, and now she has it. It’s as simple as that. Besides, I thought you and I had an agreement. You don’t ask about certain aspects of my life, and I don’t tell.”

Jericho clenched the glass in his hand and straightened in the sagging recliner. “That agreement is part of why I’m here.”

“Figures,” Liam groused. “Not like you to stop in for a casual visit these days.”

Jericho swallowed his guilt, steeling his response to his friend’s pique. “I’m sure by now you’ve heard there’s a new drug on the streets. It lowers inhibitions and unleashes the user’s darker half. In cases of overdose, it turns vampires into rogues, lycan into ferals.” The most primal and deadly versions of a supernatural being. Pure monster. Zero humanity.

“I’m aware. Just so you don’t need toask, I’ve got nothing to do with any of that black ice bullshit. I sure as hell don’t want customers using that crap in my bar. Not with Alex here. Caught a couple of guys peddling the stuff andpolitelyasked them to take their business elsewhere. Before I kicked them out, they tried to recruit me. Said their boss had an offer I shouldn’t refuse. Insinuated I had no choice in the matter.” His tone turned menacing, and he cracked his knuckles. “I convinced them otherwise.”

Jericho released the breath he’d been holding. While, at times, Liam omitted things he didn’t want Jericho involved in, he’d never outright lied. At least in this, Liam was innocent.

On the heels of that relief, an idea took root. “Any chance you could tell them you’ve reconsidered?”

“And find myself stepping in Victor’s bullshit again? No, thanks. When you brought Ava here and used her as bait to capture Salvatore, word got out. None of my regulars wanted to hang around with Victor’s enforcers camped out in my backyard. Alex says we lost close to ten grand that month alone.”

Jericho’s jaw clenched. Alex. Again. Suddenly, all of Liam’s decisions revolved aroundAlex. And yet his friend insisted she hadn’t practiced her whiles on him. “With this drug turning users into mindless killers, it will be harder to keep your Chosen safe. Guarantee a number of those addicts will wind up here.”

Liam hitched a shoulder. “Perhaps.”

“Already, these dealers have Howlers in their sights. They won’t give up easily. The faster we eliminate their supplier, the safer she’ll be.” Jericho fell silent, letting Liam work it through his thick skull.

At length, Liam heaved a sigh. “Fine. Tell you what, you come back here tomorrow night after the poker tournament, and I’ll get you face-to-face with the bastards.”

“You want to do it here?” No sense in Liam losing another ten grand helping him.

“Changing locations would look suspicious. We’ll do it here, but we’ll do it my way. When you report back to Victor, you explain to him this ismybar.” He hammered his fist into the desk. “And that means Victor plays bymyrules. We do this, I only want you and Colin here. Hell, he’s here most nights, anyway. No backup and no enforcers lurking in SUVs in my parking lot. We keep it simple, just like the old days.”

Problem was, things rarely went the way they expected in the old days. For years, Jericho had fought at Liam’s side, fates tied by blood, sweat—and a debt Jericho could never repay. Together, they’d survived things that would have buried either of them alone. It wasn’t until the last century they’d taken different paths.

“Fair enough,” Jericho agreed, already dreading the fine line he’d have to walk between loyalty to Liam and the oath he made to his clan chief.

Four

“After all thetime you spent restoring her, I can’t believe you haven’t given her a name.” Colin stroked the dashboard of the 1970 Charger. “Black on black, 700 Edelbrock, 440, Hooker headers. You should call her Black Beauty or Midnight. Or maybe Vera.”

Vera? Jericho ignored the swell of pride Colin’s praise evoked. He forced a scowl. “It’s a car, not a boat. She doesn’t need a name.”

“See, there you go.” Colin smacked his thigh. “Confirmation Vera is ashe.”

Jericho’s scowl deepened. No way another male was naming his Charger. “Call her Vera again, and you can walk to the bar.”

He steered them in front of the black SUV parked on the shoulder. “Stay here.” He shoved the door open and strode to the waiting vehicle.

Adam waited inside, the glow of his cell phone giving his buzz-cut head and squared jaw a bluish tinge. He scowled at his screen, intensely focused. He was one of the more reliable members of Victor’s guard. Did everything by the book, civil, even-keeled. Which was probably why Victor paired him with the only demon on his team. Slade sat in the passenger seat, eyes piercing through the darkness like two inky pools of mayhem.