Page 27 of Duality (The Archers #1)

ALEXANDER

“ O h God, there are two of them.” Grace’s voice crackled through the comms.

The bushes up ahead were rustling where Danny and Sebastian had taken cover.

“What are you fussing about now?” Danny shot back.

“You and your big ass throwing up a neon sign that you’re hiding in the bushes,” Evelyn snapped from next to me, her voice sharp.

The bushes stopped rustling. She had been on pins and needles since the Ghosts left yesterday and had drilled everyone on the plan.

Any doubt I had about her caring about us or SDS had been wiped out in the last twenty-four hours.

It was clear she felt the weight of keeping the company and us safe, and I fell a little more in love with her for it.

“Every angle is covered,” Izzy said.

She was sitting in the vehicle pool with Adrian in a blacked-out SUV, in case they came in through that area.

I figured her words were meant to reassure Evelyn, but the woman was a bundle of nerves and exhaustion.

If I had my say, I would have benched her.

Her state of extreme exhaustion was dangerous to the mission, but she was stubborn.

So fucking stubborn. Had she always gotten this little sleep?

She worked long hours for us as our primary executive assistant, but now that I knew she had another high-stress job on top of it, I was worried about her.

There was only so much adrenaline you could run on before the lack of sleep compromised you.

It was something I knew all too well, and I didn’t want it to happen to Evelyn.

I knew she pushed herself constantly because she felt responsible for the safety of everyone in the Archers and now us.

I was familiar with the weight of responsibility that rested on one’s shoulders.

Making sure my brothers and Adrian were safe, as well as my employees and the clients we served, and now this infuriating, gorgeous woman who was determined to drive herself into the ground to save others.

It could be a crushing weight, and one that I would bear for her if she let me.

“You’re watching me again,” Evelyn murmured, glancing at me out of the corner of her eye.

“Always.” The word slipped out before I could stop it.

Her eyes widened briefly, but I didn’t look away.

Pink dusted her cheeks in a soft blush. She shifted but didn’t say another word.

Her mask was on again. I wanted to keep pressing until it slipped off.

I could never tell what she was thinking, and it drove me crazy.

I wanted to know everything about her, every hope and dream and wayward thought.

There would be no going back to normal after this.

I wanted everything with her. But did she want the same with us?

Sebastian’s crazy idea in college had seemed less and less crazy over the last few weeks.

I kept things professional at the office, but I was always finding excuses to call her into my office and spend a few extra moments with her enchanting presence.

But now I had gotten a peek behind the professional mask she wore, that she had cared enough to risk everything she had built to save us.

Hearing how much she had suffered… I was all in.

But I couldn’t rush into this. She was gun-shy and spooked easily at physical contact.

But that was fine. I could be patient. I would wait and be there for her until she couldn’t imagine life without me, without us.

Sebastian and Adrian were on board. Marcus was still putting up a fight, but it was only a matter of time before he caved. Then, whatever she wanted was hers.

“We have incoming,” Maya said. They were perched on the roof of the adjacent building covering the street. “Two SUVs and a pickup truck coming from the south.”

Thirty seconds passed by before Liam chimed in. “They’re parking two blocks away. Eight guys. Tactical gear and gas cans.”

I tensed and lifted my radio. “Alpha team, eight hostiles are approaching with gas cans.”

“Copy,” Sanders, the head of one of our teams, replied. “Fire extinguishers at the ready.”

Evelyn had only fought me a little bit when I said that the Alpha team would be joining us on the adventure tonight.

We were splitting the Archers up from the SDS guys by keeping them inside and outside the building, so Evelyn and her lieutenants could maintain some anonymity, something Evelyn insisted on.

Sanders and his team wouldn’t have said a word, but I understood the Archers’ hesitancy.

Their organization had survived based on their ability to move freely through the shadows of the city.

“They’re splitting up,” Maya said. “Two are headed towards the pool. Two to the front and four to the east side parking lot.”

I stiffened as two figures crept around the corner. We had killed some of the lights that lit up the landscape, providing Evelyn and me some shadowy cover as the men inched closer. The click of a lighter illuminated the Molotov cocktails in their hands. Fuck.

One of the men reached back to launch the cocktail through the window.

We sprang out of the bushes before he let go.

With a roundhouse kick, Evelyn hit his forearm.

He cursed and dropped the Molotov cocktail at his feet.

Evelyn darted around the flames. My heart leapt into my throat as she threw herself at one of the men, tackling him to the ground.

He didn’t stay down for long and threw her off him.

She rolled quickly to her feet and dodged when he charged at her, throwing two quick punches into his side as he stumbled by.

The second guy recovered and lunged towards me.

His fist grazed my jaw as I threw a knee up into his gut.

He wheezed at the blow, the wind knocked out of him, and I brought my elbow down hard on the back of his neck, sending him crumpling to the floor.

I quickly restrained him before he could get back up.

The fire in my veins called for blood, but it wasn’t the time.

I looked up to see how Evelyn was doing against her opponent.

I couldn’t help a smile sneaking across my face as she grinned at the man.

Her savage beauty was illuminated by the fires of the Molotov cocktail remnants beside her.

She was playing with the guy, and I took a moment to observe her in action, knowing she wasn’t in any real danger.

She looked so beautiful in her element that I couldn’t help but sneak my phone out and capture a picture of her, an avenging angel.

“We could use a little help over here.” Danny’s voice crackled over the comms, and Evelyn’s smile dropped into a frown.

I finally understood my brother a little bit more as murderous feelings rose in me at her frown. Fuck, Sebastian would never let me hear the end of it if he found out.

Evelyn dropped her opponent with a kick to his side, followed by an uppercut to his jaw. He sprawled backwards, and she made quick work of flipping him over and zip-tying his hands behind his back.

By the time we made it to the east side parking lot, the action was over.

Four men lay groaning on the ground. Sebastian, Marcus, and Adrian seemed to be fine, though Adrian was favoring his left leg.

Danny sported a black eye that had Evelyn cursing as she held his chin to examine it.

He tried to wave her off, but she was insistent.

He conceded and let her fuss over him. I left them to it as I headed towards my brothers by blood and choice.

“You okay?” I checked in, my voice low.

Sebastian bounced on his feet. “They only sent eight men.” He pouted like a child denied candy. “We had it under control.”

Marcus scoffed. “You did when Adrian and I got here. How are your ribs feeling?”

Sebastian glared at Marcus as I yanked him by his shirt collar closer to me.

I lifted his shirt. The stupid man wasn’t even wearing a vest. I examined the blooming bruises against his ribs.

He hissed but otherwise let me examine him.

Satisfied they weren’t broken, I released him and made a mental note to have him checked out by our doctor.

Unfortunately, when Sebastian was out for blood, he often overlooked little things like bullet and stab wounds.

I learned early on to check him over, even when he said he was fine.

“Everything okay?” Evelyn asked behind me.

“Everything’s perfect, my darling Evie. The only thing that would have made the night more perfect is if you were fighting by my side.”

“What am I? Chopped liver?” Danny glared at Sebastian, but there was no heat behind it.

“Compared to my Evie? Yes,” Sebastian said seriously.

Danny shook his head, but there was a hint of a smile playing on his lips. Danny was clearly on board with us getting closer to his cousin. It was just Evelyn who was holding out. And Marcus.

“How bad is cleanup?” Evelyn asked. She ignored Sebastian’s words, her professional mask firmly in place. Now that the adrenaline had worn off, I could see the lines of exhaustion on her face and how her muscles trembled slightly. She was exhausted. I needed to get her home to rest.

“Not bad,” Adrian said. “The pool took the worst of it, but it shouldn’t be bad. Izzy and I managed to get our two down fairly quick. We’ll just need to replace a few vehicles. We need to decide what to do with these guys, though.” He gestured at the men on the ground next to us.

Evelyn opened her mouth, most likely to issue orders, and I jumped in. “Marcus, organize cleanup with Adrian and Sebastian. Use the Alpha team so the Archers can get some rest. I’m taking Evelyn home.”

“Oh, you are, are you?” Evelyn arched her eyebrow.

I smiled at her and put a hand on her back, guiding her across the parking lot towards the SUV we parked there.

“I am,” I murmured to her. “You’re exhausted and need sleep. Let the others take care of it.”