Page 4 of Orlando (Council Assassins #20)

ORLANDO WANTED TO MAKE this transition as easy as possible.

Liam hadn’t chosen this.

He didn’t want to leave his apartment and stay with Orlando.

He didn’t want to have to hide for God knew how long.

Unfortunately, he didn’t have a choice.

Neither of them did.

It was good that Liam had agreed to come stay with Orlando for a bit without Orlando having to push.

He wasn’t sure what he would’ve done if Liam had refused and had decided to stay home and risk Cynthia finding him.

Orlando didn’t want him to regret anything, but he was pretty sure that ship had sailed.

No matter how nice Liam was being about all of this, he was still being asked to leave his apartment, pack up his cat, and hide from a professional killer who wanted him dead.

Orlando looked around his apartment.

It wasn’t much, but he’d given Liam his bedroom.

He was there right now, unpacking his things with Parsley.

Orlando had been surprised at how sweet Parsley was.

He hadn’t fought Liam when he’d put him in his carrier, and while he’d clearly been unhappy as they transported him, he’d stopped yowling as soon as Liam had opened the carrier once they were in Orlando’s apartment.

Liam had picked Parsley up and had disappeared into the bedroom, and Orlando hadn’t seen either of them since then.

It had only been an hour, but he was getting antsy.

What could he do to help? He’d given Liam space, but it didn’t feel like enough.

He wanted to do more, maybe to reassure Liam, but he had no idea how to do that.

Should he knock on the door? Or should he give Liam more space and leave him alone until he decided that he was ready to come out? He’d have to eat eventually.

Unfortunately for both of them, Orlando wasn’t a great cook.

He wouldn’t burn down the kitchen, but he could only make a handful of things.

He swallowed and glanced at the fridge.

Maybe he could get started on lunch.

He opened the fridge and blinked at the lack of anything edible in it.

When was the last time he’d gone to the grocery store? He couldn’t remember, which made sense considering the state of the fridge.

He rolled his lower lip between his teeth.

This wasn’t good.

He was supposed to be taking care of his mate, but how could he do it with no food in the apartment? It meant he’d have to leave Liam alone, which he wasn’t crazy about considering how dangerous the situation was.

Better today than any other day, though.

Cynthia would leave them alone for a few more days, but not any longer than that. If Orlando needed to leave the apartment, he had to do it now.

He sighed and closed the fridge.

He didn’t want to go, but the sooner he left, the sooner he’d be back.

He knocked on the bedroom door. He waited for an answer, but none came. He wasn’t surprised. He also didn’t blame Liam.

“I’m going to the grocery store. Do you need anything?”

Silence met him. He wasn’t sure if Liam was awake listening to him or if he’d fallen asleep, but it didn’t matter.

“Well, you have my number if you think of something,”

he added before stepping away.

HE TRIED TO PICK UP as many things as he could, considering he was at the small store by the apartment and on foot.

He had no idea what Liam liked, which made everything more complicated.

Was his mate allergic to anything? Was he vegetarian? Was he vegan? Orlando had no idea what he’d do if that was the case, and he hoped he wouldn’t have to find out.

He didn’t care if Liam was vegan, but it would make an already complicated situation even more complicated, which wasn’t something either of them needed right now.

Orlando felt like he was going to break at the next thing that went wrong.

Still, in case Liam was vegan, Orlando picked up a few packages of tofu.

He had no idea what else he could get, and he hoped that Liam would have told him if he had a special diet or hated eating something.

Orlando was even more nervous by the time he left the grocery store carrying too many bags.

He kept his eyes and ears open, glancing around as he moved down the sidewalk.

He wouldn’t put it past the council to send someone else if they found out what had happened, but he hoped they wouldn’t.

Cynthia didn’t have to report to them just yet.

Orlando needed some time to get to them and convince them they were making a mistake.

He wasn’t sure what he’d do if he couldn’t.

He wasn’t going to consider that option yet.

He had to believe that eventually, he’d find a way to make someone see there was a mistake, and they’d leave his mate alone.

Liam didn’t deserve any of this.

He didn’t deserve to be hunted and have to fight for his life.

Unfortunately, that was what he had to do at the moment, and Orlando hoped it wouldn’t ruin their chances of being together.

He’d never really thought about meeting his mate when he’d decided he wanted to be a council assassin.

Maybe he should have.

It was clear that Liam was horrified by the fact that professional assassins existed and that the council used them, and there was no way he was happy with Orlando having almost been one.

He was still in Orlando’s apartment, allowing him to protect him, but it was clear he didn’t want anything to do with him at the moment.

Orlando didn’t blame him.

He’d known that many people would be horrified by what he wanted to do for a living when he’d made his decision to start the program, but maybe if he’d known that his mate would be one of those people, he wouldn’t have signed that contract.

It was too late now.

He had to deal with the consequences of his actions, and if Liam ended up hating him for that, there was nothing he could do about it.

He hoped that spending some time together would show Liam that he wasn’t a monster, but even if Liam kept his distance, Orlando would protect him.

He would never forgive himself if something happened to his mate.

Nothing would happen to Liam.

Orlando walked back into the apartment cautiously. He half expected Liam to be gone, but everything was as he’d left it. He didn’t know what was happening in the bedroom, but the door was still closed.

He sighed and went to the kitchen. He started putting away the groceries when he heard a door creaking. He tensed, even though he recognized the creak—or maybe because of it.

When he glanced at the bedroom door, he saw that it was slightly open. Parsley was peeking out, his head cocked to the side as if he was trying to understand what to make of Orlando. The poor cat had to be all over the place. He’d been taken from his home and plopped into an apartment he didn’t know for who knew how long. He couldn’t understand an explanation even though Orlando was sure he’d heard Liam whisper one to him. It had been sweet.

“I’m back from the store,”

he called out, knowing Liam would hear him.

“I freaked out a bit because I didn’t know if there was anything you didn’t eat or you were allergic to, so I hope that what I got will be fine. You’re not vegetarian, are you? I grabbed some tofu just in case, but I have no idea what to do with it. If you want to eat it, you’re going to have to cook it.”

There was no answer. Orlando didn’t know what to do anymore. Should he go to the door and knock? Should he leave Liam alone and stop talking to him? Should he let his mate hide for as long as he needed?

Orlando wasn’t going to push. If Liam needed space, that was what he’d give his mate. He just wished it didn’t make him feel so alone.

None of this was his fault. None of this was Liam’s fault, either. They’d met at the worst moment they could have met, but Orlando was glad for that. If he hadn’t been there, Liam would be gone, and it wasn’t an option he wanted to consider.

He’d almost lost his mate. He would do whatever was in his power to keep Liam alive, even if Liam never talked to him again.

LIAM KNEW HE WASN’T acting right, but he needed a moment. So many things had happened today that he needed to wrap his mind around that it made him want to scream, but instead of doing that and making a fool of himself, he sat on the edge of the mattress and stared at the wall.

He could hear Orlando. It would’ve been impossible for him not to hear his mate.

His mate. He was human, but he had a mate. He had a mate who was going to protect him from a professional killer, a mate who’d gone grocery shopping and had done his best to pick things Liam would eat. It was incredibly sweet, and it made Liam want to get up and leave the bedroom to see what Orlando had bought. At the same time, Liam felt frozen.

He was mostly fine with the mate thing, even though he was uneasy with the fact that Orlando had wanted to kill people for a living. Liam liked to think that Orlando couldn’t be a bad person if he was Liam’s mate, but was that the case? He was sure that everyone felt the same, but bad people had mates, too.

Liam prayed Orlando wasn’t one of those people.

He hadn’t struck Liam as one. Not only had he saved Liam’s life, but he’d tried not to hurt Cynthia as he did so. If he was trained, it probably would’ve been easier for him to kill her, but he clearly hadn’t wanted to do that. He’d told Liam that he’d left the program and that he hadn’t become an assassin, so maybe he hadn’t killed anyone yet.

That made Liam feel a little bit better. Whatever had happened in that program, it had been enough for Orlando to change his mind. He’d decided he didn’t want to work for the council anymore. He hadn’t become an assassin.

Liam didn’t have a choice. He’d have to trust his mate. He wanted to trust Orlando.

Movement caught his attention. He turned, smiling when he saw that Parsley was stepping out of the bedroom. He’d been complaining, so Liam had opened the door. Parsley was still here, but it was clear that he was interested in the rest of the apartment. It had to be weird for him to be here. Liam couldn’t imagine how confusing all of this was for him.

He glanced around the room. There was only one bedroom in the apartment, so he knew this had to be Orlando’s, but there wasn’t much to see. There were no personal objects, although the dresser and closet were filled with clothes. It seemed like Orlando hadn’t been living here long, which made Liam curious. There was no way for him to ask his questions if he stayed in the bedroom, though.

Orlando was still talking. It was clear he was nervous and filling the silence, which was endearing and made Liam smile. Orlando had been so competent when he’d fought Cynthia that Liam hadn’t expected him to react like this to everything else. It made Orlando feel more human, though, pushing him away from the idea Liam had of professional killers. It was a good thing.

He got to his feet. Orlando was babbling about what kind of vegetables he’d picked, and Liam wanted him to stop being so nervous. He also didn’t want to stay in this bedroom for the rest of the day. It was almost lunchtime, and he already had enough of being stuck in his own head.

He gently pushed the door open wider and stepped through. Orlando was in the kitchen, his back to Liam. He was staring at a cauliflower as if he expected the thing to jump off the counter and attack him. He had a knife in his hand and used it to poke at the cauliflower, and his expression was so confused and almost offended that the cauliflower didn’t do anything that Liam had to smile.

“Please tell me you know how to cook that thing,” he said.

Orlando blinked.

“Of course I know.”

“Are you sure about that?”

Orlando’s shoulders slumped.

“Okay, maybe I don’t.”

“Why did you buy it?”

“Because I didn’t know what you wanted to eat, and I wanted you to think I was a functional adult.”

“Functional adults eat cauliflower?”

Orlando shrugged.

“Functional adults eat vegetables. Of course, they also know how to cook, which isn’t my case, but I wanted to try.”

He shouldn’t be so adorable and endearing. Liam shouldn’t be thinking about how nice Orlando was, either. He should be freaking out, and he was, but it was nice to stop obsessing over what would happen to him over the next few days for a while.

He stepped forward and noticed the way Orlando was watching him. He was a little tense, almost as if he expected Liam to explode. It was a possibility if Liam didn’t stop thinking about all of this, so he told himself not to and continued moving toward Orlando. When he reached him, he held out a hand, and Orlando handed over the knife with a smile.

“I realize you’re no doubt better trained with a knife than I am, but it’s a different set of skills,” he said.

Orlando looked puzzled, which made sense. Liam had been trying to avoid thinking of the fight that he’d been trained to kill people with knives and other weapons. Now, he was joking about it. He wasn’t even sure what he was thinking.

This had to be confusing for Orlando, too. Hell, it was probably even more confusing for him. He had a mate, and he hadn’t even been able to bask in that knowledge. Instead, he was having to protect Liam.

Liam turned toward the counter. He didn’t know what Orlando had been thinking when he’d bought the cauliflower, but thankfully, he could cook.

He started chopping the cauliflower. He could feel Orlando’s gaze on him, and he waited for his mate to say something, but Orlando didn’t. It was like he was waiting for Liam, which, on the one hand, was good because it gave Liam space, but on the other, it made Liam even more nervous.

This was the man he was supposed to spend the rest of his life with. He wanted to get to know him, even though the circumstances were far from ideal. He and Orlando were going to spend a lot of time together in the next few days, so Liam should relax, but how could he? It wasn’t even Orlando. It was everything else.

“So, what do you think happened? Is this a case of mistaken identity?”

he asked just to say something. Orlando had already mentioned that was what he thought, but Liam didn’t know what else to say.

“There’s no way to know for sure, but since I got confirmation that they’re looking for someone named Liam Portman, I think it’s safe to say that it is.”

“I can’t believe they’d make that kind of mistake.”

“Neither can I. I know how the assassins are trained, and this doesn’t feel like something the council or anyone who works for them would do. It’s unacceptable.”

It was unacceptable to kill people, but it was especially unacceptable to kill someone who was innocent and had no idea what was going on. Every time Liam thought about it, he wanted to scream.

He didn’t. It was clear his mate was freaking out enough already. Liam suspected he wasn’t making things any easier.

He wasn’t sure how to make this easier on both of them.

“Can you tell me about the assassins?”

he asked, even though he was slightly afraid of the answer.

“I can’t tell you a lot. I signed documents and forms that forbid me to do so.”

“I’m your mate.”

“I don’t think it changes anything.”

Liam glanced sideways at Orlando.

“They’re hunting me.”

Orlando sighed.

“Fine. I can tell you everything you want to know, but you have to promise me you won’t ever tell anyone. You can talk to the others who trained with me if you want because they already know, and with the trainers, but anyone outside of that can’t know.”

Orlando was talking as if Liam would have the opportunity to chat with all these people. Maybe he would. It sounded like Orlando was close to some of them, which made Liam nervous, but if they were Orlando’s friends, he supposed it made sense.

Or maybe nothing did. Right now, Liam was a mess, and he didn’t know how to feel better. Maybe hacking a cauliflower to pieces would help.

Or maybe nothing would.

ORLANDO DIDN’T WANT to lie to Liam, even though he had signed plenty of documents that told him that he had to. He wanted Liam to want him, and he knew that would only happen if he was honest. For some reason, this felt like the hardest thing he’d ever done in his life.

“What do you want to know?”

“Everything,”

Liam said as he cut into the cauliflower.

Orlando hadn’t had a plan when he’d picked up the vegetable. He’d been thinking about Liam and what he wanted to eat, and since he had no idea, he’d picked various stuff around the store. He should’ve thought better of it, but it looked like things would be okay anyway. Apparently, Liam knew how to cook.

Orlando cleared his throat. He never wanted to lie to Liam, no matter what. He didn’t think the council would do anything about it, anyway. Once they finally realized that Liam was the wrong person, they’d apologize and try to brush everything off. Surely they wouldn’t care that Liam knew about the assassins. They’d sent one after him, for fuck’s sake.

“Like how were you approached to be part of this program?”

Liam asked.

“That’s what it was, right? A program that taught you how to be an assassin.”

Orlando leaned back against the counter. It was clear his mate knew what to do with the knife and the cauliflower, which was incredibly sexy and distracting. Liam deserved answers, though, and Orlando wanted to give them to him.

“That’s exactly what it was,”

he confirmed.

“I don’t know how they select the people they think might be interested, but I was training to be an enforcer, and someone just showed up at my door to talk to me about it one day.”

Liam frowned.

“That seems incredibly dangerous.”

“I’m sure they looked into me before making that move. They had to know I would probably say yes, just like everyone else in the program.”

“Still. It seems like a risk, but maybe I shouldn’t be surprised since this is coming from the people who didn’t even check if I was the right Liam Portman.”

Liam was bitter about that, and Orlando couldn’t blame him. He was angry, too. These people had put his mate at risk. Liam was as innocent as they came, and his life was in danger.

“So they contacted you and asked you if you wanted to become an assassin?”

Liam asked.

“It was a bit more complicated than that, but not by a lot. They were cautious when talking to me, and when I agreed that I was interested, they had me do a bunch of tests. They wanted to know if I could actually do it.”

“And clearly you passed those tests with flying colors.”

“I did. It was mostly physical stuff, but I also talked to a psychiatrist and went through a bunch of medical tests. Anyway, I made it, and I moved into the facility.”

Liam had been about to gather the cauliflower, but he stopped. He paused for a moment, then turned to look at Orlando.

“Of course. The facility in town everyone wonders about. They’re training assassins.”

“They are.”

Orlando wanted to continue apologizing even though he had nothing to do with the situation at hand. Instead, he opened a cupboard and took out a pot. He offered it to Liam, who took it with a nod and started piling the cauliflower in it.

“So you moved into the facility and started training.”

Orlando nodded.

“I did. I don’t want to bore you with the details, but it was very physical. It was clear when someone wouldn’t be continuing, but I reached the end of the program.”

“Had you already decided you didn’t want to be an assassin?”

“I was keeping my options open, but yeah. I knew I wouldn’t say yes before the end.”

“Why did you continue?”

“I guess I wanted to prove something to myself. We all knew how selective the program was. I was proud of the fact that they’d chosen me, and even prouder that I’d gotten that far. I still am, even though I realize it’s fucked up.”

Liam shook his head.

“It’s not.”

“I’m proud of having been trained as an assassin. It is a little fucked up.”

“Maybe a little, but what you’re proud of is to have been strong enough to get through it. As you said, it’s selective. They didn’t choose a lot of people to be part of their program, and even fewer made it through. You showed strength and resilience, and that’s something to be proud of.”

Orlando hadn’t thought he’d hear those words from his mate. He hadn’t wanted to make it sound like he was proud of being able to kill people, but Liam was right. Finishing the program made Orlando special in a way.

It might also lose him his mate.

“Once the training’s over and all the tests have been passed, the trainers talk to every person who made it through. They’re the ones who select who’s going to be an assassin in the end, but of course, everyone makes their own final decision.”

“And you decided to say no.”

“I realized I couldn’t say yes a while back. I finished the program, but I was trying to come up with an alternative. It’s not exactly something you can put on your resume, and I’ve been training for a few years now. I was offered a job with the council, something different, but I declined.”

“How come?”

Orlando shrugged.

“I realized that life wasn’t for me. I’m grateful to the council for everything they do for our community, but I don’t want to work for them.”

Liam covered the cauliflower with water and left the pot in the sink. He turned and leaned his hip against the counter. Orlando could feel him watching him. He wasn’t sure what to do, but he told himself not to freak out.

“What do you want to do, then?”

That was something Orlando didn’t know how to answer.

“For now, I have no idea. The council’s paying for this apartment and everything else and giving me the time to come up with something, but I’ve been struggling.”

“And everything that happened today isn’t helping.”

Orlando snorted.

“That’s an understatement. I can’t focus on finding a job when I have to think about you getting hurt. You’re my priority.”

“And I’m grateful for that.”

Liam hesitated.

“I know it didn’t look like it. I’m sorry I blocked you out for a bit, but I needed some time.”

“It’s fine.”

“It’s not, but thank you for saying that it is. I honestly don’t have any idea what to do with any of this. If it had only been one thing, I might’ve been able to wrap my mind around it, but I’m being hunted for something I didn’t do, and there’s also you. I don’t know where to start.”

“You don’t have to start anywhere.”

“I can’t exactly ignore the fact that I’m being hunted by a professional assassin.”

“I know it’s going to be hard, but I promise I’m doing everything I can to get you out of this mess. I’ll protect you, whatever happens.”

“I’m not worried about that. I know you’ll protect me.”

Orlando was relieved. He hadn’t wanted his mate to think he’d changed his mind. No matter what happens between them in the end, Orlando would always keep Liam safe.

“I also won’t push you when it comes to the mate thing.”

Liam cocked his head.

“Mate thing?”

“I know that keeping you safe and stopping the council has the priority. I’ll focus on that and give you time and space to wrap your mind around the fact that we’re mates.”

Liam was already shaking his head by the time Orlando was done speaking.

“I never said I needed time or space.”

“You said you were overwhelmed, and I don’t blame you for it. Your life was flipped upside down this morning, so of course you need time.”

“Don’t tell me what I need. I know it better than you.”

“Probably, but meeting your mate is important. I don’t want to rush into anything. I don’t want you to make decisions you’ll regret.”

“You’re my mate. How can I regret any kind of decision I make when it comes to you?”

Orlando blinked. He hadn’t expected that answer, and he wasn’t quite sure what to make of it. He wanted to believe that Liam truly was okay with them being mates, but he was hesitant.

“Well, I need some time. I didn’t expect to meet my mate this morning when I went to the community garden.”

“I don’t think anyone would have expected you to find your mate while he was being threatened by a woman you consider a friend.”

This situation really was fucking complicated, wasn’t it?

LIAM WAS RELIEVED THAT he finally had the answers to some of the questions that had been plaguing him. He didn’t know everything, and he doubted Orlando would tell him every detail he wanted to know, but this was a good start.

He still wasn’t quite sure what to think of Orlando. He couldn’t understand how someone could train to kill people for a living. Orlando had refused the job when it had been offered to him, and Liam understood that he’d been trying to prove something to himself, but still. He’d gone into it knowing what he was expected to do.

But he had said no. That was what Liam needed to focus on. Yes, Orlando was trained to kill people, but as far as Liam knew, he’d never killed anyone. He could ask to be sure, but he was afraid of the answer, and he wasn’t ready for it. Hopefully, this mess would be over soon, and then he could ask Orlando for more details.

He grabbed the pot from the sink and moved toward the stove. Orlando followed, clearly curious about how Liam was going to cook the cauliflower.

“I grow them at the community garden,”

Liam explained as he turned the heat on.

“That’s how I know how to cook them.”

“The community garden is important to you, isn’t it?”

“It’s the thing that I’m going to miss the most.”

Since Liam was in hiding, he couldn’t go back to the garden. It would be stupid, considering that was where Cynthia had found him the first time around. Liam wasn’t eager for a repeat of that, so even though he wasn’t happy about not going to the garden, he knew he didn’t have a choice. He liked his heart still beating, thank you very much.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever eaten cauliflower,”

Orlando confessed.

Liam frowned at him.

“It’s a common vegetable.”

“It scares me a little. It’s so big and white.”

“It’s a vegetable. It won’t hurt you if you try to cut it into pieces.”

“I wouldn’t be too sure about that,”

Orlando grumbled.

Liam had no idea what to make of his mate. Orlando was supposed to be intimidating and mysterious. He was a professional killer, after all. Instead, he was sweet and kind of goofy. He was fiercely protective, but it didn’t take away from the lightness in him. It was a lightness Liam sorely needed, and he was glad to have it.

Eventually, Orlando moved away from the stove and got distracted by his phone. Liam decided he needed to warn his mother that he wouldn’t be staying in his apartment for a bit in case she decided to come around. Besides, he had something massive to tell her.

He wasn’t supposed to tell anyone about the assassins, but he trusted his mother. She wouldn’t tell anyone if Liam asked her not to. She’d be worried sick, but hopefully, the fact that Liam’s mate was involved would help.

It hadn’t helped Liam, but there was still time.

“Shouldn’t you be at work?”

his mother answered when he called.

“Well, hello to you too, Mom. Yes, I’m fine. There’s a reason I’m not at work, and I’m about to tell you, but I kind of wish you’d said hello first.”

“Hello,”

his mother said dryly.

Liam snickered. Even when he was terrified and in hiding, his mother always managed to make him smile.

“Seriously, though, there is a good reason for me to be home. Well, I’m not home. I’m staying with a friend.”

“A friend, or a friend?”

Liam sucked in a breath.

“With my mate. I’m staying with my mate.”

The silence on the other side of the phone was absolute. Liam lowered the phone to check that he was still connected, and he was. He’d managed to shock his mother into silence, a feat he hadn’t realized was possible.

“Liam Portman,”

his mother started.

Liam almost winced at the name. Even though it was his name, it was tainted by everything that was happening. When he thought about it, he couldn’t help but wonder what the other Liam Portman had done that had earned him a target on his back. The council wanted him dead, and from what Orlando had said, they usually had very good reasons to want people dead. Was he a murderer? Maybe something worse?

“You’ve met your mate, and you didn’t call me right away?”

“I was a bit busy almost getting killed,”

Liam murmured. He was sure that Orlando could hear him and would listen to the conversation. He’d stop Liam if he didn’t want him to talk about all of it. He probably knew Liam was on the phone with his mother, anyway.

“That’s not funny.”

“It’s not supposed to be. I’m going to tell you something, but you need to keep this a secret from everyone, including Dad.”

“If you’re in danger, I have to tell your father.”

“You don’t have to do anything. Mom, please. I shouldn’t be telling you any of this. You could get both of us in trouble.”

After a few seconds, she sighed.

“Fine, but know that I don’t like lying to your father.”

“You won’t be lying to him.”

“Lying by omission is still lying. Now tell me what’s going on.”

“Someone wants another Liam Portman dead, and they mistook me for him. I was attacked while at the community garden, and my mate saved me.”

“They made a mistake? Does that mean you’re safe now?”

“Not exactly. Orlando needs to convince the people who hired this professional killer that there’s been a mistake, but he’s not sure how to reach them. I’m staying in his apartment at the moment.”

“But you’re safe, right?”

“As safe as I can be with someone who trained to be a professional killer protecting me.”

“Please tell me you’re not talking about your mate.”

“Fine. I won’t tell you that I’m talking about Orlando.”

“Orlando? Is that his name?”

Orlando’s name sounded weird coming from Liam’s mother. Eventually, these two sides of Liam’s lives would blend, and it would stop being odd, but they had a long road ahead of them before that could happen.

“It is. He’s a jaguar shifter, and he used to work for the council.”

“You said he was trained to be a professional killer.”

“He was. I know this sounds unbelievable, but I promise I’m not lying.”

“I never thought you were. How do you feel about your mate being trained to kill people?”

Of course Liam’s mother knew what his problem was with this whole thing.

“It makes me uncomfortable.”

“But you’ll still give him a chance?”

“I think I’d never forgive myself if I didn’t. I just don’t know if I can do it.”

“Well, you don’t have to know right now. You promise that you’re safe? I’d suggest calling the police, but something tells me your answer would be no.”

“Orlando has connections.”

“That makes him sound like he’s in the mafia instead of a professional killer. Are you sure you’re safe? Because I don’t care who’s coming after you. They’re going to have to go through me if they want to hurt you.”

Liam could only imagine his mother fighting Cynthia.

“I’m as safe as I can be considering the circumstances. I don’t want you to worry.”

“How am I supposed not to worry? You just told me someone was trying to kill you.”

“I also told you that I have everything under control. Well, Orlando does.”

“He might be your mate, but I don’t know him. I don’t know if I can trust him.”

“He’s my mate.”

“That’s good enough for you to trust him, but I’m your mother. The only person I fully trust with you is your father, and I have my doubts about him, too. He lost you at the mall too many times.”

She sighed.

“I don’t like any of this, but I’ll do what you want me to do. I want you to be safe. Maybe you could take a vacation somewhere.”

Something told Liam that Cynthia would find him no matter where he went.

“I might have only met Orlando today, but I’m his mate. You know how important mates are to shifters. He won’t let anything happen to me.”

“I sure hope not because if he does, he’ll have to answer to me. He might be your mate, but I’m your mother.”

Liam was afraid of Cynthia, but he was terrified of his mom when she was like this. If Orlando knew what was good for him, he’d make sure Liam came out of this in one piece. If he didn’t, Orlando would have to face Liam’s mother’s wrath.