Page 16

Chapter

Fifteen

GRACE

T he wall behind me was almost too cool.

The chateau’s old-world style housed far more than blood-soaked secrets amidst the history built into the framework itself.

From the moment I’d ascended the steps, my pulse had begun to race.

Lunchbox and Voodoo were here, but I hadn’t seen them and I didn’t dare look at them.

The fact I was burning up made the chill of the stone all the more desirable.

I’d never been good at gymnastics and yet here I was, navigating this balance beam to dangle myself out here like chum for the sharks swimming in this oversized tank.

Though, calling the wealthy men and women who made their trade in trafficking human beings , sharks might really be unkind to the animals.

Bones’ calm, almost detached voice kept me grounded. Nothing seemed to ruffle him. I might want to give him shit about it, but I also really needed the steadiness so I wasn’t going to complain.

The man they called O’Rourke, studied me like I was a mystery he needed to decipher. He’d dismissed the other like he wasn’t remotely an issue and not only had the man retreated, he’d left the playing field entirely.

It was just me and O’Rourke. The man smelled like designer cologne, the musk rich and overpowering.

It seemed to complement his expensive violence but it did nothing to disguise it.

His hand on mine was warm, firm, and perfectly rehearsed.

This man knew exactly who and what he was.

No pretense existed for him and that made me far more uneasy than I’d been when I woke up shackled in hell’s waiting room.

When he let his gaze linger on my lips, I softened them to hint a smile. The seconds seemed to just go on for infinity. Surely one of us should have said something by now, but he’d barely responded to my tease.

“Come,” he murmured, pulling me from the wall. “Let’s talk somewhere quieter.”

“Stay in public,” Bones ordered. His clipped tones soothed my rabbiting heart. “Don’t let him isolate you anymore than you already are.”

I could have lived without the last part.

“Only if you promise not to bite.” I played coy, dropping my voice to something huskier. In the low-light of the mezzanine, O’Rourke’s eyes were shadowed. But his nostrils flared and that gave me the boost I didn’t realize I needed.

O’Rourke chuckled, bringing my hand back up to his lips and this time, he pressed a kiss to my palm. When his mouth lingered there, I braced for the feel of his teeth. He didn’t disappoint, scraping the kiss down to the heel of my hand then my wrist.

The bite wasn’t erotic or inviting, it was pain. Pinching pain and daring me to say something. I clenched my teeth, refusing to give him the satisfaction. A mockery of a smile twisted his lips as he straightened.

“No promises,” he said finally, as if he hadn’t just proven his point. “Now, come this way.”

He didn’t wait for me to agree, pulling me through the archway and into a room that was decorated with velvet couches, heavy curtains, a hearth with a lit fire waiting along with glasses that had been poured.

O’Rourke closed the door behind us and it gave me the opportunity to move away from him and study the room. I also spared a glance down at my wrist. The rip of skin was visible as was the livid bruising already appearing.

Great. I probably needed shots after that.

“You have me at a disadvantage, Mr…”

“Declan,” he said, easily enough. His American accent was relatively generic and it didn’t betray any region. “And I know who you are, Grace.”

My spine stiffened as a new shock registered.

His smile was not friendly. “You don’t mind if I call you Grace, do you? I feel like you and I know each other very well.”

“Do you?”

“You’re the girl they pulled from the New York shipment. The reason Gallo has gone missing and Dubois is raging all about Monaco regarding the raid and other events. You are one half a gorgeous set, but you were the one meant to be nothing but a memory.”

His voice was smooth. Like a scalpel.

“He’s baiting,” Bones said, the crisp note in his voice hard. “Keep control.”

For all the distance in Declan’s eyes, he wasn’t unaffected by me. Spreading my arms, I added just a little sway to my step as I pivoted to face him. Yes, his gaze went to my chest, then to my legs.

“I’m a girl with options, Declan .” The name was so much more sexier than the man. Pity. “You planning to make me one?”

Amusement filtered through his expression as he moved to where the wine and the glasses waited. “Not exactly. You see, Grace—I really do love your name. Simple. Elegant. Like you. Then, there is you and you’ve already made yourself… very interesting.”

He took the time to fill each glass with the red wine. It looked like blood in the firelight. When he held out to me, I had to prowl closer to accept it. Avoiding touching him while I took the glass was a win.

“You’re doing fine,” Bones said, the razor-wire tension in his voice an anchor “You see a weapon, you give me the word.”

They were out there. Voodoo. Lunchbox. Alphabet. Bones.

I wasn’t alone. “Tell me something, Declan,” I coated the words with a little honey. Nothing but some sweetness to own the moment. “What do you want?”

“To—”

“What do you want, really?” I cut off whatever charming response he was about to offer. “You asked if they sent me or was I a gift that you were promised—then you say you know who I am. So let’s cut to the chase. What. Do. You. Want ?”

It was like channeling my sister as I fired off each word. Amorette could put a person on the spot, deconstruct their arguments and never let them get off the subject she wanted discussed.

Declan’s smile faltered. A brief crack in the facade of his charm. Brief but real. “Death is expensive, Grace. Some of us learn to leverage it.”

Ice slid down my spine.

“I wouldn’t be in such a hurry to demand things from me.” He stepped closer, close enough to feel the heat that rolled of of him. Close enough to let me see the scar just beneath the open collar of his unbuttoned tux.

A bullet wound.

I’d seen similar scars on the guys.

“You don’t have to run anymore,” he told me, brushing the hair off my shoulder. “I can make you disappear the right way. Set you up so you will always be taken care of…”

The urge to vomit was right there.

“I swear if he fucking touches her again,” Voodoo swore.

“Hold,” Bones said, his confidence pouring into me and helping me to lift my chin. “She’s got this.”

“I’m not running, Declan.” I made his name a taunt as much as anything. “I’m shopping.”

Honestly, I was making this up. The guys knew him. He was tied to the syndicate or whatever that hosted the auctions in Monaco. Moreover, he knew who I was. That had to be enough right?

Not that I thought whatever we had would get him arrested so much as confirmed as the bad guys.

“We’ve got company,” Bones said. “One of ours?”

“Nothing here,” Voodoo said. “Lunchbox?”

No response.

Declan chuckled, tracing his fingers down my arm to my hip. His light grip didn’t offer any kind of threat.

Yet.

“Lunchbox. Where the hell are you?”

Nothing.

My pulse sped up as Declan set his wine glass down then took mine and put it to the side. Neither of us were drinking. Why wasn’t Lunchbox answering?

“South wing.” His calm voice nearly made me sag. “Setting a low-level flash burn on the backup grid. Just in case we need a scene.”

“Goddammit. That wasn’t the call.” Bones wasn’t happy. Why did his snarling make me feel better?

“Neither is letting her go dark with a ghost in a suit.” Dislike kissed each of Lunchbox’s words. “I want her out of there.”

“Grace,” Declan asked, his lips practically stroking my cheek. “Are they listening to us?”

I laughed. Really laughed.

It was almost a hysterical giggle that burst out of me, refusing to be contained. “Wouldn’t that just ruin the fun?” I slapped a hand against his chest and pushed myself away.

“Grace, full abort. Get out. Now.” Honestly, I was with Bones on this one all the way. I wanted out of here.

The lights flickered all around us, the chandelier dimmed and then there was a pop as the lights themselves went out. O’Rourke dragged me back toward him even as he turned.

One distraction was all I needed. I slammed my knee upward right into his groin. He swore, but I’d already wrenched myself away. The doors exploded open, guards crashing into the room. Shouts came from downstairs. Screams.

“Gracie, drop.”

Something hit the floor even as I registered Lunchbox’s warning. I dropped. Then a flashbang exploded. The light dazzled and the smoke made me cough.

Lunchbox and Voodoo appeared through the smoke like something right out of an action movie. They each took out a guard. The wild grin on Lunchbox’s face captivated me.

“Hey Dick-lan,” Lunchbox said as he held out a hand to me. When I clasped his, he pulled me to my feet. “So not glad to see you again. Next time a lady tells you she wants to go, accept it and get the hell out of her way.”

I didn’t even get a look back at Declan before Lunchbox threw something else and it detonated against the bar. Flame licked out over the old wood and made a path straight for the alcohol.

“Get back-up up here, now ,” Declan shouted from somewhere, but Lunchbox pulled me with him as we moved. He weaved through the smoke and the chaos. I lost track of Voodoo. I lost track of where anything was.

We were out on the mezzanine then into another room, then out doors where crystal clear air filled my lungs. Smoke billowed from inside and people screamed. The evacuation below was chaos.

“Time to go,” Voodoo said as he arrived next to us. The doors closed and they both glanced at me. “Lose the shoes and climb on Lunchbox’s back, Firecracker.”

I slid right out of them and made a leap even as Voodoo helped. Then we were all going over the edge.

Closing my eyes, I held on for dear life. Then we were on the ground.

“You’re clear through the gardens,” Alphabet said. “Bones is on the way to meet you. You have one minute, guards are incoming.”

“Can you run on bare feet?” Voodoo asked as I wiggled down.

“Yes.” Because right now I had no choice.

“Stay with Lunchbox.” He nodded. “I’ll cover.”

Hand in hand, we raced through the darkened garden. Gun fire erupted sporadically behind us. Worse, there was breaking glass erupting behind us. An alarm went off on Lunchbox’s wrist.

“Down,” he ordered, pulling me to him and all but rolling me beneath him even as Voodoo landed on top of us. The next boom that came was a lot louder. Debris rained down.

“What the fuck was that?” Voodoo demanded as they both pulled me to my feet.

“Boomer on their wine cellar to let their guests out. They’re going to be busy and those people didn’t need to be down there.”

“East gate,” Bones growled. “Now.”

Thankfully, that wasn’t that far and as sore as my feet were, I was almost floating by the time we got there. Four men lay in a heap just inside the gate.

Guards.

None of them were moving.

Or breathing.

Bones held out his hand. It shouldn’t have surprised me that he picked me up and sprinted with me. He’d done the same when we’d had to leave the guys before. But this was different.

The guys were with us for one.

They didn’t slow down as they raced through the dark and I held on, trying to make myself small. When we got to the van, he set me down inside it.

“You did good,” he murmured, touching a hand to my cheek. “You did real good.”

I blew out a breath. Lunchbox was climbing in the driver’s seat as Voodoo slid into the back with me. Then the vehicle was starting and I sagged into the seat.

“Nothing went to plan,” I said, panting. “How did I do good?” The plan hadn’t called for them to extract me with bombs .

“You adapted,” Voodoo said, cupping my cheek. “Went with it. Followed orders. That’s why you did good, Firecracker.”

“Always did like it when a plan has some wiggle room,” Lunchbox said almost cheerfully.

“Even if we have to make it ourselves,” Alphabet commented drily.

“Exactly.”

Another laugh bubbled out of me. They were crazy.

We were all crazy.