Page 6 of Run, Starlight (The Royal Ballet Presents #3)

LUCKY

One foot after the other, I force myself to leave.

If I stay here a moment longer, I’ll end up going in and showing her what happens to girls who like being watched too much.

I’ll take her tight little cunt and be selfish for once in my damn life.

I’ll take her for my own instead of saving everything for my brother like I always do.

Would Enzo even know if I fucked her? What would all her followers think of the show I would put on?

I shake the insanity out from behind my eyes, not sure what about Marcella’s orgasm made me more animal than man, just like how I described my brother earlier.

I shiver at the thought. My pulse hammers, and I can’t remember the last time I felt anything so intensely.

My brother always feels something, but whether it's inspiration or insanity, I can’t say.

When I exit the dorms, I shove my sunglasses up my nose and curse as I make my way to the car.

On one side, I have Enzo with an obsession, and on the other, I have a chick with no self-preservation.

Then there’s me in the middle, somehow tempted to give them both what they want.

This is a recipe for disaster, and my cock is still achingly hard.

How do I keep my brother away from her when I don’t even want to?

“Where were you?” Enzo asks when I slide into the driver’s seat.

Guilt pours off me like the cheap perfume they sell in street stalls. I roll my shoulders back before starting the car. I don’t answer to my brother, and I surely don’t let him make me nervous unless it’s about what stupid, dangerous thing he can cook up next.

“Got caught up.” I don’t bother to lie, but I won’t share the express truth of the matter either. How would I even admit to him how deeply my distrust of him runs? If my brother is anything, he’s unpredictable.

“I got coffee.” He nods toward the paper cups between us but is unusually quiet and suspicious.

His eyes dip down to my overly tight pants, and I sit still rather than acting like anything strange happened.

The fact his mind went there at all tells me he’s more aware of my interest than I hoped.

Yes, he’s been pushing the idea of her relentlessly, but I’ve never given any indication I shared his interest. With my brother’s eyes on me, I quickly soften.

“Thanks,” I say as I lift my cup and take a sip.

It’s good, but it came from the little café near the dorms. Is he watching me after all this time?

He continues observing me as I drive, seeming to wait to see if an explanation is coming.

If anything, he’s going to admit he followed me and not the other way around.

“So where were you?” he finally asks as we’re leaving the city behind and only a mile or so from our destination.

“Since when are you up my ass, Enzo?” I shoot back. My brother usually couldn’t care about anything but his vision, which often means ignoring what’s happening with me.

“Just returning the favor after all these years.” My hands tighten on the steering wheel, but I don’t give him the satisfaction of a response.

The address Cygnus gave doesn’t look quite like I expected.

Our work takes us to a lot of apartment buildings, warehouses, and even a few mansions, but very seldom do we find ourselves outside a small house out in the ’burbs.

Whatever this guy did, he was reaching far outside his normal sphere of influence, and it was worthy of pissing off the most powerfully connected man in the city. I'm actually mildly impressed.

“I’ll call you in soon,” I instruct Enzo.

His fingers drum over his perfectly pressed pants, releasing the pent-up energy.

Enzo is not a patient person, and I’ve already kept him waiting.

He doesn’t care about doing the job right, keeping our noses clean and our asses out of jail.

Killing is practical for me. It takes the edge off the rage a little too hard to contain at times, but I don’t need it.

He’s a berserker, though, and barely pays enough attention to aim at the target.

I learned a long time ago that it’s best to only bring him in when it’s time for his particular brand of art.

As I approach the house, the sounds of a TV follow down the path.

Cygnus didn’t provide us with any information on who’s inside or what they’ve done.

There’s only one fate for people when he calls us in.

We’re not low-level enforcement. We’re a threat and statement wrapped into one.

I reach the front door, listening and deciding it’s a children’s show playing. Maybe he’s a pedo. That would track.

If there is a wife and some kids, I'll have a real hard time traumatizing them. My own past is enough to make me think long and hard about leaving witnesses to live with the aftermath, especially children. I don’t let the memories in, though.

I have work to do. So I knock with a peaceful cadence and wait until someone comes.

A little girl pushes open the door, and I give her a smile.

Her hair is long and blond but dirty. Little bits of all kinds of things are stuck in lopsided braids.

It looks like she did them herself. I’m not around kids much, so it’s not like I’m an expert or anything, but she’s got to be younger than ten.

She looks at me with distrust but not fear, and that’s unusual.

Ink covers most of my body, and my eyebrow has a thick scar.

I’m not the type anyone wants to have around their kid, and I usually make them nervous when they see me walking past. I’m nothing compared to what she’s seen, and I know how to smell a fucked-up situation when it’s right in front of me.

The girl is too skinny, and her bones stick out of her wrists.

Her eyes are intelligent, suspicious of me as she should be.

Whoever is in charge of her has been doing a very bad job.

I’m instantly on high alert, eyes scanning the block for signs of trouble or even someone looking out for her.

I find nothing. No one is even standing outside with a dog.

How strange. The block is lined with run-down houses.

This one might look like any other home in this suburb, but nothing regular is happening inside.

“Hi, sweetie,” I say very calmly. “What’s your name?”

She shakes her head, refusing to tell me, which is smart but also concerning. Most little kids don’t have reasons to guard themselves so intensely unless they know how bad the real world is.

I crouch to her level, trying to even the playing field and show her I mean her no harm.

She steps back, attempting to close the door on me, but that isn’t going to happen.

Cygnus might have sent me here, but now, I have my own reasons for staying.

My hands hold it open, forcing her to let me help her.

Her pretty brown eyes widen, and now she’s scared. Dammit, I don’t want to frighten her.

“Did you eat today?” I ask, sure that if she hasn’t, I’ve got my in.

She doesn’t answer at first, narrowing her eyes, before finally shaking her head.

Despite it being almost five in the afternoon, I’m not surprised, but I am angry.

I have a box of donuts in the car for Cygnus’s woman.

She has a fascination with them, and I learned fast that anything is okay by her if she’s fed.

I’ve had to bribe her a few times this week when we were following Marcella instead of Maeve.

Now, I always try to keep a stash with me in case I need to distract her and follow my brother.

“I have something in the car. Do you like donuts?”

She narrows her eyes but talks for the first time. “I can’t go to your car. But you can give me donuts before you leave.”

She nods, seeming to think about what she offered and determines it’s safe. Poor thing still has some innocence left if she doesn’t realize you shouldn’t take food from strange men either, but I’m proud of her for being so careful when she’s practically starving.

“Is your mom home?”

She looks over my shoulder to the parked car as if now all she can think about is the food. “Mama died.”

“I’m so sorry that happened. You must miss her.” I know I miss mine.

She covers her mouth like she just realized she wasn’t supposed to tell me that much.

“Your dad home?” I ask.

“Yes,” she whispers. “Sleeping. I shouldn’t be talking to you. ”

She doesn’t try to close the door, though, because she already has her sights set on the donuts. She’s a careful kid, but she’s too hungry to be too safe right now. I can work with that.

“I know you don’t want to say your name, but mine is Lucky. I want to talk with your dad, and while we talk, you can sit in my car by yourself and have the donuts.”

The kid looks over my shoulder at Enzo, waiting in the car. “Who is he?”

“That’s my brother, Enzo. He’s coming in to talk to your dad too. No one is going to be around you while you eat.” I take the car keys from my pocket. “And you can keep the keys.”

She giggles. “I don’t know how to drive.”

“Good.” I smile with a nod. “I don’t want you robbing me, huh? But you can keep the car safe while I talk to your dad.”

The gears in her head turn. She looks from me to the car and then over her shoulder, and when she does, I spot her dad passed out on the couch.

She watches him for a long moment, and I think she’s going to say no and close the door on me.

I can kick it down and remove her, but I’d prefer if she agrees.

I don’t want to upset her even more. She surprises me, though, when her eyes are back on me because she looks determined.

“Are you really here just to talk to Dad?”

I dip my chin. “We have business.”

“Did he hurt someone else? That’s why you’re here? Are you a cop?”

Her eyes shine when she asks. I’m something way worse than a cop, but she doesn’t need to know that. Every word coming out of this kid’s mouth adds an hour to her dad’s suffering. Today, he’ll pay for his many sins .

“Not a cop,” I tell her, and I watch when she deflates. “But I can help.”

“How?” she asks, though the door opens a little more.

I nod toward the car. “Let’s start with donuts.”

I back away and give her space. She’s clearly skittish, and I don’t want to crowd her.

She surprises me once again by following me, at a distance, her eyes scanning the street as if she’s ready to run at any moment.

Enzo sees me and the girl coming and jumps out of the car.

He doesn’t ask what I’m doing. It’s not the first time I’ve had to move an innocent party out of the way.

She still has the keys clutched in her hands and takes Enzo’s seat eagerly.

I grab the box of donuts from the back seat and give it to her, she doesn’t even look at me after that.

The girl is so hungry that she dives in at once, her mouth full of powdered sugar.

Satisfied with her safety, I ring Cygnus as I return to the house with Enzo.

“There’s a kid here,” I say.

Cygnus curses. “What the fuck? She’s supposed to be with social services already.” He pauses a second as he thinks. “I’ll send someone. Stay on task.”

“Send a woman. She’s scared,” I tell him. “I’m going in, but I'm not sure what awaits me. Enzo is with me. I had to leave her in my car.”

He knows what I mean. I should go in, do this in a clean way and then grab the son of a bitch and bring him to our place. Enzo doesn’t do things following a protocol, and since he’s coming in with me, I don’t know what this will lead to.

“I’m sending someone,” he replies. This time, his voice is hard. “Try holding Enzo back. Make sure to grab his computer. He has something he shouldn’t.”

I hang up when we are right at the doorstep. I look at my brother, imagining if for a second I can hold him back, and he blinks at me, unaware of my thoughts. When I push the door open, he asks me one question.

“Did he hurt the kid?”

“Yes.”

If he did something more than starve his own kid, I’m not sure yet, but that is enough in my books. Enzo nods, and something shines behind his eyes. For once, I don’t want to hold him back.