Page 69 of Wraith (Deviant Assassin #1)

Wild

B lade’s fist slams into my jaw. White hot pain sears through me, the asshole isn’t pulling any punches and neither am I. It feels good. Fury is an emotion I know how to deal with, unlike the clusterfuck the rest of my life has suddenly become.

I cannot fucking believe what I just heard.

Kiera waited for this asshole all those years and he has a secret life? He doesn’t deserve my Heathen. I won’t let him touch her again. I’ll protect her.

My counterpunch lands flush on his solar plexus, doubling him over. He gasps a harsh, animal sound. We’re locked in a battle of wills, only Sable’s interested noises and our ragged breathing breaking the silence.

“You’re a fucking asshole,” I spit.

We’re a blur of motion, fists and feet a deadly ballet of rage. I’m fueled by righteous fury–a burning need to protect Kiera, to destroy Blade for the hurt he’s inflicted. He’s fueled by something darker, a possessive need, or maybe he just can’t stand to lose. I have no idea what makes him tick.

Then, a deep, throaty rumble cuts through the fury–a motorcycle engine revving? I look over as Sable shoots to her feet, heading for the window. Before she reaches it a deafening roar explodes outside. The motorcycle’s sound is unmistakable; Kiera’s leaving.

My head snaps up, my body seizing at the thunderous engine’s sharp acceleration. Blade turns too, his face a mask of fury and bewilderment, the shift as rapid and unexpected as Kiera’s departure.

Sable’s eyes widen, her brows bunching together. “That bitch stole my ride.”

The fight is over, but the war is far from won. The sight of the taillight sends cold dread through me.

Kiera’s gone. She left me behind, too.

“What the─” Blade starts.

“Brilliant, asshole. You drove her away, alone. Right into the arms of…”

“Looks to me like she wants out of someone’s arms.” Sable taunts.

“Shut the fuck up.” Blade growls, wiping away the blood from his split lip.

I glare at Blade, needling him as his eyes flash in response.

“You’ve got some nerve, Reznik. You have a whole other life, with a damn kid. How could you come back and start up with Kiera again, with us? Wasn’t ripping her heart out once enough? What kind of sick game are you playing?”

Sable cocks her head, a slow grin spreading across her face.

“Who’s Sally anyhow, Shadow? You really are a deviant.

” She looks me up and down as if I’m a piece of meat.

“A ménage à trois on one continent with a secret wife, and a kid, on the other. You should star in one of those reality TV shows. This is gold, you know?”

Blade’s eyes narrow, his gaze sharp. He huffs out a breath that’s part exasperation and part disbelief.

“Sally’s a dog, Wilder. A fucking mutt. I rescued her from the shelter. Now are we done with this bullshit?”

My jaw tightens. A dog? That’s it? That phone call was about… I’m just… even more confused and angry. I was about to unleash hell on the guy for having a pet?

What was I thinking?

“A dog?” I echo, incredulous. “You serious? What else is there? What else are you holding back that will hurt Kiera?”

My hands curl back into fists as I debate if I need to beat the truth out of him.

“As usual, Wilder, you’re fucking clueless,” Blade spits, his voice laced with barely controlled rage.

He comes at me again, but this time I’m ready, smashing his jaw with a brutal uppercut that backs him away and makes me grin savagely.

This feels less about rage now and more about what he did to Kiera, which means I may have to break his arms to really get it all out.

The pain he’s inflicted on Kiera feeds my rage.

I circle him, keeping the aggressive stance, the muscles in my arms throbbing with barely leashed fury. A tic starts up in his eye.

“You think you can just waltz back into her life, after what you did? After leaving her high and dry, to be preyed on by that psychotic bitch in the bathroom? You can’t even be honest, not with her, not with me.

” I’m close enough now the smell his blood invigorates me, see the tiny cut welling blood under his eye.

“You’re a predator, Blade. A manipulative bastard of a predator.

And it’s over. She’s not going to go back to you. ”

Blade’s gaze flickers to the door, then back to me. A parade of emotions storms through his eyes. For a moment, I can’t decide if he’s going to throw another punch, confess something else, or apologize.

“You don’t know anything about us. It’s not your call to make,” he snarls, his voice low and dangerous.

“Seems like she already made the call,” Sable taunts.

We ignore her. This has gone too far. It ends now.

“She’s made her intentions, her desires , very clear.” Blade rumbles, “We all have. So how about you take a fucking deep breath and calm down. We have a real problem to solve, not made-up family drama.”

“Family drama is way more fun than just killing people,” Sable says, and we both give her incredulous glares.

“A dog?” I ask, again, dumbfounded. “Rescued? By you?”

“Yeah,” Blade says. “I couldn’t shake the little shit once I let him out of his cage.”

“It’s your magnetic personality…” Sable jeers, then looks me up and down, “Then again, you did score the man-bun.”

“Enough, Sable!” Blade yells.

A light outside the window flashes then disappears, drawing all our attention. Instinctively we go silent. A twig snaps outside. Silence. Another muffled sound that can only be made by a person.

All three of us move silently. I stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Blade in this dimly lit, safe house, every nerve ending screaming at our forced proximity.

Sable slides back into the shadows, but I can’t focus on her.

Blade’s presence fills the space with a dangerous energy that sets my teeth on edge.

Partly because he’s a threat, partly because watching him move is like watching a shadow monster stalk its prey.

A flash of lightning illuminates his sharp profile, and I catch him checking the magazine in his Sig with practiced efficiency. The way his fingers dance over the weapon shouldn’t be erotic, but there’s something hypnotic about his motion that captures my attention. He’s deadly, and I like it.

Blade’s lips twist into a wry smile as he glances my way, almost daring.

“First time working together, Agent. Try to keep up.”

“Oh, I’ll keep up. You just focus on keeping your head.” I flash a grin, but inside, I’m dead serious. “You owe our girl one hell of an explanation.”

“Let’s fuck them up, then go find my wife,” he murmurs, voice pitched low enough I feel it more than hear it.

Six shadows detach from the tree line moving with the coordination that screams professional hit squad.

I shift my weight, adjusting my stance to cover the western approach while Blade mirrors my movement to watch the east. We don’t need words. Our bodies automatically find the optimal positions like we’ve trained together for years instead of wanting to kill each other minutes ago.

And then the chaos comes.

The first attacker comes through the window in a spray of glass.

Blade, as fast as he is reckless, moves like liquid mercury, his knife finding a home between the man’s ribs before the poor bastard can raise his weapon.

I’m already pivoting, my bullet catching the second assailant in the throat as he tries to flank us.

The metallic tang of gunpowder burns my nose even before I hear the return fire, loud and deadly in the cramped space.

The shadow to my left moves, and I pivot to see an attacker slump to the floor, with no obvious wounds. Sable darts away an oddly shimmering pink dust trailing in her wake.

“Stay on this side of the room,” she warns us as she passes behind me on the way toward the kitchen.

The next few minutes are a brutal dance of violence and precision.

Blade and I flow around each other like we share a brain, covering angles and eliminating threats with ruthless efficiency.

The way he anticipates my moves, compensating for my injured shoulder without a word, is almost erotic.

Or maybe I’m just that hyped up on adrenaline.

Who the fuck am I kidding. It’s arousing to be this close to him, especially with the promise of last night.

“This how you always handle yourself, or are you trying to impress me?” I shout over the scuffle as I grab the gun and fire a round into the fourth assassin’s leg, dropping him. Sable rushes forward and slits his throat with impressive efficiency.

Blade grunts, barely sparing me a glance as he tackles another attacker to the floor.

“Wouldn’t dream of it, Bennie,” he bites out, voice laced with venom.

There it is again—Bennie. It’s like a jab under the ribs, because he knows I hate it. But this time, something feels different. His eyes flash with a flicker of something that’s more than rivalry, he likes jacking me up.

“Focus,” he says, his voice unexpectedly calm, like he’s settling into a rhythm. “Four down, two more. And they’re after our girl.”

Which explains why they’re focused on scanning the room for the woman who looks exactly like their target.

As he says it, I feel it too. A low burn in my chest that has nothing to do with our enemies. I know he cares about her. But what guts me is how much he’s willing to show it. He puts everything he’s got into each move, fighting like it’s the last thing he’ll ever do.

Another bang, and I realize the last two have broken through the back entrance, firing shots that tear through the walls.

Blade ducks and rolls as he takes one down in a flash of brutal precision.

I meet the other head-on, landing a punch that cracks against his jaw, my muscles tense from the cold and the intensity of the moment.

The crack of breaking necks echoes in perfect unison between my hands and Blade’s—a deadly symphony of precision and inevitability.