Page 54

“Your brothers are pissing me off.” I balance the phone on the sink so he can see directly into the shower. “And you’re gonna watch me come because of it.”

Leaning against the tiled wall, I slide my fingers over my core, delving into the slickness between my thighs.

“Fuck, baby, I wish I could, but we’re about to land.”

“Oh, hell no! I am not being turned down by three of you!”

He laughs. “They turned you down?”

“Xavier is being a control freak, and Yale owes him a favor, apparently.”

“Ah, yeah, the taking-a-bullet thing. That is fair.”

I scream, the sound bouncing off the bathroom walls. “It’s not fair! I’ve gone from one man, to three, to none. That is not math I like, Zayden.”

“At least it’s taking the pressure off.”

Damn, that’s true. If I wasn’t so pissed off, I’d likely be spiraling into anxiety and self-doubt right about now. I’d be panicking over the lines we crossed, and wanting to call the whole thing off, but I’m … okay.

Maybe asking Yale and Xavier to do this with us was the right thing, after all. We’ve moved quickly, and I’m not afraid or embarrassed … it just feels like another day where Xavier has annoyed me. The only difference being I’m horny as hell and they’ve seen me naked.

“Well, if you’re gonna insist on not watching, I’ll just tell you a few things before you go.” I stride toward the camera and rest my arms on the sink to look directly at him. “Xavier turned me on so much with his Dom side that I ended up grinding myself against his thigh. Then, not an hour later, Yale was kissing me and playing with my nipples on the pool area floor.”

He runs his hand across his mouth. “Fuck, Silence. You can’t say things like that to me.”

“I was so … wet,” I whisper. “I nearly came just from him talking dirty to me.”

He stands. “Do not move. I’m going into the bathroom.”

“Nope!” I sing. “You can all get fucked—and not by me!”

I hang up.

Chapter 17

Zayden

The Agency appears in the darkness, and the sight of it still makes me take pause. My driver slows, as if he too is taking in the sight. I remember the first time I came here, into the deep woods of Seattle, thick forestry hiding the blood and secrets within the ivy-clad stone building. It looks the same, but the technology has been upgraded over the years. The heavy iron gates appear old, but they’re state of the art, and you’d never know your face was being scanned as you wait for security to allow you through. The guard, Peter, is more for show. He has a gun on his hip and is trained, but even if he was taken down, the gates are impenetrable. He doesn’t open them. A computer does.

Peter nods at us as the entrance swings open, the gravel crunching as we take the long, winding path to the property. Trees line either side, and soon, this drive will be heavy with snow. There are times I wish Silence could see it, because despite the monsters we create within, the place is beautiful.

But there’s no way in hell I’d ever bring my wife here.

We pull up at the front of the large home, and even though it’s late, the annex used as a shooting range is aglow. It’s always busy, and people tend not to sleep, because training is more important. Also, you’re more likely to be taken out by another recruit when your eyes are closed, even though sabotage is something we prohibited the moment we had the power to do so.

Trainees are recommended to us by crime syndicates all over the world, or we seek them out based on an already deadly reputation. Some show up after hearing about us, and we allow them in if they show promise. The goal is to create lethal, loyal killers. It’s the place Xavier, Yale and I found ourselves. I heard about the Agency through my dad’s only remaining friend. After he died, everyone jumped ship, but one man gave me three bus tickets, an address, and a recommendation letter. We never looked back.

I exit the car, and Envy is standing at the top of the steps, black hair swept into a high bun, dark eyes fixed on me, jaw tight. I’m not sure of her exact age, but I’m guessing she’s early thirties, like us. Her birth certificate no longer exists, something she said she burned a long time ago, along with memories of her family. That information is about the only personal thing I know about Envy, and she only revealed that after too much absinthe. She’s a quiet, powerful woman, which is directly at odds with what she’s wearing right now—bright pink pajamas with bunny rabbits on them.

“Don’t say a fucking word,” she snaps, pointing at me as I reach her. “They were a gift, and I’m not ungrateful.”

I hold my hands up in surrender. “A gift from Nyx, I’m guessing? Where is she?”

Envy scoffs and waves her hand. “Where do you think? She’s running amok somewhere when she should be asleep.”

Eight years ago, two recruits fell for each other, and one ended up getting pregnant. She hid it for as long as she could, even from the father, until she went into labor and gave birth to Nyx in the dead of night. When she told the father, he refused to be part of the baby’s life, so she did what any killer would do. She cut his throat and left.

Envy convinced the previous owners to let Nyx stay. We’ve all raised her in some way over the years, which means she’s smart and deadly when she wants to be.