Against the Dawn (31 page)

“Asher said you’re going out on a job tonight. Mithras?”

I nodded. A verbal response didn’t seem possible yet. My throat was still too clogged with emotion to speak.

“I know you’re taking Asher along, but if you’d consider it, I’d like to go as backup.”

Damn you Raif and your honorable nature
. I was trying so hard to hold on to my selfish anger. “I’d love to have you along.” My voice was nothing more than a ragged whisper, the perfect reflection of my emotions. “But Asher is the better choice. He’s as good as invisible. You’ve got too much notoriety, Raif. You’d be recognized in a heartbeat.”

“I’ll stay in the shadows,” he suggested. “Cloaked.”

It was tempting, but Asher was still the safer bet. I had no idea what to expect inside Atlas, and my knowledge of Mithras was limited. He might sense Raif’s presence whereas Asher could climb right inside the guy’s mind and convince him that he wasn’t even there. “No, Raif. You need to stay here with Xander. He seems a little on edge.”

Raif followed my gaze to the far wall where the practice daggers were embedded almost to the hilts. “You think?”

“This has to stop, Raif. I know what’s going on with his regent. Can’t you make him go home? Force him to make a stand now before the situation gets any more out of hand?”

“You know as well as I do that there is no
making
Alexander do anything. He refuses to leave the city unless one condition is met.”

“Then give him whatever he wants.” Surely it was that simple. Everyone here doted on Xander. How hard could it be to give him the one thing he wanted so he’d go home and make a stand for his throne?

Raif turned to look at me, one of his tawny brows cocked over his sapphire eyes. “He refuses to leave the city unless you leave with him.”

Well, crap
.

I might have considered tagging along with his stubborn ass if he dropped the charges against Tyler. But going with Xander back to his kingdom would only encourage him to try forcing a relationship between us and I refused to play with his emotions ever again. “You know I can’t do that.”

“I do. Which is why I wanted to accompany you tonight. Fires are beginning to crop up. Fires that I’ll be required to put out. It’s very likely I won’t see you much for a while.”

So much had changed over the past six months. I’d missed so much. “I’m sorry I ran away, Raif. I never should have gone to
O’Anel
. I was gone for way too long and—”

“Nonsense. I know your time there was short in comparison, but I’m grateful that you had a place to go and time to heal. And if my daughter had any part in that, it warms my heart even more.”

I couldn’t deny that Brakae’s presence was a balm for my soul. “She’s amazing, Raif. When the smoke settles, I’m going to take you there to see her again.”

“A kind offer considering the time you must sacrifice to do it.”

When had our relationship become so damned…formal? I wasn’t talking to my friend right now; I was having a polite conversation with a member of the royal family. This flat-out
sucked
. “You’d better go check on him,” I said after a while. I needed a few minutes alone to clear my head and I needed to get home soon and get ready to meet Lorik.

“I suppose I should,” Raif said on a sigh. I wondered if he ever tired of looking after his older brother. Xander certainly was a handful. “But before I go…I asked around about Mithras to see if I could learn anything that might help you in your mission.”

Mission. He made it sound so tactical and civilized. Not like I was going out to murder the SOB for a paycheck. “Oh yeah? Come across any juicy tidbits of gossip?”

“Those who serve him are fanatics. Acolytes. It doesn’t matter if he’s a god or simply thinks he is. The faith and belief of his followers is what makes him powerful.”

His words confirmed Ty’s assertions. Raif pushed himself up off the floor and held his hand out to me. I took it and let him haul me up beside him, grateful I didn’t have to stand on my own steam. Xander had unintentionally worked me out a little too hard. “Acolytes, huh? Sounds intense.” Knowing what I did and having already seen the evidence that Mithras had a cult of eager worshipers following him around, his growing power was going to make killing him a little tricky. Still, I was committed to seeing an end to this tonight. If I had to off him in a room full of glassy-eyed devotees, so be it.

“Keep your guard up no matter what, and don’t forget that there is nothing in this world that isn’t fallible.”

Yeah. Well, I used to think so, too. Until my little chat with Reaver the other day. But my knowledge of the Jinn was going in the vault for the time being and no one, not even my best friend, would be privy to what I’d learned. “I’ll keep my guard up. Promise.”

“Good girl.” Raif reached out and took my hand to bestow a light kiss to my knuckles. “Good luck tonight, Darian. And be safe.”

Goddamn it
. My eyes burned with unshed tears at Raif’s gallantry. I’d hoped to come here and warm up, get my head in the game and prepare for what I had to do tonight. Instead, I was a fucking wreck. Totally useless.

I leaned back against the wall and watched as Raif left the gym. The cold-hearted assassin I wasn’t. Not anymore. Asher walked in a few minutes later, his brow puckered. “Everything okay, Darian? You look a little wound up.”

I tossed him the practice daggers and went to the weapons wall to grab a new set. Taking my position in the middle of the mat, I turned toward him and adopted an offensive stance. “I need twenty hard minutes, Ash. And don’t go easy on me.”

Chapter Twenty-Five

“I told you to
stop
gambling.”

Azriel paced the confines of our house, his expression dark. Lorik had come in a panic, reeking of booze and god knew what else, begging Azriel to help him out of the mess he’d gotten himself into. This was going to be the straw that broke the camel’s back. I was certain of it. Azriel had reached his limit with Lorik and at this point, it might have been a better idea for him to deal with the gangsters than face Azriel’s wrath.

Lorik sat in a chair at the kitchen table, his clothes rumpled, expression tense. He looked as though he hadn’t slept in a week. Half-moon shadows hollowed his eyes and even his skin seemed to slouch with exhaustion on his face. A deep crease dug into his forehead and he gripped his hands together, the fingers intertwined, before he slammed them down on the tabletop with enough force to topple the sugar bowl a few inches away.

“I’m a dead man if I don’t pay Axler’s men by the end of the week.”

Lorik had been specifically instructed by Vasili to keep as far a distance from the Midwest crime syndicates as possible. He’d really stepped into it this time and was in way over his head with one of Detroit’s biggest criminal organizations. Abe Axler and his Purple Gang were about as dangerous a group as you’d find, and Axler already had several axes to grind with Vasili. No doubt they’d egged Lorik on, offering to float his bets with the knowledge that he’d lose it all without the hopes of being able to pay the money back. They could really stick it to Vasili either by killing his son or by using him to get to the old man. Smart, but equally ruthless.

“You’ve got to do something, Az. Lend me the money. You know I’m good for it. Or better yet, just get me the hell out of here. I need to lay low for a while. At least until the dust settles. Once Axler cools down, everything will be fine.”

Azriel’s gaze slid to me. We both knew that wasn’t true. Axler would hold a grudge until Lorik and Vasili were both dead. It was time for us to end our affiliation with the Armenian mobster. And his son. We didn’t need the attention a vendetta from Axler would bring.

“I’ve already talked to Vasili. He’s not paying off your debt and neither am I.”

Lorik’s head snapped up and panic lit his eyes. “So, what? You’re going to turn me over to Axler’s crew?” His tone escalated with every word. “You’ll let them kill me?”

“No, Lorik.” Azriel’s tone carried a warning, one I didn’t think Lorik had picked up on. “Though make no mistake, I told your father he should have turned you over to Axler’s men.” The look of betrayal on Lorik’s face had no effect on Azriel. “I’m getting you out of the city. Tonight. They won’t find you and you’ll be safe. But I swear to you, Lorik, if you if you can’t learn to curb your impulses, you’ll find yourself in more trouble that you can imagine. Tonight will be a dream compared to what awaits you. Do you understand me?”

Lorik nodded, his eyes wide. “I’ll behave. I’ll do anything you want. Get me out of the city.”

He let his forehead rest on the table and I crossed the room to speak privately with Azriel. “What are you up to?” I asked close to his ear. “Where are you sending him?”

Azriel pulled back and regarded me with a calm expression, though his eyes were shrouded with something dark and dangerous. “This is not your concern, Darian. We’ll send him away and be rid of him once and for all. Do you trust me?”

As though he even had to ask. “Of course I do. Do whatever you have to do. But get him out of here.”

My stomach felt like one of those boxes full of money that people step into and try to catch the bills as they fly around in a brisk swirl of wind. The nerves weren’t atypical—I always got a little worked up before a job—but this time was different. I didn’t like going into a situation blind. Without the opportunity to check out the layout of Atlas ahead of time, I had no idea what to expect once we got inside. Likewise, I had no idea as to the house rules. Would supernatural abilities and powers be neutralized inside the club? How hard would Mithras be to kill? And would his acolytes prove to be a problem?

Thank god I was taking Asher for backup.

“I’d love it if you didn’t work any of that mind control mumbo-jumbo on me tonight, okay?” I needed to maintain a laser focus and wondering if Ash was working any angles would only divide my attention and throw me off my game.

“Don’t worry, Darian. It’s going to take all of my concentration to keep myself under the radar in the presence of so many. One less mind to worry about is welcomed.”

Knowing Asher had my back was doing wonders for that swirling moneybox of nerves that was still creating chaos in my stomach. The last time I’d gone after a mark to finish a job, Kade had made me pay dearly for my efforts. Ash had been there for me then, I was glad to have him here for me now. I was dressed for my part tonight, playing Lorik’s enforcer to a T. My standard black, thick soled boots, and of course my duster. I slid the katana into the sheath strapped to my back and secured Xander’s enchanted daggers at my hips. To my belt I added six throwing knives.

“Ready?”

As Asher slung his sheathed sword over his shoulder, I pulled the hood of my coat up over my head to shield my head from the rain. I didn’t feel like entering the uber fancy secret club looking like a drowned rat. I was an accessory tonight. A tool for Lorik to use. It wouldn’t do to show up looking anything less than one hundred percent.

“Ready.” His eyes were lit with excitement, twin amber flames burning bright. He was like a kid on Christmas morning, bouncing with anticipation. If tonight went off without a hitch, I’d have to seriously consider working with a partner from here on out.

Asher arranged to have a car pick us up at my place and drive us out to the Industrial District. It wouldn’t have been a long trek in our incorporeal forms, but I was thankful that we didn’t have to deal with the rain. Another thing on my to do list: buy a damned car. As we traversed the city streets, it wasn’t lost on me who supplied the vehicle that was carting us around. I needed to wean myself off of Xander’s resources and learn to not count on him to always supply me with what I needed. I guess I hadn’t realized how dependent on him I’d become in the past couple of years. It wasn’t fair to put him arms’ length while simultaneously taking advantage of what he generously offered to me. If I was going to convince him to go back to his kingdom and take care of business, I needed to make a clean break.

“I’m worried that someone inside will be able to see through your mind games.” I still didn’t have a good grasp of what other supernatural creatures were out there and what they could do. “We need to form a plan to deal with it if it happens.”

“I don’t think it’ll be an issue.” Asher’s arrogance was admirable. “Don’t forget, Sidhe are pretty damned high on the power scale.”

“True. But you’re only half Sidhe, Ash.”

“Half is more than enough, Darian.”

Yup. Arrogant as fuck. But in this line of work, ego was a necessity.

As our driver pulled up to the enormous warehouse space that served as a front for the private supernatural club, I wished I had a little of my own arrogance back. After being knocked down a peg or ten, I was finally climbing my way out of the ditch, but I knew I’d never be that reckless, over-confident woman again.

“Just another day at the office, right Darian?”