Dante's Angel (18 page)

“Because my
father won’t be able to help coming to track down his wayward daughter once he
knows where I am. He won’t know Paul will follow him, but that’s what will
happen. My father is Jin Tao…the owner of Tao Technologies. That’s why it will
only take one picture.”

Silence met
her statement.

Finally,
Hunter broke the stillness when he said, “Yeah, I guess he can find you, seeing
as the man owns his own fucking satellite and all. Christ, he probably has
facial recognition programs running daily searching for you.”

“Holy shit,
your dad is a billionaire. I just bought the latest Tao Tech computer for work,
and it cost me an arm and a leg,” Hammer muttered in disbelief.

“I may be a
little pissed at you after all, since I paid for the beers the other night,”
Sam said when she noticed how uncomfortable Zoe looked. “Then again, it was my
turn, so I guess I have to give you a pass.”

Zoe shot her a
grateful smile. “Thanks.”

“After the
anniversary party, we’ll have to be ready,” Dante said, getting back to the
point. “I want Zoe protected around the clock after the pictures are posted and
Jessup leaks her location to his agency.” Facing her, he added, “I also want to
show you how to shoot a gun, just in case.”

“No need,”
Nikita said. She’d been surprisingly quiet during the conversation so far. “She
goes shooting with me and Sam every few weeks.” When all the men in the room
simply stared at her in stunned silence, Nikita shrugged. “What? It’s fun.”

“Now, that’s
what I call real girl bonding time.” Sam let out a happy sigh, then bumped her
fist against Nikita’s.

“You women are
a menace,” Storm accused. “And now I have Zoe running around with a firearm and
no license. Don’t say it, I know she needs to protect herself, but damn it,
this shit is giving me a headache.”

Dante gritted
his teeth. “You never told me about that.”

Zoe just
blinked at him innocently. “What do you think I do on my days off?”

When Sam
snickered, Dante turned to glare at her.

Brix stroked
at his chin with one hand, looking thoughtful. “You do realize that even if
this works, this doesn’t guarantee that the rest of the family won’t come after
Zoe once we take this Paul bastard down.”

“I know,”
Dante said wearily. “But we can hope that they will use him as their fall guy
and put an end to this shit. If they come after Zoe after Paul is gone, that
will only bring more heat down on them.”

The
conversation turned to Zoe’s protection detail, with Sheriff Wyatt taking the
lead on that, and Jessup offering suggestions. Hammer told them he would be
asking a few of his people at the gym to keep an eye out, while Brix was put in
charge of organizing the bouncers at the bar.

 
Hunter sat back, thinking about the situation
as the planning continued. A few minutes later, he watched as Nikita quietly got
up and headed toward the front door while everyone else was distracted. As
someone who would be instrumental at figuring out how to keep Zoe safe, it didn’t
sit right with him that she wasn’t contributing anything to the conversation.

And that
immediately put him on guard.

Nikita could
be sarcastic, cutting, and mean as a snake, but what most people didn’t realize
was that she was at her most dangerous when she went quiet. Besides working for
her part-time at Ink This, Hunter also thought of Nikita as one of his closest
friends…maybe even like a sister. Well, a surly, volatile, slightly psychotic
sister, but hey, every family had its issues.

But the one
truth Hunter knew down to his bones was that she would never walk away from a
friend in trouble.

Cursing under
his breath, Hunter got up to follow her. He wasn’t surprised when Dare joined
him at the front door. Nikita had just made it down the front steps when both
men pushed out onto the veranda.

“Just where do
you think you’re going?” Hunter drawled out.

“You know.”

And because he
did, it worried him. “Damn it, Nuria.”

She met
Hunter’s glare with an icy cool look of her own. There was a long moment of
silence before she spoke. “Zoe is a friend.”

“We know,”
Hunter said. “But that still doesn’t mean you have to do what I think you’re
planning to do.”

“Go back
inside and stop nagging me.” She turned away from them, heading toward her
bike. Hunter and Dare quickly followed, not letting her get away so easily.

“This is going
to work,” Dare told her. “We’ll be ready for Paul and whoever he comes with.
We’ll keep Zoe safe.”

“I know.”

Her simply
agreement had Dare’s eyes narrowing. “Then where are you going?”

Hunter crossed
his arms over his massive chest as he said, “She’s going to New York.”

“Fuck, I was
afraid you were going to say that. You said you wanted out,” Dare added,
reminding her of her vow to stop working for the covert agency they had both
been a part of.

Her smile was
anything but humorous. “And we both know we never really get out.”

“Nikita—”

“You know Zoe
will never be safe while the Wei family is still out there.” She threw her leg
over her Ducati, but paused before turning her bike on when Hunter spoke again.

“I’ll go with
you.”

A small smile
softened her features briefly as she looked at Hunter before her expression
hardened to an impassive mask once more. “Stay here and watch the shop for me.”

He let out a
weary sigh. “Exactly how long will you be gone?”

“Until.”

Hunter let out
a low, vicious curse. “That’s not an answer.”

“That’s the
only one you’re going to get.”

“Becca’s gonna
be pissed if you just take off,” he pointed out.

“Tell my
sister…no, I’ll just contact her later.”

“Zoe is going
to be hurt if you leave. You know we can make some calls. There are others we
can point in the right direction who can look into this,” Dare said, trying to
reason with her. When he saw she wasn’t swayed he added, “You know everyone
will ask where you went. What do you expect us to tell them?”

Her violet
eyes took on a gleam of savage intent as she leveled a stare at them. “Tell
them I’ve gone hunting.”

She made a
move to start her bike, then swore as Zoe burst out of the front door. They
watched her run down the front steps and saw Dante come out onto the veranda
behind her.

“Give me a
minute with her,” Nikita said softly.

Hunter studied
her for a few seconds, then he gave in. “Good hunting.”

“Same to you.”

Dare and
Hunter started back to the front porch as Zoe ran up.

“Where are you
going?” Zoe panted out.

Nikita wanted
to sigh again, but she fought down the urge. “I’m leaving town for a while.”

Zoe’s dark
eyes widened in shock. “But…you…you’re leaving?”

Damned
emotions, Nikita thought. She’d planned to leave before she had to deal with
any of this shit, but now that she was caught, she couldn’t leave letting Zoe
think she was abandoning her. “I’m going to New York, Zoe.”

It took Zoe a
few seconds to catch on, and when she did, her jaw dropped open. “You’re going
after the Wei family.”

Neither
confirming nor denying, Nikita said, “The people here will keep you safe. Don’t
pull any of that stupid shit like ditching your bodyguards or running off on
your own. Work with them to end this.”

“I will, I
promise.” Zoe’s eyes filled. “You don’t have to do this for me.”

“I don’t know
what you’re talking about.” Nikita shift uncomfortably on the seat of her bike
at the sight of Zoe’s tears. She started her bike, drowning out whatever Zoe
said next, but before she could take off, Zoe flung herself at Nikita, wrapping
her arms around her in a fierce embrace. Nikita hesitated, then awkwardly
patting her on the back a few times.

“Please be
careful, and stay safe,” Zoe whispered.

Nikita simply
grunted in reply, then gently pushed Zoe away from her. “Later, Angel.”

Zoe stepped
back and watched as Nikita sped down the drive. It had startled her when Nikita
had called her a shorter version of her real name. She’d gotten used to hearing
it from Dante, but that was an endearment, not an actual name.

From Nikita,
it has sounded foreign…but nice.

From the porch,
Dante, Hunter and Dare stood silently while Zoe continued to watch Nikita’s
bike as it disappeared from view down the driveway.

“She’s going
to New York, isn’t she?” Dante asked softly.

“Yeah, she is,”
Hunter confirmed.

“Damn. A part
of me wishes I could go with her,” Dante admitted. “But I can’t leave Zoe. Paul
Wei will be coming here for her…I can feel it. I need to be here to take that
motherfucker down, but damned if I don’t want to make sure his family pays for
what they’ve done to her, too. Those bastards have used her for years.”

“Niki will see
it done,” Hunter assured him.
 

“She’s gonna
get herself killed,” Dare bit out through clenched teeth.

“No,” Hunter
said softly. “She’s got contacts that will help her take care of this.”

But at what
cost, Dare thought. His stomach rolled as he thought about the answer to that question.
Nikita might be a pain in the ass sometimes, but she was a friend who had
helped him during a time when he had been damaged and in need of some guidance.

“I have a bad
feeling about this,” Dare finally said with a sigh.

Hunter
grunted. “Doesn’t matter. She’s gonna do it anyway. Nikita knows that Zoe will
never be safe otherwise.”

“And I gotta
love that crazy woman for doing it,” Dante said. “Honestly, I don’t think she’d
even need my help.”

“Trust me, she
wouldn’t,” Dare said with conviction. He knew what she was capable of, and
could say it with certainty. Still, there was a worried look in his eyes as he
turned toward them. “I just don’t want her doing anything she can’t live with.”

Hunter sighed.
“That’s what you guys don’t get. There’s nothing she can’t live with. What
worries her is if we can live with her afterward.”

Dante watched
as Zoe wiped at her cheeks before turning to head back toward the house. He met
her at the top of the steps and pulled her close, feeling a little of his
anxiety ease as she leaned her head on his chest and her arms wrapped around
his waist.

It might have
been selfish of him, but Dante realized that he could forgive Nikita anything
if she could keep the woman he loved out of danger.

He just hoped
that it didn’t cost her too much of her soul in exchange for Zoe’s safety.

Chapter Twelve

Zoe paced her
apartment, feeling a little stir-crazy.

It was the
Tuesday after the anniversary party, and she’d agreed to stay indoors despite
the fact she had the night off. She knew that Brix, Sam and Jessup were close
by, but she wasn’t in the mood for company.

She’d woken up
late, then spent the afternoon cleaning to distract herself, but every second
indoors made her want to be outside in the gorgeous evening even more. Still,
she remembered the promise she’d given Nikita, and Zoe vowed not to make things
more difficult for the people trying to protect her.

After the
meeting with their friends last Monday, Zoe had agreed to put her violin in the
local bank vault so they didn’t have to worry about Paul Wei going after it.
Dante had insisted on it, despite her protests. The instrument was like a
security blanket for her. She liked knowing it was close by, even if she didn’t
feel like playing it.

Sensing her
sorrow, Dante had surprised her a few days later with another violin. It wasn’t
a very expensive piece, but it meant more to her that he would think to get it
for her than the actual value of the instrument. She had only played it once so
far, and the sound quality wasn’t as good as her other violin, but she enjoyed
watching Dante’s face light up as he listened.

They’d been
busy the rest of the week preparing for the anniversary party, and there had
been a brief moment of celebration when she and Dante had announced their
engagement, but all of that had changed once they found out that someone was
after Zoe. After that, she’d sensed a new tension in everyone that told her
they were operating under a heightened sense of awareness.

Combat
readiness was what Dante called it.

All the bar
employees had instantly gone into protection mode. No one fucked with one of
theirs…they’d make damn sure of it.

Dante had
suggested that Zoe stop working at the bar until the threat was over, but she
had argued against it. If she constantly had a protection detail with her, that
meant there would be less people watching over the bar if she wasn’t there.
He’d conceded since he felt she would be better protected surrounded by their
people, not to mention almost everyone in the bar was armed to the teeth.

She’d gotten
an earful from GT after Zoe had expressed some concern about her being in the
bar if Paul showed up. It was one thing for the ex-military bouncers to be put
in a dangerous situation, but the other bartenders and waitresses were a whole
different issue.

“You have
Sarah to think about…” Zoe had started to say.

“My daughter
is just fine with my mother watching over her while I’m at work. And I fucking
dare that cocksucking motherfucker to come in here to try and mess with you
while I’m here. I’ll load his goddamn face full of lead,” GT had raged.

The waitresses
had been a little less violent with their responses, but the gist was the same.
They would continue to work, and if anyone came in to mess with Zoe, they would
do what they could to help. It made Zoe weepy to think about all the
friendships she had formed in Breakers. The people she had come to know were
loyal and trustworthy. They had accepted her as one of their own, and she wasn’t
surprised when she realized that she loved every single one of them.

During the
week, Dante had made sure to take her shooting out in his backyard to check her
proficiency. She wasn’t expert level by any means, but she could hit the cans
he set up on the fence if she wasn’t too far away from them. He still wasn’t
happy that she had learned most of her skill from Nikita and Sam, but she
pretty much ignored him whenever he went into that particular rant.

Zoe might not
have shot at anything besides targets and cans, but she’d damn well do whatever
it took to protect herself and the people she cared about.

After he
deemed her skill satisfactory, Dante insisted she carry her gun with her
whenever she left her apartment, and because it gave him comfort that she would
be able to protect herself if needed, she did. It felt strange carrying a
weapon, but then again it seemed that everyone else in the bar was packing too,
so she was in good company.

Sheriff Wyatt
hadn’t been pleased when she confessed to having the gun, but instead of taking
it from her, he’d simply shaken his head at her and said, “Try not to kill
anyone.”

At the
anniversary party, Zoe tried to have fun, but she’d been too aware that
everything would change after that night. One of the high points for her had
been watching Malcolm Fox and Ellie Tate snuggled up in a corner booth
together. She and GT had joked about all of them potentially becoming family,
but deep down, Zoe wished it were true.

The party had
been a success, but it had simply felt like the calm before the storm. She’d
been photographed with the other employees in a big group picture, and she knew
that Dante had felt her trembling when he’d held her.

And that was
the first night since they’d been together that she and Dante hadn’t made love.

He’d held her
close through the night, but there was a distance between them that hadn’t been
there before. She could sense it. At first it had worried her, but she quickly
realized that he was completely focused on protecting her. It was her first
real glimpse of the soldier he had been, and the deadly purpose in his ice-blue
eyes frightened her a little even as it gave her comfort to know he would do
anything to keep her safe.

The photo had
run in the local news the following morning, and Dante had also posted it on
the bar’s Facebook page and website. Seeing it online had filled Zoe with a
sense of dread, but she also felt a new anticipation. She wanted her nightmare
to end, and she was ready for whatever was to come.

It had been decided
that she and Dante would reside at her place until Paul Wei showed up, since they
would be surrounded by help if needed. Jessup Carter had decided to stay in
town and had taken over the empty apartment across from hers. He’d made contact
with the US Marshals’ office and had to stall when they wanted to send agents
out. Zoe had been missing since the night Ashley had been killed in Portland,
and she was wanted for questioning. Jessup had pulled rank, speaking to one of
his old colleagues that he trusted to make them back off. His friend had
offered to send agents out to help with the trap, but Jessup had respectfully declined.

Dante and the
others hadn’t been as polite when they were told of the agents wanting to come
join them. They knew and trusted their people, and bringing in outsiders would
only complicate matters. Or more to the point, Dante had said the Marshals
would only fuck shit up and get in the way. Trying to be more diplomatic, Sheriff
Wyatt had also expressed a concern that they wouldn’t be sure if any of the
agents had been bought by the Wei family.

In the end,
they could only trust the people they knew.

When Dante had
insisted that Zoe take Tuesday off as scheduled, she knew that he was hoping
that Paul Wei would show up at the bar while she wasn’t there. Besides Brix
downstairs, Sam next door, and Jessup across the hall, there was also a few
police officers hanging around outside her apartment building. It wasn’t an
ideal situation, but Zoe felt safe enough, even if she did feel caged in.

Dante had been
gone all day, and Zoe knew he was planning on staying at the bar until closing.
Like it had been during the spring break rush, it was all hands on deck at The
Fox Hole, but no one complained about the extra hours. Malcolm had even started
working behind the bar again, and Zoe had laughed in delight when she saw how
much Dante’s father enjoyed interacting with the customers. She did feel bad
about all the extra work the staff was being given when she had the day off,
but she knew there was no point in arguing.

Over the last
few days, it was becoming increasingly difficult to hide what was going on from
her other friends who hadn’t be told about her situation. Kali, Becca, Evie,
Francesca and even Madeline had tried to make plans with her, but Zoe had put
them off. Dante, Dare, Hammer and the other men had been adamant that the women
were to be left out of what was going on, but Zoe had a feeling that her
friends knew more than their men realized.

She had even
had to come up with an excuse not to attend Evie and Dare’s barbeque that
Sunday. Evie had called her later that evening, and from their careful
conversation, Zoe could tell that her friend knew something was wrong. She
didn’t ask, though. Evie was more circumspect than that, but she did say that if
Zoe needed anything, she only had to call.

If Dante could
have gotten away with it, Zoe knew he would have locked her away until all this
was over. He’d even said as much. But the simple truth was, Dante knew she had
to have a part in seeing this through for herself, as well as for Ashley. She
had run—alone and scared—but she had survived. And she would get through this,
too, Zoe reminded herself.

But first she
had to get rid of some of her tension or she felt like she’d lose her mind.

Making a quick
decision, she headed into the bedroom. She hadn’t been sleeping well the last
few nights, and part of that was because she and Dante hadn’t been intimate
since the trap had been sprung. No, they’d been intimate, she corrected. He
still kissed her and held her close at night, but they hadn’t had any hot,
steamy sex since the night before the anniversary party.

It was a
secret that she hadn’t even told Dante yet, but over the last few years, she
had gotten into the habit of masturbating before she went to bed every night.
It helped her sleep and relaxed her. Since she’d gotten together with Dante,
she hadn’t had to worry about her little quirk. But right now she was feeling
so stressed that she needed something to take the edge off, and Dante wouldn’t
be home for several more hours.

It felt
naughty thinking about using one of her vibrators on herself now. Perhaps she
would tell Dante about it when he got home. Maybe it would get him so hot, he
would stop this self-enforced celibacy he seemed so determined to keep up until
he knew she was safe. Zoe was grinning as she sat down on the bed and opened
the bottom drawer of her nightstand.

Her smile
instantly disappeared when she looked down.

The drawer was
completely empty, except for one single item. Gone where her two vibrators, the
USB power cords, and even the cleaning spray she used on her toys, and in their
place sat a small smiley face pin.

The pin had
been something that all the employees at the bar had worn when they’d closed
down to host a party for young Shane Diaz and his big brother Nate after they’d
testified against the man who had hurt them. She usually kept the pin in a
basket with other random items in her living room, but there is was, smiling up
at her from the bottom of her damn goodie drawer.

That rat
bastard. Dante had stolen her toys!

Zoe felt a
wave of fury wash through her as she picked up the smiley face pin. She wanted
to heave the damn thing against the wall, but gripped it so tight in her hand
it almost cut her skin, instead. She kicked the drawer closed with her foot,
then stormed back to the living room to find her phone. Any other time, she
would have found the situation hilarious, but for some reason, right now it
made her so angry that she started to shake.

Stomping over
to the coffee table, she picked up her phone and called Dante. She ground her
teeth together as it rang, and by the time he finally answered, she was ready
for war.

“Hey, angel.
Is everything okay?”

Was everything
okay? Hell, no, everything was
not
okay. “No, it’s not, you son of a bitch.”

There was a
long pause before he said, “I sense a little hostility in your voice.”

She bet he
did. Zoe took a few deep breaths to calm herself down. “What the hell did you
do with my toys?”

When he spoke
again, she could hear him smiling, and it made her want to snarl. “Now, why
would you be looking for those, Zoe?”

Mimicking his
sugary sweet tone, she said, “Perhaps it’s because my man hasn’t been taking
care of business, and I need them.”

“Sugar, all
you had to do was ask and I’d be happy to take care of that for you.”

His freaking
Texas drawl was out in force now, and hearing it made her wet. It pissed her
off that he could make her so hot when she was so angry at him. Wanting to turn
the tables on him, she came up with a plan. “I’m not going to ask if you aren’t
interested enough to touch me on your own. Besides, I can take care of myself,”
she said smugly. “And I don’t even need those toys to do it.”

“Now, wait a
damn minute—”

“All I need
are my hands, Dante. I can make myself come with just two little fingers—”

“Don’t you do
it,” Dante growled out. “If you want to—”

“Don’t you say
it,” she warned harshly. “I swear to God, if someone hears you, I’ll kill you.”

“Fucking
hell.”

She heard the muffled sound of his voice when he spoke to someone as he
covered the phone. A few seconds later, the background noise was quieter when
he got back on the line. “If you want to come, you come to me, angel. You don’t
need those damn toys.”