“She was supposed to be here an hour ago,” Azriel muttered as he dialed Lamb’s number for what had to be the hundredth time. Just like all the other times, she didn’t answer. “Where the fuck is she?”
“Giovanni and Merrily are on the trail of someone El Diablo put them on, but I can pull one of them off to find your woman if need be. She doesn’t seem like the kind of woman to stand you up.”
There was just the smallest bit of humor in Alexei’s voice that Azriel didn’t like. He glared at his brother, his only acknowledgement of the barb.
A moment later, Mrs. McDowell entered his office, a confused smile on her face. “I thought you were leaving with Miss Newsome? Is everything all right?”
“Lamb isn’t here, Grace. Have you seen her today?”
“Of course. She came by earlier. Just before lunch. I thought you’d be on your way with her by now.” She clasped her hands in front of her, a grin spreading her lips. “You take care of that girl. She’s a treasure. Just like my lovely Merrily.”
“That was four hours ago. Did she leave? If someone here’s kept her away from me there’ll be hell to pay!”
“Relax, Azriel,” Alexei said. “No one would try to keep that girl away from you. They like living too much.” He took out his phone, his thumbs flying over it for a moment. “There. If she was in the house, Giovanni can see what happened to her.”
Less than five minutes later, a ping sounded on Azriel’s phone. He snatched it up, looking at it intently. “She stood outside my office door for a short while before leaving in a hurry.” His brow furrowed, then realization dawned on him. He looked up at Alexei. “She overheard my conversation with you and El Diablo.”
Alex shrugged. “So? Just coming clean with her before she can bring it up should smooth things over. Besides, you didn’t do or say anything you didn’t mean. You love that girl, and we all know it. Does she?”
“She might have been figuring it out. Unfortunately, the one thing she can’t get over is being lied to. She told me that from the very beginning. What I’ve done to her is no different than what Luxemberry did to her. And she still doesn’t know he was trying to get information from her. At least, she didn’t until today.” Alexei scrubbed a hand over his face. This was bad. This was real bad. “Fuck!”
There was silence while Azriel stared at Alexei, looking for something. A way to pull this out. Something to save his relationship with Lamb he wasn’t seeing.
Finally, Mrs. McDowell broke the silence. “First thing you need to do is find her. Then you apologize. Then you spend the rest of your life making it up to her, dear boy.” She shook her head sadly. “I can’t believe one of my boys did this.” Her gaze snapped to Azriel, and she shook her finger at him. “If you were still ten, I’d turn you over my knee.”
“I know, Ruth,” Azriel said gently. “Perhaps, if I can get her back here, you can ease her worries about me?”
“That, my boy, is up to you. I can tell her of your merits all day, but, in the end, you’re the only one who can win her heart.”
Azriel crossed to the older woman and kissed her head as he passed. “I have to find her.”
“See that you do. That girl belongs here. Why in the world you set her up in an apartment when you should have brought her home with you is beyond me,” Ruth said, a fierce scowl on her face.
Azriel hurried from the mansion to his car. A ping from his cell let him know that Giovanni was ever vigilant on his behalf. He’d found Lamb. She was at the little apartment she’d rented before he had her move into an Argent building. And it looked like she was about to have company. James Luxemberry had just pulled into her neighborhood and was headed to her apartment. Giovanni didn’t think she’d invited him over, but El Diablo thought things were rapidly closing in on Luxemberry. Giovanni said El Diablo had pulled a few invisible strings and discovered Luxemberry was being backed by the Brotherhood. Just in a roundabout way so they couldn’t be found.
The revelation set up three problems. First, if Luxemberry was in bed with anyone in the Brotherhood, if he couldn’t produce what they wanted, he was a dead man. Second, if what he needed to produce involved Lamb giving him information, then she was in great danger. And third? El Diablo was still active with the Brotherhood, which meant he might not be as firmly on their side as they all wanted to believe.
All of it meant Azriel needed to get to Lamb as quickly as possible.
* * *
It took Lamb precious little time to pack her things at the Argent apartments. Even less time to get anything remaining at the apartment she rented when she first came to Rockwell. It had been hard to stop crying long enough to move from place to place without drawing attention, but she’d managed. Once inside, though… Away from everyone else, Lamb had let her tears flow. There was simply no way to stop them. Azriel had broken her heart. Shattered it into tiny fragments. Staying in Rockwell wasn’t even an option for her, leaving her only one choice.
She was finishing packing up the few personal items from her living area when there was a polite knock at the door. Lamb froze. No one knew she was here. At least, she hoped Azriel didn’t. One thing she absolutely could not do right now was face him. Not like this.
The knock came again, harder this time. “Lamb! I know you’re in there! Open the door so we can talk!” That was James. What was he doing here?
Instead of answering, Lamb continued the last of her packing. She was so fucking out of here! Azriel thought she was selling secrets to James. James was trying to seduce her into doing just that. Even Merrily was in on it! Lamb had thought she’d found a friend there. Hell. She’d thought she’d found a home with Azriel. Even though she’d known it wasn’t sound judgment, she’d let herself be taken in by his charisma and expert lovemaking. His pretty words. All the time he’d been playing her. She’d thought James’s betrayal had been bad. It was nothing compared to what Azriel had done to her.
She’d just picked up the box of personal items when the door opened. James walked in like he owned the place, smirking.
“Going somewhere?”
“Yes.” Like she was telling him where she was going.
“I hate to say I told you so, but I did tell you Azriel would show his true colors.”
“No one said this was about Azriel.”
“You didn’t have to tell me. I can tell by the look on your face. He hurt you.”
“Everyone in this fucking town hurt me, James. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’m late.”
“For what?”
“For a meeting with It’s None of Your Fucking Business.” She kept her voice neutral, trying not to sound the way she felt. Hurt. Angry. Disgusted with herself. If he thought nothing mattered, maybe he’d just go.
His smirk stayed in place. “OK.” He gave a little chuckle. “I get it. But I can offer you a way to get back at him. Hurt him the way he hurt you.”
It was Lamb’s turn to laugh. “What? By telling you everything I know about Argent Tech and what they’re working on? Yeah. I know that’s what you want from me. Not sure if it started back in the Keys and don’t much care. All I know is I’m leaving. And you’re not getting shit from me, asshole.”
That seemed to startle him. Good. Bastard. “Lamb, you’re not thinking clearly. Besides, I know you want to get even with him. You loved him. Didn’t you.” It wasn’t a question. Did she? She thought she might. Not that it was any of James’s business.
“Irrelevant since I’m leaving. Excuse me, please.” She tried to go around James out the door, but he sidestepped, blocking her path.
“We need to talk. Forget all the pretty words and the sex. We can keep it business.”
“I’ve got nothing to discuss with you. Even if I did want revenge against Azriel, I still signed many NDAs preventing me from saying anything. Nothing is worth my integrity. Not money. Not Azriel. It may not make a difference to anyone but me in the future, but I don’t break promises. Or lie.”
“Is that your final say, my love? Be sure because this is the last time I make the offer. I promise you, the financial reward will be enough to soothe your wounded pride.”
“Spoken like someone with no moral compass,” she muttered. “Let me pass, James. I’m leaving.”
Instead of moving, he stepped forward. Before she realized what was happening, James backhanded her. Hard. Lamb went spinning to the floor, the box she’d been holding skidding across the hard surface to crash into the wall, objects flying everywhere.
There were several beats of silence broken only by her whimper as she held her stinging cheek. Tears tracked down her face from the shock of the blow, and pain seemed to explode through her head.
“Now, Lamb. Let’s start this again.” James shut the door and locked it. Then he walked to her and helped her gently to her feet. He eased her down to the couch and knelt in front of her. “I want you to tell me everything you know about Argent. I want to know what projects you worked on, and what they were intended to do. When I’m satisfied you’ve given me everything, you can leave. I’ll even compensate you in untraceable cash. You can leave, and no one will know you ever had a part in the transfer of power within the tech giant.”
She stared at him, still in shock. Lamb might have had to work and scrape for every single penny she’d ever had, but she’d had a good life to this point. No one had ever struck her. She’d never once been in a fight. Never struck anyone in anger or otherwise. The fact that it was happening now was nearly as much a shock as the actual blow. This was a man she’d been intimate with. No matter his reasoning, he’d still shared her body. Now he was willing to hurt her simply to get information?
Power.
Money.
Greed.
She’d been right all along. These were people she had no hope of ever understanding. She didn’t understand them or their lives. Didn’t much care to.
“No,” she said softly. “I won’t.”
James stood, his face thunderous with rage. “Be very, very careful, my love. Now isn’t the time for this. Just tell me what I want to know, and this will all be over. A bad dream.”
Lamb clenched her fists at her sides, sticking her chin up definitely as she looked at him square in the eye. “My answer is still no.”
She saw the hit coming this time. A strong backhand, then, when she snapped her head back to him, a closed-handed punch to the other side of her face. The combined blows hurt more than anything Lamb had ever experienced. Had she not been so stubborn, she might have spilled the information and worried about her pride and honor later. But she had a stubborn streak in her that just she just couldn’t control.
There was a sharp, metallic taste in her mouth, and she spat, not caring if she hit James or not. Blood. She raised her hand to her mouth and winced as she discovered the cut on her lip. She looked back up at James. There was a look of satisfaction there. Like he’d just been waiting to hit her and found himself gratified by the action.
“Go fuck yourself, James. Better yet, take Azriel with you and you can both fuck each other.”
His satisfied look turned to one of anger and… something else. Frustration? Fear? Before she could puzzle it out, James reached behind him and came back with a gun, pointing it straight at her face. He pulled the hammer back, his finger curling around the trigger.
“Last chance, Lamb.”
She stared at the gun. There was no doubt in her mind that James was going to kill her if she didn’t give him what he wanted. The rational part of her mind argued that she had everything to lose and nothing to gain by not talking to him. Hell, she could probably even give him bits and pieces, and he’d never know she wasn’t giving him the whole thing. What would it matter in the long run anyway? Azriel and his team were smart enough to know what information she could give them and counter anything James thought he was doing. Once she was done, she could just leave. Azriel might not care anything for her, but she stood by her assessment that he wasn’t a bad person. Also, even though he’d betrayed her, Lamb still thought he did care for her. It might have been unintentional or unwelcome on his part, but she was sure he had feelings for her. Given that, he wouldn’t hurt her or keep her from getting a job somewhere else. If she gave James what he wanted, she would lose nothing and quite possibly save her own life.
But that little stubborn part of her was telling her she was delusional if she thought James would let her live after she talked. If he was going to kill her anyway, why should she submit to what he wanted?
Her stubborn side won.
“Then I guess you’ve got no choice but to shoot me.” She spat again. “‘Cause I ain’t tellin’ you shit, motherfucker.”
* * *
The moment Azriel pulled onto Lamb’s street, he spotted James’s Jaguar. It was already minus a couple of center caps with a kid sitting off in the distance eyeing it, obviously waiting to see if he could get the other two. Azriel pulled his car in behind the Jag. As he got out, he motioned to the kid. He thought it was a boy, but, as the kid got closer, he could see it was a girl of about ten.
He pulled out his money clip with its thick bundle of one-hundred-dollar bills. He waited until the kid’s attention was focused squarely on him before peeling off two crisp bills and handing them to the girl.
“This is yours if you guard my car from center-cap thieves.” The kid grinned, taking the bills and stuffing them in her pocket. Before she could turn away, however, he caught her arm gently. “If you prevent anything else from walking off my car, I’ll give you the rest.” He held up the money clip for good measure, letting her see the wad of cash. The girl’s eyes widened, and she reached for it, but Azriel pulled it back. “Huh-uh,” he chided. “What’s your name?”
The kid dropped her hand in disappointment, looking very disgruntled. “Flick,” she said, her looking turning into a glare as if she expected him to make fun of her name.
“Well, Flick. You get the rest when I come back outside and my car is still sitting here and intact. You can take anything you want off the Jag.”
Flick’s expression transformed into one of mischievous delight. “Awesome!”
Azriel chuckled as he set the alarm on his car, then jogged to Lamb’s apartment. He’d raised his hand to knock when he heard Lamb’s voice.
“Then I guess you’ve got no choice but to shoot me. ‘Cause I ain’t tellin’ you shit, motherfucker.”
Everything in Azriel went into autopilot. Not wasting time to see if the door was locked, he gave a hard, solid kick. The flimsy thing actually splintered, coming apart from one of the hinges. None of that registered. In the tiny living room, Lamb sat, a defiant look on her face as she faced James Luxemberry and the gun he had trained on her.
With a bellow of rage, Azriel took a running step, lowered his shoulder and plowed into James, taking the other man to the floor. As he did, the gun went off, the sound deafening in the enclosed space. Lamb screamed…
And Azriel unleashed hell on his enemy.
* * *
When the gun went off, Lamb couldn’t hold back her cry. It took several seconds to realize she hadn’t been hit, that she wasn’t hurt anywhere other than where James had struck her. She saw the gun lying about a foot from James’s hand as Azriel proceeded to pound the guy. Somehow, she had the presence of mind to grab the weapon and take it out of play for either man. Azriel obviously didn’t need it, and she didn’t want James to have it.
She thought that, once Azriel realized he had the man subdued, he’d back off. Maybe roll him over and tie his hands behind his back or something. Didn’t they do that in the movies? Then he’d call the police and they’d take James off to jail or something. Right?
Only, Azriel didn’t stop. He kept hitting James. Over and over. Blood was everywhere, both from James’s face and Azriel’s fists. Lamb called to him twice, but Azriel didn’t seem to hear her. He just kept beating the other man. There was no doubt in her mind that Azriel would kill James. Even then, she suspected it would be a long time before he stopped whatever madness had overtaken him.
“Hey! Hey, mister!” Flick, one of the kids from the neighborhood, stood in the doorway. Her eyes widened momentarily, then she seemed to dismiss the violence. “Hey, mister!” She yelled louder this time. Surprisingly, Azriel looked over his shoulder at her. He was covered in blood spatter, looking for all the world like some demon from hell. The kid didn’t bat an eyelash. “They’s some of the kids tryin’ to take shit off your car. I told ‘em to get shit off the Jag first, but they think yours is better.”
Azriel stood, not even looking at James. “Thanks.”
Flick looked from Azriel to James and back. Then she narrowed her eyes. Lamb could practically see the wheels turning in the girl’s mind. “This what you do to guys who fuck with your car?” Lamb winced at Flick’s language. She’d been trying to get her to stop swearing so much, but it didn’t seem to take no matter what she did.
“Yeah.”
“You don’t talk much, do you, mister?”
“No.”
Flick looked over at Lamb, waving happily like nothing had happened. “Hi, Lamb!” Without waiting to see if Lamb returned her wave, the girl dashed off. Lamb could hear her yelling as she ran. “You better not! You should see what he does to people who fuck with his car! There’s blood everywhere!”
In any other situation, Lamb realized she might have laughed. Now, the adrenaline rush was leaving her, and she realized just how close she’d come to dying only moments before. She was still sitting on the couch and doubted her legs would hold her if she tried to stand, but all she wanted was to be in Azriel’s arms.
The second the little whimper left her, Azriel reached for her, pulling her to her feet before she even realized she was leaning against him. His embrace was warm, his arms strong and tight around her. That was when she realized how good it felt. How… right. This was where she was supposed to be. With this man.
“Are you hurt, Lamb?”
“N-no. I d-don’t think s-so.”
He ran his hands over her, but didn’t attempt to push her away. Probably a good thing since Lamb’s arms were locked around his neck. “I don’t feel any blood,” he murmured at her ear. His arms tightened around her again. “I need to look you over, but I –” Did his voice break? He cleared his throat. Must have gotten a tickle or something. “I need to hold you right now.”
She needed him to hold her. Needed to be with him. How could she need him this much when he wasn’t what she thought he was? He’d played her for a fool. Had lied to her. He’d made love to her, made her think he wanted more with her, when all the while it had been a ruse to get close to her and find out if she’d been selling secrets.
Before the tears could really start, Lamb pushed back, needing out of his arms. “Let me go,” she said softly. Immediately Azriel loosened his grip on her.
“Did I hurt you? Are you OK?”
“I’m fine. Just let me go.” She knew there were a few tears falling from her eyes and hastily wiped them with the back of her hand. “I’m fine,” she said with more force. She looked around the room. James’s battered body was still beside the couch where Azriel had left him. He was breathing, but it was obvious he needed immediate medical attention. Normally, she’d be the first one calling for help. Now, she just wanted out of that confined place where Azriel seemed larger than life. Her avenging angel. Only he wasn’t an angel. He was a Demon. A Shadow Demon. The Demons were the protectors. Argent was in the center of their circle of protection. She had to remember that.
“If you’ll excuse me.”
“Baby, you’re upset. The adrenaline is making you shake, and you might be injured and just too much in shock to realize it.”
“Upset?” This was the fight she needed to pull her out of her shock. “You think I’m upset? Why would you think that, Azriel?” Her voice was still shaky, and a stray tear still managed to escape, but she was refocusing her attention to the problem that mattered most.
“I know you overheard part of my conversation with Alex and El Diablo. I want to explain.”
“Not really much to explain. It is what it is.”
“But it’s not like you think.” He actually looked like he was desperate for her to listen to him. Azriel moved closer, gripping her shoulder gently. She shrugged him off.
“Oh really? So you didn’t arrange to meet me that night at the New Year’s Eve party? You didn’t suspect I was feeding James trade secrets or something? You didn’t get close to me, make love to me, all with the purpose of getting me to confide in you everything I’d told James, or maybe get me to tell you about his company? Because that’s what I think it sounded like.”
He swallowed, opening his mouth only to close it and shake his head. “Well, I guess that’s exactly what happened, but –”
“That’s all the information I need, Mr. Ivanovich. I don’t need anything that comes after the conjunction.”
She moved toward the door, but he caught her arm. “Lamb, just listen to me.”
“No!” she screamed at him. “You had your chance! You knew what James did to me! I confided all that to you, yet you did exactly the same thing! You both schooled me like the amateur I am!” To her utter mortification, the tears kept coming. She was sobbing now, having to take great gulps of air just to feel like she wasn’t smothering. “Well, I’m done! Thank you for the lovely time and the wonderful vacation. While I appreciate the internship and appreciate all I’ve learned with the incredibly talented and intelligent people at Argent, I regretfully resign my position. Any possessions I have can be donated to the appropriate charity. You should have my direct deposit information for my final check.”
“Lamb –”
“Good day, Mr. Ivanovich.”
As she spun around to leave, both Alex and Giovanni Romano, the third man in their Shadow Demons organization, entered, blocking the door. Fortunately, both men moved out of her way on reflex, letting her escape when she’d been sure Azriel would have chased her. Before they could change their minds, she sprinted from the little apartment to her car. It took some maneuvering to get out of the drive since both James and Azriel had blocked it. Once on the road, she peeled out and took off. She had no idea where she was going, but she wasn’t going to stay here.
With every mile she put between her and Azriel, the more her chest tightened. The more tears fell. The more she struggled to keep her grief and desolation at bay.
