Kelly Meade - Black Rook

“Let’s pretend I believe you’re serious. What’s your offer?”

“Knight loves his family, and he wants to protect them and his town. If you give me your word, sworn on your own life, that you will spare the lives of every loup garou in Cornerstone, I believe he will come to you willingly. He’ll see the value in the needs of the many, but only if he truly believes in your promise.”

Fiona was silent, eyes seeming to search for any hint of deception in Brynn’s. “You’d be the bearer of this promise and deal? Even though brokering it may cost you Rook’s affections?”

“Yes.” No hesitation.

“He may hate you for this.”

“I don’t care. He’ll be alive and free and that matters more.”

“A very mature response. You do know, though, that Knight’s family won’t let him make the deal. They’ll tie him down to keep him from sacrificing himself, because they’re stupid enough to believe they can win this war.”

“His family won’t know. I’ll take your word only to Knight, and if he agrees, we’ll come to you alone. You’re right. His father and brothers will do everything they can to stop him.”

Fiona didn’t answer. She drummed her fingertips on the tabletop, a muffled beat lost in the commotion of the market. Brynn had all but forgotten about the people around them, going about their lives, while a negotiation for the survival of a town was held by two loup-Magus offspring at a tiny table between a deli and a fish market.

“There is a place outside of town where the loup are known to swim,” Fiona finally said. “If Knight agrees to this proposal, meet me there tonight. Midnight. Alone. Believe me when I say I’ll know if you’re being watched.”

“I do believe you. How will I convince him that you’re sincere? That you’ll leave the town alone if he goes with you.”

“Do you have a cell phone?”

“No.”

“Stay here. If you’re gone when I come back, the deal’s off.”

Before Brynn could acquiesce to or deny the request, Fiona stood up. She nearly tripped a woman behind her as she pushed away from the table and left the dining area. Brynn gave the passing woman an apologetic smile. She didn’t know what Fiona was up to, but the chance of ending this kept her in her chair. Minutes ticked by, and then Fiona was back with a cell phone in her hand.

She handed it to Brynn. Brynn pressed a key to turn on the main screen, and an image of two teenagers hugging each other illuminated itself. “You stole a phone?” Brynn asked.

“Borrowed,” Fiona said. “You can give it back to them tomorrow, if you want to. Now put it into video mode and tell me when you’re ready.”

Brynn recorded Fiona’s message on the stolen cell phone. When Fiona was finished, Brynn tucked the phone into her shorts pocket. Fiona had sounded perfectly sincere in her promise to spare Cornerstone any more violence if Knight gave himself up. Even Brynn believed her.

“I think we’re done here, little sister,” Fiona said.

“I agree.”

“Remember, midnight. Just the two of you.”

“Right.”

“If you betray me, Brynn Atwood, then Rook will die bloody and screaming. That is also a promise, sister to sister.”

Brynn closed her eyes against the assaulting mental images, and when she blinked them open again Fiona was gone. Brynn was risking a lot—more than was hers to risk. The moment she walked back into Cornerstone with Fiona’s offer, for better or worse, everything would change. She just hoped she didn’t screw up.

The wrong next step might cost them all their lives.

Father was understandably annoyed by Rook’s decision to leave town with Devlin and then call to tell him what was going on. “I’d have told you take more men with you,” Father had said. Surprised, Rook had promised an update as soon as they found Brynn.

Driving and parking a car in center city Philadelphia was a nightmare of epic proportions. Fortunately, Reading Terminal Market had an attached parking garage at 12th and Filbert, where they left the car. After hashing a brief plan to split up and meet back at the same entrance in ten minutes, Rook slipped into the crowded market in search of his woman.

It didn’t even feel strange to think of her that way. Using his nose to locate her was pointless with so many odors in the air—yeast, shellfish, deli meats, sugar, spices, plus the individual scents of hundreds of humans—so he made do with his sharp vision. He checked female faces under shoulder height and probably looked a little stalker-ish in doing so.

He faltered at an intersection of stalls. His path led him forward, but instinct pulled him to his left so he altered course. He moved past a fish counter, toward a section of tables and chairs. A woman sat alone at one table, its surface streaked with something brown, her hair covered with a cheap red bandana.

Even from behind, he knew it was Brynn. He exhaled a deep, calming breath, despite the overwhelming urge to whoop for joy at having found her. He sent a quick text to Devlin, giving him her location. Fiona was nowhere in sight, but Rook still maintained alertness as he approached Brynn’s table.

She looked up just as his shadow crossed her lap. Her eyes were red, betraying that she’d been crying. He dropped to his knees and pulled her to him. She fell easily against his chest, her arms cinching tight around his neck. Her heart hammered against his, her breath ragged and uneven, and he held her. Felt her. Smelled her. Experienced her there, alive and unharmed.

“How did you know I was here?” she whispered.

He stroked her back and glared at someone giving them a funny look. “Your father.”

Brynn pulled back far enough to see his face. “He called you?”

“He sent me a text with your location and a photo of you with Fiona.”

She frowned, seeming perplexed. “How did my father get your cell number?”

“I have no idea and I don’t care. When I saw that photo, Devlin and I hit the road.”

“Hit the road? How long have I been sitting here?”

“For a while. Are you all right?”

“No, not at all. I feel as if my head is going to explode from everything I’ve been told today.”

“Told by Fiona?”

“And my father. He’s involved, Rook, so terribly involved.”

“Tell me.”

“Not here. I just want to go home.” She touched his cheek with a cool palm. “Back to Cornerstone. Please.”

“Okay.” He brushed a soft kiss over her mouth, happy in a deep down place his other fears couldn’t touch. “We’ll go home.”

Devlin found them a few minutes later, and he called to report to the Alpha as they headed back toward the parking garage. Brynn refused the front seat and curled up in the back for the ride home. She didn’t speak, just stared out the window, her expression passive. Her silence scared Rook. He wasn’t going to like whatever informational bomb she had to drop on them, that much was clear. Halfway down the interstate, her stomach growled loudly. Rook pulled off at the next rest stop for food, and she ate her cheeseburger value meal without comment.

Ten minutes from Cornerstone, she finally spoke up. “I need to talk about something, but only to a few people, Rook. You and Knight. Your father. Bishop.”

Rook glanced into the rearview mirror. She wouldn’t meet his gaze. “If this is hybrid related, Mitch Geary will want to be there.”

She considered the comment. “All right. No one else. More can be shared later, but for now, no one else.”

Rook looked at Devlin, who shrugged, not insulted at being left off the guest list. As an enforcer, Devlin worked on a need-to-know basis, and he was smart enough to know when his help wasn’t needed. He did, however, make the call and reported that everyone would be waiting for them in the library at home.