Page 139 of Ramshackle
“I’ll go,” a low, deadly voice says from behind me. I turn to Jackson. He smiles at me, but it’s a cruel, sharp pull of his lips that triggers a chill to run down my spine and warmth to pool at my core. There’s a strange light in his eyes; a gleam that promises pain and bloodshed. He carves his fingers around my ear, then grips my nape and murmurs against my lips, “Let me bring him to you.”
My heart thunders at his request.
“We’ll both go,” Aiden adds before I can respond, and I draw back to look at him.
Kellan steps up to us, his hands clenched so tight that the veins in his arm muscles pulse. “I’m going, too.”
“If I can get ahold of him somehow, I can block his gift,” Dane inserts.
“No, we can’t all go. Kell, stay here and keep Raegan, Dane, and the Guild safe. Cibrina, wrap up the party without causing a panic. I want the bunker’s lockdown to continue through the night, so find space for the visiting members who weren’t planning to stay, and add more security to each of the shifts. I’m not convinced there isn’t some plan to strike here while drawing us out, so stay vigilant,” Aiden instructs.
“I understand,” Cibrina says with a terse nod.
“And Reid?” he continues.
The teleporter looks between the group of us, his eyes lingering on mine, before he pins Kellan with his stare. “Keep an eye out for Tinsley while I’m gone.” He turns to Aiden and nods to indicate he’s ready.
Aiden and Jackson put a hand on each of his arms.
“Stay safe,” Aiden orders before they disappear with Reid.
It isn’t until they’re gone that my gut twists with unease.
Are they walking into a trap?
Chapter thirty-eight
Aiden
We land outside thedoor to the butcher shop. With all the trips to rescue gifted from various islands, the teleportation doesn’t affect me as it once had, and my feet remain firmly planted on the ground.
I close my eyes for the seconds of concentration I need to feel what metal I’m in contact with. My whip sword hidden beneath my jacket and strapped to my back. Forearm and shin gauntlets. Thick, chain necklaces hanging beneath my shirt.
It’s not as much as I’d like, heading into a fight with both Gordon and probably Thorne, but it’ll have to do.
Reaching over my shoulder, I grasp the handle on my sword and draw it out. “Jack, your knives have hit him before. How?”
He slides a few more blades free of his hoodie, releasing them into the air to join the others that hover around him. “Luck.”
I was afraid of that.
Using my free hand to release the top buttons on my collared shirt and my jacket, I remind the other two, “He doesn’t leave through that portal.”
Jack and Reid nod in unison, and the former replies, “I’m bringing him back to her.”
I check in with Reid, making sure he’s ready with his two needle-point, twin blades in hand and then grab the door, unlocking it with my gift. Once it’s cracked open, the sleeping spores drift out into the night. Jackson waves his hand in long, sweeping motions that drag the mist free of the building and sends it away from us.
He jerks his head and drops his hands when it’s all clear, and I take point leading us inside.
“—did what you asked, Royce! Your puppet is free, and our debt is squared. Now, bring him back because I’m not carrying this corpse through the portal,” Gordon snaps.
We creep through the storefront, making our way to the open and thawed freezer room in the back.
He continues, oblivious to our presence. “Waiting for what, exactly? What game are you playing at?”
Reid appears between Gordon and the portal, blocking his exit while swinging his long daggers through him.
“Send me some agents.” Gordon pockets his phone and turns on Reid, giving Jack and I the opening we need to strike from behind.
