Her eyes burned worse with each passing minute and, as lost as she was in her thoughts, it took her a while to realize she was on the verge of crying. She fought the sensation for as long as she could, but when it became apparent that the tears were going to win, she buried her face in a pillow so no one outside the room could hear her and then let the sorrow buried deep inside her have free rein.
Fortunately, it turned out to be a cathartic cry. Something she hadn’t indulged in since childhood. And it lulled her into a bone-weary sleep. When she woke again, she was happy to find that not only was she feeling deliciously numb, but that she’d also managed to sleep through Isaac’s meeting with Thomas, which was a good thing. Now she didn’t have to worry about it. It was over and she could move on knowing exactly where she stood with Isaac.
The room swam around her as she stood and her head throbbed painfully like she’d drunk too much the night before. She needed water. And maybe some sort of pain pill. Stumbling to the closet, she grabbed a silk robe and then slid her arms into it before wrapping it around her body and tying it at her waist. It was soft against her skin, but didn’t offer any comfort. The only sensation she craved right now was that of callused hands slipping over her body. And that wasn’t going to happen.
Making her way downstairs, she heard conversations and smelled food coming from the direction of the kitchen, so she decided that was as good a place to start as any. When she stepped through the door and the conversation stopped, though, she wished she hadn’t gotten out of bed.
It was only Lesli and Isaac in the room and they appeared to be eating potato soup and crusty bread but, when she looked at them, she was reminded once more that she was an outsider in this house. Her eyes burned and for one moment she was concerned she was going to start crying again, but she took a deep breath and pushed through the moment.
“Thomas is already gone?”
“Yes.” Isaac’s body was so stiff he looked as if he’d fall over if a feather dared to land on him.
“Good.”
She grabbed a glass and filled it with water before crossing the room to the table. Both Isaac and Lesli were perched at the island, so the table allowed Nikki plenty of space. Something she needed desperately.
“Are you okay?” Isaac asked after Nikki finished the water.
“Just a headache. I’ll be fine.” And she would be. She was a survivor. She’d been through worse, though she couldn’t remember when. Lesli, god bless her, was at Nikki’s elbow in an instant with the pain pills she craved. “Thank you,” she said, just before she tossed the pills in her mouth and took another long drink of water.
After the room settled around her, Nikki started to get up to get a bowl of the soup, but Lesli was already on the task. The woman had the steaming bowl sitting on the table before Nikki even had time to push her chair back.
“Sit, sit.” Leslie was already buzzing around the kitchen cleaning up some imaginary mess near the sink. “This is why I’m here.”
“Thank you.” Nikki took a spoonful of the divine soup and blew on it softly as she turned to study Isaac. “So, did you reach satisfactory terms? Or can you not tell me?” Nikki was dismayed at how much venom seeped into the question. She didn’t need him having any more power over her than he already did, and letting him know she was still hurt and angry was handing him power.
“I believe we did.” He blew on a spoonful of his soup before putting it into his mouth. He took his time chewing and swallowing the bite before continuing.
Nikki wasn’t surprised that he didn’t go into any details. “Good.”
They ate in silence for a few minutes, every bite of the soup filling her and making her feel better—stronger—than she’d been when she’d woken up.
“I need to go out in about a half an hour,” Isaac said when her soup was almost gone. “If it’s going to take you longer to get ready, though, I’ll push back the appointment.”
So he expected her to go with him? “I can be ready in a half an hour,” she said, purposely vague.
“You could be, but will you?”
She smiled at how quickly he’d caught on. “I think the fewer people who know, the better.” She pushed the empty bowl back and stood to stretch. “Now, if you don’t mind, I think I’m going to go get a shower. I’m feeling a little stiff. I’m sure the hot water will help, though.”
He clenched his teeth together tightly, but still managed to nod in her general direction. “I’m sure it will,” he said after he released a slow breath. She picked up the bowl and carried it to the sink before she turned and left the room without looking back.
The hot water did indeed help, and by the time she stepped out of the shower, she was almost feeling back to normal. She would see this finished and then find that beach. A year from now, all of this would be a distant memory.
The silk of the sundress caressed her skin as she got dressed and the brush pulled at her hair as she dried it under the hair dryer, but she barely noticed either sensation. She was actually rather busy not feeling anything at the moment, and that was just the way she wanted it—the way she needed it to be. When she was ready, she went back to her room and put on a pair of strappy sandals before she made her way back down to the kitchen.
“I’m ready.”
“Then let’s get this done.” Isaac’s voice sounded as cold and detached as hers did.
“Right behind you.”
“Nic?”
Only her family called her that, and that he just did cut through her numbness just a little. But she’d be damned if she let him know that. “Yes?”
“I am sorry.”
She shrugged as she followed him out of the house. “That’s what you keep telling me.”
He sighed heavily but didn’t say anything else as he got into the car.
This time, as they drove, the silence hung over them heavily. She didn’t really have much to say to him and he apparently was all done apologizing to her. Not that she wanted to hear any more empty apologies. It was obvious they were just words, and she needed more than words right now.
When they pulled in front of a tattoo shop, however, she felt the need to speak. “Are you planning on getting fake ink and hoping to pass it off as the real deal?” By the way he stiffened, she guessed that was it. “It won’t work. He’ll see right through it no matter how good the artist is.”
“Thank you for that insight.”
“You’re welcome.”
“But I’ve secured one of the best forgers in the state. Your father—”
“My father hasn’t gotten where he is by being an idiot.”
“Won’t be able to tell the difference.”
“He isn’t even going to look at the ink. He’ll go to the source. How much torture do you think your forger will take before he breaks?”
“He doesn’t know who’s doing my ink.”
She glanced around quickly looking for anything out of the ordinary. And when she saw the dark sedan drive by them for a second time, she knew she’d found it. “In about two minutes, there’s going to be a late nineties, navy-blue sedan drive by again. As soon as you get out and head into the shop, I’m betting they park. The men inside will watch you get the ink and then, most likely, grab the man as he finishes his shift tonight.”
Isaac didn’t say anything but did wait for the two minutes needed for the sedan to make another pass, this time going the opposite direction. “Fuck.” Isaac punched the steering wheel to punctuate the word.
“And you can’t get his ink, either,” she added for good measure.
“That’s really my decision, isn’t it?”
“Not when he’s setting us both up to force me to use my magic to seduce you.” She looked out the window so he wouldn’t see her face as she said the words.
“And why would he do that? What would he have to gain? If I have his ink, I wouldn’t be a threat.”
He’d obviously been drinking his mother’s crazy-juice. “He never saw you as a threat. His vanity won’t let him see anyone as a threat. He saw you as a nuisance at best. And now he wants to send a message to all the nuisances out there who want to challenge him.” She paused to let him digest what she’d just said. “Remember how screwed up you were after the blood bond?” She braced her hand against the glass of the window, needing to feel the heat of the sun against her skin. “That would be classified as slightly confused compared to what my magic would do to you. Have you ever met someone in the grip of a seductress? They’d do anything. Change themselves, mold themselves to meet the seductress’s desires.”
“But you wouldn’t—”
This was the part they had to be really clear on. “If I’m blood bound to one of his men, I wouldn’t have a choice.” She turned to face him, hoping he saw the anguish buried deep in her soul. “And the crappiest part? It’d only suck for about the first five minutes. After that, I’d be so high I wouldn’t give a shit that it was you I was destroying. And make no mistake, it would destroy you. A dried-up husk would be all that was left after I was done.”
His body tensed, though with fear or disgust she couldn’t tell.
“I know I haven’t made this easy, but I thought you had some feelings for me.” His voice was soft, but the harsh tone of hurt was obvious.
“I do.” She’d give him that much, but there was no way she would define those feelings for him. “That’d make the high even sweeter.” She couldn’t reach out to him, but her fingers still itched to feel his strength. And, with nothing else to keep them preoccupied, she was forced to fold them neatly on her lap. “My father loved my mom—and not just desire or infatuation. You should’ve seen them together.” Her throat tightened with emotion as she remembered the days of happiness that preceded her mom’s death. “When a seductress falls, they fall hard. It’s the balance the universe demands. And he fell for her. He lived to see her smile, breathed only so he could witness her next moment of joy, died a little when she so much as shed a tear.” Her voice broke as a tear of her own escaped and rolled gently down her cheek.
“What happened?”
“He loved power, too. A little too much. When my mother became concerned and went to the enforcers, my father decided it was time to make sure she was looking out for his best interests.” She’d been there that night. The first night her father had used his magic against her mom. He hadn’t known it, but Nikki had come down for a drink of water and had seen it all. “He only meant to bend her, to use just the smallest touch of his magic. He wanted her to desire power as much he did.” Another tear followed the first as she relived the moment.
“Did it work?”
“Not at first. She was a strong woman and realized what he’d done immediately. She grabbed me and my sister and left that night. But over time she started to crave him. One little touch of his magic wasn’t enough for her. She fought it. She fought it for months. But, in the end, she wasn’t strong enough. Three months later, after the enforcers told her there was nothing they could do and the DEA was still locked in endless debates about jurisdiction and probable cause, she gave in and went back to him. She expected to be welcomed back with open arms and she was. But not because he missed her. He craved the high he got that night when he used his magic on her. He didn’t love anyone as much as he loved her, and no one else gave him the same high. Over the next week, he drained her dry. When there was nothing of her left, he paid someone to finish her off so his hands would be clean.”
Isaac’s hands were balled into tight fists at his sides, but his anguish was clearly readable in his eyes when he turned to look at her. “Why are you telling me this?”
“Because you need to know.”
He ran his fingers through his hair as he let out a frustrated growl. “What the hell do you expect me to do? I have to get his ink. My choices are limited to fake or real, but you’re telling me neither of those options will work.”
“I could’ve told you all of this before you made the deal. If I would’ve been in the meeting today, we never would’ve wasted the time on this trip.”
“Really?” His voice held a clear challenge. “And what would we have done instead? Seeing as you have all the fucking answers right now, why don’t you tell me what I missed.”
“Izzy.” Everything came into sharp focus as she stared at Isaac. “We need to get Izzy. She’s the only one who can pull this off.”
Chapter Ten
It could work. He couldn’t believe he hadn’t thought of it. Izzy was a shifter. She’d just played a major role in the death of her drug-dealing half brother, Alex, a year ago by taking the form of an angel. Shifting into Isaac’s form would be simple for her after accomplishing that. And no one would suspect it. Izzy could shift but, since she’d married her DEA human and left the Community behind, she never did. As far as they were concerned, she was as human as her husband.
And the best part was, the plan was so deceptively simple Rathe would never expect it. No, Rathe would be expecting some elaborate plot befitting his crime lord status. Sending in a vulnerable woman, his daughter no less, in disguise to capture him would be too insulting for him to even contemplate.
Damn. It would work.
Isaac went through the plan again before turning to face Nikki. As soon as his gaze met hers, though, all joy left him. He’d known it was going to end from the beginning. By her own account, he was never anything more than a temporary distraction. But looking at her, seeing the sparkle in her eyes die in front of him, hurt more than he ever imagined possible.
Granted, it hurt worse knowing some—okay most—of that pain was solely his fault. Years from now, when he looked back on this day, he’d carry the burden of being the ass. But there was no way he could’ve let her sit in on that meeting.
He understood her arguments, agreed with every single one she’d made—right up to her seducing the truth out of Agent Thomas. That, he could never stand by and watch. It would’ve killed him to watch her seduce any man. But up to that point? Yeah, he got it. She wanted to be valuable to the operations, prove she was worth something. He couldn’t let her know that Thomas was undercover, though. It would put not only Molly’s but also Thomas’ life in jeopardy and Isaac just couldn’t do that. Only four people knew who Thomas James was and each and every one of those four needed to know for this operation to have any chance of success. It was Isaac’s job to make sure no one else found out.
“We should go back to your house. Izzy can shift into you without anyone seeing the two of you together.”
He hated how flat her voice was. Hated how cold and distant she was. Hated that he couldn’t just grab her and tell her how this was killing him. But he had to be honest with himself. How he felt didn’t matter. The only thing that mattered was finishing this.
Before he could cave to his weakness and pull her to him, he nodded stiffly, turned the car around and started back toward his house as she called Izzy. When they pulled up into the drive, he was relieved to see Jacob’s car already parked in front of his house.
Nikki followed him in silence, a silence that Izzy noticed right away of course, which didn’t bode well for Isaac. Having his own guilt nagging at him was one thing. Having a shape-shifting, pissed-off sister nagging at him would be an entirely new level of hell.
“You know,” Izzy started in before he even got the door shut behind them, “I could just as easily shift into something large enough to kick the shit out of him.”
“That’s not necessary, Izzy,” Nikki said tightly. “Just shift into him, get the ink, and do the trade. Our father will never know what happened. Isaac will be able to slip through security and strip Dad’s magic. We’ll never have to see Isaac or our father again.”
That hurt, especially the part where she lumped him with her asshole father. But, since he mostly deserved her anger, he let it go unchallenged. “I know, I’m nobody’s favorite person right now. Let’s just get through this, okay. I’ll get Molly back, you guys will finally be free of your father and everyone gets to have their lives back.”
Izzy snarled at him, but Nikki grabbed Izzy’s hand and led her away before she could carry out her threat.
“Either you’re really brave or really stupid,” Jacob said as the women disappeared down the hallway.
“Stupid. Incredibly stupid.”
Jacob followed him into the kitchen and then took a seat at the table. “So… You’re going to let her walk away when this is all finished, right?”
“I can’t keep her.” Isaac refused to think about the truth in the words. Instead he focused on brewing the coffee just the way Nikki liked it.
Jacob’s hollow laugh pulled his attention away from the coffeemaker, though. “She’s a person, not a pet.”
Despite the shitty turn of events, Isaac found himself smiling. He was starting to like the agent brother-in-law. “So Izzy’s okay pretending to be me?”
“Nice change of subject. And yes. Izzy will do whatever it takes to end this.”
“The exchange is set for tomorrow morning. All Izzy has to do is keep Rathe focused on her. I’ll take care of the rest.”
“And Nikki?”
“Nikki just has to be her charming self.”
“Good to hear. I’ll have a team of DEA agents ready to make the bust as soon as you neutralize Rathe.”
“Could be a career launcher for you.”
Jacob shrugged. “My career will be fine one way or the other. Izzy, however…” He let the sentence die. He didn’t need to finish it for Isaac to understand. Izzy needed to have that chapter of her life closed once and for all.
“Then let’s get this done.”
Isaac stayed at the house with Jacob while the girls went back to the tattoo parlor so Izzy, disguised as Isaac, could get Rathe’s ink. He hated letting Nikki go anywhere without him but, since it was a little late in his life to convince anyone he had a twin, he had to stay out of sight.
In theory, Nikki could take care of herself. She had been doing quite well up to this point. But he still wasn’t comfortable until he heard the rumble of his car pulling back into the drive. And, when she stepped through the door, it took every ounce of willpower he had not to rush to her and pull her into his embrace. He’d never felt so lonely in all his life. Even when his family kicked him out and he had no friends to turn to.
Still, the worst part of the evening lay ahead of him. Not greeting her when she returned had been an interesting form of torture, but not holding her through the night turned out to be hell. When he woke up the next morning, his eyes were gritty from not getting enough sleep and his head was pounding with unrelenting pain. If today were any other day, he’d stay in bed until it was a decent hour to drink. But that plan would have to wait for tomorrow.
His shower was brief and his breakfast unremarkable. Not that he was complaining. If the rest of the day passed unremarkably, he’d consider it a success. But success was never given, it was hard-won. And when Nikki stepped through the kitchen door, he knew he had his work cut out for him.
How did she make looking so sexy seem so effortless? After his sleepless night, he looked like he’d been hit by a truck. She looked like she’d just stepped out of the pages of a fashion magazine.
“Good morning.” Her voice sounded as if she’d swallowed some gravel, but there was no other evidence that she’d had as miserable a night as his. “Today’s the day you get your life back.”
He nodded in answer and then ground his teeth together in the uncomfortable knowledge that they were going to have to talk before all hell broke loose. There wouldn’t be any time afterward.
“After the DEA has your father in custody, I’m going to release the bond.” His voice, though he meant to speak softly, seemed too loud in the small space.
“Good to know.” She filled up a mug with coffee and then pulled the milk out of the fridge. “Have we heard when the next Council hearing is going to be held?”
Fuck, with everything else going on today, he’d completely forgotten about his mother. “Not yet.” At first he was surprised by her lack of reaction, but then the truth of it hit him. “But you weren’t planning on hanging around for it, anyway.”
Her smile was sad as she nodded. “There’s a beach out there somewhere calling my name. And god knows I’ve earned a vacation after all this.”
“Of course.” He turned away from her but paused before starting to walk away. “I do appreciate everything you’ve done to get Molly back. And I am sorry it’s ending this way.”
“I’m glad I was able to help. And you’ve done nothing that warrants an apology. This was the plan from the beginning, remember? Use me as bait, lure my father out into the open, and neutralize him as a threat. I have to admit, I was kind of hoping for the death form of neutralizing, but this works too.”
He’d been secretly hoping she’d be bitter or angry. Bitter and angry women were easy to forget. But the solemn resignation and honesty in her voice was like a tiny razorblade slipping under his skin. It was going to take him a long time to heal after this was done. “I guess it was the plan.”
The knock at the door signaled the true beginning to the day.
“You ride with Izzy, I’ll be with Jacob and his team. Her releasing you from the bond will be my cue to infiltrate the building. Hopefully enough of his attention will be on getting you bound to one of his men that he won’t notice.” Rathe had insisted on that caveat. He had to bear witness to the release. It was a condition Isaac had been all too happy to agree to. For one, it ensured Rathe would actually be there and secondly it meant the man didn’t know Izzy was disguised as Isaac. Their plan was still viable.
“Got it.”
“After the raid starts, you need to stay down until Jacob or I give the all clear. We should have the element of surprise, but underestimating your father would be a fatal mistake.”
She followed him down the hall, pausing only to grab her purse. “Don’t worry, I’ve seen him in action.”
“Good.”
He opened the door for Jacob and Izzy, but didn’t offer much in the way of greeting. The clock was ticking. Nikki showed Izzy to Isaac’s room so the woman could shift and dress in private and then they were set.
The last thing for Isaac to do was put on the baseball cap, dark glasses and the DEA windbreaker that made up his disguise. It wasn’t much, granted, but unless someone was actually looking for two of him, it would work.
Jacob followed the girls down the twisting streets with ease as Isaac stared out the window. No one needed to talk. The all knew the destination—the warehouse district. Tucked away on the outskirts of town, few people ever went there and the ones who did knew to mind their own business. The countless access roads leading into and out of the area didn’t hurt, either. If one needed a quick escape route, this was the place. Which, surprisingly, worked in their favor for once.
As soon as they entered the maze of warehouses, Jacob slowed down and hung back from Izzy and Nikki. The last thing they needed was to be spotted. Everything had to go off perfectly. Thankfully, they had Thomas working on the inside to ensure everything was in place once Izzy and Nikki were out of view. Isaac had been skeptical but, once the guy’s story checked out, he had to admit having Thomas undercover had been a freaking miracle and might have been the thing that tipped the scales in their favor.
Once Izzy and Nikki had their father’s undivided attention, Isaac would infiltrate the warehouse and strip the man of his magic. Once his magic was gone, he wouldn’t be a threat. The DEA would take him away and Thomas would release Molly from the blood bond. In all his years he’d never worked a case that’d come together so neatly.
“We’re in position.” Nikki’s voice was clean and crisp in his ear thanks to the earbud.
“Jacob and I are circling around the long way. We should be at the back of the warehouse in less than two minutes. The rest of Jacob’s team will be here in five.” Hopefully that’d give them time to get Rathe under control before the DEA stormed the warehouse.
“Good to know. I’m going silent.”
Isaac took a deep breath to calm the anxiety that clawed at him with those words. This was it. They’d reached the point of no return. Now he just had to hope keeping his cards so close to his chest had been the right thing to do.
Jacob parked down a nondescript alley just a block away from the warehouse to make sure their car didn’t gain any unwanted attention. From there, it was only a short walk to the back of the building. It was daytime, which made keeping their movements covert more difficult, but thankfully Jacob seemed almost as well-trained as Isaac. And, given that Jacob was a human, that was a pretty big compliment for Isaac to give. Not that he had any plans on actually telling the man.
There were three men guarding the back of the building but Isaac and Jacob were able to find a window that was hidden behind a fire escape. It wasn’t much, but it was enough to provide them some cover. Being under a shadow also helped them to see into the cavernous building. Though it was terrifying to see Nikki surrounded by her father’s men, that wasn’t what sent the painful bolt of fear through him as if he’d just been punched in the gut.
“Where’s Thomas?” Isaac hadn’t meant to say it out loud, but he realized he had when Jacob answered.
“Who?” Jacob’s attention remained focused on the warehouse in front of them, but the man’s body tensed noticeably.
“Thomas. He’s the man holding Molly’s bond. He was supposed to be here.”
“One thug’s as good as another,” Jacob said, still not looking away from the glass.
“Not this one. He was an enforcer.”
Nikki’s gasp was clear in his ear. Shit. He’d forgotten about her earbud. She could hear everything he was saying. If she’d been pissed before, she was going to be murderous now. Hell, even he was pissed at himself. He’d sent her in there assuming she’d be covered, but now she was on her own until he could get in there.