Page 100 of Skin Deep

I frowned and went to retrieve a mug from the cabinet, pouring myself a cup of already made coffee. “Where have you been?”

“Working on keeping up our end of the bargain I made with Boone.”

I turned around, coffee in hand, and eyed my brother. He sat at the table in one of his charcoal black Armani suits. He owned three of the damn things, but he usually only broke them out for important events like weddings or funerals. “Shepherd, what did you do?”

“I got you access to Simeon the Immortal,” he said, standing and holding out a small card.

I frowned when I realized that wasn’t the only thing he was carrying. “Is that Nikita’s cavalry saber? Why do you have it?”

“First, this is a Cossack Shaska, not a cavalry saber. Secondly, I have it because I was asked to deliver it along with the news I’ve come with.”

I plucked the card from his fingers and turned it over. “This is just a time.”

“It is the exact time Simeon will be taken for an MRI,” Shepherd said, pacing. “You see, when Nikita launched his coup, Simeon went into hiding in the one place he thought he would be safe. Hospitals these days have more security than some prisons. Even though we all knew he was there, he was inaccessible because we weren’t on his list of approved visitors, and even if someone could get close, his bodyguards would be in the way. They’d spot us on sight. You’re the exception, Warrick.”

I lowered the appointment card. “Simeon and all his guards know my face.”

“But you can use your position as a surgeon to access parts of the hospital where the rest of us could never gain entry.” He waved a dismissive hand. “Of course, Simeon isn’t an idiot. He didn’t admit himself into anywhere you’d normally have access to, but one of my former submissives works at billing at Grant Medical Center. I was able to use my connections to find him.”

“That doesn’t give me access,” I pointed out.

“No, it doesn’t,” Shepherd said, putting the sword on the table. “Which is where I’ve been all this time. In about an hour, Xavier is going to get a phone call from Xion’s social worker, informing him that Xion has been admitted to Grant Medical Center after he was stabbed by another patient.”

“What?” I almost dropped my coffee cup, eyes darting to the sword.

“Not with the sword,” Shepherd scoffed and poured himself a cup of coffee. “No, I have a patient there. I arranged Xion’s injury. Don’t worry yourself. He’ll survive it. I went to great lengths to ensure that. I’ve adjusted Xion’s information forms to list you as his preferred physician. Since he’s retained his last name from birth, the connection between you and Xion isn’t obvious on paper, so no one questioned it. You will obtain access to Simeon by going there to meet with Xion, who is scheduled for some testing at the same time. Both will be brought to the morgue instead of their respective tests, where you will have seventeen minutes between shift changes where the cameras will be off. You will use this time to dispose of Simeon the Immortal, and then you will transfer Xion into a body bag to be transported out of the hospital and into the care of Connor McCormick.”

“Boone’s medical officer?” I stared at my brother dumbfounded. “This is the deal you made with Boone? That you’d give him Xion? Why on earth would he want Xion? And why the fuck are you helping Xion, of all people?”

Shepherd considered me with a predatory glare, stirring his coffee with a spoon. “I believe Xion can be reformed, but that won’t happen in his current environment. Much like prisons only breed criminals, long-term psychiatric institutions will do him no favors. The boy needs rigid structure, hard work, and discipline, which he will get under Boone. And if not, Boone and his men are more than capable of handling him as a threat. I will continue to look after his psychiatric needs. As for why Boone agreed to the exchange… I suspect curiosity played a role, and his love of a challenge. Plus, he has a history of working with difficult people and turning them into functional members of society. One man’s madness is another man’s ideal candidate.”

I rubbed my forehead. “Wait… Am I dreaming? How long has this been in the works?”

Shepherd smirked. “No, I’m afraid you’re quite awake, and this has been a plan in motion for quite some time. Several years. Or did you think Xavier was the only one still in contact with Xion? I’ve been keeping tabs on him since the beginning. Someone had to.”

I sighed and sipped my coffee. This was too much to deal with so early in the morning, especially without any sleep. The last thing I expected was to be told I’d be breaking Xion out of his psychiatric prison. I certainly never expected Shepherd to orchestrate such a thing. When did he have the fucking time?

“All right,” I said, pinching the bridge of my nose to stave off a headache, “what’s the sword for then?”

Shepherd smiled and picked up the sword, holding it out to me. “I thought you might like to use it with Simeon. Cut off the head of the snake, so to speak.”

Excitement sparked in my veins when I wrapped my fingers around the handle. It’d been years since I’d even held a sword, not since my training days, but it was like riding a bike. Once you learn how to hold and swing a sword, you don’t forget it. I’d be lying if the idea of cutting off Simeon’s head with an ancestral sword didn’t hold some appeal for me, even if the whole thing was terribly impractical.

I lowered the sword and frowned at my brother. “There’s no way I’ll be able to carry that into the hospital.”

“It will be there waiting for you in the morgue,” Shepherd said, taking the sword back.

“And the body?” I asked.

Shepherd smirked. “What body? All you have to do is show up and do the deed, Warrick. I’ve taken care of everything else.”

I glanced up and down Shepherd’s body. “Does Nikita know about all this?”

“Some of it,” he said with a shrug. “The situation with Xion doesn’t concern him, and I would appreciate it if you kept my part in it quiet, especially when it comes to Xander and Xavier. I’ll tell them in my own time.”

“You’d better,” I muttered. There’d be no keeping it a secret from them forever. I doubted he’d even have a week before Xavier went looking for his brother once he was reported missing. I cradled my coffee cup in my palms. “I hope you’re ready to deal with all the fallout, Shepherd. This is a dangerous game you’re playing. I can’t protect you from the consequences when Xander finds out. He’s going to be pissed.”

“Leave all that to me,” Shepherd said. “You keep up your end of the bargain, and everything else will be my problem to deal with.”

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