Page 20 of The Masks She Wore

?“Greyson has him on the phone,” Everett answered.

?I rolled my eyes and shut the fridge door. “Does anyone know his location.”

?“Now, now, Jack,” came the familiar voice of our youngest brother, “you don’t need my location to have a meeting now, do you?”

?“Where is Poppy?” I asked instead. We all felt bad for her, butthere was nobody better to handle Azrael than her. She could handle his kind of psychotic without shattering completely, which was saying something. Although there were times when she just let him go, mostly because she had to. When he went AWOL there was no way to track him, he made sure of that, so she let him go and rejoined him when he decided to slide back on grid.

?“Sitting by Evie,” she answered.

?“Hey, Jack,” Evie greeted.

?I ignored her. “Okay, fine, what is it, Malachi?”

?“We’ve been running this program for quite some time,” he began evenly, his voice tired. “Growing, spreading around the world. It’s been successful in many ways, unsuccessful in others, and I feel we’ve finally tuned into exactly what we needed it to be, so it’s time for the next step.”

?I walked over, dropping onto the couch. The next part. Great. I knew it was coming, I just didn’t realize I would have to be on a call to get the news. Not that I had anything better to do at the moment.

?“We’re appointing families around the world to be in charge of certain sections. Families which have been thoroughly vetted.”

?Meaning their husbands or their wives have graduated the program, and they told their spouses and kids that this was their life now. Their new legacy.

?Whether or not their families were given a choice, I didn’t care, it wasn’t about their families, it was about them. The Initiates thatshowed such promise, they could be compared to us.

?Yet they would never reach our level. Not in their lifetime or the next.

?“The Raine’s, Veltic’s, Walker’s, Calson’s, Signant’s, and the Zavir’s,” he listed off. “Their children are to be put through the program, and we’ll begin the next generation of Initiates.”

?“This is sounding more and more like a cult every day,” Greyson commented.

?I couldn’t argue that. “Six families? Is there a reasoning behind that or did they just show the most promise in being us?” I asked blandly.

?“Yes,” Malachi answered. “They will be coming to any of you or me while they get settled in their new roles, but they are on track to taking over soon.”

?Fine, great, less for us to do anyway. “Is that all?”

?“How is your assignment going?” he asked me in return.

?I glanced towards the window, although from where I was sitting, I couldn’t see into her place at all, just a glare on the windows where she lived. “Fine.” I hung up and took a drink of water. The mystery of Rae Bennett grows as does my need for her. The more I watched her, the more I wanted her. I even tried to fuck someone two days ago, and all I could think about was her.

?The fucking bitch had weaseled her way into my head without even trying. Perhaps it was the mystery around her that pulled mein, or maybe it was just the way she had looked me in the eyes outside of the police station. Unwavering, almost challenging, I would say. She had been angry, unsteady, but that piece of shit brother of hers had stolen her attention away from me.

?What would have happened had he not been on the phone?

?Perhaps I would have grabbed her by the neck and fucked her in the alley right then and there despite my trying to avoid it.

?Why was I doing that again? Avoiding fucking her? I couldn’t even remember the reason I had come up with. Whatever it was, it was a crock of shit. Maybe that’s what I needed to do. I’ve fucked plenty of targets, she would be no different. One fuck and then back to focusing on the job.

?I’d make those pretty amber eyes tear up with need, I’d rip the whimpers from her very throat. I’d punish her for getting into my head like the pretty little parasite she was.

?I took another swig of ice-cold water just to calm my rock-hard cock, but it was too late. It was already aching for her again.

~~~

I could already see that stupid fucking smile plastered on Azrael’s face as I easily broke into Rae’s apartment.

?“You’re turning into me more and more every day, Jacky boy.”

?I wasn’t. I was here just to put something under her bed, not tospy on her. Not to watch her sleep, just to deliver something.

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