Page 30 of Meet Me In The Dark

“Showtime,” he said.

A man approached, tall, gym-built, with an orange tan that spoke of garish amounts of money and a disinterest in authenticity. His outfit told the rest of the story. If Marcus's suits, watches, and haircuts whispered absurd wealthy, this man's ensemble screamed it.

Kara loathed him on sight. She'd never really been one to believe in vibes, but the vibes were off.

His demands are unprofessional in nature, Marcus had said. Kara could only imagine what that meant.

But did they have another option? They'd hit a brick wall with Jean Pierre's young widow, who had died of a “heart attack” only the day before. The Johnathans doing, of course. Marcus had dug deep to find Victor and had bribed him to show up. If he wanted some “unprofessional” icing on the bribery cake, so be it. She'd do anything to get Luke and Conor back, safe and whole.

Kara wasn't sure exactly when, but they—and Micah—had become everything to her. It wasn't even worth pinpointing it, and it wasn't worth her time fighting it anymore. She'd accepted it, and now she'd sacrifice everything to get them back. Including herself, if that's what it came down to.

“Well, she's even more beautiful than Christopher said. What a rare jewel you are, Ms. Blum, even with that horrible dye job.”

Her heart thumped fast, like a rabbit on the run. The man knew exactly who she was and had been talking to Chris about her.

But then of course he had.

Trap, her brain screamed. She’d already known it, but she wasn’t sure what kind, and the unknown rose over her like a tidal wave, threatening to drown her.

No.She wasn’t going to have a panic attack. She owed it to her men to keep it together. She didn’t need Micah to keep her calm. She could do it herself.All I have to do is breathe, she told herself, using Luke’s calming language. She breathed, slowly, and slowly, the wave shrank until it was gone.

Both men had been watching her; Micah approving, Victor curious.

“Thank you,” Kara said. “I didn’t catch your name.”

“I'm sorry, I should introduce myself. I'm Victor von Truc.”

He held out a hand to Kara. Kara didn't take it.

Micah, for his part, didn’t seem concerned at all—on the surface. He leaned further back in his seat, crossing his thick arms over his chest, flexing the tiniest bit. But the threat was clear.

“Marcus promised me my safety,” Victor informed them.

“And Marcus always keeps his promises,” Micah confirmed, uncrossing his arms to slip a hand through Kara's hair before catching it in his hand and tugging gently—a warning. “But I believe you've promised us information.”

“Yes, of course,” Victor demurred. “If you'll follow me, I reserved one of the rooms for more privacy.”

Kara leaned over to whisper in Micah's ear, making sure Victor could hear her. “I don’t want to go into a room alone with him.”

Micah nodded. “I’m more comfortable if we speak here,” he said to Victor.

Victor shrugged and checked his watch. “Well then, I guess I'll have my driver come back around. It was nice meeting you, Kara.”

“Wait,” Kara said, and her desperation wasn’t entirely faked.

Victor turned back. “Yes?”

“Show us this room you rented. We can talk there.”

A sly grin appeared on Victor's face, a gleam in his eyes.And something else that made that rabbit start running in her chest again.

But with that anxiety came satisfaction. Because Victor thought he had won. Was already underestimating her.

Got him,she thought.

“Well, I do have some time still.” He held out a hand to her. And this time, wanting to at least seem acquiescent, Kara took it.

Micah followed behind her—close behind—his breath on her neck, his big body warming hers. Knowing he refused to let her out of his sight eased some of her tension. Superhero or supervillain, she was safe with him. Whatever Victor's trap was, they'd manage it. Together.

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