Page 32 of Torn Between Two Worlds

“Anyone want to touch on the fact that we fought our own kind in service to those ass wipes?” Fasheem sidestepped a body and walked up to the bar, motioning for the demon female behind it to toss him a bottle of tequila. When she did, he took a long swig from it.

“Nope. Not right now at least.” Demarcus was acting as leader. “Jameson, Fasheem, you two are in charge of figuring out the why. Stryder you need to figure out if this was a normal attack or not because they haven't ever attacked an outright hideout before.”

He nodded. His brother was right. As he scanned the floor, he noticed Jonathan's body wasn't among the dead and punched the nearest chair, launching it into a wall, where it shattered.

“Whoa, Bro, fights over. Tell War to take a walkie.”

Jameson had his hand on his arm, and he quickly noticed his brothers had called off their connection with their Horsemen.

Dropping the connection quickly, he apologized. “Any shot we can shelve this hot mess? I left Ciara with Jessica, and by now, I'm sure she has enough blackmail material to have chopped off my penis and handed it to a cat or something.”

His brothers erupted into laughter, and he clenched his fists.

“Besides, if I'm going to convince her to be with me, I think you knuckleheads can help a little. Just for a quick minute, then we can go all investigative. But, D, you're taking my part, I need to train her. I may not have time to get to her and flash out next time. She needs to be taught, and you can talk until you're blue, I'm not changing my mind.”

Demarcus nodded and clasped a hand on his back, causing him to wince from that last fucking cut. “Sounds good. Let's go and say hello to our soon to be sister-in-law. Go get yourself cleaned up too, you like shit.”

“Don't count your chickens before they hatch. It seems that, unless I'm trying to bed her, she's insistent I repulse her.”

Not wanting to answer questions about that, he flashed out and found her sitting at the table with Jessica, looking perfectly content and laughing about something. She must have heard him because she turned in her chair and smiled. The wind knocked out of him at the sight of her truly laughing. Her eyes were so crystalline, and her smile lit up her face, making her more beautiful. The smile faded as she took in his appearance. The worry that flashed over her made him happy. She did care. Her earlier words had been out of anger.

“Stryder!” She was out of the chair and wrapping her arms around him quickly. She realized she’d betrayed the anger she had been trying to pull off before the bar exploding and pulled back, sitting back down. “What happened?” Her eyes looked over the slice on his arm, and she frowned.

“It's fine, nothing to worry about.”

“Don't do that again, or so help me, I'll zap you if I find out I still can.”

Jessica almost choked on her sip of coffee and smiled as Fasheem flashed in, rising to hug and kiss her mate. As the other two came in, she inspected them. Naturally, they had cleaned up before leaving, making him look like hell.

“Oh perfect. You're all just in time! I was about to tell her about the time Stryder thought he should take dancing lessons and practiced with a mop!”

The hoots of laughter rang out around him, and he glowered, cursing them all as he sat down for a round of good-natured ribbing with his family. Not daring to slip his hand into Ciara's, he put it over the chair back and leaned back, prepared to defend himself.

17

As the brotherstook care of the last bits of cleanup from the bar fight, her mind had trouble staying present in the room. The look of Stryder, blood seeping from various wounds and slashes across his body would not erase from her memory. Nor would the terror of seeing him so hurt and bloodied. Even if he had said everything was fine, her heart had still caught in her throat at the sight of him.

Ciara couldn't help the smile that spread upon her face as she listened to the banter. Sitting in the large kitchen should have intimidated her. She had four burly men and a beautiful older woman seated across from her. But it didn't. It felt normal, kind of like she fit.

Stop that right now, Ciara.This is protection. Nothing more. Don't go glamorizing it. What would you be doing if you'd never had the option to come here?She couldn't help sitting there and sneaking sideways glances at a warrior that made her blood boil so quickly, she couldn't wait to undress him. But that was the catch, that's what she was doing.

“So not that we don't trust our brother, Ciara, may we call you Ciara? Joking aside, how do we know you're not drugging our brother and working for the Initiative?” Fasheem wrapped his arm around his wife as he asked the question.

It shouldn't have shocked her that they would want proof, but it was certainly not something she knew how to provide. “I wish I could offer something concrete. But honestly? I've got nothing. I was barely thirty-five pages into Demarcus's book when Stryder popped out. And to be frank, my life has kind of been turned upside down on its head, so reading has been the farthest thought I've had in a few weeks. Just reading what I read was only because I was having trouble writing my own novel, and a friend who is already published suggested a seminar to help get my juices flowing again.”

Fasheem seemed to contemplate the answer as if he was testing its validity. She'd expected Stryder to defend her, but the absent look in his eyes stung. Did he think she was an undercover agent? She scooted the chair a little further away from his. Their knees had been touching, and she should've moved long ago, but she couldn't bring herself to break the contact. That was until she thought he didn't trust what he knew of her.

“Don't listen to Fasheem. He's always been the logical one, and who the fuck needs logic?” Jameson winked at her.

She offered a weak smile back. She'd never undergone that with Alcott. Never felt as if she wanted to climb out of her own skin and run screaming, rather than explore the new world, but their distrust hurt her.

“Perhaps I could tell you the things I know from the novel? It will not be much, but unless the Initiative has a seeing glass, they could not possibly know the events as of yet.”

Again, Fasheem nodded, and she continued. “I can tell you that, at the book’s opening, Fasheem and Jessica were speaking of the dangers of childbirth, but had—” She stopped short, unsure if she should be saying it. “I apologize to you both, but my credibility is on the line. They had decided to move forward with trying.”

“She's right.”

Jessica didn't embellish, but the smile she gave Ciara felt reassuring and supportive.

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