Page 26 of He Is Jensen: Part One

“I want her dead,” I say. “Now, before she can be used as a weapon against us, which means before Jensen manages to get her to Sunrise City and under my brother’s protection.”

Chapter twenty

Jensen

I’m losing my fuckingmind over Layla.

After a good three hours of searching the Area 51 desert terrain for Layla with no luck, I decide she must have hitchhiked out of here, and I have to assume she’s in Vegas. That’s the best scenario, and if I let my mind go too wild, I can think of plenty of worse scenarios, that’s for fucking sure.

In need of reinforcements, I windwalk to the Nevada mountains and the underground headquarters for the Renegades, Sunrise City, with murder on my mind—Maddox’s, to be precise. And why the fuck was no one there to help me save Layla? I charge through the facility and straight for the war room—the Renegades operation center.

Kicking the door open, I find Maddox sitting at the conference table with Caleb and Creed on either side of him, along with four other high-ranking Renegades. One look in my direction, and the room crackles with anticipation. No one dare says, “welcome home,” and Caleb motions for them all to leave. Everyone stands to comply, except for Creed, who considers himself Caleb’spersonal bodyguard, which is fine with me. My issue is not with Creed.

Me and Creed butt heads, but at our core, we’re friends. Creed and Caleb are about the only two people I’d trust if my life depended on it, and it does right now. There was a time not so long ago when Maddox would have been included on that short list.

I step inside the room and allow the rest of the group the space to exit. Three men pass, and when Maddox follows, I’m having no part of it. The instant Maddox is within reach, I grab him and slam him on top of the conference table.

Maddox is on his back on top of the table. “What the fuck?”

Creed arches a dark brow. “Bad mood, Jensen?”

“Bad mood doesn’t even begin to describe it,” I say.

“What the fuck, man?” Maddox repeats, rolling to face me and intending to stand.

I’m in front of him in a heartbeat, but Caleb and Creed are there on either side of us, each with a hand on us both, holding us apart. “What the hell is going on?” Caleb demands.

“That’s what I want to know,” Maddox snaps. “What is this?”

“You fake, Mr. All-American, do everything by the book, piece-of-shit traitor, with your GI Joe haircut and morals of steel,” I grind out. “You gave her up. You gavemeup. You handed her over to Tad.”

“You handed her over to Tad. I tried to stop it from happening, but they had five men for every one of us.”

I lunge at Maddox. “You lying sack of shit.”

Creed curses and holds me back, stepping between me and Maddox. “Take a breath, man. Let’s figure this out.”

“He’s Zodius,” I seethe, enunciating every word tightly. “And you know me well enough to know I wouldn’t make such an accusation if I wasn’tdeadcertain.”

“I was there,” Creed replies. “I got there at the end of it all, too late. Maddox had taken so many bullets, he was bleeding out and still trying to fight. I don’t know what you think you saw, but I don’t believe Maddox is dirty.”

“Give him some room, Creed,” Caleb orders.

Creed grimaces. “Hear him out before you attack again.” He steps aside, and I’m staring straight at Maddox, forced to control myself when I want to beat him to a pulp. “I know what you did,” I all but growl.

“This is insane,” Maddox mumbles furiously, talking to Caleb, whose hand is pressed to his shoulder, holding him immobile. “He’s crazy. He was hurt and delirious, and I’m not taking the fall for his stupid, daredevil mistakes that got that woman killed.” He glares at me. “Stop trying to prove you’re as GTECH as the rest of us before you get someoneelsekilled.”

Fury explodes inside me at the reference to my limited windwalking ability and a few other shortfalls in the superhuman skills department that only a handful of people know exist. This time when I lunge, it’s with enough fury and speed that I plant a fist on Maddox’s jaw before Creed and Caleb pull us apart again.

Creed growls at Maddox. “Why did you go there, man? Seriously, why?” He shifts his attention to me. “That shit he just said doesn’t matter,” he says, understanding in his gaze. The feeling of being an outcast is one he knows well, but he’s living with the opposite problem. Creed is more powerful than any of us, to the point of it scaring others. “You’re both pissed and saying things you don’t mean,” he adds, “and it’s getting us nowhere.”

“Oh yeah, I’m pissed,” I say coldly. “I haveneverrisked anyone’s life but my own, and I’ve damn sure saved a hell of a lot more than him.”

“Oh jeezus, Jensen,” Maddox snaps. “Why don’t we get out our dicks and measure them, too?”

My gaze locks on Creed. “Maybe you should remind him I’m as good at taking lives as I am at saving them.”

“Isaidmeet me at the upstairs window,” Maddox yells. “Why the hell did you go out the backdoor? And why the hell did you hand her over to the Zodius without a fight?”

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