Page 108 of My Vigilante Valentine

“Right on time,” he said, his voice cultured and calm—like we were meeting for coffee instead of a hostage situation. “Though I must say, you handled those traps better than anticipated. The serum really did enhance you beyond normal limits, didn’t it?”

The casual mention of the serum sent ice through my veins. “How do you know about that?”

“Because he was there,” Luna said, and something in her voice made my blood run cold. She had that tone—the one she used when she’d figured something out before anyone else. “Weren’t you? At the facility where it happened.”

He smiled, but the expression never reached those dead eyes. “Very good. I was wondering if you’d figure it out. Your girlfriend is quite clever, Jax. I can see why you’re drawn to her... even if it will be your downfall.”

“You worked there,” I said, the pieces clicking into place like the worst kind of puzzle. “You were part of the team that...”

“That created you? No.” He moved to stand behind Luna’s chair, and every muscle in my body tensed. One wrong move and... “Where your serum was physical, I was working on a sister serum, studying the effects of chemical enhancement on human emotion. Fascinating work, really.”

“Enhancement on human emotion…” Luna gazed at him, tilting her head.

What was she doing?

“Anything to do with love?” she asked quietly, causing him to look down at her. When he didn’t answer, she nodded, almost to herself. “Yeah… that tracks.”

“So, so clever.” His fingers brushed Luna’s shoulder, and I had to physically stop myself from blurring across the room.

“Don’t touch her.” It came out as more of a growl than words, and I tipped forward, ready to?—

But the look in her eyes told me to wait.

To trust her.

His smile widened. “Or what? You’ll kill me? Come now, Jax. We both know you don’t do that. It’s one of your more... disappointing traits. All that power, all that potential... and you waste it on mercy.”

Luna caught my eye, and something passed between us. Trust. Understanding. The kind that only comes from building something real.

She was ready.

I could see it in the set of her shoulders, already knowing she’d been working on her restraints as best as she could. All of that training, all of those moments of her complaining about me being bossy while still doing exactly what I asked—it was all leading to this.

I shifted my weight in the way that always made Luna roll her eyes. Something about it being mylook out for the takedownpose, and as funny as she thought she was, it was also true.

And then, I moved—fast, but not at full speed.

Let him think the traps had worn me down. Let him believe his plan was working. The kind of arrogance that came with thinking you had all the answers?

That was a weakness I could use.

He was ready, of course, and a remote materialized in his hand like he was some kind of freaky magician.

The air filled with a sickly sweet gas that made my enhanced senses scream in protest.

“Designed especially for you,” he said, sounding entirely too pleased with himself as I staggered. “A neurotoxin that targets enhanced nervous systems. Slows you down. Makes you... normal. Hence your inability to take me out during our first meeting.”

My vision blurred, the edges going soft like a photo filter. But I forced myself to focus, to remember my training, and even to imagine what Luna would say if I let some weird science experiment take me down.

Probably something about me brooding too hard to be affected by normal weapons.

“Why?” I ground out, partly to keep him talking, partly to buy time for my system to fight back. “Why target couples? Why not just come after me?”

“Because love is a weakness!” The calm facade cracked like cheap pottery, revealing something jagged and broken underneath. “I lost everything because of love. My wife, my daughter... I’d taken the counterpart to your serum a week before you blew the whole place up, and it made me weak that day. Made me hesitate when I should have been strong.”

“During the accident?” Luna asked softly, and I recognized that tone. It was the same one she used when talking down angry customers who hadn’t had their morning coffee yet. Gentle. Understanding. Dangerous. “At the facility?”

“They were visiting.” His voice shook with the kind of pain that turns men into monsters. “Bringing me lunch. They weren’t supposed to be there when...”

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