Page 12 of Master Vidar & Vali

As I pushed open the door to G&H’s private gym, a blast of loud hard rock music hit me like a wall. The heavy bass reverberated through the floor like a racing heart. Colin had turned down the lights and the few overhead fluorescents were casting long shadows across the room.

I spotted him immediately, his frame was illuminated in one of the pools of light as he pounded away at a heavy bag with a ferocity that was unmistakable. His fists connected with the bag in a constant rhythm, each punch echoing through the room with a dull, steady thud that I could hear even over the music. Sweat dripped from his forehead, his expression a mask of focused intensity.

The tension radiating off him was undeniable, his frustration evident in every powerful strike. My cell phone vibrated in my pocket. I pulled it out and read Rafe’s name on the display. I wasn’t on call for the club tonight, and it was too early for that anyway. I grabbed the stereo’s remote off the bench and killed the music.

The silence was almost deafening in its contrast. Colin paused, breathing heavily, his fists still clenched as he turned tolook at me. I held up my phone, showing him the screen before I hit answer.

“Hello?”

“Hey, it’s Rafe. Do you know where Colin is? He’s not picking up his cell.”

I looked over and saw that my friend’s phone was sitting on a ledge near where he’d been working out. The idiot probably hadn’t heard the call over the music. “Yeah, he’s right here. I’ll put you on speaker.”

I hit the button as Colin used his teeth to pull off the tape from his hands.

“What do you need?” Colin’s voice was harsh.

“You guys know a woman named Zara Foster?”

Colin and I looked at each other with mirroring expressions of surprise. He recovered first. “Yeah, why?”

“She showed up at Midgard about fifteen minutes ago looking like she’d had a run in with a truck, or a wall maybe. I think someone hurt her badly by the looks of the fading bruises on her face.”

“How did she even find the club? We’re not publicly listed on any of the paperwork.” My suspicion must have been obvious because Rafe chuckled.

“Apparently, Colin wasn’t paying attention. Instead of giving her one of his business cards, he gave her a VIP pass to the club.”

“Fuck.” Colin cursed and sped up his motions to pull off the tape.

“You can say that. I think she might be a little shell-shocked by the decor. I left her in Dottie’s company, while I stepped into the back to give you guys a call.”

I wanted to groan. Dottie was a wonderful and vivacious woman, but she loved to talk. God only knew what stories she was telling Zara right now. I hadn’t even met the woman, but I felt a bit sorry for her.

“Keep her there, we’re on our way.” Colin sprinted toward the changing room, leaving me alone with my phone.

“We should get there before the club opens at seven but be careful. We think she has people after her who wouldn’t hesitate at collateral damage. Hopefully, she wasn’t followed, but don’t take any chances.”

“All right, I’ll keep an eye on her till we open. You are going to tell me what’s going on eventually, right?” Rafe might not be one of the original circle but we’d known him back in college, having met him at one of Erik’s infamous sex parties.

He’d started with us at club Midgard in the office and quickly moved into assistant manager and since Erik had become busy with Sif and she was now manager at Valhalla, it made sense for Erik to be there and for Rafe to take over as GM of our first club.

He’d earned our trust in him over the years, and I wasn't the only one who’d said “Finally!” when Erick announced Rafe’s change in employment status. Thing was, it might not be safe for him to know more than I’d already told him.

“If I can, it’s her story to tell. I don’t think we even know half of it yet.”

Colin insisted on driving to Midgard. While we were weaving through the city streets at dangerous speeds, I filled him in on what little I’d learned. Once I’d given him the whole story, I took a breath.

“So what now?”

Colin’s frown confirmed all my worst fears. “What do you mean, what now? We protect her.”

“Just that simple? We still don’t know why she is running or if she’ll want us to protect her. Maybe she just needs somemoney before she ducks out. Are we going to the feds to get her witness protection? We don’t know, but even if she needs protection, I think we should set her up with one of the bodyguards in a safehouse outside of the city.”

“I’m protecting her. If you don’t have the stomach for it you can bail.”

Colin’s words hit me like a knife to the gut. I wasn’t the one who lacked guts. “Fuck you. Did something happen between you and the woman that you didn’t tell me about?” Colin’s hands gripped the wheel tighter but I didn’t back down. “You are so blinded by your obsession that you can’t even think clearly. There is a reason bodyguards aren’t supposed to get personal. Are you going to risk her life by insisting on doing everything yourself? Is this some fucked up mission to absolve yourself of what happened in Iraq?”

I knew my anger had taken things a step too far even as the words tumbled out of my mouth. Our last mission in Iraq had scarred us both in ways that still hadn’t healed. Throwing that in his face was cruel, but it had to be said. Since our discharge, I’d pulled away from the world, and he’d become reckless in his need to help anyone and everyone. Normally, we balanced each other out, but something about this situation had us both reeling.

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