Page 107 of Nemesis

“Maybe,” he allows. “Maybe not. It depends on if you’re ready for the fight.”

Am I?

I don’t think I have a choice.

“Reese is…” I cannot tell him I kissed Reese. I still feel his lips against mine, and heat surges to my face.

And between my legs.

God, not now.

I shove the memory away and focus on the mugs. He fixes my tea the way I like it, and I grip it with both hands. I don’t know what to do. Not with Terror, or Reese, or Saint, or Kade, or the Cyclopes, or?—

“Reese is what?”

“He’s not strictly the enemy.” I look away. Antonio knows quite a bit of my history, but I didn’t ever have to get into the nitty gritty. He was there, in a way. He saw what Terror did to people. “I don’t know what I want to do.”

“Okay.” He leans back. His chair creaks a little, and he crosses his ankles. “Okay, so what do younotwant to do?”

I smile. I think he used to do that with his kids, too, when they were struggling. Can’t think of chores you want to do? Cross the least favorite off the list. Go from there.

“Did you find out anything from the sheriff about that body?”

He frowns. “No. Nothing new. There were no defensive wounds, no DNA that could tie it back to someone specific. He’s labeling it a gang member death.”

I bristle. “It was an informant, and heknewthat before they even discovered it.”

“Doesn’t change the fact that…”

Something catches his attention on his computer. It’s at an angle that I can’t quite see, and I’m tempted to get up and circle around to satisfy my own curiosity. Before I can, he swivels it to show me.

The sheriff has just arrived in front of the club.

On a Saturday night, at our peak hour.

It’s not just him, though. It seems like most of the force is behind him, the whole screen filled with blue-and-red flashing lights, cruisers, deputies.

He holds up a paper to the bouncer, then moves past.

Everyone moves past.

“Warrant,” I breathe. “I need to get down there.”

Antonio grabs my wrist. “No. You should leave while you still can.”

I reach over and click to a separate view. One that shows all the cameras. They’re already in the stairwell that leads up here.

“Do we have anything to hide?”

He makes a face. “Everything is above board.”

“Okay, then…” I take a deep breath. “We let them search. We don’t have a choice.”

“We’ll have to shut down for the night.”

I scowl.

The club is packed. Saturday nights are always high-adrenaline as we catch the run-off from Olympus. Those who aren’t ready to call it a night come here, and a lot are still wearing their masks. But even as we watch the security footage, our guests slowly stop dancing. More and more flood out.

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