Page 114 of Bite of Sin

“Get the hell away from her,” Warner snarled, darting in front of me, pushing Zan’s hand off me.

“Warner, no,” I screamed when he punched Zan in the jaw.

Zan stayed completely still until Warner swung at him again. He caught Warner’s wrist, squeezing hard enough that Warner let out a pained grunt while trying to free himself. But Warner’s other arm shot out, stopping me when I tried getting between them.

Zan cocked his head. “Trying to protect her from me?”

“Whatever hold you have on her is going to get her killed,” Warner gritted out.

“No,” Zan corrected, letting go of Warner’s arm. “It’s your fucking group that will do that. Which is why I’m fixing it.”

Warner stepped back, taking me with him, keeping himself between Zan and me. I didn’t move, my heart racing as I caught Viggo’s eye from across the room. Blood dripped from his chin, and he smirked while wiping a hand over his jaw, smearing it even more. The man he’d bitten was slumped on the floor, unmoving. Pax was leaning against the wall, the stake still in his hand as he looked at Zan.

“I don’t know why you’re hiding her behind you,” Zan murmured, pulling my eyes back to him. “She’s the reason you’re still alive. If anything, she’s protecting you.”

Warner scoffed. “Please. You wouldn’t hesitate to kill me.”

“Believe me, I’ve thought about it.” Zan chuckled. “But I won’t. Not unless I need to.”

My stomach knotted, and I tried to slip past Warner, but he banded his arm around me, keeping me beside him. Zan watched with interest but didn’t make a move to grab me again.

“Garrett,” Zan said, turning to look at Garrett, who was standing off to the side. “What did you plan to do when you walked into this cabin?”

“Take Kali,” Garrett answered in a monotone voice. “Use her to find you.”

“Then what were you going to do to her?” Zan asked.

“Kill her once she wasn’t useful anymore.”

“Was that your decision or the Clovers’?”

“Clovers’.”

Garrett’s answer had my heart squeezing painfully. The people I considered family would just turn on me like that? Warner’s arm tightened around me in silent comfort.

“And Warner?” Zan pressed. “What were you going to do to him?”

“Kill him if he chose to side with her.”

Viggo let out a low whistle. “Sounds like a great group of people to be with.”

I glared at him, my body shaking as I fully grasped what Garrett was saying. I couldn’t go back with them. I was now considered an enemy. Just like the vampires.

“How many people know about me?” Zan asked in a low voice.

“Six,” Garrett replied.

“Only three left alive out of those six,” Pax piped up.

Zan nodded. “The two in Project Hope will have to wait. But Garrett can be dealt with now.”

He was talking about Tim and Jill. He planned to kill them. What the hell kind of secret had they found out about, and why did Zan want to keep quiet?

Zan turned to fully face Garrett as he took a small folded knife out of his jeans pocket. “Now, you can say whatever you want. Let your true feelings out. But while you’re talking, you’re going to do exactly as I say. How many times did you hit Kali?”

Warner stiffened, his head whipping to the side to look at me. “He what?”

“Once,” Garrett answered, his eyes darkening with anger. “She fucking deserved it.”