Page 68 of Cuckoo (Kindred)

Zara didn’t care that the woman was angry, she didn’t care that Cuckoo felt belittled and victimized. This situation only occurred because of the way Cuckoo handled herself. Dragooning a man into a life of servitude, forcing him to stalk and harass the apparent object of her love, showed Zara Cuckoo’s level of compassion, and it was the level she’d get in return.

“Pack your shit,” Brodie said. “You’re done.”

“A taxi will be here for you in ten minutes,” Zara said.

Cuckoo squeezed her lips together and held her breath. Zara wondered if she was going to have a full-on toddler tantrum. Releasing the steam of fury in one long inhale, Cuckoo spun around and marched into the bedroom, slamming the door behind herself.

“Should we go after her?”

“Why?” Brodie asked. “If she climbs out the window, we get what we want. There’s nothing in there she can steal. I had all the furniture moved out of here and put into storage. Nothing in here is our responsibility ‘cause everything you see was rented in Cuckoo’s name.”

Circumstance had prevented her from voicing her gratitude. “Except your chair,” she said, recalling it in their manor bedroom.

“That’s right,” he said and squeezed her close.

“She could call up reinforcements,” Zara said.

Pushing her forward, Brodie moved her to the black leather couch that faced toward the windows and sat down. Zara stayed upright, looking around at the familiar space that was now alien to her. She had been full of ideals when she bought this apartment, few of which had come to fruition.

Zara couldn’t deny that the space was beautiful with its hard wood floors and grand columns, but it wasn’t her home anymore. It wasn’t her sanctuary. Though she couldn’t pinpoint if that was because she considered the manor her home now or if because Cuckoo had sullied this space so it no longer felt clean or safe.

“The sole reinforcement she has is Caine,” Brodie said, scooting back on the couch to lean forward. “And we can take him if he shows up.”

If Cuckoo had an army of men at her disposal, she wouldn’t need Caine as badly as she did. Zara dropped to the couch. Sitting on the edge, she turned herself toward Brodie and rested the sides of both her clenched fists on his knee. “I’m ready.”

“For what?” Brodie asked, insinuating an arm around her hip so he could pat her ass.

“To sell this place. It’s time to move on.”

“It’s about fucking time,” he said.

Shifting to sit back, she brought her feet up and curled against his side. Brodie had been trying to coerce her into giving up this apartment since Art died. Something had held her back. She wanted to be independent, to have her own safety net to fall into if things went south. None of that mattered anymore, her connection to this abode, where she’d felt so safe, was no longer driving her.

She and Brodie had proved that they were capable of working through issues and wouldn’t push each other away. It would be sad to no longer have access to this beautiful space, but the manor was filled with its own treasures. There was plenty of room there that she could get away from the others if she needed to.

Once it was on the market, it wouldn’t take long to sell, and then she could move on with her life with Brodie, fully committed to their future together.

In the end, Cuckoo went quietly. Zara had expected a dramatic showdown, but the European didn’t gather enough steam for that. It was sort of anticlimactic to see Cuckoo just slide into the cab and peel away from the curb. They watched her go and then that was it, one thing on their to-do list was checked off.

Returning to the manor, they stayed up late preparing for the meeting with Kahlil. Brodie and Tuck left base to scout the location and discovered there were no windows or overlooking areas of the empty, dilapidated office block that Kahlil had selected. Brodie was disappointed that they wouldn’t be able to have over-watch observation points. On the flip-side, neither could Kahlil. They would have to play this one straight.

Zave and Thad were flying over to act as backup because she, Raven, and Tuck were all going into the meet. Kahlil had specified that he wanted her and Raven, taking a third person just made sense. Kahlil was expecting two but would be received by three, and he’d just have to live with that. Zave and Thad weren’t here yet. Their flight was due to land in the morning, and she just prayed they would get here in time without any hitches.

All three of them worked out in the gym then had a late dinner. It was the early hours when they retired to their bedrooms. Although they weren’t particularly tired, it was important that they were well-rested and alert when meeting with Kahlil.

Sitting in the middle of their bed, Zara watched Brodie come out of the walk-in closet and strip off. “How are you doing?” she asked because he was scowling again and she’d noticed that expression several times tonight. It wasn’t unusual for Brodie to be glaring at something, but she wanted to know how much time he’d spent worrying about what would be revealed.

“Pumped and ready to get this over with,” he said.

When he came over to the bed, she lifted the blanket for him to slide beneath it to lie out on his back. He pulled her into his side, pressing her chest to his ribs to tuck her under his arm, which curled so he could toy with her hair.

What they learned tomorrow could change everything Brodie thought about his childhood. “No matter what Kahlil tells us tomorrow, it won’t change how much your parents loved you.”

“I know. I’m not thinking about that.”

Twisting to her front, she laid her crooked arm on his chest and flattened her palm on it to prop her chin on her knuckles. “So what are you thinking about? I know you’re nervous.”

“I’m not nervous. I don’t get nervous before ops. We’ve talked about it. We know what we have to do.”

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