Wicked Kiss by Rebecca Zanetti (15)

Tori finished cleaning up the breakfast dishes, her body tingling and kind of aching. The night had been wild, and for a short time, she’d lost herself. Worse yet, at breakfast, when Adam had so calmly said that he’d consider mating as a last resort since he pretty much didn’t believe in love, every competitive impulse she’d ever had rose hard and fast to the surface.

He didn’t believe in love?

Oh yeah? She’d show him. A part of her, one deep down, wanted him to love her. She wanted to show him that love existed. How screwed up was that?

She set the towel beneath the kitchen sink, and a basket caught her eye. Taking it out, she counted eight cell phones. Were they burner phones? They would have to be, right?

Grabbing one, she gently dialed her sister’s number. Four rings, and Lexi’s voice mail came on. Tori left a quick message for Lexi to call her, just as the phone started smoking. Her palm burned and she yelped, dropping it to the floor.

Okay. Deep breaths. She focused her energy, trying to calm herself. Then she tried another phone. This time, she only made it five numbers before it shorted out.

That one clunked on the polished wooden floor and bounced three times.

She could do this. Adam’s words in his low voice filtered through her mind. Relax her body, clear her mind. Think nothing. She sucked in air and shut her eyes. Her muscles relaxed, one by one. She took a third phone and lightly pressed the screen.

“Agent Franks,” came a low voice.

“Agent. It’s Tori Monzelle,” she breathed, trying to gingerly hold the phone just an inch from her ear.

Papers rustled. “Where the hell are you?”

“Somewhere safe,” she said quietly. “Things heated up at Grizzly territory last night.”

“How so? Did you get proof?” Franks asked, her voice rising.

Tori leaned against the counter. “Yeah. I got proof. There are no drugs going through the Grizzlies. Those guys don’t even do drugs.”

Quiet reigned for a second. “You were seen leaving with a Fire member, Tori. Say good-bye to your friend Malanie. She’s going to jail.”

“No, wait.” Tori thought rapidly. The phone zapped against her ear, and she winced. “I’ll call you back.” But it was already dead. Shit, shit, shit. Okay. She grabbed another phone and dialed.

“What the hell?” Franks hissed.

“Sorry. Bad phones,” Tori rushed out. “Listen. I’m dating a Titans of Fire member now, and I can get you intel.” She just needed Agent Franks to back off for a while and she’d figure something out. Maybe Adam could help her, considering he was undercover, too. Not for one second did she consider telling Franks the full truth about him. “Fire is known to run Apollo, right?”

“Yes.” Now Franks’s voice turned calculating. Thoughtful. Calm.

Tori fought the urge to throw up. “Hey. How did you know I left with Adam?”

“You’re not our only CI, Monzelle,” Franks muttered. “Not even close. You told me you were hanging out with Adam Dunne yesterday. How long have you been dating him?”

Tori closed her eyes as dizziness slapped her. “Um, yeah. Since my sister is dating his brother, I, ah, got to know him a little bit. So he came to the Grizzly party last night and got in a fight taking me away.” If a CI had been watching, that’s what he or she would’ve seen.

“Good.” Franks’s tone turned conciliatory. “You did a good job. We think Fire has been involved with the Apollo trade much longer than the Grizzlies. Now you’re on the inside. This will protect your sister and your friend better than the other plan. Excellent thinking. So, what do you know so far?” More papers rustled.

“Nothing,” Tori whispered. “I just got in, Franks. I need time.”

“Time is running out. Did you know your sister has disappeared?”

Tori clutched the phone. “I think she and Kell took a vacation, but I don’t know where.”

“We both know she’s running from the law. It’s up to you to save her. Get me information about Apollo and Titans of Fire. You have three days.” Franks clicked off.

The phone burst into flames, and Tori yelled, dropping it and stomping it with her foot. Her sock was singed. Tears pricked her eyes and she batted them back. Okay. This was all right. Lexi was safe somewhere in Idaho, and now all Tori had to do was save Malanie.

Maybe she should have Adam get her friend underground as well. Malanie didn’t have family in the area. It wasn’t a bad idea. Not really.

The sound of motorcycle pipes echoed through the lightly falling rain. Her heart sped up. Adam was coming back so soon? She hurriedly smoothed back her hair and ran to the bathroom, rifling through a drawer to find one bright red lipstick. No eye shadow, damn it. The high-end lipstick had to be Simone’s. Tori brushed the expensive cream across her lips and then quickly wiped most of the color away, leaving a muted red that was almost pink. Better.

Then she rapidly brushed her hair into a ponytail, using a band she found in another drawer. A couple of pinches to her pale cheeks and she was good to go.

The pipes came closer. A loud rumble of pipes. A couple of bikes? Who would Adam bring back to the cabin? That was odd. She stilled and then sprang into motion, hustling for the bedroom to look out the window. Soon three bikes came into view with a lifted black truck behind them. She squinted. The riders wore Titans of Fire cuts.

The biker in front had a silver gun half in his pants and against his belly.

The bikes stopped, and the men parked just as the truck rolled up. A man jumped out. She recognized him as a member of Fire but didn’t remember his name. None of the men smiled.

Her skin iced over.

One by one, they dismounted from the bikes. The first guy pulled out his gun and checked the clip.

Her stomach knotted. Oh, God. Why were they here? For Adam or her? Either way, the guns didn’t promise a conversation. She looked toward the bedroom door. There was nowhere to go. The men nodded at each other and then turned the corner of the cabin, headed for the front steps.

Holding her breath, she lifted the window as quietly as she could. The front door banged open. Panicking, she scrambled out the window and landed hard on the wet weeds below. Pain lanced up her arm. She shoved herself to her feet and ran for the forest.

Loud bootsteps pounded in the house, and another door slammed against a wall. Men shouted. She reached the trees and skidded around a small pine, her socks catching sticks. Panting, she crashed like a wild animal through trees and bushes, her arms pumping, her legs furiously kicking. She heard more male voices shouting behind her, along with the sound of men barreling through the trees.

Branches scraped her cheek, and she ducked, trying to keep going.

She looked frantically for any shelter. If she tried to reach the river, she’d be exposed.

Silence settled.

God. They were listening for her. She tried to make less noise, but branches broke beneath her aching feet. Sharp rocks cut into her, yet she kept going. Rain slashed her, branches snapped her, and the wind slapped her. The knot in her stomach spread out, filling her chest, making it hard to breathe.

The terrifying feeling of the forest closing in on her made her pulse race and her gaze swing wildly around. Were they trying to surround her?

A shot rang out, plugging a tree above her head. She screamed, and bark flew. Trying to hunch and make herself smaller, she kept going, twisting and turning around trees and scratchy bushes.

“There she is,” a man yelled out.

She whimpered and increased her speed, almost running into a group of rocks. She cleared them, her socks slipping on the last one and sending her sprawling. Her stomach hit first, followed by her chest and then her cheek. Sparks exploded in her mind. She lay, panting, her body paralyzed as she regained her breath. Tears filled her eyes, making it impossible to see.

Hands clamped on her arms and yanked her up.

The guy shook her. Hard.

Her teeth rattled in her head, and pain bloomed in her skull. He turned her and shoved her toward his buddy. The barrel of a gun pressed right against her nape.

“Move,” he said.

Her legs trembled, and blood dripped from a cut on her cheek. She brushed it away, slipping again on the rocks. “Wh-what do you want?” she whispered, her body shaking.

“You’ll see when we get there.” He pushed her harder with the gun.

* * *

Adam kept his stance casual when his temper was anything but. It was entirely possible that Jamm might shoot him. “If it were your old lady, you would’ve gotten her, too,” Adam said, his gaze returning to Pyro.

Pyro glared at him. “If it was my fuckin’ old lady, she wouldn’t have been at the Grizzlies.”

Now that was probably a fair statement. “She might not have known she was my old lady yet,” Adam said, looking for any sort of common ground. “I took her from Lucas Clarke.”

Pyro sat back. “You stole his old lady?”

“Sure did.” Well, she hadn’t really been Clarke’s. But Pyro sure as hell didn’t know that fact. “I took her, beat the shit out of a few of them, and that’s the end of it.”

“You were in Bear’s office for quite a while,” Jamm said, looking like he wanted nothing more than to put a bullet in Adam’s head.

Adam kept his concentration on the leader. “Bear was threatening to kill me for entering his territory, and I threatened to bring down the entire hammer of Fire on his ass, and we scuffled a bit. Broke several of his ribs.” Adam smiled at the blatant lie as if remembering the moment fondly. If anybody had seen Bear afterward, he really hadn’t looked healthy. Broken ribs could account for that.

“You fought Bear and then a couple of other members?” Pyro asked.

“Sure,” Adam said calmly. “That’s what you would’ve done, right?” Pyro was definitely a waste of space. It was probably time to burn Fire to the ground and investigate the case from a different angle. It had been a miscalculation to work with the club for so long. Pyro couldn’t give him the information he needed.

Pyro steepled his stained fingers beneath his chin. “I do like the thought of you beating on Bear.” He gestured toward the seat next to Ziggy and across from Jamm. “Please take a seat so we can discuss your place here.”

Jamm gestured with the gun, not giving Adam much choice.

Even so, awareness filtered through Adam and tensed his muscles. He was missing something. “What would you like to discuss?”

The sound of an altered truck engine roared through the rain outside along with several motorcycle pipes. Adam stiffened. “Did I miss a ride?”

Jamm snorted. “You could say that.”

Adam half rose, and Jamm gestured with the gun. Adam sat and turned toward Pyro, letting the predator he really was show. “What’s going on?”

Pyro blinked and sat back in his chair. Then he shook his head. “Just wait.”

Ziggy’s phone squealed like a stuck pig, and he lifted it to his ear. He gave one short nod. “Shipment is in.”

Pyro nodded. “Go take care of it. I’ll be in touch in about an hour.”

Adam crossed his arms. “Apollo shipment?”

“One thing at a time,” Pyro said, anticipation lighting his eyes. Ziggy sauntered out of the room, and it was all Adam could do to let him go.

Five minutes passed. All right, that was enough. Adam tensed to jump for the gun when footsteps echoed outside. Then a knock on the door.

“Ah. They’re here.” Pyro moved around the other side of the table and opened the door.

The door opened, and a member named Tinker shoved Victoria inside in front of him.

Everything in Adam went deadly silent. “Victoria?” he asked.

She looked at him, dazed. Just like that, relief filled her pretty eyes.

Scratches marred her neck and face, while pine needles stuck out of her wet hair. Blood flowed down her arm from a cut he couldn’t quite see. Bruises were already turning dark along her neck, and mud covered most of her.

Adam pushed back his chair and stood.

“Sit the fuck down,” Jamm ordered.

“What did you do?” Adam asked Pyro, his voice sharper than cut glass.

Pyro nodded at Tinker. “Do you have men watching Grizzly territory? We’re taking them out soon.” When Tinker nodded, Pyro gestured toward Ziggy’s empty seat. “Watch how things happen. I need a VP, and I’m thinking you’re a candidate.”

Tinker’s eyes widened, showing his dilated pupils. The guy definitely tried the products. At about forty, he had a large beer belly and a sunken chest. He took his seat with definite pride.

Pyro faced Adam squarely. “I wanted answers and figured your bitch would be able to motivate you. Finally.”

The beast inside Adam, the one that had tasted Victoria the other night, bunched and tried to spring free. He held it at bay for the moment, focusing on Victoria’s battered face. “Are you all right?”

She swallowed and tears filled her stunning blue eyes. “I think so.” Her soft voice trembled, and the bewilderment in it threatened to send him over the edge.

The motorcycles roared into action outside and zoomed away.

“Shoot her in the leg, Jamm,” Tinker said. “That’ll motivate the bastard. We’ll know where the guns are within seconds.”

Fire and rage mingled in Adam’s chest. “You’re gonna die second, Tinker,” he said.

Tinker snorted. “Right, big guy. Jamm has a gun on you.”

Pyro grabbed Victoria and yanked her back to his chest, his gun already out and pointed at her neck. “I’m done dickin’ around. I have no problem putting a nice hole in your bitch. Give me the location of my guns, and do it now.”

“You’re going to die first, Pyro.” Adam finally let his beast off the chain.