Prologue
Stone Masterson walked into Drugan’s bar and made his way to the corner table. He’d come to Troy, New York to talk to his buddy Sam Tory, maybe get him involved in his latest project. As he made his way through the crowded bar he noted the unusual decor, a mix of police badges, firefighters patches and biker’s patches. The patches and badges were enclosed in glass with lights shining down on them as if to honor what and who they stood for. The walls were painted varying shades of blue and there were different framed photos lining one entire wall draped in black ribbons. Each frame had a plaque with the name and date of death on it. On one end of the bar was a medium size bell to ring out when someone wanted to remember the dead.
Sitting with his back against the wall, Stone glanced around the room. He didn’t notice anything out of place. He took in the entire room with one quick glance. The bar itself was just another bar, nothing too exciting. He’d been in too many bars for this one to make a difference. As late as it was, the place looked filled up. He could see people everywhere but they weren’t overflowing to the point where they crowded each other. He’d learned how to observe the room without taking particular notice of anything in the service. If you wanted to live, you had to be aware of everything around you. Overlooking something could get you killed in a hurry. He saw a table with four women nearby but they posed no threat so he ignored them for the most part. Then his eye caught sight of one of the women at the table and he gave her a second glance.
She looked small in form but her hair made her stand out. Red and gold fire caught back in a loose braid that hung in a thick rope all the way down to her ass in a wave of shimming flames. For a moment, it was the only thing in the room he could see.
A waitress dressed in a skimpy outfit came by to take his order and when he ordered his drink, she tried to engage him in conversation but Stone ignored her and she frowned as she moved back to the bar to get his drink. He was keeping watch on the room but his eyes kept coming back to that long red, glimmering braid.
When the waitress brought his whiskey back to his table, he ignored her again and she moved away in a huff. Stone wasn’t bothered by her impatience. He wasn’t here to flirt, he was here to meet his men. He sat there sipping on his drink, waiting for the others to show up.
At a table nearby, a young woman sat there watching him. She’d noticed him as soon as he walked in the bar. When she first saw him, she caught her breath at the sight of him. Tall and built like a god. So buff and the fact that his hair was completely white didn’t bother her at all. With one look, she could tell he was a man, not a boy, but a man who’d seen something of what life had to offer.
His face looked worn and tanned, sharply contrasting to the white of his hair but still held resolve. She licked her lips as she surveyed his hard body. Then he slipped the jacket off his back and she needed to draw a breath and look away. Though, she couldn’t stay away for long and her glance kept going back to him.
The other three women at her table were watching her watch him.
One of the woman, Judy leaned toward her and asked, “What are you looking at?”
McKenna shifted her eyes back to the others and shrugged. “Nothing really.”
Lisa leaned over and followed her gaze. “Ohhh, he’s cute for an older guy. I could go for him for at least one night.”
Sarah leaned over and gazed at the man in question. “Yeah, he’s too old for me but not for you, McKenna? I think he’s old enough to be your father.”
“Oh, please be quiet.” McKenna scoffed. “I was just looking. You know…admiring the scenery.”
Judy looked his way again and giggled. They had been at the bar just long enough to get a bit tipsy. “I can see why you’re watching him. If his hair wasn’t snow white, I’d go for him myself.”
“He isn’t that old.” McKenna shook her head. “Besides, I’m not looking at his hair.”
“Oh yeah,” Judy drawled. “He’s got a body that won’t quit.”
McKenna lifted her glass to her lips as she stole another glance at the mystery man. He was older than her, but he sure had a tight body. The t-shirt he wore stretched across his chest and you could see his hard body. His arms were muscular and his thighs were huge. His hair did look snow white, a little on the longer side and his tanned skin played a sharp contrast to the white moustache and short goatee he wore. With his bare arms, she could see the hint of a couple tattoos she couldn’t see before. One looked to be a military symbol on his left upper arm but it was hidden by the sleeve of his t-shirt. The other one, on his right forearm was a ring of flames that circled his entire lower arm. To her he looked gorgeous and for the first time in her life, she wanted to see if a man would taste as good as he looked. Then her cheeks flushed at her wicked thoughts.
“Maybe you should go introduce yourself,” Lisa stated dryly. “You can’t seem to take your eyes off the man and it’s a bit embarrassing.”
“Yeah.” Sarah chuckled. “Come on girlfriend, I dare you.” She shifted in her seat. “I dare you to go kiss him.”
“Oh, I’d like to see that myself,” Judy crowed.
McKenna squirmed in her seat. Reaching for her drink, she shook her head. “I couldn’t do that. I don’t even know the man.”
“But you can’t take your eyes off him. Come on, I dare you…no, I double dare you to go kiss him. Just walk over there sit down on his lap and lay one on him.” Lisa voice had an edge to it. She, like the rest of them seemed a bit tipsy.
McKenna was probably the only one of them who’d never done anything wild and Lisa was more than daring her. They hadn’t known her long but she came across as the type that needed a little push to do something daring. In her mind, McKenna had never done anything risky and Lisa never understood her reluctance. She felt everyone needed to let loose and do something impulsive once in a while. She’d told McKenna before that it was long past time for her to do something she might regret later. She leaned toward McKenna and urged her, “You need to go get you some of that.”
McKenna stared at the man then turned to the girls with her. “Do you really think so?” she whispered.
Lisa nodded, as did the others.
McKenna grabbed her glass and drained it. Then she got to her feet and made her way over to the corner table.
The man looked up at her the moment she got to her feet. His eyes narrowed as he watched her walk the short distance between them, then McKenna surprised him by sitting on his lap and pressing her lips to his. His eyes shot open.
A zing of electricity zapped her when their lips met. McKenna groaned as she opened her mouth to his.
He grabbed her shoulders but instead of pushing her away, he dragged her closer to him. His mouth pressed to hers and when her lips parted, he plunged his tongue in.
McKenna melted into his embrace. He started a fire inside her that quickly grew out of control. Chest to chest, core to core she pressed against him. She couldn’t have moved away from him if her life depended on it.
Stone pushed his tongue into her mouth plunging it in and out, wishing it were more than what was acceptable in a bar. His cock went rock hard in two seconds flat. He remembered well that feeling from years ago. Straining against the jeans he wore he wanted nothing between them. Then he heard her groan and his lips slipped down along her throat, nibbling and tasting her sweet skin.
His eyes opened narrowly and he watched her through a haze of desire. Then his lips found hers again and he kissed her some more. He could feel her heat pressing down on his cock and he felt a surge of want flow through him.
Before he was done, she ripped herself out of his embrace. She paused briefly and they both stared at each other in shock. He hadn’t been able to see her eyes before now but the look in them was stunned. Her eyes widened and he was able to finally see their beautiful green color.
She stumbled back to her own table, grabbed her purse, and ran out the door.
Stone got up to follow her. He grabbed his jacket and made his way to the front door. Before he could get out the door, the other three men he’d been waiting on came in. He told them to wait for him and followed her out to the parking lot.
She got into a blue Camry and drove right out of the parking lot.
He got on his bike quickly to follow her. Dammit, he didn’t know why. He just followed like the dammed. Like he had no will of his own. That kiss—that damn kiss. Stone felt more passion in those couple of minutes than he had in years.
Keeping her in sight until she parked her car, he pulled over down the street and watched as she went inside a duplex. He sat on his bike and watched the lights come on inside. He’d almost given up his idea of going to her when the silence of the night was shattered by a scream. He lifted the kickstand down and raced toward her front door. His weapon was in his hand before he realized he’d even grabbed it from his back holster and when he kicked the door in, he found her in the kitchen.
Swiftly, he searched the rest of the apartment and when he didn’t find anything out of place, he came back to her. Replacing his gun in the back of his pants, he knelt on the floor pulling her into his arms. She cried and trembled so much he didn’t know what was the matter.
Then she was trying to get away from him, screaming and beating at him.
“Shhh, it’s all right, no one is going to hurt you.” He told her calmly. He had to repeat himself several times before she finally heard him. She kept fighting him until he finally got through to her. When she saw who was holding her she wrapped her arms around him and held on tightly.
After a few more minutes, she felt safe enough to let him go and that’s when he saw what she held in her hand. A red hawk’s feather. Stone gasped in surprise and backed away from her as if he’d been stung by a nest of hornets. “Where the fuck did you get that feather?” he demanded harshly. He grabbed her by the shoulder and his hands bit into her skin.
“What?” she whispered.
He shook her and growled repeating his earlier question, “Where the fuck did you get that feather?”
She looked down at her hands. For a moment, the feather she held didn’t register then all of a sudden tears rolled down her cheeks. “H-he left it for me,” she whispered brokenly. “He found me again.”
“Who found you again?” Stone demanded.
She shuddered. “A killer.”
Stone let her go and got to his feet. Reaching for his phone, he called Reaper. When the other man answered, he told him. “Get here…like now. We got problems.” He rattled off an address and ended the call. He helped her to her feet and led her over to the sofa. Sitting down with her, he pulled her into his arms and held her for a moment.
A few minutes later, his men showed up. He could hear their cycles arrive. When they joined them, eyes widened in fear but Stone assured her she was safe. “It’s okay, these are friends of mine.”
“Why are they here?’ she whispered back.
“First, what’s your name?” he asked.
She bit at her lip and answered, “McKenna.”
Stone gave her a reassuring pat on the back. “Good. Now McKenna, I want you to show them what you found tonight.”
She glanced down at the feather still in her hand. When she realized she still held it, she threw it down on the floor and buried her face in Stone’s neck, shuddering in revulsion.
“What the hell?” Reaper barked as he stooped down to pick up the feather. Twirling it around in his hand, he looked at Stone. “What the ever loving fuck is this?”
“It’s Hades’ calling card,” Doc whispered loudly, staring at the feather.
“Jesus H. fuckin Christ,” Viper swore.
McKenna stared at all three men. They all looked sick to their stomachs, then their looks changed to something hard and bitter. She glanced up at Stone and saw his look. She had to shiver at his expression. “Who is this guy and how do you know him?”
“That, sweetheart is a long story.” Stone told her as he turned to face her. “What we need to know is how you know him.”
She hesitated for a moment. “About four years ago I saw him kill someone,” she whispered, as her eyes looked haunted. “I’ve been running from him ever since.”