Page 84 of Siege of Blood and Betrayal

My father mentioned something about him growing up in a shifter compound up north, but I never cared enough to ask what his species of shifter was.

I should have. At least then I’d have a better idea about my competition.

Tucker.The name grinds through me, a mixture of jealousy and… what? Shame? Embarrassment? He turned Scottie’s head from the moment they met and I don’t know how to get her attention back on us.

I glance at her, standing a few feet away in the dark. Tension coils tight between us, thick and impossible to ignore, but she’s not looking at me.

She’s pretending she’s focused and steady, but something’s going on between her and Huntley. She keeps shooting him covert looks, her expression twisted up like she just swallowed a chunk of sour milk.

At least the thought of her spending time with Huntley doesn’t make me homicidal. The three of us were close once. I love the idea of the two people I care about most working their drama out.

A deep inhale of night air forces me to ignore the scent of Tucker wafting around us. It’s coming from Scottie’s clothes.

At least they were wearing clothes this time.

She obviously doesn’t know what went down with me and Tucker in the garage. If she did, she’d be ripping into me instead of standing there, calm and collected.

All these years, I thought she was being stubborn.

Nope. I was being stupid.

I took away her choice. Destroyed the trust we had. And I have no one to blame but myself.

“We need him alive, Z.” Huntley grips my shoulder and dips his chin to meet my gaze. “I get that it’ll take every ounce ofcontrol you have not to rip his throat out the second you lay eyes on him, but we need him alive.”

Scottie nods. “We’ll turn the tables, find out what he knows, and make him pay when the time’s right.”

I love the sound of that.

Movement in the distance catches my eye and pulls me back into the moment. A figure approaches from the shadows, jogging up the tracks just beyond the egress tunnel for the subway.

Jaxon.My blood hums with the promise of violence, but I grit my teeth, forcing myself to stay rooted to the spot.

“Easy, Z.”Scottie’s whispered warning helps.

A few seconds later, Jaxon joins us. His face is twisted into that smarmy smug grin I’ve come to hate. He thinks he’s playing us. Soon, he’ll realize how wrong he is.

He greets us with a nod and then tilts his head back the way we came. “I parked the car as close as I could. Where are we off to?”

Scottie shifts slightly, her gaze locked on Jaxon. “We got a lead on Daeva’s army that we need to check out.”

“Oh, yeah? That’s awesome.” The sound of his voice makes my skin crawl, but I don’t react. Not yet.

“But you can’t leave us hanging like you did at DonorWatch,” Huntley adds.

Jaxon shrugs. “Sorry, man. I told you I had to move the car. I circled back, but you guys were gone.”

I take a step forward, just enough to let him feel the pressure, but I keep my voice steady. “That was one big fucking circle around the block then, Jaxon, because not only did we get hit hard, but we had a mess of bodies to clean up and you still weren’t there.”

His grin falters under the weight of my words, but he shrugs again. “You’re alive. All’s well that ends well, right?”

I clench my fists, the beast inside me snarling for release. “You’ll make it up to us by helping us find Daeva’s army.”

Jaxon’s eyes flick between the three of us, his grin slowly fading. “Yeah, sure. That’s why I’m here, right?”

“Exactly,” Scottie says, offering him a saccharine sweet smile. “That’s why you’re here.”

Jaxon doesn’t respond, his eyes narrowing slightly as he senses the shift in the air.

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