Page 25 of Lure

A shuffle of steps against the wood had me glancing toward the stairs. The clicking of Goblin’s claws alerted me to who it was before Alphabet came into view. I whistled once and Goblinbounded toward the door. Disengaging the alarm, I opened the door and left it open for the dog.

I stepped out onto the back deck to study the area and scan it. Wildlife wandered through regularly. Satisfied, I headed back in. Alphabet looked like shit.

“Trouble sleeping?” It would make sense. Of the four of us, he seemed to have the most trouble unwinding after a mission. As easy going as he was, it wasn’t easy for him to decompress.

“I dunno,” Alphabet admitted as he rolled his head from side to side. The cracking of his vertebrae was loud in the quiet of the kitchen. He was at the coffee pot and filling his oversized mug. We all had them. Hence, why I started the morning with two huge pots and a third carafe that I’d set aside for Gracie.

I checked my watch. “You want me to get your omelet going or coffee first?”

“Coffee first.” Then he paused to take a deep drink and I could totally respect the profound moment of relief on his expression as he leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

While coffee couldn’t fix everything, it sure made life a little fucking easier. We needed to grab easier with both hands every chance we got. Leaving him to his coffee, I got Goblin’s breakfast ready.

By the time he trotted back in, his food and a little treat were in his bowl and he had fresh water. The dog paused next to Alphabet first, always checking on him. When the man murmured something, Goblin thumped his tail against the cabinets and Alphabet’s leg before he trotted to the bowl.

A door closed upstairs, and I wasn’t the only one turning my attention to what—or should I saywhowas up. A soft hum of feminine laughter drifted down toward us and some of the tension cording my muscles unlocked.

From the moment we hooked back up with Alphabet and Gracie, she’d beenoff. Pale, eyes hollow, and a kind of violent trembling hovered around her even if she herself wasn’t shaking.

Shock.

Trauma.

Fear.

All three ignited my temper as it had Voodoo’s and, despite all his attempts at coldness, Bones’ as well. He could try to rationalize it all he wanted, Bones had beenangryat her condition. That anger had focused on Alphabet. While Alphabet’s?

Yeah, he’d been pissed at Bones. We all were. This clusterfuck was going to keep getting worse if we didn’t address it. Hair braided back away from her face seemed to highlight all the fragility in her fine-boned features.

At the same time, some of the softness in her seemed to have been whittled away. She was—hollow? No, that wasn’t the right word. Voodoo sported fresh bruises, but his gaze was watchful as he moved next to her on their way down the stairs.

He managed to hover without actually invading her space. It was impressive.

“Coffee?” Alphabet offered as she reached the last step.

She paused, flicking a glance from Alphabet to me then back again. What the hell had happened in those hours we were gone? The feisty woman seemed stretched far too thin, almost washed out? Frustration edged over my nerves. Was this the attack? Bones being snappy? The shooting? What?

Blowing out a breath, she seemed to gather her composure before a faint smile softened her lips. “I would like that, thank you.”

“I’ll get it,” Voodoo said, giving her a gentle wave toward the table. “Go sit down so Lunchbox can feed you.”

“Actually…” That single word froze all three of us. “That’s brewed coffee. Do you have anything to do espresso? Or maybe steam some oat milk? Or regular milk if you have it?”

Voodoo swung his gaze from her to me just as Alphabet did.

“We do,” I said. “Let me go grab it. Have a regular cup for now? Might take me a minute.”

I didn’t wait for her response, just headed to the door for the basement and dry storage. In addition to the gym and the safe room, we also had longer term storage down there. The pantry upstairs was big, but when you laid in stock like we did, better to have more space—not less.

It took me a good eight minutes to track down the espresso machine. Doc had given it to us. Mostly as a joke, but the note he’d attached to it when it arrived at our private mail box had been pretty rude. Damn funny, but rude.

Since you’re out and no longer need to pickle your livers. Discover real coffee.

Asshole. I grinned when I pulled the unopened box out from behind three stacked boxes of baked beans. I stared at the oversized cans. Who the hell ordered that many beans?

Problem for another day.

The soft sounds of her speaking drifted toward me as I climbed the stairs from the basement. All three of them were in the kitchen. She’d taken a seat and had a steaming mug in front of her. Instead of drinking, however, she was sitting sideways and petting Goblin.

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