Page 59 of Lesson In Faith

This was what she was terrified of, and he couldn’t blame her. How did it feel, waking up every morning knowing that today might be the day someone took her freedom away?

Worse, that if she didn’t perform well enough in bed, her buyer had the option ofreturningher like a faulty fucking microwave, and she’d be…

“Motherfuckers,” he snarled, though his voice was too deep, too enraged, forsnarlto be adequate. “If they come for her, it will be the last thing they ever fucking do.”

“Standing with you on that,” Jasper agreed in a tone colder than death. “We want to involve Atticus in this, Merrick. These guys have been doing this shit for a long time, and although they’re closed off from civilization, they haven’t let the world pass them by.”

“I’m raiding their financials,” Anarchy chimed in. “They have a security company in their pocket, providing armed operatives for guarding the compound boundaries. They’ve also invested heavily in a few tech companies, which means it’s likely they have access to surveillance technology.”

“How the fuck did she get out?”

“Your girl strikes me as being smart, Merrick. Scared, but smart. Her father’s one of the highest ranking members; smart women listen and learn when their lives are at stake.”

“There might be blind spots in their surveillance. Guards get lazy and complacent when they’re stuck on duty in the middle of nowhere.” Anarchy tapped a few keys. “She’s lucky they don’t have search dogs. No way she could have outrun them, even with a head start. Bet they’re rethinking that option right about now.”

“If we get Att involved, Tamsyn needs to talk. Any data she gives us could save lives.” Jasper crossed over to his wife, stroking long fingers over her shoulder. “Chances are he’s going to draft in Tabitha.”

“She can handle this.”

Sitting up straighter, Merrick held up his hand. “Wait. Wait one damn minute. Did you just say Tabitha?”

“Yes.”

“As in…”

Jasper smirked. “As in my sister, yes.”

“Why the fuck would you send Grit’s submissive into this clusterfuck?”

“Because clusterfucks are what she thrives on,” Anarchy said as though it was blatantly obvious. “They’re basically her reason for living. Or were,” she corrected with a thoughtful hum. “Grit seems to calm some of her nastier murderous urges.”

Mind blown, sure they were yanking his dick, Merrick stared at them. “Tiny blonde Tabitha, barely reaches the middle of my goddamn chest, murders people.”

“Assassinates,” Anarchy informed him soberly. “She doesn’t run around executing people randomly. She has a specific list of requirements a person needs to meet before she goes in for the kill.”

“Of course, she does,” Merrick murmured weakly, feeling his world suddenly rewrite itself to accommodate this new information. “And I suppose Grit is her accomplice?”

“More like partner in crime now, I guess. We feel a lot better knowing she’s got someone invested in her safety covering her ass on missions.”

All he could do was laugh. “Fuck me.”

She waved a hand. “Ask Jasper. He shares occasionally, but you have to ask real nice.”

“That wasn’t what I… Very funny,” he said when she grinned at him from behind the laptop. “I’m not sure I’m comfortable with sending a woman into a place where they murder them for fun.”

“Not your call. Ultimately, Tabitha chooses her ops, and she’ll be all over this.” Jasper’s eyes glittered with amusement. “Besides, while she mainly works alone, if Atticus requests her on a job, he sends in a team with her. It thoroughly pisses her off.”

“Your doing?” Merrick asked, recognizing the glint of evil humor in those blue eyes.

“I do love pissing my baby sister off at every opportunity,” Jasper mused, bending to kiss his wife’s head before moving to the end of the couch to sit. “But the fact remains sheismy baby sister, and while she’s probably the most capable person in the business, I still worry about her. She’s one of the only living members of my family I tolerate.”

“You like Darius,” Anarchy piped in absently. “Troy, Wesley, and Ashford are decent guys when they’re not swinging their dicks around trying to measure up to you.”

“I don’t need to swing mine around.”

“No, you do not, Sir.” She glanced up. “Call Atticus, ask him what he wants us to do. I can freeze their assets now, but that’s going to put them on alert, especially with Tamsyn missing.”

“Is that an order, kitten?” Her husband purred in a low, dark voice.

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