Page 51 of Rivals & Revenge

I nodded, dragging in a deep breath before raising the rifle and quickly taking out the houses in our path.

"Mailbox," I started calling out the cameras in the broker's yard. "front door, rose bush. garden gnome, right corner."

"Sprinkler." he added.

"Sprinkler?" I turned, searching his face for any sign he was fucking with me.

"There is a pop-up sprinkler about six feet from the gnome. Notice anything suspicious?" he asked patiently, as if he were schooling a child.

"Ugh!" I growled, taking aim at the sprinkler imposter. "No freaking water."

His hand landed on my arm, softer than I expected. "Good girl."

I offered him the rifle, and he slung it over his shoulder, pulling the pistol from his waistband.

"How do you know she's not home?" I whispered, my words nearly drowned out by the soft rustling of grass against our boots as we crossed the lawn.

"Now that would be telling," he murmured, tossing me that smirk that set both my patience and my panties on fire.

My mouth opened, only quivered a moment before snapping shut, giving him a chance to brush past me and step on the front porch first.

His fingers worked quickly, picking the lock with practiced ease.

"You're really not going to tell me?" I asked.

"Later. Kitten." he answered with a wink.

I sucked in a deep breath, ready to argue the point. But the glimmer of mischief dancing in his honeyed depths said he was prepared with some kind of 'curiosity killed the cat' retort, so I swallowed my protest, instead offering him an innocent smile just as the door clicked open.

"What's wrong? Cat got your tongue?" he smirked, chuckling softly to himself as he pushed the door open. "Ladies first."

I moved past him, raising my weapon as I stepped through the door, Ahren closing it with a soft snick behind him.

"I don't know how long she's going to be out. We need to make this quick," he added, all traces of humor gone and in its place a hardened soldier.

We swept from room to room, clearing the house, thankfully finding no one.

Just as before, the broker's office was on the second floor. I wasn't really a techy person, but I would swear the set-up was the same.

"Talk to me, Jax." Ahren said, putting his smart glasses on, allowing Jax to see what he saw.

One way conversations irritated me, so I focused instead on guarding the door as Jax talked him through the remote login procedures and systems we needed to access to cancel the orders. I had scoffed the first time Ahren mentioned having a tech person. After all, I'd done fine without one up until now. But after all this, I had to admit, I could see the utility.

I stood still as a soldier made of stone, a silent sentinel keeping watch while Ahren and Jax worked through the layers of encryption. My ears strained, listening for any signs we weren’t alone. Looking for the slightest hint of movement, my eyes scanned the hallway constantly.

"Done." he said, ripping the glasses from his eyes and pressing them into their protective case.

I nodded. "Time to go."

Ahren's phone chirped in his pocket.

"More good news?" I asked, my voice tinged with sarcasm.

"It's a problem for another day. But not an unexpected one," he sighed, brushing past me.

My muscles burned as I dragged asshole number two toward the incinerator behind Ahren's house. He helped me wrap my ribs, but dragging someone twice my size was still what Larissa would call 'over exerting myself'. Even in my current condition, a broadsmile flashed across my lips every time his head made contact with a rock. It was a small consolation, but sometimes a girl had to take what she could get.

Ahren passed me up, his wannabe assassin slung over his broad shoulders, tipping him into the stone pit before coming over and lifting mine like he was a pillow rather than a large human.

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