Page 14 of Protect Your Queen

“I’m not sure what you mean.”

“Does her voice sound like she’s enjoying what she does? Just… I don’t know. Never mind.” He kept looking out the window, at the passing parcels of land. We drove between expensive, Spanish, and adobe-style homes and wove into the main streets of large buildings. Traffic was light for this time of day. I expected LA traffic to be more oppressive. Or maybe that was because I spent a lot of time in New York City.

Jareth was a strange man. The principal client, Jestiny, was probably just as strange. But what the hell did I know about the dynamics of siblings? Elyse and I were two very different people who shared the same parents. Our age gap meant that by the time she was born, I was so, so,soready to have a little brother or sister. I was ten years old when they plopped her in my arms. I felt so important and responsible. Ilovedfeeding her, changing her, burping her. I took her care to heart. Still do.

“My sister does not know that there have been other threats,” Jareth finally said, staring impatiently at his watch. “She’s seen one, and that was enough. The rest I kept from her.”

It was a statement, and an order for me to keep my mouth shut.

“Yes, sir.” I stopped at a redlight. A brown fast-food bag rolled along the road, carried by the strong wind that rattled the car.

“Do you play chess?”

“What?” I took a quick look in the rearview, just to make sure he was, in fact, talking to me, and not on his phone or something. The change in subject was so abrupt that I wasn’t totally sure.

But he had no phone in hand. No Bluetooth in his ear.

“Do. You. Play. Chess?” he repeated, slower, as ifIwas the slow one.

“Not really.”

“Have you ever heard the phrase,Gardez la Reine?” His eyes suddenly met mine in the mirror, as I kept checking the road.

“Protect your Queen.”No one needed to be a genius to know that phrase, right?

Another quick glance in the mirror, and he was still looking at me, his hands clasped in front of him.

“Jestiny is our Queen,” he finally said. “She is our most powerful player.”

I wasn’t sure I understood what he was getting at, so I waited.

“I do not love one sibling more than another, but Idosee the role we all play as a family. Jestiny is the most powerful piece on the board.” He looked away, staring out the window again. “She’s beautiful, and talented. She’s special. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

“Yeah, sure.” I had no fucking clue, but maybe I’d pick up what he was putting down if I talked it out. “In Chess, if you lose your queen, you lose the game.”

“Exactly.” He looked unconvinced about my conviction. “More importantly, if anything happens to her on your watch, I will jam my boot so far up your arse, you’ll taste Kiwi shoe polish long after I’ve buried you six feet under.”

I guess we were done with the good-natured tap dancing. I appreciated the straight talk.

“Poetic,” I deadpanned.

“I’m not sure why Callum thought some new guy off the street was good enough to protect my sister, but I trust our long-time friendship.” Jareth’s eyes darkened, and even if I didn’t see it in the mirror, I could fucking feel it in the cold air around us. “However, I am reluctant to trust strangers. One false move, and I will have you shipped to Scotland in a box.”

“I’m not exactly off the street.” I shrugged, mentally relaxing every muscle of my hand as I continued to drive. He was taking my measure. I had to stay calm and take his hot-winded bluster on the chin. If I could handle Lea’s incessant berating, I could certainly handle him. “I was Special Forces and did ten years in the Army. I’m also the first man to pass Caledonia Security’s rigorous training program.”

“Yes,” he said, in that nasally British way those limey snobs do. “They say you’re the first in over a hundred candidates. I suppose that makes you feel special.”

The man was a tough nut to crack. I’ll give him that. But I bet I could win him over.

The flash of a camera lens blinded me from the sidewalk. Not just one, but hundreds. A small, golden figure fell into the road.Who the fuck is that?

I slammed the breaks, fishtailing to the side, the tires squealing loudly in my ears. The car came to a stop within a foot of the girl.

“What the…” Jareth shouted from the back seat. “Jestiny!”

Well, that answered my question. The woman in the street was none other than the principal client: Jestiny Barkada.

Jareth jumped out of the back seat faster than I could blink, slamming the door closed behind him. I followed suit and strode right to the girl I was hired to protect.

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