Deathtrap (Crossbreed Series Book 3)(18)

With me in one arm, Christian bolted toward the wall and dove to the ground. The truck crashed on top of the car, smashing it to pieces just feet away from us. The back end broke apart, releasing an explosion of small boxes. They hit the road, some cascading over the ledge. Individual packages had burst free, showering the pavement with plastic-wrapped chocolate.

Wyatt jogged onto the scene and fell to his knees, a mountain of MoonPies surrounding him. “Jackpot!”

Christian pushed away from me and stood up.

I stared at the open driver’s side door and empty cab. “That bastard came all the way back to kill us with sugar.”

A tire rolled off the truck and zipped past Shepherd. He stopped short and surveyed the carnage. Wyatt had jammed a MoonPie into his mouth while stacking the undamaged boxes.

Christian offered me his hand and helped me up. We stood amid twisted metal, chocolate, and an open gas line spilling fuel onto the road.

Shepherd kicked one of the packages with the tip of his boot and stuffed his hands into his pockets. “This looks like something we’ll have to deny later.”



I stared bleary-eyed across the room, keeping my focus on Blue to distract myself from the pain. She was sitting at Wyatt’s desk, focusing her attention on dual monitors. I’d been lying on the sofa for a half hour in the exact same position.

“Where’s Shepherd?” Blue asked, expanding a window on one of the monitors.

Wyatt hauled another MoonPie box into the room and shoved it under his desk. “Probably hugging the toilet and regretting his life choices. Boy, you really missed out. You should have seen Raven riding on the roof of that car. It was out of sight.”

“Is that so?” she said flatly.

Wyatt bounced on his heels while admiring the smaller snack cartons on the floor. “I’m too wired to sleep. After I run a check on these plates, I’ll take over and relieve you of your duties.”

“That’s a sugar high you’re feeling,” she pointed out. “Don’t count on it lasting all night. I’ve got this until Christian takes over. How many of those things did you eat?”

Wyatt put his hands on his hips. “I don’t think I like your judgmental tone.”

“File a complaint.”

Since we didn’t have any bodies to clean up at the accident scene on the highway, we’d skipped out. Christian said our Mage must have had second thoughts about issuing us a warning, so he hijacked a truck and ran it off the road to drive his point home.

The only thing that drove home were all those MoonPies.

Wyatt had stuffed as many as he could cram into his tiny trunk and the floorboards, and we each had cartons on our laps. Shepherd balked about it, but since Wyatt was the one driving and offered to leave any complainers behind, we quit arguing and got the hell out of there before someone called the state troopers.

Niko entered the room, Christian following close behind. He stopped for a moment and appeared to be looking around.

Christian leaned against the doorjamb. “She’s over there on the sofa. Refusing anyone’s help.”

Niko’s bare foot kicked one of the cartons, and it skidded across the floor. Without breaking stride, he approached the couch. I couldn’t help but notice his drop-crotch pants. They were baggy all around except at the ankles and not something I usually saw him wearing. Given he was sans shirt and his hair was uncharacteristically messy, Christian must have dragged him out of bed, and that made me feel a little bit guilty.

Niko looked me over. “I almost didn’t recognize your energy.” He knelt down. “I heard you tested the theory of gravity tonight.”

I conjured a mirthless grin. “It’s my elbow. I’m just waiting it out until morning.”

“Is it cut?”

“No. I think it’s broken. I banged it up pretty good.”

Niko put his hand on my hip and felt around until he located my arm. “This one?”

“Yep.”

“Can you remove your coat?”

“My arm and leg hurt most from hitting the wall. I’ve got some scrapes and bruises, but—”

“You can draw light in the morning, but it’s better to fix breaks right away. Sometimes if a bone starts to set in the wrong position, it has to be rebroken.”

That thought didn’t sound pleasant, so without sitting up, I let Niko help me free my arm from the sleeve. I growled when I had to bend it, the pain intolerable.

“Apologies. Just a quick touch of light to set the bone.”

Warm heat penetrated my skin like liquid, and before I saw the flash of light, the pain in my elbow vanished. I still ached in other places, but nothing unbearable.

“Better?” he asked.

I sighed, grateful for his kindness. “Thanks, Niko. You always save the day.”

“Just be sure to draw light first thing in the morning. If it’s overcast again, come see me, but only if it’s something serious… like internal injuries.”

“I’m just a little banged up, that’s all.”

“I hope your suffering was worth the effort.”

“We got a license plate,” Wyatt said around a mouthful of chocolate, marshmallow, and graham cracker. He sat down in a leather chair and switched on a laptop. “Suspect numero uno.”

“If this doesn’t turn out to be the right guy,” I began, “I still want to know his name and address.”

Wyatt began typing. “What are you going to do, give him a speeding ticket?”

Christian came up behind Blue and put his hands on her shoulders. “How’s the search going, lass?”

“Only one bid came up for a minor—a twelve-year-old.”

The room fell silent.

“Can’t we bid on him?” I asked.

Christian turned. “You can’t save them all. We don’t have unlimited funds.”

“But you’ll have rescued the kid.”

“Aye. And if we’re lucky enough to catch the seller, we might not have enough evidence against him. We can’t prove they were the kidnapper, and we can’t link them to a murder. It would be the decent thing to do, but it would also put us out of business. Sometimes there is no child. Here we have an opportunity to capture the person on the front end. Whether he’s the actual seller is irrelevant; he’s the man who does the dirty work. If we catch him, we can save a lot more lives.”

Niko rubbed his eyes and stood up. “If my services are no longer required, I’ll bid you all a good night.”

“Hey, Niko,” I quickly said.

He half turned.

“I owe you a training session.”

“Tomorrow. One hour before breakfast, we’ll work on balance.”

After Niko left the room, Christian strolled over to the sofa and looked me over. “You should lie down.”

“That’s what I’m doing.”

“Viktor might have plans for us tomorrow once we fill him in. Better you get some rest in a proper bed.”

Without warning, he bent down and scooped me into his arms. I grimaced when a dull ache spread across my shoulder, but I didn’t complain. My leg was fine as long as I didn’t walk on it.

We moved into the hall, which was illuminated by a few lanterns on the walls. Christian hadn’t put on a shirt since arriving home, and unlike me, he was buzzing with energy. He had the look of a person after they get off a roller coaster. Even the smirk beneath his scruffy beard told me his spirits were high.

“Why are you in such a good mood?” I finally asked.

“I thought Blue was a daredevil, but I don’t think I’ve ever met a woman as fearless as you.”

I smiled lazily. “My daddy’s a biker. It’s in my blood.”

“Were you this brazen before you were turned?”

“I once went train surfing at night.”

“Surprised it wasn’t on an airplane.”

“Couldn’t afford the ticket.”

He ascended a wide staircase that gently curved to the left.

“Where were you at tonight?” I asked.

“Just having a pint.”

“You got to the bridge pretty fast.”

“It wasn’t that far off. I shadow walked most of the way. Had to leave behind the Honda.”

“Maybe you’ll get lucky and someone will steal it.”

“Now is that any way to talk about my girl? She’s a classy one. Reliable, fast, warms my arse.”

“She’s also not your type.”

“And how would you know what my type is?”

“Guys like you don’t do practical. Why are you trying to be someone you’re not? The bike is definitely you, so why not get a car that’s more your style?”

“And what would that be?”

“I don’t know. Something dark, dangerous, and rough around the edges.”

He pushed my door open with his shoulder. “My Honda makes me a respectable man.”

“Since when does a man who has sex with women in public care about respect?”

“Touché.”

He placed me on my bed and strode over to the window. I could barely make him out in the inky darkness.

I sat up and took Christian’s coat off before scooting to the right side. “Would you mind lighting a candle? I can’t see as well as you can.”

His voice neared. “Don’t make ordering me around into a habit.”

He struck a match, the flame engulfing the end, and lit three candles. Instead of placing them on the tables beside the bed, he walked to the wall opposite the bed and set them on the hearth before using one of them to light up the kindling. I tossed his coat on the foot of the bed and propped two pillows behind me. Because the bed was low to the ground, I could lie down at night and watch the fire across the room.