“Yes!” Dizzy snatched them from his hand. “I don’t suppose you have any extra thread or needles in there, do you?”
“Needles, suturing thread and glue coming right at you,” he said and started digging again.
“Glue?” Dizzy frowned at the doctor as she started to cut away the shredded back of the gown.
“We use quick-drying suture glue in emergencies.”
“How quick?”
“Five seconds maximum.”
“Sold!” She glanced at Hallie. “Strip the lace from this bottom part and we’ll use it to cover a quick and dirty hem here using that glue. This dress has enough extra fabric in the skirt for me to pull it tighter to form a sheath silhouette and make a bustle.” She reached up and patted Naya’s arm. “It won’t be perfect but it’ll be beautiful.”
Enthralled by this industrious Dizzy who confidently and calmly gave orders, Venom watched as she transformed the battered gown. She wore the most serious expression as she snipped, sewed and glued. When she clicked her teeth at Risk and made him redo a section he had sewn, Venom didn’t even try to hide his smile.
Half an hour later, Dizzy sat back on her heels and studied their work. “I like it.”
“Oh, it’s terrific!” Hallie breathed excitedly. “You look fantastic, Naya.”
“Yeah?” She peered over her shoulder but couldn’t see the back of her dress very well. Risk snapped a photo with the pocket tablet he carried everywhere and showed it to her. Her face brightened and the concerned lines around her mouth and eyes vanished. “It’s so pretty.”
Venom experienced a surge of pride as Naya dragged Dizzy into a bear hug and thanked her profusely. “You saved my wedding!”
“Be careful if you’re going to dance,” Dizzy warned. “I’ll have that tube of suture glue in my purse, just in case.”
Naya snorted. “They don’t dance here.”
“What?” Dizzy sounded scandalized.
Hallie shook her head. “The receptions here are sort of…”
“Boring,” Naya interjected with a pointed look to her best friend. Then, with a shrug, she added, “I’d rather have Menace than a party anyway. Well,” her mouth curved with a smart-ass grin, “most days, at least.”
Venom couldn’t help but laugh at that one. He couldn’t imagine how tense things had been between Naya and Menace after she had finally made it out of the hospital. He had noticed that she started wearing her collar again right around the time Menace had announced they were going to make a commitment to each other in the way of her people. Their ability to work through that mess and build a stronger relationship filled with trust inspired him to do the same when it came to Dizzy.
The dress crisis averted, Venom waited for Dizzy to pack up her purse. They entered the ceremony room hand in hand and took seats on Menace’s side of the room.
Looking a bit out of breath, Orion stood at the front and tapped at his tablet. After performing Vicious and Hallie’s ceremony, the admiral seemed to have added a new duty to the long list he already juggled. Venom supposed that Orion’s presence meant Dankirk had finally arrived.
“Venom?”
“Yes?”
“Who is that man with the scarred face?”
Her whispered question caused him to crane his neck in the direction she was looking. He had to blink twice to be sure the vision of Terror at the back of the room wasn’t a mirage. Shit.
Snapping his alert gaze to Menace, Venom started to lift out of his seat in anticipation of a brawl. As far as he knew, the two men hadn’t spoken since the night Venom had stood as Menace’s second while he and Terror beat the shit out of each other in the ancestral ring to settle their feud. This was a hell of a time for Terror to make a gesture of reconciliation.
The general put his hand on Menace’s chest and spoke softly to the gunner. Had Vicious arranged this? Venom glanced at Orion who stood with a clenched jaw and glared in the Shadow Force operative’s direction. He wasn’t calling for security to yank Terror out of the room and vent him. Venom figured that was a good sign.
Whatever Vicious said caused the tense set of Menace’s face to soften. The groom nodded and started across the room. Venom noticed that he wasn’t the only one watching Menace’s movements with extreme interest. Every eye in the damn room was glued on the weapons expert.
“Venom?”
Lowering his lips until they were almost touching her ear, he explained, “The man with the scarred face is Terror. He’s the deadliest Shadow Force operative you’ll ever meet—and I hope you never meet one again. A few months ago, he nearly killed Naya.”
“What?” Her sharp hiss of outrage came out louder than she had intended. Her cheeks turned the prettiest shade of pink as the soldiers surrounding them looked at her.
Caressing her face, he kept his voice quiet and said, “He used her to flush out the Sixers and Splinters who had hijacked an arms shipment.”
“Wait? You mean that shootout in the old battery factory? That was how Naya got hurt? But—she said it was a family thing.”
“It was. Her mother is the head of the Sixer gang.”
“No way!”
He nodded. “Naya’s mother survived the skirmish but we haven’t been able to locate her. She’s still out there somewhere, just as dangerous as ever.”
“So Menace and Terror…?”
“Menace, Terror and Vicious are best friends but it’s been…tense since that awful day.”
“Are they going to fight?”
Venom watched Menace approach Terror. Their body language didn’t scream altercation but they warily eyed each other. “No.”
Terror was the first to make a move. He extended his hand, exposing himself to ridicule or shame if Menace turned his back. Venom held his breath as he waited to see if Menace would publicly cut his old friend.
But Menace proved himself an honorable man by grasping Terror’s hand. Though Venom was sure Menace still harbored hard feelings toward his friend they were making amends. Something told Venom that Terror had already made a conciliatory overture toward Naya. Terror could be a raging asshole—but he wasn’t cruel. He would never show up at her wedding and upset her.
Terror trailed Menace up the aisle. While the gunner continued to the front of the room, Terror moved into the empty seat right next to Dizzy. Venom slipped his arm around her shoulder in a comforting gesture but she didn’t seem to be the least bit fazed by the scarred and one-eyed Shadow Force operative. To his surprise, she held out her hand. “Dizzy Lane.”
“I know.” Terror glanced at Venom for permission to shake her hand before touching his mate. “I’m sorry you ran into a bit of trouble down in the SRU headquarters. Rest assured it’s been taken care of.”
“Oh. Um…thanks?”
The spook nodded at Venom. “Our paths intersect again.”
He remembered Terror’s parting words the last time he had seen him. “Not bringing bad news, I hope?”
“Not tonight,” Terror replied. His hand sneaked inside his dress jacket and retrieved a crumpled envelope. Holding it out to Dizzy, he said, “For you.”
“Me?” She cautiously accepted it. Her finger traced the letters of her name printed on the front. When she didn’t ask who had sent it Venom assumed she recognized the handwriting.
“Dizzy?”
She swallowed and tucked the letter inside her purse. “It’s from my dad.”
Venom’s gaze jumped to Terror’s face. He had only spoken to Pierce that morning about Jack Lane and the strange message from Ella. There was no way the Shadow Force assets on the ground had been able to track him down and get a message for Dizzy that quickly. No, this had been in the works for a few days at least.
Sensing his inquisitive stare, the black ops soldier rolled his shoulders and stretched out his long legs. “We have a friend of a friend of a friend in common.”
“I bet you do.”
Before Venom could question him further, gentle music signaled the start of the ceremony. They stood with the rest of the gathered celebrants. Venom had never been an overly sentimental sort of guy but he had to admit there was something rather touching about these wedding ceremonies. To stand in front of friends and publicly exchange vows added a level of solemnity to a mate bond that catching and claiming a woman with a collar lacked.
As Menace and Naya spoke their vows, Dizzy reached for his hand, clasping it between both of hers. He kissed her temple and let himself imagine the two of them taking the place of their friends. Someday.
Chapter Seventeen
“Boy, Naya wasn’t joking about these wedding receptions being a little on the lame side!”
Dizzy glanced up at the man addressing her with such a languid, easy drawl. She didn’t know Dankirk all that well but he was a friendly face from home. “Hi, Danny.”
“I brought you some dessert.” Bearing cake, he settled into the open seat next to her. The circular table where she and Venom had been assigned seats for dinner was mostly vacant now. Her mate had been dragged away by Raze to another side of the room where a loud group of men had congregated. They were telling stories, it seemed. Very animated stories.