Chapter One
Vander is alive. Vander is alive. Logan’s words ricocheted across my skull like a wayward ping pong ball. My heart smacked against my ribs, and the roar of my thundering pulse echoed through my eardrums. The Supernatural Intelligence Agency officer that had attempted to capture me on the night of my soul-sucking bender was alive—Talon’s best friend was alive.
“What?” Talon’s gruff shout jerked me from my wandering thoughts. He peeled himself off the obsidian walls of our cozy cell and met the warden as he trudged in.
Not a second ago, my dragon bodyguard’s fiery lips had been pressed to mine, but when the warden appeared, he’d flung himself to the opposite corner of our cage so fast my head spun.
I forced myself not to focus on the pang of hurt streaking through my insides and concentrated on the good news. One less person to add to the tally of my murderous spree.
Logan’s gaze shot to mine, his darting eyes running over my disheveled hair and skimpy tank top. Heat blossomed across my cheeks. It was almost worse than one of my dad’s stare downs. How much had he seen before Talon shot across the cell?
The warden cleared his throat and pivoted to the looming dragon a few inches from his face. “I just got word from one of my gargoyle teams. They overheard some chatter at a bar while they were trailing a group of Thax’s narkin demon guards. According to the warlord’s men, he’s being held somewhere inside the castle.”
“But we were just there,” Talon hissed and raked a hand through his hair, driving it up in messy spikes. “How did I miss him?”
“We both did, T. This isn’t only on you.” Hayden’s raspy voice caught me by surprise. Our angel roommate rolled out of bed, sweeping his blonde locks behind his ears.
“So we’ll go back and get him.” I had almost as much stake in this as Talon. One less innocent soul had to count for something, right?
Three pairs of blazing orbs shot to mine, their intensity forcing a shudder up my spine. “You’re not going anywhere near him,” Talon growled.
A punch in the gut would’ve hurt less. I wrapped my arms around my middle to keep myself together. Why would I be so stupid to believe he’d be nicer now that the truth was out, and I hadn’t killed his friend? No, Talon was his same dickish self. As his icy glare bored into me, the hurt morphed into anger. A second ago he couldn’t keep his dragon paws off me, but now I was a threat to his BFF?
I popped my hands on my hips as every ounce of guilt evaporated. “Eff off, Talon,” I snarled back. “I’m the only one in this room that can open a portal so the way I see it, you better beg me to take you.”
He stomped toward me, his eyes widening with each stride. “You’re out of your mind if you think I’d let you get anywhere near the Underworld. Especially now that we know this was some sort of set up. You think I’d go off half-cocked in the middle of the night into some suicide mission without any sort of plan? If so, you have no business even considering becoming a part of the SIA, and I rescind my invitation.”
Fury rolled off the self-righteous dragon in suffocating waves. It was so strong I was sure I’d feel it even without the stupid blood bond.
“Well, you’re out of your mind—"
Hayden jumped between us, placing a large palm on each of our chests. “Okay, you two, save it for the training room, huh?” Then he turned to his brother with a soft smile. “T, I know how much this means to you, but take it easy on the little pumpkin. She’s a newb, remember?”
Talon tossed his head from side to side before finally taking a step back. He huffed out a breath and pivoted to Logan. “Is there any way your guys can confirm Vander is alive besides hearsay?”
He nodded. “I just spoke to the team leader, and they’re working on it. As soon as we have positive confirmation, you’ll be the first to know.”
“Thanks, I appreciate that, Warden.”
Logan’s eyes darted from me to Talon and back. “Whatever is going on here must be resolved. Do you both understand me?”
“But—” I snapped my jaw shut, cutting myself off. With my lips pressed together, I slowly dipped my head.
My insufferable bunkie did the same.
“We will find Vander, and we will bring him home,” Logan added. “But not without a good plan in place or with a disorganized team. We’ve already seen what can happen when we’re caught unaware. I won’t have a repeat of that or worse.”
The three of us nodded.
“Now get some rest. Hopefully by tomorrow we’ll have proof of life, and we can begin to set things in motion.”
“Night, Logan.” I wiggled my fingers and gave him a smile. He threw me a tight grin in return. Yup, he’d definitely seen something between Talon and me, and he was not happy about it.
When the door whooshed shut behind the warden, I slumped back into bed. I had no idea what time it was, but between the fiery kiss with Talon and the news about Vander, my adrenaline was on full throttle.
Or maybe it was an echo of Talon’s surging emotions.
My grumpy bunkie paced the length of the cell, his jaw clenching in time with his heavy footfalls.
Hayden lumbered back to the bottom bunk and sank into the mattress. His long legs hung over the side of the bed as he stretched his arms and let out a big yawn. “I’m really happy for you, T. I know what losing Vander did to you. Your brother will be back for good now. This is really great news for everyone.”
Talon momentarily stopped his manic pacing to meet his BAFF’s—best angel friend forever’s—eye. “Thanks, man. I hope you’re right.”
An indecipherable expression flashed across Talon’s face, darkening his eyes. Uncertainty? Fear? I searched the tangle of emotions swirling inside me, but it was too difficult to decipher the twisted mess.
“One thirty-eight, you up for a little training before the sun comes up?”
My jaw dropped when I realized he was talking to me. “Seriously?” This guy’s mood swings were giving me whiplash.
“Yeah, why not? You seem a little amped up, and I know I could use a little release.”
“Just make sure that little release doesn’t result in demon-dragon babies.” Hayden chuckled. Talon shot him a scathing glare and the angel pressed his lips together, smothering the lingering laughter.
“Everyone’s got jokes.” I leveled my blonde cellie with my own narrowed glare.
Talon pivoted to me once again. “I’m not forcing you to do anything, Azara, but if you want to redeem yourself after your earlier comments, this is your chance.”
I hated how the sound of my name on his lips melted the mounting anger in an instant. I wanted to hurl a volley of insults his way but instead the word, “Okay,” popped out in its place. What the Hades? Did this ridiculous blood bond control my ability to speak now too?
“Have fun, you two. Try not to kill each other, huh?” Hayden smirked and lay back down on the bed.
I shot the comedian angel a good eye roll and followed my mercurial bodyguard out into the hallway. Darkness and a heavy silence pervaded the corridor. Talon lifted his index finger to his lips, and I nodded.
Keeping the Triad’s SIA spy identities a secret was essential to their success here at Darkblood Prison. If anyone saw us traipsing around the penitentiary in the middle of the night, we’d be busted. Especially one of Delacroix’s crew.