Eli grunted. “Fuck you.”
Tits slid into the driver’s seat while Eli got into the front. Braden hopped into the backseat on the opposite side while Ian carefully got in holding Katie.
“And how is D?” Braden asked quietly.
Eli grimaced as he looked back at Braden. “Not good.”
Ian and Braden exchanged uneasy glances when Eli didn’t elaborate. Braden slumped further down in his seat, and for the first time, Ian saw defeat in his brother’s demeanor.
“Marcus is at the house,” Eli said. “He wants to take a look at both of you after he checks Katie out.”
“You’re not planning to stay, are you?” Ian directed his question at both Tits and Eli.
Tits glanced in the rearview mirror, his earring glinting briefly. “There a reason we shouldn’t?”
“Yeah, two reasons. A jaguar and a panther,” Braden said. “We’re getting worse, man. The shifts…they’re even more unpredictable.”
He glanced over at Ian as if weighing his decision to say anything further. Ian tensed but didn’t call Braden down. He looked away though, not out of guilt or shame, because he truly didn’t regret killing Ricardo. All he regretted was the fact that he had no control over when he shifted or his apparent victim.
“Ian killed someone after a shift,” Braden said.
His statement fell like a bomb in the small interior. Tits yanked his head to stare over his shoulder into the back while Eli turned completely around, his eyes flaring in the darkness.
“Bastard deserved it,” Ian said calmly. He tightened his hold on Katie as he said it.
“Did you realize what you were doing? Did you go after him purposely?” Eli asked. “Think, Ian. This could be a huge breakthrough.”
Ian flinched at the hope in his teammate’s voice. He shook his head grimly while Braden expelled a weary breath.
“I don’t remember any of it,” Ian said tonelessly. “He was after Katie. I can only remember the moment right before I shifted. I came to later with Braden over me, and he had to tell me what happened. Apparently I ripped the guy’s throat out.”
“Righteous,” Tits said with an approving nod of his head.
“Esteban’s man?” Eli asked in confusion. “Why haven’t we heard of any of this?”
“It’s a long story.”
“You got time,” Tits said.
Ian repositioned Katie on his lap then glanced over at Braden who shrugged.
With a sigh, Ian filled them in on everything that had happened since the moment he and Braden had returned to the States to find Katie.
When he finished, Tits gave a low whistle, and Eli shook his head.
“Trust Gabe to make things goddamn complicated,” he said in disgust. “What the fuck was he thinking keeping something like this under wraps? How the hell did he think he was going to protect Katie half a world away?”
“He didn’t win any points with me either,” Braden said. “But Katie doesn’t see the problem with it.”
“Of course she doesn’t,” Eli said. “She was too busy trying to stay ahead of Ricardo and company while being grateful to big brother for his generosity.”
Sarcasm dripped from Eli’s voice as he shook his head.
“So what are you going to do with the little girl then?” Tits asked.
Braden snorted. “Little? I’ll let you call her that, Tits. You may be a big motherfucker, but my money is on her in a throw-down.”
“She ain’t but a little thang. Besides, fighting ain’t what I’d want to do with her.”
A low growl trembled and welled from Ian’s throat.
“Uh, about that,” Braden said quickly as he looked over at Ian. “I know you’re joking and all, but it might be better to just leave Katie out of your conversation. That is unless you want to take on one pissed-off jag.”
“I think I’ll pass.” Tits glanced nervously back at Ian in the rearview mirror. “Her tits aren’t big enough anyway.”
“Thought you said they were nice,” Eli said.
Tits grinned as he looked over at Eli. “Well, they’re bigger than Ty’s. That’s all I meant.”
“You can stop looking at Tyana’s breasts any time,” Eli said mildly.
“What fun would that be?”
Ian relaxed and rested his cheek on the top of Katie’s head. He was starting to worry about her prolonged state of unconsciousness, but he reminded himself that she was absolutely spent. The last week had been hell for her, and if anyone deserved rest, it was her. He’d just be glad when Marcus could take a look at her and give her something for pain.
“Glad you guys are back.” Eli looked at Ian and Braden. “It was a mistake to let you go back to the States on your own.”
Braden gave a disgruntled snort. “It wasn’t anything we couldn’t handle.”
“Still, you’re lucky you didn’t end up a permanent guest of the judicial system there,” Eli returned.
“I don’t know. It could have been fun,” Tits said with a wide grin. “I’ve always fantasized about staging a jailbreak.”
“We won’t be going back,” Ian said firmly.
Eli looked down at Katie’s sleeping form. “And her? Will she be going back?”
Braden and Ian exchanged glances. “No,” they said together.
“And does she know that?” Tits asked in amusement. “From all you’ve told us about her, I can’t see her taking that too well.”
“What the hell is she going to go back to?” Braden demanded. “She’s killed three men. She has no family, no life, no way to support herself. Gabe left her in a hell of a position. Besides, until Esteban is taken care of, nowhere is safe for her.”
“Except with us,” Ian said.
Braden nodded. “Except with us.”
Eli flashed them a strange look. “You aren’t forgetting what our goal is, are you?”
“Goal? Our goal is to take Esteban down,” Braden said. “And hopefully figure out a cure somewhere in there.”
“Yeah, and we’re using her as bait.” Eli jabbed a thumb in Katie’s direction.
Ian stiffened. He knew what they were doing. But it didn’t mean they were going to throw her to the wolves.
“We’ll make damn sure she’s safe,” Ian said gruffly.
“Yeah, we can do that,” Tits said in a casual tone. “Not a problem, man.”
“Is she even alive?” Eli asked as he stared over at her.
Ian felt her soft breathing against the shelter of his body. She was alive. He could feel every twitch, every movement, no matter how slight, hear every soft sigh when she shifted the tiniest bit.
“She’ll be just fine,” Ian said tightly. “Marcus can stitch her up and give her something for pain. She’s experienced way too much hurt in the past few days.”
Eli nodded then gave Tits a long, hard look before turning back around in his seat.
“Sit back and relax,” Tits offered as he accelerated up the mountain road. “We’ll be there in half an hour.”
Chapter Twenty-Two
Ian and Braden hovered over Marcus while he finished stitching Katie’s wound. Marcus had given her a sedative to ensure she’d remain asleep while he worked.
When he finished, he started to arrange Katie’s shirt back over her, but Braden stepped in and took over. Marcus stood and glanced up at Ian, while Braden tucked her into the bed.
Marcus moved closer to Ian. “I’d like to draw some more blood from you and Braden,” he said in a low voice. “I can’t stay long. We moved Damiano off the island, and I’ll need to be with him in the coming days.”
Ian regarded him warily. “What do you mean you took him off the island?”
“He’s getting worse. He shifted to a tiger and attacked Tyana.”
“Shit,” Ian muttered. “It must be getting bad if he turned on her.”