Right Through Me (The Obsidian Files #1)(97)

Sisko and Caro craned their necks to look at who had walked in.

Asa Carr was big and tall, muscular and built, which was no surprise. He wasn’t similar to his brother in any obvious way, aside from his height and size. Asa’s long body was somewhat narrower than Noah’s, and his long-lashed eyes were a clear silver gray beneath a thick slash of dark brows. He had the same strong chin and stern mouth, and his dark hair was buzzed off short. The battered brown leather coat, jeans and heavy boots amped up the intense, brooding vibe. In fact, the subtle vibration of danger was the biggest similarity he shared with Noah.

That, and the way every woman’s head turned as he walked by.

Unsmiling, he walked toward them, his eyes locked on his brother’s. Caro sensed violent emotion beneath their blank expressions. The disconnect was eerie and unsettling.

Noah slid out of the booth and stood up. “Hey, Asa.”

Asa nodded. “Noah. Been a while.”

“Yes,” Noah agreed. “Thanks for coming.”

Asa nodded, and his gaze flicked to Caro and Sisko. “Thought you’d be alone.”

“This concerns them too,” Noah said.

Asa made no comment, just studied Sisko. “I’ve seen you on surveillance photos. Edward Sisko?”

Sisko inclined his head in cautious assent.

Asa turned his eyes on Caro. “Not you, though. You’re not, ah . . .” He slanted a questioning glance at Noah.

“She’s not a Midlander,” Noah said, answering both the spoken and the unspoken question. “But she knows everything.”

“I see,” Asa said. “That’s a first.”

“How do you know about Midlands?” Sisko demanded.

“Don’t want to get into that right now.” Asa looked at Noah. “So. You got a new girlfriend so soon?”

The question had a strange edge, which Noah ignored. But he answered it.

“This is Caro Bishop,” he said. “Caro, Asa Stone. My brother.”

“I’m glad to meet you.” Caro held out her hand.

Asa took it, and pulled her subtly closer to his towering body, as if he meant to somehow let her know who was boss. Caro pulled her hand away, taken aback.

Noah took a menacing step forward. “Never touch her again,” he said.

“Sorry,” Asa said.

The single word conveyed bored contempt. Noah locked eyes with him.

“Guess you’re serious about this one,” Asa commented, after a moment.

“What’s it to you, Asa?”

His brother looked at him hard. “Women get in the way. You know that. Or you did. Now look at you. Pillar of the community. Philanthropist. Job creator. Tight-assed tycoon with custom-built closets full of tasteful shit. You were on track to become a major criminal. What happened to you, my brother?”

“You already know everything about me. I don’t want to bore you with the recap.” He gestured toward the space in the booth next to Sisko. “Sit.”

Asa slid into the booth, staring. “Weird, how much you look like Dad now.”

“I don’t want to talk about the past,” Noah said. “It’s dead and gone.”

Asa pondered that for a moment. “If you want to talk about that tip I gave you the other day, I can’t discuss my sources.” His eyes flicked to Caro. “Not in front of unvetted strangers, anyway.”

“Forget it. I don’t give a shit about that right now.”

Only stillness betrayed Asa’s surprise. “I see,” he said. “You don’t want to talk about the past. You don’t care about the mess I just saved you from, including that stupid engagement. So why am I here?”

“What do you know about my engagement?” Noah snapped.

“That the buttoned up blond chick was all wrong for you. What were you thinking?” His eyes flicked to Caro. “Was this the one who convinced you?”

Caro calmly returned his scrutiny, refusing to drop her gaze. It took some effort.

Asa’s gaze slid over Caro’s cuts and bruises, then turned his gaze to Noah’s scabbed knuckles, the long scrape on his cheekbone. “Rough night?”

“That’s why we’re here,” Noah said.

Asa’s large, square fingernails tapped on the tabletop. “So? Tell me.”

Noah looked at Caro. “Go ahead.”

“It’s a long story,” Caro said.

“I get it.” Asa said. “Not your story. It’s her story. You didn’t call me to help my family. You want me to do a favor for your new girlfriend. For f*ck’s sake.”

“You can leave,” Noah said. “Feel free.”

“Hell no. I’m curious. What could be so scary that a pack of bad-ass mutant freaks have to beg a low-life thug like me for help?”

Noah didn’t answer.

“Spill it,” Asa said. “If you want anything from me, I require full disclosure. Real name. Verifiable details. And be warned. I can smell bullshit a mile away.”

“My full name is Caroline Anne Bishop,” Caro said. “Eighteen months ago, that was the name on my driver’s license and passport. Before Mark Olund stole my life.”

“Mark Olund,” Asa mused. “I believe that was a post-Midlands alias. Right? But not one of your core group.”