Gaslight (Crossbreed #4)(10)
“Did he do it during the dinner he invited you to?”
“Nah. It would have been foolish on his part to try to trick a Sensor. I didn’t feel he was lying when the kid appeared from underneath the table.”
Niko considered the situation. A man like Patrick would have covered his tracks and acquired forged adoption papers. Even a DNA test to prove Shepherd was the father wouldn’t implicate Patrick in any wrongdoing. A man like him had access to private records, and he’d probably altered the documents about the child’s mother and how she died. The man who killed her was now dead, and there weren’t any other witnesses to the crime. Going after someone without sufficient evidence was slander.
Going after a member of the higher authority without proof was treason.
“Why haven’t you shared this with Viktor?”
Shepherd’s energy swirled. “He’ll think I’m unstable and cut me from the team. And he’d be right. If I were in his shoes, I’d do the same. I can’t afford to take that chance. This is all I’ve got that’s keeping me sane.”
“Viktor should know the kind of man he does business with.”
“He’s got his guard up with most people he deals with—he’s not stupid. I’ve already thought this through. If Patrick even suspects Viktor knows about the boy, he’ll get paranoid. And paranoid men are dangerous men. What if Viktor threatens him? He’s got my kid, Niko. I can’t have anything happen to that boy. He’s all that’s left of Maggie.” Shepherd’s voice broke, and he cursed under his breath.
“What good will your silence bring if this secret consumes you?”
Bright flashes in his light revealed his anger. “It’ll buy me some time. If I steal him, I’ll have to leave Keystone and spend my life in hiding. What’ll my kid think about me if I snatch him away from a big mansion where he’s got everything he could possibly want? I won’t have two pennies to rub together, and we’d be living on the streets. Patrick is the only father figure he’s ever known. You think that kid will warm up to a guy like me just because we share the same blood? He’s too young to understand. I’ll be the bad guy, and he’ll grow up hating me for taking away all his opportunities. He’s better off where he is for now.”
“Patrick will brainwash him. He won’t be able to make his own choices when he becomes a man. And take heed, for Patrick will seek his opportunity to be rid of you. You’re protected under Keystone, and that’s why he spared you. But you’ll always be a liability to him no matter how much power he acquires.”
“So what do I do?”
Niko lifted his chin. “Discover his weakness.”
“Assuming he has one.”
“In all the years I’ve walked this earth, I’ve learned that no man is without an Achilles’ heel. You just have to find it. And when you do, strike fast.”
Energy flickered in the distance, and the familiar pulse of Mage light prickled Niko’s skin. More specifically, the ancient energy from an old nemesis.
He folded his arms. “Thank you for entrusting me with your secret. Don’t allow your pain to ruin your life. A patient and persistent man is one who makes his own destiny. If the fates wish to save the boy from his circumstance, they’ll present you with an opportunity.” Niko could hear Shepherd’s breath quavering from the cold. “Why don’t you go inside where it’s warm?”
“You’re one lucky bastard for having an internal heater. Are you coming?”
“The energy overwhelms my senses. Give me a few minutes to clear my head.”
It wasn’t unusual for Niko to step outside the club on a crowded night, and right now he needed to separate himself from Shepherd as quickly as possible.
The hinges on the door creaked, music and laughter spilling into the alley. “Hurry up. You still owe me a game of darts.”
Once the door closed, Niko turned on his heel. “You can come out now, Cyrus. There’s no point in hiding in the shadows.”
Cyrus’s maroon light unfolded from the darkness, silver flecks sparkling. “I see you’ve learned a few tricks, Nikodemos. Very impressive you noticed me. I still remember the weak little slave who blindfolded himself to hide from his own gifts.”
“You’re right. There was a time when my energy made no sense and I didn’t have the tools to interpret it. But I never needed eyesight to see evil.”
Chapter 3
Well, if it isn’t the incomparable Mr. Poe,” I said, strolling into room number seven. I stopped at the low counter on the left and tapped it with my finger. “How many women have you brought back here?”
Without a word, he stalked forward and lifted me as if I weighed nothing. Christian set me down on the low bar and wedged himself between my legs, his knuckles pressing against the wood on either side of me. We hadn’t been alone since his return, and the heat between us burned like a raging forest fire.
“Did you miss me?” he purred.
“Hardly. Niko’s been keeping me busy.”
“Has he now? I’ll be the judge of that.” Christian’s hand clamped over my thigh, his thumb circling over a sensitive spot. “Mmm, feels firm.”
“Firm enough to kill a man.”