Into the Lair (Falcon Mercenary Group #2)(43)

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 f**k 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 motherf*cker, 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 br**sts 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.