Authors: Anya Nowlan,Dale,Rory
S
ienna woke
in the master bedroom, enveloped by Arlen’s body. Sometime during the night, he had pulled her to his chest and wrapped his limbs around her. She smiled to herself, enjoying the feeling of being surrounded by his strong frame, safe and snug.
If it was anyone but Arlen, she would probably be feeling smothered. With him, she just felt protected and at ease. He stirred behind her, nuzzling his face into the back of her neck.
I could get used to this,
Sienna thought.
The thought didn’t come with only happy aspects, though.
Arlen was still an agent of The Firm, even though he was currently being hunted by them. The fact that he still wanted to make things right by killing Holland told her his loyalties ran deep. Once this was all over, he would go back to his work, no attachments and no stability.
And could she really be with a man who killed for a living, even if his targets
may
have deserved it?
That was a life meant for one, a path that couldn’t be shared. Arlen wouldn’t give up everything he’d worked hard to achieve just to start something with a woman he barely knew, and she wouldn’t expect him to. It just wouldn’t work.
Just my luck, I find the one good guy left and he turns out to be a contract killer.
The irony was smothering, unlike Arlen’s embrace.
Sienna resolved to enjoy the here and now as much as she could without getting her heart involved. No more than it already was, at least. It would hurt too much to try and carry on something that was bound to fail, to see each other a couple of times a year when he was in between missions or happened to get one in Chicago.
Arlen truly was one of a kind and if she couldn’t have all of him, she would rather have none at all.
I don’t even know if I can stay in Chicago…
His arms flexed around him as he adjusted himself, breathing in deeply.
“I can hear the gears in your head turning,” he commented, voice husky with sleep.
“No, you can’t!” she exclaimed, suddenly afraid he could somehow read her mind.
Arlen chuckled, his warm breath tickling her neck.
“No, I can’t. But I can feel you tensing up and I hear your breathing change.”
Sienna wiggled around in his arms so she could face him. He stared back at her with an unreadable expression. There were so many things she wanted to say, to ask, but she knew it would only make things more difficult. Neither one of them needed that.
She ran a hand down the side of his beautiful face, feeling lucky she got to know him at all, if even for a brief while.
“Last night was amazing,” she ended up saying, picking the safest truth she could find.
“It was,” Arlen agreed with a soft smile.
“And the food was great, even though it was cold by the time we got to it,” she continued, grinning.
“I am a man of many talents,” he replied drolly. “Speaking of food, I think we’re all out.”
Sienna’s stomach growled, as if on cue.
“We can pick something up on our way into town.”
“Can’t we just pretend a little while longer?” he asked, voice growing a bit more somber.
Sienna got up on her elbows, confused.
“What do you mean? Pretend what? And aren’t
you
supposed to be the super-secret, always in control agent here, ready to leap into action?”
“That we’re just two people, enjoying getting to know each other. Not fugitives plotting someone’s murder. I want to cook you eggs, I want to see you come down the stairs to the kitchen wearing only my shirt, like you did last night. And then we can eat together and you can tell me what your favorite movie is and I can tell you about that brief period where I thought for sure I was going to be an actor.”
The deep sincerity in his tone caught her off guard, at first. Dumbfounded, she stared into his grey eyes.
Could he be feeling the same way she was? Did he want more, while also knowing this is all they had? Sienna could feel an ache start inside her.
She wanted everything he’d just talked about, but not for pretend. She wanted it for real.
But I guess today is all I get. I can at least make the most of it.
She put on a smile, trying her damndest to make it look sincere, and kissed him lightly. They would have this morning together, in a house they had broken into, in the midst of deadly chaos. They had earned it.
“Okay,” she said, limiting herself to one word lest all her feelings come tumbling out.
Arlen’s eyes lit up as he gave her a quick squeeze before hopping out of bed.
“You just relax, I’ll go to the store.”
He rushed around the room, pulling on clothes. The excitement on his face was so genuine, she couldn’t help but giggle. Arlen gave her one last kiss before running downstairs. The front door opened and closed not long after.
Sienna stretched her limbs with a long sigh before lazily rolling out of bed. She took her time getting dressed and combed the tangles out of her hair with a brush she found in the bathroom.
For a second she felt bad for how she and Arlen were making themselves at home at someone else’s house, but she pushed those feelings aside. It wasn’t like they had a lot of choices at the moment.
But she realized imagining herself living in a house just like it, with Arlen by her side, came way too easily.
The thought made her slightly sad, which was not the point of their play pretend time at all. Busying herself around the house, she tried to put it out of her mind, placing things they’d moved around back in their place so they at least didn’t leave a mess behind.
She made her way downstairs and was just doing the dishes from last night when she heard a soft rustle outside.
Oh no. Did the neighbors notice me moving around?
Arlen probably wasn’t going to be back for a while. Her thoughts grew panicky as she tried to come up with a plan.
I could say I’m some distant relative, housesitting. That sounds believable, right?
It could work. She just hoped no one had called the cops. Lying to a police officer might be a little trickier than dealing with a nosy neighbor.
Sienna snuck up to one of the windows, gingerly moving the curtains. She couldn’t see anything at first, but as she craned her neck, she caught sight of the toe of a combat boot, just behind the corner of the house, before it disappeared.
Sienna shook her head as she quickly closed the curtain. Could she have imagined it, her fear of getting caught causing her to become paranoid? She nervously moved the curtain again, and she could see a distinct shoe imprint in the soft dirt where she had seen the boot only moments before.
Had The Firm tracked them down? Or had Holland sent his goons to capture her?
For Sienna, the end result was all the same. She would be handed back to her father. But for Arlen, there was a difference. There was no doubt Holland wanted him dead, but to The Firm, he was a valuable asset. They wouldn’t kill him.
“…unless I resist being brought in…”
Arlen’s words echoed in her head. If he returned to find Shadow Squad taking her in, he would fight for her. She was sure of that.
On top of that, he would be outnumbered. The thought of him injured, or worse, sent a new and far more powerful shard of fear through her.
If it is Holland’s crew, they wouldn’t bother with stealth,
she rationalized.
That isn’t their style. They’d be in here in their expensive suits, guns blazing.
Not knowing when exactly Arlen would be back, she chose not to waste time. Keeping him out of this fight altogether was her top priority. She had outrun her fate long enough and it had caught up with her in prime shifter form, no matter which faction it hailed from.
Once a Marquez, always a Marquez.
She stood by the front door, unlocking it.
“I’m here. There’s no need for violence. Just come get me,” she called out in a loud, clear voice.
She knew she would be heard. These were shifters, after all.
The door swung open a second later and a huge man stepped inside, dressed ready for battle. His jet black hair was slicked back into a ponytail and his eyes were a peculiar mix of brown and yellow.
“You are surrendering?” he boomed, as if talking to a brigade of soldiers, looking around and sniffing the air.
“Yes. Take me to my father, right now,” she replied, stomach churning.
More men filed in after the first guy waved his hand in a signal Sienna couldn’t translate. He obviously had no more interest in her, not uttering a word. His crew looked around the house before escorting her outside to a waiting van and Sienna kept her mouth shut, willing them to move faster so they could be out of there before Arlen got back.
Thoughts of her father, thoughts she had long buried in her mind, came rushing back as she climbed into the back of the vehicle.
This was one reunion she was definitely not looking forward to. But making sure Arlen had dodged at least one bullet made her feel a little bit better, at least.
Please understand…
Knowing Arlen, he probably wouldn’t.
A
rlen drove right up
to the house he and Sienna were commandeering, not even caring if he raised any eyebrows. They could find a new place to crash if they had to. Dealing with smalltime cops or curious neighbors was nothing after serving tours in Afghanistan and dealing with The Arctics, one of the leading shifter terrorist organizations, for years.
He was in too good of a mood to bother with stealth. Grabbing his bag of groceries, he jumped out of the car. He was buzzing with excitement and more than looking forward to spending the morning with Sienna, before he had to refocus on the mission.
As soon as he stepped out of the Camaro, the scent of shifter hit him like a sledgehammer. The bag he was holding dropped to the ground as he ran to the door, his body kicking into protection mode before his brain could catch up and all his training flying out the window as he rushed to see if Sienna was alright.
No, no, this can’t be happening!
His senses were telling him the house was empty, but he refused to believe it. She couldn’t be ripped away from him, not like this. He hadn’t even been here to fight for her. Arlen tore through the house in desperation and rage.
I should never have left her alone, not even for a minute!
Grabbing his head, he cursed himself. He should have learned from the last time. Sienna Marquez was a master of disappearing acts and he was the fool who’d left her alone.
Had it been Holland or The Firm that got to her?
Or did she leave on her own volition again?
No, that couldn’t be it. There was a distinct smell of testosterone and shifter in the air. It had to be either The Firm or Crimson Claws.
Either way, his time was limited. Both parties had made a deal with Sienna’s father, and once she was handed over, he wouldn’t even know where to begin in his search for her. He hoped it had been Holland, at least then he could tear through the men keeping her with no remorse.
If his colleagues at The Firm had her, however…
Arlen sprinted outside, ready to get back in his car and start by eliminating one option after the other. But there was an unexpected obstacle waiting for him, two men wearing Firm issue uniforms standing on either side of his vehicle.
Syce Sorrenson and Devlin Rasker. Shadow Squad guys. If they were here, the rest of their team couldn’t be far. Or, and this was more likely, they had been the ones to pick up Sienna.
That wasn’t good.
“So Travis was right to doubt her,” one of them remarked to the other, arms crossed over his chest.
“Doubt who?” Arlen demanded, barely holding it together, slowing to a walk as he came up to them.
There was no point in trying to turn tail and run. If he had any chance in beating these guys, he’d have to go face to face with them. The Firm’s agents were damn good, Arlen was a prime example of that, but they hadn’t counted on dealing with a man trying to get his mate back.
My mate…
Being without Sienna was turning out to be even more unbearable than he had thought. He knew she wouldn’t be hurt, she was too valuable for that. But being carted off and handled like property was bad enough, even without violence being thrown into the mix.
“You know who,” the shorter man responded, Syce, eyeing him with an expression of clear dislike. “The woman you’ve turned your back on The Firm for.”
Devlin, the taller man, curled his lips into a snarl at that. The Firm’s operatives were nothing but loyal. If not to the company then at least their team. He would probably be acting the same way if he was in their shoes. How thoroughly love could change one’s perspective.
And it was love, wasn’t it? It didn’t matter how determined he was to rationalize everything away. Yes, he was no good for her and they could never work out, but he loved her nonetheless. They were meant to be, regardless of whether it would actually work out. He had to get her back and these two were standing in his way.
Bad move,
he thought with a growl.
They were standing on the driveway, with people passing by on leisurely strolls. It wasn’t the ideal place to have a confrontation like this, but The Firm rarely bothered with nuances like that if a job needed to get done.
“I haven’t turned my back on anything. I questioned Spade’s judgment, this one time, and suddenly I’m a traitor?” he spat back, even though he knew there was no reasoning with these guys.
Even hearing his words, he knew he’d think it ludicrous coming from anyone else.
“It is not your place to question anything,” Devlin said.
Arlen noticed the people walking about had turned their attention towards the scene unfolding. If things got any more out of control, which he had a feeling they would, someone was bound to call the police. He didn’t have time to deal with that.
Syce gave his friend a look that said he better calm down, before turning back to Arlen. His tone was a lot less belligerent when he spoke.
“Look, the girl is already on her way to being reunited with her parents. There is no need for this. Let us bring you in,” he reasoned. “You’ll get time in The Hole, tell Foster and Spade how sorry you are, presto-change-o, you’re all good. No one gets harmed.”
“Yeah, her parents’ private jet is probably already landing,” the other guy added.
Too bad Arlen was in anything but a reasonable mood. He was done wasting time by talking. And suggesting that he’d leave Sienna with people who had obviously hurt her? That wasn’t going to work.
With a savage roar, he pushed forward, fist aimed at Syce’s face. As soon as it connected with the guy’s temple, he pulled his arm back, crashing his elbow into Devlin’s face next. Devlin had been ready to grab him from behind, but his feet scuffling on the ground had given his location away.
Both of the men staggered back for a second before simultaneously lunging at Arlen, ignoring the pain. One set of arms grabbed him in a vice-like embrace as fists pummeled his head and torso. Arlen could barely feel the pain through the fury taking over his body.
He jerked his neck back before head-butting the man before him, Syce, hard enough to break the guy’s nose. His opponent staggered backwards as blood gushed down his face and neck.
Devlin released his grip so he could punch Arlen in the kidneys. Arlen’s lower back erupted in a wave of pain, but he boxed it away, thinking only of getting to Sienna as fast as possible. He whirled around and grabbed the agent by the neck, squeezing before lifting him off his feet and throwing him at his friend.
Arlen’s tiger was thrashing, close to the surface, begging to be let go. The animal wanted nothing more than to finish off the guys lying on top of each other on the ground. Arlen took a deep breath to remain in control.
These were fellow agents, doing as their superior told them. It wasn’t their fault they happened to stand in the way of a man desperate to get back the woman he loved. At another time, it could have been Arlen in their place, doing the same.
He jumped in his car before the men had a chance to recover and sped off. Syce took a couple shots at the vehicle, but luckily didn’t manage to hit the tires. A bullet cracked through the back windshield and plowed into the roof, missing Arlen narrowly.
“Shit,” he cursed, stepping on the gas.
He had to be fast. Knowing that The Firm and not Holland had Sienna was useful, but disheartening information. His employers were very efficient, and he had no doubts that she was already on her way to her parents, like one of the agents had said.
Unlike the Crimson Claws, The Firm didn’t mess around with their time or money. The window to intercept the trade was closing fast, and he was running out of ideas.
Wait a minute
, he suddenly thought.
Sienna’s parents flew into town instead of having The Firm fly her out to them. That could mean they’re going to be sticking around for a while…
Whatever security the Marquez family travelled with, it was bound to be easier to break through than The Firm’s defenses. He could just wait for Sienna to be handed over and take her back from her family instead.
I might just have a chance,
he thought, hope swelling in his chest.