Time for bad cop/worse cop. I stepped around the corner with my own weapon aimed and ready. “I’ve never been described that way, but I approve. Oh, and if you make a move on him, you’ll get slain.”
Cole had managed to get the guy on his knees, the butt of a gun pressed against his skull. The girl stood at Cole’s side, her gun aimed at his chest.
She scowled at me. One heartbeat passed. Two. Three. The tension between us thickened.
“You’re the he-beast?” she asked.
“The one and only.”
She grappled for a response, finally settling on “Well, you won’t squeeze that trigger.”
My smile was ice and menace. “Try me,” I said, mimicking Cole. “Please. All I need is an excuse.”
Another heartbeat passed. Ultimately, she dropped her weapon and kicked it toward me. Smart.
“On your knees,” I demanded. “Put your hands behind your head.”
“Watch one too many cop dramas?” she mocked.
“Now!”
Though she hesitated, she obeyed.
Would it be wrong to pat myself on the back?
I studied our pursuers more intently. The girl had a short crop of bleached hair. There were two silver hoops in her eyebrows and a stud in her upper lip. The collar of her black leather jacket gaped open, revealing a shirt that plunged to her navel in a deep vee. Every bit of visible skin had been marked by black and white tattoos.
The boy was short and stocky, with a shadow beard that gave him a kind of wolfish look. He had so many muscles he could probably lift a Mack truck over his head without breaking a sweat.
“Trust me, kiddies,” Stocky said, his grin as cold as mine. “You don’t want to do this.”
“Wrong,” I replied. “I love doing this. It’s fun.”
“You’re playing with fire, and you have no idea.” Tattoos raked her golden gaze over me. “But how could a delicate little thing like you know?” she said, sneering. “You think you want to walk on the dark side, but one step over and you’d crumble.”
Okay, I admit it. My cheeks heated. In our world, “delicate little thing” was the equivalent to a slap in the face.
“But you,” she continued, looking Cole over. “You’re a big slice of sexy, aren’t you?”
I pressed my tongue to the roof of my mouth. It didn’t matter where we were, or what we were doing, Cole always garnered female appreciation. He was honey, and women were flies.
I guess that made me the flyswatter.
“I’d stop if I were you.” I smiled a little too sweetly, my grip on the gun never wavering. “My trigger finger is developing a twitch.”
Cole cocked the hammer on his and pressed the barrel more firmly against Stocky’s head. “Enough. Tell us who you are.”
I loved watching him in action. He was fearless. Steady. A rock that wouldn’t be moved. “Admit you’re with Anima.”
Stocky spit on the ground. “Hell, no, we aren’t with Anima. We heard about what they did to your crew and how they’re trying to blame us for their work.”
Plausible.
“Who are you?” I asked.
His chest puffed up. “River’s best.”
Maybe. But that didn’t make him an ally. Cole never lowered his weapon.
On a roll, Stocky said, “Anima’s pitting us against each other, probably hoping we’ll destroy each other and save them the hassle.”
“If I don’t like your next few answers,” I said, “they’ll get their wish. Why were you following us? And what about the other two? If our friends are hurt...”
“Our orders weren’t to hurt,” Tattoos retorted. “Just to detain. Lookit, we saw the news. We know we’re being blamed for the death of some of your people. We thought you were here to seek revenge, but I’m guessing that’s not the case because you haven’t blown our faces off. You know Anima’s at fault, right?”
Cole finally removed his finger from the trigger and sheathed the gun at the waist of his pants. Here’s the amazing thing. He was still just as menacing.
I wasn’t quite so trusting, though, and while I put the gun back in my purse, I also palmed a dagger.
“Did you see Anima in action the night my friends were killed?” Cole helped Stocky to his feet. “They still have one of our boys.”
“We didn’t see anything.” Tattoos stood on her own. “But River did.”
“Well, then, I want to talk to River.” If the edge in Cole’s tone hadn’t scared her, the determination in his eyes should have done the trick.
“He wants to speak with you, too. Maybe even join forces. You do good work.” Her predatory gaze gave him another once-over, and she licked her lips. “Real good work.”
I stepped toward her, ready to charge. Cole held out his arm, stopping me. Tattoos grinned, and then she and Stocky gathered their weapons from the ground.
“This way.” Stocky motioned for us to follow.
We didn’t, not right away. I pretended to enjoy the beauty around me. The moon, high though it was, was nothing more than a hook. Stars glowed like diamonds scattered across a sea of black velvet. The perfect backdrop for betrayal.
Okay. Enough of that.