Page 40 of Fighting Salvation

Laughter filled his ear and he wondered if perhaps Hansen hadn’t already lost his mind.

“Really, Niall, and here I thought we were BFFs.”

“Cut the crap and tell me what you want.”

“Just a little chat between old friends.”

“Friends don’t murder each other’s families.”

“Well, if it’s revenge you want, you have one of my progeny right there for the taking. Just kill the little brat and we’re even.”

He’d seen so much evil in his time sometimes he wondered if it had seeped into his skin and poisoned him but this was a level he could hardly comprehend. Even evil people had some kind of code or instinct to protect the children, even if it was for power most of the time. “I’m not like you, Hansen.”

“No, you’re not and it’s why I’ll win.”

“Why are you doing this? What did I do to you that drove you to this madness?” He wasn’t expecting an answer but he got something.

“Because you had her and I didn’t.”

Unease prickled at his senses as he tried to figure out what he meant and failed. “You don’t make sense.”

“Meet me at your home and I’ll tell you.”

“You think I’m dumb enough to meet you?”

“I think you’re desperate enough for answers. One o’clock and don’t be late. I have a surprise for you.”

The line went dead and he stood staring out at the vast land with more questions than answers and he knew Hansen was right. He would go because not knowing was a worse death than he could have planned for him.

The sliding door opening behind him alerted him to her presence. He turned, offering her a smile of reassurance but she knew him, in her heart where it counted, and he couldn’t hide from her.

“What is it?”

He lifted the phone. “Hansen called.”

She was at his side in an instant, her hand on his arm, the force he needed to ground himself and help him think. Her touch was light and he needed more so he pulled her to his side as she wrapped her arms around his middle, laying her head on his chest. How had he lived without this and why had he fought so hard against it? He knew why. He was terrified of losing her like he had his family, and with a man like Hansen, that was a very real possibility.

“What did he say?”

“He knows we have Novem and said if I wanted revenge I could kill her and we’d be even.”

A gasp behind him made him turn as Lotus walked through the door.

Val made to move out of his arms but he held her steady. He needed her and she resettled against him.

“What kind of animal is he?” Lotus was munching on pistachio nuts, tossing the shells over the side of the deck and into the forest below.

“The most dangerous kind because he has nothing of value except his own self.”

“What else?” He glanced down, a smile on his face as Val raised a brow at him. “What? You think I don’t know when you’re holding something back? It’s been my life’s work these last months.”

“Ouch, boss. She has you there.”

Bás glared at Lotus, but she wasn’t wrong. “Okay, fine. He wants me to meet him at my home.” Val pulled back to look up at him and he didn’t like what he saw and immediately responded. “No.”

“You don’t know what I was going to say.”

He pulled away from her so he could grasp her shoulders and make his feelings very clear. “Yes, I do. You want to come with me and that’s absolutely out of the question. This could be a trap.”