15. Grace

Chapter fifteen

Grace

I 'd planned on hiding in the bathroom until I naturally decomposed into the tile flooring. Unfortunately, Anders and Jesse eventually returned from their mysterious adventure and apparently had questions about why I had locked myself in the bathroom. I could hear them all discussing it on the other side of the door. After a few minutes, they went quiet, and someone knocked aggressively, shaking the door on its hinges.

"Come on out Kitten, we have a present for you," Anders drawled, and I groaned, sliding off the counter, where I'd been perched on for the last hour or so. I unlocked the door and opened it a crack, peering out into the room, which was full of damn men . I went to shut it again, but Anders shoved his hand inside, forcing me to stop or risk breaking his fingers. I considered it, honestly, maybe he'd learn some damn manners that way.

"Look, if you're that embarrassed, Erik will take his clothes off, and then you'll be even," he announced, and my face flushed as he wrenched the door open and pulled me into the room.

Jesse signed at me, smiling and gesturing to a small mountain of bags on the bed. "Oh wow," I breathed, spotting some expensive brands in the pile.

"They got you some clothes, so you don't have to wear our shirts anymore," Erik translated, and I took a tentative step toward the pile. A small part of me wanted to jump for joy and rummage through all of the bags to see what was inside. But the more realistic part of me was concerned about the invisible strings attached to these clothes. Panic twisted in my gut as I turned to look at the men, who were all watching me with open interest, waiting for my reaction.

"Thank you, that was very sweet… but I don't have a way to pay you back right now," I told them softly. "I don't even have a credit card, the family assets are controlled by Douglas…" Wow, could this day get any more fucking embarrassing? I didn't even have a license. Not one that I knew of, at least. I think I had a passport, but it was locked in a safe in Douglas's office. "I can't accept all of this, I'm sorry." I took a step back, clasping my hands in front of me as I braced for their reaction. Jesse looked visibly disappointed, and I felt a twinge of guilt.

"That's fine, you can keep wandering around without underwear on. I certainly don't care," Anders replied evenly, and if it was possible, I turned an even brighter shade of red.

"Don't worry about the cost," Erik replied, ignoring Anders's comment. "You help us out tonight, and we'll call it even. Think of it like contract work." He smirked, signing as he spoke. Jesse nodded, flashing the image of a wrapped present in my mind.

I signed him ‘thank you', and he grinned.

"Speaking of which, you should get changed. Anders, did you buy anything that's somewhat practical?" Erik asked, and Anders scoffed.

"Of course I did, I'm not an idiot," he replied.

Apparently, Anders's idea of ‘practical' was a skin-tight blue knit dress with a plunging neckline. At least one of them had thought to buy me a bra, though I was terrified to ask how they'd gotten my size right… I put my hair up into a messy bun to keep it out of my way, since Douglas wasn't here to yell at me over it. I walked downstairs to find them all milling around the living room area, Jesse and Erik with drinks in their hands. They all looked up when I entered, and I clasped my hands behind my back, twisting them nervously under their gaze.

"Are my, uh, heels anywhere?" I asked softly, glancing down at my bare feet. I'd been wearing heels at the club that night, but I'd been barefoot since I got here, so I wasn't sure if they'd made it back with me.

"Your shoes are by the door," Anders replied with a smirk. I turned, confused, and saw a gorgeous pair of knee-high black leather boots sitting at the front entrance. Once again, they fit like a dream, and I wasn't sure whether to be impressed or terrified as I zipped them up.

Jesse offered me his arm as we walked out to the car, a large black SUV that seemed to be the standard form of transport for nefarious men in this town. He helped me climb into the back seat, and I slid into the middle, bumping into an invisible Levy, who had climbed in on the other side. Erik was in the passenger seat, which surprised me. I wasn't expecting him to be a passenger princess. Anders was in the driver's seat, which made more sense now that I thought about it.

He pulled a pair of dark-rimmed glasses out of his breast pocket and put them on. Somehow, they made him look sexier instead of geeky, and I blushed and sank back into the leather seats, my shoulders brushing against Jesse and Levy.

It was nice to be out of the house for once, and I tried to figure out where we were heading while the guys made small talk, Erik turning awkwardly in his seat to sign with Jesse. With my hands clasped tightly in my lap, I watched them get into a heated discussion about something. Anders chimed in every so often, but he was darkly serious as he concentrated on the road, his hands never leaving the steering wheel. He had some serious control issues, I was beginning to notice.

We pulled into a stretch of warehouses, and Anders parked abruptly in front of one in particular. I squeezed my hands together nervously as everyone in the car seemed to tense up. "Alright Kitten, they're just in through there. We need to know who tipped off The Boogeyman's crew about our shipment last week." I froze when he uttered my brother's stupid nickname. Shit, so it had been my brother who had fucked them over then, of course that would be the case.

"You want me to go in there alone?" I asked in a small voice. Jesse patted my thigh gently, giving it a little squeeze as he smiled reassuringly. He sent me a flash of them standing outside the door, and I swallowed, nodding slowly. Levy opened the door on his side and slid out, so I could get down. This was a test, clearly, sending me in on my own. I would show them, I would prove my usefulness.

Squaring my shoulders, I walked toward the warehouse door, trembling from head to toe. I glanced back and saw them all getting out of the car, watching me like a pack of dogs ready to pounce. Well, at least, they were close enough to hear me if I screamed.

My heels echoed loudly through the warehouse as I walked toward the sound of voices near the back. There was a table set up with a stack of empty pizza boxes on top, and close to a dozen men were scattered around the room. Some were drinking beers, and a couple were smoking. They all stopped talking as I walked into view, and I clenched my fists to stop my hands from shaking as a couple of them whistled at me.

"You lost, baby?" One of them sneered as I stopped in the middle of their space. My skin started to prickle as they all moved closer, circling me like sharks.

"Actually, I do need your help," I explained, letting my light cascade out of me, spreading out across the whole group. The effect I had on humans was much more intense, and they reacted immediately.

"Anything you need, doll," the nearest one murmured, his pupils dilated like saucers as he gave me a dreamy look. One of them reached out to touch me, and I flinched away, backing up into another man who'd crept up behind me. I forgot they got a little clingy if they weren't already on the ground when I got to them.

"I'm looking for someone," I explained, trying to extricate myself from the grip of the man behind me. I tugged my arm out of his grasp and backed up into the middle of the room, looking around at the group of doped-up men.

"I need to know who's been giving information to the Boogeyman's crew. Like about the shipment last week," I pushed, increasing the spread of my light around the room.

"It wasn't me," one man piped up. He set off a chain reaction as each of them proclaimed their innocence one after the other.

"I told them," a voice announced, and I found the owner quickly, one of the smokers, lingering further away. He walked toward me, swaying slightly as the story spilled from his lips. "I needed the money, and one of them offered me a deal. Inform on shipments, and they'd pay me double what I'm getting now. It was so easy, how could I pass it up? I need to pay off my debts, they're going to take my car if I don't!" I pulled my light back inside, tucking it away safely in my chest. The men all looked punch-drunk, and I backed up as the informant kept approaching, his face twisting in a look of betrayal.

"You can't tell them," he insisted, his fists clenched, his lip curling in rage. I sent out a concentrated blast of light toward him, and he relaxed completely, dropping to his knees.

Hands slid across my hips, and I flinched, afraid one of the men had gotten too close again. "Good girl," Erik whispered in my ear, making me shiver, desire curling in my core. Anders walked up to the man on his knees, cocking his head to the side and looking irritated as he studied him.

"We would have paid you more, you idiot." He tsked. The man's eyes bulged slightly, and he clutched his chest before dropping back to the ground. It had been so quick, I almost didn't register what had happened. I stared at the man's body, his eyes open as he stared at nothing. Anders signed something at Jesse, who nodded and punched a second man in the face, breaking his nose.

I gasped as Erik drew me closer, his hands fanning out across my stomach. "That was because he touched you," Erik murmured. "That's not allowed." Jesse smirked as he approached us, reaching out and brushing a strand of hair out of my face. He signed something I didn't recognize. "He says ‘Good Job'," Erik whispered, his lips brushing against the shell of my ear. His arms were still caging me against him, and Jesse pressed in closer until Erik's knuckles were brushing against his shirt.

Their proximity was intoxicating, it was making my head spin. The new lace panties I'd been given were starting to feel damp, and I brought my shaking fingers to my chin, signing ‘thank you' to Jesse, because it was the only thing I remembered.

He smirked, his eyes glinting with a dangerous promise, before brushing his lips against my forehead in a chaste little kiss. My lips parted of their own accord, but for what? I didn't know. I wanted to ask him to kiss me again, to touch me more. Erik's hands pressed into my stomach, his fingers low enough to feel the lacey front of my panties. I leaned back into him, a soft sigh leaving my lips. He chuckled behind me and pressed his lips to the side of my neck briefly before releasing me.

I swayed a little as he walked over to talk to the remaining men, who were all staring at their dead colleague on the floor. Normally, a night like this would leave me sobbing and throwing up for a day or more. But tonight I felt… exhilarated? I watched the three of them prowl around, establishing order and reassuring the other men that they were safe as long as they didn't sell themselves to my brother's crew. The workers were all staring at me with a mixture of fear and awe, even the man who was currently pressing a rag to his nose to stop the bleeding. Lifting my chin, I met their stares until they looked away, and tried to hide the smile that wanted to break free. For the first time in my life I felt… powerful.

Once things settled down, we headed back to the car. As soon as we were all inside, Erik let out a loud whoop, grinning at the three of us in the backseat. "That was so goddamn efficient I could almost cry. No interrogations, no torture, nothing!" He checked his watch and grinned. "Less than an hour! I can't believe it. Pizza takes longer to deliver!" Levy chuckled beside me, and Jesse bumped my shoulder, flashing a grin at me. I flushed, letting his happiness infect me as a smile grew on my own face.

"We should celebrate," he mused. "Dante's?" He looked at Anders, who shrugged as he pulled out of the parking lot. "There's a game tonight, I bet they'd let me in." Erik grinned, signing to Jesse, who let out a groan.

"Poker," Levy whispered in my ear, his hand sliding over my thigh. I shivered but relaxed under his hand, and he gave my leg a gentle squeeze.

"Angel, what do you think?" Erik asked, dragging my attention back to him. "Want to celebrate a little? Get wild?" He smirked, his eyes sparkling with mischief.

"Okay." I smiled back, bolstered by his reckless confidence. It was just a club, what could it hurt?