25. Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

T here was nothing like breaking into the home of one of the scariest people Mitchell had ever met in his life. Davorion wasn't anyone special. The only thing that made him even remotely notable in certain circles was his ability to exploit people for monetary gain. It was his best skill, and he deserved a place in hell for it. But at his core, Davorion was just an asshole who didn't care about anyone but himself.

His house was flashy. It made a statement about how much money he had. Unlike Seryn's house, which was all about security and comfort, Davorion's residence was designed to make people envious. Davorion certainly wasn't interested in security. If he was, it wouldn't have been so easy to get through his security system.

The front gate didn't have a code on it. It had a keypad, but Mitchell quickly discovered that it wasn't hooked up. All he had to do was push the gate open. Mitchell smirked. "That was easy."

"Too easy?"

"I don't know. Maybe he's just overly confident."

"Have we decided to kill him?" Seryn wanted to get the information they needed and then finished what he'd started when he'd rescued Mitchell.

"We need someone to pin the gun theft on and since they're in Davorion's possession, I think we should keep him alive. Let him rot in prison." Mitchell led the way, walking along the fence. He wanted to get to the back of the property. A lot of times, people left the back doors open, or they had flimsier locks. Even in mansions like Davorion's. Hell, Seryn could stand a little extra security at the back of the property. "Remind me to upgrade the door locks."

"I have good locks, Daddy."

"Not the glass doors leading to the pool. Those doors need an extra lock." Mitchell grabbed Seryn's hand, lacing their fingers together. He didn't enjoy going very long between touches.

Seryn swung their arms together as if they were taking a stroll on the beach. "If you say so."

Davorion's property wasn't very large. Unlike the house, the property was maybe two acres. He had strategically placed trees at the front, which they used to hide themselves. The darkness and shadows did most of the work for them, though. It didn't take them long before they were at the side of the house.

Cutting across the open expanse of lawn was the biggest problem. Despite the less than impressive security system, Davorion had cameras. They just didn't extend to the outer edges of the property and there wasn't one on the gate, which was an epic failure on Davorion's part. The cameras were mounted on the house and only had a radius of about thirty feet out. "Can you do that thing where we disappear?"

Seryn mumbled words under his breath. It was in another language. When he finished, he nodded.

"You're so talented." Mitchell kissed his temple. "That's why I love you so much."

Seryn chuckled. "I don't want to disappoint you, but it's not talent. I had to learn a whole new language. Before I figured out what was happening to me, all the pent-up magic drove me crazy-literally. Like the visions did before you took control."

That's how Seryn saw Mitchell? As someone who took control? "I don't do anything special. Just take care of you."

"I've never had that before. Had to do it all myself. I still don't know some of my abilities, but what I do know is enough for me to get by."

Mitchell kissed his temple again. "You're so smart. That's why I love you so much," he repeated.

Seryn chuckled. "Thank you. I'm pretty sure I love you, too."

Mitchell grinned. "That's good enough for me."

At the side of the house, Mitchell put a finger to his lips. Communicate through the link from now on.

Seryn nodded. He stayed behind Mitchell, holding onto his shoulder, letting him lead.

It had been months since Mitchell had stolen anything, which meant it was even longer since he'd broken into a building. The backyard had a pool, much like Seryn's house. But it didn't have a guest house, which was a plus. Mitchell didn't have to worry about anyone who might reside on the property, although there might be staff. He definitely had guards inside.

After the tunnel incident where Seryn killed so many of Davorion's people, he'd probably doubled down on his security team. Or maybe there wasn't anyone left to guard him. If it were Mitchell, there wasn't any way he'd agree to guard Davorion and risk getting killed.

Mitchell pulled out a lock picking kit. It was difficult to find on such short notice, but Jude had come through. Knowing Mitchell would want one, Jude had bought one even before they'd reunited.

It took some time because the doors weren't the cheap kind and Mitchell's skills were rusty. After months in a cell and fighting for his life, it was no wonder. And it wasn't like he'd given breaking and entering much thought. He was also louder than he would have liked to be. I'm fucking it up.

You're doing just fine, Daddy.

Thanks, boy. I haven't done it in a while. I need practice.

Seryn's hand tightened on his shoulder. You're going back to it?

Maybe not if Seryn sounded as though Mitchell had just kicked his puppy. I don't know. I haven't given it much thought.

I thought you just wanted to take care of me.

I do want to take care of you, but I don't want to be a kept man. You're not my sugar daddy.

Not that. But a househusband.

Mitchell sighed. There wasn't anyway Mitchell would be a househusband. He could have some type of job and take care of Seryn all at once. But was he too far gone to have a legal job? We'll talk about it later.

He had to concentrate.

It took him twice as long to unlock the door as it should have. He sighed and shook his head. He stood and pushed it open just in time to hear footsteps. He pulled the door closed and waited.

Whoever was in the house couldn't see them because of Seryn, but his bodily response didn't get the memo. His heart went wild in his chest. He fought the urge to hold his breath because he knew it wouldn't do any good.

Seryn gently pushed him against the house. Mitchell wasn't completely out of sight, but he was hidden in the shadows enough to not be seen. And then Seryn plastered on one of his fake smiles and let go of Mitchell, which meant Mitchell was visible. But Seryn wasn't.

Seryn opened the door, pushing it softly to make it seem as if the door just opened on its own. As if it wasn't latched.

"What the hell?" It was a woman's voice, but she wasn't close to the door. She might have been on the other side of the room. She didn't sound scared, rather she seemed suspicious.

Seryn slipped inside. Mitchell could see him reach into his duster and pulled out a knife. The blade was long, nine inches maybe, and it was wide. He waited just inside.

The woman had short, dark hair. It was longer on top and shaved close along the bottom. She was pretty in a masculine way. She wore a suit with a gun peeking from her jacket. She scanned the area, but not well enough to see Mitchell standing there.

The door shut, and Mitchell heard the lock click into place.

He stiffened, not liking that Seryn was inside, alone with her. His protective instincts kicked in, which was ridiculous. It was Seryn who was the most capable person Mitchell had ever met in his life and Seryn wasn't the first hitman/assassin he'd met. He knew a couple, although the others were low-level criminals. More like Mitchell. Seryn was way out of his league in a lot of ways, and his level of sophisticated crime was just one of them.

Seryn came up behind her and held the knife to her throat. Mitchell heard him speak. The sound was muffled by the door, but still audible. "How many guards?"

"Four." She didn't hesitate to answer, and she didn't sound as if she feared Seryn or the knife. But she held still. None of it would save her life, but it would prolong it.

"Where?"

"Security room. Front door. Upper level, and one more on this level."

"Unlock the door."

She complied, but balked when Seryn started pushing her outside. He must have pressed the knife to her throat because she stumbled.

She still didn't see Mitchell, even when Seryn pushed her about a yard away. Their backs were to him.

Mitchell didn't move. He'd wait until Seryn finished.

"Your mistake was not having a guard outside." Seryn's arms moved, but it was to get a gun. Instead of slicing her neck, he shot her in the head.

Seryn let go of her. I didn't want the others to see her body.

Good thinking, baby.

When Mitchell started to go inside, Seryn held his arm, tugging on it. Mitchell stopped. Seryn pointed to himself and then the door, showing he wanted to go in first, which made more sense considering he was the guy with the skill.

Mitchell nodded and followed Seryn inside.

They entered the living room. The light from the pool lit the room enough for them to walk through. Despite that, everything was dark and moody, with heavy wood furnishings and dark fabrics.

Stay here and wait for me. Seryn nodded to a corner of the room where it was the darkest. Floor to ceiling shelving covered two walls, but the dim light didn't penetrate the edge of the shelves.

Mitchell nodded and watched as Seryn made his way out of the room. He was usually very good at getting the job done effectively. He found the worry created doubt which caused hesitation and that got him caught more times than not. He'd learned to keep the negative emotions on the back burner. But he'd never had Seryn with him while on a job. While he didn't doubt Seryn's skill, it didn't stop him from worrying like a mother hen. It was almost like when Jude had helped Mitchell break into vehicles at an event. After a while, Mitchell had stopped taking him because he couldn't shut off the protective part of himself.

Talk to me. One benefit to being mated to a vampire warlock was being able to ask Seryn how he was. It helped to reassure him.

Two down. Two to go.

Ten minutes later, Seryn came into the room again. "We're clear. I also found Davorion's office. Since you don't want to kill Davorion, what if we searched it for some sort of evidence about the guns?"

Mitchell grinned. "And leave a calling card."

"I think we've already done that with the five dead bodies."

"True." Mitchell held Seryn around the waist. "Good thinking, baby."

"I know. You love me because I'm smart." Seryn kissed Mitchell.

"Nah. It's your hot bod."

Seryn chuckled. "Let's see if we can make this job a whole lot easier."

Together they made their way through the house to the upstairs. "If Davorion kept a paper trail regarding those guns, it means he has the cops paid off."

Seryn stopped and met Mitchell's gaze. "And if it implicates you?"

"Then we kill Davorion, get the guns, and return them."

"If it doesn't." Seryn already knew what the plan was, and Mitchell could tell he didn't like it.

"If it doesn't. I take the evidence to the police."

"Davorion pays them off in this scenario." Yeah, Seryn definitely didn't like where it was going.

"Davorion will be very pissed off. Maybe even to the point of wanting a little payback."

Seryn sighed. "I just don't want you to get hurt."

If Mitchell had his way, taking a beating was what he was counting on.

It turned out Davorion kept meticulous records. The files were even labeled, so it took under ten minutes to find what they were searching for. Mitchell's name was mentioned, but only because there was a transaction of Terrell giving Mitchell to Davorion as a payment for keeping the guns hidden.

"We have to get rid of the bodies. There can't be any traces of them, or they'll get me for murder. Not just breaking and entering." Mitchell already knew he had to come clean on the breaking and entering.

"I know a lawyer who owes me a favor." He hoped she was an excellent lawyer, because if things didn't go according to plan, he'd need one.