Chapter Nine

"Maura's five minutes out," Nate said when he peeked his head back into the bedroom a few minutes later.

Kierse said goodbye to her friends and followed Nate down the stairs to a small infirmary. He pulled out supplies for Maura. She was a nurse at one of the lingering hospitals that took patients who couldn't afford treatment. She'd patched Kierse up one too many times when she'd still been working for Nate. It was lucky to have someone on staff, considering how difficult and expensive healthcare was.

"So, you ready to tell me what actually happened?" Nate asked.

"I guess I left out a bit of the truth." Kierse sank into the open seat with a sigh.

Nate guffawed. "A bit? You left out everything, I'd wager."

"Look, I don't mean to intrude on you."

"Kierse, it's not intruding when you're in need."

"I'm not charity, Nate," she said.

"No one said you were charity. You have Druids after you," Nate said, slamming down the bottle of antiseptic and turning to face her. "What I don't understand is the last year. Where the hell have you been?"

Kierse frowned. "I don't know..."

"No, don't do that. We're friends. We can talk about what happened with Torra. You didn't have to leave."

"I don't want to talk about it," she bit right back. She swallowed around the sound of Torra's name. "We tried to save her. We failed. There's nothing more to say."

"There's a hell of a lot more to say. You weren't responsible for her kidnapping, Kierse," he said with a frustrated growl. "It's not your fault that she got caught up with the wrong people."

"I should have been there," Kierse said through gritted teeth.

"You weren't even a couple when it went down," Nate argued.

"Like that matters."

"She was my friend, too, you know?" Nate said. "She was working for meas my bartender when you two met. She wasn't pack, but she might as well have been. She was my people, and they took her anyway."

"Don't you think I know that?"

"Then you never should have disappeared."

Kierse jumped to her feet. "You have no idea what I was going through. You have no right..."

"We all miss Torra."

"Nate!"

He lost all of his anger as soon as hers was unleashed. He dropped his gaze. "You're right. That was shitty." He crossed an arm over his muscled torso. "I don't blame you for what happened. I hope you don't blame yourself, either. We did everything we could." His hazel eyes were earnest when they met hers again. "A day, a week, a year, Kierse. I'm here. You being here proves that."

Kierse deflated. "Thank you."

"Now, tell me the truth this time. Start from the beginning and don't leave out all the good bits."

So, she started from the beginning. Nate had a shockingly blank look the entire time he listened to her story. It wasn't until the end of the tale that he breathed out and said rather forcefully, "Fuck."

Kierse chuckled. "Yeah. It's been a fuck couple of hours."

"And you're sure he said Lorcan?"

"Certain. Do you know him?"

"Know him?" Nate said with a sardonic laugh. "Course I know him. He's the head of the Druids and one terrifying bastard."

"Human?"

"As far as I know. When the mob fell on Manhattan and we consolidated the wolves into Five Points during the war, we reached out to him and offered an alliance. He had enough clout at the time to join up. He laughed in my face and said wolves were beneath him."

"Graves said much the same about vampires," she admitted.

He pursed his lips and crossed his beefy arms. "Well, the thing I can't figure is what his angle is. Lorcan is not someone I want to fuck with, but I've never heard of him chasing down innocents to kill them in the streets."

"Well, apparently Graves is his enemy."

"And now yours," Nate added.

"Great," she grumbled.

"If someone had asked, I would have put Lorcan firmly on the good side of the fight," he said with a shrug. "His territory has always been safer for humans than the Manhattan streets. I don't know what he does in Brooklyn, but he keeps people alive."

"Yeah, well, he tried to kill us. So I don't know if he's good or bad. Just that he's against us."

Nate nodded but was held from saying anything by a tall Desi girl striding into the infirmary. Her lush brown hair fell in careful waves to the middle of her back, and the dim light played along her golden-brown skin. "Nathaniel O'Connor, what have you done this time?"

"Maura," he said like a man ready to pounce. "Look at you."

She stripped out of her jacket, revealing maroon nursing scrubs. "The sexiest I've ever looked."

He grinned as he stepped toward his girlfriend. "Don't have to tell me twice."

As he came in for a kiss, Maura pushed her hand into his face. "Patient first."

Nate growled in the back of his throat. "Always patient first."

Maura laughed at him and went straight to Kierse. "Hello, darling. It's been a while. What have you done to yourself to end up in my infirmary?"

"Hi, Maura," Kierse said. She'd never get used to someone being able to handle Nate the way that Maura did. "Knife to the ribs."

"Of course." Maura got to work, cutting Kierse's shirt open and cleaning the wound.

Maura had left Jersey City to become a wartime nurse in Manhattan. She was still close to her parents and brothers back home, and they were proud that she'd done something so selfless. She'd met Nate one of the many times he'd needed to be stitched up, and he'd convinced her to get on his payroll. He'd charmed his way into her life, her bed, and her heart ever since.

"This will need a few stitches. It's going to suck. Nate, give her the whiskey."

"I'm good."

"I have tequila," Maura offered.

Kierse shook her head. "Nah."

"Your call."

Kierse gritted her teeth while Maura sewed up the wound and expertly tied it off. It hurt like a bitch. But afterward, Maura provided her with a change of clothes, and she felt more human once she pulled her jacket back on.

"Now, to the topic at hand," Maura said with a smile. "What brings you to our doorstep?"

"She met him, Mar," Nate said.

"Him?"

"That scary motherfucker I told you about."

"Oh," Maura whispered.

"Wait," Kierse said with growing alarm, "you know him?"

"I know of him. A lot of people know of him," Nate confirmed. "He's the guy who can get you anything you want for a price."

"Well, he's hiring me to get something for him," Kierse said.

"I heard he makes people sign their name into his black book so that you're bound to your deal with him and sworn to keep his name secret."

Kierse froze. Was that what he'd meant when he said that it wouldn't do anything to her? She'd signed that book, but she'd been able to say his name clear as day. She'd only held his secrets, but that was because she didn't want to endanger her friends, not because she had to hold them. More proof that she had magic he couldn't control. No wonder he was after her.

"Oh, and he helped get the Treaty signed."

Kierse stared at him, speechless. "Are you saying he's... a good guy?"

"No," Nate said carefully but then shrugged. "I'm sure he did it for his own benefit. But I wouldn't say he's all bad, either."

Kierse chewed on her lip at the news. Well, she hadn't expected that. Not that it changed her calculus. Not when he was also this dangerous.

"What do you think I should do?" Kierse asked.

"He's terrifying," Nate said. "He can control the flow of politics and shit. But he also helped humanity. I wouldn't want to be on his bad side."

"So, I should take the job?"

"If he wants you to do it, he's the kind of person who gets what he wants. It'd be better to do it on your terms."

Kierse breathed out. That was the truth at least. She didn't think it was ever going to be that simple. Get in and get out. But she didn't think Graves was going to stop, either. Not when he saw his prize in reach. It'd be better to do it her way.

"Plus, think about what this could mean for the cause," Nate continued.

Kierse arched an eyebrow. "You and the cause."

He smirked. "Look, we all know that the Treaty didn't solve all the problems. There are still monsters out there who want it to be like the old days. They don't want any interference from the humans. If you steal this prize from them, it could only help us going forward, right?"

That was a take that she hadn't considered in all of this. She hated the monsters for all they had done to her and her city. For everything they had taken. Not all humans were saints by any means—Jason was proof enough that men could just as easily be monsters—but any blow to monsters who wanted to wreck her city again was a good one.

"True. I'll have to be careful, though," she said. "I don't think he's going to be an easy mark."

"Yeah, but he's never sparred with our Kierse, has he?" Nate asked.

Maura laughed at them both. "Lord help the man or monster who goes up against Kierse McKenna."

"Thanks," Kierse told her sincerely.

"But I'm coming off a twelve-hour shift and need to sleep," she said with a yawn. She ran a hand down her pallid face, and Kierse could see the strain of her job in that look. "Be safe and check in. It's been too long."

"Good night," Kierse said.

Maura kissed Nate once on the lips before leaving the pair of them alone.

Nate touched her hand, and she didn't pull away. "Whatever you decide about this job, I'll be here for you if you need anything. I have contacts and the pack. You don't have to disappear again. We're family."

She hadn't known how much she needed to hear that. That someone believed her and would help her figure it out. "Thank you. I'm regretting the last year."

"Well, when Torra left, I knew it would be bad."

"Left," she repeated on a harsh whisper.

Torra hadn't left. She'd been taken. Sure, they'd been on rough times and would have probably broken up anyway, but then she'd just vanished.

"I know," he said with a tip of his head. "Either way, it's good to have you back."

Exhaustion pressed heavy on her, and she left Nate behind in the infirmary. She'd been downstairs longer than she thought, because when she came back to the room, the lights were still on and Corey was seated in one bed with Ethan. Gen sat on the other.

Gen patted the empty space on the bed next to her. Kierse slid her jacket off her shoulders and climbed into bed beside her friend.

"When do you leave?" Gen asked.

Corey and Ethan whipped their heads to her.

"Leave?" Ethan asked.

"You knew I was going to go?"

"Of course. I know you like I know myself, Kierse. You're the closest thing I've ever had to a sister."

Kierse swallowed back the knot in her throat. "I feel the same."

"Wait, you can't leave tonight," Ethan argued.

"It's almost morning," she said. "And I think you two need to hole up here until I can figure out how much danger you're in."

Gen pursed her lips. "I had a feeling you might say that."

"Live here?" Ethan asked in shock. He was on his feet, crossing his arms. "We can't live here."

"You should stay under Dreadlord protection until I can figure out if you're still in danger."

"That's ridiculous," Corey said, putting a hand on Ethan's shoulder. "Roulettes can protect Gen and Ethan just fine."

"They didn't tonight," Gen said quietly.

Ethan scowled at them. "We can't just stay here. All of our stuff is back home. Our entire lives. Who is going to water the plants?"

"My mother can have someone take care of them," Gen tried to assure him, but he seemed unconvinced. Kierse was, too. Colette had many talents, but making things grow was not one of them.

"You won't have to stay long," Kierse insisted. "Once I finish this job, we'll get our own place with its own security, okay? Until then, I just want you to be safe."

Corey sighed when he realized she wasn't budging. "Kierse is right. You'll be safe here. I can bring stuff over from the attic. Some of your favorite plants, too."

Ethan gaped at his boyfriend. "You're okay with this?"

"I'm sorry, Ethan," Kierse said. "I wish there was another way."

"I'll be around. Don't worry," Corey said as he pressed a kiss to Ethan's cheek. "It won't be all bad."

"I bet Nate would even give you access to the roof for new planting," Gen said. "You know how he is. He'd want you to be comfortable."

Ethan sighed. "Fine. Fine, we'll stay."

"We'll see you soon." Gen pulled her into a hug.

Even after years of being friends with all of Gen's warmth and good nature, Kierse still froze. It wasn't really the touch that was the problem. Not as casual as her friends usually were. It was the intimacy of the touch. This wasn't just a hug. It was a hug goodbye. It was a hug that said I love you.

But she needed this hug. So, she let the tension pass and hugged her friend back.

"I won't tell you to be careful," Ethan said.

Kierse shot him a confident smile. "I'm always careful."

He snorted. "We all know that you won't be."

"For real," Corey said.

Kierse crossed the room. "At least you know me."

Ethan sighed. "We'll be careful enough for you, okay? Just come back soon."

She nodded because words wouldn't suffice. She could stand here forever with her friends, her family, and never be ready to leave them behind.

Gen pulled her into one more hug and whispered so Ethan couldn't hear, "Just promise to come back."

Some part of her knew that she couldn't promise anything, but she said the words anyway. Even though they both knew they were a lie.