Canary by Tijan
Ash
Twenty-six hours later, we were in Philadelphia. We drove straight through, stopping for food and bathroom breaks and that was about it. Everyone took a turn driving, and everyone took a turn sleeping.
Except Gus. Gus slept the entire time.
Jake, Cavers, and I carried everything into Raize’s house once we arrived. The boss took off. I was figuring he had calls to make, calls that I definitely wanted nothing to do with. We were just about done. I had the last bag and I was taking it inside.
Cavers was in the doorway. He was lingering there.
That’s right, I remembered. He doesn’t stay here with us.
Man. It felt like so long ago when we’d been here last, like a different life.
So much had changed.
Jake moved past Cavers up the stairs, Gus trailing behind him, his tail wagging.
Jake went to the second floor, giving me a lingering look. Gus sniffed my hands, but I didn’t have any treats for him, so he went on up the stairs, too.
Raize hadn’t come out of his office in the back. His bedroom was back there, too.
Jesus.
His bedroom. Where he used to party, with multiple women.
My mouth dried. Was he going to go back to those habits? Would I be mad if he did? Raize never went long without a sex party, so I needed to figure out my viewpoint on that issue real quick.
Fuck.
My mouth dried.
Yes. I’d be upset if he did.
My body was getting heated.
I’d be more than upset. I’d be pissed off.
So hell no, he wasn’t going back to that.
Well, then. I had an opinion.
“I’m not standing here for any weird reason,” Cavers announced, pulling me out of my thoughts.
I looked at him, surprised. Though supposedly working for Bronski, he hadn’t done a whole lot to work against us that I could see. He followed orders and he cooked. If he was reporting to Bronski on the downlow, Raize never shared that with me, and I had a feeling Raize would know.
I frowned. “Why are you telling me that?”
He shrugged. He was such a big man, but he’d never looked big and uncomfortable until today.
“You waiting to talk to Raize?”
His gaze moved past me to the end of the hallway. “I don’t know how long he’ll be back there.”
That was a fact. We’d just gotten back, and we hadn’t accomplished what Raize had been sent to do. He could be in there all night, and all day tomorrow. Who knew?
I made a decision. “I’ll tell him you want to talk to him.”
His mouth quirked up before flattening.
“What?” I asked.
He shook his head, looking away. “Nothing.”
“I saw that. You think I’m funny or something?”
“Just, you got a little spunk to you now. You didn’t have that before.”
Say what?
But I knew what he was talking about, and my stomach flipped over. It wasn’t good to have anything in this life. Whatever you had, you could lose. Still, I kinda liked hearing that.
“I’ll go tell him.”
I was halfway down the hall when I heard him say quietly, “Thank you.”
I glanced back and saw something shining in his eyes.
That moved me, but I didn’t know what it was.
I knocked at Raize’s office door and said, “It’s Ash.”
Ash. Not me. A different girl’s name that I took.
Sometimes I hated names. Sometimes I loved them, but I always wondered, what was their point?
The door swung open. Raize’s hair was messed up more than usual, his face stark and haggard, but also striking. He’d changed into a gray Henley over jeans. “What?”
I searched his face and jerked a thumb over my shoulder. His gaze followed. “He’s waiting to talk to you.”
Raize nodded to Cavers. “Come on back.”
I stepped away as Cavers lumbered past me. He glanced at me. “Thank you.”
Emotion filled my chest. I dipped my chin down, stiffly, and moved past him. This was all getting so odd.
I was on my way to my room when I heard a creak on the stairs.
Jake had come down, Gus in tow, his tail swishing. He came over to bump my hand and fit his head underneath it.
Jake’s eyes moved to Raize’s office. “You do that for him, but I feel like you want nothing to do with me.”
Oh man.
I knelt, petting Gus down his back.
He wiggled, his tail thumping the floor in a steady staccato.
I didn’t reply to Jake. Didn’t know what to say.
“Did I change that or did he?” Jake asked.
He. Raize.
I didn’t look up, focusing instead on how cute Gus’ nose was twitching.
“Right.” He sighed.
I’d answered by not answering.
Finally I looked up. “Don’t dwell on anything. Okay?” And then I lied. “Nothing’s changed.”
He knew I was lying. I knew I was lying. I knew he knew I was lying.
But I lied anyway, and then we heard it.
Bang!
