Liam's eyes lifted to the curtain. He stood abruptly. I straightened, following his gaze. A man in a black suit and a fedora walked in. Two tall men followed him. They all had slightly pointed ears.Liam stepped forward and shook his hand. "Don Archer," Liam said with a respectful nod."Brother Baxter. I have urgent business with you. Do you mind clearing the room?"Archer looked down at me briefly and back to Liam."This is Brother Popov's daughter. She will be taking over the Ardor Brothers."Archer frowned. "It is unfortunate to hear you will be stepping down. I feel we have created a strong relationship between our two factions.""She will fully support our agreement. If you choose to speak with me on the matter, I will act as her liaison."I blinked. I was surprised at how diplomatic Liam sounded. He never talked like that in front of the brothers or sisters. He kept his words short and grumbly. But here, he sounded like a true leader. I sat up on the chaise with my back st

I woke up in my big bed alone. Liam was asleep in the reclining chair at the corner of the room. I shuffled out of bed. The clock read 12:03. A part of me felt bad for sleeping in like I'd wasted the day, but I had only slept six hours. It was the curse of having a night job.I showered. When I came back into the room, Liam was gone. I looked through the dresser drawers of new clothes. I struggled with just choosing jeans and a t-shirt, but I needed to dress like a professional. Was the leader of a faction considered a professional? What would that kind of person wear to impress? Probably lots of leather, it was a biker gang after all.I could feel the Lanie side of me all excited to dress from head to toe in leather and jump on one of the bikes and drive around being a badass, but the Kira side of me was freaking out. She'd never worn a strip of leather in her life other than cowboy boots.I breathed. Okay. I was one person. Just one. I was me. I was... still nameless. I sighed. I

I spent the whole afternoon in the study. The books I came across were fascinating, but they were all spells. Nothing that had history or could shed any light on why they wanted Kezia or me. Cherry knocked on my door around six with a tray of food."Eat quick. They need you upstairs to do your thing soon.""Are Sundays any calmer?"She gave me a glance over her shoulder with her eyebrow raised. "Don't get your hopes up."I sighed and shoved a chicken wing in my mouth. Before long, Liam followed me up to the second level of the bar into the lair. I sat in a tall armchair with Liam standing tall and ominous behind me. The first of the clients came in. Halfway through the night, I was buzzing with energy and bored out of my mind. Liam had taken a seat in a chair next to me. The most current clients were having a threesome on the couch right in front of me. My hands were laced in theirs, so I was stuck leaning forward and far too close than I wanted to be. I shot a helpless look over

The ground vibrated. I lifted my head from my napping place on the books. The ground vibrated again. Shouts issued through the opening of the study door at the top of the stairs. Cherry rose, looking very concerned."What is it?" I asked."We're under attack."I jumped to my feet and rushed upstairs. The metal stairs clinked under my short heeled boots. When I reached the top, brothers and sisters rushed down the halls. Most of them had guns out.I snagged one man's arm. "Where's Liam?" I asked."Leading the charge." He pulled away and hurried off.I exited the hallway. The bar was in complete chaos. Guns covered the tables. Brothers were checking in and leaving with some of the biggest guns I had ever seen. I slipped between them and upstairs. I laid my hand on the top of the pile of energy crystals I had filled the night before and sucked in their power. I felt tingly and excited. I took a deep breath. I needed to keep a level head. This was a real battle.I came back down the

I finished showering and dressed. Even though I was clean, I still felt dirty. It was like every time I looked down, I could still see the blood all over me even though it wasn't there. I wore another pair of jeans and a long-sleeved black shirt with some sequin decoration. I chose a pair of new black sneakers to put on. I looked longingly at my new leather jacket from the brothers. It hung on my desk chair but was still covered in blood. I wished I could wear it right now, but there was no way that was a good idea. I wanted to stay as far away from blood and gore as I could for a while. I could feel myself already starting to break. Even the bullet casings on the floor were getting me worked up.I sucked in a breath and left my room. I could see Kezia in the kitchen from the hall balcony. Amy was sitting at the counter, eating a grilled cheese sandwich. Kezia was talking animatedly, and Amy was giggling. At least someone around here was feeling happy.I walked down the stairs. Kez