Page 27 of Alluring Darkness
“Cute,” Rico says with a snort. Then he jerks his chin towards the door behind instead. “In the back.”
I scowl back at him in annoyance for a second, but then roll my eyes and release the handle. Kaden is standing next to the now open door to the backseat, twirling a knife in his hand.
Even though he isn’t even looking at the blade, he doesn’t miss a single spin as he raises his other hand and motions towards the open door. “After you.”
Not bothering to say anything, I just stalk past him and slide into the car. Before I can even sit down properly, the other door is yanked open and Jace flops into the seat next to me.
From the passenger’s seat ahead, Rico turns around and frowns at him. “Where did you get the bat?”
Jace slams the door shut behind him and leans back in his seat. He’s holding a baseball bat in his right hand, resting it against his shoulder. “It was just lying there on the field, so I picked it up.”
Rico chuckles and shakes his head while turning back to face the windshield. “Of course you did, Golden.”
Sitting up straight, Jace levels the bat at Rico and uses it to threateningly tap the side of his seat. “Stop calling me that.”
“If that bat leaves so much as a single smudge on my seats, I’ll beat your ass to kingdom come,” Eli warns, locking eyes with Jace in the rearview mirror.
On my right, Kaden snickers as he gets in and pulls the door shut. “Did he bring his dirty toys into the car again?”
“Oh the irony of you trying to give me shit about dirty toys,” Jace retorts, and cuts him a pointed look.
Based on the sly smile that curls Kaden’s mouth, I’m pretty sure they’re not talking about frisbees and footballs.
“If you’re done bickering,” Eli interrupts. “Put your fucking seatbelts on.”
Surprise flickers through me.
“That means you too, princess,” Eli says, meeting my gaze in the mirror.
After four clicks have sounded, he nods and pulls out of the parking lot. I watch the fields flow past the window as he drives us away from Blackwater and towards the nearest city. The late afternoon sun casts orange and golden streaks across the land.
Tearing my gaze from the view, I shift my attention back to the people around me. Both Kaden and Jace are sitting with their legs spread wide in that typical arrogant male way, leaving me having to press my knees together. Jace is absentmindedly drumming his fingers on the bat’s handle while he stares out the window. On my right, Kaden does the same, except he is twirling a knife in his hand instead.
My gaze drops down to the other blades peeking out of his thigh holster. Shifting my weight discreetly, I move my hand towards it. Then I pause for a few seconds. Once I’m sure that none of them are looking at me, I gently slide one of the knives from its sheath.
A hand shoots down and locks around my wrist. I suck in a startled hiss.
The others turn to look at me while Kaden raises my trapped hand. Golden sunlight gleams against the blade I’m still holding.
“I was wondering if you’d try that again,” Kaden says, flashing me a sharp smile.
I try to yank my hand out of his grip. But when it doesn’t work, I just let a nonchalant expression settle on my features instead. “You were expecting it?”
“Fool me once…”
Eli is keeping his attention on the road, but he steals a glance at me in the mirror. The rest of his brothers are watching me with eyes full of anticipation, as if they can’t wait to see how this plays out.
“How did you do it?” Kaden demands. “The first time. How did you manage to steal it without me noticing?”
Because I’m a chemist. I have incredibly steady hands and gentle fingers from spending the past decade handling dangerous chemicals. But I want to keep that information to myself for now, so I decide on a different answer.
Holding his hard stare, I reply, “Because maybe I’m not quite as worthless as everyone here seems to think.”
From the rearview mirror, I can feel Eli’s gaze burning holes in the side of my head. But I keep my eyes on Kaden.
“I will only say this once,” he begins, slowly, enunciating every word clearly. “No one touches my blades.”
With his hand still locked around my wrist, he forces my arm back, moving the knife in my palm closer to my own throat. I try to stop him. It doesn’t work. I even wrap my other hand around his wrist, using that to try to halt his movements as well. But it’s like fighting the tide. And I can’t just drop the blade because it will land right in my lap if I do.