Into the Lair - Falcon Mercenary Group #2 - Maya Banks Page 0,3

standing here like a nimrod entertaining himself with her hairdo.

Grumbling to himself about psycho females, he gathered her limp body in his arms and hauled her out of the SUV. Braden walked ahead and opened the door to her apartment. They hadn’t wanted to risk getting a hotel room, and her apartment was unassuming.

Katie was an enigma. Cautious. Extremely so. Spooky as a bat, and she kept a very low profile. Looking around her apartment earlier, he’d discovered that she lived a very barebones existence. Odd for a woman. Did she know she was a target? Had Gabe warned her?

He shouldered his way into her small living room and gently laid her on the couch. Then he stepped away as Braden leaned in to check her pulse and peel back her eyelids.

“She’s going to have one hell of a bruise on her forehead,” Braden said as he straightened.

“She damn near broke my nose. You’ll forgive me if I’m not terribly sympathetic,” Ian said darkly.

“At least you aren’t walking funny and singing soprano,” Braden grumbled.

Ian grimaced and felt a sympathy twinge in the region of his groin. He’d seen how hard she’d kicked Braden in the balls. He’d be lucky if he ever fathered children after that.

“So what now?” Braden asked as he slumped down in one of armchairs.

Ian lowered himself into a chair as well and eyed his brother. “We get some damn sleep, and tomorrow we get the hell out of the country.”

“You call Eli yet?”

Ian frowned. “And when would I have had time to do that when we’ve been chasing the hellcat down all day?”

“And where are we taking her exactly?”

“You’re full of questions today, little brother.”

Braden grinned. “Am I annoying you?”

Ian scowled.

“Then my duty is done.”

“For someone who just got their balls relocated you sure are a cheerful son of a bitch.”

Braden shrugged. “Maybe I’m looking forward to being done with this. Makes me edgy being back in the good ole U.S. of A. I somehow doubt Uncle Sam will roll out the welcome mat, you know?”

Ian’s lips tightened. “Yeah, well fuck ’em. We’ll be out of here tomorrow.”

“Going where?” Braden asked again.

Ian sighed. “Eli’s supposed to be working on it. Evidently Falcon has a few safe houses across Europe. I liked Argentina, but that’s fucked now that Esteban knows where it is.”

“Isn’t the point of this exercise to lure Esteban?” Braden asked.

Ian nodded. “Yeah, but he’s not supposed to know he’s being lured. Going to Argentina would be tipping our hand, not to mention making us look like complete nimrods.”

Braden grew quiet for a moment. “Tell me something, Ian. Do you think this whole merger with Falcon is a good idea? I mean I know why Eli is there. Tyana’s fingers are wrapped tight around his nuts, and he’s content to be led around like a lapdog.”

Ian’s gaze narrowed. This was the first time he’d heard Braden express doubts about joining ranks with Falcon Mercenary Group. Their former team leader, Eli Chance, had fallen head over ass for Tyana Berezovsky, a member of Falcon, and with the way their hostage recovery team had gone to shit when they all turned into a bunch of unstable shifters, it made sense to team up with the merc group.

Eli wasn’t unstable, though. Resentment bubbled up before Ian could control it. He and Braden hadn’t been as lucky as Eli and Gabe. While the two other men had full control over their newfound abilities, Ian and Braden struggled with their instability on a daily basis.

Braden was watching him closely, and Ian tried to school his features. “Are you having doubts?” he asked Braden.

Braden looked thoughtful for a long moment. “Honestly? I don’t know. Too much has changed in too short a time. I don’t think Falcon will fuck us, if that’s what you’re asking. I just wonder how we fit into the picture. I don’t like the idea of being some fucking charity case and having their doctor shoved at us at regular intervals.”

“Yeah, I hear you,” Ian muttered.

“Are we going to end up like Damiano?” Braden asked softly.

Ian swore under his breath. Damiano was a member of Falcon, and like Ian and Braden, a victim of the chemical agent that had changed them all into shifters. He was even more unstable than Ian and Braden, and if D’s future was their own, it wasn’t pretty.

Damn Esteban Morales. Damn him to hell. Ian glanced over at Katie again, and his resolve hardened. If she was their key to nailing Esteban’s