Crimson Warrior (Onyx Assassins 3)

I just had to survive my parents first.

Pretend to be Ransom’s mate second.

And third, I had to hope like hell the Hunters would be coherent enough to actually turn the tide for us. Because being in stasis for as long as they had meant there were no guarantees what we’d be met with when they awoke.

“You’ll do amazing,” Avi said, as if reading my mind.

I squeezed her one last time and opened her door. “Please,” I said again. “Don’t do anything rash while I’m gone.”

She laughed again. “I won’t,” she said. “Unless you call playing my music as loud as possible to annoy Hawke rash,” she teased.

“That is rash,” I said, rolling my eyes. “But if I remember right, he particularly hates boy bands.”

“Good thought,” she said, her eyes practically glowing.

I shut the door behind me, the sounds of her and Valor’s laughter echoing through the wood. My heart already weighed down by the separation from my friend, my charge, for the first time in a century.

3

Ransom

Olivia and I were the only ones awake in the first-class cabin as we flew over the Atlantic. It seemed like a good time to give Timothy and Charlotte—our Talems—some well-needed time off, so it was just us on this trip. We’d shut the door to our little nook and reclined our seats into makeshift beds, but I could still hear the slow, steady heartbeats of the other passengers above the hum of the engines. Good thing I’d learned to control my cravings hundreds of years ago, otherwise being trapped in a tin can for a dozen hours with five hundred humans would have been torturous. Oddly enough, Olivia’s heartbeat had bordered on racing since we’d left the estate hours ago.

“You have to calm down,” I said without looking up from the Airmall magazine.

“I’m perfectly calm,” she countered, shifting her position and drumming her fingers on her blanket-clad thigh.

“Right.” I glanced at her fingers, and she immediately stilled.

“What are you reading, anyway?” She rolled my direction and propped her head up on a hand as she looked up at me.

Damn, her lashes were long, and while I seemed to be having little to no difficulty controlling my thirst when it came to the humans on this plane, my thirst for her was a completely different subject. Her scent had been wrapped around me for hours, slowly driving me up a wall, and we still had hours of travel to go.

Look away. She’s a friend—a colleague—for fuck’s sake.

“I’m shopping,” I answered, leaning her way so she could see the catalog. “Did you know there’s a watch that supposedly counts down to when you’re going to die?” I shook my head. It was one of the more ridiculous yet entertaining items for sale.

“That’s ludicrous. Give me that.” She snatched the catalog out of my hand and sat up.

Her hair was piled on top of her head, leaving the long line of her neck bare, and I forced my attention back to the magazine. These next two weeks were going to be impossible if I didn’t get my shit together.

“It uses statistics and your personal health algorithm to estimate your death?” She snorted. “I’d love to see what it would say about us.”

“It would need another digit for the years,” I joked. “That double-digit nonsense is for mortals.”

“Oh, but look!” She gave me a look of mock shock. “It tells time, too!”

“Will wonders never cease. Flip back a page, there’s a box that gives you compliments every time you open it.”

“What?” She turned back. “Oh my God. I’m getting this for you. Can you record the affirmations?” Her lashes batted as she looked over at me. “Ransom, you’re the best fighter. Ransom, you make all the females swoon when you walk by.”

I scoffed and reached for the magazine, but she rolled, hiding it underneath her as she laughed.

“Ransom, your firewall is unhackable!” She managed to get out between laughs.

“Now that one is true!” I was damn proud of the tech I’d installed at the estate. Being the master of combat for the king of our species meant having to adapt with the changing times, and cyberattacks were just as much of a threat as the physical ones we were facing from the Sons of Honor—the humans who were hell-bent on seeing supernatural species eliminated.

“Oh, Ransom, you handled both those females with—”

I dove quickly and wrestled the magazine out of her hands, leaving her sputtering with more laughter. “At least you’re not staring out the window like we’re headed to our doom, anymore,” I muttered, shoving the catalog back into the storage compartment at my side.

She froze, and I immediately regretted the comment.

“Livvy, what is it that has you so worried?” I raised the armrest between us and slid down so I laid beside her. “We found a flight that lands while it’s still dark. Our chances for exposure are minimal. Our passports are impeccable.” Alek had tried to force his private jet on us, but there was no chance I’d leave the royal family without an immediate means of escape if they needed it while we were gone. Had it been a pain in the ass to find a non-stop flight that boarded at night and arrived before dawn? Yes. But it had been worth it.