Lover Reborn (Black Dagger Brotherhood #10) - J. R. Ward Page 0,139

on behalf of his son—even though they were estranged. “He’s a fuck of a lot more than just acquainted. So you can blow that speculation out your ass—and while you’re at it, stay away from her.”

“She was the one who came to me.”

Greeeeeeeeeeeeeeat. That went over like a lead balloon—

Before shit got out of hand, Wrath held up his palm. “I don’t give a fuck what you do with humans—provided you clean up any messes. But if you get tagged, you’re on your own.”

“What about our species interfering with my commerce.”

Wrath smiled a little, his cruel face showing absolutely no humor. “Having trouble defending your territory already? Guess what. You can’t have what you can’t keep.”

Assail inclined his head. “Fair enough—”

The shattering of glass sounded out behind them all, cutting through everything, crushing time down to a crawl: gunfire.

With a mighty lunge, Tohr went airborne, his massive body flying over the Spanish tile, his target: Wrath.

As a rat-tat-tat-tat-tat spray of bullets hit the back of the house, he tackled the king to the floor, covering his brother with as much of his body as possible. Everyone else, including Assail, likewise hit the ground and shuffled for cover against various walls.

“My lord, are you hit?” Tohr hissed in Wrath’s ear as he hit send on the text alarm.

“Maybe the neck,” came a groaned response.

“Lie still.”

“You’re all over me. Exactly where do you think I’m going.”

Tohr twisted his head around to eyeball where everybody was. V was all about Assail, his hand locked on the guy’s throat, his weapon tight on their host’s temple. And Qhuinn and John were back-flatted on either side of where they’d come in, covering the outside as well as the entryway into the kitchen.

The cold breeze coming through the broken windowpane in the door did not provide any particular scent, and that proved who it was: Slayers would have stunk up the place given that both the prevailing wind and the shot came from the north.

It was Xcor and his Band of Bastards.

But come on, like they didn’t know that already. That single shot had to have come from a rifle, and had to have been aimed at Wrath through those fucking panes in the door—and it had been a long while since the Lessening Society had shown any finesse in their attacks.

“You were supposed to keep this meeting private, vampire,” V said in a deadly tone.

“No one knows you’re here.”

“Then I’ll assume you ordered an assassination all by your lonesome.”

He was going to shoot the motherfucker, Tohr thought without caring. Right here, right now.

Assail kept it cool, squaring off at the Brother so that the gun muzzle was now pointed at the center of his forehead. “Fuck you—that’s why I wanted to do this out in the living room. That’s bulletproof glass out there, asshole. And P.S., I’m hit, you fool.”

The male lifted his arm and showed off his dripping right hand, the one that had been holding the cigar.

“So maybe your friends have bad aim.”

“That was not bad aim. I’m a target, too—”

More bullets sprayed the back of the house, finding their way in through the cutout in the door. Fucking hell, thermal pane was good against the New York winters, but it didn’t do shit to stop Remington’s best.

“How you doing?” Tohr whispered in Wrath’s ear as he checked his phone for a response from his other brothers.

“Fine. You?” Except the king coughed … and, man, there was a rattle in his lungs.

He was bleeding somewhere along his respiratory tract—

Moving fast as a gasp, Assail slipped out of V’s hold, and streaked across the back of the mudroom, heading for a door that had to let out into the garage. “Don’t shoot! I’ve got a car you can take him in! And I’m killing all the lights in the house.”

As everything went dark, Vishous dematerialized on top of the guy, taking him down and grinding his face into the tile. “I’m going to kill you now—”

“No,” Wrath ordered. “Not until we know what’s going on.”

In the shadows, V grit his teeth and glared at the king. But at least he didn’t hit the trigger. Instead, he put his mouth to their host’s ear and growled, “You better think twice before you go for any exits again.”

“Then do it yourself.” This came out as, “Vhen do ith y’selth.”

Vishous glanced over at Tohr, the pair of them locking eyes. When Tohr gave a subtle nod, the other brother cursed … then reached up and popped open