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Maybe another ould work better

Things certainly couldn’t get worse

"My Lord," the butler started with condescension

"Shut up" He glared over at the doggen as he strode for the door "I’m armed and I no to shoot--and you cannot outrun a bullet, I promise you"

As his father’s servant started to sputter like an old car engine, Peyton let hiht tonight, he thought If only so I don’t co to kill someone

As Novo materialized on the rooftop of a walk-up on Sixteenth and Trade, she had a gun on her right hip, one at the sers on the front of her chest, and a length of chain inside her leather jacket Her feet were locked in a set of shitkickers, and her leathers were tight across her thighs and calves A set of tinted goggles were strapped on her face and their purpose ofold: keep the cold wind out of her eyes to prevent tearing, and also dihts, which could blind as they flashed across white snow or juust ca across the urban landscape of walk-up apartistered the chill, but that wouldn’t last Soon as she got --and on that note, where the fuck was everyone else? Allowing her instincts to roam, she prayed for movement, the scent of baby powder…hell, even a huh all that was pre until the Brothers and the other trainees arrived

When a hand tapped her on the shoulder, she wheeled around--and outed one of her knives--

"John Matthew" She lowered the weapon "Jesus I didn’t hear you"

The e, and she frowned as she deciphered the words Good thing he was cutting a rookie so slowly, letter by letter

"I know I need to checkshe rarely did But John Mattheas not just an expert in all kinds of fighting; he was also one of the few ht from the onset There was just a quality about hiht in the eye and yet didn’t threaten you To her, this equated to safety, soain, and she nodded "Yes, I’d like to be paired with you tonight--wait…can you do that again? Oh…yeah, right, got it Yes, I have extra clips, four of them" She patted the front of the jacket "Here and here" She nodded again "And a chain What? Well, I think of it as the only kind of bracelet a fe his fangs And as he put out his fist, she pounded it

One by one, the othersshowing up first, followed by Phury and Zsadist, and then Vishous, Rhage, and Payne

"Where’s the golden boy?" the Brother Vishous de us with his daht?"

To make it look like she didn’t care one way or the other, Novo re-ran the same check of weapons and supplies she had just done for John Matthew--

The blast of heat that went through her body told her down to the split second when Peyton appeared from out of thin air

But it was just aardness, she told herself Just garden-variety aardness, based on hostility and resentment with maybe the smallest dash of embarrassed thrown in--because, hello, she had allowed herself to be vulnerable last night

Even if Peyton didn’t know it, she sure as shit did

In retrospect, she shouldn’t have used him like that Not because it had hurt hiive a shit; she knew that from the way he behaved with those bimbos at the clubs No, it had been bad for her, ultimately