The Dealers

Chapter 32 - Noah

I thought Lena would never relax enough to fall asleep as she leaned against my chest. I wanted to move her from the couch to her bed but didn't want to risk waking her up. The sun would be rising soon and she had just drifted off. I wanted so desperately to remove the fears from her mind as she struggled to stay awake out of fear for the dreams she'd have.

Sliding out from beneath her and laying her to rest gently on the couch, I began to pace back and forth protectively.  I pulled a thick fleece blanket over her. I hadn't slept in days but, there was no way I was going to let my guard down.

Azrael was after Lena and no matter what I did, I was afraid that I couldn't completely keep her safe. If he wanted to hurt her, I couldn't stop him and that angered me the most.

I wanted to know everything, every single detail. As much as it burned my skin to hear about Azrael being at the club with Lena, I wanted to know every word he said to her, every thing he did.

But, Lena was exhausted and I thought she would never fall asleep. Once her breathing seemed to slow and her heart rate lowered, she kept jolting herself awake in a fit of terror. I wasn't going to bother her.

Instead, I used the silence to plan. I had to be smarter and more strategic than Azrael if I wanted to be one step ahead of him. He was seemingly immortal but there had to be someway to kill him or at least to wound him.

Staring down at Lena as she seemed peacefully asleep, I knew that things were just getting started. We had a long, hard road ahead of us and I hoped that she would be able to stick by me through it all.

I was willing to face Azrael because Lena was worth fighting for. If she decided that one day, she couldn't take it anymore, I would have to let her go.

Pulling myself from the living room, I walked outside to get some air. While still on alert, I didn't want to wake Lena up with my pacing. As I tiptoed over the creaky porch, I felt the phone vibrate in my pocket.

It was Eli.

We have a job. Call me.

Fuck.

It was the worst time for me to leave Lena and until Azrael deemed otherwise, I was still on duty with my brothers. Then again, Azrael was probably trying to get me away from Lena in the first place. It made sense and ultimately, he was the one that decided where I went and when.

Clicking on Eli's contact in my phone, I raised the phone to my ear. He picked up on the first ring.

"I thought you'd be busy." He laughed.

"Can you do it without me like Andover?" I asked him, ignoring his jab.

"No can do baby brother," Eli sighed and I could tell that he'd been drinking, "for payment, the three of us are to complete the assignment."

Fucking Azrael.

"What am I supposed to do with Lena?" I asked him. "She has shit to do and I can't keep an eye on her from wherever the hell it is we have to go."

"—New Hampshire." He added.

"Fucking hell." I spat.

"Let her go about her day and come get this done." Eli told me but, it wasn't that simple. "New Hampshire is better than Europe, okay? You'll be back by dinner."

I would be gone way too long to leave Lena unprotected. I didn't have the option of declining the job, so not going wasn't possible. The only person that popped into my head was Jacob.

Shit.

As much as I wasn't a fan of his, he would keep an eye on her if I asked him to. If anyone came second to who cares about Lena the most after myself, it was Jacob.