Their Thief: Redemption

Chapter 4 (Part 1)

I forcefully blanked my face like I had been practicing to match the unreadable expression that Alec wore. I was once again struck in fear at how calm the depths of his eyes were, even as he faced me in this situation. His fingernails lightly clicked against the side of his crystal cup that sat on the table. The amber liquid inside rippled.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting," Drew apologized as he stepped forward and seized hold of my arm again. The strength of his grip once again had me grinding my teeth in distraction, but my eyes never left the biggest threat in the room.

His were the ones that broke contact.

Alec's blue eyes left mine to lazily drifted down my neck and arm to where they hand-held me. Drew stiffened against me at the attention. He hesitated, seeming to think over his next step before a cough from behind prompted him to push me towards the table before releasing me to retreat.

"Ah, if it isn't our elusive thief!"

I flinched at the sound of Tyrone's voice as I caught myself on the edge of the table. It had been years since I had last heard it. I had hoped I never would again, but once again life proved it wasn't done fucking with me yet. I took a step back, my arms raised to hug myself.

I hadn't noticed Tyrone seated next to Alec until he spoke. While Alec was dressed in a fitted black suit, Tyrone was wearing casual clothing covered in labels. His arm was thrown over the back of the booth seat, not daring to get too close to the dark-haired devil that would burn him far worse than the whiskey they drank. The two were the only ones seated. Two more men who were visibly armed with rifles stood guard on either side of the booth. It was easy to tell who the men stood for from their clothing.

"She was a tough one to find," Tyrone continued, pointing the cigar he held towards me. His lips spread into a grin. "But I told you I would find you the perfect bitch who fit the bill, now here she is. She came to mind the moment you described what you wanted. Be warned though, she may bite... but that shouldn't be an issue, right?" He joked with a playful punch to Alec's shoulder that he was quick to pull back, "I heard you liked them feisty."

His laugh tapered off when Alec didn't respond with one of his own.

He lifted his glass to his lips, his eyes still on me, or more specifically my arm, and took another sip. "What do you mean?"

Tyrone's eyes widened. "Ah, well..." He pulled his arm back to scratch the back of his neck nervously. His eyes flicked off to the side. "I heard your last girl managed to get in a good hit or two."

"And where did you hear that?"

The man in the fitted white button-up that stood on Alec's side readjusted his grip on his gun as he shifted on his feet. He was the one Tyrone had flicked his gaze towards.

Alec took another sip.

"We got carr-"

The sharp sound of his cup meeting the table cut him off the man holding the gun. Alec's eyes left my body for the first time since I had entered the room to cut towards the seemingly guilty man. Words were exchanged in the single glance that had the man nodding and straightening into position again.

"Now, where were we?" He asked, turning back to Tyrone who had grown silent as he watched the exchange.

"Oh, ah, right," he let out another nervous chuckle. "I was presenting you with a gift. One that I hope will help sway you to continue doing business with us."

Alec's fingers once again clicked against his glass as his eyes returned to mine. They didn't leave mine as he took another sip and set it back down, the sound echoing in the room despite the sound of soft music playing from the speakers hidden in the corners.