Fatal Sight (Harbingers Of Death Book 2) by LeAnn Mason (book club reads .TXT) 📕

but said, “Fine. I’ll withhold playtime ‘til we’re done. How ‘bout you, sugar? You won’t get distracted by any handsome men, will ya?”

So, Ember wasn’t the only one who’d noticed the tension between Aria and Seke.

Aria blushed and avoided looking at the captain. “Of course not.” She tossed her long silver strands, now tipped in teal dye. “You forget, I’m used to working alone.”

“Yeah, and screaming your head off. You sure she’s ready, Cap?” Raven asked blithely.

Seke considered the question seriously, lips tipping down. “I believe so. We are still working on her vision control, but Aria has gotten much better at recognizing when a scream is impending and how to interpret that power and use it to the advantage of the team.”

“Oh, yeah. I bet she’s real good at keeping her screams quiet when she needs to so no one hears.”

Ember bit her lip to keep from laughing at Raven’s muttered comment.

“What was that, Brenna?” Seke asked.

Raven lifted her voice above the former breathy mumble. “Nothing, Cap.”

“Mmhm.” Seke didn’t buy that, but Ember suspected that from across the massive table, her bird friend’s snarky comment had not been completely audible. “We will control as much as we can to cater to everyone’s strengths. Since our targets are female, Ember, Raven, Jessica, and Aria, we will process you as inmates. You may decide how familiar you are with each other in your criminal personas, but I recommend staying close to each other.”

“Yesss. Girl gang.” Raven high-fived Ember with a devious grin.

Jessica rubbed her palms together, flashing full-on shark teeth. “Time to bring back the Kill Queens.”

“Whatever you need to do to keep close,” Seke reiterated. “Especially Aria. Cole, you will reprise your role as corrections officer. In order to keep watch, I will be on scene this time, standing in the role of prison warden. Understood?”

Various sounds and motions of assent came in reply.

“I’d like you all to do your best on this mission. We want clean crossovers; keep an eye out for each other. Agreed?”

A chill tripped up Ember’s spine, and considering that she always ran a bit hotter than anyone else, the sensation hooked her attention.

Fear arose regularly before each mission — she didn’t allow herself to note such weakness in the heat of the moment. She might be able to respawn. However, dying wasn’t the most pleasurable experience, and her teammates couldn’t come back. Even if they could, they had a job to do.

When no one answered, Seke repeated himself. “Agreed? You all recall what I said when Aria first joined us? If you cannot look out for each other, then you may leave.”

“Agreed,” the team chorused.

“Very well. That is all for tonight. You are dismissed. Everyone should get a good night’s sleep.”

Everyone moved to stand, shuffling their way out of the room, discussing the next day.

“Jessica?” Seke called, and the siren turned at the door. The captain crooked a finger. “A word, please?”

Raven slapped Jessica on the ass as she detoured around the frozen female to vacate the room. “Now you’ve done it. You’re going to have to wear a chastity belt until you can be trusted to deny your lascivious urges.”

Cole chuckled as he left the room, patting the siren on the shoulder in a brotherly, reassuring gesture.

Jessica rolled her eyes but approached their captain.

Ember noticed Aria lingering by their leader, too. While surreptitiously passing behind his chair on her way to the door, the redhead overheard him tell their new member in a deep voice, “I will come find you shortly to see if you have any last questions before tomorrow. I have confidence in you.”

Ember linked an arm through Aria’s, pulling her away from Seke. “You’ll be fine, kid,” the phoenix promised. “You’ll be with us.”

“And don’t think we’ll let you forget it,” Raven yelled from halfway up the stairs. “I call top bunk this time.”

“Maybe we should switch things up. Ember and I can be cellmates instead,” Aria suggested hopefully.

Ember laughed, pulling her arm out of Aria’s. “You sure you want that? I snore.”

She dashed up the stairs, taking them two at a time. Raven picked up on the race and increased her speed, feet stomping as fast as Ember’s. The sound was like a herd of elephants thundering up the wooden staircase. They nearly plowed over Cole outside his bedroom when they reached the unspoken finish-line at the next floor landing.

“Woo! I am the champion, my friends,” Raven sang, lifting her fists in the air in triumph.

“Play nice, girls. I don’t want to have to pull you off each other as well as any other inmates.”

Raven snorted, turning to Cole. “Yes, you do. You love getting to break up fights.”

“Only if there’s a betting pool. Chicken fights are no fun unless I can win off them,” he retorted haughtily and disappeared into his abode.

Raven made to follow him, but he was quick to slam the door in her face. No one had seen inside his room — ever. “Watch who you’re calling a chicken, dog.” Raven pounded a few times on the door for emphasis before catching up with Ember. “Think the new girl is going to fuck up?”

“Without a doubt,” Ember replied after glancing over her shoulder to ensure the banshee hadn’t caught up. “Remember how many times you did when you first joined?”

While she hadn’t been a part of the Harbingers of Death in the origination like Seke, Ember had been around long enough to observe its evolution into the current team-based system. She’d been present to witness each of the new additions to the HDPU. Their break-in periods all including uncertainty… and, more often than not, disaster.

Raven grumbled in annoyance as she veered off toward the aviary, usually preferring to sleep in bird form. “Well then, I hope you’re up for another resurrection.”

“Just don’t forget the ice cream.” Ember chortled despite the nauseous feeling in her gut that accompanied thinking about her deaths.

They were not equally unpleasant; a few stood out in her memories as particularly nightmare-inducing. She