By the time Kyllian returned downstairs, Quinn had lunch ready.Salad with grilled chicken for her dad, and sandwiches for her and her new bodyguard.“I hope grilled chicken’s okay,” she said.“We try to eat healthy.”
“I’m not picky,” Kyllian responded, taking the seat next to Trenton.Quinn did her best to ignore the way his T-shirt stretched over his muscles.She also tried to ignore all the ink coloring his arms and neck.Bad boys were her kryptonite, and Kyllian Lazlo fit the image perfectly.She handed him a beer and grabbed water for her dad and herself.
Kyllian ate with gusto, only stopping when he’d finished his first sandwich.After chugging half his beer, he wiped his mouth with the napkin Quinn had provided.“So, you and Sutton go back a ways?”he asked Trenton.
“We do.”Trenton set his fork aside, having only eaten half his salad.“Your dad is one of the best men I know.He had my back more than once in the trenches.When we both left the military, I tried to convince him to start a security company with me, but he had other ideas of how to protect civilians.”
“He became a cop.”
“Yes, and it was during his time on the force he was introduced to cults.It didn’t take long for him to shift his focus.When he left the force and began searching, he didn’t have a name to go with the largest cult in the States.Sutton and your mom came across a young man who had escaped from what we now know was a conversion camp.Disbanding that group led to the two of them seeking out others like it, and that led them to The Ministry.Knowing the good he was doing.I couldn’t resent him not working with me.”
“Where does all this come in with you meeting Quinn’s mom?”
Trenton smiled, but it was weak.“I met Finola on my last leave before I retired from the army.I had already put in my discharge papers, so she and I were separated for a month.My family and I didn’t see eye to eye on most things.They came from old money.My father and his before him were high-powered attorneys.I was expected to follow in their footsteps.When I announced I was joining the army, it didn’t go well.If it weren’t for my grandmother on my mother’s side, I’d have come home with a small savings account.My gran set up a trust fund for me, one my parents couldn’t touch.Anyway, when I walked off base for the last time, I began seeing Finola.”
Trenton took a sip of water, clearing his throat.“As soon as I met her, I recognized the shifter inside, but I had no idea her pack was different than most.She admitted the truth when she told me she was pregnant.Since I grew up with the females in my family being wolves, I didn’t understand why I was never allowed to see where Finola lived.”Trenton got a far-off look in his eyes, and Quinn figured he was thinking about her mother.
“I told Kyllian the rest of it.”Quinn didn’t want her dad to focus on Finola’s death.“Well, everything except you starting the company.”
Trenton leaned back in his chair.“With the threat of the pack, I decided to start a mercenary business instead of private security.I would still be protecting civilians from the worst of society, but I would also have men at my disposal to help watch after Quinn if the need arose.”
“Makes sense.Like I told Quinn earlier, I’ll reach out to the president of the Savage Sons and see if these bikers have made contact.”
“What would that matter?”Trenton asked.
“It’s courtesy to inform the locals why you’re in their territory.Some clubs are made up of cops and firemen.Local church groups banding together to do good for the community.Others, like the Sons, aren’t as altruistic.If rogue bikers are hanging around without stating their intentions, it would be seen as encroachment.Either the newcomers are looking to join, or they’re scoping out the area.Looking for chinks in the armor, so to speak.”
“Or,” Trenton said, “they’re looking for a way to hang around without causing suspicion.”
“Or that.Either way, I’ll find out.”
“And then what?”Quinn asked.The sooner the threat was dealt with, the sooner she could get Kyllian Lazlo out of her home.He could go back to being an employee and nothing more.