Daddies’ Little Assassin (Femme Fatale Freakshow)

5. The Daddies

Chapter five

The Daddies

I stared down the street as the cab carrying Sapphire sped off into the night. My heart pounded, a mix of panic and frustration swirling in my chest. I couldn't believe I'd lost her—my first mark for the Guild, and now she was slipping right through my fingers.

"Darn it," I muttered under my breath, clenching my fists at my sides.

Behind me, the door to the club burst open with a thud, and I turned to see the three men from inside barreling out after me. Their eyes scanned the street until they landed on me, standing helplessly on the curb.

"Do you need to go somewhere, Little one?" the blonde one asked, his deep voice cutting through the chaos in my mind. He stepped forward, his intense blue eyes locked on mine, while the other two flanked him, each watching me with equal curiosity.

I blinked, my thoughts racing. I had no time to deal with this, but they were the only chance I had right now. Stuck between a rock and a hard place, I did the only thing that made sense at the moment. "I need to chase that cab."

The blonde guy raised an eyebrow, but without missing a beat, he pulled out a sleek key fob from his pocket. With a press of a button, a fancy black car parked a few feet away beeped open. The lights flashed, and I nearly screamed in relief.

"Thank you, thank you, thank you!" I exclaimed, not questioning what was happening. My brain was too scrambled to process the details right now. I rushed past them and jumped into the back passenger seat, my heart racing.

The three men exchanged amused glances before piling in after me. The blonde guy slid into the driver's seat, while the one with the intense gaze sat next to me, his shoulder brushing mine. The third, with the tattooed arms, settled in on the other side.

As the engine roared to life, I cast a quick glance at the men, realizing I didn't even know their names... well I suppose they did try to exchange names before I ran off. This whole situation was insane, but then again, my life had been a series of strange events lately.

"I'm Karel," the blonde guy said, throwing me a sideways grin in the rearview mirror as he slammed his foot on the gas pedal. "And these are my friends, Lang and Henry."

I nodded, trying to focus on the road ahead. The car weaved through traffic with impressive ease, Karel having no trouble keeping up with the cab in front of us. I stole a glance at the other two. Lang, the one with the dark hair and a brooding look, had his eyes fixed on me, his expression unreadable. Henry, the one with the tattoos, leaned back casually, his gaze softer but no less intense.

"I'm Thora," I finally said, my voice light and a lilt of excitement running through it.

"Thora," Henry repeated, his tone almost like he was savouring the sound of it. "A pretty name, for a pretty girl."

I glanced at him, offering a small, pleasant smile, but I was still feeling a bit cagey. They might be helping me out, but that didn't mean I could just trust them with all the details. They seemed nice enough, but I couldn't just go spilling my life story to a trio of random strangers who'd appeared out of nowhere.

"So..." Lang spoke for the first time. "You're chasing someone." His voice was smooth and deep, his gaze flickering toward me. "Who are we chasing down? Hopefully not a boyfriend?"

I hesitated, chewing on my bottom lip. Should I tell them? Could I trust them? My gut said yes, but my brain was screaming at me to keep my mouth shut. Before I could answer, a warm hand settled on my thigh.

I froze, my gaze snapping to Lang's face.

"I understand why you'd want to keep your secrets close, but I'll be honest with you, Little one. I'm pretty convinced you're our mate," Lang said calmly, his dark eyes holding mine with an intensity that sent shivers down my spine. "All of us feel it. So whatever your problem is, we want to help."

My heart skipped a beat, and my mouth suddenly dry. Mates? Is that what this feeling was? This moment of connection between us that I couldn't describe? I'd heard about mate bonds before, but as an orphan, I didn't have any first-hand experience or parents to ask about it. It was rare, I knew that. Almost unheard of outside of certain paranormal circles. But something deep inside me stirred at his words, a sense of recognition blooming in my chest.

As crazy as it sounded, I felt it too.

Maybe that's why I blurted out the truth before I could stop myself.

"I was cursed," I said, the words tumbling out faster than I'd meant them to. "My bloodline was cursed a long time ago, and as a result, I was doomed to be unlucky in love, But apparently because I'm a bunny shifter, that came along with a thing they called the Lucky Foot. It's what made me such a successful assassin." I paused at this, looking up through my lashes, trying to gauge their reactions to my revelation.

None of them looked like they wanted to throw me out of the car so I figured it was safe to carry on.

"I found a way to break the curse, but what I didn't know until about ten minutes ago, was that at the same time... I lost my Lucky Foot and apparently gained a very clumsy one. Now I've been stumbling around instead of catching my prey like I'm supposed to."

The car was silent for a beat; the men listening carefully. Henry's hand reached out for my other thigh, squeezing ever so gently, a silent offer of comfort.

"So... I'm chasing down Sapphire because I need to kill her. She's a succubus that has been draining escorts to death. And I think she left with another victim."

Karel whistled low under his breath, while Henry's grip on my leg didn't falter. Lang remained quiet, his eyes thoughtful as he processed everything I'd said.

"We'll help you," Karel said, his voice resolute.

I blinked, startled by how easily they had accepted everything I had to tell them. "You will?"

"Of course, Little one," Henry replied, his hand sliding down my thigh to gently squeeze my hand. "You're ours now. We take care of our own."

I stared at him, my heart pounding. My life had taken so many turns in the last few days that my head was spinning. But sitting here with them, hearing those words, something clicked into place. I wasn't sure how, but I felt a strange sense of belonging with these three men. Like I'd found something I didn't even know I was missing.

"Thank you," I whispered, my voice thick with emotion. But there was no time to dwell on it. Up ahead, Sapphire's cab turned sharply, and Karel followed, the car growling as it sped up.

It was time to finish it.

"This is probably where we tell you what we are, Little Bunny," Lang said, his head turned to me, lowered so he was almost whispering in my ear. "Karel over there is our friendly Kraken shifter. Don't let the species fool you. He's normally friendly and loves to cuddle. His shifted form won't be much use to us during a battle if it comes down to it, but he's still quite handy with the blades he carries with him."

Karel grinned at me from his position behind the wheel, flashing me the barest hint of fang, and it sent a jolt down my spine.

"Henry, the silent grump, is a fallen angel. He has a whole host of powers and shit up his sleeves."

I couldn't help the snort that escaped at Lang's unintentional pun. The Asian hotty smirked at me, before continuing on with his explanation.

"I am a vampire-shifter hybrid. Not very common, I know, but there you have it."

"What kind of shifter?" I asked, unable to stifle my curiosity.

Lang smiles at me, his grin mischievous. Oh, the fun I could see myself having with this man.

"Dragon," he responded. "So I too, probably won't be shifting in the city limits any time soon, but my vampire nature is fast, ferocious and very deadly, so it shouldn't be a problem."

I sat back in my seat, awed by the men around me.

"So you see, Little Bunny, between the three of us, I think we've got this handled."

Hmmm. He sure seemed confident enough. I sure hoped that his words were as true as they sounded.