“What? We do havesomeulterior motives, Micah.” His narrowed eyes flicker to Cass. “Just none that would harm your kid or your boyfriend.”
“Not my boyfriend,” Cass says automatically, trying not to fidget with the words. “Andwhatulterior motives? If you would just tell me what’s going on?—”
“It’s better for everyone involved if you know as little about what we’re involved in as possible,” Micah cuts in. “Trust me.”
For a long moment, Cass weighs his options.
On the one hand, he doesn’t like this. He doesn’t like thisat all.Even though he’s trusted and even liked Micah and Gregorio for centuries, the fact that they’re actively hiding something from Cass—something related to JJ, judging by how quickly Micah recognized him—sets his teeth on edge.
He has to protect JJ and Desi. If Micah and Gregorio could compromise them, then Cass needs to be prepared for the fallout.
On the other hand, though, Cass wouldn’t have even agreed to this meeting if he truly believed they were a risk to his newfound family. Even so… “If ‘what you’re involved in’ ends up putting my people in danger,” he says, “you really won’t like the consequences. Tread carefully.”
Micah looks almost upset. Gregorio looks mostly unamused. “We’ll bear that in mind,” he says, and he leans forward. “But we’re not here to argue about that. Actually, we wanted to talk to you about something else entirely.”
“Which is?”
“How’s Roma?”
Cass stares at Gregorio.
Gregorio stares back.
“Roma,” Cass repeats, discomfort winding down his spine. “Roma Gutierrez?”
Gregorio looks exasperated. “Do weknowanother Roma, Chin? It’s a fairly uncommon name.”
“Why are you interested inRoma?”Cass asks, honestly confused. “Hell, how do you even know that she’s involved in all this?”
Micah squints at him. “You haven’t heard? She’s the talk of the town right now—or, at least, the talk of the Redwater Food Truck Association. Someone from the Sanctum let it slip that Roma defected within earshot of Mina from Bibimbap House, and, well. You know Mina from Bibimbap House. Half of Redwater knew by the end of the lunch rush.” He raises his eyebrows. “So?”
Cass scowls back. Much as he’s relieved that they’re apparently not as interested in JJ as he feared, he’s not about to tell them everything he knows about Roma—oranythinghe knows, for that matter. Hunter or not, she helped him break JJ out of prison. “You didn’t answer my first question. Why do you care?”
“It’s more of a personal interest than a professional one,” Gregorio says.
“Still doesn’t answer my question.”
“Listen,” Micah jumps in, “we’re not asking for her home address or bank account number. We just want to know…” He hesitates. “If she’s doing well. You know. Outside of the Sanctum and all.”
Cass deliberates briefly before deciding on the truth—within reason, of course. “She’s fine. JJ is the only one who really talks with her. She’s messaged me once or twice, and she hits up Obie sometimes, but otherwise, she’s just sort of living independently.”
Immediately, he snaps his mouth shut, cursing himself. “Living independently” can easily be interpreted as “living alone,” and even though sheisflying solo in the studio apartment Obie set up for her, there’s no reason for Micah and Gregorio to know that.
Micah nods seriously. “That’s good. And you… trust her? You think she can be trusted?”
“I guess,” Cass says reluctantly. “Why? You don’t?”
“We didn’t say that,” Gregorio says, and he hesitates. “Actually, we’re hoping shecanbe trusted.”
Cass blinks back at him, bewildered. “So am I, but—but why doyoucare?”
“Let’s just say that we have a vested interest in Gutierrez the Younger,” Micah says evasively.
Gregorio stiffens the slightest bit. Cass notices. “Gutierrez the Younger,” he repeats, eyeing Micah critically. “As opposed to Gutierrez the Elder? Naomi Gutierrez?”
“Well, Naomiisthe more famous one,” Micah says, but his eyes tellingly flicker away from Cass as he says it. “Roma might be giving her a run for her money, but I think everyone in Redwater heard about it when Naomi Gutierrez and Sawyer Solomon went on the run.”
“Right,” Cass says warily. “And you have a ‘vested interest’ in them, too?”
