Benny shifted his weight. “Your correspondence with that moron Freddy put up red flags everywhere. Why did you mention being a Key?”

“He mentioned fate and battles, and it seemed as if he knew about everything. I wanted to intrigue him enough to meet me in person.” She felt so damn stupid about that, considering he’d probably just been reciting things from a fantasy novel or something. “I didn’t say I was a Key. I just hinted about keys.”

Benny coughed, the sound pained. “I think I got shot in the ass. Damn it.” He took several deep breaths. “Your internet use was enough for us to track you, so no doubt it was enough for the Kurjans to do the same. I imagine once they caught your scent, they used satellite to find you. It was a good assault, actually. The Cysts have upped their game.”

“They were lucky with the weather,” Adare returned. He should’ve been more on guard.

Benny sighed, his eyes still shut and his head leaning back as he healed. “We’re gonna have to buy Veis a new condo somewhere. I really don’t want to piss his witch off.”

Grace cleared her throat. “Speaking of which, I’m really sorry I shot you, Benny. I was aiming at Adare.”

Irritation swept through Adare again. “Oh, we’re going to talk about that at length.”

Benny snorted. “No worries. I’ve been shot before because of the Highlander.”

Grace shifted her weight on his lap. “Also, I’m sorry I brought the Kurjans and Cysts to the condo, and you all had to fight and get injured. I didn’t realize how easy it was to track a person from internet use.”

Oh, she wasn’t getting it. “We’ve already dealt with that,” Adare muttered.

She jerked her head back to better see him. “Then what are you so angry about?”

His ears heated. “When I tell you to do something, to get the hell away from a fight, you do it.”

Her eyes widened. “Oh yeah. You threatened to choke me.” She slapped him in the chest. “What were you thinking?”

“I was thinking I wanted you to obey me and get out of there.” He didn’t give one whit that the word obey shot even more color into her face. “Apparently that’s a lesson you need to learn.” He settled his bulk more comfortably into the seat, and the storm strengthened outside the small craft, batting them around like a kitten with a ball of yarn. “We’ll discuss it on the ground. I need to heal now.” Without waiting for her response, he set his head back and shut his eyes, working on his arms and hands.

When she struggled briefly against him, he tightened his hold, not in the mood.

“You bet we’ll talk,” she muttered. “Just wait.”

* * * *