Free Love's Baggage by T. A. Chase Page A

for the people there," Rhonda informed them as they climbed the stairs. "This mission you're on must be pretty important for Max to send Raze and Ba'el out to find you."
    She turned left at the top of the stairs and continued down a long, narrow hallway.
    "We think it might have the potential to be," Bandit hedged.
    He didn't know Rhonda, so he didn't trust her. It didn't matter that she worked with Max. Bandit didn't give his trust easily. It wasn't like he completely accepted Raze, Ba'el, and Gianni as part of his inner circle, but his instincts told him they could be trusted with Allen's safety. Nothing screamed for Rhonda, and Bandit wasn't going to make the mistake of trusting her too soon.
    "Max must as well if he's sending out the heavy hitters with you. The angel and demon usually only work the super serious shit."
    She halted in front of a set of iron doors. Tugging a key from her pocket, she unlocked them before handing it to Allen.
    "There are only two keys to these doors. You have one, and Max has the other. To enter another's room without permission from the occupant or Max is against the rules."
    They nodded, and Rhonda led them into the suite. She flicked on a switch and light flooded the cavernous room.
    "This is your living room. There's a bedroom off each side, plus a bathroom through there." Rhonda pointed to a smaller black door. "Once you're settled and have changed, push this button and someone will come to escort you to the meeting room."
    "All right." Bandit watched as Rhonda closed the door behind her. He met the others' gazes and raised his hands in an I-don't-know kind of gesture.
    "I feel like I stepped into a Bond movie or something like that." He moved toward the left bedroom. "Allen and I will take this room. I want to wash up before we see what all the secrecy is about."
    "Sounds good to me," Roman agreed, and they went their separate ways.
    * * * *
    An hour later, the foursome reconvened in the living room, ready to find out what the hell was going on.
    "Push the button, Gianni," Bandit ordered.
    Almost immediately after Gianni did, a knock sounded on the door. Bandit opened it to see Malik standing in the hallway. The lion shifter didn't say anything, just turned and started heading back toward the stairway. Allen locked their suite door, and they rushed to follow the man.
    No one spoke as Malik led them on a winding trail through the warehouse. While he didn't see anyone, Bandit could feel eyes studying them. Did they work for Max, but didn't want to be seen? Or had Max helped them and they were in hiding? Bandit didn't glance around, not wanting to scare anyone. He knew some of what Max's organization did, but there were certain aspects and branches he knew nothing about and didn't want to know. It was safer for him that way.
    "Here they are," Malik announced as he pushed open a door.
    Bandit made sure he was in front of Allen when they walked in the room, and he noticed Gianni did the same with Roman. They entered to find Max, Raze, and Ba'el sitting at a large conference table with Rhonda. Malik took his seat next to her.
    "Come in and sit down. We need to talk before you head out on your own little adventure."
    Max waved them to some empty seats on the other side of the table. Raze and Ba'el nodded to them, but didn't move from their places at one end. It was like negotiations between two competing companies. They sat down, and Max looked at Allen and Roman.
    "You boys look good. I knew the right thing to do was take you to the Canis pack. Savannah's a hard bitch, but she's good people." Max glanced over at Bandit. "Good to see you again, Bandit."
    "Max."
    "I'm sure you gentlemen would like something to eat, and as soon as we're finished talking here, I'll have Raze take you to the eating area."
    "How big is this place?" Gianni spoke up, his gaze burning into Max.
    Max shrugged. "I'm not entirely sure. We're always finding new rooms and digging out the basement even more. It's not