Libra Ascending: An Epic Urban Fantasy Romance (Zodiac Guardians Book 1) by Tamar Sloan (adult books to read .TXT) 📗

laughter is powered by relief. She throws her arms around Tristan and he’s never felt anything so amazing. His own arms feel like they’re carved from stone, but he lifts them and hugs her back. Over her shoulder Zarius catches Tristan’s gaze as he nods.

Tristan gives him a thumbs up. Zarius isn’t big on physical affection, but the quiet joy in his eyes tells it all. Not to mention he looks like he just aged twenty years.

Feeling like he might’ve done the same, Tristan pushes himself to a sitting position. He looks around the basement, eyebrows hiking at the mess in the back corner. “Seems I missed all the action.” He looks to Tess, heart jerking when he sees the blood trickling from a cut on her forehead. “Hell, Tess! Are you okay? Here,”—he shuffles off the table he was lying on—“lie down.”

Tess rolls her eyes. “You’re as bad as Zarius. You two have sustained much more serious injuries than this and still wanted to mow the lawn.” She juts out a hip. “Are you giving me special consideration because I’m a girl?”

Tristan backs down faster than he ever has in his life, quickly straightening and stepping away. “Wouldn’t dream of it.” Give him an angry Skin with a gun, and he’ll take him on in a heartbeat. Faced with Tess going all feminist on him, and Tristan knows when to admit defeat.

“Good, because we have some cleaning up to do.” She glances at Zarius. “Was that the bookshelves I heard being demolished?”

Zarius grins. “We disagreed about whether he should go down to the basement or not.” But then he frowns. “One got past as I was fighting the other two.”

Tess places her hand on his arm. “You got here in time. We’re all fine.”

Zarius glances at the gash on her head but doesn’t say anything. The protector in him would be disagreeing.

Tristan kicks the lifeless body beside him. “Everyone but him. We need to put these guys somewhere Chardis will get the message.”

“We’ll dump them back near the warehouse,” Zarius growls. “He can see what happens when they get too close.”

Tess wraps her arms around herself. “But they’ll be back. They know where we live.”

Zarius’s lips flatline. There’s nothing he can say to that. It’s the truth.

Tristan steps around, shrugging. “Then we’ll move.”

Again.

But Tess shakes her head. “It’ll take time to find somewhere in the area. We need to stay close to the school.”

Because of Brielle. And Cassandra.

Even the Skins believed there are others…

Zarius hoists the Skin’s body over his shoulder. “I’ll get these in the truck. Then I’ll dial up the security. Chardis won’t attack straight away. He’s going to need more men and a better strategy.”

Because when Chardis sees the body count, he’ll start to realize what he’s up against.

Tess nods although Tristan can see the tension pulling down her brows. She follows Zarius to the stairs. “We’ll start the cleaning upstairs.”

Tristan follows her, noting the way Zarius doesn’t even break a sweat as he shoulders the dead Skin. He heads straight to the garage, and Tristan is glad they managed to find somewhere that has an adjoining one. With a door going straight to the enclosed garage, they don’t have to find a rug to roll these guys up in.

And he’s pretty sure people don’t fall for that nowadays, anyway.

Upstairs, the damage is worse than the basement. The living room is in disarray, the bookshelves and coffee table now little more than firewood. Two men lie lifeless on the floor, one right before them, the other by the door.

The first one didn’t get far. The second one must’ve got the better of Zarius enough for the third to get past.

Zarius doesn’t even glance down as he steps over the sprawled body. “I’ll get these next. You two get this place back to normal.”

They don’t need some nosy neighbor knocking on the door and catching sight of a lounge that looks like a woodchipper vomited in it.

Tess turns toward the laundry. “I’ll get the broom.”

Tristan raises a brow. “Grab a bulldozer while you’re there.”

He starts picking up the larger pieces of wood while Zarius collects the other two Skins and Tess sweeps the rest of the debris into piles.

Evening is just creeping over the house when they finally finish. The lounge looks barer, and the basement no longer has a desk, but there’s little sign that a battle between good and evil occurred here.

Tristan flops on the couch. “What a day, huh?”

He glances at the two people who are his parents. Zarius looks tired while Tess looks exhausted. “I’m thinking we order from that place down the road that does the kick-ass koftas.”

Zarius stretches his shoulders. “You do that, I’ll get rid of the Skins.”

Tess moves a little closer to him. “Is it safe?”

Zarius presses a kiss to her forehead. “As safe as it’s ever been, love.”

Tristan rolls his eyes. Of course that’s what Zarius would say—the truth. They’ve always lived with the danger of being found, of having to fight for their lives. But this is the first time it rocked up on their doorstep. But Tess doesn’t need to be reminded of that. She needs the pretense of safety, at least for a little while.

Tristan throws a cushion at Zarius and it bounces off his surprised chest. Zarius spent the first sixteen years of his life on the Gemini planet. It seems subtlety isn’t a strong trait among Tristan’s people.

“At least point out that we kicked their butts.”

Tess picks one up and throws it, too. “Yes, and promise you’ll come back in one piece.”

Zarius catches the second cushion, realization dawning across his face. He approaches Tess, slipping his arms around her waist. “Chardis attacked and lost. That is proof enough of our strength. And as we find each Zodiac Heir, we’ll only get stronger.”

Tess smiles and Tristan can practically see her melt. They lean in and touch lips, winding around each other.

“I want my cushion back so I can suffocate myself,” Tristan calls out, hiding