by Jami Gray
“Looks like it’s your lucky day,” Iliana murmured as she stared at the house. She leaned forward, her arm resting on the steering wheel and flashed him a cheeky grin. “Private bathroom.”
He shook his head, not bothering to hide his grin at her cute taunt. Still, he was relieved not to be sifting through multiple scents. As tired as he was, he might miss something important, and neither he, nor his wolf, found that acceptable where this female was concerned.
She got out of the car and he followed suit, waiting for her to step up to the cracked sidewalk before he closed in. They stood side by side for a moment. The neighborhood was quiet. The house didn’t stand out, no creepy vibes, nothing to set it apart from the other well kept homes lining the street. A playful breeze danced past, bringing the scents of fresh cut grass, warm asphalt, and a mix of floral scents.
Iliana cocked her head with a silent question. Amused that she thought he’d be able to pick up some scent of Ansa from the sidewalk, he stifled his grin and shook his head. Now if Xander were here, they might get something.
He followed Iliana up the stairs to the porch. The screen door was closed, but the heavier door was thrown wide, letting soft music drift through the screen. As Iliana knocked, he scanned what he could see of the interior. A staircase climbed from polish wooden floors, tasteful furniture filled the front room, the kitchen sat further back with a gleam of metal, and the walls were decorated with colorful bursts of artwork, but there was no movement.
Iliana knocked again, then called, “Ms. Veneno?”
The smack of a metal screen door against a wooden frame sounded, then, “I’m coming!” A shift in light, a shadow moving from the kitchen into the front room. It passed through the sunlight captured in a picture window on the far side, revealing curly dark hair, bronze skin, curvy body moving with grace as gloves were tugged from hands. The woman stopped on the other side of the screen with a hesitant smile. “So sorry, I was in the garden.”
“Ms. Veneno?” Iliana repeated.
“Yes?” A puzzled frown marred Ansa’s smooth brow, her dark eyes darting between him and Iliana. “Mr. Kern? Is everything alright?”
His nose twitched, catching the overlying scent of fresh turned earth, a mix of herbal and flora scents, and there under it all, something just out of reach. Ansa was Kyn, but what kind, he wasn’t sure. In lieu of answering, he greeted, “Ms. Veneno.”
“My name is Special Agent Iliana Krychek, may I come in?” Iliana held up a leather wallet containing her badge and regained Ansa’s attention.
Ansa’s gaze drifted from him to the badge, then her white teeth worried her lower lip. After a beat, she unlocked the screen and held it open. “Um, sure.” They slipped into the entryway, waiting for her to close and re-ock the screen. “Come into the kitchen, I just need to wash my hands.” She held up the dirty gardening gloves as she led the way.
They followed her into the compact, but very modern galley kitchen. Granite countertops were crumb free, and metal appliances glistened. For some reason the ultra cleanliness creeped him out. There wasn’t even a cup in the sink. Almost as if the kitchen was rarely used.
Iliana took a seat at the small, round table, and he settled in another, both watching Ansa washed her hands in the pristine sink, her back to them. Iliana snuck another glance his way.
He mouthed “Kyn” and she raised her brows seeking more information. Since he didn’t have any to give, he settled on a shrug.
Her tempting mouth tightened, and she turned a speculative eye to the woman at the sink.
Ansa grabbed a hand towel draped over the bar on the oven, then turned to lean back against the counter’s edge, her hands tangled in cloth. “What can I do for you, Special Agent?”
“I was hoping I could talk to you about an online chat room you visited recently.” Iliana crossed her legs, her pose relaxed as she jumped right in.
“Chat room?” Ansa repeated with a slow blink.
“Specifically one located on the Dark Web.”
Something too fast to read flashed over Ansa’s face and disappeared. “I’m not sure I know what you’re talking about.”
Iliana’s smile was far from gentle. “Yes, you do.”
Color rose under Ansa’s honey colored skin as she threw the hand towel on the counter. “Which agency are you with?”
Her burst of irritation colored the air, a spice wrapped in the earthy overtones of shifter, just not one he was familiar with.
Intrigued his wolf crouched close, watching carefully.
As an unknown shifter, Ansa Veneno was dangerous. Not wolf, or big cat, not even the rare bear. But something he’d never encountered. The faint tinge of musky undertones reminded him of a snake shifter he ran across when he was younger, but it was off enough to make him wonder. For a moment, he wished he could talk to Xander or Warrick, but he was all Iliana had, so he’d stay diligent and wait.
Unruffled, Iliana answered, “Division.”
A strange clicking noise sounded, then disappeared, setting every hair on Ryuu’s body at attention. His muscles coiled, instincts quivering in anticipation. Anna’s dark eyes didn’t move from Iliana, and it took considerable effort not to curl his lips back and snarl a warning. “I was unaware Division was monitoring my online presence.”
Iliana’s smile was empty and professional, nothing like what she shared with him. “We don’t monitor anyone’s presence, unless they happen to cross into our investigation.”
Ansa folded her arms across her chest. “Is it a crime to move within the Dark Web?”
“No, so long as you don’t indulge in illegal activities, such as kidnapping or murder for hire.”
A slow smile stretched Ansa’s lips. It didn’t reassure Ryuu, in fact it made his skin crawl. A kernel of worry festered and grew as he watched her. “I assure you, I haven’t kidnapped or hired anyone to kill for me. I go into the Dark Web out of curiosity. I’m a web developer, and sometimes there are interesting tidbits of technological news to be found there.”
Nothing in Iliana’s expression revealed whether Ansa was giving them the truth or not. In fact, Iliana hadn’t moved from her relaxed position, even as she cut to the heart of their visit. “But you may know someone who has.”
Ansa chuckled, but there was no humor in the sound. “The Dark Web is a most ‘wretched hive of scum and villainy’, to quote a favorite line of mine. I’m sure there’s more than one questionable individual roaming about the Ethernet highways.”
“And we’re hoping you’ll help us catch one,” Iliana said.
“Really?” Ansa shook her head and pushed away from the counter, her movement causing Ryuu to tense. “And why would I do that?”
“Because you’re not part of the wretched hive?” Iliana offered.
Watching the unknown shifter, Ryuu wondered if Iliana realized how far off the mark she was with that statement. Ansa Veneno didn’t go into the Dark Web out of curiosity, she played there because it fed something dark in her. He couldn’t prove it, but he and his wolf were certain. Ansa Veneno was a threat.
Blowing out a put upon sigh, Ansa shook her head. “What do you want, Special Agent?”
“I want you to bait a trap for me.”
“Who do you plan on catching?”
“Not for you to worry about,” Iliana dismissed the question and rose to her feet. “But if you wouldn’t mind assisting us, Division would be most grateful.”
Ansa slid forward a few inches, only to stop when Ryuu straightened from his chair to stand at Iliana’s side. She swung her gaze between the two of them, considering. “You’ve been awfully quiet, Mr. Kern.”
“Ms. Krychek is the one with the questions, I’m simply here to offer my expertise, should it be required.”
“Which expertise would that be? Technological or diplomatic?”
He gave her points for dancing around the subject, but he had no issue with making his stance clear. “I’m here as a representative of Taliesin and the Kyn. Whichever rol
e works will be the one I play.”
A little of that honey color faded and she muttered, “Not sure I want to bait an unknown predator that creates this much interest.”
“You don’t want to bait me,” he warned softly, holing her gaze with unblinking intensity as his wolf prowled forward.
A glimpse of something cold and alien stared back through her dark eyes. “Why should I risk myself for a human?”
Her challenge made his lips curl back. “Because the one we’re after is hunting Kyn. Would you rather I bring this before Natasha?”
Threatening Ansa with the demon queen garnered a definite reaction. She stepped back, but tried to cover her retreat by moving to the side at the last minute and turning to the window above the sink. “Fine,” the reluctant agreement was torn from her. “I’ll grab my laptop and bring it down.” When she turned back to face them, her face was molded into polite, if distant, lines.
“Thank you,” Iliana said.
He stayed quiet and watched.
Ansa ignored her and left the kitchen to head upstairs.
Iliana came to his side, her voice low. “What is she?”
“Dangerous,” he muttered, keeping his voice equally quiet.
“Got that part, need to know the rest.”
The exasperated note in her voice made his lips twitched. “Shifter,” he gave her. “Unfortunately, not one I can determine.” His gaze slid down to the bump of her holster. “Silver or regular?”
She shifted closer. “Regular. Wasn’t expecting to need silver.”
Between her nine-millimeter ammunition and his claws, they may not need silver bullets. Maybe. But he was working in the dark on what they were facing. “Not sure you’ll need either, but better careful than dead.” His wolf wanted to rush the fragile human woman into the car, but the man understood she would never allow it. She wasn’t in need of a protector, but a partner.
The sound of floorboards creaking overhead brought their hushed conversation to an abrupt halt. In moments Ansa was coming back down the stairs, laptop in hand. Taking in their stance at the entry to the kitchen, she waved a hand to the front room. “Might as well sit down and get comfortable. I have a feeling this might take a bit.”
They followed her into the room and settled in, letting Ansa take the couch as she set her laptop on the coffee table. She powered up the sleek machine. “Do you want something to drink?”
“No thanks,” Iliana demurred from her seat to the left. On Ansa’s right, Ryuu shook his head.
Ansa bent over the keyboard, her fingers flying as she maneuvered her way into the Dark Web. Minutes ticked by, the silence broken by the faint sounds of birds and traffic drifting in from outside. Finally her typing slowed, then stopped. She turned to Iliana. “Where do you need me to go?”
Iliana began directing her to the correct chat room. Once Ansa confirmed she was in, Iliana dug into her pocket and pulled out her phone. She touched the screen, scrolled, then turned it to Ansa. “Put up this message.”
Ansa took the phone, and scanned the message. When she lifted her head, she looked to Ryuu. “You’re looking for The Wanderer.”
He had no idea what the message said, but it didn’t matter if it would eliminate the one hunting the Kyn. Based on her reaction, Ansa was familiar with the one the name, which meant Iliana was right. She was their best bet at drawing whoever it was out. “Type, Ansa.” It was no less than a command.
They may not share the same bloodlines, but she couldn’t escape his authority. In shifter society a dominant was a dominant regardless of their animal. The fact she was typing before the echo of his order faded, demonstrated he was further up the dominance chain than her. It didn’t make her less dangerous, but it did please his wolf.
She hit one last key and sat back, her focus on the screen as she folded her hands in her lap. “It may take a bit before he responds.”
“You know him then?” Iliana pressed.
“No.” The answer was short and flat.
Ryuu caught the flare of Iliana’s nose and the minute narrowing of her eyes before her expression resumed its polite mask.
Ansa had just lied.
* * * *
Ansa’s outright lie ripped across Iliana’s psychic mind like a red-hot poker. The painful strength of that impression was so unusual, her professional poise almost slipped. Thankfully she managed to quell her instinctive denial of Ansa’s statement before it could escape. Antagonizing Ansa would get them nowhere.
Ryuu wasn’t giving her much to work with, Ansa was a Kyn. Great. Wonderful, but without knowing what kind of Kyn, she didn’t know if she would be defending from a physical or psychic attack. She kind of needed that information before she rattled Ansa’s cage. Her gut roiled, leaving her on edge and jumpy. Her unsettled reaction to Ansa was so unusual as to be worrying. What the hell was this woman?
Forcing a calm she didn’t feel into her voice, she decided to come in from a different approach. “Do you know of him?”
Ansa stared at her with onyx eyes, her gaze cold and pitiless, almost alien in nature. “Anyone who’s been in the Dark Web knows of him, Special Agent.”
Truth vibrated through every word, and Iliana waited for more. When Ansa didn’t continue, it was Ryuu who prompted. “And?”
No slow blink, instead she turned her head to him. “And he’s intelligent, clever, and not easily fooled.”
Again truth.
She wasn’t done. “If he responds to this, don’t be so certain he’s taking your bait, so much as dangling his in front of you.”
True, but not. A tangled mix, deceptive but chilling. Iliana couldn’t pick out which parts were lies. She leaned forward, elbows on her knees. “You admire him.”
That observation got a smile, not a soft one, but sharp and brutal. “Admire is not the right word. I would say I appreciate his tactics. It’s understood he’s not to be crossed. If you do business with him, you best deliver what you promise, otherwise his return policy is final.”
Iliana studied the smaller woman, realization blooming stark and clear, Ansa Veneno was a true psychopath. With as many years as Iliana had in with Division, one would think dealing with such a dysfunctional personality would be par for the course. With no underlying guilt and a lack of empathy, Ansa’s ruthless personality rendered Iliana’s talent unreliable, and left her second-guessing her impressions. “Have you done business with him?”
Ansa’s light laugh was just creepy. “No, Miss Special Agent Krychek, I have not done business with a questionable, virtual stranger.” Ansa stood and moved around the coffee table, brushing by Ryuu. “While we wait for his grand appearance, I’m going to grab some lemonade. Sure I can’t offer you all some water or something? We could be waiting awhile.”
As if she would dare drink anything this woman would offer. “No thank you.”
Across from her, Ryuu murmured the same. For a moment, they stared at each other across the table where the open laptop sat. Her uneasiness must have been plastered all over her face, because Ryuu was studying her with a worried frown. “Breathe, Iliana.” His words were barely audible, but it triggered her to suck in air.
Strange, she hadn’t realized she’d stopped breathing.
The sound of glass shattering on tile, quickly followed by a soft, pained cry brought both of them to their feet. They rushed to the kitchen, Iliana on Ryuu’s heels, gun in hand. The refrigerator door was open, blocking their line of sight to the back door, but the sneakered soles under the stainless steel door belonged to Ansa.
Ryuu rounded the table, slipped around the metal door, and sank into a crouch. “Ansa, what happened?”
“I slipped and dropped my glass.”
Nerves screaming, Iliana moved closer, scanning beyond the kitchen, gun out and ready. The back door was still closed, no sign of an intruder, but she couldn’t shake the trail of ice slipping down her spine. Her gaze went back to Ryuu as he reached out to help Ansa sit up. As his arm went to curl around her shoul
ders, Iliana caught the flash of cruel satisfaction in Ansa’s face even as she rushed forward in a vain attempt to stop whatever was coming. “Ryuu!”
His head turned at her frantic cry and Ansa moved with unearthly speed, her mouth opened wide, her lips glistening a ruby red, and buried her face against his chest, just below his shoulder and above his heart, her hands clutching his arms, dragging him close.
Iliana couldn’t see what Ansa did, but she could guess when pain whipped across Ryuu’s face and he stiffened, then tried to shove Ansa away. Whatever she did made it impossible, and she remained immovable.
Determined to change that, Iliana dropped to her knees on Ansa’s other side, both hands wrapped around her gun. She angled the barrel against the base of Ansa’s skull. If she pulled the trigger, she didn’t want the bullet to hit Ryuu. “Let him go, bitch.” Brutal and harsh, there was no trace of her stomach curling fear in her voice, just pure command.
Ansa’s spine uncurled, and her head lifted slowly from Ryuu’s chest and pressed back against the barrel. Iliana gritted her teeth and refused to shift the gun. Fury raged in Ryuu’s eyes, but his body remained locked in place, his arms falling to his sides as Ansa released him.
“Will you really pull the trigger, Special Agent?” A strange hiss ran under the words, but there was no missing her mocking edge.
“Abso-fucking-lutely,” Iliana ground out.
“Even though you risk hitting Mr. Kern?”
She was too close to escape whatever the hell Ansa was, but she refused to abandon Ryuu. “Do I, Ansa? I know more about angles and ballistics than you do.”
“Better make it count then, little girl.”
It was her only warning, and her finger pulled the trigger even as Ansa spun, lashing out with her arm. Under the inhuman impact of the hit, Iliana’s bone snapped above her wrist, breaking her arm even as her gun skidded across the floor, but Ansa couldn’t escape the bullet.
Her high pitch scream of agony sliced through Iliana’s eardrums like razorblades, rendering the close quarters report of the shot minor. Iliana’s spine crashed into the open door of the refrigerator, rattling the bottles on the shelves. Stuck in tight quarters, she braced for Ansa’s next attack because Ansa was Kyn and it would take much more than a single, lead bullet to put the bitch down.