Trent gave me another condescending smile. “He’s fine. He was just having a little trouble at Lucky’s.”
That was their flashiest casino. The one where Bernice usually worked. I really hoped she wasn’t involved in whatever was going on. We didn’t want a war with the bears on our hands.
Our entrees came, then a few moments later Trent excused himself to use the bathroom, and the idiot left his phone right on the table. I waited until he’d disappeared down the hall where the restrooms were located, then I grabbed his phone.
Jax was by my side in less than a second. “What’s going on?”
“Trent lied about who called him, and I’m hoping to find out more information.”
His phone was locked. He wasn’t that much of an idiot, but there were several notifications on his screen, including a few from the asshole client of ours.
You better deliver what you promised.
Half up front. That’s all you get.
And then, finally something concrete. Tonight. Lucky’s. 11:00.
I could easily guess that what Trent had promised to deliver were escorts, ones who would be expected to break the rules we had at our agency.
I turned to Jax. “Give me five minutes, then say there’s an emergency and we have to leave.”
Jax shook his head. “I want to take you home now.”
“We can’t just disappear.”
He growled, but he went back to his spot against the wall.
It was all I could do to smile and listen to Trent’s continued bragging. I was counting the seconds until Jax would help me escape.
Trent scowled when Jax approached the table.
“Excuse me,” Jax said. His voice was even, but I could feel his anger and see it in his tense posture. “There’s an emergency at home that requires Mr. Howler’s presence.”
“Are you sure?” Trent asked. “I bet his brothers can handle it.”
Jax growled. “He’s needed at home.”
Trent’s eyes shifted, and I stood quickly, wanting to head off a fight. “Jax is just protecting me. That’s his job, and if my brothers need me, I have to go.”
Trent still looked annoyed. “Then go, but I’m going to get you alone one of these days.”
“Perhaps. Call me later.”
Jax took my arm and tugged. I didn’t think he could hold his wolf back much longer. “Good night,” I called to Trent as I let Jax lead me away.
12
Jax
It was a good thing Storm didn’t resist my attempts to remove him from the restaurant. I wouldn’t have been able to last much longer with that disgusting man ogling my mate. I’d managed to remain impassive in front of far more threatening and horrific situations, but when it came to Storm, my control was shit. No one was allowed to look at my mate like he existed for their pleasure—not to mention how Trent had treated Storm like his head was full of fluff.
I laid a hand against Storm’s back, urging him to walk faster. I’d messaged Denny to tell him to bring the car around, and he was waiting just outside the door. Normally, I rode up front with Denny while Storm, Emerson, or whoever else I was guarding rode in back. But I slid into the back seat beside Storm. I needed to be where I could touch him. If Denny told anyone, we’d deal with the consequences. Storm was my mate, and we weren’t going to be able to hide that for long.
“Is everything okay?” Denny asked once the car door was shut.
“I was with Trent from the escort service,” Storm replied.
“What?” Denny’s mouth fell open.
“Just drive,” I growled.
“He’s up to something. The books haven’t added up for months, and we’ve had several people quit. Now I think I may know what’s going on. He’s hosting private parties and using our escorts.”
“Are you sure?” I asked.
“Not completely, but it fits with everything he said and what I saw on his phone.”
“You checked out his phone?” Denny asked.
“I sure did.”
“Good for you.”
I snarled. “This isn’t a game.”
Storm laid a hand on my thigh. “I know it’s not. Calm down.”
“We need to tell your brothers.”
“Not yet. There’s enough pressure already with all the shit with the lions’ leader pushing to take King’s position. I can handle this.”
I glared at him. “We’ll talk about this more at home.”
Denny smiled at me in the rearview mirror. “Don’t mind me.”
“Later,” I growled.
Storm took my hand, and we passed the rest of the ride in silence.
When we reached home, we said good night to Denny, and Storm suggested we go for a walk. “No one will question me wanting some exercise or you insisting on accompanying me.”
He was right, so we took one of the paths that led into the woods at the back of their property.
“I want to figure out what’s going on with Trent on my own. Then King will have to acknowledge I’m capable of doing more than he lets me.”
I understood why Storm wanted to handle this situation, and he was right that King had enough on his plate, but while Trent didn’t seem particularly intelligent, he was still dangerous, and we didn’t know who else was involved in his schemes. “Do you have a plan?”
“To be at Lucky’s at eleven o’clock.” He said it so matter-of-factly. He was just going to show up, when Trent and probably plenty of other people would recognize him.
“Storm, that’s—”
“The best way to find out if I’m right about what Trent’s up to. There’s no guarantee we’ll be able to get any more information out of him, and if he’s putting our escorts in danger, I want to know that now.”
“No.”
Storm glared at me. “You can’t—”
“It’s too dangerous. I’m not going to let you—” I knew I’d said the wrong thing as soon as the words were out of my mouth, but it was too late.
“You’re going to behave just like my brothers, aren’t you? I really thought you were different.”
“Storm, I’m sorry, but—”
“What I’m suggesting is exactly what King, Bryce, or Garrett would do. Would you try to stop them?”
“Would you try to stop Shadow?”
“Shadow’s… He still recovering from everything that happened to him. He doesn’t even like to leave the property very often.”
Storm treated Shadow exactly like the rest of his brothers treated Storm, but this wasn’t the time to get into that argument. “Just because your brothers would take off without thinking this through doesn’t mean it’s the best thing to do. We need to do more investigating first.”
“How are we going to do that? I can’t ask Trent outright, and you don’t want me to see him again anyway. This is the only solid information we have.”
“But we don’t even know if—”
“Being there will let us know if I’m right.”
I growled. “It’s too dangerous. If they see you… If they think…”
“The casino is a public place.”
“One your family usually avoids.”
He tilted his head. “How did you know that?”
“I listen.”
He huffed, and I reached for his hand. “I would advise your brothers not to go as well.”
“Advise them, but not forbid them.”
“You’re my mate, Storm. You mean everything to me.”
He let out a shuddery breath. “You have to trust me. You have to believe that I can do this.”
“No one should go into something like this unprepared.”
“I’m just going to a casino.”
“To poke around and try to find out if there’s a private sex party going on. If Trent or anyone else catches you—”
“You’ll be there to save me.”
How could he be so infuriating? “I’ll be there, but I’m restricted by your family’s need to keep Bernice h
appy.”
“I could pretend I snuck out to see Trent.”
“Absolutely not.”
Storm scowled at me.
“There are other ways to figure out what’s going on.”
“None of them are as fast or easy as this.”
“There is nothing easy about walking into an unknown situation with someone who’s willing to pimp out teenagers. I’ve never been to Lucky’s, so I’ve had no chance to case the area, find the best way in, or—”
“We just go in the main entrance.”
“How fast will Bernice know you’re there? Have you considered that she could be involved?”
“Our alliance might be uneasy, but she’s not willing to anger King by messing in our business.”
“Are you sure?”
He frowned. “Reasonably.”
“That’s not good enough for this kind of risk.”
“I know where the private party rooms are. We could just watch the area and see who goes in.”
“We’ll just do some investigating first and find out more before we go anywhere near this.”
Storm growled. “Of course I’d have a fated mate who’d treat me just like my family does.” He started to walk off, but I grabbed his arm. “Storm, I know you’re capable. I know you’re strong. You can handle this, but not this way.”
“King’s a mess right now, between the lions and Emerson. Garrett’s hardly ever here anymore. I can’t figure out what’s going on with him, but I don’t want to add to his stress, and Bryce is picking up the slack for King because King’s willing to delegate to him, even though I…”
“Even though you’re the glue that holds them all together?
He turned to me, eyes wide. “You… You see that?”
“I see everything about you. You’re my mate. For weeks, I’ve spent most of the day watching you. Do you think the guards don’t hear or see what happens around them? Maybe some of them don’t pick up on the nuances, but I do, especially when it comes to you.”
I stepped closer and cupped his face in my hands, brushing my thumbs over his cheekbones. “I know how strong you are and how valuable you are to this family. I believe your brothers know it too, but they worry about you. I know that frustrates you, and I get why. You deserve the chance to do more without them holding you back, but that doesn’t mean you have to run headfirst into danger.”
He sighed, and I felt some of the tension drain from his body. I pulled him to me and hugged him tightly. We stayed like that for a few moments before he pulled back. “I should get back to the house before everyone starts to wonder where I am.”
“Where did you tell them you were going tonight?”
“Out to dinner with a friend. They didn’t question me too closely since you were going with me.”
“And you aren’t going to say anything about Trent?”
“Not for now.”
I didn’t like that. His brothers needed to at least know the situation was worse than they’d suspected, but I wouldn’t push anymore tonight. “We’ll see what we can learn about Trent in the morning, okay?”
He nodded, and we held hands until we got too close to the house to risk it.
13
Storm
I paced my room. The minutes seemed to creep by as I waited for the right time to leave. I wanted to arrive at Lucky’s just after eleven so whatever Trent was planning would be underway, and I wouldn’t risk running into him or Rutherford or anyone else I knew on their way in.
Jax was going to be furious when he found out I’d gone to Lucky’s without him, but he hadn’t seen the way Trent’s eyes had lit up when he’d talked to Rutherford, and he’d never heard the demeaning way Trent talked about the escorts that worked for us or listened to him push to provide services that turned my stomach. I was all for anything consenting adults wanted to do together, but Trent didn’t seem to care about consent or age. I wasn’t going to let him hurt anyone who’d trusted that our agency would be a safe working environment for them. I thought of the escorts I’d interviewed who’d thanked me for caring about their comfort and also about Shadow, who’d been taken advantage of by someone who’d wanted to force him to submit to other men. He’d only been sixteen. I couldn’t even think about what might have happened to him if we hadn’t rescued him.
I couldn’t wait when I knew Trent and Rutherford were out there forcing young men and women into Goddess knows what. Jax was right that it was too reckless to openly walk into Lucky’s, but I was going to investigate from outside and do what I could to conceal my identity. I’d called a contact I had who’d worked at Lucky’s, and she’d confirmed that, as I expected, the security inside was top notch, but Bernice wasn’t overly concerned with what went on outside.
That didn’t mean it wasn’t dangerous for me to be there, but I needed to know what Trent was up to. I couldn’t gamble on being able to get more information on his operation. If someone noticed me, I’d shift and run. I was fast and agile, and I’d stay alert to any trouble.
I wouldn’t try to intervene on my own. If I had to, I’d call Jax. He’d come no matter how angry he was, and so would my brothers. If no one was in immediate danger, I’d confess to Jax the next morning. After he’d scolded me, he would forgive me and help me figure out how to stop Trent.
I didn’t want to chance running into my brothers, so when it was finally late enough for me to leave, I climbed out my window and used a nearby tree to get safely to the ground. I hadn’t left the house by this route since I was a teenager, but fortunately I was still just as flexible. I shivered as I waited to make sure no one had seen or heard me. It had gotten a lot colder since I’d come inside, but I was dressed warmly enough in a black hoodie and jeans. Once I felt confident I was alone outside, I pulled my hood over my hair and double-checked that I still had my sunglasses in my pocket as I made my way to my car.
When I reached the casino, I parked on the side of the building where my contact told me the private party rooms were located. It was twenty minutes after eleven. I waited in the car for several minutes. Not many people were around, since it was a weeknight and most people went in the front entrance. I didn’t see anyone I recognized.
I put on my sunglasses and opened the car door. A gust of wind rushed in. The breeze was even colder here as it blew off the water. After one more deep breath, I stood and closed the door behind me. The security cameras would pick me up as I made my way toward the building, but unless they had a reason to be paying close attention to this area, my presence shouldn’t draw attention. I didn’t go inside. Instead, I moved around the outside, listening to see if I could detect whether any of the private rooms were being used. There could be events other than the one I suspected Trent was hosting, but all I could do was look and listen.
After I reached the side of the casino that faced the water, I heard more noise, music and the murmur of voices. It wasn’t coming from the room closest to me though. The gathering was on the floor above.
I found some exterior stairs that led to a terrace and climbed them slowly, making sure no one was outside. I didn’t think they would be on a night this windy, especially not in a place where you could still smoke indoors, but I didn’t want to take chances.
The terrace was clear, so I moved closer to the windows. I wasn’t surprised to see the curtains were drawn, considering what I expected they were up to, but I hoped at least one of them would be cracked enough for me to see in.
I approached the windows cautiously. After a few tries, I found one that allowed me to see a small section of the room. Many of the people inside were naked or nearly so, though fortunately, when I located Trent standing in a corner observing, he was fully dressed. The glare on the window made it difficult to see clearly, and the light in the room was low. I recognized another problem client, who was being sucked off by two women who looked very young, but I had no way to know if they were truly underage.
I saw an escort we’d hired recently who was noticeable because
of his fire-red hair. He disappeared from view after talking with a man who looked angry with him. A few moments later, I heard a nearby door swing open. I tensed, but it was the red-headed young man, now wearing sweats and a t-shirt. He never even looked my way. He just raced down the stairs and ran. Shit. What had happened to him in there? I turned back, hoping to recognize someone else or see something that would give me a better idea of whether the escorts were there by choice.
“What the hell are you doing?”
I turned to see a huge bear shifter coming toward me. Fuck, where had he come from? I hadn’t heard a thing. I’d been too focused on what was going on inside.
His fingers were already changing into long, wicked claws. He’d be on me before I could even shift into my wolf form, and he was between me and the stairs. I looked toward the railing. I could jump, but I’d be landing on pavement, and chances were I’d be too injured to run before the bear shifter caught me.
I stood there frozen, wondering if the bear would kill me or take me to Trent or what?
“Listen, I—”
The bear shifter’s mouth dropped open, and he fell to the ground twitching as his hands became human again. When I looked up to see what had happened, Jax stood over him holding a gun.
I wanted to call to him and tell him not to kill the man, but any sound I made might alert the people inside. Jax fired the gun again, and a dart lodged in the man’s neck. The bear shifter growled and tried to reach up for Jax, but Jax took a step back, evading him easily. A few seconds later, the man turned fully human and slumped back to the ground, seemingly unconscious.
Jax nudged him with his foot, but the man didn’t respond. When Jax focused on me again, I wanted to run to him, but I was frozen in place, scared of what had almost happened and of what Jax thought of me now.
Jax held his finger to his lips to remind me to be quiet, and then he stretched out his hand. Having him reach for me gave me the courage to move. I walked quickly to him, and he led me back through the parking lot. When we reached my car, he motioned for me to get in the passenger side. I handed him the key, and he drove us a little way down the street before pulling into an empty parking lot and cutting the engine.
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