by RJ Blain
“I wonder why Dupree killed her. Was it because she’d targeted you? Was it because she failed to take you? Or, was it because she was a part of Basin and would’ve been exposed if she’d been questioned?” Growling, Richard strode around the pool’s edge, pausing to stare at the waterfall. “The more I learn about Dupree, the more I believe he has been working with Basin since the beginning—and that Basin had infiltrated the Inquisition earlier than we thought.”
My spirits sank, and I stared at the floor. The sand looked real, but while the floor was coarse beneath my feet, it wasn’t gritty like sand. “While I had everything she handled investigated, I didn’t check every employee she sponsored into the company.”
“Might be worth a look at. Is that information you can get?”
“Easily. Human Resources has everyone’s sponsors on file. Danielle could probably have a full list to me in a few hours.”
“Then that’s something you can help with. I have a secure phone upstairs you can use, or you can use your cell. Maybe that’ll keep you out of trouble for a few minutes.”
I considered where Richard stood, so close to the water. “Can I see your phone for a moment? I don’t have any idea where mine is.”
Richard pulled his phone out of his pocket, unlocked it, and handed it to me.
Sometimes, I really appreciated my wolf’s strength. It made shoving Richard into his pool much easier. He splashed in with an indignant squawk. I pointed his phone at him. “That was for what you said in Frank’s kitchen. If those words ever come out of your mouth again, I won’t just shove you in. I’ll drown you as an example.” I paused and lifted my chin. “I won’t tolerate anyone interfering with me and Elliot. Should anyone try anything, they won’t regret it for long. Understood?”
“Understood.”
Chapter Eighteen
While we passed a pair of changing rooms, Richard refused to change or dry off, trailing water to the fourth floor of his home. He tapped in another code, and the door popped open.
“This is the most secure floor of the house. Alex and our mates share the space, although I keep trying to convince Alex to take over the lodge as his home.”
“Forget it, Richard,” Richard’s brother called out from down a long hallway. “You’re never getting rid of us. We’re the only ones keeping you from taking over the world.”
Muttering something under his breath too soft for me to make out, Richard headed down the hallway. “How about the second floor? You could move to the second floor.”
“How about… no.”
“I’m your brother. You should be nicer to me.”
I hesitated but followed Richard.
“Why are you wet?”
“Vicky pushed me in the pool.”
I heard several sighs. The hallway opened up to a massive kitchen, and Elliot was seated at an island with Frank, Alex, and Lisa.
No one seemed to notice me in the hallway, so I stopped and waited to see what happened. Everyone stared at Richard, who peeled out of his shirt and tossed it in the sink.
“Do I need to have your phone replaced again?” Alex crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair. “What did you do to deserve being shoved in the pool?”
“She’s upset because I was rather direct about how unmated males might try to take advantage of her weak bond with Elliot. You should appreciate my efforts, Elliot.”
Elliot propped his elbow on the table and rested his chin in the palm of his hand. “Appreciate is not the word I would use. Are you sure you’re not trying to sabotage my chances? I’m pretty sure her being in murderous rage isn’t going to make her easier to seduce.”
Why did everyone have to talk so casually about me mating with Elliot? My wolf was still sleeping off Elliot’s enthusiasm, and while I had enjoyed it, too, I didn’t want everyone knowing what we’d been doing.
I’d have to thank Elliot later for pretending like nothing had happened, although I suspected he was doing it to yank Richard’s tail.
Lisa snorted. “Are you done mortifying the poor woman? Vicky, don’t hide in the hallway.” When I hesitated, Nicole’s sister clucked her tongue. “We’re not going to bite. Wait, that’s not entirely true. I can’t promise Richard won’t, but he’s worse than an animal. Alex knows how to keep his teeth to himself, I promise.”
“I have Richard’s phone.” I held the device up. “I took it from him before I shoved him in.”
“Considerate of you, Vicky.” Alex hopped to his feet and claimed the phone from me. “Welcome home.”
Before I had a chance to escape, Richard’s brother caught me in a hug before propelling me towards the island.
Elliot smiled at me, got up, and fiddled with the collar’s buckle. “Now that you’re back in my sight, I can take this off.”
The possessiveness in his tone made me shiver, and his touch was enough to stir my wolf. She wanted him again, and my resistance crumbled each time his skin brushed against mine.
“So take it off instead of playing with it,” I hissed through clenched teeth.
“But you’re so pretty when you’re cranky.”
Nicole’s twin laughed. “Wow, Elliot. You have a death wish, don’t you?”
Heaving a sigh, Alex slid onto his stool. “I’m going to hate having to explain to the Inquisition that His Eminence died because he teased his mate too much.”
“It’s a courting technique. Wine and roses won’t work on a tough woman like her, so obviously, I have to provoke her. I figured if it worked for Richard, it might work for me.” Elliot smirked and removed the collar, tossing it on the counter out of reach. “You should have mercy on me. Frank tried to kill me. I don’t think his sled should be legal for anyone to drive. It’s too fast.”
I raised both of my eyebrows. “Two words, Elliot: the Beast.”
Shuddering, Richard poured himself a mug of coffee. “I thought Vicky was going to throw up on him when he was driving his truck. I like fast cars, but the Beast is a horror show. A very big and manly horror show. I need his truck, Alex.”
“No,” Frank snarled. “You have enough death traps. You don’t need Elliot’s, too.”
“That’s not fair, Frank.”
Elliot chuckled and rested his hands on my hips, giving the elastic band of my sweats a firm tug. “I like how Fenerec default to gym clothes for spares. You look great, Vicky.”
I stared down at the baggy sweatshirt which was layered on top of several other sweatshirts. Underneath the sweatpants were two more pairs of sweatpants plus a pair of leggings. “Did you hit your head?”
“See? This is only part of the challenge I face. I try to compliment her, and she thinks I have a head injury. It’s not a death wish. It’s merely making certain she knows how I feel.”
“You have so much to learn, Elliot.” Lisa sighed and shook her head. “Alex, why don’t you get Vicky a glass of wine?”
I arched a brow at Alex’s mate. “Did you injure your head, too?”
“Quiet, Biter of Cats.”
“Is the wine poisoned?”
Everyone stared at me. Richard was the first to recover, and he grabbed his shirt out of the sink and threw it at me. I stepped out of the way and watched it splat against the wall.
“You missed.”
“Lisa would never poison you.”
Lisa watched me, and she smiled.
The only way I knew how to address problems without running and hiding was to face them. I straightened, met Lisa’s gaze, and refused to look away as I had so many times before. “No, she wouldn’t. She’d think about it, she’d weigh the consequences of doing it, and she’d conclude the price wasn’t worth getting rid of me.” I inhaled, and while I couldn’t tell which scents belonged to who, the sharp bite of anger, disgust, and annoyance lingered in the air. “I’ve lost us so much by losing Dante and Nicole. It’s probable I cost her her twin. It’s probable I cost you Nicole. It’s probable I cost Elliot his twin. It’d be more unusual if she—if all
of you—didn’t want to. Evelyn and Jacqueline have the most reason to want me gone.”
I remembered the scent of Richard’s lies, and I turned my gaze to him. “I could smell your lie, Richard, and you were right to blame me. I can’t change the past, but I’ll do my part to find them, even if I have to work on my own to do it.”
Astonishment and dismay overwhelmed the other smells in the kitchen. No one spoke.
“I don’t remember what happened. I don’t even remember what my idea was, or why you all thought it was worth trying. I don’t know what happened to them, but I want to find out.” I clacked my teeth together, and I lost count of how many long, deep breaths it took before I could speak without my voice trembling from anger. “I told Markus I was leaving and when. I could’ve easily been followed. You’re right to be angry with me. I don’t want empty forgiveness. I don’t want your lies, trying to convince me I’ve done nothing wrong. I want to get to the bottom of this and make sure it doesn’t happen to anyone else.”
The silence hurt, confirming what my nose had discovered from Richard in the hotel. No matter how many times someone claimed they didn’t blame me, the truth could always be found in the quiet moments when no one knew what to do or say without being caught in their lies. My every instinct demanded I find somewhere to hide, but I had nowhere left to go.
I was so tired.
Elliot sighed, lifted his hand, and flicked my forehead hard enough I yelped. I clapped my hands to my brow and stared at him with wide eyes.
“I love you, Vicky, but you’re an idiot sometimes. Basin cost us Nicole and my brother—and almost you, too. We’re not angry at you. We never were. I know you don’t remember, but it doesn’t matter. You escaped. That means they may have, too. Just by standing here, you give us hope we can find them. We’re all guilty. Some of us are just better at hiding it than others, and Lisa’s no different from her sister. Lisa either smiles or she starts shooting people, because she refuses to cry where anyone can see her. Alex probably took her guns away so she’s smiling.”
“Anderson!” Nicole’s sister shrieked.
Alex chuckled, lifting his hands in surrender. “I did take her guns away, and I even changed the code on the gun safe so she can’t get to them. Amber’s not even speaking to me right now, as I took her guns away, too. There are enough holes in the house.”
Richard snorted and retrieved his wet shirt. “Where is Amber? With the puppies?”
“Your bedroom, sound asleep last I checked on them, which was about an hour ago. I think the fox is with them, too. They’d been watching television waiting for you to get back.”
Why would my puppies be in Richard’s bedroom? I frowned, narrowing my eyes as I considered Yellowknife’s Alpha.
Richard mimicked his brother, holding his hands up in the air. “There’s a big television in my bedroom. I wasn’t doing anything unscrupulous to Amber or your puppies. If Amber didn’t kill me, everyone else in the pack would. People just like watching shows and movies on the big screen. It’s more comfortable than the sitting room couch, too. There are evenings we’ll all pile on the bed and watch something.”
Tugging on my hips, Elliot pulled me closer to him. “He’s innocent this time. Fenerec enjoy curling up together watching television, so his bedroom is one of the favored gathering spots. Richard gets lonely, then Amber feels bad for him, and Lisa’s pretty attached to Amber at the moment, which means Alex follows her. Why don’t you get into something more comfortable? Then you can check in on the puppies.”
Uncertain of whether I wanted to lean against Elliot or pull away, I froze, aware of everyone else watching me. I swallowed. “They’re looking at us,” I hissed.
“If they want to watch me hold you, I don’t mind. You should get changed, though. You’re going to boil to death if you stay in those sweats.” Elliot leaned towards me and whispered in my ear, “I’d be more than happy to help you get out of them. We could take another shower.”
My eyes widened. With five words, Elliot captured my wolf’s entire attention, and I fought her desire to nip him then and there.
Richard cleared his throat. “I don’t know what you’re doing, Elliot, but you’re about to get bit, and I can’t tell if she intends to kill you.”
“That sounds promising.” Elliot pulled away, and my wolf wasn’t the only one disappointed by his distance. “She can bite me anytime she wants.”
Lisa chuckled and relaxed against her mate. “This is why Richard thought solitary confinement was necessary. If he bothers you, Vicky, tell me. I’ll lock him in confinement until he learns his lesson. He’s really no different from a courting Fenerec male, and they get whiney and desperate after about five minutes without attention. Anderson, unless she shows you her throat, you will keep your teeth to yourself.”
With his smirk sliding into a sensual smile, Elliot tilted his head to the side, giving me a clear view of his throat. He didn’t say a word, but something about the way he stared at Lisa made her cheeks turn red.
Alex hooted his laughter. “You better watch yourself with him, Vicky. He’s sex on a stick if my mate is to be believed.”
Lisa snapped her teeth at her mate’s neck, and Richard’s brother hopped out of her reach.
I licked my lips. “You’re looking at the wrong woman, Anderson.”
Elliot glanced at me out of the corner of his eyes without hiding his throat from me. “So put me in my place.”
Richard tossed his shirt in the sink, grabbed hold of my elbow, and pulled me away from Elliot. “Let’s go see your puppies.”
“But I need to put him in his place. He told me to.”
Richard tensed, his grip on me tightening. “Wolfsbane?”
“No.” My face heated with my embarrassment.
“Prove it. Elliot?”
“Vicky, kiss me.”
My wolf more than wanted me to obey. I stood in place, fighting the urge to do what he commanded. I wanted to, but not in front of so many people. “Elliot!”
Richard grunted his satisfaction. “She’s definitely able to fight it now.”
“See? Nothing to worry about. The stint out in the cold must have helped burn the rest of it off.” Stepping to me, Elliot smiled and brushed the back of his hand against my cheek. “Relax. You don’t have to kiss me, not unless you want to. If you do, then you have to do it often—very often. Let’s go see the puppies. You’ll be happier once you’ve confirmed they’re okay.”
It was a lot harder to fight the compulsion to relax, and while my wolf was willing to wait, she had every intention of indulging Elliot when we were alone.
“Why can’t you at least pretend be dignified? Alex isn’t putting his mouth all over Lisa.” I pointed at the mated pair.
With a wicked grin, Alex grabbed his mate by her waist and pulled her over, crushing his lips to hers.
“Apparently, I spoke too soon.” I closed my eyes and sighed.
I would never understand Fenerec.
“It’s socially acceptable for mated pairs to kiss in public. It’s inappropriate behavior for them to take it any further than that, however.” Richard cleared his throat. “My kitchen is not your bedroom.”
Elliot wrapped his arm around my back and pulled me into the hallway. “I’ll protect you from those perverts.”
I wisely kept my mouth shut.
Chapter Nineteen
My sleeping puppies, curled up beside Amber, were so tiny on the large bed. They were wolves, which worried me so much I turned to Richard, a questioning whine escaping before I could suppress it.
Richard rubbed his thumb against the side of my throat. While I could fight against the wolfsbane’s influence, the instant he applied pressure, my wolf settled, leaving me easy prey to his influence. “They aren’t at any risk of running wild. They were human yesterday and earlier today. Remember? I told you they’d cleaned my kitchen and wanted to cook dinner.”
“Amber doesn’t mind when us touchy-feely Fenerec crawl into bed with
her, so don’t be shy.” Lisa sat on the edge of the bed, smiling at my puppies. “Richard should take lessons from you on how to raise puppies. Even when sick, they’re little angels.”
Alex snorted somewhere behind me, and I twisted enough to spot Richard’s brother leaning in the doorway. “You can’t steal Vicky’s puppies. Vicky would try to kick your ass, and us males would have you nurse you bitches back to health.”
Smirking, Richard turned to his brother. “If you want puppies, have your own. Go for triplets. If you do, then I can justify an addition to the fourth floor.”
There was something immensely satisfying about watching Lisa and Alex turn bright red at Richard’s suggestion.
I looked Lisa over head to toe, and when I met her gaze, I smiled. “I’d destroy you.”
Lisa’s eyes widened, and she straightened, her blush fading. “Are you challenging me?”
“I don’t have to challenge you.” Decades separated me from hunting witches and Fenerec, although my wolf remembered the satisfaction of killing Livingston, who’d hated me almost as much as I’d hated her. She’d come too close to my puppies and their pack when they’d first come into my care.
I’d never know if Amelia had set up Livingston’s death, too, but I didn’t care.
Anderson’s arm still carried the scars from my bite, a ruse designed to buy me a chance to escape his Inquisitors after I’d killed the witch. I hadn’t known he was the Shadow Pope then, and neither had Markus.
Lisa crossed her arms over her chest. “You seem pretty confident.”
“She’d kick your ass, Lisa,” Amber mumbled, rolling away from my puppies and sitting up with a low groan. “Hi, Vicky. Please don’t kill Lisa. I like her.”
“Amber,” I greeted.
“You have my attention,” Richard rumbled, easing his hold on my neck and giving me a push towards my puppies. “While Vicky did kill that Normal hunting her puppies, she’s not exactly violent, especially for an Alpha female.”
Crawling onto the bed, I knelt beside my puppies. Their fur hadn’t grown back where they’d been injured by the silver bullets. The wounds would take months to heal, and until they did, their fur wouldn’t grow back, but I found comfort in their steady breathing and warmth. I stroked my hand over Emily’s back.