Billion Dollar Wolves: Boxset Bks 1-5

by Dee Bridgnorth

  But right now his hearing was picking up something else. The sound of paws connecting with gravel as more wolves headed his direction. His pack was coming. They were close. The wolf lifted his muzzle to the sky and yipped once. An answer caused a thrill of excitement to pass over his body. He shuddered visibly and his tail wiggled once or twice.

  “What’s that? What is that?” The man was pressing his back more firmly to the closed shelter door as he peered into the darkness. “Is that more? Is that? Oh shit!”

  But it wasn’t just another wolf bursting onto the scene. There was a man too. In his wolf brain, Orion was confused by what he was seeing. His brothers, three of them. Edward was gone. Edward was in Italy. His human mind surfaced just long enough to provide him with that reminder. Then it receded once again and the enormous charcoal wolf greeted his two equally charcoal brothers.

  Devon was the only one not in his wolf body. Perhaps that was good. In the still reasonable portion of Orion’s mind he realized that Devon’s presence here at the animal shelter would no doubt allow the pack to communicate with Mateo Canjillon and explain how things were going to go. Right before Orion ripped his arms and legs off.

  “Mr. Canjillon, I assume?” Devon’s appearance should have been an absolute enigma to the gym teacher. The urbane-looking man in the blue jeans and blue sweater with his boots and jacket and gloves was utterly out of place in the yard of the local animal shelter. He did not even look as though he could be there to adopt an animal. He simply looked as though he had wandered there from someplace entirely different, but Mateo Canjillon did not seem to mind.

  “Oh, thank God! Another human being. Do you have a phone? Call the police! Call animal control. They have to have an emergency number! This animal is crazy. It’s trying to kill me!”

  “Really?” Devon’s voice was deceptively mild. “It’s trying to kill you?”

  The other two wolves took up positions on either side of Orion. To Mateo Canjillon it probably appeared that the animals were presenting a front of solidarity. Orion knew better. His mind told him that his brothers had planted themselves at his sides in order to keep him in line. From there they could close in and keep him from attacking a human. Considering Jason and Zane’s penchant for vigilante behavior that seemed to be a bit of a deviation from their norm.

  Orion wanted to talk to them, to explain, to howl and to demand that the pack nudge this stupid two-legger into running so that they could hunt him down and rip him apart like prey. But that wasn’t going to happen right now. Instead he felt Jason’s nose against his shoulder, the injured one. Jason was sniffing the blood. Then he turned his head and yipped at Devon.

  “Seems like you hurt the wolf first,” Devon told Mateo.

  Canjillon held his hands at his sides as though he were actually considering an attack on Devon King. “What are you talking about?”

  “He’s got a wound on his shoulder.” Devon waved his hand nonchalantly at the discarded and forgotten net. “And that isn’t something I would expect to see just lying around here at an animal shelter facility. That suggests you wrapped that wolf up in a net and brought him here against his will. Did you expect that there would be no consequence for that?”

  To say that Mateo’s brain was spinning in circles was an understatement. It was actually possible to watch the thoughts just running around and around in the man’s head. Finally, Mateo shrugged and made a dismissive sound in the back of his throat. “It’s just a dog. He was hanging around my girlfriend’s house. I decided to get rid of him. Look at the bastard!” Mateo sounded cocky now. The ass. “He’s been crapping on her lawn and making a general nuisance of himself. Of course we got rid of him!”

  “Your girlfriend?” Devon’s tone was chiding. “You must be joking. Eleni Ariosa is the one who called me because her dog had gone missing. She’s my brother’s fiancée. He’s out looking somewhere else. I followed the rest of the animals out here. They’re spectacular trackers when it comes to finding one of their own.”

  Orion was getting impatient. What was all of this talking? This ass had every intention of putting Eleni in danger. He was not going to leave her alone. That left only one course of action available in order to make sure that Eleni would be safe. The gym teacher man had to go. Permanently.

  With that thought on his very wolf brain, Orion gnashed his teeth and growled deep in his throat. He wanted blood. He wanted bone. He wanted an end to this ridiculous situation. And then before Orion could do anything more there were two sets of flashing lights blazing in the night as two emergency vehicles came storming into the parking lot of the animal shelter.

  Devon moved in closer to his brothers. Mateo Canjillon bolted from his spot against the shelter’s front door and began waving his hands frantically in the air as the police cars came to a screeching halt.

  There was also a small car behind them. And before Orion could process the scene in his primal animal brain, he spotted Eleni running toward him. She said nothing. She didn’t have to. But she knelt at his side and flung her arms around his thick ruff. The feel of her face buried against his fur seemed to take the bloodlust right out of him.

  “Oh, thank God you’re okay!” Eleni whispered. She stroked his ears and his face and ran her hands all over his back.

  The other two wolves—Jason and Zane—yipped and bounced on their hind legs as they eagerly greeted the other human in the tiny car accompanying the emergency vehicles. It was Skye. She was busy stroking Jason’s fur with as much relief as Orion could feel mirrored in Eleni’s body.

  “Thank goodness you guys are safe!” Skye looked up at Devon. “I suppose we should thank you for being the voice of reason, hmm?”

  “Hey! I told you guys to stay in your car until we cleared the scene!” Of all the people it could have been, Officer Paulsen was suddenly standing there with them. He looked from Skye, to Eleni, to Devon, and then at all of the wolves. “Holy shit, I think I now understand where the Bigfoot Wolf myth comes from. Where did you get these dogs?”

  Devon snorted. “Let’s call them wolf hybrids, shall we?”

  “Fine. Whatever.” Paulsen held up his hands. “I don’t even want to think about it right now. Too much paperwork.” He thumbed over his shoulder at Mateo Canjillon. Even from this distance Orion could see the guy waving his hands around emphatically as he no doubt accusd them all of something heinous.

  Devon pointed at Orion. “I’m pretty sure that Mateo Canjillon shot Eleni’s dog in the shoulder, bundled him in a net, and brought him out here to die.”

  “Okay.” Paulsen was staring back at Canjillon who was regaling the other three officers on the scene with his monster stories. “So how does his version of events fit in?”

  “He was at my house,” Eleni whispered. Her voice was filled with fear and loathing. “He was there. He fought with Orion. Then I woke up and he was spying on me! The dog went after him.”

  It was an interesting and somewhat accurate version of events. Of course, what was missing was that the dog was Orion, but that wasn’t going anywhere right now. Orion could not just shift and verify her story.

  “Where is Orion now?”

  “With the rest of his brothers I think.” Eleni shrugged. “I believe they were going out to the ranch. They’ve got a half brother, you know? I think they were spending some time out there to celebrate with family.”

  Paulsen frowned at Devon. “And you? Why are you still in Dallas?”

  “I spent some time this evening with my wife’s family.” Devon did not look amused by this and it took Orion a moment to realize that it was true. Devon had indeed left their family gathering a bit early with Kami in order to go and take a few gifts to her siblings for the Christmas holiday.

  Paulsen exhaled a huge sigh. “All right then. Shall we go and have a chat with Mr. Canjillon?”

  “He’s a liar,” Eleni whispered. “I don’t know why you want to hear anything he has to say.”

  But Paulsen was already walking over there.
Orion kept his good shoulder—the not bloody one—pressed against Eleni’s hip. She kept her hands buried in his fur as she walked. The whole group followed Paulsen toward the police cars and their flashing lights.

  Orion could not believe how cocky Mateo Canjllon now looked as he told his story with a flair for the dramatic that belonged on stage. It was almost as though he had forgotten the fact that he’d been peeing his pants just a few minutes ago.

  Unable to resist, Orion snarled and snapped at Mateo as they approached. The man shrieked like a girl and leaped behind the nearest police officer as though he honestly expected to be protected from the wolf. Orion chortled a very wolf-like laugh. His brothers did the same as the three of them kept their baleful glares focused right on Mateo Canjillon.

  “What are you doing leaving those beasts out to hurt the public?” Mateo demanded of Paulsen. “You should be locking them inside that shelter and putting them down first thing in the morning. They’re a damn nuisance!”

  “I know,” Eleni said angrily. “It’s just so awful when a loyal pet chases off some loser who is camped in your front yard spying on you!”

  Mateo’s mouth opened, but no words came out. It took him a moment to find a response. “I wasn’t spying. I was making sure your property was secure.”

  “Yeah?” Eleni pointed at him and her expression grew so angry that Orion wondered if she wasn’t going to rip him apart with her bare hands. No teeth necessary. “And who invited you to do that? I don’t want anything to do with you! You came on my property earlier, uninvited I might add, and attacked my fiancé! You’re obviously unbalanced! I want to press charges for stalking and harassment. I want to make sure that you can never do this to another woman again. It’s not right!”

  “I didn’t attack you or that loser you think you’re going to marry.” Mateo Canjillon frowned and shook his head as though he were expecting other people to somehow corroborate his story.

  Instead there were a lot of blank stares waiting for him to just admit the truth. Finally Paulsen exhaled a huge sigh and looked to Eleni. “You work with this clown? Right? Is that what I’ve been led to understand?”

  “Yes.” Eleni nodded. “I’m afraid that when I go back to work he’s going to make trouble for me.”

  “I’m almost certain that there are rules against that sort of behavior for a teacher.” Paulsen looked thoughtful. “Maybe the police department should have a discussion with the superintendent of the Addison schools.” Paulsen glanced at Mateo. “Unless you’d like to retract your claims and just go ahead and admit that you made some bad decisions because you’re a bit on the pushy side when it comes to a girl telling you no. Your friend Leo was willing to give evidence against you too. It seems you don’t treat your friends very nicely, Mr. Canjillon.”

  Mateo just stood there with his mouth hanging open. Orion wondered if he was going to have to bite the ass. Maybe that would somehow make the man stop being such an idiot.

  But no. Finally after a few moments had passed, Mateo Canjillon muttered something about being sorry and that he hadn’t meant to stalk Eleni or to hurt her dog. It wasn’t nearly enough, but at this point there was no doubt that they were all going to have to keep an eye on the creepy jerk for a while anyway.

  “Fine.” Eleni pointed at Mateo Canjillon. “But I swear if I see you looking at me wrong when the school years starts back up, I’m going to rip your balls off and feed them to my dog!”

  Mateo’s face paled. Of course, there was no way in hell that Orion was going to touch that guy’s nasty balls. But there was really no reason to mention that right now.

  Devon snorted and then gestured to Paulsen. “We’re in Addison. That’s not even your jurisdiction. How did you wind up out here with us after working all morning on that other thing?”

  Paulsen shrugged. “I’m single. I’m broke. I’m trying to save up enough money to buy a classic Camaro. Let’s just say that I pick up shifts in whatever department, whenever they need someone in hopes of making enough cash to do what I want.”

  Orion barked. Jason and Zane did as well. It was time for the King brothers to offer up a present to this poor officer. It wasn’t like they didn’t have the resources and goodwill was always a good investment.

  “Can we just go home?” Eleni yawned and gestured to the horizon where the first streaks of dawn were appearing. “I want to sleep. Talk about that day after Christmas feeling! Sheesh!”

  Devon started to head out with Orion, Jason, and Zane trotting behind. “I’ll just walk the dogs home!” Devon called out.

  This time it was Officer Paulsen that shook his head. “Right, Mr. King. You just go ahead and do that.”

  Orion and his brothers weren’t worried though. Once they were out of sight of the shelter, Devon shifted and the four of them ran through the sleepy streets of Dallas on their way home to their loved ones. She would be waiting. Orion had no doubt of that. Eleni would be waiting for him and he wanted nothing more than to make sure he was there when she got home.

  Chapter Thirty

  December twenty-ninth. Two days until the new year. Eleni tried not to think about that. At the moment it really did not matter. The only thing that did matter lay behind those enormous dark wood doors standing between the King family and a courtroom where their fates would be decided. It was nine o’clock in the morning and there was no doubt that it was going to be a long day.

  “Well, ladies and gentlemen, are we ready?” The King’s probate attorney appeared with a stack of paperwork so huge that he was nearly staggering beneath its weight.

  Orion reached out and plucked the papers from Mr. Westin’s arms. Eleni had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing as the smaller man nearly fell over once the huge amount of weight he’d been counter balancing was gone. Yet Orion did not look as though he had picked up anything at all.

  “I don’t know, Mr. Westin.” Orion hefted the stack of files in his arms. “If the sheer amount of information you have on hand is any indicator, then yes. We are ready.”

  “Don’t bet on it,” Paul Westin said darkly. He jerked his chin toward the other end of the gallery where Tisha Olivares-King was standing with Eleni’s mother and her sleazebag-looking attorney, Mr. Buddig. “I’m sure Mr. Buddig has his ducks in a row. The guy is one of the most expensive lawyers in the city when it comes to probate law. He’s an expert at twisting things to suit his clients.”

  “Then hopefully this case is untwistable,” Orion muttered.

  Eleni was actually standing right near Skye, Landry, and Kami. The four of them were huddled together and it was the first time that Eleni was so very aware of the fact that they were a family. The medallion hung beneath the neck of her sweater, the one that Kami had given her. It was tempting to touch the thing just to remind herself that the outcome of this did not matter. They were all strong people. They had other irons in the proverbial fire. If something should happen and King Security Solutions went down the tubes with Tisha Olivares-King at the helm, there was every possibility that the King brothers could jump ship and take the entire work force with them into a new venture.

  It made Eleni proud to think that she was part of something that big and that special. She was a part of it. She was going to be married to Orion soon enough. And just as the thought ghosted through her mind, Gemini slipped into the gallery and headed their way.

  He didn’t look uncomfortable exactly, just disgusted by what he saw around him. But before Eleni could ask the russet-haired eldest King brother what was on his mind, the big double doors opened.

  Orion turned and his dark gaze met Eleni’s. In that moment the courtroom, the judge, and even the case did not exist. There was nothing but the two of them. Eleni was lost in those warm brown eyes. She thought of the night before when they had clung to each other after making love for hours. He was an attentive and absolutely thoughtful lover. The man was handsome as sin and yet he could be so very humble in the way that he behaved toward her. Eleni always felt cherished
and loved beyond measure. It was a priceless gift she never wanted to lose.

  A bailiff stood in the open doorway and waved at the people milling about the gallery. “Judge Ronald Padilla invites those participating in the proceedings surrounding the settlement of the King estate to enter the courtroom. The judge requests that the proceedings be closed for this case because of the sensitive nature of the information to be presented and because of the family’s prominence in the Dallas community.”

  “Well, that’s different,” Skye muttered. She nudged the other women and then led the way into the courtroom. “That’s the first time I’ve ever heard of a judge closing the courtroom to the public for a probate hearing.”

  The inside of the courtroom somewhat resembled what Eleni had seen on television. She and the King women entered and sat right behind the place where all of the King brothers and their attorney chose to place themselves on the right side of the courtroom. That meant Tisha Olivares-King, Eleni’s mother, and their attorney were occupying the left side of the room.

  Skye nudged Eleni with her elbow. “Do we have any idea why your mother seems to be involved in this?”

  “Not a clue.” But Eleni knew that it couldn’t be good. “I don’t know if my mother thinks she’s just being supportive or not.”

  “More like waiting to pick the bones clean,” Landry said darkly. “Sorry, Eleni, but look at her. She’s practically salivating!”

  “I won’t deny that,” Eleni whispered back. “I’m only sorry that Edward and Diana can’t be here to add their two cents. That would have given the court a good overview of my mother’s interest in the court proceedings.”

  “Court is now in session! The honorable Judge Ronald Padilla presiding!”

  As soon as the bailiff shouted the words, a door at the back of the room opened and a tiny man walked into the courtroom. Eleni could not help but stare at the guy. He was barely five feet tall with curly dark hair that had been covered in hair gel. His moustache was neat and he was wearing bright turquoise half boots underneath his black judge’s robes. His hands were covered in rings and he walked as though he were strutting his way down the catwalk. It was kind of hilarious and yet there was no doubt that the little man had some serious style.