by Lauren Dane
“Nothing further for now. I’ll be in touch.” The way he said it made it sound like a threat and Nina sighed.
“Thank you.” Nina tiredly leaned into Lex as he led her back to the car. She let him help her inside and put her head back and closed her eyes.
“Beautiful...”
“Don’t. Just don’t, Lex, because you and I both know this is Carter and if I think about it anymore right this moment I’m going to hunt him down and kill him.” She said this with her eyes still closed.
“Okay, I know why I think it’s Carter. Tell me why you do.”
“I don’t think Melissa is the shooter. She seemed quite genuine with me and while she showed interest in the laptop, her interest didn’t seem out of bounds for the situation. She seems happy with being ranked where she is, ambitious but not ruthless.”
“Okay.” Lex’s voice was noncommittal.
“Eric is a tricky one. He pretends to be the man about town with the ladies and yes, he’s a bit smarmy. But, he listened to every word that was said, even as he checked out my tits.”
Lex growled. “Don’t think I didn’t notice that. Pup. He’ll keep away from you in the future if he likes breathing.”
Nina opened her eyes and looked at him. “Uh, yeah, whatever. I’d rather have wolves checking my boobs than trying to kill me. Call me shallow that way.”
Lex gave a weary sigh and waved her on.
“But Carter, he’s a vicious bastard. You can smell the ruthless ambition dripping off him.”
“You don’t think Melissa is ruthless?” Lex asked, curious.
“Not in the same way that Eric and Carter are. That challenge? Come on! Yes, he was knocked over by a human but so what? He could have turned it around and made himself look benevolent for helping Lex’s crazy human mate. But instead he challenges me to the death for it? Overreact much? He wanted to kill me and be done with it. The way he did it was desperate and that’s what worries me the most. Because he’s at the bottom of the Pack now and he doesn’t have the access to the Pack that he used to. Whatever his game is, the people he’s working with are so not going to be down with that.”
Lex looked in the rearview at his sister. “Meg, what do you think?”
“I think she’s right. Carter is hiding something and he’s desperate. You can smell it on him. Melissa is comfortable as Fourth now, she isn’t hiding anything that is bad enough to stink of it. Eric? He’s smart and strong, but too lazy to be behind this.
“The question is—what do we do now as our next step? He’s busted down to the lowest echelon of the Pack. He has no ranking at all. We can’t watch to see what he’s doing with the accounts if he doesn’t have the access.”
“Desperate people make mistakes. I think it’ll be easier to figure him out now that he’s going to be taking more risks than before. These Rogues aren’t going to just take no for an answer.” Lex tapped his finger on the steering wheel as he processed the information.
“Yes. All we have to do is stand back and watch. He’ll fuck up and sooner rather than later, I think. The way the money was going in and then out? That’s the sign of someone who is living on the margins. That’s a dangerous existence. He’s bound to get himself out on a limb soon and he’ll do something stupid.”
Lex glanced at her with a smile. “I love it when you’re devious, beautiful.”
Nina laughed. “Well, then you’re clearly with the right woman.”
Instead of continuing east, Lex got off the freeway a few miles early. “Where are we going?”
“I know you’re upset and you’re tired but I’d like to take you to the range for a bit of practice. Do you know how to use a gun? I mean—” he gave her that raised brow before turning back to the road “—I know you can use a shotgun. But do you know how to use a handgun?”
“Uh, well. You do remember me shooting Carter? I believe you were there at the time?” Her voice was sarcastic and he raised a brow. “Yeah. I carried a really old Smith & Wesson back when I was on the streets. It probably wouldn’t have shot but it made me feel better. I go to the firing range from time to time but it’s not like I’m a big pro or anything.”
Lex pulled the car down a long drive. “This is a private range for wolves. We used to use the public one but humans tend to get really nervous when they see us shooting. As a member of the Pack you have access to it and any weapons and ammo you need. The wolf who runs it was one of my mentors when I was growing up.”
They parked and Megan got out first. She scanned the area then Lex got out. Nina, growing used to the whole process, waited for Lex to come around to her side.
At the doors to what appeared to be a very nice rambler they stopped and Lex keyed in a series of numbers that Nina surreptitiously watched and noted. Just because she could and it was a hard habit to break.
The door swung open and another, very large man, er, wolf was there, armed to the teeth, er, fangs. He inclined his head. “Enforcer, it’s good to have you here.”
Lex reached out and touched the man’s shoulder. “Grey, it’s nice to be here. This is my mate, Nina. She’s Rey’s sister. She’ll be coming in a few times a week to build up her skill level.”
The other wolf looked up briefly at Nina. “Welcome to Cascadia. My sincere condolences for your loss. Rey was always fun to play cards with. He watched my youngest last year for a few months on Thursday afternoons when the wife had to work swing shift and I couldn’t change my schedule. Taught her how to play backgammon.”
A sweet memory rushed through Nina then. Gabriel had loved backgammon. It was one of the games their father had played with them both and it had been a way for Nina and Gabriel to reconnect with him.
She put a hand up to her chest, pressing over her heart. Tears welled up. “Thank you. You don’t know what it means to me to hear you say that.”
“Ms. Reyes, your brother was a good person. Anyone who said differently didn’t know him very well. When I needed him, he always helped out. He may have made a big deal about it or talked a good game, but he refused to take money to watch Bea. Said she kept him young. He would always bring her stuff that he won at the fair or picked up here and there. He told me once that she reminded him of you. Looking at you now, I can see why.”
He pulled his wallet out of his back pocket and showed a picture of a smiling little girl with deep brown eyes, wide and filled with a kind of openness that Nina simply couldn’t recall ever feeling until that moment. She did have that face for part of her life. For so long it had been too painful to remember and so she just pushed it so far back that she nearly forgot.
“Nina,” she whispered and cleared her throat. “Please, call me Nina.” She leaned over and hugged the man quickly. “Thank you.”
Blushing furiously, he inclined his head again, grinning. Lex rolled his eyes, but seeing Nina’s face was worth seeing her hug another man. Pausing mentally, Lex realized that he was one of those people who hadn’t known Rey very well. Gabriel Reyes had been a dipshit, but after hearing Nina talk about their past Lex understood Rey a lot better and was sorry he’d never really tried to get to know him.
“Dorian is out back. I’ll let him know you’re here.”
Lex nodded at Grey. “Thanks.”
Lex guided Nina through several long hallways until they ended up at a set of large double doors. There was a large locker area to one side and a counter across from that with shelves and shelves of what appeared to be ammunition and firearms. Body armor hung on racks.
“This is the shooting range. There is also an archery range outside for crossbows, very enjoyable. Fencing and sword work is done in a room that we passed on our way in. Hand-to-hand combat work like judo and Krav Maga is done in the smaller practice floors upstairs.
“All of my guards are trained here by Dorian Metz. Dorian has been in charge of training
for forty-five years. He’s the reason I went into the army and got into the Rangers. I was hard as nails at nineteen because I’d trained with him my entire life.
“Were we allowed to compete, he is good enough to medal in shooting at the Olympics. He’s also a black belt in karate and is incredibly skilled with knives and Japanese long swords.
“I will oversee all your training. But he will help when needed.”
Nina wrinkled her nose as Lex began to look over the different handguns behind the counter. “Training?”
Lex chose one and unlocked the trigger lock. He turned and pulled open a drawer, popped out the magazine and laid it, together with the gun and a box of ammunition down. “You’re my mate, Nina. My place in this Pack as Enforcer is a dangerous one. As such, it’s dangerous for you too. That means you have to be trained to defend yourself and also to be on the offensive if necessary.”
“Okey-dokey. But I hope you know that I’m rebuilding my shop. Not that I don’t mind backing you up and kicking anyone’s ass who threatens you. But I’m a florist, Lex.”
He grinned and kissed her forehead. “I know. But you need to be trained. Everyone in the Pack receives some level of training and everyone ranked Ten and above receives a great deal more.”
He then watched her load the bullets into the magazine and snap it into place. He had her do it over once more and nodded. “Good.”
“Yeah. It’s not exactly rocket science.”
Just then a man walked through the double doors. “Alexander, my boy! You’ve brought your mate to me. Are you going to turn her over to my care?”
Nina raised a brow and Lex chuckled. “Dorian!” He hugged the man and turned to Nina. “Dorian Metz, this is Nina, my mate. And I’ll handle her training. Well, except for swords.”
The man was the smallest werewolf Nina had seen. Most of them were at least six feet tall and bulky in some way. Dorian Metz was about five seven. He was totally gray and had the most piercing light blue eyes. He studied her, taking her measure.
“You don’t trust me with your stunning little wolf, Alexander?”
Lex snorted. “No, Dorian. My stunning little wolf is tough. She can handle herself quite well. It’s you I’m protecting.”
Both men laughed and Nina looked at Megan and rolled her eyes.
“Okay, now can you two do the secret handshake already? Or is there spanking involved and some sort of secret ritual?”
Dorian got quiet for a moment and narrowed his gaze at Nina, who actually was beginning to regret her glib comment. Thank goodness his face broke with a huge smile and he pulled her into a hug.
“Oh! I do like this one, Alexander. You need some humor in your life. You’ve always been too serious. She’ll keep you in line, I think.”
The rest of their time was spent shooting. Lex was impressed with how well she did. Every shot had hit the target and once he’d begun giving her pointers about how to stand or hold the weapon, she began to improve even more. Clearly she was a natural and her improved reflexes due to the change would help her become an excellent shot.
They’d said their goodbyes and headed back home, where Lex promised a hot bath and Nina heartily endorsed the idea, her muscles already beginning to ache from shooting.
* * *
Jack Reed, the Alpha of the Rogue Clan, stared down his nose at Carter. Things had changed in a big way for Jack. Only days before, Carter’d had the upper hand and now not only had the other wolf been busted down to the bottom of the ranks in Cascadia but Warren Pellini, the spokesperson from the Pellini Group—read werewolf mob here—came to see him about Carter’s debts.
Pellini and Jack had had an interesting discussion about the virus and the cold hard fact that with Carter at the bottom of the Pack, he didn’t have access to the records and finances that he had before. That made him more than useless, it made him a liability.
“You did a very stupid thing, Carter.”
“Look, how was I to know she’d get a gun and empty an entire clip into me? That bitch needs to get dead and I won’t rest until she is.” Carter’s voice was laced with menace and no small amount of fear.
“The question is, Carter, why the fuck would you think it was a good idea to challenge the Enforcer’s mate to the death on the night she was introduced into the Pack?” Jack’s hand slammed onto the desk for emphasis.
“It was a great plan! She needs to die, I had the right and the ability to kill her and I took it.”
“Yes, a really successful plan, that. Kudos,” Jack said dryly.
“So I made a mistake. I’ll fix it.”
“You can’t fix it, Carter. You’ve lost your position and your power. I can smell their magic on you. They neutered you.” Jack’s face twisted into a sneer as he referred to the metaphysical stripping of his status and power performed by the governance council.
“I can get it back! You owe me. I got you in. I got you data. I got you the virus when you were just nickel-and-diming people in two-bit scams. If it weren’t for me you wouldn’t be sitting on the biggest gold mine ever.”
“Yes, yes. And while I appreciate that, your usefulness has come to an end, Carter. You have no further access to the data we need. And we don’t need it anymore anyway. The information was key but we can move forward without it. I can offer you a place with the Rogues. We can use runners.”
“Runners? How dare you insult me? I’m Third in the largest Pack in the west! I am not a runner!”
Jack reached out and shoved Carter back into the chair. “Were Third. And I am aware that you think we’re crude and stupid. That we aren’t fit to shine your six-hundred-dollar Italian loafers. But the shoe is on the other foot now, pardon the pun. We are smart enough to have engineered the theft and reproduction of the lycanthropy virus. All of those little errands that failed? You fucked up. Those failures were caused by your own men and the ones you chose from my ranks. Clearly, Carter, they weren’t very well equipped for the job.
“But really, at base? You have no power. You have nothing to offer us. I offer you a place with us because you have nowhere else to go. You can’t stay with Cascadia. We both know that you’ve become a very big liability. I can’t just let you stay there. We can’t risk exposure.”
Jack sat back down and smoothed his tie. “Lastly, you have Lex Warden on your ass. You know as well as I do that he won’t rest until you’re dead. You tried to kill his mate. I’ve seen the man rip the fucking head off an opponent without breaking a sweat. Before I left Cascadia I saw a battle. A group of Rogues, my predecessor and his minions actually, launched an attack on Cade and their father. There were nine wolves in full prime and they were armed.”
Into the story now, Jack leaned back as he relived the memory of that night eight years before. He took glee in scaring the hell out of Carter with the very real specter of Lex Warden.
“Lex waded into the group and began to change. He began to literally rip the other wolves apart with his bare hands. It was bloody and the screams, my god, I can still hear them today. The Alpha of this Pack challenged Lex and Lex reached out and—I shit you not, Carter—reached out and pulled his motherfucking head right from his body and tossed it down at his feet. Covered with blood, he turned to the remaining wolf who’d fallen to his knees, and grinned. That wolf ran and I never saw or heard of him again.
“Cade and Henri had just watched it all, supremely convinced that Lex would handle the nine wolves. The guard had helped him a bit you understand, but I watched Lex Warden kill six wolves with his bare hands. He never drew a weapon.”
Jack stood up and walked around to lean on the corner of his desk. “So you see, you aren’t long for this world without the protection of this Pack. Lex Warden is the lycan version of the boogey man and you tried to kill his wife.”
“Are you threatening me?” Carter stood, incensed but
sweating profusely and shaking after hearing the story he’d heard rumors of for years. “You have no idea who you’re dealing with! Who I have behind me. Don’t push me, Jack. Don’t you dare threaten to kill me. My friends in high places wouldn’t like that.”
Warren Pellini stepped into the room and nodded once to Jack. He turned his hazel eyes on Carter.
“Warren! Thank god. Did you hear what’s happened? These fool Rogues are threatening to kill me! The girl is still alive. That laptop is still out there. If there’s anything on it we’re fucked.” Carter slumped back into the chair and sent a smirk to Jack.
Moments later, it dawned on him. “Warren, what are you doing here? Did you hear of my trouble and come to help? There are ways, you know, for me to get my power back. Spells the old ones can do. Then I can make the last of my payments to you.”
Those hazel eyes never flickered with a bit of emotion. In a cool voice Pellini said, “No one is going to perform that spell for you, Carter. Getting your power back would only happen if you performed an extraordinary act for the Pack. And Lex and Cade would be the ones who’d make the final decision. You tried to rip Lex’s mate and Cade’s anchor apart. Oh, and now she’s a wolf. With incredibly high status and power to match, and she’s guarded twenty-four hours a day.”
Warren leaned against the desk and crossed his ankles with faux casualness. He studied Carter for a few moments. “How far you’ve fallen, Carter. Sweating in my presence like an unranked wolf. Oh wait, you are an unranked wolf.” The laugh that came from his lips was icy.
“Your debt has been discharged. Jack and I have a deal.”
Carter stood up. “You’ve forgiven my debt? Really? Thank...” Carter’s eyes blanked and the life fell from them as the silver bullet raced through his brain.
Warren pulled an invisible thread from his suit jacket, looked back at Jack and then nodded to his Enforcer. “Dump it in Cascadia territory. Let it be known that he had a great deal owed due to gambling debt and now that he had no real salary from the Pack he had to pay in another way. That should buy us some time.”