by Jools Louise
“And Cracker,” John said, joining them, Jay and Rafe at his side. The sounds of the continued destruction of The Commander followed them as they left the area.
“Yes, and Cracker,” Ryder agreed. He looked at John and Jay. “Are you okay?”
John met his gaze steadily. “This will take a while to process,” he admitted. “Jayne’s death hit us all hard. But knowing that bastard is dead is comforting.”
Jay nodded. “My mates have tried to help me, and they have, immensely. This gives me closure. It’s taken care of another monster, who’s out of the loop forever.”
“And you’ve found two new siblings,” Dima said brightly, smiling. “Juliana will give you both a run for your money, from what I hear.”
John grinned suddenly, sharing a laugh with his brother and Rafe. “Yep. That girl is going to liven things up in Sage.” Then he looked worried. “I just hope Maizie doesn’t get to her first. Then we’re all in trouble.”
“Fuck, don’t say that,” Ryder retorted, grimacing. “Maizie’s on a different level as it is.”
Chapter Nine
Drew read the text from John and sighed with relief. The Commander was dead. Thank god. The bastard had been another level of shifterphobic. Drew knew they couldn’t relax just yet, though. They were all aware that the man was a sneaky fucker, and he had unfinished business which wouldn’t be concluded until his orders had been carried out. And they still hadn’t seen anything more of Callahan’s nemesis, Rodrick Ambrose.
Currently, he, Maizie, and Callahan were keeping Vince company. Lex and Leo had other patients to deal with but were on hand in case someone showed up who shouldn’t be there. Drew had a bad feeling, though, that they were missing a vital detail. The Commander was a distraction they didn’t need.
Fuck it! That was it. Daniel was also pulling strings here. He’d obviously sent Rodrick here to harass Callahan. And Gopher, who was at Warrior HQ under lock and key. But Daniel wasn’t after Vince, necessarily. Fuck, he’d hired Vince to hurt him and shake him for all that money. Daniel really wanted Sherman and Kathleen. He had a vendetta against all those who’d opposed him and stopped him finishing what he’d set out to do. Sherman and Kathleen must be top of his hit list.
“I need to go,” Drew said urgently. “I think my family is in danger.”
Maizie looked at him, frowning. “You think Daniel will send someone after them?” she asked.
“I think he’ll use them as collateral,” Drew told her. “He’s done it before.”
“Where are they?” Callahan asked, looking concerned.
Drew glanced at his watch. It was seven in the evening now. “They were going to eat at Feeling Clucky,” he said. “I should be there, but…” He jerked his chin at where Vince lay sleeping.
“Call Louis and Doyle, they’re working security at the mall,” Maizie said. “Cullen’s volunteered to take your shift. Slade’s at his shop until eight tonight, then he was going to wait at the restaurant until his mates, Oliver and Shark are done. I’ll warn him to keep his eyes peeled.”
“I’ll call the Spirit Ink boys,” Callahan said. “A couple of them can head over there, too. And Kaden’s working at the salon tonight with Alfie and Fly. That should be enough to keep your family safe. We need to stay here, guard Vince. He’s a loose end, too.”
“Rodrick will come after you,” Maizie told Callahan. “You’re better off staying here, keeping out of sight, where you’re safe. Sherman and Cracker are patrolling the town, in case Daniel or The Commander have sent reinforcements. It’s possible.”
“Mom’s working at the art shop,” Drew said slowly. “She’s teaching tonight.”
He palmed his phone and spoke to his brother. “Sherman, is Mom okay?”
“She’s canceled the class,” Sherman said. “She felt it was too risky, with everything going on. She’s safe. Watch your back, bro. You’re the one who has a pile of treasure buried somewhere on cyberspace. Don’t forget, that makes you the biggest target here.”
“Where are you? You’re on the hit list, too.”
“Don’t worry about us. You need to be careful. With both Ryder and John out of town, and Pace on his way back with Juliana and Jeremy, we need to be even more vigilant. Cullen’s keeping an eye out, too, from the restaurant. They hooked up a live feed to the town’s CCTV, for when he’s working his evening job.”
“Be careful, Sherman. Look what happened to Vince. He’s big and strong, too, and he’s lying in a hospital bed, fighting for his life. Bullets don’t care what species you are, or what size.”
Sherman chuckled ruefully. “I get that, bro. I remember the good old days when we just fought with our fists.”
Drew rolled his eyes. “Yeah, something to write home about, ain’t it, Sher-bot,” he drawled, grinning when Sherman snorted inelegantly.
“Watch yourself.” Sherman’s warning ended the call.
“He’s right,” Vince murmured. “You are vulnerable. You’re the gatekeeper to a very large fortune. There won’t just be Daniel’s minions after it.”
“He has no clue what’s at stake,” Drew replied grimly. “He thinks he’s invincible. But he’s far more vulnerable than I am. He has to pay to keep his people…and right now he’s flat broke. One word in the right…or wrong ear, and he’s going to have all those people that he’s promised money to breathing down his neck.”
Vince opened one eye. “I wonder how that happened? Why is he broke?”
“Not me,” Drew protested. “I could have done it. I even hacked into his accounts to see what he had left. But he’s got nothing. Gianluca won’t wait forever. He’s going to come after Daniel for the rest.”
“Yeah, but you have access to millions more,” Callahan said quietly. He frowned suddenly. “We’re busy looking for Rodrick Ambrose, aren’t we? But what if Daniel sent someone else. Someone who’s visited him in prison dozens of times.”
“Jensen Burton?” Drew asked, startled.
“Exactly.”
“What does he look like?” Drew grabbed his tablet and hit the screen a few times. “Okay, I’ve got a photo from his last prison visit. I need to send this to Sully and Pace, and all the enforcers and deputies.”
He showed the screen to Maizie and Callahan, then turned it to face Vince. “Recognize him?”
Vince slanted a look at the photo. “Yeah, that’s the one. Strangely familiar, ain’t he?”
Drew felt a little sick. This guy had been all around town. At the cinema. The mall. The art shop. The café. For the last couple of days, Drew had noted the guy and had racked his brain to remember where he’d seen the man before. Considering how active his brain was, it was not surprising he’d missed putting two and two together. The Commander, as distractions went, was a pretty effective one.
He sent the photo out on the town’s security network, alerting everyone they needed to look out for this guy, as well. If this man was Daniel’s assassin, as well as his probation officer, he was capable of taking out whoever he wanted to. He looked like a lawyer, wearing tan slacks, and white shirt, sans tie. Shiny brown shoes, and smartly casual brown hair. Brown eyes completed the earthy-hued ensemble. Yeah. But those eyes. Cold, calculating, clever. Hunter’s eyes. Why hadn’t Drew seen it before?
* * * *
“That man’s been following us,” Blue hissed to his friends, glancing out the window at Feeling Clucky as they waited in line for their order. He and his friends had a weekly date here and had met up with their townie buddies, Moe and Flint, and their brothers. The place was buzzing.
Arthur, accompanying them with his mother, Dorothy, eyed the stranger intently, his gaze far older than his years. He was used to evading danger. It had been part of his life for the past three years or so.
“Yeah, I saw him earlier. At the park when we were walking through town. He seemed a little out of place. Trying to pretend he was having a picnic, at six thirty in the evening, in March. It’s close to freezing outside.”
“T
rouble?” Noah, a huge bear shifter working the counter, eyed the children with concern.
“There’s a guy who seems to be following us,” Murray whispered. “Over by the trash can, opposite the ice cream parlor. I saw him yesterday, too, I think. I’m sure he was at the Sports Complex when we went swimming.”
Noah turned away casually, grabbing a shovel to load fries into containers, and murmured something to Cullen, who was working the grills. Cullen nodded briefly, then grinned, as though Noah had told a joke, not drawing attention, but casually slipping his hand under the counter, retrieving his laptop. Tapping some keys, he glanced at the kids and winked.
“Do you want extra onion rings with that burger?” he asked politely.
“Hmmm, yes,” Arthur said happily, clapping his hands.
“He just loves those onion rings,” Dorothy said, her hand on her son’s shoulder. “Could we get an order of kick-ass to go with that,” she added quietly, her eyes glinting angrily, having heard the boys’ comments about their stalker. Her phone beeped, and she palmed it, reading the alert there.
“You know what, Kathleen?” she said to her friend, standing just behind her. “Aren’t you just sick of all these men thinking they can control us?”
Kathleen smiled slightly. “Oh yeah,” she replied. “I suffered years of it, and was punished when I didn’t obey. I’m absolutely sick of it. I love guys, just not those pricks who like to call the shots all the time, and intimidate those who are vulnerable or defenseless.”
Dorothy grinned as Kathleen took up the verbal baton.
“He’s listening,” Arthur said softly. “Just wrinkled his nose like he smelled something funny.”
“These boys have had enough upset in their lives,” Dorothy continued. “Why does that idiot, Daniel, think he gets to hurt them still? Hasn’t he done enough?”
“I agree,” Kathleen grimly, tilting her chin. “So what do we intend to do about it?”
They exchanged glances. “Stay here, boys,” Dorothy said firmly. For once the children obeyed without question as Kathleen and Dorothy exited the restaurant.
“They’re gonna kick ass,” Blue hissed excitedly. “Who is that guy?”
“Daniel’s errand boy,” Noah warned them. “So, all of you come in the back, please, out of sight. Come on.”
Moe and Flint looked terrified, trembling and pale. “Daniel sent him?” Moe asked, biting his lower lip.
“Yeah,” Cullen replied, palming a pistol. “Now go into the back, boys. This one’s not getting away.”
They exchanged frightened glances, and scurried past Noah, into the small staff room.
* * * *
Sherman nodded to Kaden, who alerted his crew that Burton was in the building. They’d seen him in town earlier, and now that Drew had given them the heads-up about who the guy was, it was all hands on deck. Lex and Leo remained at the hospital with Maizie, guarding Drew, Callahan, and Vince.
Sherman cursed softly as Kathleen and Dorothy left Feeling Clucky, making a beeline for Burton. “Fuck. They’re going after him themselves,” he said.
Kaden smiled. “Good for them,” he approved. “Probably fed up that Daniel’s still in the picture. Dorothy’s had enough to deal with, after what happened with Fielding. I figure she thinks Kathleen needs backup since Daniel’s still trying to frighten her and the boys.”
“They could be hurt,” Sherman protested.
“They’ve already been hurt,” Fly said sharply. “We all have. I remember what Daniel’s idea of quality time was, and he and his minions need to be taught a lesson. And if anyone hurts Noah again, I’ll rip Jensen Burton’s throat out. Guilty by association.”
Sherman eyed his friend with amusement. Fly was a feisty cheetah, with a flair for the dramatic but had a long and unpleasant history with Daniel. He and Noah had both been harmed, tricked into working for the man, then when they realized the job entailed hurting children, they refused…and ended up left to rot in a disused mine shaft.
“I don’t think that’ll be necessary,” Kaden said. “Looks like Kathleen’s got her feline mojo on.”
They all stared. Kathleen had Burton by the throat, fangs and claws bared, her face inches from her victim. They could hear her angry words from where they stood but inched toward the door of the salon.
“Who the fuck do you think you are? My boys are scared half out of their wits now they know who you work for. What the fuck kind of a man does that to small children?” She cuffed Burton upside the head, leaving angry gashes along his cheek. He dangled from her grasp, despite being a little taller. Muscles bulged in her arm as she shook him like a rag doll.
Dorothy joined in the harassment. “My own son, Arthur, has also been subject to idiots like Daniel,” she snarled, her small fox fangs gleaming. “He was forced to shoot someone, not that long ago. A man in league with Daniel and Nikolai Petrovsky, and all those fuckwits who like to hurt others.” She swiped with her claws, gouging more grooves into his neck. He was now bleeding profusely, looking at each female as though he was about to pee himself.
“Daniel just wants his money back,” Burton whined pitifully. “He’ll leave you alone if you just give him what he wants.”
Kathleen roared loudly and shoved the man up against the wall of the mall. He began to turn purple from lack of oxygen. “My money!” she gritted out. “The money I earned from my art. Hard-earned money meant to secure my sons’ future. Not his! Never his. He hasn’t earned a penny in his life, except through killing people. How the fuck dare you tell me to give him one fucking cent of it.”
“Mom?” Sherman said softly, moving in behind her. “We need information from him,” he said. “He may be a decoy,” he added and saw the truth in Burton’s eyes. Yeah. The bastard was another distraction. Which meant Drew was still in danger.
“He’s pitiful,” Dorothy sneered, spitting in Burton’s face. “This is how you earn a living, is it? Being Daniel’s little errand boy? What has he promised you? A huge fortune? Well, sorry to tell you, doofus. That money ain’t his. And none of you will ever get your hands on it. It’s gone to far greater things than your attempts to cleanse the world of shifters.”
“Mom. Drew’s still in danger,” Sherman warned her. “So let’s find out if this asshole knows what his boss has planned.” He glared at Burton fiercely, who quailed under Sherman’s angry regard.
“I swear, this has nothing to do with me,” Burton protested, the smell of piss emanating from him as he literally peed his pants in terror. “Whatever else Daniel has got up his sleeve, all he told me to do was keep an eye on the people in town.”
“But he told you to make some calls, didn’t he?” Cullen asked, exiting the restaurant. “And you called several people.” He aimed his pistol at Burton’s head. “It’ll be far less painful for you if you come clean, douche. We’re all a little fed up by all this crap. How many more times do we have to tell you? The money isn’t yours.”
“I made some calls,” Burton confessed. “To Rodrick Ambrose and Gopher. Also to Gianluca.”
“Is Rodrick going after Drew?” Sherman asked heatedly, slapping Burton hard.
“I don’t know, I swear I don’t,” Burton whined shrilly. “I just gave them a message. That all systems were go.”
“What is he planning?” Dorothy asked sharply. ”He must have a master plan.”
Burton looked guiltily at her but shook his head. “He’ll kill me if I tell.”
They all chuckled heartily, which had him looking even more worried. “You’re not getting it, are you? We’re done playing nice with all those who aid and abet Daniel, or Flashpoint, or Fortress, or any of their affiliates,” Kathleen explained patiently, her eyes chilly. “Daniel is the least of your worries. Or haven’t you noticed that you have a whole town full of angry shifters wanting a piece of you? Me first, though.” She smiled maliciously and snapped her jaws.
“I’m gonna die,” he moaned, closing his eyes.
“Now he’s getting it,”
Dorothy smirked, slow clapping. “Unless you tell us everything, the next place you’ll see will be hell. If you help us, we may be lenient.”
He began to talk, rapidly and honestly, leaving nothing out.
* * * *
Drew turned as a woman entered the ward, dressed in a nurse’s uniform. She had flame-red hair and blue eyes. Tall and slim, she was a stranger, and he was instantly on alert. She was no nurse. She didn’t have the right vibe.
“All alone?” she asked casually, glancing around the ward.
He shrugged, tapping his tablet nervously, but really sending a signal to Maizie and Callahan, Leo and Lex, who were hiding elsewhere. Vince was dozing, and Drew was alone with his mate.
“You’re not our usual nurse,” he observed, meeting her cool gaze. Yeah, this was a hunter, not a medical professional. She had the look of a killer, not a carer.
“New in town,” she admitted, smiling in a way that had him shivering. She reminded him of Morag, the woman who’d pretended to be Fly’s mom. Despicably malevolent.
“Really? So Lex is hiring again, is he?” He kept up the conversation, waiting for signs that she’d strike.
“No,” she retorted, dropping the casual act. “Daniel is.”
“Aaah.” He sighed wryly, grimacing. “I figured he must be getting desperate by now. Shame he won’t be paying you. He’s broke you know.”
She snorted. “No. He has millions at his disposal.”
“Sorry. Not now. The money was retrieved about a second after it landed in his account,” Drew chuckled. “It’s now somewhere he’ll never find it.”
She bared fangs. Sharp little feline fangs. Wildcat? Bobcat? Possibly. She looked fit and agile and unafraid of him. She’d obviously had some training. He knew not to underestimate the female of any species.
“Hand it over, douche.”
He rolled his eyes. “Or what? You can’t kill me because then you won’t get the money. If you hurt my mates or family, or I’ll skin you alive, and you still won’t get the dough. A shame I have to keep repeating myself. I recall having a similar conversation with someone recently.” He glanced at Vince, smirking mockingly. “I mean, you send fuckwits like this to a town like Sage? What did you think was going to happen? He’s a washed-up old cop, and his skills are definitely rusty. Look at him. He got shot, point blank, by Gopher. Geez! Talk about an embarrassment. You know what else? He’s supposed to be my mate, too?” Drew laughed with genuine amusement at that. “God moves in mysterious ways, doesn’t he? I bet this old goat has no lead left in his pencil, anyway. All he does is talk. Mouths are for kissing, too,” he added tauntingly.