Two Minutes, Book 6

by Dannika Dark

  “Overruled.” Wheeler circled around the corpse and put his hands on his knees, bending over for a closer look. “Will, drive my Camaro back home. I want you to shift as soon as you get there and roll around in the creek for a minute. Then go inside and take a shower. Grab a bottle of ammonia, head back out here and pour it all around this spot. It doesn’t matter if you can still see the blood; any wolves that come sniffing around will rely on their noses, so the chemicals will throw them off and keep them away. Now grab his feet.”

  Once they crammed Aaron into the trunk, Wheeler wiped his sweaty brow. “After you clean up, put the empty container of ammonia back into my trunk with the lid closed. Don’t spill any of that shit in my car. Go home, and if we’re still not back, then just wait. Make sure Austin doesn’t go anywhere.”

  “Easier said than done,” Denver added with a sly grin. “He’s the Packmaster. Like Will is going to order him to sit in his chair and watch Game of Thrones.”

  Wheeler slammed the trunk lid closed and pointed his finger. Denver noticed a string looped around the end of it with a cardboard pine tree swinging below. “Just for your comedic attitude, I’m not putting the air freshener in there.”

  Chapter 10

  My internal clock still hadn’t adjusted to Texas time. It was after midnight and I was wide-awake, lounging on the leather sofa and indulging in a fantasy movie about a dragon breathing fire on unsuspecting villages. Melody had talked me into watching a dragon marathon, but it looked as though I had outlasted her. She was crashed on the sofa, her feet on my lap.

  Mel had an interesting sense of style: black leggings with her jean shorts. I admired the handiwork on her sneakers. She was a talented girl with a bright future if she kept at it. Part of me envied the contribution she would one day bring to her pack. My mother was a professional interior designer, and Lexi was an amazing business owner and baker. It made me wonder why I hadn’t been born with any special talents. Unless eating two bags of Walkers shortbread cookies counted, in which case my talents were unmatched.

  Just as the scaly dragon descended upon the frightened virgin, the front door swung open. I peered over the back of the sofa, listening to the rustle of shoes coming off and keys jingling to my right. Through the dark room, the television cast enough light that I could see their faces, and Austin wore a scowl on his.

  “You are fucking kidding me,” he said, hanging his keys on a nail. “You left a luxury car in front of Walmart and thought it would be fine? What the hell is wrong with you?”

  Denver bent over to pull off his sneakers. “I had to run in for some nail clippers, and Wheeler thought it might be a good place. It was there when we left it.”

  Austin rubbed his face. “Yeah, well it ain’t there now.”

  Wheeler came in, placed his foot on Denver’s ass, and gave him a shove.

  Denver fell onto his stomach and his hand squeaked against the wood floor. “You’re a real a-hole.”

  Wheeler closed the door and then stepped over him. My shoulder rubbed against the leather and made a flutter of sound.

  Denver pushed himself up and then his eyes met mine. “Maizy’s awake.”

  All three men looked up and their expressions altered. Toenails clicked on the floor from behind, and I turned to see William’s wolf standing in the hallway entrance with his ears perked up. He was a dirty-grey animal with black markings on his ears and muzzle. He wasn’t a particularly husky wolf, but he stood taller than some of the others. He also should have known better than to shift in the house, so something was going on.

  “That figures,” Austin murmured. “I have a lot of work to do in the morning, so I don’t want anyone knocking on my door unless it’s dire.”

  The men lowered their heads, acting curiously submissive.

  Austin climbed those steps like an exhausted man ascending Mount Everest. “And don’t let him out!” he shouted.

  William’s wolf kept his tail tucked between his legs and watched Wheeler follow behind Austin.

  “What have you guys been up to?” I asked.

  Denver tiredly rubbed his face, drifting toward the sofa and looking up at the TV. “Guy stuff. What are you watching?”

  “We’re watching something with carnivorous dragons.”

  “We?” He peered over the sofa at Melody. “Ah. I should have known the little booger would still be up. Why didn’t you take off her shoes?”

  “I was looking at the patterns she sewed on the edges. Aren’t they amazing?”

  “She needs to be in bed. Maybe Jericho doesn’t care if she stays up late because he’s a night owl, but midnight is my cutoff time.” He moved behind me and leaned over so his arms were on either side, encroaching on my personal space as if he were hugging me from behind. Denver’s cheek brushed against mine, and he began unraveling her shoelaces and tugged at the heels before tossing the shoes to the floor.

  I drew in a shallow breath, my heart steadily racing. I could feel the whiskers along his throat and the flush of heat on his skin. When the second shoe hit the floor, he abruptly moved away, leaving a cool draft where he had once been. Denver sent warm tingles in places he shouldn’t have by mere proximity, and it left me unnerved.

  He paced around the sofa and lifted Melody into his arms. Her head rolled to the side, and a mop of hair obscured her face. “Man, she’s really zonked out. I remember you used to fake being asleep just so I’d carry you upstairs.”

  “I did not!”

  Lie. I totally did.

  Denver winked. “Whatever.”

  While he headed upstairs, I dashed into the kitchen to grab some snacks. I’d forgotten how much I loved doing that as a teen—staying up late, sneaking food my mom usually didn’t allow me to eat. Of course, being an adult without restrictions made it less exciting. On the other hand, some of those snacks I hadn’t tasted in years, and I was about to indulge in a feast to remember.

  I tiptoed back through the hall toward the sofa.

  “Busted.”

  The can of Pringles slipped from beneath my arm and clattered on the floor. “Thanks, Denver. Now I probably broke all the chips.”

  “Maybe what you need is a conveyer belt from the kitchen to the sofa. How much food can you possibly eat?”

  “That’s the pot calling the kettle black.” I lifted the can and plopped down next to him in front of the TV. “I see you found something to watch.”

  “You can’t beat the classics.”

  “Setting a record for how many times you can watch Dumb and Dumber?”

  “Hey, is that Izzy’s cheese popcorn?” he asked. “She’ll murder you if she finds out you stole her craving food.”

  “She’ll never know.” I twisted the bag open and popped a few pieces in my mouth. “I used to eat half her bag. Then I’d cook some popcorn, spray it with oil, season it with the fake cheese sprinkle, and mix it in the bag.”

  His brows arched and he peeled off his shirt. “You conniving little sneak! Give me some of that.”

  I laughed while he took a handful. “I guess now I can just go to the store and buy her more.” A kernel of popcorn fell on his chest and rested between the muscles in his abs. “Do you have to be shirtless to eat it?”

  He crammed as many as he could into his mouth. “This is her laundry week. I’m not going to risk her finding cheese stains and kernel shells on my shirt.” A few pieces tumbled between his legs and he snatched them up and ate them anyway.

  “So where did you go earlier tonight?” he asked, licking his finger.

  The cheesy dust settled in the back of my throat and made me cough. I fidgeted with the cap on my soda bottle, but it was sealed too tight. “I could ask the same thing of you.”

  “You could, but Austin was with us, and the Packmaster doesn’t like everyone knowing his shit.”

  “Then maybe the same applies for me.”

  He stopped chewing and angled his body in my direction. “You were with a Packmaster?”

  I flashed Denver an ir
ritated look but then got caught up in the contours of his cheekbones, the sparkle in his deep-blue eyes, the way his wavy blond hair never quite covered the scar on his forehead over his left eye. It’s the kind of imperfection you don’t usually notice on a charismatic guy like Denver because of his crazy-sexy smile.

  Hmm. Since when did I start thinking of Denver’s smile as sexy?

  “Are you going to answer me?” he asked.

  “How did your date with the Russian go? I don’t mean to be rude, but I forgot her name.”

  “Nadia. I guess it went all right. She’s probably way out of my league. Independent, assertive, wealthy, honest…”

  “Beautiful.”

  He licked his bottom lip and chewed on another piece of popcorn. “That too.”

  “She sounds perfect.”

  Perhaps it was the fact my knees were bouncing up and down, or maybe I squeezed my soda bottle too hard, but when I turned the cap, a hiss sounded and soda flowed all over my legs. I quickly lifted the bottle by the neck and set it on the floor. “Shoot. Now it’s going to be all sticky.” I sat back, licking my wet fingers.

  Denver’s gaze drifted from my mouth downward. “You got some on your leg.”

  His fingers slid over my skin as he wiped up the soda that had dribbled across my inner thigh. When he brought his hand to his mouth and licked off the sweet liquid, my heart almost stopped. His eyes hooded and the air became charged with a mixture of body heat and pheromones.

  Denver leaned in close, his smoldering eyes dropping to my mouth. I caught his scent—musky and familiar.

  We explored each other with our eyes in a way we hadn’t before, entering unfamiliar territory. I’d never noticed how perfect his mouth was—broad and slightly curved up at the edges, like a man keeping a secret.

  I jumped when a heavy object slammed against the front door. My heart rocketed in my chest, and the sound of footfalls grew distant across the porch. Faster than I could track, Denver climbed over the couch and leapt to the floor. I followed close behind as he drew back the lacy curtain and peered out the window.

  “Who is it?” I whispered.

  The hinges on the door creaked as he opened it, and crumpled at his feet was a naked man. He had dried blood crusted around his neck and on his shaved head, and based on his awkward position and coloring, I was fairly certain he was deceased.

  William’s wolf made a deep, guttural sound as he approached the door, his nostrils flaring as he took in the scent.

  Denver stepped over the body and surveyed the property. “Son of a mother lover,” he hissed angrily. Then he silently mouthed a few additional obscenities.

  Goose bumps rose on my arms and I drew back. “What’s going on?”

  When William’s wolf tried to lurch forward, Denver caught him by the neck and hauled him back inside. I peered out the door and didn’t see anything out of the ordinary—just the cars parked along the driveway. Except William’s BMW was farther down than usual.

  “Shut the door,” Denver said, his voice falling to a whisper.

  Before I could move, Denver gripped my arm, pulled me back, and turned the deadbolt. “Run upstairs and tell Austin we have a level red.”

  “Why don’t I just tell him we have a dead body at the front door?” I sauntered past him and hurried up the stairs. Men could be so silly with all their code words, especially when the rest of the house knew what they meant.

  I reached the end of the hallway and lightly tapped on Lexi and Austin’s door. The sound of a light snore filled the room, so it was a surprise when Austin answered. He raised his right arm and leaned on the doorjamb.

  “Is that Lexi making that racket?” I said with a short laugh.

  He didn’t look amused, so I lowered my eyes and admired the talisman around his neck.

  “She only snores when she’s been crying for hours. You know anything about that?”

  “Denver’s downstairs with a level red.”

  Austin didn’t bother to put on sweatpants… or any other article of clothing. He quietly closed the door and headed downstairs in nothing but a pair of black boxer briefs. Granted, he had a nice tan, muscles, and could have been an underwear model, but I’d always looked at him like a father figure. So watching my dad run around in his underwear at this late hour wasn’t enjoyable.

  I wrinkled my nose.

  Austin’s voice quietly rose from the bottom of the stairs. “Maizy?”

  “Yeah?” I whispered back.

  “Get Wheeler down here. Tell him it’s a level red.”

  Annoyed, I padded down the front hall until I reached Wheeler and Naya’s bedroom. I knocked lightly on the door and Wheeler answered, squinting at the light from the hall. Behind him, Naya was in bed, wearing one of those fancy eye masks with lace around the edges.

  “Sorry if I woke you guys,” I whispered.

  Wheeler cleared his throat and spoke at a normal volume. “She has her earplugs in. I’ve been keeping her up too many nights and she wants her beauty sleep.”

  “Too much information. Austin sent me up here.”

  “What’s the message?”

  “Dead body at the front door.”

  I whirled around and headed back down the stairs. Much to my dismay, Wheeler had also decided to forego putting on pants, and he was wearing even less than Austin. They were tight, red, and way too small to be practical. I shielded my eyes when he caught up with me.

  “Can’t you guys put pants on?”

  I’d forgotten what it was like living with a wolf pack. They didn’t have inhibitions. That didn’t mean they normally walked around the house naked, but after a shift, it wasn’t uncommon to see someone strolling upstairs to their room. When I was little, Wheeler used to hide his pants on the property to cover up his scars, but that changed after he mated with Naya. I’d been living in the human world too long, where women hid themselves if someone opened the door and they weren’t dressed.

  Not the Cole brothers.

  Just as I reached the bottom of the stairs, I caught sight of Austin going outside in a pair of black boots with the laces undone.

  Denver snapped his fingers. “Back upstairs, Maizy.”

  Well, that just irritated me. “I know you’re trying to protect me, but I’m not a dog you can snap your fingers at, so don’t do that again. What’s going on?”

  “Someone’s fucking with our heads, that’s what’s going on,” he said, tucking his hands in his jean pockets.

  “Has this pack always been full of secrets?”

  “What secrets?”

  “Grab his feet,” Austin whispered to Wheeler just outside the door. “We’re putting him back in Will’s trunk.”

  I waved my hand. “Do I need to answer that question? Who is that?”

  Denver watched them for a moment and turned away. “You don’t recognize him?”

  That was a frightening question. I furrowed my brow and caught a glimpse of Wheeler moving out of sight while holding a pair of hairy ankles. “I just saw the back end. Should I have recognized him?”

  “Aaron.”

  My jaw hung lax. “The guy who… You mean that’s Trevor’s—”

  “Yeah, that’s exactly who it is. You can’t say anything to the pack; not until Austin makes the decision on what happens next.”

  I reclined my head back and covered my eyes. “I can’t believe this. They could arrest you!”

  He threw up his arms. “Hey, I didn’t do it.”

  A chill ran down my spine and my gaze darted to the window. It brought back memories of years ago when one of Ivy’s old packmates had come after her and battled our pack in a bar.

  “Then who did? Are they still out there? What if they try to get inside?”

  Without missing a beat, Denver stepped forward and wrapped his arms around me. Tight. The kind of embrace a man gives you when he wants to become your security blanket.

  “I won’t let anyone hurt you,” he whispered, his lips pressed against my head.

>   Denver was tall enough that he could rest his chin on the top of my head. His strong arms encased me a little more when I leaned into him. Suddenly, I didn’t want to be anywhere else in the world. His steadfast heart was the only sound I heard, the only thing I felt, the only unwavering loyalty I’d ever known.

  This is what I’d been missing all these years.

  The door swung open and Denver swept me behind him so fast that I almost tripped.

  “Why don’t you lift a finger and help a brother out? ’Preciate ya.” Wheeler shoved something into Denver’s arms and walked past us, an agitated look on his face.

  Denver turned around, holding a toolbox. “What’s this for?”

  “Just in case we have to roll the car into the lake, I don’t want to hear William whining about his tools,” Wheeler said, backing up. It kind of looked as though he was dressed with all the tattoos on his arms and back. He rubbed his hand over the black panther on his right pec. I tried not to notice the scars on his upper legs and hips. After Naya had come along, he no longer concealed the evidence of his dark past as a cage fighter. He’d even wear his reading glasses, which actually made him look charismatic and intelligent, even though the guys cracked a few jokes.

  Austin came back inside and looked at his hands. “I need a shower.”

  Wheeler gave a mirthless laugh. “If you need a shower, I need a decontamination hose.” He paused for a beat and folded his arms. “So what’s the plan, hoss?”

  Austin checked the lock on the door. “Can’t do anything about it tonight. The body concerns me less than the motherfucker who put it on my front porch. Are you sure no one followed you?”

  Denver and Wheeler looked between each other and shrugged.

  “Wheeler?” a voice sang from upstairs.

  “Shit,” Wheeler grumbled, noticing Naya had made it halfway down. “Go back to bed, kitty cat.” He crossed the room and stood at the foot of the stairs.

  “I told you I wanted to sleep.”

  “I’m not even near you! I thought you’d sleep a hell of a lot better without me tossing and turning.”

  She planted her hands on her hips, and the hem of her lacy nightie seemed to float around her. “I need you in the bed. Your body heat is a narcotic.”