Shadows of the Moon (Black Wolf Agency Book 2)

by Jessica Swan

  “There’s no such thing when it comes to your safety.”

  “Okay, well, are you ready to go?” she asked, holding her purse. She was dressed nice; she wore a white shirt with a collar and grey blazer over it, with a matching skirt that came to just above her knees, and a pair of cute black shoes with three inch heels.

  “Yep, I’m ready. You look really nice, by the way,” he said, smiling as he leaned in to kiss her.

  “Thank you.” She blushed. She couldn’t seem to get enough of him, and after last night’s sex marathon, he had to be feeling the same about her. Didn’t he? She smiled to herself.

  When they arrived at the bank, Selene leaned over and kissed Marcus goodbye. Then she assured him, “Don’t worry, I’ll be fine.”

  “Telling me not to worry is like telling a werewolf not to howl at the full moon.” He chuckled and then added, “Alright, I’ll try not to worry. I’ll send someone over as soon as I can. You won’t even know he’s here. Then, when you get out of work at 5pm, I’ll be here to pick you up. Fifth floor, right?”

  “Yes, sir,” she said, grinning as she leaned over to kiss him again. This time the kiss lasted longer. She went to open her mouth to tell him her secret, but between her nerves and the fact that she would be running late if she stayed any longer, she decided not to say anything. She would tell him later, when they were both done working and alone together. Instead, for now, she said, “I’ll miss you.”

  “I’ll miss you, too.” He smiled at her as she got out of the car.

  She looked back and blew him a kiss just before she entered the building and disappeared out of sight.

  Even though Selene had told him repeatedly not to worry and that she was pretty sure the man they had in the cell back at the agency was indeed the murderer they were looking for, Marcus was still very worried. Until he saw some kind of proof that they had the right man, he would continue to worry about her. There was no denying it; he was developing feelings for her. Strong feelings. In fact, he had never felt this way about someone in his entire life.

  He smiled as thoughts were running in his mind, ‘I’ve known almost most my entire life, or at least since I was a teenager, that the werewolf sex drive was by far more than the average human’s. I have always had a handle on mine, or should I say…a hand on mine? I’ve been able to control the overpowering urges, until now it looks like.’ He shook his head and chuckled to himself.

  When Marcus got back to the agency, Yvonne and Lucius were there waiting for him.

  “What’s up? Any news?” asked Marcus. His heart began to race in that second as he waited for their answer.

  “We just checked and there haven’t been any murders since we locked up Sam last night,” announced Yvonne.

  Marcus let out a sigh of relief and said, “That’s great news. Maybe we have our killer after all, just as Selene thought. I’d like to send Damian or Devon over to the bank she works at anyway, just to make sure she’s alright.”

  “Marcus, she’s a werewolf,” said Lucius. “Even if we’re wrong, and the killer is still out there, she’ll be okay. She can defend herself.”

  “She’s a new werewolf, though. She doesn’t have the skills and knowledge that we have.” Marcus could feel himself getting angry and knew he should tone it down. He didn’t want everyone to find out about his growing feelings for Selene, at least not before he was totally sure about them himself.

  “He has a point,” Yvonne suggested. “Kate is pretty new still, too. I doubt she’d be able to fight off an experienced werewolf.”

  “Kate is pregnant, Yvonne,” argued Lucius. “That’s not a good comparison.”

  “Well, either way, I agree with Marcus. I think it would be a good idea to have someone watch over her at all times.” Then Yvonne looked at Marcus and said, “I can tell you really like her. I’d hate to see you lose another special person in your life.”

  “Thanks, Yvonne.”

  Marcus knew if there was anyone who would have had a problem with him taking over his father’s position at the agency, it would be Yvonne. The fact that she was being so nice to him, and even sticking up for him and agreeing with him was a good indicator that she probably felt he was a good choice to lead the agency.

  As soon as Selene stepped out of the elevator, her boss approached her with a serious expression on his face. He needn’t say anything; she already knew what was going to happen next. “Good morning, Mr. Gates.”

  “Good morning, Selene. Come into the meeting room. We have to discuss this with the whole team.”

  Joshua Gates was the type of man that naturally made someone nervous. He was a tall, dark-haired man with a pale complexion. He was actually kind of handsome, but the constant serious look on his face and stiff demeanor always seemed to instill fear in everyone around him.

  Nervous, she followed him through the bank, past all the unknowing employees. They stepped into his office and closed the door, locking it behind them. Then he lifted a picture frame on his wall, typed in the pass code into the keypad behind it, and out of the wall next to it, opened a door. Normally, the door was invisible, blending perfectly into the wallpaper. Selene had only been beyond this door a few times. Most of her dealings with her team were done on the streets. Though, quite often Mr. Gates would have her do boring office work just to keep up appearances. She was supposedly an employee at a bank, after all.

  “Good morning, everyone,” said Selene, smiling at her team, consisting of four men and one woman; Jeff, Dan, Jeremy, Dave, and Amber, all of whom were young, fit, and attractive. The team was missing two of its members. They had been among the victims of the werewolf killer’s attacks.

  “Good morning, Selene,” said Jeff, smiling at her. Jeff was cute, though a bit of an oddball at times. He was tall and thin with medium-brown hair, and had thin-framed glasses you barely noticed.

  ‘I wish he’d stop making googly eyes at me,’ she thought. ‘I should just get it over with and tell him I had the most amazing sex with my boyfriend last night and I’m not interested in him. Though, I’m not sure whether I should call Marcus my boyfriend just yet.’

  Selene took a seat and sat there, nervously waiting for Mr. Gates to start questioning her.

  “So, Selene, tell us what you found out,”

  “He’s a werewolf. The killer is a werewolf.”

  “A werewolf?” he asked, astonished.

  “Yes.”

  “But werewolves don’t normally kill humans. How do you know this?”

  That was a tough question for Selene to answer. She knew if she answered truthfully, she would be betraying Marcus’ trust by revealing to them that he was a werewolf, or she would have to reveal her secret to them. She took a moment to think about it. It was either his secret or hers. “I was bitten by him.”

  “Are you okay?” asked Jeff.

  “Yes, I’m fine.”

  “But how do you know the killer is a werewolf?” asked Mr. Gates.

  Selene knew what he was getting at and knew she couldn’t dance around this any longer. “I know, because he turned me into one when he attacked me. He tried to kill me, but I got away. I was the only one who got away.”

  The gasps coming from the others startled her. She looked at Jeff. He now looked at her with a frightened look on his face. Even though they were fully aware of the existence of werewolves, she knew they would never look at her the same again. She was now different than them, and they were probably going to fear her from now on because of it. She was so glad she had Marcus. With him, she was an equal. He treated her the way she wanted to be treated. He was her perfect match.

  “Well, I see this as an opportunity,” said Mr. Gates, staring at her. His eyes said it all. He was going to try to use her to do his bidding. “Since the killer is apparently already after you, I want you to try to hunt him down and kill him.”

  “I don’t know, Mr. Gates―” She held back, promising herself that she wouldn’t tell him about Black Wolf Agency, and in turn, she
wouldn’t tell him that the killer had already been caught.

  “You have a clear advantage over the rest of us. There’s a good chance you can catch him, Selene. It seems he is trying to pick us off, one by one. You want to at least try to prevent the deaths of any others from our team, right?”

  “Yes. Okay, I’ll try,” she said, hoping her boss wouldn’t find out the truth.

  After the meeting, Mr. Gates had Selene work in the office for the rest of the day, despite him claiming he wanted her to execute the task of hunting down and killing the murderer. Selene managed to get her work done okay that day, just barely. Thoughts and memories of her crazy, out-of-this-world weekend she had kept revisiting her, along with what had happened at the meeting.

  Every time someone would walk by her office, she would flinch or even jump. She also found that she was often glancing into the lobby, looking for anyone suspicious. She was very thankful that she wasn’t one of the tellers, who had to deal with every stranger that walked into the building. The only people she had to interact with were the occasional people seeing if they could get a loan, or open a new bank account. Most of her work was done on the computer.

  Sure enough, just after she finished that thought, a man knocked on her door, nearly startling her out of her seat.

  “Miss Beckett?” he asked, alarmed by her reaction to his arrival.

  Selene looked up and studied the man before her; he was medium-height with light-brown hair, blue eyes, and pale skin. At first, she approved of him, but when he stepped closer, she could smell his scent; he was a werewolf. Whether he was a good or bad werewolf, she didn’t know, but it worried her having him here in her presence with all that’s been going on. Either werewolves were more common than believed, or this one was after her, too, perhaps.

  “Um, yes, that’s me,” she answered with slight hesitation. Hopefully he didn’t notice that. “How may I help you?”

  “I’m looking into purchasing some property in the country, just outside the city,” he explained, never taking his eyes off her, even as he sat down in the chair across from her. She found it kind of creepy.

  “So, you would like to apply for a mortgage then, right?”

  “Well, no. I would just like some information for now, if that’s alright.”

  “Okay, well, mortgage rates are currently―”

  “You have the most gorgeous eyes,” he interrupted.

  “Um, thanks.” Normally a compliment like that would make her blush, at least coming from someone like Marcus. But coming from this man in front of her, no. She felt her face flush slightly as her nerves began to get the best of her. “Anyways, you only get the low rate if you qualify―”

  “Do you live nearby, Selene?”

  “Excuse me, sir, but if you ask any more personal questions like this, I’m going to have to ask you to leave.”

  “I’m just curious. It’s not often that I come across a bank employee as attractive as you. Are you seeing anyone?”

  As a matter of fact, she was. Well, sort of. She didn’t know what her relationship with Marcus was labeled as. A low growl emitted from her throat involuntarily, and she answered, “Yes, I am, and either way, I wouldn’t be interested. No offense. Now, are you here to talk business, or pick up someone?”

  “Never mind,” he said, getting up and pushing in his chair. “Sorry to bother you.”

  Selene didn’t say a word as he stepped out of the room. She watched him closely as he made his way through the lobby and to the elevator. When he was gone, she let out a heavy sigh of relief. She wished work was over for the day. Luckily, it was 4:30pm and Marcus would be picking her up in half an hour.

  It was a slow day at the agency. There were no murders since before Sam was captured and detained. Everyone was relieved, but the city was alarmingly quiet. Too quiet. Usually there was some sort of paranormal disturbance. They suspected the reason for the lack of activity was because everyone else in the city was on-edge with the killer possibly still on the loose, including the non-human population.

  At 4:30, Marcus figured he’d leave to go pick up Selene. He didn’t want to be late, and worst case, he’d sit outside for a few extra minutes until 5 o’clock came. Once he got out into traffic, he was wishing he had just walked instead. It took him twenty-five minutes, when normally in regular traffic, it would take him ten.

  As soon as he found a parking place he went in, taking the elevator to the third floor. When he stepped out of the elevator, he spotted Selene in her office, sitting at her desk, still working on her computer. He walked over to her office door, and when he knocked lightly, she jumped.

  “Oh, it’s just you.” She let out a sigh of relief.

  “Well, hello to you, too,” he said, laughing. He walked over to her, bending down to kiss her.

  “Ooh, you didn’t tell me you were seeing someone,” said Caroline, Selene’s trashy, blonde co-worker. Caroline seemed to hit on any man with a pulse, but if she made a move on Marcus, she was done for. Selene would make sure of that.

  “Well, you know me. I’m not one to kiss and tell.” Selene thought that response was appropriate. She was confused on where she and Marcus stood in their relationship. She would have to make sure to have that conversation with him later on. Along with the most important one.

  “I know, but it’s silly not to brag about someone as handsome as him.” Caroline said, batting her eyelashes at Marcus.

  Marcus blushed. Normally situations like this would make him feel awkward, but he actually found it funny this time. Perhaps, it was because he already thought of Selene as his girlfriend, even though they didn’t have an official label yet.

  “Thanks, Caroline. I’m glad you approve of Marcus.”

  Caroline shot Marcus a mischievous grin and sauntered off, glancing back at him until the elevator doors closed.

  “So, how was your day?” he asked kindly.

  “Quite dull,” she answered honestly. After all, the clock was practically ticking backwards most of the day, except for those few minutes when the creepy man paid her a visit. She decided not to bring that up; she didn’t want to worry Marcus.

  “It was the same way at the agency. Hardly anything going on. We basically did nothing but watch closely for suspicious activity all day, clean, and file paperwork.”

  “Wow, that sounds excruciatingly boring,” she said, grabbing her bag and exiting the room with Marcus by her side. The only one left, besides her, was the branch manager, and she was in charge of securing everything and locking up. Selene was glad she didn’t have to worry about having that responsibility every day.

  “It was. I bet it would have been a lot better if you were there.”

  He wrapped his arm around her as they stepped in the elevator together. She pressed the ‘1’ button, and in no time, they were downstairs and outside, getting in the car.

  There was a moment of awkward silence in which both of them were thinking the same thing: What exactly was this relationship they shared?

  Then, bravely, Selene broke the silence and asked, “I just wanted to know, this thing between you and I, what do we call it?”

  “Funny, I was thinking the same thing,” he said, deciding he better not leave her waiting too long for an answer. “Well, for one, we both care about each other. We’re both attracted to each other. We enjoy spending time together. And, last, but not least, we already had the best sex and are very compatible in that department as well.”

  “Good answer, Captain Obvious,” she laughed.

  He laughed along and then said, “I’d say we’re in a relationship, wouldn’t you?”

  “Yes, I would say that, too.” She smiled at his response. She was glad he was thinking along the same lines as her; exactly the same, strangely enough. It was like they were on the same wavelength, or something.

  “And what’s this thing where I’ll be thinking something and you’ll come out and say exactly what’s on my mind?” he asked.

  “You’ve been doing tha
t to me a lot, too.”

  “That’s strange, and quite unheard of for it to be happening this often. I can’t read every thought, but I can tell how you’re feeling. And, it really came in handy last night and the night before.” Arching his eyebrows, he looked at her.

  “Oh, yes, definitely.” She hoped he didn’t notice her face turn beat red just then. Just thinking about the amazing sex she had with him blew her mind. It made her want to pull the emergency brake and fuck him right in his driver’s seat.

  “I know what you’re thinking, and it’s going to have to wait until tonight, or at least until we’re alone, and not in the middle of rush-hour traffic.” He looked over at her and grinned as his eyes met hers. She grinned back, still blushing.

  Trying to clear her mind of dirty thoughts for the time being, she went back to the subject they were discussing a moment ago, “So, what do you think is up with this emotional connection we seem to have?”

  “I don’t know. I just know it’s not normal for this to happen to two regular werewolf mates. There’s something else involved. Hopefully we’ll figure it out eventually.”

  “Maybe it’s just that we’re special.”

  “Well, what we have is definitely something special, and I feel like the luckiest man in the world to have someone like you, but I have a feeling that’s not it.”

  “Aww, you’re sweet.” She smiled and leaned over to kiss him on the cheek. Then she leaned closer to his ear and whispered, “I can’t wait to get you alone.”

  When they arrived back at the agency, they didn’t see anyone. Perhaps they all went home early because of the slow day. It was the perfect opportunity to slip in the back for some alone time together.

  As soon as they were in the guest room, they closed and locked the door behind them. Then, Marcus pushed Selene against the wall and began ferociously kissing her, pressing his body up against her. Just his thoughts of making love to her, and their combined wild desires for each other, already had him hard in anticipation.