by Holly Day
Zev gave Ivan a blank look, which made Ivan suspect he didn’t know Raina well.
“You know she has a knack for getting in trouble?”
Zev shrugged then gave a short nod.
“You know our kind is hunted. Our lives often have a gruesome end. We’re constantly moving from place to place.”
“Raina has been my neighbor for two years.”
“Yes, this time we stayed too long. Much because of Remi, and me having to work off her debt. It’s not safe and see where it’s gotten us.”
“I’m a lone wolf. I don’t mind moving.”
Ivan nodded. What kind of babies would they have if they had any? Would they be hunted by wizards, too? Hunted by shifters perhaps for being freaks. He guessed babies weren’t on the table yet. Raina liked Zev but who knew if it would lead to anything. Werewolves mated for life though, and he didn’t think Zev would have this conversation with him unless he meant to take it that far.
“Raina does what she wants.” He met Zev’s gaze.
“But you’re okay with a werewolf as a brother-in-law should she want me?”
Ivan believed the blank look was to hide uncertainty. “You’ll have a homo as one, should I survive this day.”
Zev shrugged. “My brother is gay.”
Ivan nodded. He’d assumed so when Jim had talked at the cabin. “Great! Let’s steal a diamond.”
Chapter 12
Malik’s heart was pounding in his chest. He hoped it had healed properly since the stake had pierced it. The more he focused on his heart, the faster it hammered.
“Room 402.” The woman was tall, but so thin Malik wondered if she, too, had someone withholding food from her. He carried two big suitcases to the door he hoped was 402. He knew what four and two looked like, but when she didn’t move to open it for him, doubt grew in his mind. Was it the wrong door?
She frowned at him. “Don’t you have a key?”
Oh…“Sorry, ma’am. I don’t have clearance for a key.” Was it the right use of clearance? He held his breath while waiting.
With an annoyed huff, she rounded him and unlocked the door.
Malik carried the bags inside, and she waved him off, then held up a hand to halt his escape. “There is a safe in the hotel, right?”
“You have one in this room, ma’am.” He hoped. Hadn’t Ivan said there were safes in the rooms?
She huffed. “I meant a real one, a vault.”
“I…eh…” Malik’s heart was beating too fast. He chanced a glance at his chest to make sure there wasn’t blood on Zev’s shirt. “Only the manager has access to it, ma’am. I don’t have clearance.”
“Of course not. Could you ask the manager to come see me?” She formulated it as a question, but it wasn’t one.
He nodded and slid out of the room. His skin was tight as he hurried down the stairs. Glancing around so no one was paying attention to him, he headed for the door.
When he reached the car, Zev was touching Ivan.
Before he could stop himself, he’d yanked the door open, pulled Zev out, and snarled in his face. Zev snarled back. His eyes turning a glowing yellow in a heartbeat and his teeth sharpening. Malik didn’t care, his teeth were sharper.
Someone touched his arm, and Malik grabbed the intruder by the throat and slammed him against the car next to where he held Zev. His. Ivan was his.
“Eh…Malik.” Ivan’s voice shook, and Malik instantly let go of Zev and caged Ivan against the car. His cock was rock hard, and he leaned into Ivan to let him know who he belonged to—him, and no one else.
“Causing a scene isn’t what we need right now.” Ivan touched the hand Malik still had around his throat. He wasn’t squeezing or anything, only holding—keeping Ivan in place. He rolled his hips. His hard length pushing against Ivan’s stomach. It made him frown. Ivan was so short, so small. He needed someone to protect him.
“Malik.” Ivan’s voice grew stronger. “I like to be taken on a date before I get fucked in a parking lot, okay? This is not the kind of attention we need.”
Some of the daze lifted from Malik’s mind. “He was touching you.”
“It’s a free country…for werewolves, at least.”
Malik hissed.
“Babe, we really don’t need a macho competition right now.” Ivan’s dark eyes bore into his and shame welled up inside.
He was manhandling Ivan.
“Sorry.” Malik caressed Ivan’s throat where he’d held him, terrified he’d left a mark. Humans were fragile. He glared at Zev. “He’s mine. No touching.”
Zev glared back. “I have no interest in him.”
“He is right here, and he has more pressing matters than power displays in a parking lot, okay?”
Malik averted his gaze. What was wrong with him? All his life, he’d walked around without showing any emotions. His people depended on them not showing emotions. If humans figured out they could control them using people they cared about, they would remain slaves for eternity.
“I’m sorry.” Malik touched Ivan’s hand in a fleeting gesture and stepped away to give him room.
Ivan sighed. “What do we have?”
“A woman in room 402 wants to lock something in the vault.” Malik took another step away from Ivan. What if he’d scared him? What if Ivan never wanted to be close to him again?
“Great. Was she with Lord Zelly?”
Malik shook his head. “No, no man and no guards. She wanted me to tell the manager to come see her.”
“And did you?” Ivan adjusted his clothes, which had Malik looking away. His cock still throbbed and ached, but to think he’d ground it against Ivan in front of Zev, in a parking lot no less, made him want to hide.
He shook his head. “I don’t know where the manager is.”
Ivan gave him a sparkling smile. “Let’s find out.”
* * * *
Ivan strode toward the entrance, Malik’s and Zev’s hulking forms behind him. As he entered the lobby, the first person he saw was Raina.
“Excuse me, miss.”
She gave him a blank stare. “Yes?”
“We need a word with the manager.”
Raina widened her eyes. “Oh…I’m sorry, sir, but I—”
“You what!” His voice boomed in the lobby, and a woman dressed in a pristine skirt and suit jacket appeared behind the counter. She had a name tag on the lapel, but Ivan couldn’t read it from this distance.
“Can I help you, sir?”
He waved Raina away with an annoyed huff, only to hear a low growl coming from Zev. He ignored it and neared the counter. “Yes. The madam wants to see the manager.”
A second passed. The woman behind the counter didn’t change her expression, but Ivan noted a slight hesitation anyway.
“The madam?”
“Room 402. She has inquiries about the vault.”
The woman nodded and tapped on a keyboard under the countertop. “Mrs. Sanders?”
Damn, he’d hoped it would be Mrs. Zelly. “She doesn’t want to leave valuables in the room.”
“Of course. I’ll talk to her.”
“The manager.” Only the manager could open the vault.
The woman gave him a nod. “I am the manager.”
Crap, now she’d recognize him.
He gave a terse nod in return and briskly walked toward the large room where people had gathered, Zev and Malik forming a large shadow behind him. “See anyone you recognize?” He kept his voice low.
“The man in the right corner isn’t human.” Zev didn’t look in the direction of the right corner.
“No? What is he?” Ivan glanced. It was a stocky man with graying temples.
“Don’t know. Shifter, but I don’t know what animal.”
It had Ivan biting his lip. What was a shifter doing here? He could be interested in a fundraising event, but in Ivan’s experience shifters didn’t much care about what humans did.
“Keep an eye out.” He sauntered over to the shifter, be
coming aware of exactly how under-dressed he was as he crossed the room. It didn’t matter. He wasn’t here to impress anyone; he was here to steal a diamond.
“Good evening, sir.” Ivan gave the shifter a bright smile.
He nodded but didn’t speak. Damn.
“I’m Ivan Chalk.”
The man grunted. What the hell was wrong with him?
“And you are?” He offered his hand in greeting.
“Annoyed.” The man didn’t meet his eyes.
“Were you annoyed before I got here?” Ivan wanted to pop his hip and wave a hand, but shifters didn’t like queers so he tried not to be too…flamboyant.
“A little, but it’s steadily increasing.”
“Awesome!”
Now the man looked at him, and Ivan gave him a serious look. “There is one easy way to get rid of me. Tell me who you are and what you’re doing here.”
The man frowned. “Are you working here?”
“In a way.”
“Look, I got the ticket from a friend. I know I don’t match the clientele.”
“And why did you want to attend?”
The man narrowed his eyes but didn’t answer.
“Are you stealing a diamond?”
“No.”
“Are you here to capture a vampire?”
The man’s eyes widened and something close to a smile touched his lips. “No.”
“Look, it’ll be easier if you tell me.”
Raina came walking toward them with a tray of champagne flutes. “Good evening, gentlemen.”
Ivan wanted to check his watch. Was the event starting already? He’d thought they’d have more time.
She stared at Ivan. “I spotted a ridiculous man in the parking lot five minutes ago.”
“Fuck.”
“I don’t think there is time for it, plus you have to buy me a drink first.” She walked toward Zev and Malik, offering them a glass of champagne as well.
Ivan focused on the shifter again. “You don’t happen to have struck a bargain with a sorcerer or something?”
The man’s eyes slid over him from head to toe and back up again. “No bargain, no.”
“Can’t you tell me?”
“No.” This time he grinned for real.
“Okay. I’m here to steal a diamond. I have stolen a vampire, sort of, and my employer is trying to capture me and give me to an evil sorcerer so he can kill me. Are you going to complicate things for me?”
The man’s eyes changed color, not into the amber he’d seen Zev’s do, but a golden glow with slitted pupils. Ivan had no idea what kind he was, but he guessed some kind of cat. He hoped he wasn’t a snake.
“You’re telling the truth.”
“No use in lying when it sounds so outrageous.”
The man chuckled. “I guess not.” He shook his head. “I’m here in my work partner’s place. I work security.”
“Fuck.” Ivan had screwed up.
“I’m to blend in among the guests, but I guess I failed.”
“Nah, you did a pretty good job, but you’re a shifter, and it gave you away.”
The man narrowed his eyes. “You could tell?”
“I have superpowers.” He nodded toward Zev and Malik, who were each holding a glass of champagne.
“I see.”
“Are you gonna lock me up?”
“Not yet. I’m not the hotel’s security, it’s more of a private affair, and you haven’t done anything yet.”
Ivan shrugged. “True.” Though he considered Malik stolen already. “Do you know how I can get into the vault?”
This time the man barked a laugh. “Only the manager can get into the vault.”
“I’ve heard. A stupid system, if you ask me. What if the manager is out of commission?”
Zev appeared next to him. “Malik had to excuse himself, and I think you should move as well.”
Ivan nodded and glanced toward the entrance. Remi wasn’t visible yet, but Ivan heard his voice in the lobby. Where should he go?
Zev gestured at what had to be a coatroom close to the wide doorway to the lobby. Would he make it before anyone came? No time to think. He hurried off, not running but as close as he could without drawing too much attention to himself.
Chapter 13
Malik heard Master’s voice, and Ivan was still out there talking to the stranger. He peeled his lips back where he stood hidden behind a coat rack.
Then Zev was talking to Ivan, and Ivan skidded across the room.
“Hiya, sugar.” He more or less dove in behind the rack as well, and Malik could breathe a little easier. Malik reached for Ivan and hugged him to his chest.
“Can you melt into the wall?”
Ivan peered up at him. “I could, but it would make it hard to find the diamond.”
“Let’s leave.” Malik could protect him. If they ran now, left the city like Raina had wanted, then Malik could spend the rest of his life guarding Ivan.
“I need to do this.”
Malik ground his teeth. “You don’t.”
“Hey.” Ivan reached up and put a hand on his neck. “I know you didn’t sign up for this, and I understand if you want to bail.”
Malik tightened his hold on Ivan. He didn’t understand. Malik didn’t want to run to save himself, he wanted Ivan away from danger. “You’re mine.”
Ivan’s widened eyes had a knot forming in his belly.
“That’s sweet and all—”
“No, you don’t understand.” Malik didn’t understand, so how could Ivan? Malik couldn’t bite Ivan because of his tainted blood, and yet he was sure Ivan was meant to be his mate.
“Darling, I do understand. You can taste freedom for the first time in your life. You want to explore. You might have the hots for me—”
Malik growled. “You’re mine. Forever.”
Ivan was about to respond, but Malik put a hand over his mouth and held up a finger to his lips. Someone was approaching.
Gently, Malik moved Ivan until his back leaned against the wall behind the coat rack. He could melt into it. If they were caught, Ivan could disappear, and whoever was coming would only see Malik.
A crisp female voice reached them. “This way, Lady Zelly.”
Ivan stiffened under Malik’s hands, then he tried to peek around him. Malik let go of him, not that Malik ever wanted to let go of him, but he understood the importance of knowing what Lady Zelly looked like.
“I have to ask your guards to wait outside the coatroom. Security measures.”
Malik held his breath. If a group of vampires stomped in here, it was over.
Lady Zelly didn’t respond, but since they weren’t swarmed by guards, Malik assumed she’d gestured for them to wait outside.
Ivan walked to the end of the coat rack and melted into the wall. Malik shuddered. He should have kept a closer eye on Ivan when they’d been on missions, but he’d been too happy to be let out of the basement and to be treated like something other than a slave to question how Ivan had succeeded in getting the things they were sent out to get.
He stood as still as he could, cowering so his head wouldn’t be seen over the rack, and waited.
The women didn’t speak much, but Malik heard something sounding like an elevator. A low ding sounded before a door opened, and seconds later the women’s voices were cut off by the closing doors. It had to be the way down to the safe.
Ivan came out of the wall. “Hopefully, she’ll carry a box with the diamond when she comes back up, and we won’t have to get into the vault at all.”
Malik nodded. If they could avoid the elevator, he’d be happy. Being locked up in a box had his heart beating hard and his lungs shrinking.
“I’ll be here.” Ivan took a few steps forward before melting into the wall again. Malik wanted to change place, too, but he didn’t dare to when Lady Zelly’s guards were right outside.
It took forever before the sound of the elevator reached him again. He held his breath as he crouched
behind the rack, his pulse thudding in his ears. Touching a hand to his chest, he did his best not to think about his heart.
The ding came and the door opened. Malik didn’t move, didn’t try to see what Lady Zelly looked like or if she was carrying the box with the diamond. Soon both women walked past the rack, the sound of their heels pushing his heart to beat faster.
Everything went still, but Malik didn’t move.
“She’s wearing it.” Ivan stepped out of the wall and frowned at him.
“Wearing?”
“Yes, the necklace.”
He could tell Ivan had hoped she wouldn’t be. “It’s a problem?”
“How do we get close enough to steal the necklace when she’s surrounded by guards? You can’t mingle. With Remi here, someone will recognize you. I can’t get in on the dinner. I’m not dressed to melt in, and Remi would recognize me.” He sighed and rubbed his forehead. “Raina isn’t a good enough pickpocket to steal it while serving.”
He paced the small area behind the coat rack, altering between fisting his hair and rubbing his forehead.
“Maybe with a distraction, she could?” Malik didn’t know, but if everyone looked the other way, maybe Raina could unhook the necklace and steal the diamond.
“What are you thinking?”
Malik shrugged, his heart racing again, and he rubbed his chest to make it slow down. He wasn’t smart enough to plan a theft. Ivan was the one who knew how to do things. “Maybe…” He blew out a breath. “If Raina could spill something on the lady, she could steal the necklace.”
Ivan shook his head. “Her guards would suspect it.”
“Yes, but if I distract them, you hide in the wall, Zev and Raina both rush to the lady’s help and the necklace moves from one hand to another and finally into yours. Could you wait in the wall until the dinner is over and everyone’s gone home?”
Ivan narrowed his eyes. “It’s risky.”
Malik shrugged. He’d get caught saving Ivan. It might not be the outcome he’d hoped for, but to know Ivan would live and not be killed either by Remington Redwood or the evil wizard would have to be enough. Cannon fodder was his role in life, had always been, and he’d been willing to die for Ivan before, so why not now?