by Gwen Rivers
“What are you?” I asked the small girl. “And why is no one looking out for you?”
Liam smelled the other wolf the second the rain let up. He’d kept his distance from the strange fae’s hideout, not wanting to tip his hand in case any of her cohorts showed at the abandoned building. There were other fae that hadn’t been twisted yet, fae and giants who had been mingling with the mortals long before they revealed themselves. Perhaps she was meeting up with some of them?
No one showed. He saw her dip out twice, filling pots with rainwater, but otherwise the place stayed dark and silent.
As one day drifted into the next, the rain tapered off to a light mist and new scents emerged. Her sweet honeysuckle fragrance, and the wild tang of a wolf.
He crossed the street in no time. Was the fae girl in danger? It wasn’t one of his wolves that he scented. So that meant another had breached the pack territory without permission.
As Alpha, it was his job to put down any threats to the fae or to his pack, blood kin or no.
He tried the door first and found it locked. He could have broken in, used his strength to knock the thing off its hinges, but decided at the last minute not to. The lone wolf would be dealt with as would his mysterious fae.
He clambered on a stack of boxes until he could peer through one of the cloudy windows. His wolf’s night vision showed him the space. He spotted his prey’s battered guitar case and coat, but no sign of her or the rogue wolf. No fire escape on the building, but there was on the building beside it. He climbed up that one and leaped from one roof to the next as easily as stepping off the curb.
He landed in a crouch and spied a door as well as several ventilation pipes. He moved to the pipes and listened.
“So, Daddy Big Bucks and Little Orphan Annie lived in his big, expensive house,” a melodic female voice said.
She had no accent, which was interesting enough. Most fae spoke with a sort of lilt. But her words….
Liam frowned. It sounded more like a bastardized version of storytime at the library than a meeting of dark fae assassins.
He moved closer to the pipes. So close he picked up the honeysuckle scent of the female and something else. It made him aware that it had been six months since he’d last bedded a woman. Six long, lonely months. His beast stirred within him, oddly content. It was such an unusual feeling for him. He’d been born restless his mother had once said. Just like your father.
She’d had no idea.
Another distant rumble of thunder. It was time to make a choice. Did he leave the strange fae to wander about his city, telling her inaccurate stories in empty buildings? Or should he bring her back to the PR and interrogate her there?
Another hit of her intoxicating scent and he knew he’d made his choice.
There was a door on the far side of the roof. Quiet as though he were stalking a rabbit in the undergrowth of the Black Forest, Liam padded his way across the roof. The door had been secured with a deadbolt, but it was only the matter of a moment to flick out one claw and sever the metal lock.
The door swung open.
His preternatural night vision kicked in and he saw a flash of glowing glyphs and frightened gray eyes a second before a bolt of purple energy that smelled of ozone collided with his chest.
Stunned, he lay on his back on the roof, the rain pelting down on his face. All the breath had exploded from his lungs at her attack and he fought to draw in air.
Her footsteps were steady and energy crackled around her. She stood over him, hair plastered to her face, her palms burning with fae fire.
Her face stole his breath anew.
She was lovely, with skin the color of honey, long golden hair that hung over her pointed ears and a sprinkle of freckles across her pert nose. But it was her gray eyes that captured him. A stormy sea. Looking into them felt like journeying to a place he’d never known but had longed for all the same. She was home.
Mate, his wolf whispered.
Liam swallowed. Shit. His hunt had just become infinitely more complicated.
3
“Who the fuck are you?” I snarled at the guy who’d broken into our hideout. He’d been silent on the approach but I’d set magical wards around every entrance of the building. It was a trick Malcolm had shown me. A silent alarm that didn’t take much effort to power but would let me know if anyone came in or out.
It was supposed to be redundant. I should have felt the ill intent of any trespasser. But much like Kiesha, he was a blank spot on my emotional radar.
The man wheezed something unintelligible. I hadn’t meant to wallop him so hard.
“What?” I bent a little closer, magic at the ready.
Too late I realized my mistake as he lunged upward and gripped my hands in both of his before dragging me to the ground. I landed sprawled across him like a blanket. The contact made me panic and I lost my grip on my thread of fire. It fizzled like a wet sparkler.
In one easy motion, he rolled until he lay on top of me. His hair was soaked as though the fool didn’t have enough sense to come in out of the storm. One of his large calloused hands wrapped around my wrists and held them pinned up over my head. The other skimmed down my body as though searching for weapons.
Panic filled me. He moved like a trained soldier or maybe a cop. Had I just assaulted a police officer?
Then his eyes met mine and a flash of lightning illuminated the color.
One green iris. One blue.
“You’re a werewolf.” I’d only ever seen them at a distance before.
The werewolves were the law enforcement for the sixth borough. They protected the fae who crossed the Veil, like supernatural police. Because of the Oath fae couldn’t hurt the humans. The werewolves could.
And they could also hurt the fae.
He nodded once.
I swallowed. Normally I would never consider begging but this male, this werewolf, outweighed me by a good fifty pounds. All of it muscle. With my hands clasped together, I couldn’t wield magic. Begging didn’t seem like the worse thing in the world. “Are you going to kill me?”
“No.” His voice was gravel covered in whiskey.
Instead of saying anything more, he closed his eyes and lowered his face until it pressed against mine. His whiskered stubble scraped my sensitive skin. He breathed in deeply, and then a soft growl came out of him.
“What are you doing?” A different sort of panic set in and I struggled anew.
“Don’t fear me,” he grated in my ear.
Yeah, right. Not every day a two-hundred-pound werewolf pinned me to a rooftop.
Another rub of his whiskered cheek. If he kept it up, I was going to look like I’d skidded face-first across the pavement.
“What’s your name?” he breathed the question into my ear.
“Emma.” I swallowed. “Please, I don’t know what you want with me.” It was a lie. The werewolves acted as a buffer between the fae and the humans. No doubt he’d tracked me from the alley where I’d beaten the tar out of those fae-hating thugs.
Rule number one. No good deed goes unpunished.
He shook himself as though waking up. “I’ll let you go if you promise not to use your magic against me, Emma.”
I nodded, mentally tagging on, unless you attack me.
“Say it out loud so I know the words are binding.”
Shit. “I promise I won’t use my magic against you unless you attack me first.”
His lips twitched as though my phrasing amused him. He rolled up and onto his feet and offered me a hand. “I’m Liam Cooper.”
My jaw dropped. I knew that name. “You’re the Alpha.” The wolf in charge, not just of the New York pocket realm, but all the werewolves. He took orders from no one but the One True Queen herself.
Somehow, I thought he’d be older.
Then another thought struck me. Maybe he wasn’t there for me at all, but for Kiesha. She must be a werewolf, too. That was why I couldn’t pick up on her feelings. Maybe I was just in
the wrong place at the wrong time.
I didn’t ask, kept my lips clamped shut. If Liam didn’t know about the girl, I wasn’t about to enlighten him.
“I saw what you did in the alley. To protect the fae female.”
I lifted my chin and stared him down. “You mean when I did your job?”
He grinned as though I’d amused instead of insulted him. “You did it most capably. It piqued my curiosity.”
Inward groan. The presence I had sensed watching me. I’d inadvertently caught his notice by being interesting. Werewolves were notoriously inquisitive and it stood to reason that the Alpha would be worse than the rest.
Of all the crummy, rotten luck.
“So, you followed me here?”
Liam nodded. “How can you fight against humans?”
“How do you?” I turned the inquiry back around on him.
“Because while I serve the Unseelie queen I am not forced to obey her Oath.”
I shrugged. “Guess I must be special then.”
Something shifted in his eyes. “Oh, you have no idea how true that is.”
His words unsettled me. “Well, I promise I won’t do it again unless the fae haters provoke me.”
Liam studied me as though I’d presented him with a particularly interesting puzzle. I shifted my weight and considered my options. No way could I outrun a werewolf. If I tried, he’d have his pack out tracking me down like a fox in a hunt. What could I say to be less interesting to him?
“Can we go in out of the storm?” he asked at last.
Why couldn’t I read his emotional grid? Was it a werewolf thing? I really didn’t want him to see Kiesha. What if she woke up and decided to investigate?
“It’s kind of a dump,” I said. “Can we meet up later? You pick the place and time.” I was careful not to say I’d be there. As soon as I got rid of him, I’d bug out.
“You don’t have to stay here, you know.” His words were gentle. “Fae are always welcomed within the PR.”
Panic filled me. His eyebrows pulled together and he tilted his head to the side. “Why does that idea scare you?”
I opened my mouth to deny it but of course I couldn’t. “It just does.”
“Nothing bad will happen to you as long as you’re with me.”
I glared up at him. “I’ve been taking care of myself for a long time. I don’t need some werewolf to protect me. Not even if he is the werewolf.”
Again, that flash of teeth. “You don’t take crap from anyone, do you?”
“Not if I can help it.” Which most of the time, I couldn’t. “Please, it’s late. I’ve had a long day.”
“Fighting crime, breaking and entering, picking fights with creatures bigger than yourself.” He didn’t sound angry as he listed my activities. Only amused.
Damn it, I shouldn’t have agreed not to attack him with magic. Hand to hand combat was out and the sad little knife tucked in my boot was laughable. Liam Cooper had the upper hand and unless I could shake his unwavering interest, I was stuck between a werewolf and a hard place.
“Emma?” a small voice called from the door. “Who’s he?”
I closed my eyes. So much for keeping Kiesha hidden.
“I’m Liam. A friend of Emma’s.” The Alpha said it in such an offhand manner that I couldn’t deny his claim without drawing the girl’s curiosity.
She stared at us and then scowled. “Why are you both out here in the rain?”
“We were just coming in,” Liam said and then took my arm.
I shook off his hold but followed him back into the building.
His gaze was watchful as he drank in the sights of our habitat. The crumbling plaster, the holes in the flooring, the lack of furniture, except one very spiffy tub. “You two deserve better accommodations.”
“If you don’t like it, feel free to go.” I gritted the words.
“Trying to get rid of me already?” Liam moved past me and knelt down so he could look Kiesha in the eyes. “How long have you been here, boss?”
She tilted her head and studied him. Her nostrils flared. I felt stupid for not recognizing that she was a werewolf earlier. Blame my fatigue and self-interest in securing a place to stay.
Then again, I’d never seen a werewolf child. Or one that lived anywhere but surrounded by a pack. Malcolm had once told me they slept in a single room, sprawled one on top of the other in a literal dogpile. I had to bite the inside of my cheek to keep from grinning as I pictured Liam at the top of the heap.
“A few months.” Kiesha didn’t hold his gaze. Her focus was on the floor between them.
Liam didn’t ask any further questions, which judging by her face, Kiesha appreciated.
“Who’s hungry?” Liam turned to face me, cellphone in hand.
My stomach rumbled. Any calories from the cocoa were long gone. “I can run out and pick something up.”
Translated to, I can go steal what I need for myself and then ghost before your Alpha ass can follow. I didn’t know Liam, except by reputation, but one of the things that made the Alpha the Alpha was his need to look out for his own. Kiesha was a werewolf. And I was betting that in his mind, he’d stick with her over the odd fae chick who’d piqued his curiosity.
I’d feel better leaving knowing that she had someone to look out for her.
“No need,” Liam’s mismatched eyes were on me as he addressed the girl “Hey boss, are there any spare towels around here that we can use to dry off?”
“Why do you keep calling me boss?” The werewolf girl put her hands on her hips, nothing but ‘tude.
He shrugged good-naturedly. “You look like the person who should be in charge.”
Kiesha softened in having her authority recognized. “Yeah, the towels are downstairs. I’ll get some.” Where was the innate hostility I’d had to coax from her earlier? With Liam it was all, No problem. I’ll hop right to it.
No sense being all butthurt about it. Maybe it was a werewolf thing.
In the girl’s defense, he was hitting all the right notes, treating her like the person in charge, instead of like some needy kid.
He stripped off his soggy black t-shirt and I sucked in a sharp breath at the webwork of scars that ran down his left side. They weren’t neat little lines either. No, some were raised, almost as though the muscle beneath was malformed.
“Sorry.” Liam’s eyes met mine. “I know they are unnerving.”
I shrugged. “I’ve seen worse.”
He frowned at me.
“It’s the truth. Scars mean you survived so they beat the alternative.” I wanted to ask what had caused them, but demonstrating curiosity would only invite the same.
He smiled as though he liked my answer and then turned his attention to the screen of his smartphone.
I took the opportunity to admire him. He was good looking, in a scruffy sort of way. His dark hair was shaggy, the chin stubble giving him a roguish look. His muscles were incredibly well defined. Standard stuff for a werewolf. I had yet to see a flabby one.
Though fit, he wasn’t monstrously large like some of the werewolves. Attractive, yes, but there wasn’t anything much different about him. What made him Alpha then? Was he an exceptionally skilled fighter? I thought the werewolves were a might makes right kind of organization. It seemed like to be top dog, one would have to be cutthroat, but I didn’t get that impression from Liam.
I spied a tattoo on his left bicep. A rune. A Norse symbol of strength and protection. It didn’t glow like my glyphs, but I’d bet he’d received the symbol directly from the Unseelie Queen herself.
Liam caught me gawking and smirked. I turned away before he could call me out on my ogling.
“Gray? Yeah. I’m downtown and need you to grab us some chow. Pizza or Chinese, enough for two wolves and a very pretty fae.” The bastard winked at me.
Pretty? As if. If he was planning to charm his way into my good graces, he was in for a rude awakening.
Kiesha returned with the towels, ma
king sure to hand one to Liam first.
“I’m gonna go grab my stuff,” I murmured and headed down the stairs.
“Don’t go disappearing on me,” Liam hung up the phone.
I turned to face him. I wanted to ask why he cared what I did, but something in his expression made me think I didn’t want to hear his answer.
If he wanted, the Alpha could call out every werewolf on the planet to track me. And the last thing I needed was a band of supernatural beasts hunting me while I figured out how to accomplish my goal.
My guitar case sat where I’d left it by the back door. I dragged it and a towel into the downstairs bathroom, leaving the door cracked.
Great job, Emma. How the hell was I going to get out of this mess?
My glyphs had quit glowing now that Liam was no longer an immediate threat. I shucked my wet jeans and t-shirt and fished the last of my clean clothes from the depths of my bag. I hung the wet stuff out to dry on the towel bar and then swathed my hair in the towel.
Kiesha must have stolen the linens. The thought occurred to me earlier but I couldn’t imagine how an eight-year-old could have lifted the weight of a full linen delivery. Because she was a freaking werewolf.
Overhead, I could hear Liam and Kiesha talking. The girl laughed at something he said. She was better off with him, with her own kind.
A knock sounded on the back door. Instantly, a ball of fire appeared in my hand.
“Don’t fry him, hot stuff, or we’ll have to wait longer for dinner.” Liam appeared at the bottom of the stairs.
“That’s your guy already?” It had only been a few minutes.
“Gray lives nearby.” Liam moved forward to open the door.
The man standing in the door though was no werewolf. I could feel his blatant curiosity from across the room.
“Spencer, he sent you out in this?” Liam gestured for the smaller man holding the umbrella to come inside.
“I was voluntold that his high and mightiness, the great Alpha, needed clothes.” Spencer winked at Liam’s shirtless look and then forked over a large vacuum-sealed bag. “Personally, I think you look better without them.”
“Flirt.” The Alpha shook his head. “Emma, Kiesha, this is Spencer, my second’s mate.”
