“Our little mouse. We’re going to have so much fun getting to know each other,” he cooed, caressing her chin.
She bit her lip again, uncertainty flooding her expression. “Is that what you want? To get to know me?”
Vincent opened his mouth to speak, but before he could say anything to scare her away, I responded. “Of course, we do. Why else would we go through all of this to bring you here?”
“That’s the same thing I’ve been wondering,” she responded, sinking her teeth into her bottom lip and fuck that action was driving me crazy. Everything about her was adding fuel to already blazing inferno within me.
Vincent snorted out a laugh, his chest rumbling.
I cut him a look that warned him to keep himself under control but June seemed to be comforted by his outburst. If only she knew the dangers behind releasing his beast. The girl was in a lion’s den, figuratively and literally speaking, only we couldn’t show her that part of ourselves. Not yet. Not until we knew we could trust her with our secrets.
We’d been careful to keep that magical part of ourselves hidden away, even from Father who had no clue why it had been so easy for us to perform our tasks. It was also the reason I knew June was ours from the moment I saw her. All we needed was her yes, and we’d do anything to get it.
The End
Enjoyed this story? Be sure to leave a review! This story will be a part of The Villains of Hell’s Point. You can start reading in this world by picking up the following books below!
Midnight Renegades:
Nowhere to Run
Demon’s Playground
Mischief
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Rook Unleashed
Protector Series
Pepper Paris
About Rook Unleased
Cable had been running for a long time, but now she was being forced to go home again. Her father needed her to run his crime organization. It wasn’t all fun and games though.
When the fairy queen is kidnapped for the second time, Cable uses all her cunning and skills to save the woman she is falling in love with.
Can she hold it all together long enough to stay at the top?
1
Cable
The grass felt soo wonderful under my feet as the sun warmed me.
It was spring and I’d been aching to run around for months. Winter made it so much harder to get excited about shifting. Even with a thick coat, it still got very cold during the winter months.
I stretched and tilted my head listening to the other squirrels chitter to each other about the best places to find nuts. It was the best of both worlds, the animal kingdom, and the human race. Being a shifter allowed me to understand either language with ease or it might just be that I had an ear for languages.
A phone rang in the distance and I ignored it as I chased another squirrel up the tree. It was so freeing not to have to think about the responsibilities that being a human tended to add.
The phone rang again and I let out a sigh, my whiskers twitching.
I took a running jump and transformed into my human form with ease. Most shifters couldn’t do it on the fly, but I’d been using my animal form to escape things from the time I was a little girl.
My family hadn’t made growing up easy. My mother had enough of the fighting when I reached the age of eight and left us alone. It had just been me and my dad for a short while until a new stepmother had shown up on the scene.
The clothes I’d taken off before shifting were right where I’d left them on the back porch next to the phone that wouldn’t stop ringing.
Deciding it was more important to answer the phone than to get dressed, I pushed the button and balanced the phone between my ear and shoulder.
“Hello?” I didn’t recognize the number as I slid my jeans on skipping the underwear for commando. It was my preferred method and a big middle finger to society’s expectations of how a woman was supposed to dress.
“Is this Mable Lynn Rook?”
"Yes, it is. May I ask who is speaking?" Pressing the speaker, I put a bra on before yanking on a shirt. While I'd have loved to give bras the middle finger as well, my tits were too large to just hang loose.
“Ma’am, you’re father’s had an incident. You’re listed as his emergency contact. We’re working on him, but we’d recommend that you get here as quickly as possible.”
My hands started to shake as I laid the phone on the porch rail so that I didn’t drop it.
“What happened? Where is he?” I might not be on speaking terms with him all the time, but he was my dad.
“He’s had a heart attack. They are working on keeping him alive. He is going to need surgery which will mean that you’ll have a few decisions to make about his care.”
“I’m a few hours away. Is he at…,” My mind went blank trying to decide which one would be the closest to where my father lived.
"Oh, sorry. He's at MUSC which is the top-rated hospital in the city." She hurried to inform me as if I'd transfer him somewhere else if it wasn't the best.
“Fine, if the doctors need me or have any questions about his wishes, they can reach me at this number.”
“Very well.” She answered in a clipped tone as if she was happy to be done dealing with me. “I’ll pass on the message.”
“Thank you.”
The call had barely ended when it started to ring again.
This time the display read, Nelson Miller, my step-brother. I was pretty sure that he was the entire reason that I’d gone gay instead of straight.
“What’s up Nelson?” Besides being my dad’s second in command, he was what I considered to be the most annoying type of shifter, a dog.
Yep, he was just an average Pomeranian and mutt mix. He simply hated it because it wasn’t a fierce or aggressive type of dog. These days he stayed in human form to keep others from finding out what he was exactly.
“Your dad is in the hospital. He wasn’t happy with one of our suppliers and as we were leaving, he started to clutch his heart. The doctors have him now and they are hopeful. He’s going to want you here when he wakes up.”
For Nelson to even admit that to me meant that my dad was at death’s door.
I took a steadying breath before answering because while my dad and I had a rough history, he knew I still loved him. Maybe not the way he ran his business, but that wasn’t my concern right now.
“I’ve sent the chopper for you. It can land on the roof of the hospital here. It’s the fastest thing to get you here and by his side.” He interrupted my musings with information. “Be prepared to stay for a while.”
“Why would you say that?” Slightly shocked out of my worries at the change of tone, “Has something else happened I need to know about?”
"Um," His hesitation was evident even over the phone, "I'd rather tell you in person as to its sensitive in nature."
“Ah,” It made sense now. I was the only one that could give orders in my father’s criminal enterprises and if he was laid up then I would be in charge. “I’ll make the necessary arrangements on my end.”
“Thank you. We’ll see you when you get here then.” The relief in his voice was so unusual for the tough, hardened person I knew him to be.
“Yeah,” I hung up the phone and sank into the nearest chair trying to wrap my mind around the fact that my dad was hurt.
There were a lot of things that I needed to be doing, but I couldn't find the energy to move.
The man that I admired and hated the most was lying on a table in a hospital fighting for his life. If he didn’t make it, I was going to have to run the family company for him.
It didn’t matter that I would hate it or the things I was going to have to do. If I didn’t step up, then someone would try to take me out and establish themselves as the Boss. The Organization had been in our family for years. By ev
en calling it that silly name, I knew it was something I was going to have to face up to eventually. The day had just arrived much sooner than I had wanted it to.
Being a woman in charge wasn't going to be my only obstacle, I wasn't the vicious type of person that the Consigliere-Boss needed.
Something inside me wanted to rebel against this, and yet it was as if another part of me was a little bit excited to see if I could pull it off.
Shoving those thoughts away as if I’d been burned, I stood. It was time to get ready and quit borrowing trouble from the future.
On the chopper, I closed my eyes and let the vibration lull me to sleep. It was going to be the only time in the next day or so that I would feel safe enough to get some rest. Until it was official and my father wasn’t going to be able to take care of his people, the fear of anything happening to me would keep his minions in their place and keep me from harm.
It wasn’t long enough, but I roused as the change in speed could be felt when we approached the city limits.
Nelson met me on the rooftop and we hurried inside where the noise from the blades wasn't so loud.
He fell into step beside me as he began the update on my dad’s condition.
“He’s doing as well as can be expected. They’ve brought him back from placing the stints in. It’s going to be a while before he’s awake enough to speak to us.”
“So they think he’s going to recover?” I stopped and he had to come back to my side to answer my question.
“It was the only thing they could do right then to keep his blood flowing and relieve the pressure. Now, they’ll see if it helps or if he’s going to have to have a valve replacement or something.” He ran a frustrated hand through his hair. “I don’t know exactly. Most of what they said is over my head as far as the details. I just know they are trying to keep him alive.”
For a moment, I felt sorry for Nelson. Even with all of his faults, he did love my dad.
I started walking again and realized that I had no clue where I was going.
"This way." He moved forward and for once in my life I let him lead me. A group of men trailed after us as my father didn't go anywhere without his bodyguard.
At the door to the room, Nelson held back. “You should go in alone. We’ll be just out here.”
His thoughtfulness was so uncharacteristic of the normal behavior I almost took him for a normal brother.
With my hand on the door, I felt my chest tighten. What if this was the last time that I got to see my father alive? He’d always been such a strong indestructible figure in my world.
I walked in and took a seat on the edge of the bed.
“Hey, Daddy. I’m here.” Taking his hand in mine, it felt so cold and weak.
It wasn't supposed to be this way. He was going to live forever. He had to.
The rhythm of the monitors continued to beep alerting me to the fact that he was still breathing.
“Daddy, please don’t leave me. I’m not ready for you to go.”
He mumbled something and I leaned closer to hear.
“You have to take over, my little Cable. I have faith in you.”
It was what I’d always wanted him to say, but could never get him to admit. He believed in me.
“I’m just projecting what I want to hear from a few mumbled words. You didn't say that, did you?" The hope in my voice was pathetic for a grown woman to want that kind of approval. It shouldn't matter if he approved of me or not.
There wasn’t a response this time and I just sat there holding his hand.
Someone must have alerted the doctor that I’d arrived because the door opened and he joined me.
“Ah, I’m guessing you’re Mable?”
“I go by Cable, but yes. I’m his daughter. What’s his prognosis?”
He consulted the table in his hands before answering.
"From the reports, everything appears to be functioning. The blockage has been worked through with stints to get all the blood pumping to his heart again. We won't know if it's going to be enough until he's awake again." He gave me an appraising look as if he wasn't sure that I was hearing the truth.
“He might not make it. There’s still a 50/50 chance, but he’s here with us monitoring him so the odds are in his favor.”
“Thank you, Doctor.”
As he left, I followed him out to find Nelson standing against the wall across from the door.
“Hey,” All those years of being careful around him had made me wary. I didn’t want to get too close or become used to having someone to lean on when it would all fade once this crisis was over. Nelson didn’t have my best interest at heart.
“Doc fill you in?” He straightened.
“Yeah,” I glanced up and down the hall, “Are you the only one on guard duty?”
"Nah, I sent the ones who've been here a while to get something to eat. Then they can take point again when they're done.” Nelson eyed me warily. “There are a few things that need to be taken care of immediately. You’ll have to get your hands dirty.”
“That won’t be a problem. Is it urgent?” Even though I had been told by my father I was in charge it was going to take a minute to get used to being just that.
“There’s a shipment coming in this evening and we have to handle the new dealer because this is only the third time we’ve done business with him. Your father wasn’t quite satisfied with his references.”
Blowing out a sigh, I wanted to escape so badly, but that wasn’t in the cards.
“Where and when is this taking place?”
He glanced at his watch, “Uh, an hour at most.”
“Transportation?”
“Arranged.” He leaned closer, “You do have some sort of weapon for protection, correct?”
“Not that it’s any of your business, but yes I’m well protected.”
The two bodyguards came around the corner pausing when they caught sight of both of us.
“Jeff, Sam, this is your new Boss Lady, Cable.” His tone sounded very condescending. It was time to show my step-brother how things were going to work for the next few days.
I pushed him against the wall with my elbow firmly against his windpipe.
"First off, it's Rook or Boss Rook to you, everyone. Even, you Nelson. I won't have disrespect in the ranks. While I haven't been around for a few years, that doesn't mean that I'm not a force to be reckoned with and your skin would do well to remember it."
"I…I…" He tried to speak but didn't have enough air to get the words out.
“Was there something you were trying to say?” I eased up just a little so that he could speak. “Yes?”
“Nothing Ms. Rook. I didn’t mean to be disrespectful.” His eyes pleaded with me not to ruin his reputation in front of the others.
“That’s better.” I turned to look at the two guards, but they had their eyes fixed on the suddenly interesting floor tiles.
"You two?" Their heads popped up in unison.
“I need to make one thing clear. If and I mean if anything happens to my father that isn’t medically related to his current condition, then I’ll have your heads. Is that understood?”
Both men simply stood there nodding.
“Good. Call me if his condition changes. I’ll be back later tonight.”
I didn’t wait to see if they were going to take me seriously or not. It didn’t matter. My father was more than likely going to die whether they stood at his door to protect him or not. It didn’t change what I needed to do for the next few days.
What I had to do was prove that I belonged at the head of an organized crime syndicate. Time to make my mark on the underworld.
2
Memories came rushing back as the smell of dirt and flowers assailed my nose. I tried not to clutch the door handle as I pushed the bile down.
Nelson grinned as the limo drove up to the back of the warehouse. Reaching across me to open the door, he lingered letting me feel his presence.
“Hasn’t c
hanged much since you’ve been gone?” His words held a taunt that my threat from only a short while ago hadn’t managed to sink into his thick skull.
I pushed him off balance and he landed on his ass on the floor of the limo.
With a chuckle, I got out slamming the door in his face as he tried to follow.
“Still trying to establish dominance over your brother?” A familiar voice spoke from the shadows.
“Uncle Carlo?” A smile spread across my face as I ran into the outspread arms as if I was still a young girl.
“Ah, how is my little squirrel doing?” His hug was a welcome relief to my overwhelmed senses.
“Great, Uncle Carlo.” Reality hit as the reason for a comforting hug sunk in causing me to pull back. “Um, actually it’s been not so great.”
His frown echoed mine. “We heard and rushed over.”
“Yeah, it’s why I’m here now.”
“The others are all inside. Nelson mentioned that he was on the way from the hospital and I hoped that he was bringing you with him.” Uncle Carlo held the door open that would take us toward the inner sanctum.
The conference room used for most of the Rook Organization’s meeting took place was located in the back of the warehouse. While it hadn’t changed much over the years, the only redeeming quality was the fragrance of the flowers mixing in the air.
Inhaling deeply, I knew I would need it to get past all of the horrible smells that had soaked into the walls of the conference room over the years.
Violence was something that shifters and Otherworlders could smell or sense long after the event had occurred.
In my case, the event had been the reason that I’d left my place as my father’s underboss. It wouldn’t be wise for the men in this room I was about to enter to sense my fear of the past.
Supernatural Syndicate: A Limited Edition Collection of Magical Mafia Stories Page 48
