by J. C. Diem
“It’s the only thing I’m good at,” I replied, impatient at having to drive at the speed limit.
“I’m sure that’s not true,” the alpha said with a sleazy grin. “I’m sure you’re good at lots of things.”
Emma’s nose twitched and I picked up on her desire to launch herself at him and bite into his jugular. I sent her soothing thoughts, while trying to hide my amusement and failing.
“Is something funny?” Franko asked, narrowing his eyes in affront.
“Nope,” I lied, then stomped on the gas to end the conversation. Even he wasn’t stupid enough to distract me when I was zooming along at terrifying speeds.
The only downside to going so fast was that it guzzled a lot of gas. I had to stop when we were halfway to Phoenix. The alpha got out and stretched, trying to pretend his legs weren’t trembling. “I’ll get coffee and burgers,” I said and tossed the key to him.
Emma slipped into the backpack that I took out of the trunk, then I ambled into the building to order food. The rookie had filled the tank and had parked the Corvette in the lot by the time our orders were ready. He’d paid for the gas and was waiting for me at one of the wooden tables. Handing Franko his food and coffee, I took a seat across the table from him.
“To our first date,” he said, holding his coffee cup up.
“This isn’t a date, Franko,” I said flatly. “We’re on a mission.”
“Can’t it be both?” he asked flirtatiously.
“No, it can’t. Agents aren’t allowed to date each other in our squad, remember?”
He waved my reminder away. “I’m sure exceptions can be made. I’ve always wanted a strong woman for my mate. You’re exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
I’d just taken a bite of my burger and almost choked on it. Chewing and swallowing, I gaped at him. “What?”
“You might not be an alpha, but you come from a good pedigree,” he explained.
“We’re not dogs,” I said with a scowl. Now I knew why he was flirting with me. He’d known about my origins as soon as we’d met. It seemed he was graciously willing to overlook the fact that I was just a lesser wolf because of who I was related to.
“We’re animals on the inside, Alex,” he said and eyed me hungrily as he bit into his burger.
My appetite had fled, but I forced myself to continue eating. Unfortunately, he wasn’t done hitting on me yet.
“Once you get to know me, you’ll realize that I’m the best possible match for you,” the new recruit said confidently. “You won’t be able to rule our pack with me, but our people will respect you because the supreme alphas are your parents.”
My tattoos reacted to his statement, flaring with red light and causing agony to spear through me. Emma stirred inside the backpack that I’d placed on the seat beside me, but she didn’t emerge. Luckily, no one noticed the momentary glow.
“Are you a complete moron?” I hissed when the pain faded.
Affronted by my insult, Franko shrugged. “What’s the big deal? So the spells hurt you every time someone mentions your relatives. You’ll just have to get used to it.”
His callous disregard for my suffering would have been enough to make me reject his advances, even if I hadn’t already chosen my mate. I finished my burger, gulped down my coffee and threw my trash in the bin. “Let’s go,” I said, refusing to look at him as I slung the backpack over my shoulder.
“I’m not done yet,” he retorted snidely.
Needing a break from the arrogant alpha hole, I turned on my heel and strode over to the gas station to use the facilities. When I returned to the Corvette, the newbie was behind the wheel. “Get in,” he told me when I approached his window.
“I’m supposed to be driving, Agent Franko,” I reminded him.
“It’s my car,” he said slyly. “I let you drive halfway, now it’s my turn.”
Grinding my teeth at his highhandedness, I was tempted to get Emma to take me back to the base. Unfortunately, we needed to get to Phoenix so my zombie could retrieve the rest of the team. That fact had me reluctantly climbing into the passenger seat.
Heath hadn’t bothered to buckle himself in. He revved the engine, then backed out of the parking space with a squeal of his tires. Burning rubber for a few seconds until smoke billowed around us, he shot out of the gas station.
I buckled my seatbelt, then crossed my arms to show him how unimpressed I was with his grandstanding. He immediately started taking ridiculous risks by zooming up behind other vehicles to intimidate them into moving out of his way. I took my cell phone out and texted Yas to tell her the alpha was being a douche nozzle. We were soon involved in a text fest of bagging the rookie behind his back.
Sullen at being ignored, Franko overtook a car on a blind turn. Seeing a truck coming for us, he panicked and slammed on the brakes. He swerved back into our lane in the nick of time, barely avoiding a collision. The curvy highway was already dangerous enough without his idiotic antics.
Cutting a look at me, Franko knew I was pissed. My lips were clamped together to stop me from shouting at him. I hated to admit it, but now I knew how the rest of the team felt when they were my passengers.
Seeing a gas station ahead a few miles later, I pointed at it. “Pull over,” I requested.
“Why?” Heath asked, trying to pretend he hadn’t just almost gotten us killed.
“I need to go to the bathroom,” I lied.
“You only went an hour ago,” he complained, but pulled over and parked.
We climbed out and I moved a few steps away from the car until I was standing on the grass. I held my hand out for the key. “I’m driving,” I said.
“Did you get me to stop just so you could try to order me around?” he asked in amusement.
“Yep. Give me the key.”
He took a few steps closer and glared down at me menacingly. “You don’t get to tell me what to do, Alex. I’m an alpha and you’re just a lesser wolf.”
Emma knew what I wanted her to do and slipped out of the backpack. “Bye, Franko,” I said, then snatched the key out of his hand. The squirrel leaped at him and they vanished into the ground before he could squawk in outrage. She reappeared a moment later and I bent down to scoop her up. “Did you dump him in Siberia?” I asked with a grin. She sent me an image of her taking him back to our base. “Yeah, I guess that was a more sensible idea,” I said reluctantly and hugged her for assisting me.
Now free to drive like the maniac I was, I slid behind the wheel, readjusted the seat and mirrors, then blasted out of the gas station. Firmly in the zone, I drove the rest of the way to Arizona, feeling carefree and as close to being happy as I could get.
Chapter Eight
SLOWING DOWN AS SOON as I reached Phoenix, I followed the GPS to the hotel Liam had booked us rooms in. I parked in the lot, got out and stretched out my kinks, then texted Liam that I’d arrived. A familiar looking black van was parked in a nearby slot. The government plates gave it away as being a PIA vehicle. “Can you go and get the rest of the team, Em?” I asked.
Emma left the backpack and scampered over to a patch of grass. She headed home to retrieve the others, while I took the duffle bags out of the trunk.
No one looked happy when they emerged from the ground. Yas was wearing her full leather suit, since nightfall was still a couple of hours away.
I threw Heath’s bag at him and he caught it out of reflex. It landed hard enough to make the air whoosh out of him when it hit him in the chest. “Here’s your key,” I said, then threw that at him next. He caught it and gave me a fake wounded look.
“What the hell happened between you two?” Liam demanded.
“Didn’t Agent Franko tell you that he almost got us killed?” I asked, still seething in annoyance.
“I did not!” the alpha hole denied hotly. “I had everything under control!”
“What did he do?” Nick asked as everyone stared at the rookie.
“He tried to overtake a car on a blind
corner and we came this close to hitting an oncoming truck,” I replied, holding my finger and thumb a couple of millimeters apart.
“Nice one, Franko,” Sydney said sarcastically. “You’ve been on the squad for two whole days and you almost got one of your colleagues killed already.”
“I’m never getting into a vehicle that he’s driving,” Brynn said, hiking her thumb at the alpha.
“I second that,” Crowmon added. “I happen to appreciate my life too much to entrust it to someone who has so little regard for the safety of others.”
Most people would have withered beneath the scorn coming from their colleagues, but Heath scowled at us, clearly unashamed of his actions. “We’re both fine!” he said in self-defense. “I handled it!”
“Douche nozzle,” Yas said in disgust.
“What did you just call me?” the new recruit snarled, rounding on the vampire.
“I called you a douche nozzle,” she said loudly. Her face was hidden beneath her hood, but we could all hear her scorn. “You have more pride than sense and it’s going to get you killed. Hopefully, sooner rather than later.”
“Enough!” Liam said when Franko took a threatening step towards her. “Don’t ever take a risk with any of my agents like that again,” he said warningly.
Heath sneered at his commanding tone, then bowed sarcastically. “Whatever you say, boss.”
Nick glared at the alpha for his insolent tone, but he kept his mouth shut. He didn’t like his twin being disrespected. None of us did and it was only making us dislike the newbie even more.
Liam retrieved the key from the van and locked it, then we filed into the hotel through a back door. Yas took her hood off once the door was closed. We trooped to the reception desk to get our key cards. Crowmon grimaced when he was paired up with Agent Franko. “Just my luck,” he muttered too quietly for the werewolf to hear him. With Jax gone, the trickster had no choice but to bunk with the newbie.
“Did Franko really almost get you both killed?” Yas asked me quietly when we entered our room to place our belongings on our beds.
“Yeah, and Emma, too,” I reminded her, not that the squirrel could actually die, since she was already dead.
“How close did you come to being hit by that truck?”
“I’ll show you,” I offered and used my necromancy to link her mind to mine.
I showed her a replay of the near collision and she swore beneath her breath. “The alpha hole needs to go,” she said vehemently, but too quietly for him to hear her through the walls.
“We’ll keep whittling away at him,” I said. “By the way, he wants me to be his mate because of who I’m related to.”
“He actually said that?” the vampire asked incredulously. “He’s got to be the dumbest werewolf on the planet!”
“He told me he’s the best possible match for me,” I added with a smirk. “I’m just a lesser wolf, so I can’t rule his pack with him, but the others will apparently have to respect me because of my pedigree.”
She shook her head, momentarily speechless at the tactics he’d used to try to sway me. “What a complete moron,” she decided.
“He’s an arrogant moron,” I corrected her. “So far, I’m not impressed by the alphas I’ve met. They’re all the same.”
“The supreme alphas aren’t like Franko and that Colton werelion,” my bestie refuted. “They aren’t as arrogant as that pair.”
“Are you sure about that?” I asked dubiously. “They control every vampire and shifter on the planet with an iron fist. We have to obey their every word. As far as I’m concerned, they’re far worse than Franko or the werelion could ever be.”
She was shocked by my statement, but she didn’t try to argue with me. Not when she knew I was right.
We didn’t bother to unpack our gear. We left our duffle bags sitting on our beds before leaving the room. Emma was tucked inside my backpack that was now devoid of my laptop. We met the others at the van and climbed inside to talk. Yas had put her hood back on before we’d left the hotel. As long as she kept her back to people, it looked like she was wearing a leather hoodie.
“What’s the plan, bro?” Nick asked from the front passenger seat. Sydney and Brynn were in the seat in front of Yas, Emma and me. Crowmon and Franko were in the row behind us.
“We need to scout Killion’s new nightclub,” Liam replied. “We need to verify he’s here before we make a move on the place.”
“What happens when we’ve verified that he’s here?” I asked.
“He’s broken our laws and he and his minions need to be put down,” Liam said grimly.
Nick nodded in agreement. “We’ll put a stake through Killion’s heart and cut off his head.”
“I’m up for that action, Nicky,” Franko said with a grin and touched the butt of the gun he wore beneath his leather jacket. “I can’t wait to blow some holes in the undead creeps.”
“Something tells me you’re used to blowing things,” Yas said with a smirk while Nick scowled at the hated nickname he’d been lumped with.
“Agent Porter,” Liam said warningly when most of us snickered. Franko’s face had gone red with instant rage at her innuendo. It wouldn’t surprise me if he was homophobic as well as being a general alpha hole.
“Sorry,” the vampire said contritely, but her tone couldn’t have been less sincere.
“Did Agent Steel give us the orders to take Killion down?” I asked.
Liam nodded. “Uncle Mark wants the master vampire wiped out before he causes any more damage. He has a team of zombies on standby if we need them.”
“Ugh, surely we don’t need to rely on brainless zombies,” Heath protested. “We’re the Shifter Squad. We don’t need the undead to assist us.”
“Our squad routinely uses zombies during our missions, Agent Franko,” Brynn told him coldly. “They’re extremely useful and have always proven to be of benefit to us.”
“Unlike some,” Syd muttered pointedly.
Flushing in fresh rage, the alpha ground his teeth together to keep in the retort he clearly wanted to spit at her.
“We can’t spy on the nightclub from here,” Crowmon said to break the thick tension. “Are we going to get a move on, boss?”
“Let’s roll,” Liam agreed, then set the van into motion.
Chapter Nine
OUR HOTEL WAS ONLY a short distance from the nightclub. It barely took us fifteen minutes to drive there. Liam parked on the street a block away from the place. “We’ll stay in pairs and avoid the humans,” he ordered. “Keep your distance from the club, but see if you can pick up on any familiar scents. Alex, you’re with me. Nick will team up with Franko, Syd will be with Yas and Brynn will be paired with Crowmon. I’ll contact you every fifteen minutes.”
No one objected to his decision as we exited from the van. Yas grabbed hold of Sydney and the pair almost seemed to vanish as the vampire took off. The werecougar let out a startled noise that faded almost immediately with distance. Neither Nick, nor Franko, looked happy about being paired up as they headed towards the nightclub. Brynn and Crowmon ambled off, leaving Liam, Emma and me alone.
I wasn’t surprised when my brother paused to talk to me when everyone was out of earshot. “Yas showed us your text messages during your trip with Agent Franko,” he said in complete lack of amusement. “He seems to have trouble following simple orders.”
“He’s an alpha,” I said with a shrug. “I guess they don’t think the rules apply to them.”
“I’m sorry I agreed to let Franko go with you. I knew it was a bad idea, but I didn’t know he’d almost get you killed.”
“He’s not as skilled as he thinks he is,” I said as we slowly walked towards the nightclub that wouldn’t open for a few hours. “I’m not sure why Agent Steel chose Franko to be on our team, but I know why he accepted the position.”
“This should be good,” Liam predicted sourly. “Why did he join us?”
“So he could convince me to become
his mate.”
Blinking at my reply, his eyebrows rose incredulously. “He actually said that?”
“He didn’t say that was why he joined the team, but he flat out told me he wants me to be his mate because of who I’m related to.”
Liam wasn’t shocked, but he wasn’t happy about the revelation. “I’ll let Uncle Mark know about this,” he said. “Maybe it’ll make him change his mind about having the alpha hole in our squad.”
We both chuckled, then slowed down when we were half a block away from the nightclub. The neon lights weren’t on yet, but the name was still discernable. It was called ‘Club Feenix’. The atrocious spelling made me wince. I knew it was supposed to be cute, but I just found it annoying. “Can’t anyone spell properly anymore?” I grumbled, which made Liam smile. “What?” I asked.
“I was just thinking about genetics,” he replied and I looked at him blankly. “My mom hates it when businesses misspell their names, too.”
My scowl deepened at that news. I’d only met Lexi a few times and still knew little about her. I wasn’t sure why I was so angry that we had something in common. Probably because she’d failed to protect me and had let me be abused my entire life. I was wise enough to keep that thought to myself. “Killion has definitely been here recently,” I said instead. “I can faintly smell his scent.”
Liam sniffed the air, but my sense of smell was better than his now. “I’ll have to take your word for it,” he said. “Can you sense any vampires nearby?”
We took a seat at a café and ordered coffee and snacks when a waitress hurried over to us. When she was gone, I harnessed my necromancy and searched the area. I picked up on my bestie a few blocks away, but couldn’t sense any other undead beings in the vicinity. “Yas is the only bloodsucker in the area,” I reported.
“Killion must have a lair outside the city,” he figured. “He’s too smart to use the club as his daytime resting place again.”
