MARCUS: New Orleans Billionaire Wolf Shifters with plus sized BBW mates (Le Beau Series Book 10)

by V. A. Dold

  “You’ve got it, cher. Now, let’s grab a place to sit before the rest of the family gets here.”

  Minutes later, Isaac and Emma showed up with Simon and Stefan. Emma rushed over to Cassidy and hugged her as best she could, all while Cassidy remained seated. “Are you doing okay? Isaac told me some terrible men attacked you today.”

  “I’m fine, Mrs. Le Beau. Not a scratch on me.”

  Emma tsked her. “Emma, cher. Please call me, Emma. Or Mom, that would be even better.”

  Cassidy gave Marcus another You’ve got a lot of explaining to do look. “Emma. Of course.”

  “That’s better, cher. Marcus, do you have any tea?”

  “I’ve got K-Cups, Mom. I think there’s some tea mixed in with the coffee. You’d have to look through the drawer I keep them in.”

  Emma gasped. “I would never drink my tea from a K-Cup!” Then she dug into her handbag and headed for the kitchen. “Never mind, I have some of my special blend in my purse.”

  “I’ll go with you, Mom, I could go for some coffee,” Simon said as he followed Emma to the kitchen.

  “I’m coming too,” John called out as he got to his feet.

  A few minutes later, drinks in hand, everyone found a seat.

  Cade stood to silence the chatter, then said, “Before we start, I want to make this very clear, we’re here to help you, Cassidy. Anything you need, we’ll provide. But to do that, we need to know everything you can tell us about the man and his operation.” He retook his seat and awaited her answer.

  Cassidy swallowed hard. It wasn’t that she feared Marcus’s family. It was the novelty and strangeness of working with others that made her feel out of sorts. She was a lone assassin. She didn’t have a team. Ever

  She stiffened when Marcus unexpectedly squeezed her hand.

  “I’ve got your back, mon amour. And because of that, my family has your back. You’re no longer alone. Let us help you.” He whispered the reassurances in her ear, and yet every head in the room nodded in a show of solidarity.

  “We’re here to help you, cher,” Emma reiterated. “You’re as good as family. Nothing is more important than family. Take your time.”

  “Thank you, Emma. I can hear the truth in words. I haven’t had a family other than Colin since I was a little girl. Being treated like family by you means a lot to me.”

  Isaac leaned forward. “That’s very interesting. Have you always been able to hear the truth?”

  “Yes. But let me tell you, it can be very uncomfortable at times.”

  Isaac chuckled. “I’m sure it can be. Did you know that Marcus can compel a person to tell the truth? It’s interesting that your gifts work together. Your pairing is much like Simon and Rose’s. Their gifts of influencing emotions and feeling emotions work hand and hand as well.”

  Her gaze jumped to Marcus. “You didn’t tell me that.”

  He gave his father a dirty look. “I haven’t had the chance. I was going to tell you after we got Colin back.”

  Cassidy narrowed her eyes at him. “You better not have used that gift on me.”

  Marcus pressed his right palm over his heart. “I swear to you, I haven’t done anything of the sort. I’d never use that gift on my mate.”

  It was a long few seconds before she looked away from him. Taking a breath, she looked around the room at all the faces gazing back. “I’m assuming you all know I’m a trained assassin.”

  Emma gave her a warm smile. “Yes, cher. We’ve known that all along.”

  “That explains a few things,” Cassidy mumbled under her breath. “I have something you should see before we go any further.” She dug a folded piece of paper from her pocket and handed it to Cade. He seemed to be the leader of the group and was the most resistant to helping her. Thus, he should be the one to make the call. “After you read this, you may change your mind about helping me.”

  Holding her gaze, he accepted the paper and unfolded it. Finally, he dropped his eyes to read the contents of the page.

  With this contract, you will find a file of information.

  Complete the requirements of the contract and return to headquarters without delay.

  When he glanced at her again, she handed him a second sheet of paper. The title read Assassination Order in bold letters across the top. It was the contract on Marcus’s life.

  “I was sent to New Orleans to assassinate Marcus.”

  Cade nodded. “We’ve known that since the beginning.”

  “I see.” After a short pause, she grinned. “That explains the constant chauffeur. There was nothing in the file about Marcus using a driver. That was your way of providing a bodyguard, wasn’t it?”

  He grinned and glanced at Marcus. “She’s quick.”

  Marcus smiled back. “I know. I don’t get anything past her.”

  Cade turned back to Cassidy. “Why was a contract taken out on my brother?”

  “Supposedly, he killed a man who was part of the New Orleans syndicate. His illegitimate son wanted revenge for that. He wasn’t after revenge so that he could take his father’s place within the organization, but as vengeance for his father. I did a little digging into the contract. His man paid Jones an outrageous sum of money upfront with a bonus upon the completion of the job. My guess is, Jones knew I’d learn the truth of Marcus’s innocence and refuse to complete the job, so he took my brother as insurance that I’d complete the contract.”

  Cade huffed out a breath in frustration. “As always, the mob has written history to suit themselves. A couple of years ago, they kidnapped my mate, Anna, and were warned never to target anyone in our family again. When they went after the woman belonging to one of the local vampires, they hammered the last nail in their coffin. It was the vampires who wiped out the syndicate. Yes, we took part in protecting the woman in question at a house in St. Charles and again at my brother’s ranch in Texas. But all of the men we killed were hired mercenaries, not members of the mob.”

  She gaped at him for a moment. “Did you say, vampires?”

  Marcus gave her hand a squeeze. “Vampires, and so much more. But let’s not get off track. Everyone needs to know the training regimen the assassins go through with Jones. That will dictate how we execute the rescue.” Then a crease formed between his brows. “Should we expect all of Jones’s defenses to be adults, or will there be children present?”

  “There’s always new kids coming into the program, so we need to expect kids to be there too. Before we take this discussion further, you need to know one thing. I’m going to kill Jones. He ruined my life when he killed my parents and stole my childhood. As soon as he got his hands on me, my life as a carefree child ended. I wasn’t allowed to have toys or play games. From the time I woke in the morning until I went to bed at night, I was in training.

  “Somehow, he knows when a child has abilities. He takes those kids via any means necessary, including murder and shapes them into killers. He utilizes a child’s abilities to enhance their effectiveness on the job. If I don’t kill him, he’ll continue to destroy other children’s lives. Besides, he knows if he doesn’t kill me, he’ll spend the rest of his life looking over his shoulder waiting for me to strike.”

  Marcus shook his head. “I would never deny your vengeance on what that man has done to you. I’ll even watch your back while you do it. Let’s get back to what we can expect when we get there. Since there will be children present, why don’t you start at the beginning? We need to know what even the youngest students are capable of.”

  “All right. The first rule we’re taught is not to kill unless it is part of a contract or in defense of our lives. The kids might see our intrusion as a personal threat. Jones begins training a child the moment he has custody, which can be as early as two years old. He starts with languages, if the trainee is expected to work internationally, and survival techniques.” She sneered the last, raising brows and instigating questions.

  “Survival techniques?” Emma snarled, obviously picking up on Cassi
dy’s disgust.

  “He colors the sadistic game as fun by calling it hide and seek. It’s anything but. The littlest ones have to hide and make moves to avoid detection as needed. Children who are a few years older and further in the program are tasked with finding the kids. If they’re found, the older child is expected to beat the younger as a lesson in failure. If the older child fails to find anyone, he or she is punished by Jones.”

  Now Isaac sat forward and growled. “And you were forced to do this?”

  Cassidy grimaced. “Yes and no. I was forced to participate but refused to beat the children. Instead, if I found any of them, I protected them from the others. I’ve always been gifted in hand to hand combat and beat the crap out of any older kids who challenged me for the babies I protected. Jones didn’t approve.”

  Emma sucked in a sharp breath. “Jones hurt you for that, didn’t he?”

  Cassidy scowled. Absentmindedly she ran her thumb over a thin scar that ran from her right temple to her chin. “Jones took great pleasure in disciplining me. For some reason, he took a particularly strong dislike to me.” She shrugged. “His attitude and treatment only inspired me to train harder and longer than the others. Not to impress him in any way, but to protect myself and the younger kids.

  “For my twelfth birthday, I didn’t get a party or gifts, we never did. What I got was a very nasty bout with a boy who had just turned eighteen. Jones didn’t understand that it wasn’t brute strength that won out in a fight. I was smaller and faster with a couple of black belts to my name. I wasn’t yet a teen, and I could take on Jones or any of his thugs. So he set me up to fail on my birthday to punish me. The bastard liked doing shit like that.

  “It backfired on him when I won the fight. Of course, he had me dragged to his disciplinary room to take his anger out on me. He hated when I won. When he tried to lock me in his restraints so he could beat me without fear of retaliation, I fought back and sent him to the hospital with several broken bones. After that, he had two older boys guarding him at all times, and he’d have them drag me off to the detention cells in the basement as my punishment. Needless to say, I spent a lot of time in those cells.”

  Marcus’s eyes blazed, the right one twitching.

  Cassidy quickly glanced away to avoid a scene in front of his family. It didn’t work. He gripped her chin, lifting her face until she met his eye.

  “Tell me those boys didn’t—?” he demanded in a voice that intimidated others. It didn’t work on her.

  She was acutely aware of his family watching them. When she didn’t answer, he leaned in close. “Tell me.”

  “No. They didn’t. That was the only line Jones never crossed.”

  He blew out a long breath, then kissed her. “Thank God.”

  Cassidy suddenly remembered they were in a room full of his family. She pulled away from Marcus and smoothed the nonexistent wrinkles from her shirt. “Um… where was I? Oh, yeah. Because he feared me, he consistently pitted me against boys several years older than myself. It didn’t matter that I came out the victor every time. When I didn’t lord it over the loser and instead offered to train with them, their respect for me grew, and many of them were soon refusing to follow Jones’s orders when it came to me. That was about the time he sent me off to train as a sharpshooter. I couldn’t infect the others with my rebellious nature if I was always alone.”

  “What were the kids taught next?” Simon asked quietly as if he dreaded her answer.

  “Fighting skills begin after that. Martial arts, street fighting, anything that didn’t involve a weapon. So the kids that are under six years old will be unarmed. Any child older than that should be considered armed and dangerous. And if you come across someone who is a teenager or adult, shoot first and ask questions later.”

  “That Jones man is an unimaginable nightmare. I can’t even wrap my mind around treating a child like that,” Emma said with tears in her voice.

  Cassidy nodded. “I agree. Most people can’t. And that’s why I’m going to kill him. Once Colin is located, and safely away, Jones is a dead man. I won’t leave that man alive to torment more children.”

  “There isn’t a person in this room that would stand in your way, cher,” Isaac said as he held her gaze.

  Cassidy gave Isaac a small smile. “Thank you, sir.”

  “Call me Isaac, my dear.”

  Her grin grew a little larger. “Of course, sir.”

  Isaac huffed out a breath as if he’d given up.

  Cassidy took a moment to look each person in the eye, then said, “Before we start planning Colin’s rescue, you should know that I have a friend on the inside among the assassins. When he’s not assigned prisoner duty, he’s staying as close as possible to where Colin’s being held. I texted him this morning, and he confirmed that my brother is in one of the cells. He promised to do his best to protect my brother until we arrive. That being said—” She pulled a photo from her pocket and passed it to Marcus, who glanced at it before handing it off to the next person. “I want you all to memorize his face. Jamie is not to be touched. He’s my friend and on our side. Understood?”

  She waited for each and every person to agree, but before she could continue, Cade chimed in. “How do you know this Jamie can be trusted?” He leaned forward in his seat and regarded her steadily.

  Cassidy regarded him coolly and raised a brow. “How do you know that Simon or Stefan can be trusted?”

  Cade scowled. “That’s different. They’re my brothers.”

  “Jamie is as much a brother to me as your blood kin is to you. He and I grew up together. We trained together. Took punishments together. And we’ve always had each other’s backs. ALWAYS. Now, I need to know if this is going to be a problem for you? Because if it is, I can do this without your help.”

  Isaac shot a nasty glare at Cade. “It’s fine, Cassidy. Cade has a few trust issues, but, in the end, he’ll go along with your plan. Won’t you, Cade?”

  Cade glared right back at his father. “Sure. As long as this guy Jamie checks out with Quin, I’m good with it.”

  Cassidy shook her head. “Believe what you want. I really don’t care. I’d trust Jamie with my life. More importantly, I trust him with my brother’s life. That’s more than I can say for you.”

  It was Cade’s turn to pop his brows.

  “Cassidy, dear,” Emma chimed in, “is it possible you have more friends among the trainees than you think? I ask simply because some of the assassins inside may choose to help you or stand down and allow you to rescue your brother without a fight. We wouldn’t want to harm those who choose your side over Jones.”

  Cassidy frowned. “Maybe. It’s hard to tell because Jones does everything he can to pit us against one another. To tell the truth, I have great respect for a few of the guys who will be there when we launch the rescue. If they reciprocate that respect, I’m not sure.”

  Marcus snorted, drawing her attention. “Of course, they do. How could they not? My guess is you’re a legend in that place.”

  Emma nodded, a grin flashing her straight white teeth. “I’m sure they do. We need a way to mark the people inside who are on our side.”

  Cassidy tucked her hair behind her ear, thinking for a moment. “Jones makes everyone wear plain white T-shirts and black jogging pants when we’re not on assignment. I could carry a red marker and put a big red X on anyone proven to be an ally.”

  Emma nodded. “That should work.”

  Now that that was decided, she turned to Marcus. “Do you have a large note pad or something else I can draw on?”

  “Sure, I have a legal pad in my desk. Let me get that for you.”

  A minute later, she had a pad and pen in hand. Drawing a large rectangle, she noted the street names around it then turned it to show the Le Beaus. “The training center encompasses an entire block.” She circled the southwest corner. “Here is where the outdoor training field is located.” Then she circled the Northeast corner. “Over here is the parking lot.” Finall
y, she made several small x’s along the side of the building with the last x a little larger than the others. “Every x is an entrance. This larger x is the public entrance that can be seen from the road. Security cameras cover every square inch of the property. That will make getting in, a challenge but not insurmountable.”

  “What’s your plan to avoid the cameras?” Simon asked.

  “Jones is psychotic about schedules and keeping them. He insists on everyone taking meals at exactly the same time. So, three times a day, everyone inside that building will be in the mess hall. The only exception is a small relief crew who eat ahead of time and relieve those on security duty. The thing is, the exchange isn’t seamless. There’s always a five-minute gap between the assigned crew leaving their posts and the relief crew taking over. That means we’ll have three opportunities to slip inside without being seen.”

  Simon leaned forward, his elbow on his knees. “Excellent intel. We have the timing for breaching the stronghold. What’s your plan after that?”

  “The team will stage here.” She marked a spot about half a block away. “Any closer than that and the cameras might pick us up. I know how to avoid the cameras, but it takes precise timing. I’ll run to this door and enter the building. Once inside, I’ll immediately go left following the hallway. I’ll bypass the elevators in favor of the stairwell. The cells are two floors down. Upon exiting the stairwell, I’ll go right about fifty feet to the first cell. If he isn’t in that one, I’ll continue down the line until I locate him.”

  Cade crossed his arms. “And what will we be doing while you’re doing all of that?”

  “You’ll follow me to the building and wait along the outer wall. There’s a camera dead zone of about two feet out from the physical wall of the building. If you keep your back flat against the brick, you won’t be seen. Once I have Colin, I’ll let you know that it’s safe to enter the building. Jones’s entire operation needs to be taken down, which means the upper echelon of assassins will need to be neutralized. There’ll be approximately ten people present who are at that level. The remaining trainees will need to be relocated and evaluated for possible psychiatric treatment. Every one of their lives has been colored by violence and death.”