Sedona Suspect

by Lisa Kessler

  CHAPTER 15

  Natasha

  Sloan continued his questions, but one thing kept playing through my head. All the men I’d worked with at Nero for all these years had gotten to keep their families. The revelation floored me, and bitter anger pulsed within, growing like a cancer. I’d fucking lost everything and everyone I ever cared about. These bastards were all I had. I’d thought that was something we all shared. We only had each other.

  But it was all a lie.

  Severino made sure the women were completely dependent. The men still had support systems outside of Nero. No wonder so many of them had managed to transition into the human world. I had nothing and had known no one when Nero fell.

  I stared at Gil’s back as he lay at my feet. God, I’d wanted to open his throat, to spill his blood for the betrayal. Not one person from Nero had ever mentioned having any family to me. Not one. And after Severino had died, none of them had offered to bring me into their new business ventures, either. Everyone had scattered in typical cat fashion, but I’d thought they were all struggling and alone like I was.

  And here they were with loose ends for someone to leverage.

  Of course, Severino must have kept a database in case any of his assassins got out of line. I wanted vengeance, blood, something to settle the score, but before I could slice his throat, Dex’s gaze had locked on mine and something had hit me. I might not have been able to regain what I’d lost, but I still had a chance at a future.

  I’d spared Gil. Barely.

  It wouldn’t change anything, though. There wasn’t going to be a future with Dex. If we lived through whatever we were about to face in that house, I’d still have to leave Arizona. I was a fugitive here.

  But dammit, I wanted to change my stars. I wanted a new life. I probably didn’t deserve it, but knowing that didn’t smother the yearning I felt when I looked at Dex, bloody shirt and all.

  Sloan shoved Ray against the back bumper of the truck. “Move and I’ll shoot you myself.”

  He went to Dex’s side and waved me over. I made sure to step on Gil’s back on my way. Bastard.

  Sloan kept his voice low. “We have to get that list from the judge, which means we need to know where to find it.”

  I nodded. “Severino kept all kinds of databases to use for leverage against our clients. I didn’t realize he had them for our assassins as well.” I sighed, eyeing the house in the distance. “I don’t know how the judge would’ve gotten it, though.”

  Dex crossed his arms. “I bet I know. He’s dead now, but Judge Jones’s brother-in-law, Joel Holland, was the father of one of our pack members. He was the one who originally found the video footage from Operation Moonlight while he was upgrading Nero’s server. After he stumbled onto something he shouldn’t have, he shared it with a few people, and they ended up forming the Transparency Collective. Joel could’ve copied the list from Nero and given it to Judge Jones before we killed him.”

  “Dammit.” Sloan shook his head, eyeing the house. “I’m going in there.”

  I frowned. “Don’t give him what he wants.” I drew my gun and pulled back the slide. “I’ll bring him out to you.”

  “I need him alive, especially if this list exists.” Sloan shook his head. “We need to destroy it.”

  Dex came up beside me. “I have an idea.”

  I looked at him, half expecting him to try to talk me out of going in.

  His eyes locked on mine. “I can go in the front, while you sneak in the back. If I keep him distracted, we can trap him.” He glanced at Sloan. “My shirt’s already ruined. I can tell him I’m the last one standing. If he’s learned to use his heightened senses, he’ll smell all of your scents on me. He’ll think you’re all dead.”

  My pulse kicked up a notch, surprising me. Usually when I was in the zone during a mission, the numbness and calm worked like a bubble until the job was done. No fear, only focus. But the thought of Dex facing a paranoid, juiced-up human while he was already wounded broke through my mental tunnel vision.

  I frowned. “He’ll kill you.”

  Dex shook his head. “He might try, but he won’t know you’re coming in from behind. I can stay alive long enough for you to catch him.”

  A part of me liked that he trusted my skills so much, but another part, a part I didn’t recognize, worried that the risks were too high.

  “I don’t like it.” I held his gaze. “We’re holding your chest together with butterfly bandages right now.”

  Dex focused on Sloan. “Can you put these two into the back of the truck? There’s a tarp back there too. We don’t need the neighbors driving by with questions.” He took my hand, walking me far enough away from the truck even Sloan wouldn’t be able to overhear. The intensity in his gaze made me forget to breathe. “I don’t have a death wish. I know this will work. I’d bet my life on you any day.” He caressed my cheek. “I need you to do the same for me. Trust me, Tash. This is going to work.”

  I’d never trusted anyone before. I wasn’t sure I knew how. I rose on my toes and kissed him. His arms slid around me, our tongues wrestling with a desperation I couldn’t put into words. This was a partnership. We were depending on each other, trusting each other to stay alive. It was heady and terrifying all at the same time.

  “Ow. Shit.” He pulled back wincing with a smile as he checked his chest.

  I waited for him to look at me and whispered, “Don’t you dare die.”

  He chuckled, the sexiest crooked smile on his face. “No way.”

  My heart raced in answer as I nodded. “See you soon.”

  I ran into the shadows toward the back of the house. The sooner I found a way in, the sooner I could kiss him again. I chose to focus on the end game.

  Because deep down, I did trust him to keep his word.

  CHAPTER 16

  Dex

  I watched her go and then headed for the front of the massive home on the corner lot. I’d worked in this high-brow community before, enough to know everyone had a security system. The judge would have to turn it off to open the front door. Then Natasha could get inside.

  And if I could keep the bastard distracted, even if he noticed her scent, he’d think it was coming from the blood on my shirt. This was going to work. It had to.

  I jogged up the driveway, wincing as each stride tugged at the wound in my chest. I banged on the front door. “Open up, you son of a bitch!”

  He probably watched me running up the drive on his security camera. I was counting on Natasha avoiding the cameras on the back of the house. She made a living as a professional assassin. She wouldn’t make a rookie mistake like that.

  I pounded on the door again. “I’m right here, asshole! Open the damned door before I break it down!”

  There were a few beeps on the other side of the door, and then it opened. The alarm was off. Step one was done. The judge’s face was pale. A bead of sweat trickled down his forehead as he lifted a gun and pointed it at my chest.

  “Put your hands up.” He scanned the shadows.

  I shook my head without bothering to raise my hands. “They’re all dead.”

  His gaze snapped to me as he sucked in a deep breath. “You’re wounded.”

  “I’m the last one standing, you heartless prick.” I narrowed my eyes at him.

  “Stay back. I’m within my rights to shoot you.”

  I smirked. “Waste of a werewolf, right? I’m your big chance to show the world we exist. I’m betting you won’t pull that trigger.” I took a step closer.

  He stepped back instead of shooting me. “Is General Sloan dead, too?”

  “Yes. They’re all dead. Your guys got him.”

  He sniffed. Did he catch Natasha’s scent? Because I just did.

  “They killed my mate,” I blurted out. “I ripped out their throats, and if you don’t shoot me, you’re going to be next. She was the other half of my soul, and there’s nothing more dangerous than taking something from a werewolf that can never be replaced.”<
br />
  His eye twitched. “That’s what you did to me. You monsters murdered my daughter!”

  He pulled the trigger just as Natasha bolted from the shadows and tackled him to the ground. The bullet grazed my bicep, a scratch compared to the wound in my chest. I rushed in and helped her hold him down while she zip-tied his wrists behind his back. He looked like a gaunt man in his sixties, but he had the strength of a werewolf.

  In the distance, sirens blared. Fuck. I looked at Natasha. “Get out of here. They’ll be looking for you.”

  “You need to hurry, too.” She got to her feet and gave me one last look before she vanished back the way she’d come.

  I yanked the judge to his feet and dragged him outside. A black sedan sat in the driveway. Sloan got out, and the judge started wriggling like a fish.

  “No!” he shouted. “You’re dead.”

  “You wish.” Sloan came over and hauled the judge to his car. He threw him into the back seat and looked over at me. “The others are under the tarp in the back of your truck. Take them to the ranch. I’ll be in touch.”

  He drove away, and I went back inside and locked the dead bolt on the front door. I quickly scanned the floor. No blood. I found a bathroom and grabbed a hand towel. The sirens were close now. Shit.

  I wiped down the door and the lock, then picked up the judge’s gun and tucked it into my belt. Time to get out of here. I ran to the back door and opened and closed it with the towel. I didn’t know the code to set the alarm, but the police wouldn’t be able to go inside without a warrant. For now, we’d be in the clear. Lights were flashing by the time I climbed over the back fence. I dropped to the ground, cursing under my breath as the wound on my chest throbbed. I definitely needed stitches.

  I hurried as best I could back to my truck. I peered into the bed and lifted the tarp. The two jaguar shifters were lying in the back. The general had added zip ties to their ankles and stuffed rags in their mouths. Good. I threw a tarp back over them and got behind the wheel.

  If the police found me with two beaten men bound and gagged in the back, I’d be fucked. Once I got safely past the three police cars filling the judge’s driveway, my hands began to tremble.

  That was too fucking close.

  By the time I drove up to the ranch house, I’d already sent Natasha three texts. No response. We hadn’t gotten a hotel room yet, and she didn’t have her new identification from Vance, either.

  Where the hell could she be?

  It didn’t help that the wolf was restless, growling and pacing in the shadows of my soul. His rising concern for his mate was making it harder for me to quell the very real fear that I didn’t want to face.

  She was gone.

  But she’d given me her word she would say goodbye. Was it all a lie?

  Vance and Cole came down to the truck as soon as I parked. Vance opened the tailgate and pulled back the tarp. “Hey, mates. It’s been too long.”

  The truck shook as they struggled. I got out as Cole came around to my side. He eyed my shirt. “Looks like you could use some stitches.”

  “Yeah. Any word on Asher yet?” I clasped his forearm and followed him up to the house. He didn’t know about Natasha or that she was my mate, and I didn’t tell him anything. It was easier to lie to myself that she was coming back, and I could tell my pack then. I thought Asher suspected, but he hadn’t said anything.

  “Becca’s lawyer has the bail hearing on the docket for tomorrow,” Cole said as he opened the door. “If we’re lucky he’ll be here by tomorrow night.”

  I admired Becca. Judge Jones was her uncle. Gage told me she had some happy memories from her childhood, but when she discovered he wanted to expose werewolves in the hopes the world would destroy them, her loyalty to her uncle snapped. She loved Gage and his boys, and although she was related to the judge, she cut ties to protect the pack.

  It couldn’t have been easy.

  We went straight into the bathroom. I put down the toilet seat lid and sat down on it while Cole retrieved his medical bag. I checked my phone again. Nothing. Dammit. I carefully pulled my shirt off over my head as Cole came back in. He had a step stool with him.

  He took a seat on the stool and peeled off the butterfly bandages, studying the wound. “You got lucky. This was really close to your heart.”

  The jury was out on whether or not that was a good thing. I wasn’t sure I could handle losing my brother and my mate in one week. “I’m all right.”

  Cole’s eyes flicked up to my face. “You sure about that?” He threaded a needle. “You’ve been through hell.”

  I looked up at the ceiling while he cleaned out the wound. The sting was a welcome distraction from the pain in my heart. “How’d you go on after we lost Chase?”

  Cole’s twin brother had taken a bullet while we were freeing the pack from our former Alpha’s rule.

  He poked the needle through my skin as he shook his head. “I drank a lot of beer and spent a lot of time angry at fate.” He stayed focused on my wound. “But it gets easier over time. He’s that devil on my shoulder now, pushing me to try things when my natural inclination might be to avoid them. He was the daredevil.” He finally glanced up at my face. “I can almost hear his voice sometimes, like on Madison’s birthday when I was about to sing for her. I wanted to back out but my brother was in my head, telling me to put myself out there, reminding me she was worth the risk.”

  I mulled over his words, gritting my teeth as he pulled the stitches tight and cut the thread.

  He rested back on the step stool. “You’re going to heal. This wound and your heart. It’s not going to be same, but he hasn’t left you.” He put a bandage on my chest. “He’s still here. You go on living for him.”

  “Thanks, man.”

  He stood and cleaned up the bathroom counter before closing up his bag. “Next we need to get Asher back here.”

  And my mate.

  Instead, I said, “Hopefully Becca’s lawyer can make that happen.” I got up, and we headed into the large living room.

  Most of the pack was already there. Vance and Kaya were next to Naomi, and Gage and Becca were on the love seat. Naomi’s boys, Bart and Ben, were on the floor with Gage’s little guys, Henry and Hawk, and the four of them huddled around a video on a tablet. Cole stood behind Madison, who sat in an easy chair.

  Vance looked up as I came in. He winced. “Sorry they got you, mate.”

  “I’ve had worse. I’m okay.” I didn’t bother to sit down. I scanned the room. Serenity and Ryker came down the hallway from Asher’s office. Ryker leaned against the far wall as I finished surveying the room. Everyone was here except Chandler and Wendy, who lived in Phoenix for his job at the news station, and Jett.

  My gaze slid back over to Vance. “Where’s Jett?”

  “He’s with General Sloan questioning the judge.” Vance stood up and came over to me before I could ask why our most silent pack member was trying to get an uncooperative witness to speak. “You want to help me talk to Gil and Ray?”

  I nodded. “Yeah.”

  Vance clasped my forearm and took in the rest of the room as he released his grip. “With any luck, we’ll have Asher out on bail tomorrow and the charges dropped. We’re going to squeeze these two for information on the judge, and we’ll compare notes with Jett on whatever the judge shared with them.”

  Ryker straightened. “Need any more help with the jaguar shifters?”

  Ryker was our biggest pack member, but Vance shook his head. “We’re good, mate. Thanks.”

  I started to follow him out when Naomi stopped me. “Why don’t we get you a clean shirt first?”

  I forgot I didn’t have one on. I nodded. “Thanks.”

  “Meet you outside, Dex,” Vance said before he opened the door and stepped out.

  I followed Naomi back to the master bedroom. She went into the walk-in closet, and the scent of my Alpha was so strong I could almost feel him standing right behind me.

  “I’m sorry about Ashe
r.” And I meant it. My wolf’s instinct was to protect his Alpha. I’d die to keep him safe, and I hadn’t been here.

  She wrapped her arms around her middle while I pulled the shirt over my head. “At least we’ve got over a week until the full moon, and since he’s innocent, we should be able to get him out tomorrow. It’s more of an inconvenience at this point. Now that we’ve got the judge, we can make sure this never happens again.”

  “Thanks for the shirt.” I stopped at the door and turned to face her. “Did you know Jett was going to be helping Sloan question the judge? I guess I’m wondering why the general didn’t ask me since I was right there.”

  She lifted a shoulder. “I’m not sure. General Sloan asked him, and he said yes.”

  Interesting.

  I nodded. “I better get out there and help Vance.”

  “Dex?”

  I looked back over my shoulder. “Yeah?”

  “Natasha isn’t my friend, but I know she refused to participate in taking my boys.” Her gaze wandered over my face. “I saw the way she stood by you the other night and into the morning. She’s not just chasing money like the two guys outside.”

  “I know.” I met her eyes. “Why are you telling me this?”

  “Because I noticed she didn’t come back here with you.” She shrugged. “I hope it wasn’t because you thought I didn’t want her here.”

  I appreciated her words, but it was stirring up emotions I was barely able to keep bottled up. “The police are looking for her so she…left.”

  “Is she coming back?”

  I swallowed. “I don’t know.”

  But I fucking wished I did.

  CHAPTER 17

  Natasha

  The black sedan pulled over, and I got into the passenger seat. “I wasn’t sure I’d be able to find you.”

  Sloan clenched his jaw as he scanned the darkness through the windshield. “You’re an integral part of this operation. I wasn’t going to leave without you.”