Connor tried to stop the fight. When he managed to get about a foot near them, he was thrown back across the ground where the back of his shirt ripped in half.
“Connor,” she cried out.
His hand shot up to stop her. “Get inside and close the door.” Then, Connor was no more as he shifted into his wolf form.
No matter how many fights and skirmishes she’d been involved in during her lifetime at group homes and in the streets, she knew three wolves were no match for her. She needed a weapon to take them down if she had to. Her eyes scanned the porch until she caught sight of an ax. She grabbed the ax, hoping to God she didn’t have to use it.
Suddenly, a pickup truck came to an abrupt stop on the other side of the ranch. A brown-skinned male with dreads rushed out of the car, a string of expletives coming from his mouth. He pulled a shotgun from the back of his waistband, holding it up into the air and firing off several rounds.
When the dust had settled, three bloody wolves panted in the center.
“Oh my God!” Antonia screamed, and before she could talk herself out of it, she ran to Connor’s wolf.
He shifted as soon as she reached him, and she landed on his lap. “Baby, go back inside. I told you to keep away.” He was panting and out of breath. His clothes were in shreds, hanging about him, and blood smears riddled his skin. None of the cuts were deep, but by the bruising, she could tell that his body had been battered pretty well from the fight.
“What in the ever-loving fuck is going on?” The brown-skinned man ran into the clearing, his dreads flying out behind him.
“Our people are being murdered because of him,” Devin shouted and pointed at Tristan.
“I will fix this, but I won't abandon the code,” Tristan scowled. “I was born into this. What would you have me do? Let my family’s empire crumble to the ground?”
“It won’t be long before the numbers begin to triple,” Devin retorted.
“I understand that. Trust me. This has become my top priority. No man threatens me without paying for it, as you should know,” Tristan replied.
Both Rodney and Connor jumped between the Alphas when both of them charged again.
“Enough,” Connor said.
“Who’s in the truck?” Devin asked.
“Andrew Trudeau.”
Antonia took off running toward the truck and swung the passenger door open. Andrew was sitting there with handcuffs around his wrists.
“I was wondering when someone was coming to get me out of this hot ass truck. What the fuck was going on out there? I know I’m not crazy but I just saw fur and blood flying from that dust before it cleared.”
She ignored his question and gave him hug. “I’m glad you’re okay. Did anything happen to you? Did you get hurt?”
“Yeah, I’m all right. I tried to run when they raided the bar, but apparently, I’m not fast enough. I got pinched by the cops,” he said. “Rodney here says you had me bailed out. Where’d you get the money? That shit was pretty high.”
“Don’t worry about it. Everything’s going to be okay,” she told him.
“For you, maybe, and for the rest of them standing there looking at me like I’m a fool. But I’m the only one with my hands cuffed like I’m a criminal.”
Antonia turned to Rodney. “Can you please un-cuff him?”
“For the record, you are a criminal.” Rodney pulled the keys out of his back pocket and slipped them into the slot to unlock the cuffs. “He tried to run. Twice,” He told Connor. “Once with my keys, and the second time he took off with my cell phone.”
“Yeah, apparently, people do that when you try to cuff them against their will,” Connor said.
Once Andrew was un-cuffed, Antonia gave him another bear hug.
“So, why are we standing here?” Andrew asked. “Can we go home?”
Tristan stepped forward. “No, Andrew. After today, you may never return to your life as it was. You’re connected now not only to my Order, but to the Pack through your sister.”
“Um, do I know you?” Andrew asked.
“It’s okay, Andrew. You can drop the facade and stop pretending that you don’t know me. Everyone here is family. Not of the Order, but of the Pack.”
“So, you know each other?” Rodney asked.
“He’s an associate in my Order. He just got signed on with the wrong crew,” Tristan replied.
“Well, do you know Tristan?” Antonia asked her brother.
“Yeah.” Andrew nodded. “I know him. But I damn sure didn’t know he was a fucking animal.” He blinked a few times and laughed nervously. “Um, whatever drug you gave me, Rodney, whoever you are, that shit was so not cool. Because I know what I saw.”
They all exchanged glances.
“Well, didn’t I just see you all looking like animals?” Andrew urged.
“It’s a little complicated.” Antonia pressed her palm into Andrews back. “I’ll explain soon. What I don’t know…I hope Connor may be able to share with you.” She glanced at Connor with a hopeful expression.
He nodded. “I will, but one of you needs to leave off of my property. Your tempers are still high.” Connor pointed at Devin and Tristan. “I’m not gonna be responsible for the demise of an Alpha on my land.”
“I’ll go,” Tristan grumbled.
Devin stepped forward. “No, I’ll go. You stay. Besides Antonia, you are the only one Andrew knows. He might do well if you explain just what type of animal you are.”
Tristan growled.
Connor cleared his throat loudly to warn the Alphas about his request.
“Alpha,” Rodney called out to Devin. “My pickup is big enough to hold your bike. I can get you back to the Caedmon village.”
“Thank you. I’d appreciate that.” Devin nodded. “And Connor, please accept my apologies for what just happened here.”
Connor sighed. “Accepted. I suppose sometimes we just need to hash it out like the animals we are, Alpha.”
CHAPTER TWENTY
“So, are you fucking him?” Andrew asked, standing beside her near the kitchen counter.
Antonia picked up a towel and swatted him with it.
“Ow!”
Antonia had been making drinks, and her brother had followed her into the kitchen after her leaving Tristan and Connor to look over all the reports.
“You’re an ass for asking that, and it’s none of your business,” she said.
“Well, you’re grown now, sis, and I can’t tell you what to do. Believe it or not, I want you to be happy,” he said. “But if he hurts you in any way, I’ll break his back in half. I don’t care if he’s a wolf, lion, bear, or gorilla, I will put a bullet—”
“Andrew, enough,” she said between clenched teeth. “He’s actually a really nice man and treats me very well.”
She dropped the last ice cube into the glass and studied her brother. For a moment, she could have been looking in a mirror. He sported the same narrow nose with a button shape near the bottom. His eyelashes were dark, his eyebrows were thick, and in the center of the left one he had a slight imperfection caused from fight at a party. They had the same cocoa complexion.
“I want us both to be happy,” she said.
“Remember when you used to tell me stories about princess weddings when we were really small?” he asked.
She laughed. “That was so long ago, but yeah, we were still in the shelter. You were afraid of the dark, so you snuck out of your bed to come sleep with me.”
“Yeah, and I was so bored with your wedding stories that it put me to sleep. I ain’t ever getting married if it’s that boring,” he said.
“Sure you will.”
“Well, all your dreams will finally come true.”
“Not all of them.” She shrugged. “I’ve always wanted to meet my mother. Whoever she is.”
“Don’t worry about that anymore. You’re going to be the best mother there is one day.”
“I hope so.”
He picked up a g
lass, filled it with tap water, and took a long sip. “I’m sorry I didn’t listen to you, but I made a promise to always protect you. I couldn’t do that without funds. I don’t regret the path I’ve chosen. I just wish I hadn’t brought you into it. I was young and stupid, and before I knew it, it was too late.”
She reached up and stroked the top of his head like she’d always done when they were kids. “That’s okay. There was no other path to take with such limited options, and I think we did well.”
“I’m going to take Tristan up on his offer. I kinda like him better than the other guys, but don’t tell him I said that,” Andrew said. “I don’t want him to think I’m soft because I’m not.
“Your secret is safe with me. But what do you mean? Take him up?”
“I’m part of the Order already. I don’t want out. I want a family too, just like you. This may be my only chance. I’ll have the same job for a little while until I can prove myself, but I’ll be transferred to Tristan’s crew once things are settled. It still kinda freaks me out that he can shift into an animal, but you always used to tell me the supernatural was real.”
“I didn’t quite believe it until I saw it myself. And today was definitely an eye opener,” she said.
“Yeah, for me and you both. I’ll just have to get used to the fangs and stuff when he’s showing me the ropes.”
Antonia chewed at her bottom lip recalling the speech Tristan had given over dinner. “He’s a little long-winded.”
Andrew chuckled. “I can already tell. He’s good at what he does though, and how he uses it. He says he’ll get the cops to clean up our record, so that means we’ll no longer be criminals, but I don’t know…I wore those badges proudly. Come to think of it, I’ll probably earn a lot more going forward. Yeah…I think I might.”
Antonia sighed and rolled her eyes.
“This is dangerous, Andrew. Not because he’s a wolf shifter, but because of who he’s connected to.” She tried to keep her voice down low. “We knew getting involved with this group was dangerous when we did that first job for Cobra crew back in Philly. We promised each other we wouldn’t make it a long-term thing.”
“I changed my mind, sis. I have to break that promise. I’m sorry.” He frowned. “I’ll be fine. Think of it this way. It’s like the corporate world. If you don’t do your job, you lose it, right? You get fired. All I have to do is my job to get paid. I like getting paid. You feel me?”
Antonia leaned back and observed how far he had come. She resolved to let him be the man he wanted to be. This was his life, and he only had this one life to do with what he wanted. He needed his independence, and she needed hers. It was time they let go of their past.
She balanced herself on her tiptoes and kissed his forehead. “I love you, Andrew.”
“I love ya back.”
After the exchange, they headed out into the main living area where both Tristan and Connor were shuffling through paperwork on a coffee table.
CHAPTER TWENTY ONE
Antonia sat next to Connor, with her arm entwined with his. Her brother, Andrew, and Tristan sat across from them in accent chairs with their backs facing the fireplace.
Tristan guzzled down another bottle of water and then proceeded to crush the plastic between his fist. His elbows rested on the chair arms as he looked at the reports on the coffee table between them.
Tristan Arnou, Alpha to the Arnou Pack, was a well-groomed man. After the fight, he insisted on cleaning up--and he cleaned up nicely. His designer wrist watch and name brand leather jacket must have costed a fortune. He wore the clothes with a silent grace, but under the exterior, she’d seen firsthand what he was capable of.
“So you got news from a local cop friend of yours about a possible lead with connections to Dockhouse bar?” Tristan asked Connor.
“Yes. They traced bullets found on a human and a wolf to the suspect they had in custody.” Connor pointed to the gun in a plastic bag on the table. “Do you recognize this Lugar? This is the type of gun used to fire the bullets.”
It was Antonia’s gun. The one Andrew had given her for protection.
Tristan picked up the bag with the gun. “Yes. Most associates are provided with this type of weapon. The serial number is likely scraped off and it’s not traceable anywhere. Where’d you find this?”
“I gave it to Antonia. I bought it from a dealer within Cobra for Antonia,” Andrew answered.
“Your robbery suspect…this one--” Tristan pointed to a mugshot of a male. “He’s probably an associate of the Order. When he got himself whacked and couldn’t make the drop, it’s likely they called on someone else to do the job.” Tristan nodded toward Andrew.
“I did accept the job at the last minute. They offered me bigger kickback because of it,” Andrew offered.
“I’ve had my sights on Dockhouse Bar for quite some time. I’ve warned members of the Arnou Pack to do the same and I also made Devin aware of my suspicions. Of course, there are pack members who still disobey orders despite the consequences they create for us all,” Tristan said.
“Why is this area still neutral territory?” Connor questioned.
“It’s been this way for ages because the domain belongs to one of the most powerful families among our kind, the Zovics.”
“Other,” Connor whispered, his voice low.
“Yes.” Tristan clasped his fingers together. “When Daniel Caedmon died and right before Devin rose to Alpha, the ownership changed hands. How? I don’t know, but it is within my scope to find out.”
“That’s why my family was voted out of the security contract for the club. We used to man it while Daniel ruled,” Connor said. “It’s now owned by the Zovics, isn’t it? Others.”
“U pravu si. Exactly.” Tristan turned his wristwatch over and glanced down at it.
“Others?” Antonia glanced back and forth between Connor.
“That’s right,” Connor told her. “Others possess the spirit of the first Caedmon wolf, but are not wolf shifters. They can’t shift. There are a few Other clans who aren’t exactly on good terms with the Packs, which means they no longer pledge allegiance or identify with us.”
“Why aren’t you on good terms with them?” she asked.
“Others were part of the human branch of the original Caedmon people up until the Great Fallout between two brothers. This happened decades ago. As a result, we had two rival Packs for the longest. Arnou and Caedmon. We are united now by an allegiance, but two separate Packs are still maintained,” he replied.
“So these Others have powers like yours, but can’t shift?” She shook her head.
“Correct.” Tristan nodded. “Others are those that possess supernatural powers like ours, but the power to shift between man and animal exists only through the wolf bloodlines. If one parent could shift, then the gift was passed on. The Other bloodline have become diluted by decades of cross-breeding with regular humans. It’s much easier for them to be welcomed into human society than us wolf shifters anyway.”
“I recall that your family has relation to the Zovics,” Connor said, rising in his seat.
“More than five decades ago, my great-grandfather Thibaud Sr. reigned as Arnou Alpha. During his reign he accepted his true mate, Natalija Zovic, and became advisor to the Boss of the network. The marriage united us in business and in bloodline since the Zovic family are Others.”
“The mob?” Connor’s forehead creased.
“No, we are not the mob. We are a network. We are organized. We are a business. We are an empire.” Tristan grinned. “There is a difference.”
“You could tell me anything you want about it except the truth, and I still wouldn’t know that it was a lie,” Connor said.
“Some things aren’t for you to know,” Tristan stated bluntly. “As in, some things are better left unknown.”
“So you’re an advisor to this Zovic family?” Connor asked.
“Not quite. The grandfather still lives.”
Tristan and
Connor exchanged a few silent glances between one another before Connor said, “My dad got the deadline lifted. The timeline has been changed to unspecified, but it’s only a matter of time before he is forced into retirement over this. We’ve put him in a place where he had to choose sides…and he did. Like myself, he fears for our existence. He fears for it more than he fears being disowned by his government. I don’t know how much time you need to settle this mess, but it must be settled.”
“I’m not a man who grants mercy to those who have tried me and threaten my kind.” Tristan stood and grabbed his jacket. “I have a business matter to tend to in two hours. Send my regards to your father. He will be paid tenfold for his troubles.”
Andrew stood with him and Antonia knew what that meant. She rose quickly off the couch and met him halfway, sending him on his way with a hug.
“You’re going?”
“Yeah. I’ll be fine.” Andrew nodded. “I’ll call you when I can.”
She held his arms in a vice grip. “Please be safe. I know you want this, but it’s dangerous.”
“We’ve talked about this, sis.” Andrew held her about the shoulder and held her gaze. “Suck it up, all right. You’re the strongest woman I know. Don’t make me change my mind. This is what I’m good at. I have to leave.” He sounded as if he were trying to convince himself more than anyone else. “Besides, I’m bad for you. You’re better here with Connor.”
Antonia watched her brother walk out of the door with Tristan Arnou. Even though she was sad to see him go, she knew everything would be okay. There were times when a family network extended beyond blood and this was one of them.
CHAPTER TWENTY TWO
“Do you like the drawings?”
Connor had just joined her on the bed when he’d asked this question. He laid down on his back and turned to stare at her.
Antonia was lying on her stomach, flipping through his most recent sketchbook. Mostly all of the sketches were of her. “Yes. You’re talented.”
Wolf’s Honor: Caedmon Wolves Book Six Page 11
