Dire Wants

by Stephanie Tyler

  “I can’t let him do this alone,” Rifter said, his voice already rumbling with an impending shift.

  “I’ll call Liam,” she agreed. Until she watched Killian fight.

  Kill’s Brother Wolf sliced through the Weres—the possessed Weres—with an ease that even Vice didn’t have. Kill was almost a blur as he fought. Other, as they were, but somehow he seemed otherworldly as well, and that was a whole different story. Because, as an immortal, Kill couldn’t have gone to the other side. That would be impossible.

  She continued to watch with fascination as the Weres died with a fierce howl followed by an unearthly scream, as black smoke puffed out of their mouths. It was the evil trying to escape and not die along with the mortal Weres. But as far as Gwen could tell, they didn’t succeed.

  He took down the wolves in a matter of minutes, then shifted immediately and walked back toward the house with an easy swagger. He looked handsome and completely unscathed, save for the blood of his kills. Instead of coming in through the sliding door, he simply saluted her and Rifter and then jumped up, presumably to the balcony he’d jumped down from.

  “I thought he was staying in the basement?” she asked, not wanting to mention the issue of the bodies on the lawn.

  “Who the fuck knows what he’s doing,” Rifter muttered. “Something’s going on with that wolf. The question is what—and we’ll find out soon enough.”

  Whether we want to or not, Gwen wanted to add, but she managed to hold her tongue.

  Chapter 25

  Jinx saw Cain bounding over the crest, still in human form. Cain fought the urge to shift quite well these days.

  An omega would have better control than an alpha. It was why any pack would be lucky to have one. It was exactly why Cain had kept it secret for so long. If the pack that had tossed the twins out so carelessly for being moon crazed knew they’d given up both an alpha and an omega, they would’ve kept the boys chained up for years until they either died or grew out of it. Weres had their first shift at sixteen, which left them wild and vulnerable. Dires shifted for the first time at twenty-one—and while that was a far more dangerous proposition, they didn’t fall prey to moon craze at all.

  It was why Jinx had taken them in, as he’d done for Weres in the past until they safely got through their twenty-first year. But he’d never grown as close to any of them as he had these two. Five years and counting and he felt like he’d somehow given birth to them. In a non-having-female-parts kind of way.

  Now they’d pledged their alliance to Liam’s pack, and Jinx knew it was the right place for them.

  Until then, Jinx would prepare them as best he could.

  “Where’ve you been?” he asked Cain now.

  “Recon,” Cain said, and Jinx didn’t believe that totally. But they were heady on Liam’s new rise to power and their new positions, even if it hadn’t been made official yet, and Jinx couldn’t take that from them just yet. Temperance wasn’t a Were’s strongest point, especially not for ones who were just shy of twenty-one.

  “That FBI agent’s been hanging around. Watching.” Cain stuck his hands into the pockets of his jeans. “He doesn’t trust Shimmin.”

  “Who cares? I don’t trust him,” Jinx said.

  “We can’t just off a fed,” Cain pointed out.

  “Shimmin will, sooner or later, so at least he’s good for something,” Jinx told him. “You want to run, better do it now before we lock down for the day. I need to head out and check on a few things before I go back to the house.” Jinx put a hand out to touch Cain’s shoulder. “Talk to the fed and then get back to the house. I’ll give you an hour and if you’re not back—”

  “I will be.”

  “Good wolf.” Jinx ran, the wind brushing his face, his wolf longing to come out and take him away from all the shit raining down on his head.

  *

  Angus stayed in the diner until after midnight, poring over old case files on his laptop, because there was plenty of good coffee and it was far less depressing than the motel room that looked to be home for quite a while.

  He continued to ignore Shimmin’s calls for the moment.

  Since the curtain of the supernatural had been drawn open for him, everything had changed. For better or worse … he guessed he’d find out which soon enough. Tangling with the supernatural didn’t leave anyone alive for very long. Not humans, anyway.

  He had no goddamned idea who—what—he could trust.

  He didn’t expect or want help from Shimmin’s trapper group. Wanted to stay as far away from that man as he could, but he popped up like evil clockwork and kept on coming.

  And Angus continued to keep an eye on Cain Chambers, mainly to find out if he was, in fact, a wolf, like Shimmin said. Angus wanted to have doubts, but, if nothing else, Cain could possibly lead Angus to …

  To your death. Because, the thing was, as much as he was watching Cain Chambers, Cain had been tracking him since they’d met. And Angus would be lying to himself if he said he didn’t like it, or the way Cain seemed to study him. It was more than simply a combatant studying an enemy, although there was definitely some of that involved. But whenever he met that boy’s eyes, something inside of him burned, and in the nicest way possible. Because Cain was no boy.

  He tried to tell himself it was because he’d gone without for too long, and he desperately wanted to believe his own lie. Truth was, he looked forward to the nightly stalkings.

  When the hairs on the back of his neck began to tingle, he knew tonight would be no exception. He gulped his coffee and looked out the large window by his booth to see Cain was still there, leaning against the telephone pole, making no attempt to hide himself.

  Angus shut his computer and stuffed it into its bag, paid his bill and went out to talk to Cain. Typically, when he tried this, Cain would vanish into thin air. But tonight Cain stayed, although he’d moved down the block, where it was quieter, more deserted.

  He was smoking a cigarette—at least that’s what Angus smelled as he approached, although it looked to be hand-rolled.

  “That’ll kill you,” he said as he stood next to Cain, who now leaned against the brick building behind them. Cain gazed at him with the clear look of, Yeah, nice try.

  What had Angus expected, for Cain to say, I can’t die from human diseases? He suspected most supernatural creatures didn’t out themselves that easily. Instead, he watched Cain’s profile. Regal. Handsome. His skin looked golden although the sun hadn’t been strong enough to tan anyone in months.

  “What do you think will kill you?” Cain asked, after he blew smoke into the chilled air, keeping his eyes straight ahead.

  “This job,” he muttered.

  Cain snorted. “Dangerous for you out here.”

  “Not for you?”

  “I didn’t say that.” Cain stretched. He was just over six feet, Angus’s height as well, lanky but muscled. He wasn’t dressed for the weather, not in a leather jacket, jeans and boots, but he didn’t look cold. “This town has plenty of danger to go around.”

  “And you’re part of that.” A statement, not a question. Angus paid for it when Cain pinned him, a hand on his throat. The boy was looking him dead in the eye.

  “Not a smart thing to do to a fed,” he croaked. “Or are you hoping that dead men tell no tales?”

  Cain laughed softly. “You’ve got a real flair for the dramatic, Agent Young.”

  He didn’t back off, though. And Angus didn’t think he wanted him to, because the hand wasn’t pressing hard enough to do anything but keep him in position while Cain’s body rested close to his. Finally, Cain released his grip. He didn’t move away, though.

  “What do you want from me?” Angus asked.

  “You need to be careful about the company you keep.”

  “Present company included?”

  Cain cocked his head and studied him. Angus wondered why he felt so calm … why this man had the kind of strength that wasn’t one-hundred-percent normal.

 
Or maybe you’ve been studying the supernatural for so long, you’ve become too paranoid.

  Cain’s eyes shone under the foggy lamplight. So fucking handsome. And not all that young.

  “Don’t get involved,” Cain told him quietly.

  “Too late.” He relaxed his body and then surged forward, surprising Cain. The younger man stumbled backward and Angus flew forward, knocking him to the ground. His full weight was on Cain and he got the sudden, unshakable feeling that the younger man was allowing him dominance. That he would take back control whenever he decided.

  So why wasn’t he?

  He stared down into Cain’s eyes—the boy’s body was relaxed under his, Angus’s knee between his thighs to hold him in place. For a long moment, all Angus could do was breathe. Stare. And then Cain broke the gaze and moved away easily, leaving Angus on his ass on the ground, his computer next to him, while Cain was back leaning against the building. He did offer his hand to Angus though, and for some reason he couldn’t fathom, Angus accepted it.

  “Why dance around it, Fed? Ask the question you already know the answer to.”

  “You’re a wolf?”

  “Were. Yes.” Cain blinked and his eyes … changed. Just for a second and then they were back to his normal shade. Angus could barely breathe.

  He wanted to ask if Harm was too, if they knew each other, but he didn’t want to push his luck. Dancing around the subject might work better. “Were those women killed by Weres?”

  He didn’t think Cain would answer him, but he nodded slightly, then said, “Harm isn’t a Were. He’s a Dire.”

  “I don’t care what he is. If I find out you’re harboring a fugitive—”

  “Those women weren’t killed by a Dire,” Cain persisted.

  “Fine, I’ll bite.” He winced internally at his choice of words and Cain gave him a twisted, wry grin. “And you know that because?”

  “Dires are like seven feet tall. Three hundred pounds. A bite like those on the women comes from a much smaller wolf. Someone’s trying to frame Harm.”

  “And you wouldn’t be throwing your friend an alibi.”

  “And give up my own kind? I’m Were, not Dire, and I’m only twenty. Twenty-one in two days.” Cain stared at him. “I mean, I’m talking to you about wolves and shit. If I was trying to give Harm a cover, I’d go a different way. And for the record, he’s not my friend.”

  “You’re sharing all this why?”

  “Because if you get your supernatural information from Leo Shimmin, you’re going to be really fucked. He’s using you.”

  “And you’re not?”

  “I don’t want to see any more innocent humans get hurt. It’s not what my kind’s about.”

  His kind. This was getting far too real. Angus rubbed his forehead—the pounding pain that had occurred on and off since he’d arrived in town began anew. “Your kind is responsible for multiple murders.”

  “One of them is probably responsible,” Cain corrected. “One bad apple, man. You can’t let it spoil your view of the entire supernatural world.”

  Angus shrugged. The man—wolf—had just admitted things to him that anyone else in the world wouldn’t believe. Angus did, and he wasn’t sure if that made him crazy or the most sane human on the planet. “Why are you giving away all your secrets?”

  Cain answered a question with a question. “You keep a lot of secrets yourself, don’t you? Big pieces of yourself are hidden, but they’re even hidden from you. At least they were, for a while.”

  “I’m here investigating murders, not for a therapy session.”

  “And you think I know about them?” Cain’s lip curled. “I didn’t touch that girl, remember?”

  “Just because there was no evidence doesn’t mean you’re not guilty.”

  “True.” Cain said. Then he jerked his head to the side, like he was hearing a sound Angus couldn’t. And then Angus was on the ground, Cain standing over him in a protective stance. They remained that way for minutes that seemed like hours. Something was happening—Cain’s muscles were tight, his face hard, like a solider preparing for battle.

  “Get out of here, for your own safety,” Cain told him, stepping away.

  Angus got up and brushed himself off. “What about yours?”

  “You’re worried about keeping me safe?” Cain asked seriously, like it was something he’d never considered.

  “Yes.”

  “And a minute ago, I was a suspect.” Cain smiled wryly. “Go. I’ll be fine.”

  Angus blinked and Cain was gone. There was only a silent winter night, too quiet for anything good to happen. But he did what Cain asked. He was too turned around not to.

  “I’ll be fine too,” Angus echoed as he headed to his car. And even though the wolf wasn’t anywhere in sight, Angus still felt Cain’s eyes on him the entire time, until he got into the motel room, locked the door behind him and called Shimmin.

  “I want in,” he said when the cop answered. “All the way in.”

  Chapter 26

  Stray pulled into the garage, Vice and Cyd right behind him. Stray didn’t unlock the truck’s doors until the heavy garage door closed and the alarm turned on.

  Kate clutched the grimoire against her and Brother Wolf was able to hear her heart pounding.

  “Hey, we’re safe,” he told her. “No one’s taking the book from you.”

  She nodded, but didn’t loosen her grip. She did let him help her out of the truck and lead her up the stairs. He was planning on putting her right into his room—his wolf wouldn’t tolerate anything less—but Jinx was in the kitchen with Rifter.

  Probably as good a time as any to introduce her to the wolf who knew a lot more about witches than he did. “Kate, this is another one of my Dire brothers. His name’s Jinx.”

  It all happened at once. Jinx stood and Kate began to shake uncontrollably. The lights went nuts; glasses flew off the table; cabinets opened. She was screaming for his help but in a way only Stray and Brother could hear. It was all a jumbled mess of words and images.

  “Kate, stay with me. What’s wrong?” he asked, grabbing her shoulders to try to get her to focus, and then he went as still as she was frantic when he heard her thoughts. He pulled himself together, put his arm around her to stop her from collapsing completely as he tried to reconcile the images in her mind to the wolf he’d known for so long.

  It wasn’t possible, but Kate truly believed it to be so.

  “Him—get him away from me,” she said. Although Vice and Jinx weren’t completely sure who she was talking about since there were a lot of hims, Jinx was the new wolf in this equation.

  “Dude, she’s so talking about you,” Vice told Jinx.

  “I liked you better before the eighties,” Jinx muttered, backing up only because Stray was growling at him. “Down, wolf. I’m going. But I’m not doing anything to her.”

  Jinx strode out of the kitchen and down the hallway, heading up to Rogue’s room, no doubt, and Stray waited to see if that was enough space for Kate. Slowly, the lights went back to normal, and she finally opened her eyes and stared up at him.

  “Sorry. Shit,” she muttered. “You can put me down now.”

  But he didn’t; instead he brought her into the kitchen and sat her in one of the chairs. Vice grabbed her a soda and Stray sat next to her. Her color came back slowly, but she still looked traumatized.

  “Do you have any aspirin? My head feels like it’s going to break apart,” she admitted.

  “I’ll go out and get you some,” Vice told her. “We don’t really have a use for that.”

  “I do,” Gwen said, coming into the kitchen holding a bottle of Tylenol. “I still get headaches occasionally.” She shook out three and handed them to Kate, who gulped them gratefully with the soda. Kate started to shiver a few minutes later.

  “It’s a migraine,” Gwen told them. “Stray, get an ice pack and move her into the guest bedroom.”

  He did as she said, because it was closer, because sh
e was queen and a doctor and she was tough as nails, despite knowing the wolves for only a couple of weeks. Besides, he didn’t like seeing Kate down for the count.

  She was lucid enough to grab for the book when Stray picked her up. Clutched it to her like a lifeline even as her eyes closed. “You sure you gave her Tylenol?”

  Gwen smiled. “Something a little stronger. She doesn’t have allergies and she won’t be out long.”

  Indeed, being able to scent shit like that out had fascinated Gwen to no end. She wanted to go practice on humans, but Rifter had refused to allow it.

  As they watched Kate sleep holding the book, Gwen looked up at him. “What the hell happened back there?”

  He shrugged. “Bad reaction to Jinx.”

  “And you know why?”

  “No clue,” he lied. Gwen didn’t question him further.

  They were fracturing at the worst possible time; Stray felt like he was already breaking. With Kill here, any instability within him or his new pack couldn’t be tolerated. And now Kate thought Jinx was evil. He’d felt her reaction and it was beyond fear.

  “I’ll stay with her until she wakes—you guys figure this out before Rifter gets back,” Gwen told him.

  “Where is he?”

  “With Liam, burying the Were bodies your brother killed. Long story. Don’t ask.”

  He wasn’t about to, had enough problems already. He left Kate with Gwen and found that Jinx had returned to the kitchen. Vice was there as well, staring out the window. He didn’t turn around when Stray walked in and sat down across from Jinx.

  Jinx was surprisingly calm. The calm before the storm.

  “Is the witch all right?” he asked.

  “She will be. Jinx, can you try again, because I think you can really help her—”

  “Forget it. I make her tense—and I make you tense when that happens—and we can’t give her any excuse not to help us.” Jinx shrugged it off, but Stray knew his wolf was pissed and confused.