Revealed by Desire

by Melissa Stevens

  “Is my table ready?” Chris asked the girl.

  “Of course, sir.”

  “Thank you,” he said. Rachel's hand still in his, he led her to a secluded table on one end of the restaurant. “Here we are.” Chris held her chair while Rachel sat, then took his seat across from her. They exchanged small talk about their respective Fractions until the waitress arrived to take their orders.

  “I'll have the grilled lobster and shrimp.” Rachel folded her menu and laid it down.

  “The porterhouse,” Chris laid his menu on top of hers, he'd not even opened it, “Rare.”

  “Yes, sir.” The girl took the menus and disappeared, leaving them alone.

  “Rare?” Rachel wrinkled her nose.

  “I thought you knew; werewolves have a taste for meat, the rarer the better.” Chris scowled. “The more savage among us want us to still be eating normals, but that's not allowed any more, especially not here.”

  “It was before my time, but I have no doubt some of the dragons ate normals. I'm not sure about my ancestors, but I know the Quetzalcoatl did on occasion.” She gave him a wry smile and tried to steer the conversation back to something more pleasant. “This is your Fraction's property, right?”

  “It is. How did you guess?”

  “The moon thing was kind of a giveaway.” Rachel laughed. “Along with how people treat you. Do you manage it?”

  “I do, among other things.”

  “You manage other things or you do other things?” She watched him and grinned, hoping he would realize she was teasing.

  His eyes narrowed. “Both, but I'm guessing you already knew that.” He grinned and waited for her reaction.

  She smiled and shook her head. She liked that Chris was easy to be with, that she didn't have to worry about saying the right thing or the wrong thing when she was with him. Even when she was awkward with what she was trying to say, he just seemed to get it. It wasn't something that happened often. Teya understood her, and after a little while, so had Neo. But no one understood her as quickly as Chris had. It was almost like Teya and Jericho. They had seemed to click from day one. It looked like her dragon was right, maybe he was hers. Her mate.

  12

  Chris was enjoying dinner with Rachel when his phone rang. He wanted to ignore it. Rachel was funny and easy to be around, and her laugh touched something deep inside that Chris hadn't been certain existed before now. But checking the screen revealed the call was from one of his investigators.

  “I'm sorry,” he said to Rachel. “I have to take this. Will you excuse me?”

  “Of course.” She waved one hand as if it was nothing. Chris stood and went through a nearby door, which led to the kitchen.

  “Adam,” Chris said as he answered the call. “I hope this is worth the interruption.”

  “I'm sorry about the timing, sir. Maggie said you were on a date.”

  “I am.” Chris wished Adam would get to the point; he wanted to get back to Rachel.

  “Sorry about that, sir.” Adam paused for a breath. “You know I'm following up on several leads on who's behind the underground meat market, right?”

  “Yes. That's what I asked you to do.”

  “I've been asking questions and apparently, I attracted more attention than I anticipated.”

  “Who have you crossed?” Chris sighed and wondered who he was going to have to smooth things over with.

  “Well, I'm not sure it's crossed exactly, but the leader of the wolf shifter Fraction says he wants a meeting. Tonight.” Chris took a deep breath and pinched the bridge of his nose while he exhaled slowly and tried to contain his temper.

  “Give me the details.”

  “He said he wants to meet at Ophir at sunrise. If you don't come, he'll consider it an act of aggression, and it will be war between the werewolves and the shifters, he doesn't give a damn what the angels had to say about it. He said you'd know where Ophir is.”

  A low growl escaped Chris's throat before he could stop it.

  “All right. Thank you for letting me know. I'll deal with him.”

  “I'm sorry again, sir.”

  “I'll be in touch.” Chris didn't wait for Adam to respond before disconnecting the call. He took several deep breaths before rolling his shoulders and heading back out to the table and Rachel.

  “Is everything all right?” she asked as he sat back down.

  “No, but it will hold for a little while.”

  The waitress appeared, bringing their food, and they were quiet for a few minutes as they each ate.

  “I can tell it's still bothering you, whatever the call was about. Can you share?” Rachel laid her flatware down and watched him. Chris was quiet for a moment, debating on how much to tell her.

  “That was one of my investigators. He's been checking into something for me and was confronted by the leader of the wolf shifters, who's demanding I meet with him or there will be war between the weres and the shifters.”

  “Oh.” She glanced down at her plate then back up to him. “When's the meeting?”

  Chris glanced at his watch. “In about seven hours.”

  “Oh. I guess I'll go back to my place tonight then.” Her gaze fell to her plate once more, and she looked disappointed.

  “I was thinking you might like to go along. The place where he wants to meet is a good distance away... several hours if you drive the speed limit, but it's pretty. Besides, it might be a good idea to have someone else as a mediator or witness. And it would let you know what you're getting into if we decide we want to go any further with this mate thing.”

  Rachel sat back and watched him for several seconds. Chris wondered what was going through her mind since she'd not broadcasted her thoughts again since that morning. Her eyes narrowed, and he braced himself for whatever she was about to say.

  “If we decide to go further? Are you having second thoughts?”

  “No. I know I want you. But I'm not going to take it for granted that you want the same thing. I know weres are not the easiest people to live with. I don't even know who my own mother is. The last thing I want to do is to trap you into a mating you will resent me for later.”

  “You said the meeting is in about seven hours, that means somewhere around sunrise,” she paused as if doing the math, “depending on how long things take, we won't get back to town until at least mid-morning, probably closer to noon, or after.”

  “Probably.” He knew this wasn't a point in his favor. She would hate to lose time she could be looking for her brother. “But I suspect this guy may know something about the disappearances.”

  Rachel narrowed her eyes and watched him a moment, as if trying to figure out what he was talking about. “All right,” she said after a moment. “I'll go with you, but I'm gonna need to go back to my place and change before we head out of town. I can't think of anything at that kind of driving distance that a dress and heels would be appropriate for.” She gave him a wry smile.

  “No, you're right.” Chris glanced at his watch again. “But we don't have to hurry. We can finish dinner, and then I'll take you to change.”

  “Sounds like a plan.”

  Doubts about bringing Rachel along haunted Chris as the truck bounced and rattled over the rough road through the crag in the mountains that led to Ophir. He had no way of knowing how this guy was going to act. If the stranger was going to try to kill him, Chris had been foolish to bring his girl to witness it. Chris glanced across the cab at where Rachel held onto the oh shit handle over the door with white-knuckled fingers as she tried to keep from being thrown into the window or floorboard. She caught him looking, and turned and gave him a brilliant smile. Despite the rough roads and being thrown around the truck, she was having a blast.

  “Not too much farther,” Chris looked back to the road, “I think.”

  “You think?”

  He glanced over at her. “Yeah, it's been a while since I've been out here, and I'm not sure I've ever driven the road in the dark before, so the la
ndmarks I'm used to seeing are harder to spot.” He shot her a wry smile. “But I'll get us there, no worries.”

  “I'm not worried.” She turned to stare out into the darkness. “This is fun.”

  13

  Rachel was just barely starting to see the horizon when Chris pulled off the dirt track that they'd used as road and parked the truck. Rachel sat in the quiet for a moment, letting her eyes adjust to the lack of headlights before she hit the release on her seatbelt and took a deep breath. It took a moment to let her senses catch up after the rough ride. It had been fun; though she'd smacked her head on the window a couple of times before she'd grabbed the handle above her head for some stability.

  “It looks like we beat them here.” She spun around in her seat as she looked for other vehicles.

  “It looks like it.” Chris released his own seat belt, opened the door, and climbed down.

  Rachel stayed where she was for the moment. Her eyes weren't as good in the dark as she knew his would be. A few seconds later, the door on her side opened, and she stared down into Chris's face.

  “You ready to come down? Let me help you.” Large hands wrapped around her waist and lifted her down, setting her gently on her feet. He was lowering his head towards hers, and Rachel thought he was going to kiss her, when they heard the soft crunch of rocks moving against each other.

  Chris spun around, stepping between her and where the sound had come from. Rachel leaned over and looked around him in time to see a wolf approach. The wolf stopped several feet away and transformed into a man. Between the darkness and distance, she couldn't be sure who the newcomer was. Rachel stepped around Chris as a low growl trickled from his throat. His hand grasped hers to keep her from getting too close to the other man.

  “Thank you for meeting me,” the new man spoke quietly, as sound carried well in the darkness. “I wasn't certain if you would show.”

  “You.” Rachel turned to find Chris's eyes narrowed as he stared at the other man, unveiled animosity clear on his face. “Why did you make me come all the way out here? We could have met in the city far more easily.”

  “We could have, but we could have been seen. I didn't want it to get out that I had met with you.” The new man's gaze shifted to look at Rachel. “Though, I didn't realize you'd bring someone with you, much less a dragon.”

  As Rachel's eyes adjusted better to the darkness and the sun crept a little closer to the horizon, the sky lightened and she was better able to see the wolf-turned-man. Now she knew who he was. Benjamin, the leader of the wolf shifters was who had summoned Chris to this meeting.

  “Let's just say I have a vested interest.” Rachel squeezed Chris's hand as she spoke.

  “I received word that you think I may be behind your missing wolf.” Benjamin's gazed turned back to Chris. “I am not, and you are not the only one with missing Fraction members.”

  “I know we're not the only ones with missing people, but how do I know I can trust your word that you're not who's responsible?” Chris snarled through clenched teeth. Rachel could feel the tension in his body and knew he was fighting the urge to jump at Benjamin.

  “Ask you're 'vested interest' there, she knows who I am.”

  “I know who you are, yes. But I don't know what your interest is in this, or what exactly Chris suspects you of.”

  “He thinks I'm the mastermind behind his people running an underground meat market.” Benjamin tilted his head to one side as he watched Chris's reactions.

  “You are!” Chris stared. “I know there's someone pulling the strings behind Harrison's back. He's not smart enough to run the operation on his own. And the trail leads right back to you.”

  “Your investigators have taken the crumbs that were left for them without looking past the obvious.” Benjamin kept his voice patient. Rachel knew from having dealt with him before that he did his best to deal with the business before letting anything personal interfere. “Whoever is pulling your man's strings isn't local. From what I can tell, they are in Reno, or somewhere in that direction, possibly Carson City. “

  “Why did you make us come all the way out here to tell me that?”

  “I thought you'd enjoy the trip down memory lane.” Benjamin glanced around at the crumbling remnants of the old mining town. “You know, revisiting the place you were born.”

  “How would you know that?” Chris's eyes narrowed with suspicion.

  “I know a lot about you. It's my job to know about all the Fraction leaders in town, but I have a special interest in you.” Benjamin's eyes flicked from Chris to Rachel and back again. Rachel wasn't sure what was going on, why did these two act as if they didn't know each other when she could tell they were brothers? Did they really not know each other?

  Chris growled again. Not the low, back of the throat growl from earlier, but a loud, aggressive growl.

  “I don't know who you are, and I don't like whatever is between us, but I've already found my mate. I have no interest in you.” Chris's hand on Rachel's tightened as he spoke to the man across the clearing. Benjamin threw his head back and laughed.

  “You're crazy. Not only do I not swing that way, but I have no idea what you're talking about.”

  Chris growled again, this time lunging toward Benjamin. Rachel watched the two, wondering again what was going on between them.

  Benjamin lunged, shifting mid-air. Chris released her hand and shifted as he jumped to meet Benjamin in the middle of the clearing.

  Not wanting to watch a pair of brothers tear each other to shreds, she used the same power that allowed her to fly to thicken the air between them into a barrier separating them. Rachel watched as the two men hit opposite sides of the invisible wall and slid down like cartoon characters. Rachel bit the inside of her lips to keep from giggling as she watched the matched looks of shock appear on their lupine faces. Stepping forward, she cleared her throat.

  “Now that I have your attention,” she set her hands on her hips and stared down at the two of them as they picked themselves up off the ground, “I have a few things to say.” Rachel looked back and forth between the two of them, waiting for them to look at her. “I came here to find answers, not watch brothers tear into each other. Now, I have some questions, so if the two of you would shift back, we can address them.”

  14

  Muscles stretched and bones ground and popped as Chris shifted back into his human form. What did Rachel mean brothers? He didn't have a brother. As soon as he was human again, he went to the truck and pulled the extra set of clothes he kept with him just in case, pulling them on. He took a deep breath and turned back to the other man, once more human and fully dressed, and Rachel.

  “All right. Let's talk more calmly.” Chris sighed and moved closer to Rachel. There was still something drawing him to the man, but the pull toward Rachel was stronger. And somehow different. Chris wasn't sure how though. “What questions do you have?” Chris focused his attention on Rachel but didn't ignore the wolf shifter. That would be dangerous.

  “First, you said we're not the only ones with missing people, who else is missing?”

  “Not my Fraction,” the other man shook his head, “not my place to say. But I can tell you that there have been several supernormals disappear in the last couple months, and you two are not the only ones looking into it.”

  “Who else is looking?”

  “The ones who oversee all things supernormal in the City of Sin, who else?”

  “So, the issue is big enough to have come to the angels’ attention.” Rachel stared down at the ground and spoke mostly to herself for a moment. “I'm not sure if that's good or bad.” She looked up first at Chris, then to the other man. “Benjamin, you say someone is trying to make it look like you're the one behind the black-market meat trade, someone from out of town. I'll take your word that you're not behind it, but I'd like to know what makes you say that whoever it is, is west of here?”

  “I've had people investigating them longer than he has.” Benjamin tilt
ed his head toward Chris. “Longer than he's been in charge.”

  Chris narrowed his eyes and stared at the shifter leader. “I've done as much as I could manage since I have taken over.”

  Benjamin looked at him a moment. “I wasn't blaming you, just pointing out a fact. Your Fraction really went to shit under Jackson's rule. As much as I don't want to have to deal with you, we were all glad to see you beat him.”

  Chris frowned. “Tyrone Jackson will be a dark shadow over my Fraction for a while yet, but I'm doing my best to eradicate every bit of his legacy. He left no offspring that we know of, so I don't have to worry about any young werewolves he may have poisoned the minds of, but he did enough damage to the weres without that.” Chris narrowed his eyes at Benjamin. “Why don't you want to deal with me?”

  Benjamin watched him for several long seconds, and Chris couldn't tell what he was thinking. Benjamin sighed. “Because of who you are.”

  What the hell was he talking about? Was it because Chris was a were? That would eliminate any of his people, not just him. Chris felt Benjamin's eyes on him.

  “You don't know what he means, do you?” Rachel asked after a moment.

  “I assume it's because I'm a were, not a shifter. It's the only thing I can think of.” Chris turned to Rachel as he responded with a slight shake to his head.

  Benjamin snorted and turned away, taking several steps before stopping and turning back to face them. “It has nothing to do with you being a were and everything to do with you. Your father and your mother.”