by Anya Nowlan
Hailey shifted uncomfortably on the couch.
He’s pretty good at this.
“Yes,” she said again, almost a whisper.
Morrison nodded sagely.
“I can tell you Troy felt exactly the same way. Things are a little different for us shifters when it comes to love. Our animal side knows right away when we’ve met our mate, the one we are supposed to be with. We feel a primal pull towards that person, like they are the missing part of us,” Morrison explained, more poetically than she would have expected.
Hailey let that sink in.
Coming from the likes of Morrison, it was hard to ignore. He could tell her the skies were always meant to be green and she’d probably take it for fact.
Surprisingly though, it made sense in her head. Troy had felt familiar to her the moment she saw him. The electricity that drew them together was undeniable. Hadn’t it always felt like they were meant to be, even when she was trying to resist his charms, or his… dogged determination?
It was a lot to take in, but Hailey had a feeling there were even more curveballs coming her way. Someone like Troy was bound to have a checkered past, even beyond a Navy career and now being a lieutenant in the mob.
“So, how do you know Troy? I got the feeling you two have a long history.”
“I recruited him.”
A stab of alarm and surprise went through Hailey as she processed his answer.
“You’re a member of the Crimson Claws?”
Morrison seemed like a decent, principled man, one of those guys who had an iron will and an unshakeable sense of morals. She didn’t see the likes of him in the Crimson Claws. Then again, Troy didn’t exactly fit either, the more she learned about him.
Or maybe I projected those characteristics on him, she thought, suddenly realizing he reminded her a little of her father.
She couldn’t put her finger on why that was, exactly. It was less about concrete similarities and more about a feeling she got when she was around him. Ellison Molloy had always put honor and integrity above all else. Was she so wrong to think that Morrison might be a similar kind of guy?
“Of course not,” Morrison laughed. “He really hasn’t told you much, has he?”
“You met in the Navy, then?”
“Still a no.”
He shook his head, looking bemused if anything.
Hailey pulled her knees onto the couch, her brow furrowing.
Where else could Troy be ‘recruited’ into?
“Can I get a hint?” she asked, putting on her sweetest smile.
“I know you’re curious, but Troy will bite my head off if I tell you anything. You saw him before,” Morrison said softly, shaking his head.
“Now you don’t look like the kind of guy to be afraid of anyone,” she countered, using a strategy that always worked on her dad.
A little flattery with just a hint of a challenge. If it had gotten Ellison Molloy to go skiing with her, it was bound to loosen Morrison’s tongue.
Morrison crossed his arms, studying her with a curious expression.
“You’re determined. I like that. Fine, I’ll tell you what you want to know. You might as well know what you’re getting yourself into.”
Hailey couldn’t help the grin spreading on her face. Morrison pointed a finger at her, taking on a more stern tone.
“But don’t think it’s because you’ve got me wrapped around your little finger,” he warned with a glint of humor in his eyes. “I can see the game you’re playing, Miss ‘you don’t look like you’re afraid of anyone’.”
Oops, caught red-handed, she thought, feeling a familiar heat spread on her cheeks.
“Then why?”
“Because I think Troy is doing himself a disservice by keeping things from you. He thinks he’s doing it for your benefit, your safety, and he probably believes that’s the only reason. But I know him, better than he knows himself sometimes. There’s more to it than that.”
“I feel like there’s a story coming on,” Hailey replied, leaning forward to catch every word.
There was so much about Troy that was a mystery to her and here was someone who could fill in some of the holes. She wished she could hear everything from Troy himself, but right now, she would take what she could get.
Morrison paused for a moment, seeming to gather himself before speaking. Hailey almost held her breath, waiting, hanging off the edge of her seat. Could she finally get a bit of clarity about the mysterious man she’d given so much stake in her life?
If he’s struggling with telling me, do I really want to know? Hailey wondered suddenly, but it was too late.
“I don’t feel good about revealing things Troy has said to me in confidence, but I can’t watch him make the same mistakes I did. I kept things from my mate. I made decisions that ended up putting distance between us, because I thought I was keeping her safe.
“I told myself there was time to fix things when I retired, to get back to where we once were… Unfortunately, I was wrong. She was taken from me just a year before I retired. Cancer.”
Hailey felt her whole body still as Morrison spoke. His warm voice took on a hollow quality as he stared straight ahead, remembering those lost moments.
Tears welled in her eyes as she reached out and placed her hand over his. It just felt like the right thing to do, even if they were practically strangers.
His eyes focused on her as he gave her a somber smile.
“I’m so sorry for your loss,” Hailey whispered, feeling her throat swell up.
“That’s very kind, thank you.”
Hailey gave his hand a quick squeeze before letting go and settling back into her corner of the couch. Contemplating the connection she had formed with Troy in the short while they had known each other, she couldn’t even imagine how entangled Morrison and his mate had become after spending who knows how many years together.
Having your other half ripped away like that… The mere thought sent a shudder through her.
Morrison was silent for a couple of seconds before speaking again.
“Troy’s father died when he was just a teenager, before he could see what kind of a man his son would grow up to be. He had been a SEAL, so Troy joined the Navy, probably in an attempt to follow in his father’s footsteps, make his old man proud even if he wasn’t around to see his accomplishments.
“But it never brought him real satisfaction. It didn’t bring his father back. So he left, determined to look for something that would challenge him and give him purpose. That’s when we met. That’s when I recruited him.”
Hailey frowned, feeling like she was constantly a day late and a dollar short.
“Recruited him into what? He was a part of another organization before joining the Crimson Claws?”
“He’s not a part of the Crimson Claws, he’s infiltrating them. He wants to take them down.”
Hailey shot to her feet without even meaning to as everything was suddenly turned upside down. Just when she thought she couldn’t be thrown for even more of a loop, here it was, more earth-shattering information she was supposed to just deal with somehow.
“He’s what?” was all she managed to sputter out, her mind reeling.
Twenty
Troy
Troy drove to the casino in a fog of muddled thoughts. The absolute last thing he wanted to do was to let Hailey out of his sights, but it was the only way he could think of to keep her safe.
He arrived at the Twin Rivers in a ball of nervous energy, peppering the side of the car with loose rocks as he skidded to a halt in the parking lot. Taking some deep breaths, he got out of the car. As far as everyone inside knew, he had no reason to be anxious.
Putting up a calm façade, Troy strolled into the casino through a back door that lead straight into his office. Somehow, the hallways felt narrower to him this time. Reaver and Ace were already there, looking like they had been waiting for him for a while.
“Boss, we were just about to call you. Rogers i
s in the hospital,” Reaver said while Ace nodded along at his side.
It was information he already had, but Reaver and Ace wouldn’t know that.
Before Troy could reply, there was a knock at the door. He wasn’t exactly expecting visitors, but as a lieutenant, he was getting used to people milling about, keeping him updated on the business and keeping him informed of possible problems.
“Come in,” Troy called out.
Jay strolled in, hands in his pockets and not around his phone for once.
What is he doing here? We spoke on the phone no more than an hour ago.
“Jay. Is there something I can do for you? Something wrong?”
The man strolled closer, glancing at Ace and Reaver before settling his gaze on Troy. He looked as wired as ever, but today, there was a certain edge of nervous… anger to him that Troy hadn’t seen before.
“You tell me.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
Troy’s lion was getting anxious, but he didn’t let it show, leaning casually against his desk. The way Jay was staring at him put his predatory instincts on full alert. Something was up, and he could only hope it had nothing to do with Hailey.
Reaver and Ace looked from Jay to Troy, obviously sensing the tension but knowing well enough to keep their mouths shut. Troy’s fingers were hidden behind his wide frame as he gripped onto Dempsy’s silver letter opener, the only thing he had held on to among all of the man’s junk.
Always be prepared for the worst case scenario, he recalled Morrison telling him once.
It was a piece of advice that had served him well over the years.
“It means I know where you were this morning.”
Troy pasted on a smile as Jay’s voice took on a threatening edge.
“I was out having some fun. So what? And why are you keeping tabs on me anyway?”
How much does he know? Troy wondered, his fingers on the blade tightening.
“It must have been awkward, being at Miss Molloy’s house when you got the call she was your next target.”
He could see Reaver and Ace both take a deep breath before exchanging a knowing glance. No doubt he still smelled like Hailey and since she’d been in the casino recently, the men had no trouble recognizing her scent, now that it was pointed out to them.
There was no point in denying his involvement with Hailey, but he could try to play it off as no big thing. To try and convince Jay he was still up to the task of taking her out, so he didn’t send more goons after her.
He didn’t have anything to lose at this point. It was go down or go down even harder.
“Why would that phase me?” he asked with an incredulous laugh. “Sure, she’s a nice piece of ass, but that’s about it. We had a good time and now it’s time for her to die,” he added with a shrug, earning a grin from Reaver.
“Nice try,” Jay spat back, baring his teeth. “But if you were really so unconcerned, you wouldn’t have had her pack a bag and driven her away in your car.”
Shit.
In his rush to get Hailey to safety, he hadn’t even considered she would be under surveillance. They couldn’t have been followed, not with the way Troy drove. But if Jay was cautious enough to keep Hailey under watch, what other kind of surveillance methods could he be using?
The man had been to his apartment and Troy kept his truck parked out front. It wouldn’t exactly be a stretch of the imagination to think Jay could have placed a tracker on it.
With Hailey’s safety at risk, he couldn’t take any chances. He had to act on the assumption that the Claws knew where he had taken her. The odds of that being the truth were getting higher and higher by the second.
Ace and Reaver were studying him suspiciously, a snarl building on their lips. From the way Jay was looking at him, Troy could tell there was no point in trying to make any more excuses. Jay wasn’t buying his crap. He had helped a known enemy of the Crimson Claws get away and there was no way he was going to spin it into anything else.
I guess my time with the Claws is officially over. Better mop up after myself.
“Boss, is this true? You’ve betrayed us for that bitch?” Reaver growled, stepping closer.
Troy’s answer was to push himself forward and plunge the letter opener he was still holding onto behind his back into the man’s throat. Reaver spluttered and coughed, eyes wide, as red liquid started pouring out of the hole in his neck. His hands grabbed blindly at the blade, but it was already too late. He was drowning, his lungs filling up with blood.
Troy yanked out the opener, spraying crimson on the walls as Reaver went down, and turned his attention towards Ace and Jay. Ace had been momentarily stunned, but was quickly recovering. He barreled towards Troy, eyes glowing yellow. Troy feinted to the right at the last second, making the man run into the desk instead of him. Ace roared, swirling around to try again.
Troy didn’t give him the chance. Holding his body low, he pushed off, slamming into James with his shoulders and shoving the man’s back against the wall. The room shook under the impact and Ace let out a pained groan, crumpling against the hard concrete. Pulling back, Troy sank the opener into the man’s gut, feeling his flesh open up beneath his fingers.
“That’s enough!” Jay called out.
Troy looked up to see the man holding a gun, pointing it straight at his center mass. Stepping away from Ace, he raised his hands in a sign of surrender, his lips twisted in a snarl. He had to keep Jay talking until he could find his opening, that fraction of a second where he could make his move and disarm him.
If Jay fired, that was it. Even Troy couldn’t outrun a bullet.
There is no way my son is going to grow up without a father.
“I made a mistake, I know that. But I can redeem myself. I know where the girl is, I’ll go there right now and slit her throat. No harm, no foul,” Troy said, ever so slowly edging towards Jay.
He imagined he wasn’t entirely selling the concept, what with Reaver and Ace sprawled out around him.
He could hear Ace groaning behind him, shuffling around, probably trying to get back on his feet. The image of Hailey’s face kept popping up in Troy’s head, urging him to find a way out of this so he could get back to her, make sure she was alright.
For all he knew, there could be a kill team on their way to her location right now.
Jay shook his head, disappointed.
“If only I could believe that. You’ve shown yourself to be disloyal and there’s no coming back from that, no matter how effective you’ve been so far. There is no place in the Crimson Claws for liabilities, you of all people should know that. And you, my friend, are a liability.”
His finger on the trigger tensed and Troy knew he was out of time. A shot rang out a millisecond after he tumbled to the ground, rolling over his back and coming to a stop at Jay’s feet. Jay was already readjusting, pointing his weapon downward at Troy’s head.
Jay was sinewy and smaller than most other shifters, but it made him no less sharp. Surviving amongst the likes of the Crimson Claws demanded that.
Not giving Jay an opportunity to fire again, Troy jumped up, latching on to his wrist and head-butting him at the same time. The mobster stumbled backwards, disoriented, and instinctively grabbed at his broken, bloody nose.
Not so fast.
Still holding on to Jay’s wrist, Troy used his free hand to yank the gun out of the man’s fingers, turning it on Jay instead. Letting go of his wrist, Troy pressed the barrel against his chest and emptied the clip.
The shots echoed in the room, reverbing off the walls and ringing in Troy’s ears.
Jay fell to the ground, a pool of blood forming beneath him as soon as he hit the floor. Troy idly wondered if Jay would leave a bigger stain than Dempsy.
He glanced back to see what Ace was up to. The man was crawling along on all fours, leaving a trail of blood as he went, growing paler by the second. There was no fight left in him, and Troy didn’t want to waste another second in this off
ice, not while Hailey could be in trouble.
“It’s your lucky day, kid. Get out while you can,” Troy growled, before throwing the gun on the floor.
Taking off running, he sprinted past Ace and straight to the parking lot, slowing down only when he got to his truck. Wanting to confirm his suspicions, he got down on his knees and took a peek under the car, feeling around with his hands.
Shit.
There it was, near one of the wheel wells. A small plastic bump that didn’t belong. Troy pressed his fingertips around it and gave the thing a yank. It released easily, falling to rest on his palm.
Anger and fear mixing inside him, Troy threw the tracker across the parking lot with a roar. It bounced a couple of times before coming to rest by the side of the curb. With his chest rising and falling heavily, Troy hauled himself into the truck and sped off, his foot firmly on the gas and his thoughts fixed on Hailey.
I have to get to her. I just hope I’m not too late.
Twenty-One
Hailey
Hailey plunked back down on the couch, trying to make sense of what Morrison was telling her. She was shaking a little and her eyes were wide, staring at the man.
“He’s not a mobster?” she asked for what felt like the millionth time.
“No. He’s part of a plan to undermine the Crimson Claws.”
Morrison’s tone was completely deadpan when he said that, his expression deadly serious.
“Then he’s what, an undercover cop? FBI agent?”
The options kept pouring into her brain and tumbling off her tongue. Could it be? Had her instincts been right all along? Was he fooling the Claws, not her?
“Not exactly. He’s a member of the same organization that I used to belong to. The Firm.”
Wait a minute… I’ve heard that name before…
Growing silent, she let her head fall back as she tried to recall everything she’d ever heard about the shifter organization known as The Firm. It functioned as a military operation, but it didn’t have ties to any governments, as far as she knew.
