The Wolf (Billionaire Vikings Book 2)

by S. M. Maddox

  I glanced at Thor, who was slicing my notes to shreds with his electrical green eyes. His teeth were barred, like he was a coyote about to pounce on an unsuspecting rabbit. I am right. They’re killers. Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck. Oh, fuck.

  Turning my head towards Anya and meeting her gaze, she quirked one eyebrow upwards with a corresponding nod. Yeah girl, shit’s about to get wiiiiild.

  Roland was still standing beside me. I looked up into his eyes, the silver mercury flecks in the dark blue swirling like storm clouds. He rubbed my back, encouragingly. “We’ve got you, Malone. You’re ok now.”

  My hands were shaking uncontrollably. Roland reached over to hold them in his to try and warm them up. He knew I was clammy, that my nerves were betraying me. How many people had he really killed? And how did I really feel about that?

  Magnus, seemingly bored with my theatrics, picked up some of the pictures for he and Thor to analyze more closely until I calmed down.

  Roland, as if he knew absolutely every thought running through my head, kissed me on my forehead and reminded me, “Jessie. They killed Jack. They killed Otis. They nearly killed you. Not all people in this world are good, and not all people deserve to be in this world.” He brushed my hushed tears away with is thumbs and softly feathered a kiss on my lips.

  What else had I expected? We weren’t in kindergarten here. They’d played with my life, taken both Jack and Otis from me. What was I expecting? Them to punch Jason in the face and call it a day? It was beyond time for me to put my big girl panties on. I rested my forehead against his chest and breathed in his scent. “Right. You’re right.”

  “Guys, can you just back off a little? You’re even freaking me out,” Anya fussed, coming to my defense. “Can’t you see she’s scared shitless? You’re both, actually all three of you are, kind of circling her like vultures. She’s family now. Tone down the grumpy faces, or so help me, I will bust my water all over every single one of these nice Italian leather chairs.”

  Magnus and Thor’s expressions instantly lightened a half shade as they took a step back, saying nothing but obeying Anya, nonetheless.

  Taking yet another deep breath, I continued on. “Then, these are face recognition scans. Jack ran them through the database at the police station, trying to find a similar match to Jason’s features.”

  “You can do that?” Thor asked, puzzled.

  “Jack thought it was worth a shot, even if it didn’t turn out. He got one hit from one CCTV camera in Europe, but no names to match. Obviously, we couldn’t go across the world trying to track them down. That would involve a massive scale operation, and it was just the two of us.”

  I arranged the next pile of files in front of me. “These are background checks of everyone who seemingly appeared out of thin air. Everyone we could find, anyway. I keep going over these and over these. I feel like there’s a missing link that could bring it all together. Something that we don’t know yet, that I can’t quite put my finger on. You know how when you’re trying to think of a word, and it’s on the tip of your tongue but it just won’t find your brain? That’s how I feel.

  “Then, this is Jason’s file. This was the one that really put it all into perspective, what exactly we were dealing with. Jack hated him for multiple reasons, and I just let him into my life like a stupid idiot. But Jack knew all along. He had a better sense about people than I did. He hunted and hunted until he found Jason out.”

  Inside the file was Giuseppe’s mug shot, with the same smug go to hell expression that was in Jason’s driver’s license photo. Their resemblance was unmistakable. Unless Jason had an identical twin, the people in the photo were one in the same.

  “That’s really all I’ve got. Months of legwork for no answers, while the bodies keep piling up around me. I wasn’t, I didn’t want to get you involved until I had something concrete to go on. All I have are unanswered questions.”

  Magnus stepped forward, placing his hands on the table to support his lithe, athletic frame as he leaned forward. In a hushed, discreet voice, he said, “We have people, too, Jessie. We have more resources than you can imagine, and more people on our payroll than you can count. I will get my team on this immediately. There’s nothing more you need to do now except live. Thank you for your work, and for bringing this to our attention.”

  Chapter Twenty-Four

  Roland

  I caught Anya’s eye, and quietly signaled to her to take Jessie out of the room so the three of us could have a conversation. She was getting freakishly good at her investigation courses and the hours and hours she’d poured into watching police interrogations and reading body language. She silently nodded and asked Thor to help her up so she and Jessie could have some girl time.

  Anya waddled over to Jessie and wrapped an arm around her. “Now then, have you seen the gardens yet? We should hold a funeral for your baby and you can pick out anywhere you think he should go, ok? I’m so, so sorry that happened to you and everything you’ve been through.” They continued talking as Jessie held the door open, allowing Anya to wobble her way through

  My brothers and I reconvened together, back at the end of the table.

  “She’s a stunner, RoBro,” Thor said, grinning.

  “She’s more than that, she’s the whole package. Do you have the combination to the safe? I’m definitely going to need my ring.” Mom had left each of us a ring for our future brides. It was unspoken, but we knew which ring belonged to who. My brothers knew the sapphire was mine, because each ring matched the color of our eyes. Thor had given Anya the emerald ring, Magnus had given to Cynthia and gotten back the yellow diamond, and I had yet to claim the sapphire. Until now. I was about to Heart-of-the-Ocean that shit right out of the water.

  “It was a diamond. It is a diamond,” Magnus said out of nowhere.

  “What’s a diamond?”

  “The Heart of the Ocean, and the Hope diamond.”

  “How the hell did you read my thoughts?”

  “Because you’re standing there humming the theme song like a lovesick dumbass,” Magnus barked while Thor was laughing so hard, if he hadn’t already pissed himself, he was about to.

  “Get a grip, Roland. I never thought I’d see the day when you were pussy whipped to the point of chick flicks. You plan on standing on the end of the fucking yacht with your arms stretched out, too?”

  “OldBro, you, my man, are a genius! That’s exactly what I’m going to do. She’ll eat that shit UP!”

  “Please. If you think you can top Leonardo DiCaprio, you are seriously delusional.”

  “I can, and I will. Because I don’t need fifty supermodels anymore. I’ve got the ultimate goddess.”

  “Excuse me while I go throw up in my mouth.” Magnus made fake gagging noises.

  “Are you ladies through arguing about who the hottest guy is yet? We’ve got more important things to worry about, in case no one was listening,” Thor cut into our bickering. “What’s the next step?”

  “You aren’t in the next step. You’ve got an overly pregnant wife popping on Tuesday that you need to be there for,” Magnus looked him square in the eyes.

  “Like hell I’m not. I’ll be there for Anya and the baby, and she’ll have plenty of security around her, too. But when something goes down, I will be there.”

  “We’ll call you, if something happens. If not, you continue on as planned. We don’t need to raise too many suspicions by suddenly withdrawing from everything,” I shot Magnus a go-to-hell look since he’d done exactly that. “Thanks for that, by the way.”

  “What does it matter? In case you missed your little speech early, they slaughtered a fucking dog a few feet away from your sleeping ass. That was basically a dare. Let them be scared. Let them quake in their knock-off Italian loafers and their dollar store cologne.”

  “Jessie mentioned that, too.”

  “Well see, there ya go, it’s a stereotype for a reason. Damn good cooks, though.” Magnus shrugged his shoulders apologetically.

&nb
sp; “Damn good artists.”

  “And sculptors.”

  “And architects.”

  “And fashion designers.”

  “OK! We love the Italians, hate the Marchese family. Moving on,” Magnus growled, takin his place once again at the head of the table. “We need to call Dad and tell him to stay in California for the time being. Chances are, if they’re watching us then they know he’s out of town and they’ll either be watching him or waiting for his return. He’s got security with him. He can stay at the Palisades mansion for a few weeks longer.”

  “Right, sounds good. I think Jessie needs to stay home from work all week. Her dog just died, she’s heartbroken. Anyone at the office who won’t understand that is just a cold, heartless bitch.”

  “Are you referring specifically to Tina?” Thor questioned.

  “I’m referring to whichever employee tries to question my authority. I’ll go into the office tomorrow, give everyone the week off.”

  “What happened to staying inconspicuous just a few minutes ago?” Magnus said.

  “Well, OldBro, I’ve had a lot of seconds to consider what you said and I think you’re actually right for a change. They’re probably watching us, and they’re probably watching our employees. I wouldn’t put anything past them, even blowing up a building with one or all of us in it. You know what? I’m gonna call Brenda right fucking now.” I picked up my phone and dialed my office manager.

  “Brenda? Emergency came up. Everyone needs to be off this week. Send out an office e-mail and assure that no one goes to the office, ok? What’s the reason? My niece is fixing to be born and we’re celebrating.” I glared at Magnus for not coming up with a more intelligent excuse earlier.

  “Dammit,” he whispered under his breath.

  “Don’t try to bullshit a bullshitter.”

  “Please don’t refer to my unborn child as bullshit,” Thor defended.

  “What else are we missing?”

  “I don’t know, yet, “ Magnus said. “We lay low for a few days until Steve and his men can dig up some substantial dirt. If you go out, don’t do anything ordinary, mix it up. They’ll be expecting us to keep to our usual routines and not feel threatened by them, in which case they’re right.

  But, if they were stupid enough to get as close to you this morning as they did, maybe they’re more unorganized than we thought. If this Jason whatever-the-fuck-his-name-is is sweet on your girl, he might be taking it a little personal that she’s shacked up with his arch enemy now. Take security everywhere with you, and watch your six. I’ll call Steve and get things rolling, then I’ll meet you in the garden in a few minutes.” Steve was our head of security, and probably the only person I knew who could be considered scarier than the three of us combined.

  “What the fuck are we doing in the garden?” I asked. My brother wasn’t exactly a horticulturist.

  “Weren’t you listening to the girls’ chatter? Or the big speech you just gave? We’ve got a funeral to attend to, Dipshit.”

  Chapter Twenty-Five

  Jessie

  I picked a spot right behind the pool house for Otis to be laid to rest, beneath a willow tree. One of his favorite things had been willow trees. In his younger days, he’d bounce around, attacking leaf by leaf, like he took their swaying branches as a personal insult to his doghood.

  There was a stone bench, with ivy growing up and around it right beside the willow’s trunk. I dedicated as a makeshift memorial. Anya found some paint from somewhere, and painted a memorial on the bench’s top corner.

  Otis Warren

  A Very Good Boy. Loyal Until the End.

  R.I.P.

  Roland held me in his arms while the gardener dug an Otis-sized hole. After we had all taken our turns throwing dirt onto his grave, Anya asked if I’d like to say anything. Blubbering like a fool, I shook my head as the tears spilled freely down my cheeks.

  Roland took the lead, stroking my hair as I pressed my head against his chest.

  “Otis was, well, he was a great dog. I gave him a lot of shit, mostly because I like how cute Malone looks when she’s aggravated. He was stupid friendly, and too trusting, which was his downfall.”

  I squealed against him, trying to not choke on the air as I ugly-girl cried my ass off.

  “He was loyal to her, and her best friend through it all. And he really liked buttered noodles. Rest in peace, Otis.”

  I heard Magnus snicker beside us, and then a soft thwack as Anya punched him to behave. It was fine. People who aren’t pet lovers can’t possibly understand the level of universes of emotions that animal world opens you up to. Even if I’m never a human mom, I was still a dog mom, and that counts for a lot.

  Anya nudged a fragrant plant over with her foot, and raised her eyebrows at Thor to plant it.

  “Rosemary means remembrance,” she whispered loudly across Magnus so that I could understand what was happening. “Pierre had an extra one. He picked it from his herb garden just for Otis.”

  Everyone dispersed, leaving Roland and I to mourn Otis alone. The willow’s branches swept around us in the wind, its leaves catching in my hair like a fairy headband as I wiped my eyes with my fists like a toddler. No doubt I was rocking the blobfish face like a champ.

  “He would’ve liked it here, running around the grounds. I should’ve taken him outside more, that was his favorite thing.”

  “No babe, his favorite thing was you. You were his person. Everything else was just bonus points.”

  “This wasn’t how it was supposed to go,” I whimpered through my cracked voice. “Why’d he have to kill my Otis?”

  “Because he’s a sonofabitch who was undeserving of your time and your dog’s time.”

  “I can’t go to work tomorrow, Roland,” I looked up at him with pleading eyes. If ever there was a time to cash in on the perks of sleeping with your boss, today was the day for me.

  “You’re not going to work until we kill the motherfucker. None of us are. We’re beefing up security, everyone is on paid leave at the office. It’s going to be taken care of.”

  “Roland,” I paused, knowing I had to ask but not knowing how I should. “Do you and your brothers…”

  He put his hand underneath my chin, lifting my head to look him directly in the eyes. “No bullshit between us, Malone. Ask what you want to ask.”

  “I don’t know if I can.” That would make it real, make all of this more real than I was possibly prepared to handle.

  “The answer is yes,” he said calmly, catching me where I fell. “I’m not saying it’s right, and I’m not saying I won’t go to hell for it, but there are bad people out there, Malone. Really bad, as you’ve discovered. I’m not the enemy, but I am a barrier against the enemy.

  “We’re lawyers first and foremost, to be able to handle as much as we can legally, but you know as well as I do that sometimes shit gets outside the scope of the law. Sometimes, force needs to be dealt with force. When we need to be, that force is us.”

  I dropped my head, turning from his gaze to settle back against his chest. My mind was racing with new scenarios as he kissed the top of my hair and untwined the willow branches from it.

  “Hey, Malone?” His voice was heavier now. Uncertainty? Since when is the Roland Andersen uncertain about anything?

  “Yeah?”

  “Do you, would you want to spend a few days on our yacht? You know, to maybe forget all of this for a little bit?”

  “You have a yacht?” WTF.

  His uncertainty evaporated into thin air, and the confident Roland I knew came back with a vengeance. “Of course I have a yacht,” he said with ease in his voice, as if anyone could just walk into Wal-Mart and grab one off the shelf. Like the cashier could just remove the security beeper and there ya go, you’re the proud owner of a new yacht. Make sure it fits in your trunk first.

  “How am I supposed to say no to that? Do I want to spend a few days on a yacht? Hell yes, I want to spend a few days on a yacht.” I’d never be
en on a yacht before. Hell, I’d only ever been on one boat in my life, which was a ferry boat, which doesn’t count as a boat boat.

  The sun was starting to set, the dark pink, purple and orange hues casting shadows over the grounds and the mansion as we sat there in each other’s arms. This day had gone nothing like I’d ever planned, but it was full of twists and turns. Not all of them bad.

  “We’ll leave tomorrow. I’ll get Pierre to make us up some meals to take. Until then, I think you should probably take a nice hot bath and rest up.”

  I stroked his thigh, feeling the fabric in his pants tighten. “Only if you join me.”

  That night, we didn’t make love at all. We snuggled together in the jacuzzi in Roland’s bathroom, so large it was fit for a palace. He gently massaged my body and rubbed my feet, drying my tears with his caressing touches. His strong fingers squeezed my scalp, alleviating any tension I might’ve had left over.

  Roland wrapped my wet body in a fluffy bathrobe, gently carried me to his California king bed and stretched my body out over the white downy comforter. “Don’t move an inch,” he whispered as he kissed my nose before disappearing.

  I could’ve laid there forever. I might possibly have. When I woke up, everything was various shades of white and dark and… wet and cold. Why was my face so cold and wet, and why did I smell salad?

  I sat up in the bed, the cucumbers and oranges falling off of my face in chunks.

  “Good morning, beautiful,” Roland mumbled through his half-awakened state.

  I swung my legs off the bed, feeling rested and energized. I walked into the bathroom to look at my face. My blobfish eyes were noticeably less puffy, and my face seemed brighter than it had.

  “Freedom fighters and shit,” Roland muttered from the bed.

  “Freedom fighters?”

  “Yeah, the freedom fighters that fight your face.”