by Zoe Perdita
“No!” Ken said much too quickly. “It’s cold out and you, uh, should practice for the game on Saturday.” His voice held a tremor that told Davis one thing: Ken was lying.
“Sure. I’ll see you when you get back,” Davis said, mouth dry.
Ken took a breath. “Yeah. Listen. I love you. Remember that.”
Then the line went dead.
Davis stared at the phone, the breath stolen from his lungs, and frowned. What the hell was that about?
He tried to call Ken again, but it went straight to voicemail. Shit!
Now Davis didn’t have any choice but to go out and see what kind of trouble Ken got himself into. He had the foresight to put the food away first, threw on his jacket, and slipped into the night.
Ken had walked to work, like normal, so Davis climbed in the car and drove downtown. He pulled up to Ken’s building and jumped out. Hopefully, the parking meters weren’t running any longer – he couldn’t be bothered to put any change in.
A few lights shone in the window on Ken’s floor. Davis took the stairs. However, when he got into the set of offices almost everyone was gone. Everyone but a pleasantly plump blonde. Carolyn. Davis vaguely remembered her from the week before.
If he didn’t feel as if his heart would burst from worry, he’d have tossed her a charming smile. As it was, Davis cleared his throat. “Was there a work party tonight?”
Carolyn blinked and slipped a loose lock of hair behind her ear. “Not that I know of. But I got wasted at the last one, so maybe they didn’t want to tell me. Why?”
Davis licked his lips. They felt as dry as a desert, like the earth cracked in the overbearing heat. “Ken said—shit!”
“Yeah, you know, he was acting weird today. He was all out of it, more so than usual. Then he ran off right at six. He usually chats for a few minutes. Do you think he’s cheating on you?” she said, eyes wide. “I wouldn’t. You’re way hotter than Sam.”
“Uh, no. That’s not it. I think he did something worse, but I don’t know what it is. Thanks,” Davis said and turned. His chest felt empty, as if he’d left his heart behind. Every step he took rang hollow.
Ken? Where they hell would he go?
When he got back to the car, he sat and stared at nothing for several minutes. The urgency that pulled him there pounded in his head, hot and forceful, but he couldn’t just drive around Haven calling Ken’s name. He had to think. Figure out where Ken might’ve gone.
Dammit! If this is how Ken felt, Davis finally understood. He understood why Ken was so upset—angry—every time Davis was late or got into trouble. A sick knot of fear, cold and icy as the weather, wound up his throat and gripped him in its relentless hold. It choked him, and the only way to stop it was to find Ken, alive and well.
He started the car and drove. His mind raced from one possibility to the other.
Did he go to see Jin for some reason? No—that didn’t make sense.
Maybe he went to Mikhail’s club to ask questions about those bears that attacked Davis. But that wasn’t important, and if Ken was acting this secretive whatever he was up to had to be important.
The only possibility left punched him in the gut.
The docks.
The boat.
Those drugs.
Did Ken think he could find them on his own?
Shit!
Davis’s heart pounded as he turned toward the river. For once, he hoped he was wrong.
11
Ken’s tongue was cold when he hung up on Davis and turned off his phone. Funny. He thought lies were supposed to burn one up, not leave a freezing hole in his chest.
But what else was he supposed to do? Tell Davis his plan? Then Davis would talk him out of it or insist on accompanying him. And Davis needed to stay away from the docks until Saturday. Ken didn’t. Plus, with only one of them there, it reduced the chances of them getting caught.
At least, when he ran the statistical analysis that’s what he came up with. And Ken did that five times before he decided on his plan. The ‘I love you’ bit was all improvisation. The words slid off his tongue much too easily, as if he said them multiple times a day. Well, he did, but it was all in his head.
The way he screamed ‘I love you’ each time Davis touched him. Kissed him. Handed him a plate of sunny side up eggs with that stupid perfect smile and his charmingly messy hair. That thought steeled his resolve. He hadn’t been any use to Davis on Wednesday. He’d make it up tonight.
Ken’s first stop was the gym. He traded out his suit for casual clothes and secured his locker. A few of the regulars he chatted with raised their eyebrows as he left. Ken smiled tightly and didn’t say a word.
He sucked at lying even more in person than he did over the phone.
This time, he took a cab to the stretch of warehouses a block from the Bear’s alleged drug den. His heart hammered, and his hands shook as he paid the driver. Stepping into the night, the cold air grabbed the breath from his lungs. Fog twirled over the water in the distance, the thickness of it made it difficult to see. But that also meant he’d be harder to spot.
Now he just had to remember the lessons he’d learned from his games with Davis as children. Their parents let them roam the woods as wolves, and Davis taught him all sorts of hunting tips. Things like: stay downwind of your prey and keep to the shadows.
That wouldn’t be a problem.
Once the cab turned the corner, Ken slunk behind one of the unused warehouses and stripped. He couldn’t risk anyone seeing him in human form, therefore, he’d go as a wolf. A small, thin wolf, but it was better than a rabbit or a badger. Maybe not. From what Ken had heard, badgers were mean. Probably a lot better in a fight than he’d be. But he wasn’t going to get into any fights. This was strictly an investigation. He’d be back home before Davis missed him.
The air bit at his nude flesh, and Ken shivered, folded his clothes and stuffed them behind a crate. Then he willed his body into the omega’s shape. His limbs shortened, and his back bent. Black fur sprouted from his flesh, the same color as his hair.
The hidden light of the moon called to him behind the thick blanket of clouds, but Ken resisted the urge to howl in greeting. He crept forward, slowly so his claws didn’t click against the wood, and stuck to the shadows.
It felt as if it took an hour to reach his destination at that rate, but the sick churning in his gut kept him from moving faster. Finally, he neared the warehouse they’d been in the night before.
The dull glow of lights came from the uppermost windows, but with the fog that thick it was difficult to see much. Ken squinted. His nocturnal vision was good, but he couldn’t see through fog. However, in those conditions, sound traveled almost as well.
Voices rumbled in Russian, and a boat knocked against the edge of the pier like the ticking of a clock.
Ken held his breath and slipped as near as he dared. The air was dead still, so he hoped he remained downwind of the bears; it was impossible to tell. If they did smell him, they didn’t say a damn thing about it. Perhaps he was lucky and the stench of the river overpowered his musk.
The bears in question hauled crates from the boat to the warehouse. These crates weren’t as huge as the ones already inside. They were small enough for one bear to lift, and Ken estimated they’d come just above his knees if he stood beside one. With the fog, it was impossible to see the mark on the side of each one.
Damn!
Ken counted eleven crates split between the two bears. After they were all carried inside, the men closed the warehouse’s door with a clang. He waited several beats and breathed slowly through his nose to calm his racing heart.
Eleven seemed like a strange number. It wasn’t a neat, even number. Not like twelve. Or even a nice easily divisible number like fifteen. Which meant there may be more crates on the boat.
As Ken crept down the pier, he wasn’t certain what happened to the accountant with an exceedingly normal life and nice condo. Ken wasn’t even sure he’d recognize
that wolf. This was something Davis would do. Maybe even Ty (though Ty would probably be looking to use the drugs, not turn them in).
But it was a lot more exciting than watching TV and drinking wine for damn sure.
Every footfall hit the pier with a dull thud, and he hoped no one heard him. Also, that no one was on the boat. If a third bear sat in wait. . . . Ken shook his head to chase that thought away.
This time, two of the boats were missing. Only one was left, and it thudded against the pier as Ken approached.
He nearly leapt out of his skin at the sound, and bit his tongue to keep from yelping.
Calm down.
Climb aboard.
Check it out.
Carefully, one paw over the other, he climbed inside. Of course, that’s when the boat pulled away from the pier. Ken’s back paws slipped off the wood holding him steady and kicked into the foggy air. The only thing beneath him was an icy rushing river of black water, and no way was he as strong a swimmer as Davis.
He dug his front paws into the side of the boat and pulled with all his strength until he tumbled inside.
Thud!
Shit! He hadn’t meant to hit the deck like that.
Ears perked, he listened for any signs of life.
Thankfully, the warehouse door didn’t burst open and no hail of gunshots rang toward him. Ken let out a huff and sniffed the air. Under the reek of fish, he caught the bear musk and the tinge of something unfamiliar. Medicinal. The warm sticky scent of opium clung to the boat.
Ken padded over the deck, but none of the crates were still on board.
At least he knew how they transported the drugs, but that wasn’t enough for Jin Yue. Ken bared his teeth and peeked over the edge.
The door to the warehouse cracked open, and the bears lumbered out. Then, as if on cue, the dull clang of a bell rang over the water around him.
Ken slunk below the edge to avoid detection and held his breath—like that would do any good!
The two missing boats pulled into port next to the one Ken hid inside. Each scuffle of movement sounded louder than the last. Closer to him getting discovered and. . . well, shot in the head and tossed into the river, in all likelihood.
So he pressed himself as flat as possible, tucked to the edge, and waited.
It seemed to take hours, but it was probably closer to thirty minutes.
More than two bears unloaded the drugs now. It was four. Four damn bears against one omega? He’d lose that fight in seconds. If they ever found his body, they might not even be able to identify it.
Waiting silently sucked!
When the last bear removed the final crate and stomped away, Ken allowed himself to move. He peeked over the edge and caught the eye of one of the bears.
The man squinted. Blinked. Then his lips curled into an ugly snarl, and he shouted.
They spotted him! And he was stuck on the damn boat!
Ken moved for the rope that anchored the boat to the pier. If he could reach that and—
Shouts rang through the fog, followed by the dangerous roar of a bear, fully shifted.
Fuck! What the hell was he supposed to do?
Ken didn’t think. His body moved, while his brain screamed at him that this was the worst plan ever. Well, not as bad as being ripped apart by a bear. So the second worst plan ever.
His teeth sunk into the rope and he chewed and yanked until the hemp gave way. Feet pounded toward him.
Not much longer.
They’d catch him and—
Suddenly, the rope broke and the current snagged the boat.
A hulking Russian loomed over him in the fog and swore (at least, Ken assumed the man swore), as the boat drifted away.
Ken didn’t waste a second. He let the wolf form fall away, since there was no chance the bear saw his human shape in this kind of weather. The fog clung to his bare flesh and gave him goosebumps in places he never wanted goosebumps. Once it seemed like the boat was far enough from the pier, he turned the ignition and gripped the steering wheel.
The mist swirled and danced, making anything farther than ten feet in any direction completely invisible. Ken turned toward what he hoped was east. The boat chugged against the current, so that had to be the right direction.
He pulled the wheel toward the shore until he could make out shapes on the pier.
One warehouse.
Two.
He’d hidden his clothes next to the fifth one. Just a little further and—
A figure moved in the fog near the third warehouse. A figure Ken could’ve spotted in any crowd. That brown leather jacket and unkempt hair.
Davis?
What was Davis doing here?
Ken growled under his breath and chewed his bottom lip. He couldn’t call Davis’s name without giving away his damn position! Then both of them would be dead.
Ken turned the wheel hard in the direction of the shore and prepared for the impact of the boat slamming into the pier. Instead, it scraped along the edge, the river pulling it downstream. With the rope in pieces, Ken’s only chance was to jump for it.
When the hell did his life turn into some kind of action film? The only way to make the whole thing perfect would be if the boat exploded as he leapt from it.
And the only way to make the jump was to shift.
Again.
He did.
All four paws landed on the wooden pier, and he took off as quickly as he could after Davis.
Sure, Davis stuck to the shadows and stayed downwind, but he moved quickly. He rounded the last warehouse and was about to slip around the crates stacked there when Ken pounced.
He caught Davis by surprise and brought him down in a tangle of limbs and the snag of teeth. Ken didn’t bite hard, just enough to keep Davis still.
Still and safe.
Davis swung a fist, his eyes wide. Then he stopped, held his hand in mid-air, and let out a breath that seeped relief into Ken’s bones.
The shouts rang across the open space. Two boats roared to life, and the heavy thud of footsteps shook the wood underneath them.
They needed to disappear.
Now.
Together, they slipped back into the misty shadows. Ken wasn’t sure who led the way. He stopped to shift back into a human and dress, but the urgency hung around them like a heavy cloth.
It didn’t even fade as they climbed into the car. Ken let Davis drive without complaining about it. His hands trembled so badly he didn’t think he could manage.
When he looked at Davis, Ken noticed his hands shook too.
“I saw the drugs. Thirty-five crates total. Opium, I think. Maybe heroin. They moved it to the warehouse. Shit!” Ken muttered, more to himself than to Davis.
Davis’s jaw clenched, but he didn't say anything, which made it worse.
In fact, Davis didn’t utter a damn word until they got back to the condo. The lights were on, and Ken caught the smell of cooking—steak. Filet mignon. His favorite.
Davis cooked him dinner and he’d run off on some near-death mission. When had they traded places?
“I need a shower,” Ken said and pinched his eyes shut.
“You lied,” Davis snarled.
His eyes snapped open, and Ken turned on his heel. The alpha bristled around the edges of Davis’s shoulders. His voice rumbled with tension. Anger.
Ken frowned. “You’re pissed at me? I was trying to find the drugs. We only have until Saturday!”
“Exactly! We have until Saturday. But you decided it’d be a good idea to do this alone. These are dangerous Russian bears, Ken! If they caught you, you’d be dead. Dead! And you didn’t even ask for my help. Or tell me what the hell you were up to!” Davis cried and stalked toward him.
Ken stared. The heat rose in his cheeks. They burned with it. “Do you hear yourself? The only thing I did was the same type of shit you pull all the time. Don’t like it? Now you know how I feel!”
“I never lied to you about what I was doing. Maybe I didn’t t
ell you, but I never flat out lied,” Davis growled. His hands curled over Ken’s shoulders and squeezed.
His touch singed, and Ken wormed out of it. “You lied about how you felt. About what I meant to you. You lied about Vegas.” His voice came out dead and flat. With only the slight tremor of emotion at the end.
Davis blinked. Sighed. “I—it wasn’t a lie. I didn’t know what to think at the time. I didn’t know what I felt. We both know I fucked up back then, or maybe I wasn’t ready, but you can’t hold that against me forever. It’s not fair. Not if you love me like I love you.”
Ken’s hand balled into a fist, and he hit Davis in the chest. “Don’t tell me you love me in the middle of a fight! That’s not how this works. Bad timing!”
“All we are is bad timing. And I can tell you how I feel whenever I feel like it. You told me right before you snuck off to get yourself killed!” Davis snarled, his eyes bright like pricks of bronze.
Ken gaped. His mouth moved but no words came out. The weariness of everything he’d went through that evening stung his eyes. Or maybe Davis being angry with him did that. Davis had never been angry at him. Not once in the entire time they’d known each other. Davis always shrugged everything off while Ken pouted. But now. . . .
“I was trying to help you,” Ken said lamely. “And if you want me now, why didn’t you back then? Did you have to wait so long to figure out you might like dick?”
He expected Davis to back off at that, but the alpha’s fingers dug into his shoulders harder. Davis scowled. “Because wanting you and being what’s right for you are two different things. I’m trying harder than I’ve ever tried at anything in my life. You have to let that go. You have to forgive me because I’m here now, and I love you, Ken. I want to be with you. We’re mates. You know it. Maybe I knew it too. So you can’t throw this away before we even get started.”
Ken didn’t think his heart could beat any faster than it had when that bear found him, but it did. It throbbed, and his breath caught in his chest. Everything else in the world beyond Davis’s drawn brows and the desperate twist of his lips faded.
He squirmed out of Davis’s grip and turned toward the bathroom. “You are the last person who should lecture me about forgiveness and trying to get killed. You do it on a daily basis. I did it once to save all our asses! If you can’t appreciate that then—”
