"... would have been easier if plan A worked out," Eddie was saying as their boots crunched across the snow. "Stillwell delivers Elena and tells us where her hubby's stashed. Now we have to wait for Danvers to show up. But he will. No doubt about that, not after the way he went after you the other day. He'll come for her, and we'll be waiting."
Their boots clomped up the cabin steps. Eddie kept talking, trying to lift his brother's mood.
"If we kill those two, we won't have to hide out in this godforsaken wilderness anymore. We can ply our trade anywhere in the country, because there's not going to be any Pack to worry about."
"Still got four more where they came from," Tesler grumbled.
"Who? Two old men and a jewel thief?"
A frown creased Nick's handsome face.
"Oh, wait," Eddie said. "We can't forget Nick Sorrentino."
Nick nodded.
"No, actually, I think we can," Eddie continued. "Unless we're competing for best-dressed pansy-ass. Muss up his hair and he'll run screaming for his stylist."
That got a chuckle from Tesler ... and then it was my turn to hold Nick down.
"We have to figure out what we're going to do with Danvers when he shows up," Eddie said as the door whooshed open. "It has to be good. And we need to take photos. That'll cement our reps. We'll have every mutt in the country begging us for jobs."
"Speaking of which," Tesler said, as they went inside. "We have to call the others. Tell them to get their asses back here..."
I waited until the door closed and lights turned on inside, tracking their passage through the cottage. Then I let Nick up.
"Pansy-ass," he muttered as he scooped snow from his hood.
"It's a front. Which he's about to find out."
"Damn right."
Nick's lips twitched in the faintest sardonic smile. He knew he wasn't the Pack's best fighter. His father and Clay never let him be--they'd always been quick to jump in and fend off any threats, as they did with Jeremy. But like Jeremy, Nick could hold his own, and unlike Jeremy, he enjoyed the chance to prove it.
"Junior is mine," he said as we rose and stretched.
"Good, because I own Senior. And no one better get in my way."
We brushed ourselves off, then I looked around for any sign that our local werewolf had found Clay or Antonio. Nothing.
"Do we wait?" Nick asked. "There's only two of them, and it sounds like there will be more soon."
"Not too soon. They're talking about their comrades, who are in the Lower 48 on business." I looked from the house to the gray woods. "As long as the Teslers stay put, we should wait."
AGAIN I TRIED to do the right thing and wait for backup. Again, an interruption made me rethink the wisdom of that. This time it wasn't a sound, but a scent.
When I lifted my face to catch it again, Nick inhaled, too.
"Mutt," he said. "Is that Joey's boy? Maybe he escaped."
For a moment, I hesitated. I don't know why--the scent clearly wasn't Noah's--yet something in it made me pause before shaking my head.
"Those Shifter things?"
"No, they smell different. And very distinct. Their cave was well appointed, but I don't think it included hot showers."
Nick made a face, then sniffed again. "So it's not the Shifters. It's not Joey or his boy. It's not Reese, not the Teslers, not the wolf-guy ... Exactly how many werewolves and werewolf-like critters are running around out here?"
"Too many." I pushed to my feet and looked at the cabin. The lights were still on and I could hear the faint clatter of dishes, as if they were making breakfast. "Let's go see who's sniffing around."
MISSION
WHAT WE FOUND were two werewolves dressed in full winter walking garb, from boots to gloves to parkas that covered their faces. One whiff told me I'd never met these mutts before. I had, however, smelled them--or traces of them, earlier tonight, in the cottage.
When Tesler told Eddie they needed to call their men in, he didn't mean bring them back to Alaska. They were already here.
It's a testament to my exhaustion that even as we tracked the two mutts downwind, I held out hope that these weren't actually the rest of Tesler's gang. Even when we got close enough to hear them speaking English with thick Eastern European accents, I thought maybe Roman hadn't heeded my assurances that we didn't need help and sent some of his "Russian wolves" to help, and they'd been nosing around the cabin earlier. But why would they be speaking English? That only made sense if their leaders were English-speaking, and insisted on that as their common language. Their next words confirmed that suspicion.
"Fucking Eddie thinks he is such a fucking hotshot. Thinks he fucking runs this outfit."
"That is where you always get into trouble, Marko. You still think it is Travis in charge. It is Eddie... letting his brother think he is leading."
"Travis would have let us steal a snowmobile."
"And that is why he is not in charge. Eddie is careful. Two stolen snowmobiles are enough."
"Because it is enough for the two of them. We have to walk through the fucking snow, looking for some fucking werewolf girl they let escape."
"You can be sure it was not Eddie who let her get away. You are just angry because we did not find her, which is good, or you would be in more trouble than you were when you killed that hiker."
"I just wanted a poke."
"You think Travis would not notice? Would not smell you on her?"
"I have condoms."
The other man, whose accent sounded Ukrainian, snorted. "You think that would cover all the smell?"
We were crouched behind bushes, keeping our distance.
"If they get to the cabin..." Nick whispered.
"It doubles the odds in their favor. We should take them out."
I wasn't in top-notch shape, but still feeling no pain, and Nick was fresh and raring to go. With the element of surprise, we could take them. Nick slipped back to cut across behind them and come up on their left.
Marko was still complaining.
"I don't know why we had to come back from the city. We'd have found the hotel, caught this Danvers, brought him back..."
"If Eddie is right, which he usually is, Danvers is already here. You just wanted to stay in the city. You always want to stay in the city."
"Why not? It's warm. The beds are warm. The girls are warm. This--" He gestured at the surrounding forest and swore in Russian.
"Enough complaining. If you do not like it--"
"The money I like. Eddie, I don't. Always ordering us around. Come to Alaska. No, go back. No, come again. Back and forth, back and forth."
The Ukrainian told Marko to shut up before someone heard.
"That's why I'm talking so much," Marko said. "If this girl is out here, she is alone, afraid. If she hears a voice, she'll come running."
I signaled Nick, who swung out into their path. The Ukrainian leapt out of the way, whistling as he did, but Marko, caught in mid-rant, just stood there, mouth open until Nick shut it for him with a line-drive upper cut.
I caught Marko and slammed him to the ground, glancing back only long enough to check on Nick. He didn't have the Ukrainian yet, but he'd backed him into the thick bushes. The Ukrainian whistled again.
"That's not going to bring anyone running," I said. "Your buddies just sat down to breakfast."
Beneath me, Marko tried to twist and bite. So I broke his arm. I wasn't in the mood for threats. I would have killed him already, but if I needed information, he was more likely to give it than his friend. I could do without the shrieks of pain, though, so I shoved his face into the snow to stifle them.
When he shut up, I wrenched his head back and hissed in his ear, "I hear you like killing humans, Marko. You're on American Pack territory, and do you know how we treat man-eaters here?"
He swore at me in Russian. I smashed his face into the snow again.
Nick was sizing up the Ukrainian, knowing the mutt couldn't run, but that he'd fight as soon as Nick
moved. And a cornered wolf fights hard.
"Tesler summoned you boys back the minute he got a whiff of trouble, didn't he? Figured he and his brother weren't enough to take on two Pack werewolves? Poor excuse for tough guys, if you ask me. Did you do any man-eating while you were in the Lower 48?"
"Is that where we were?" Marko turned his head and smiled up at me through the blood streaming from his nose.
"I don't really care where you were. I'm just making conversation."
"Oh, you'll care. You'll care very much soon."
Nick feinted left, preparing for engagement and takedown. Then he stopped short, gaze shooting behind me, lips parting.
"Elena!"
He twisted and lunged at me. The Ukrainian grabbed him. As I shot up off Marko, a shadow passed over me and I caught a whiff of werewolf scent. I wheeled to see a strange mutt, with two more behind him.
"Now do you want to know what we were doing?" Marko said. "Bringing fake passports to the rest of our pack, and escorting them here."
It was a short fight.
DRAMA
MARKO KICKED OPEN the cabin door and shoved me through with his good hand.
"Anybody home?" he called. "We brought you a present, Travis."
"Two presents," said the Ukrainian, pushing Nick in. Two other mutts followed. "I don't know if you wanted this one alive, but I guessed you did."
"And if you don't, I'll take him," said one of the newcomers, a paunchy, graying brute with only traces of an accent. His grin was a picket fence of missing teeth. "He's pretty."
Nick ignored him, taking everything in, unperturbed. I could say he was putting on a brave show, but he just wasn't all that worried. I was with him, so all he had to do was pay attention and await orders. Sometimes it really sucks to be in charge.
Admittedly, I wasn't as worried as I should be either. The others were on their way and I didn't think the Teslers would kill us. Their endgame was killing Clay. What better bait than his mate plus his best friend?
As for what Tesler would do with me while passing the time, I was surprisingly unconcerned about that, too. I blamed the drugs. I was sure when they wore off, I'd blame them for this whole "captured again" mess. An Alpha-training lesson for me--never make field decisions while under the influence of painkillers.
Even when Tesler walked in from another room, saw me and grinned, my pulse barely jumped. He strode over, took both my hands and held me at arm's length for a once-over, like a groom checking out his arranged bride.
"All that and she still looks good. You hold up well, honey. Too bad you're not going to look so good when I'm done with you."
He pulled me closer and slid his hand under the parka, squeezing my ass. I heard a scuffle behind me, and I glanced back to see Nick struggling against his captor, glowering at Tesler. When I shot him a look, he stopped. I appreciated the sentiment, but if he didn't play good hostage, they might decide they didn't need two of us after all.
"They killed Andrej," the Ukrainian said.
When Tesler frowned, Eddie leaned over and whispered to him, "The big Romanian. Joined up just before we left."
Tesler's expression didn't change. He might remember the guy. He might not. Either way, he didn't really give a shit.
The Ukrainian was right. Eddie pretended his brother was in charge, but it was what Clay and I planned to do when I was Alpha--if mutts wanted to think the big scary guy was in charge, let them. Yet a pack is really no different from a human organization. While the strongest might make the best leader short-term, it took more than that for long-term success. In this case, though, even the pack members themselves couldn't agree who was their Alpha, meaning they wouldn't agree on who to protect. I could use that. I just wasn't sure how.
"Paul? Stefan? Tie him up," Eddie said. "Marko, let's get that arm set. Gavril--"
"Can I eat, please?" Gavril--the chubby guy with the bad teeth--whined. "I haven't had anything since the plane."
Eddie waved him to the kitchen. "Get something and come back. Danvers could show up any minute and I want to be ready. This is our big moment, guys."
"We're gonna wipe out the North American Pack," Tesler said.
"No, we're going to replace them. And you guys are getting in at the start." The others lit up like ground-floor investors about to watch their company go public. "You've worked hard and it's all going to pay off now. By summer, we'll be out of this godforsaken wasteland, living in California, Texas, Florida... We'll have a whole damn country to choose from."
They nodded, true believers at the revival, the Promised Land shimmering before them.
"Anyone who opposes us goes down. Anyone who wants to join up will be welcome, as long as he's willing to pull his weight and understands that you guys are at the top of the heap. You were here first. You'll get the best territory, the best girls and, most of all, the best-paying jobs in the operation."
As he preached, I plotted possible escape routes. I liked the big picture window a few feet from us. Of course, I'd like it even better if I could see some familiar werewolves slipping through the forest to surround the house...
"And remember who got you here," Tesler said. "Me and Eddie, we did all this for you guys."
"We have to give Marko credit, though," Eddie said. "As mad as I was about him killing that guy out here, he gave me an idea. Kill a few humans on Pack territory and look who comes running."
He waved at me. So he was taking credit for bringing us here? The guy had balls; I had to give him that. And brains, unfortunately. Which was more than I could say for his flunkies, who all nodded, convinced their brilliant leader--or their leader's little brother--had delivered the Pack right into their hands.
Now, if only the rest of that Pack would actually show up...
As long as Eddie was basking in the sound of his own voice, though, it was giving the others time to get here. Just keep yapping...
"Enough of that," Eddie said. "Time to get ready for our guest."
Damn.
"Paul, get Mr. Sorrentino tied up while Marko holds him still. Be careful, though. I'm sure those manicured nails are sharp. Gavril! How long does it take to grab food? Bring some for the rest of us. And, Travis, how about you take your prize into the bedroom and finish up with her? Do what you want. Just keep her alive."
Eddie tensed, ready for me to fight. I didn't. I had a better chance of beating Tesler alone. The challenge would be defeating Tesler and getting Nick free. As I pondered that, though, Tesler took a good look at me, noting my lack of mortal terror.
"I'll wait," he said.
"For what?" Eddie said. "No. Don't even suggest--"
"You want to rile up Danvers? What better way than for him to watch while--"
"No."
"Why not?"
Eddie leaned in, lowering his voice. "Because I don't want to rile him up. I'm holding hostages to keep him calm. Now take her in the bedroom or you're going to lose your chance again--"
"Too late," said a voice behind us.
We turned to see Antonio in the kitchen doorway.
"You guys really need to be more careful with security," he said. "The back door was unlocked, and I found a guy raiding your fridge. Don't worry, though, I took care of him for you." He glanced over his shoulder at the floor, presumably where Gavril lay. Then his gaze traveled over their faces. "Oh, was he one of yours? Damn. I'm really sorry about that."
While he spoke, the only person who moved was Eddie, backing up toward me, guarding the prize. Everyone else stared, as if trying to figure out what was going on. Finally the Ukrainian ran at Antonio. Antonio barreled forward, meeting his charge.
A figure slid from the opposite hall entrance, behind Nick, still held by Marko.
"Marko!" Eddie shouted.
Marko only frowned at Eddie, as if wondering why Eddie wanted him to go help fight Antonio when he only had one good arm. The other mutt figured it out, shouting a warning and gesturing at Reese, who'd slipped in, armed with a fireplace poker. He
swung and hit Marko in the side of his head.
Tesler pulled me against him, arms pinned behind me with one hand, the other forearm at my throat. Any notion of fighting stopped--not with the choke hold, but with Eddie, backing up to us, protecting the booty as his soldiers did battle. I couldn't take them both on, and with Eddie staying out of the fight, the odds were in our favor anyway.
Antonio killed the other newcomer--I'd already forgotten what Eddie called him. That left the Ukrainian, pinned to the floor now by Nick, and Marko, easily held by Reese, who had only to twist his broken arm to keep him on his knees. I motioned for them to hold fast. Kill these two and we lost our negotiating power.
When Antonio stepped toward me, Eddie jerked one of my arms from Tesler's grasp. "Take another step and I break this. And that's just for starters."
Antonio stopped.
"I do believe this is what we call a stand off," Eddie said.
"Not much of one," I said. "I'm the only prize worth holding. Notice I'm not even asking for a trade? You'd never go for it--they're just cannon fodder."
Marko and the Ukrainian tensed, Marko looking to Tesler, the Ukrainian to Eddie.
"I'd like my men back," Eddie said quietly.
"But you won't turn me over to get them, will you? Two for one. That's quite a deal. I won't even ask you to walk away. You let me go. They let them go." I twisted to look at Eddie. "Game on."
Neither man moved.
"Guess not," I said. "Sorry, guys. You aren't worth it, apparently."
"No, I'm just not taking the offer seriously, considering where it's coming from." Eddie turned to Antonio. "You don't let a woman talk for you, do you?"
"Usually. They're better at it."
"Speak for yourself," Nick said.
Reese chuckled.
"I'd suggest you start taking this a little more seriously," Eddie said. "And tell me who I'm negotiating with. I know you don't let the Beta's mate speak for the Pack."
"No, we let the Alpha-elect speak for us," Nick said. "She just did."
I glanced at him. Had everyone in the Pack known before me?
"You think this is funny?" Eddie lifted one of my fingers. "Maybe you'll find this even funnier."
He snapped my finger. Nick winced. I didn't. I won't say I didn't feel it, only that I saw it coming and bit my cheek against the pain.
"Sure, you can do that," I said. "But a word of advice? The worse shape I'm in, the harder it'll be to get Clay to come to my rescue. He may be my mate, but he can always make himself another. And if I'm gone, he'd be next in line for Alpha."
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