CHAPTER SIX

CHAPTER SIX

Harley and Jesse chose to spend the rest of the day catching up and enjoying time alone, so she didn’t meet the rest of the pack until the next morning when they had breakfast at the main lodge. Not exactly eager to spend time with a bunch of people who, for the most part, didn’t want her there, Harley would have happily spent another day at Jesse’s lodge. However, he wanted her to meet the rest of the pack. As she didn’t want them to think she was hiding, she agreed. So now they sat at the long table, helping themselves to the selection of food that Kathy placed in the center.

Jesse had wasted no time in making his claim on her clear. He hadn’t said a word, just brushed aside her hair so that the bite was visible. A few people sucked in a stunned breath, but most didn’t look surprised; that didn’t mean they were all fine with it. Nick, Derren, Eli, and Caleb exchanged “this could be bad” looks. As Jesse had predicted, Kathy wasn’t at all happy and made it clear in a pathetically passive-aggressive way.

Harley ignored her, which seemed to only increase her frustration. Harley suspected the woman would snap at some point and spout whatever was on her mind. How tedious. Jesse also ignored it. He focused on Harley, constantly touching her—stroking her hair, holding her hand, tracing her claiming mark, or curving his arm around her to run his fingers along her collarbone.

She’d expected Jesse to be possessive, but she hadn’t expected him to be so blatant about it. Shifters were easy about touch when it came to people they trusted, but she’d never known Jesse to be touchy-feely. Of course, the constant touching was also a protective display. He was communicating to every wolf in that room that she wasn’t to be harmed, verbally or physically. It was . . . nice. She wasn’t used to nice when it came to relationships. She was used to assholes.

It was a shame that the dog wasn’t around, since at least he liked her. But apparently Bruce went roaming for days at a time.

Leaning back in his chair, Derren spoke to Jesse. “You wasted no time in claiming Harley, did you?”

Jesse blinked. “Why would I?”

Ally chuckled. “Why indeed.”

Derren’s gaze cut to Harley. “You don’t seem to have returned the claim. But I’m guessing, since you haven’t covered the bite with makeup, that you’ve accepted his claim on you.”

Harley sipped at her coffee, returning his stare boldly.

He arched a brow. “No answer?”

“I didn’t realize there was a question,” she said.

Ally snickered. “Don’t mind him, Harley, he’s—”

Splat.

As a slice of toast slapped Jesse’s chest, he sighed at the two pups. In reality, he was amused that—despite the constant reprimands—the pups seemed to find it necessary to engage in a food fight with each other every morning. However, he’d find it much more amusing if their aim was better and the food didn’t accidentally hit him.

Eyes twinkling, Willow kept her hand over her mouth to hold in her laugh. Cassidy had her head down to hide her amusement, but her little shoulders were shaking.

Nick gave them both an exasperated look and tugged on one of his daughter’s curls. “Enough, you two. Apologize to Jesse.”

The pups both turned to him, eyes still gleaming, and said in unison, “Sorry, Jesse.”

He snorted. “No, you’re not.”

They giggled and, predictably, resumed their food fight.

Harley looked up as Kim and an unfamiliar brunette entered. A hush fell, as if everyone was waiting to see how this would play out.

Thin and gaunt, the brunette stared down at Harley, an ugly twist to her mouth. “So Kim was right. And here I was thinking that Jesse would never betray his sister’s memory that way.”

Harley turned to Jesse. “Who’s that?”

The woman’s eyes flared. “Who’s that?”

“Bracken’s mom,” said Jesse, stifling a smile. But he could see that Harley didn’t remember her any more than she remembered Kim. Of course, he’d known Bracken’s mother would have a few things to say about Harley’s presence. The woman wasn’t cruel or blinkered, but she was very opinionated. If she had something to say on a matter, you were going to hear about it. It meant she could come across as harsh at times and tended to rub most people the wrong way.

“This is my mom, Nat, and my sister Kim,” Bracken told Harley as they took their seats. “I take it I don’t need to introduce Harley.”

Nat opened her mouth, no doubt ready to spout off something offensive, and Ally quickly suggested, “Maybe someone should take the pups to the play area now that they’re done with breakfast.” Both pups had sensed the tension and were staring at Nat, wide-eyed.

Nick rose to his feet. “Eli and I will.” Switching from wary to excited in a heartbeat, the pups scrambled out of the room with the males close behind them.

Jesse arched a brow at Nat when she started to speak. “No. I’m not interested in hearing bullshit, and I won’t tolerate you insulting my mate.”

Eyes bulging, Kim glared at Jesse. “You’ve claimed her?”

Looking a little off balance, Nat stroked a hand over her perfectly coifed hair. “Jesse . . . I’m without words.”

“Well, that’s a first,” muttered Bracken, earning himself a scowl from his mother.

“I just don’t understand,” said Kim, shaking her head.

Harley picked up her mug. “We don’t require you to.” Kim shot her a glare.

“You’ve all made your point,” clipped Jesse. “Back off.”

“Now that the pups are gone, we can all discuss the plans for Cassidy’s surprise party,” said Shaya, trying to defuse the tension. “What do we have left to do?”

“I saved my to-do list on my phone,” said Ally, whipping out her cell and swiping her thumb across the screen. “Right, here we go. Balloons . . . check. Costumes . . . check. Cake . . . I have all the ingredients. Themed decorations . . . well, we have most of them. The fake vines and camouflage fabric still aren’t here. Why aren’t they here?”

“They’re due to be delivered sometime tomorrow,” said Shaya.

“Vines?” echoed Harley. “What’s the theme?”

“Safari,” replied Shaya. “Cassidy is determined that she will one day go on a safari in Africa. Maybe it’s something to do with the Disney Madagascar movie; I don’t know. We’re planning to decorate the play area so it looks like a jungle. We made little pretend passports; the kids will have to hand them over before they can enter the jungle.”

Harley raised her brows. “That sounds seriously cool. When is the party?”

“Saturday,” replied Jesse, tracing the shell of her ear. “We need—” He cut off at the sound of a cell chiming. “I think that’s yours, baby.”

Digging it out of her pocket, Harley sighed at the name flashing on the screen. Lily only ever contacted Harley when she wanted money—money she could use to buy booze or drugs. Of course, Harley had no intention of funding her habits or any desire to listen to the “I’m sober and planning to turn my life around, I just need money for groceries” speech.

She could ignore the call, but that would be the mature thing to do. Harley found “mature” a little boring. Harley answered in a robotic voice, “The person you are calling is currently unavailable. To speak to someone who has time for your drama, press one. To be beamed up to the mother ship, press two. To talk more about your codependent issues, have someone press three for you. Alternatively—”

“Oh, Harley!” whined Lily. Then the line went dead, and Harley smiled. Returning her cell to her pocket, she became aware that everyone was staring at her.

“Who was that?” asked Kent.

“Someone who makes it difficult for others to like her.” Harley frowned when Kathy snatched her empty plate with a loud huff. “I see you’re another one of those people.”

Kathy narrowed her eyes. “I’m difficult to like? That’s rich, coming from a Vincent.”

Nat placed her palms flat on the table. “It was wrong of you to accept Jesse’s claim. You and I know that you won’t be happy here. Your maternal family is wealthy. You’re used to china plates, crystal glasses, and expensive champagnes. You won’t find any of that here.”

“Mom,” drawled Bracken. “It’s not your business.”

Ignoring that, Nat appealed to Jesse with a look. “You have to know deep down that she’s not a good choice for a mate. Maybe that’s why you want her—some males are drawn to forbidden fruit, and she’s definitely an apple to stay clear of.”

Roni cocked her head at Nat. “Did you know that it doesn’t say in the Bible that the forbidden fruit was an apple? Some people think it might have been a fig or even a pomegranate.”

“Roni.”Marcus chuckled around a mouthful of food.

She blinked innocently. “What? What did I say?”

It wasn’t what Roni had said; it was the reason she’d said it. Roni used random facts to annoy or unsettle people—mostly so that she could escape the conversation. Jesse had seen it work thousands of times. The extremely intelligent tomboy had nonexistent social skills. Marcus, however, had a natural ease with people and, in that sense, balanced her out.

“Your mom will lose her shit, Jesse,” sniped Kim.

Before he could say a single word, Bracken leaned forward, pinning the female’s gaze. “If you’re thinking of calling Jesse’s family with news of what you’ve learned here, think again. What happens between Jesse and Harley is not your business to share or interfere with. Unless you want to be thrown off this territory, keep it to yourself. They’ll share their news in their own time. You got me?”

Kim swallowed. “Fine. But I’ll keep quiet about it because I know it’s what Jesse wants, not because you’re snapping at me.”

Bracken snorted. “I don’t give a shit why you keep quiet just as long as you do.”

“Same goes for you,” Shaya said to Nat, firmly. “I don’t think I need to point out that Harley’s location can’t be leaked. If the extremists find out where she is, their attention could turn our way and then your son will be in danger.” That right there was enough to make Nat keep quiet—she loved her only son and hadn’t given up hope of luring him back to his old pack.

“Can you keep your mouths shut about this?” Bracken asked his family. Both nodded, though they were also scowling. “Don’t fuck with my trust,” he warned them.

That made Nat’s spine snap straight. “Bracken, honey, you know better than to think I would.” Jesse believed her.

Kathy started collecting mugs. “Bracken, you can’t blame them for being concerned.” She sneered at Harley.

Anticipating another insult coming her way, Harley raised a hand and said, “Honestly, this is getting tedious. Jesse’s already claimed me, so—”

“That’s something I don’t understand.” Kathy shook her head. “Five minutes he’s had you here and he’s already claimed you. He never even mentioned you before that.”

Shaya frowned. “No, he did. He once said, ‘My Harley plays the electric violin.’ I thought he was talking about a relative.”

Kathy brushed her hands down her long skirt. “Well, I’m not convinced you’ll fit in here, Harley. We’re not like your haughty, high and mighty human relatives or your reckless, free-spirited, criminal pack. We’re good, steady, mature—”

The front door swung open. “Roni, where are you?” Eli bellowed.

Ally turned to Roni with a sigh. “What did you do now?”

A furious-looking Eli stormed into the room and stopped in front of his sister, hands on hips. “It’s not bad enough that you put bang snap firecrackers under my toilet seat? I shit myself—literally—when I sat on it this morning and the damn things went off!”

Kathy gasped. “Roni!”

“You had to also sign me up for gay porn?” continued Eli, his voice rising.

Hands fisted, Roni leaned forward. “You gave me an exploding sponge cake!”

Shaya bit her bottom lip to hide a smile. “Oh, Eli, you didn’t. You know how much she loves cake.”

Roni said to Shaya, “It was chocolate sponge with buttercream, and I was so happy and so looking forward to eating it.” She glowered at her brother. “And then it exploded.” She shook her index finger at him. “Too far, Eli. Too far.”

“So all the things you’ve done to me were tame, were they?”

“I never made it personal!”

Harley looked at Jesse and said quietly, “They do this a lot? Play pranks, I mean.”

“Yeah,” he replied. “Always have, apparently—even when they were kids.”

Harley turned to Kathy, brow raised. “You were saying something about you all being mature people?”

Kathy rounded on Harley with a growl, but she stilled as the pups walked in with Nick behind them, his expression grim.

Shaya frowned at her mate. “What’s wrong?”

“Hector called,” replied Nick. “He wants me to meet him at the closest part of the border that separates our territory from his.”

Jesse stiffened. “Why?”

“I don’t know,” said Nick, voice flat.

“Probably to repeat his offer,” hedged Derren. “Maybe even up his price. I’m coming with you, Nick.”

“Me too,” said Eli.

Nick nodded in agreement. “Ally, I want you to come too. I want to get a feel for his emotional state. Jesse, Marcus, Roni—I want you three to come along but linger out of sight. I want him to sense you’re there, but I don’t want him to know where you are.”

Jesse nodded, adrenaline coursing through him. His wolf stretched within him, ready.

“The rest of you stay here and be alert,” said Nick. “I don’t think Hector’s trying to divide the pack and leave us vulnerable to attack or he would have asked to meet me far from the main lodge. But we know from past experience that taking chances puts people in danger.”

Shaya nodded. “Kathy, take the pups upstairs. Zander, get me my shotgun.”

Jesse massaged Harley’s palm with his thumb as he spoke to her. “I’ll be back soon. Wait here for me.” He braced himself for her to insist on returning to their lodge. After all, she wouldn’t find it much fun being here without his support, especially given the drivel she’d had to listen to from Nat and Kathy.

Harley saluted him. “Be careful.”

“Good girl,” he whispered, wondering if he’d ever be able to anticipate her reactions.

The picture of menace, Nick said, “Let’s get this done.”

As they left the lodge, the Beta pair flanked Nick while the others stayed at the rear. No one said a word as they headed for the border. When they came close, Jesse, Roni, and Marcus melted away to guard the others without being seen.

Jesse took a position beside a thick oak; he had a perfect view of Hector, standing not far from a blue BMW. With his navy, tailored suit, analog watch, and confident posture, the tall male was the epitome of a professional businessman. Two hefty males flanked him. Jesse guessed they were shifters but couldn’t be sure. Apparently Hector had brought some muscle for protection.

When the four Mercury wolves finally came to a halt just a few feet short of the border, Hector gave them a winning smile. “Nick, how are you this morning?”

“What do you want?”

Hector’s affable smile faltered at Nick’s curtness. “Should I conclude that you still don’t wish to sell?”

“Yes, you should.”

“Come now,” said Hector. “You don’t want a hotel next door. Having a pack living right next to my hotel would attract the sort of guests I do not want—particularly humans who like to study the way of shifters, comparing them to animals and making documentaries about their findings. They would watch you like hawks.”

Well, they knew that—it was just one of the reasons they were so opposed to the hotel.

“It would be inconvenient for all of us,” added Hector.

“You should have thought of that before you bought the land.”

“I did consider it, but this is such a perfect location for a holiday resort,” said Hector. “Your land was once owned by humans who rented the lodge.”

He was right. In fact, Shaya and her father went on many hunting trips there when she was growing up, which was why Nick had bought it.

“It’s a place that humans and shifters alike would appreciate,” Hector continued. “There are locations all over California that would suit the needs of your pack. I am offering you a figure that is more than double what the land is worth. You could use that money to procure vaster territory.”

“You’re not fucking hearing me,” growled Nick. “We’re not selling.”

Hector’s smile lost its openness. “That’s a shame. A real shame.”

“No, it’s not.”

Hector’s eyes hardened. “I want this territory, Nick.”

“I don’t give a rat’s ass what you want.”

“No, you really don’t, do you?” And that seemed to surprise Hector. “You spent a good portion of your youth in juvie, didn’t you, Nick?”

Jesse blinked. What the fuck did that have to do with anything?

“I heard it was where you met the wolf who is now your Beta.” Hector slid his gaze to the male in question. “Derren, isn’t it? You were found guilty of raping a human girl.”

Ally’s chin lifted. “He was recently exonerated.”

“Oh yes, so I heard. It’s a shame that the Seer who falsely accused you wasn’t around to witness the wrong made right, Derren. From what else I heard, he was presumed dead . . . although a body has never been found.”

A sick feeling slithered into Jesse’s stomach.

“Have you ever been to New Orleans, Derren?” Hector asked casually.

“No, I haven’t,” replied Derren, tone emotionless.

“Odd.” Hector rubbed his chin. “I was under the impression that you, your Alpha, and another wolf you met in juvie—Cain Holt—once went there, searching for the Seer. I believe his name was Neil something-or-other. It was around that time that Neil disappeared. But then, people often disappear in the swamps, don’t they?”

“This meeting is over,” said Nick.

“I’m going to reach for something in my jacket,” Hector quickly said. He pulled out a brown letter sized envelope. “Here. Open it.”

Nick didn’t take it. “Not interested in anything you have to show me.”

“You’ll want to see this. Derren will most certainly wish to.”

Derren pursed his lips. “Can’t say I do.”

“Then perhaps I should hand these testimonies to someone who would find them rather interesting.”

Ally exchanged a meaningful look with Derren. Whatever she’d sensed from Hector worried her.

“There are three testimonies inside,” said Hector, throwing the envelope at Nick’s feet. “One from a barman who can identity the three of you asking about the Seer—I believe Neil worked alongside the barman. The second testimony is from Neil’s neighbor, who swears he saw three males dragging the Seer out of the house and shoving him into a rental van. And the third comes from a swamp guide who witnessed three men dumping a corpse into the swamp. He wasn’t able to identify them, as he was too far away at the time, but he could give their height and build.”

“And this is supposed to make us do what, panic?” Nick snickered. “We were never in New Orleans, and all you have are three witnesses who strangely never came forward. So either the witnesses saw other males or you’ve made this whole thing up. Whatever. But, hey, if you think you can make that stick in a human court, go for it. I’ll be surprised if a court wishes to dredge up the whole thing, given it will highlight all the mistakes the police made in falsely prosecuting Derren.”

“Oh, I agree that this isn’t enough, particularly since his body was never found. But if these statements reached the extremists, reporters, or your childhood pack, you might find yourself with people coming at you from all sides. I’d say life would become very difficult for you.”

Fuck. The piece of shit was right. Reporters would pounce on such a story. And Derren’s childhood pack—most of whom refused to acknowledge his innocence—would likely love a reason to persecute him all over again. He’d been through enough.

“Of course, these statements can disappear if you just give me what I want.”

Nick growled. “You think you can blackmail me? You son of a bitch.” No sooner had he cocked back his fist and lunged than Hector’s two guards each whipped out a revolver. Derren and Eli quickly grabbed Nick and yanked him back.

“Shoot him and you’re all dead,” Derren snarled at the guards. They swallowed hard, but their hands didn’t waver.

“Killing me would get you nowhere,” Hector told Nick, voice a little unsteady. “I have taken measures to ensure my safety.” As Nick shrugged off the wolves holding him back, Hector quickly gestured at the envelope and said, “They are copies. The originals are somewhere safe. My attorney and some others I trust also have copies. If I die, they will release them to the world.”

“Why do you hate shifters so much?” Ally asked. Hector looked stunned by her words. “It’s no coincidence that you’ve acquired a lot of land over the years that was owned by shifters. Seems that they’re not your favorite species.”

Cheeks flushed, Hector spoke to Nick. “I’m not an unreasonable man. I will give you some time to find alternative territory, since you will now have to do it without any funding from me. Construction doesn’t begin for another three months. You have until then to secure new land and relocate. If you don’t, copies of these testimonies will find their way to various people. And remember, killing me won’t achieve anything.” He sighed. “I’m sorry that it has come to this; I truly am. Make the right choice.”

Then he turned his back on them and walked away with a cocky stride. His guards followed, guns still aimed at the Alpha right up until they were in the safety of the BMW.

Looking rightfully enraged, Nick and the others pivoted on their heels and stalked into the forest, where they joined Jesse, Roni, and Marcus.

“That rat bastard,” growled Roni. “He’s actually trying to blackmail us.”

Jesse turned to Derren. “I’m not going to ask if those statements are legit—I figure that Seer deserved to die anyway, and it’s your business if you made it happen sooner rather than later. Besides, it would make me pretty fucking hypocritical, considering I killed to avenge my sister. But true or not, those statements will bring us attention from all angles, which means we need to get our hands on the originals.”

Pacing, Nick nodded. “But he’s a rich guy who has properties in several places—the originals could be anywhere.”

“If he’s done this before, it’s likely that he keeps all his blackmail material in one place,” said Marcus. “Like a safety deposit box or something.”

“Something tells me he’d keep them close,” said Ally. “He’s doing this because he hates shifters with a passion that’s actually frightening. I think he’d want to look at the material occasionally the way a killer might like to have his trophies close by.”

“What else did you sense from him?” Derren asked her.

“He’s smug as all hell, which makes me think he’s done this many times before and is sure it’ll all work out the way he wants it to. He’s also scared of Nick, but he seems to like the fear—it gives him some kind of weird rush.” She sighed. “Unfortunately, that’s all I got. In short, he’s a serial blackmailer, likes a good ol’ adrenaline rush, and hates our kind—which means he also hates half of who he is.”

Derren scrubbed a hand down his face. “So now what? I don’t think he’s bluffing about the copies. Even if we do find the originals, the copies would still do damage if they were released. We could probably confront his attorney and hope he knows where they are.”

“It won’t be easy to find them or it would have been done before by other packs,” said Marcus. “He probably has a lot of smoke screens in place.”

“Like multiple attorneys and safes,” said Eli. “It would take us a lot of fucking time to get all this shit, even with all Nick’s resources.”

“You know,” began Roni, “we could try some tit for tat. Blackmail the blackmailer.”

Jesse wasn’t surprised by her suggestion. Roni was the type who always got even. “That might work. I saw his face when Ally asked him why he hated shifters. He hadn’t expected us to suspect that, and he didn’t like it.”

“Even though he hates our kind, I noticed he doesn’t mind using them for protection,” said Eli. “Those guards were polar bears. Probably lone shifters that he’s hired as guards.”

Nick’s expression was pensive. “He’s not a low-profile guy. I’d say that whatever has fueled his hatred for our kind is a secret he wouldn’t like made public. It would affect his businesses. That fact alone could make him back off.”

“If nothing else, we’ll have fucked him over the way he fucked us over,” said Roni. “And if he releases those statements and then we release his secrets and an ‘exclusive’ of his blackmail attempt at the same time, he’ll be discredited.”

Derren’s smile was cunning. “His business partners won’t want to be associated with any kind of scandal, and they’ll drop him like a bag of crack.”

Ally smiled at her mate. “Such a lovely metaphor.”

Nick exhaled a heavy breath. “My mate can feel my rage and is going insane with worry. We need to get to the lodge and explain everything to the others.”

Jesse couldn’t help feeling envious of Nick’s bond with Shaya; it allowed them to sense each other’s emotions, bolster each other’s strength, and for their scents to mix and become one unique scent. He wanted all that with Harley. His wolf yearned for it.

Back at the main lodge, Nick briskly relayed their meeting with Hector and his attempt at blackmail. Shaya went fucking nuclear. It took Nick, Eli, and Derren to hold her back from going after Hector with her shotgun.

“For a sweet person, she has a fierce temper,” said Harley, leaning into Jesse. She petted his chest, sensing that his system thrummed with anger. It was understandable. This territory was more than a stretch of land to the Mercury wolves. Every inch of it was their home, their sanctuary, the one place in the world they felt safe and content. Hector would know what it meant to them, which was probably exactly why he wanted it, the bastard.

Sensing just how deeply the loss of it would affect the pack, Harley had to wonder if the reason her old pride was such a mess was that they didn’t have their own territory to ground them. Unlike the Mercury Pack or other prides, her old pride had no real hierarchical structure or sense of safety even now. Nor was there a sense of community or family. They just . . . were.

Nick wrapped his arms around Shaya, rocking her from side to side, as he said, “All we know about Hector’s background is that he was raised by a human couple who are now dead and he has no other immediate human family. Maybe one of them was his biological parent, maybe not. We need to know where he came from. I’ll get every source I have on this. If there’s dirt on this bastard, we’ll get it.”

“He has a lot of money and power,” Shaya mumbled against his chest. “He’ll have buried it well.”

“No secret can ever truly disappear,” said Nick. “We have three months to find out what Hector’s is, and that’s exactly what we’ll do, because there’s no fucking way I’m giving up our home.”