12. Ava

TWELVE

AVA

A few days later, my dad called and asked me to come over to hang out. I went over immediately. Dad had been so worn out and sick from the chemo treatment that he hadn't been up to company lately. I had all the faith in the world in the doctors and nurses treating him, but I knew nothing was promised. I'd seen that with Liam. Going over to spend time with Dad seemed like a small thing, but if it gave me a few minutes with him, a few more memories, I'd gladly take it.

Baseball season had started a couple of weeks ago, and I found him in the big living room watching a Rockies game on the seventy-inch TV. I flopped down on the couch beside him.

"Hey there, kiddo," Dad said as I nestled in against him. "How's it going?"

"I'm fine. How are you feeling?"

He gave a lazy shrug. "I'm all right. The chemo didn't hit me as hard this last time as it had that first time."

"Good." I patted his leg.

We watched the game in companionable silence, and I enjoyed it. No complaints, no arguments about the treatments, only a daddy and his daughter. I should have known it wouldn't last.

Uncle Sam strode into the living room, everything about his posture screaming urgency. "Gio, we might have a problem."

Dad muted the game. "What's up?"

Sam shot me a nervous glance, looking like he was unsure of whether or not he should talk. Dad waved a hand at him impatiently. "Dammit, Sam, Ava knows what we do. She's a child anymore. Unless this can incriminate her later, spit it out. Can it incriminate her?"

Sam sighed. "No."

"Okay, then. Out with it, baby brother."

"Fine. Luis got a call from two different guys. One is a local informant, the other is one of our own guys. They got the exact same story. They've started noticing some weird activity around town."

Dad leaned forward, suddenly intense. "What kind of activity?"

"Suspicious-looking people hanging around, unmarked vans and sedans cruising around at odd hours of the night, stuff like that."

"Feds?"

Sam shook his head. "Don't think so. That's the weird part. They aren't watching us. They've been hanging around the security guys' places."

"Security guys?" Dad frowned.

"Yeah, that security firm in town. Blayne Walker and his friends. That place. These people are hovering around them."

My body went rigid. The hunters? They'd returned? My thoughts went into overdrive, and Dad noticed something was wrong. He turned his gaze upon me. "Do you know anything about this?"

I bit the inside of my cheek and shook my head. "Nope." I didn't want to lie to my father, but it wasn't my story to tell.

Dad stared at me for a long moment before turning back to Sam. "Tell all our people to be on the lookout. From everything I've heard, those are good boys. I refuse to let good people in my town get screwed with. Have our guys report in if they see anything strange going on."

"Will do," Sam said and turned to leave.

Dad waited until Uncle Sam was out of earshot before looking at me again. "So. Are you gonna tell me what you know? Or are we gonna keep playing this game?"

My shoulders slumped as I fell back onto the couch. He knew I was hiding something. If there was one thing my dad was really good at, it was knowing when someone was lying. That's what made him good at his business. It also made him a pain in the ass as a parent. He'd be like a dog on a bone and keep pushing and pushing until I broke. He'd find out soon enough, anyway. If the hunters were staking out all of Blayne's friends, then whatever they'd planned would be coming soon.

I ran a hand across my face. "So, there's something going on with Blayne and his friends. They're all shifters. They're like Liam and Blayne. Well, almost the same. They're all different animals, but you get the gist, right?"

Dad's brow furrowed, but he nodded. "Okay. What else? What's going on with them?"

"There's a really rich guy who hates them. He wants them dead. I honestly don't know enough to give you all the details. It might be better if you talk to Blayne's team about it. Let Tate and the others know there are guys sneaking around. They need to know."

Dad pulled his cell phone out and dialed a number. "Mike? Hey, bro. Can you have Kyle get a hold of the guys at that security firm in town? Tell them I want to meet with them ASAP. Make sure they know it's important. I can be there within the hour if they're able…okay…yeah…sounds good. Text me when it's done. Bye." Dad hung up, then looked back at me. "How bad is this? For real? Sometimes rich guys like swinging their weight around. Not all of them actually follow through on threats."

I met my father's eyes. "This won't end pretty. That's all I know."

"Damn," Dad said, nodding like he'd been expecting that answer.

A few seconds later, Dad's phone chimed with a text. "Let's go, kid. This Miles guy is at his office. Said he's free."

I gaped at him. "Me?"

"Yeah. You know these guys. You'll be a good go-between."

"Uh…wait. I know Blayne, and I've met a couple of the others for a total of like five or six minutes. That doesn't make me some kind of ambassador."

Dad grunted. "Well…better than nothing. Let's go, kiddo."

Twenty minutes later, we were at the front door of the security firm. Dad hit the entry button and we were greeted by a sultry voice. "Good afternoon, how may I help you?"

"Gio Francis. Here to see Miles Kelly."

"Absolutely. He's expecting you."

There was an audible click as the door unlocked and we stepped in. A gorgeous woman at the receptionist counter looked up and greeted us with a smile. "Hello. My name is Kennedy. Mr. Kelly is down the hall. Third office on the right," she said as she pointed us in the right direction.

We walked down the hallway and I kept my eyes down, terrified of seeing Blayne. I'd never been so uncomfortable in my life. We found the doorway the receptionist had told us about and walked in.

Blayne's friend looked up and stood. "Mr. Francis." He stretched his arm out and shook my father's hand. His eyes flicked over to me for half a second before returning to my father. "Can I ask what's so urgent?"

"The rest of your ownership team? Are they here?" Dad asked.

Miles nodded. "I called them as soon as I got off the phone with your nephew. Steff is finishing up a call and Tate and Blayne should be here any second."

Before anyone could say anything, Blayne strode into the room. He looked much healthier than when I'd last seen him. His face had filled out and he looked much less pale and tired. The look in his eyes was absolute fire, though. He was not happy that we were here.

He pointed at Dad as he walked in. "What's he doing here?"

Miles held a hand up. "Easy, Blayne. He wanted a meeting with us."

"What the fuck could he have to say that we want to hear?" Blayne asked, his voice growing in volume.

"What the hell, guys?" From behind us, a new voice emerged. It must have been Blayne's other friend Steff. "Getting a little loud, aren't we?"

Dad sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. "I have something I need to report to you all. Some intel my informants and family associates have brought to my attention."

Blayne was seething as he stood behind Miles. "I don't want anything from your business getting near my boys or my company, Gio. Whatever your lackeys told you, you can keep it to yourself."

Tate and Jared walked in while Blayne went on his tirade. Their expressions told me they weren't totally surprised by Blayne's reaction. They shut the door behind them and took seats on the other side of the room without uttering a word.

After Blayne's outburst, Dad merely looked at him with a blank expression. He didn't seem at all perturbed by Blayne's words. "Maybe you'd change your mind about that if you knew unmarked cars have been tailing you and your families for the last week."

All five men in the room went taut with tension. Glances bounced around the room, and entire conversations were had without saying a word. This was news to them. They'd had no idea, and that worried them.

"What do you mean?" Miles asked. "We've had our own teams watching us. They haven't noticed anything."

Dad smiled sadly. "I've heard your teams are good, but…uh…they aren't used to looking for the same things my boys are. You're being watched."

"How did your guys know to even look?" Tate asked.

Dad shrugged. "A new group of young guns have been talking about trying to horn in on my business in the area. My brothers had some people on the lookout for them in case they decided to move in, so they were on high alert. The only weird thing was that they weren't staking out any of my businesses or my family—they were hanging around you guys and your families. I'm here to warn you, and find out just what the hell is going on here. This is my town. Whatever happens here is my business."

Blayne opened his mouth, but Miles put a hand on his chest to silence him before he could speak. Tate, Steff, Miles, and Blayne all shared another look. Finally, Tate gave a nod and the others seemed to agree, even Blayne.

"All right," Tate said. "You already know what we are from your dealings with Blayne's brother, right? That's what we've heard."

Dad nodded. "I do. All I know is that you all are different…um…creatures, though. Am I right?"

Tate nodded and gestured to Jared. "Jared and I are dragons. Blayne's a panther, like his brother. Steff over there is a bear, and Miles is a wolf. We're a pack. There's a very powerful businessman named Antonio Lowry who has a vendetta against us. He's not going to stop until we and all of our kind are dead. His militia—who from all reports are highly trained—will be coming for us sooner rather than later."

My father stiffened and cocked his head as though he hadn't heard correctly. "Did you say Antonio Lowry? The Antonio Lowry?"

Tate nodded. "Yeah. Big-time billionaire. Have you heard of him?"

Dad chuffed a humorless laugh. "Heard of him? I know him."

Everyone, including me, turned to look at my dad in surprise. Miles sat forward. "You know this guy? Personally? Explain."

I wasn't used to having people command my father, but if he was irritated with Miles, he didn't show it. Instead, he crossed his arms and said, "Known him for a long time. You see, way back in the day, late eighties or early nineties, Antonio was an up-and-comer. Now he's got all these companies, corporations, and businesses that are on the up-and-up. But the seed money he used to get to where he is now? Wasn't clean money. He was into some shady shit. Tried to push into my territory once. We made sure he knew he needed to go on down the road.

"I'm glad he did, because not long after he became…more ruthless. Lots of rumors came out of the Wisconsin and Illinois areas he was in. Typical gangland shit. Enemies with their brains blown out, families killed in car bombs. Worst was when I heard about one of his lieutenants killing a rival's five-year-old daughter to send a message. Antonio is a sadistic piece of shit. He's only increased his power since turning mainstream . I can't even imagine the amount of money he must have spent in bribes to get his past erased. If he's the man who's after you, you're in serious trouble."

"Tell us something we don't know," Steff said.

"I'll tell you that you need allies if you're gonna take on Antonio. You need allies in high places." Dad gave Miles a knowing grin. "Good thing you have one sitting in your office right now."

A deafening silence fell over the room as we all stared, dumbfounded, at my father. Was he really offering my family's help? I couldn't remember Dad ever doing something like this. He'd always been careful with the family business and had stayed out of issues like this.

Blayne leaped up from his chair, standing up fast enough to send the seat sliding back against the wall. "No fucking way." Blayne leveled a shaking finger at Dad. "We don't want or need anything from you."

"Blayne!" Tate snapped in annoyance. "I know you and Mr. Francis have history. I know you have a grudge against him. But that's in the past. This is the present. This isn't only about you. Miles, Steff, and I have mates and families to protect." He pointed a thumb at me. "Would you be okay if Ava got hurt because one of us couldn't look past old wounds and protect the people who are here now?"

I figured Blayne would tell them he couldn't care less about what happened to me. He'd made it pretty evident that he wanted nothing to do with me since he'd seen me at Liam's grave. Instead of saying he didn't care, the fire in his eyes and face faded as he slowly slid back into his chair.

"No," he mumbled. "I guess I wouldn't be okay with that."

What?