38. Mai

The first rays of the morning sun washed over the living room as Ryan paced the floor. He was close enough that I could smell his earthy, pine scent—a tantalizing aroma that sent an unwanted shiver down my spine.

Last night, I'd checked my mail, making sure none of my clients had emailed with an emergency. None had, but there had been a message from Seth. I wrapped my arms around myself as I remembered the words:

I miss you. But soon we'll be together again. Count on it, Mai.

I hadn't told Ryan. Hadn't needed to. I'd come down this morning, and Ryan had told me that Derek had forwarded the message to him. Apparently, Derek would be monitoring my phone and email until the situation with Seth was resolved. If Seth was coming here, then I understood the need for Derek and Ryan to invade my privacy like this. The Pack had to come first; I knew that. But it riled me. This was exactly what I'd been afraid of, of having others go out of their way to protect me because I couldn't protect myself. And Ryan seemed completely oblivious to my feelings.

Ryan stopped pacing and instead stood dangerously close to me, his scent pervading my senses, sending a pulse along our bond that shouted, "Fuck me, fuck me," in time with my heartbeat.

There would be no fucking. Not now. Not ever.

Ryan was in full protector mode. There was a raw power in his presence, an aura of authority that drew me seductively to him. I folded my arms across my chest and glared at him.

"Mason and Sam are closing in on Seth. But if Seth makes it onto Pack lands, we have to keep him away from Jem's house. I've let it be known in town that you're staying with me, so he'll probably head here. I don't want you here alone. Anytime you enter this house, you need to always have either me or one of my brothers with you, okay?"

I nodded, wondering how long I was going to have to put up with this.

"If you are at the house, and you get any sense, any sense at all, that Seth is around or something isn't right, you come here."

Ryan led me to an inconspicuous-looking panel on the wall. He pressed a switch hidden in the wall, and a door slid open, revealing a fortified room. "This," he said, motioning to the room, "is the safe room."

It was spacious, going back the length of the living room, and was well-equipped. Shelves lined the walls, stocked with food and medical supplies, and a couple of thick blankets. A computer, TV monitors, and a satellite phone were on a desk by the wall. "You get here, lock the door with this button, and alert us using this," he said, pointing to the phone.

"Okay," I murmured, letting his instructions sink in.

Satisfied that I understood, he led me back out to the living room. I could feel the heat of him next to me, his presence both comforting and infuriating. The tension between us crackled in the air, a live wire of emotion. I was angry at him, still stinging from his invasion of my privacy, but as I looked up at him, the memory of our bond sealing zinged through me.

Before I knew what I'd done, I took a step toward Ryan, the invisible pull between us dragging me forward.

Ryan's eyes bore into mine, the desire in them unmistakable. I licked my lips, wanting to taste him, and reached out—just as an alarm on his phone went off.

"Fuck!" Ryan said, his voice rough. "It's eight o'clock."

I took a step back and swallowed hard. I couldn't let my hormones rule my head on this. I stomped toward the door and glanced back at Ryan. His face was closed, angry, but his eyes followed me with a hungry longing that made a rush of heat go straight to my core.

We stepped inside the Alpha house, welcomed by the mouth-watering aroma of fresh coffee and bacon. Ryan and I strolled into the dining room just as Sylvie was setting down the last of the dishes. Steam wafted up from fluffy scrambled eggs, the edges just slightly crisped, while a plate of bacon and a stack of buttermilk pancakes drizzled with maple syrup stood beside it. In the center of the table was a fresh fruit platter, the vibrant colors of sliced melons, berries, and citrus fruits making a beautiful display.

Sofia and Derek were already seated at the long wooden table. They sat across from each other, not talking and not looking at each other. Derek looked unhappy, and Sofia avoided my eyes when I walked in.

"Morning," I said, aiming for nonchalant and cheery. I needed them to focus on something other than whatever was going on between them. "Everything smells delicious, Sylvie."

Sylvie beamed at the compliment. "Oh, you flatterer. You're just like your brother. Sit down and enjoy your breakfast."

Ryan pulled out a chair for me. I took one glance at it, walked past him, and sat down in a chair next to Sofia. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ryan shake his head and sit down in the chair he'd pulled out, just as Hayley and Jem walked in. There was no hiding the tense silence between them. Hayley's face was stony, her lips a thin line. Jem's jaw was tight, and his eyes burned with barely concealed anger.

I frowned, not liking that Hayley was here.

When Jem didn't say anything, Ryan broke the silence. "How is everyone this morning?"

"Fine," Jem grunted.

Hayley scoffed at his response, her hands clenched into fists.

My eyes darted round the room, looking at each of them. This wasn't going to work. We had to be able to work as a team. Jem angry and distracted, Hayley winding everyone up, Sofia and Derek barely able to be in the same room together, me annoyed with Ryan while also trying to rein in my stupid hormones that just wanted to jump him—none of it would help us work out what was going on and be able to save the Pack. Maybe if I made nice with Hayley, made sure she was the center of attention for the meal, she'd leave as soon as she'd finished eating.

"Hayley," I said, bringing my gaze to her. "It's lovely to see you this morning."

"Don't start with me, Mai. I know what you're up to."

I raised my eyebrows at her.

"You think I'm involved in this. That I'd take on Jem and push him out."

I shot a glare at Jem. I hadn't thought that. Hayley had many faults, but she loved Jem. All she ever wanted was to have Jem's full attention. What would she have to gain from pushing Jem out and ruling alone? But I guess Jem had thought of it. If she cheated on him, any trust between them must be fragile. It would take a lot to regain that. But Jem was the Alpha; he was supposed to put the Pack first, and that meant not confronting Hayley and telling her what he suspected until we had the evidence. But he'd put his mating bond first; he'd acted as a husband wanting the truth from his partner. If he was right, and Hayley was involved, he'd tipped our hand. She would warn Brock that we were onto them. They would delay or change their plans. We no longer had the element of surprise.

"I don't know what to think, Hayley," I replied, keeping my voice calm.

"Well, I do. You're back and causing trouble again. Trying to jam a wedge between me and Jem. Trying to make Jem think less of me. Well, it won't work, Mai. Jem is mine, and I'm never letting go, no matter what bullshit you come up with to drive him away from me."

"Hayley—"

"Save it," Hayley snapped, pushing back her chair and standing up. "I can't stand being in the same room as any of you right now."

She shot Jem one last icy look before she turned on her heel and marched out of the room. We were all silent as we listened to her close the front door, then Jem picked up his fork and started poking at his food.

"Well, that was one way of getting rid of her."

"You shouldn't have told her," Ryan growled.

"I'm Alpha. She's the Alpha, too, or did you forget that? I did what I thought best." Jem stared directly at Ryan, and there was a warning in his voice, telling Ryan to back off. Ryan was right, though. Jem shouldn't have told her. I put my hand on Ryan's thigh and squeezed. We couldn't afford to be at each other's throats right now. We needed to sort this mess out, and then afterward, we could discuss what we should and shouldn't have done. It took Ryan longer than it should have to look away from his Alpha.

"Michael called this morning," Jem continued when Ryan had backed off. "He wants to meet. Said he wants to discuss the murders and Carson."

Ryan had filled me in on the murders this morning, so I knew who Jem was talking about this time.

"It could be a trap," Derek said.

Jem nodded. "Yes, but I have to take that risk. Carson didn't do this. If Michael and I can clear this up, then we can neutralize one plot against us."

"When?" Ryan asked.

"Today at noon. On neutral ground, in the human town of Maxly."

"I don't like this," Ryan and Derek said at the same time. I had to agree with them.

"You don't have to like it. I'm going."

Derek leaned forward. "My source in the Bridgetown Pack says Michael is honorable and can be trusted when hosting meetings, but we don't know what is going on with their Pack right now. He's—."

"Of course she would say he's honorable and trustworthy!" Sofia chimed in.

Derek swung his head around to look at Sofia. "She? I never said my source was a woman."

Sofia scoffed. "I know who your source is, and if you think she wasn't sent here to seduce you and feed you false information, then you are a lot more stupid than I thought you were."

"Seduce me?"

I swear, if Derek had been a wolf, all his hair would be standing on end.

Sofia folded her arms across her chest and leaned back in her chair, looking away. "Don't play dumb, Derek. It's not a good look on you."

"Sofia, you and I need to have a conversation—"

"I agree," interrupted Jem, "but now is not the time. No matter what Michael's intentions are, if there is any chance of him giving us information to clear Carson and shut this down, we need to take it. I'll bring Derek and Ryan as backup. Who else can we trust?"

Derek kept staring at Sofia for a moment before he shook his head and looked at Jem. "At this point, no one. We don't know who is involved or how big this thing is. If Brock is involved, he had to have help. We can't trust our enforcers."

Jem switched his gaze to Sofia. "What did you find out?"

Sofia cleared her throat, glanced quickly at Derek, then said, "I spoke to a few people who I've seen or heard were close to Brock. I figured these were the people Brock would recruit for any plot against the Pack. None of them are fans of Jem's, and all have been getting more vocal about their dislike of how the Pack is being run." She shot an apologetic glance at Jem. He waved his hand for her to continue. "There are definitely others involved in this, but most of them clammed up."

"You were too soft on them," Derek interjected, earning him a sharp look from Sofia.

"I was getting there, Derek. It's called subtlety. You might want to look it up. I didn't want them to alert Brock that I was asking questions. You turned up like the big bad wolf and scared them off."

"Sofia, I was in military intelligence. I'm the epitome of subtle."

Sofia scoffed, but Derek ignored it and continued. "You have to read people and know when subtle isn't gonna work."

"I got Maria-Anne talking, didn't I?"

Ryan leaned forward. "Maria-Anne Dubliss? Brock's on-again, off-again girlfriend?"

Derek nodded. "Definitely off-again."

"They had a fight two nights ago about Brock seeing her sister, of all people. But," Sofia said, smiling, "it meant Maria-Anne was suspicious enough to listen in on his conversations, and she overheard that Brock has a meeting today with Tristan Heller."

Ryan raised his eyebrows. I got the feeling the name meant something to everyone here.

"The same Tristan who the three werewolves I saw yesterday were reporting back to? Who is he?"

Jem put his fork down. "He's Michael and Camile's Beta."

Okay. That was big.

"Did she say where and when the meeting will be?"

Sofia nodded. "Reynold's Sushi and Meat Bar. Two o'clock."

"We have to be there," I said.

Jem nodded. "We have to be there."