10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Ghost

I drop the shifter behind the dumpster a block away from the bar. He should be out for a minute, so I search his pockets, not finding a wallet or ID.

So not a complete idiot…

He looks clean-shaven, in his early twenties, with brown hair cut close to his head. Based on his age and incompetence, he's new to this game.

And here I am, babysitting.

I don't do this. I don't get involved.

On any other job, this guy would stay in this alley with a broken neck, but a part of me knows that Brielle would be pissed to find out I killed someone to save her.

It certainly makes keeping her alive harder when I can't take out the people actively trying to put her life in danger.

I pull off my right glove, placing the palm on his forearm and closing my eyes.

His future plays out in flashes—glimpses of what likely will come to pass.

He doesn't even make it another year.

Removing my hand and safely placing it within my glove, I consider the information I just received.

He's a Beta enforcer for Alpha Simmons from the Hartford Pack in Connecticut. I recognize the Alpha in a few of the flashes. A couple of years back, I took a contract with them. It's kind of ironic he's in the business of kidnapping now, when my job was to return his sister and niece from the same fate.

Footsteps entering the alley pull my attention, and I tuck further into the shadows, removing the blade from my boot while hoping to avoid having to take an innocent down if I can help it.

"Ghost." The name is spoken quietly and wouldn't be heard without enhanced hearing. At the familiarity of it, I step out into the light, seeing Cain standing casually.

"Mingan," I say, stashing the blade back into its holster.

"He still breathing?" His words are clipped, and I can tell his control is wavering as his wolf flashes in his eyes.

"He is," I reply, "And if I'm not mistaken, your Mate would probably want him to stay that way. Compassion is one of those annoying human emotions she has too many of."

A grin pulls on the side of his mouth, and he shakes his head, chuckling as he calms down. "Who is he?" he asks, idly rubbing the knuckles on his right hand.

"One of Simmon's Betas out of Hartford. A recruit on his first assignment," I say, filling in the information I could from what I'd seen. "He should be up in a minute if you wanna question him," I add, stepping away from his crumpled form.

"Probably not a good idea. I'm not sure I will be able to keep my wolf from killing him," he says before adding, "I should be getting back; I just wanted to be sure you were good."

I nod, waiting him out.

He knows me—not just my reputation, but me. He knew one stupid mercenary wouldn't be a threat, which means there's another reason he followed me out here.

"I appreciate you looking out for her, here and before. I owe you one," he says with sincerity.

"Sounds like you owe me two," I state, humor in my voice.

"Yeah, I guess I do. Well, let's see how big the first one is, and we'll talk. But seriously, thank you," he says, turning to head back to the bar.

"You're welcome," I respond, hesitating momentarily as I decide if I should say anything else.

I would want to know.

"And Mingan," I call out to him, halting his progress."Trust the process. It will work out," I say, trying to give him answers without actually telling him what's coming.

To his credit, he doesn't dig. He simply continues his path out of the alley.

Tahoe was a mistake. Catching her from falling was a reflex I hadn't anticipated having after not being close to anyone in years. When I know I'm going to be around people, I wear gloves. Always. I hadn't unintentionally seen anyone's future but my own in more than a decade.

Until Brielle.

The second I touched her skin and scented her Unawakened status, everything changed.

I saw Brielle's future; it was all I needed to put the missing piece into the puzzle I'd spent my life trying to solve. Take down Saint. Save my Mate.

Staying away from the exchange took all my willpower because I knew she had a good chance of making it out if I stayed away.

That's the thing about the future: it's constantly changing. Nothing I see is guaranteed, but I've lived long enough to know which visions are more predictable than others. Which come down to chance and which are chosen by The Fates. The more detailed the vision, the more likely it will come true, and the less able to be changed.

When I was younger, I tried to fix it. I would tell people what I saw to save them from it, but in the end, it only changed the details of the events. A death in a car accident driving a white SUV simply morphed into a grey sedan when they avoided getting in that vehicle.

Lung cancer at forty from smoking? Nope, now it's liver cancer or pancreatic cancer.

Nothing I did to save people helped, so I stopped telling them; I stopped touching them.

By the time I was eight, I'd built a shell around myself, closing everyone I cared for outside of it so I wouldn't have to feel their loss long before it happened.

Maybe if I hadn't been selfish, Mazie would still be alive. Maybe if…

Groaning from the lump of a man on the ground has me shaking myself out of my thoughts.

"What the …" he whispers, confused, before catching me staring at him from the other side of the alley. His eyes flash chocolate brown as his wolf senses danger.

" Don't, " I say, pushing command into my voice to prevent him from shifting. "We wouldn't want this to get ugly. I just have a few questions," I state, crossing my arms as I see the fear flash at his realization that I'm an Alpha, and if I wanted him dead, he would be.

Predictably, he starts mind-link messaging his Alpha, and I stand patiently waiting for the moment he describes me and his Alpha explains the shit he just got into.

In three, two,... There it is.

His eyes bulge, and his jaw drops open, leaving him looking a bit like a gaping fish.

"You here alone?" I ask.

He nods his response.

"Why no backup?" I continue, knowing how new he is and wondering why they would trust him.

"She's just a human girl," he shrugs. "Waste of resources."

They don't know she's Unawakened.

I realize then that the contract never mentioned her status.

Smart of Deacon.

She's far more valuable if they know that, and they are more likely to keep her.

"You can let your Alpha know his pack is no longer a client," I pause, letting that sink in. "If you come for this girl again, you'll see firsthand why I need no introduction," I finish, turning my back on him in a sign of disrespect and stalking out of the alley back to keep an eye on the woman who is making my life difficult.