He placed his face close to hers. “None.”
Her brows flew up. Quietly, she echoed, “None?”
“None.” He tapped her nose lightly. “So think about that if you ever get the urge to bolt, pretty baby. I’ll just come right after you.”
CHAPTER TEN
Whoever was knocking on his bedroom door this early was going to get his fist in their face. “Go. Away.”
Marcus tightened his hold on the female he was spooning, burying his face in her hair. Roni hadn’t even slightly stirred, which was probably because he’d woken her at least three times through the night. Her body was fast becoming an addiction, and he wanted it again.
Moving her hair aside to lick at the fresh mark on her nape, he cupped her breast and squeezed, smiling at the low moan that escaped her.
More knocking.
He growled. “What?”
“It’s me. Open up.” Dante was using his Beta tone, which meant this had to be important.
Slipping out of bed, Marcus pulled on a pair of jeans as he headed for the door. Opening it wide, he tensed at Dante’s serious expression. “What is it?”
Dante shoved a mug of coffee into his hand. “I know it’s early, but we can’t wait around. Rhett and Donovan managed to track the IP address. We have a location on the jackals.”
Five minutes later, Roni and Marcus joined Rhett and the Phoenix half of the hunting party at the kitchen table.
“So . . . where are the fuckers hiding?” asked Roni before shoving a vanilla lollipop into her mouth.
“Seattle.” Rhett scratched his nape. “But I have to warn you, this could be a completely unproductive day.”
Marcus frowned and paused chewing. Taryn, bless her soul, had placed a large plate of toast on the table. Swallowing it down, he asked, “Why?”
“The problem with tracing IP addresses is that it doesn’t necessarily mean the owner is situated there.”
Taryn arched a brow. “So it could just be an empty building?”
“Well, from the searches I’ve done on the house, it belongs to a human family.”
The Alpha female pursed her lips. “I doubt the jackals will have help from humans.”
“Exactly,” said Rhett. “In the beginning, I’d expected it to be a simple case of finding the physical location of the IP address. But considering all the tricks the jackals are using, I’d say they have a hacker working for them. If that’s the case, it’s possible that they’ve used a computer virus to place the IP address on some totally oblivious random person’s computer.”
Trey released a frustrated growl. “In other words, it’s not likely they’ll be there, whatever the case.”
Rhett shrugged helplessly.
“Then do we really all need to go?” asked Ryan. “It might be better if me and Dante go and check it out.”
“No, we should all go,” began Trey, “because there’s a possibility that the jackals are there. The human family might not truly exist.”
Dante took a sip of his coffee before turning to Rhett. “Could someone have faked something like that?”
“A family with a history, complete with photos and everything? Yeah, depending on how good they are.” Rhett looked at Roni. “I still haven’t managed to trace the IP address of whoever uploaded your video evidence. I’m sorry.”
“It’s okay,” she said quietly.
“No, it’s not. But I will find them.”
“Do you have any suspicions at all about who it could be?” Taryn asked Roni. “It would help Rhett with the search.”
Roni shook her head. “Like I told Marcus, I’ve pissed off plenty of people.”
Dante spoke then. “But for them to do and say something so vindictive, it has to be substantial.”
Roni looked at him. “Only to them.” He tilted his head, conceding her point.
“Has anyone called my brother or Derren?”
Trey nodded. “Nick’s arranging for one of his contacts to lone us a private jet.” Nick was in touch with many of the shifters he’d met in juvie, and they all did each other favors from time to time. “As soon as he calls with directions for the jet, we’ll head out.”
“Does this mean we have time to make more food?” Marcus put his hand to his stomach. “I’m still hungry.” Everyone rolled their eyes. “What?”
A few hours later, they were all piling into what Roni thought was a pretty sleek private jet. With the cream leather furnishings, the gleaming marble tables, the mirrored ceiling, and the soft carpeting, the spacious cabin looked more like the reception area of a swanky hotel. Hell, it even had an aquarium.
She found herself stuck between Marcus and a window—which was starting to become a regular thing whenever they traveled. Nick and Derren were sitting opposite them, while the four other Phoenix wolves took the seating area adjacent to theirs.
Dante reclined his seat until he was lounging comfortably. “Now this is nice.” Nodding, Ryan grunted. “Nick, there are indeed perks to being so closely allied with your pack.”
Eyes closed and arms crossed behind his head, Nick said, “Wish I could say the same. But you all still annoy the shit out of me.”
Laughing, Derren took out his iPod and earphones and stuck the buds in his ears.
Dante rolled his eyes at Nick. “You’re just pissy because you couldn’t keep Marcus away from your sister.”
“I do not get pissy. Fuller and I have come to an understanding: if he hurts Roni, I get to play with the body parts that she slices off.”
Trey spoke to Nick. “Any other Alpha might have been ready to feed you your own kidneys for making their friend’s life as difficult as you set out to make Marcus’s, but I actually felt sorry for you the whole time.”
Nick opened his eyes. “Felt sorry for me?”
“You really believed you could scare him away. It was kind of fun to watch you try.”
Dante chuckled. “Marcus is a born hunter; when he truly wants something, he will run down his prey with a patience that not many dominant males possess—obstacles be damned. You were fighting a losing battle from the start.”
Damn right, thought Marcus.
Nick growled at Dante, “Fuck you, Garcea.” Ignoring the Beta’s chuckle, Nick closed his eyes again, dismissing him.
Turning back to his pack, Dante smiled. “Jaime’s going to be so jealous she didn’t come.”
Taryn snorted, cuddling into Trey. “You’re not smug that she’s missing this, you’re disappointed that she’s not with us. You hate leaving her.”
“Of course I hate leaving her. She’s my mate.”
“You have to admit to being a little more overprotective than most,” said Ryan.
“I have no choice—the female has no flight instinct.”
Taryn smiled. “What a pretty excuse for trying to control her.”
Dante returned her smile. “It is, isn’t it?”
Roni was just thinking how fortunate she was that Marcus didn’t attempt to control her, but then it occurred to her that, hey, why would he? He had no reason at all to feel inclined to do so. He’d staked a temporary claim on her, but that was nowhere near the same as being mated.
A mating bond was a metaphysical connection that amplified every emotion. Mates were often possessive and overprotective to the point of being controlling and domineering. It was part of the package, part of how fiercely mates felt for each other. Although it sometimes meant that the couples clashed a lot, it didn’t subtract from their feelings for each other.
Having watched the pain her mother went through when Roni’s father died, she’d often wondered if the mating link was such a good thing at all. Kathy might still be alive, but it wasn’t a full life without her mate. But Kathy had told Roni that she had no regrets, that if she had to do it all over again, she’d still complete the mating, even knowing her mate would die and that she would spend most of her life without him.
She’d told Roni that if she found her mate, she should grab on tight, t
hat the bond was something sacred and special. But, honestly, Roni wasn’t sure she’d ever know the intensity of emotion that came with a mating link. Roni was so messed up, she probably wouldn’t sense the guy even if she tripped over him in the street.
The best chance she had at mating was through imprinting, though she would bet it would be hard to find a male who would happily take on her and her irritating family. Although Shaya seemed sure that Roni and Marcus would imprint, Roni wasn’t convinced. Despite that she had made the decision to explore this thing she had with Marcus, she found it hard to believe that anything would truly come of it.
For one thing, she had more flaws and baggage than even she knew how to deal with. For another, Marcus was incredibly loyal. Surely for him, taking what they had any further would feel like he was betraying his true mate. She wanted to ask how far he was willing to allow things to go, but she wasn’t sure she wanted to know the answer. It would hurt to hear that she was basically just a way to pass the time until his mate came along. In fact, it would place him in serious danger with her naturally jealous wolf if that were the case.
“You’re thinking very hard about something.”
Pulled from her thoughts, Roni double-blinked at Marcus, who then picked up her hand and began massaging her palm. Like him, she kept her voice quiet to keep the conversation private. “Just wondering what we’ll do if we find nothing in Seattle.”
“You do know you can go to hell for that, right?” Marcus nipped the heel of her hand punishingly and then licked over it to soothe the sting. “If you don’t want to tell me what’s got you so tense, fine. But don’t lie to me.”
“It’s fine if I don’t want to tell you?” Doubtful. He was a nosy, pushy bastard.
“Okay, it’s not ‘fine,’” he admitted with a smile. “I don’t like the idea that something’s bothering you. I want to fix it.”
“I’m not much for sharing stuff.”
“I know. But I’d like it if you’d talk to me when something is eating at you.”
At that moment, a human female appeared, lathered in makeup and practically marinated in perfume. “Hi, I’m Hazel. I’m your flight attendant for today. Can I get you anything?” Her eyes were solely on Marcus as she gestured to the selection of foods on the menu she handed him. Her eyes were also shining with lust and, therefore, at serious risk of being gouged out by Roni.
“I’m good for now, thanks,” he replied with a polite smile. He’d stuffed his face only moments before boarding. “Want anything, sweetheart?” Roni simply shook her head, so he handed the menu back to the attendant. “We’re both good.”
Hazel blushed at his attention, but Roni couldn’t be annoyed with Marcus for that—he wasn’t being in the least bit flirtatious. Still smiling, the human continued. “If you change your mind, just press the call button, and I’ll be right with you.” Again, her words were only for him. “Before I leave, I just have to ask, have we met before? You seem so familiar.”
Roni rolled her eyes. Hazel clearly didn’t want to walk away from Marcus just yet and was coming up with a bullshit excuse to hang around.
Marcus shook his head. “You must have me confused with someone else.”
“Are you sure? Because I never forget a face. Are you a model or something?”
“Oh my God.”
Barely refraining from laughing at her outburst, Marcus turned to Roni. “You called?” Her scowl made his chuckle break free. He kissed the scowl away, and by the time he pulled back, the human had gone. “Still mad at me?”
She blinked. “Why would I be mad at you? You didn’t do anything wrong. She was the one flirting.”
That surprised him. In the past, women had snapped at him if another female flirted with him, which had always irritated Marcus. Hey, he was the first to admit that he liked flirting, but he didn’t do it when he was involved with someone. Flirting when you were in a relationship was plain disrespectful to your partner. As such, he hadn’t thought it was fair that his partners took it out on him if another female tried to flirt with him, even though he could understand why they didn’t like it. The fact that Roni hadn’t done that pleased him.
“Of course, if you had flirted back, I would have smashed your face into the marble table.”
That made him smile. “So vicious. And I wouldn’t blame you. Nor do I blame you for being annoyed with the human. I feel the same way about Zander.”
Confused, she frowned. “Zander?”
Massaging her hand again, he said, “He has a thing for you.”
“No, he doesn’t.”
“Oh, yes he does, pretty baby. But I’ve made it clear that you’re mine.”
“You confronted him?”
“No. I broke his nose.” At her gape, he shrugged. “I told you I’d be possessive with you. Learn to like it, sweetheart, because it’s not going to stop. And neither is my attempt to get you to talk to me about what’s bothering you.”
“Nothing’s bothering me. I was just thinking.”
“About . . . ?”
Tingles shot up her arm as he pressed a kiss to her inner wrist. “Lots of things.”
“Like . . . ?”
Persistent motherfucker. Fine, she’d let him have it. “Like . . . just how far can things get between us before we’re betraying our mates? Would I even recognize my mate for who he was? Is there any way to stop my wolf from ripping your throat out when you leave me for your mate?” He said nothing. She arched a brow tauntingly. “Sorry you asked?”
Leaning closer, Marcus cupped her chin. “Let me make one thing very clear,” he rumbled. “As far as I’m concerned, you’re mine. I marked you and I staked a claim on you, and I wouldn’t do either of those things lightly. If you do come across your mate and recognize him, you’d better hope to God for his sake that he’s stronger than me, sweetheart, or he’s dead. I’ll kill him before I let him take you.” She gaped again. “Sorry you asked?”
Roni swallowed hard, totally stunned by the vehemence in his tone. “I should have known better.”
He grazed his teeth down her palm to nip the heel of her hand once again. “Better than what?”
“Better than to get involved with one of the ‘quiet ones.’ Irrational, every one of you.”
“You think it’s irrational that I’d kill to keep you? Now you’re just being judgmental.”
She snorted. “And if I said I’d kill your mate if she came along to claim you . . . ?”
“I’d ask you to at least make it quick. As I saw from your fight with Eliza, you like to toy with your prey, and I’d be an unfeeling bastard if I didn’t prefer for my mate to have a swift execution.”
She didn’t believe one word of that matter-of-factly delivered statement, but still . . . “You’re insane.”
He smiled. “I love it when you try to flatter your way into my pants.”
Roni hadn’t been positive that it would happen, but she managed to get off the jet without mutilating the flight attendant—the slut hadn’t stopped flirting with Marcus. Well, not until Roni helpfully pointed out that whale vomit was an ingredient of many perfumes and cosmetics. Hey, the girl had a right to know.
Now Roni and her fellow wolves were parked in a rented SUV across the street from the house that the jackals might potentially be hiding in. It was a decent house, in a pleasant enough neighborhood, suggesting that it had been an expensive buy. For that reason, Roni couldn’t imagine the jackals using the place as a front. They could have gotten something much cheaper elsewhere.
“By the looks of things, nobody’s home,” said Dante. They had been parked there for a few minutes, but there didn’t seem to be any activity going on, and there was no car in the driveway.
“Best to be sure,” said Marcus, absentmindedly tracing the mark he’d left on Roni’s nape. “They could be at the back of the house, in the backyard—even in the basement.”
“Ryan, take a closer look.” At Trey’s order, the enforcer exited the SUV and melted away, utter
ly silent. The guy was like a ghost the way he moved.
“He’s so good,” began Nick, “I’m considering offering him a place in my pack.”
Trey didn’t stiffen or growl, as Roni might have expected. “Go ahead . . . if you want your mate’s shotgun permanently lodged up your ass.”
After a minute or so of silence, Taryn spoke. “We can’t sit out here for long. You know how small neighborhoods can be—everyone knows everybody, and they’re suspicious of strange people hanging around.”
Roni nodded. “You boys aren’t exactly inconspicuous.” Trey looked like a damn highlander, Dante’s powerful build was intimidating, and Marcus’s tall, solid body—not to mention his pretty face—easily attracted attention.
Trey squeezed his mate’s shoulder. “As soon as Ryan calls, we’ll make a move.”
Ryan called a few minutes later, and Trey put him on speakerphone. “What did you see?”
“Nothing and no one. I did a check of the perimeter of the house, but I couldn’t see a single person. I haven’t picked up any noises coming from inside either.”
“Okay, then we go investigate. Hang tight. We’ll be right there.” Trey ended the call.
“If all eight of us go over there at once, it’s going to draw attention,” said Roni.
Marcus nodded. “She’s right.”
“It’ll be best if we leave the SUV a few at a time, and then enter through the back door,” Dante told them.
So that was what they did.
The side windows didn’t stand a chance against shifter strength, which meant all of the wolves were able to enter the house without breaking a single pane of glass. Roni, Marcus, Dante, and Ryan checked the bottom half of the house while the others checked upstairs.
It was apparent to Roni as she and Marcus wandered through the living room, dining area, and kitchen that the place was a family home—photographs were everywhere, drawings were stuck to the refrigerator, and there was a pile of children’s DVDs beside the TV.
In the hallway, Roni peered down at the different pairs of shoes. “If this is all a stage to fool people, it’s a damn good one.”