“I lied. I know exactly who it was. Just didn’t know enough about the situation to reveal what I knew.”
His breath hissed out in an angry sound. “This would have been helpful information before. Brax and I knew there was a mole in his pack. We just couldn’t figure out who it was.”
“I planned to tell both of you about it, but you’re the one who showed up all huffy and butt hurt because I wasn’t investigating your precious Thomas’s problem. Since when do the vampires work with the wolves anyway?”
He had the look of a man dealing with something that tested his patience something fierce. “Since a certain annoying yearling can’t keep her nose out of things that don’t concern her,” he snarled.
We glared at each other.
“Do you know the name of this wolf?” he finally asked, his voice making it clear he was holding onto his patience by a thread.
“If she’s actually under a compulsion, her actions aren’t really her fault.”
“Aileen.” That thread was fraying.
“Just wanted to make sure you’d thought of that.”
“Who is it?” The thread snapped.
“Sondra.”
He dug in his pocket, pulling out his phone and hitting dial.
“Go,” Brax’s voice sounded like it was coming from a distance over the speaker of the phone.
“It’s Sondra,” Liam said.
There were several creative curses spat from the other end of the line.
“How sure are you?”
Liam glanced at me. “Aileen saw her. She was the wolf running in her fur in the city.”
“Nice of her to share that with the class,” Brax said in a sarcastic voice.
“I’ve already made known my feelings on the matter.” Liam’s voice was wry.
“I don’t envy you getting her to toe the line.”
I grimaced. I wasn’t a good little soldier any more. That life was over. Liam was drinking the cool aid and Brax with him if they thought I was going to fall in line with whatever rules they placed before me.
“You’ll be there as backup when we locate the stronghold,” Liam said, a statement more than a question.
“I take it you’re calling in your marker,” Brax said.
“The first part.”
“We’ll be there. Text me the address when you know it.”
They both clicked off.
“Nathan, drive to the next street and park. Aileen, stay with the sorcerer while we follow the wolf.”
I nodded, not liking being relegated to the car but knowing the two of them had a better chance of following her without getting caught.
Liam held the phone out to me. “If we don’t return in the next hour, call Brax and tell him what happened and then drive straight to Thomas. He’s staying at the Le Meridien in room 434. He’ll offer you protection.”
I took the phone. I had no plan to follow his instructions but figured it’d be quicker and easier to pretend to agree.
