Chapter 13
Anger flared in Glenn. Clamping his mouth shut, he summoned his self-control honed over the years, to keep from pouncing on the smug bastard across from him. He didn’t know what pissed him off more—Dylon questioning his loyalty or the insinuation that Smokey, Ghost and Riley couldn’t be trusted. His ‘friends’ as Dylon called them, saved his ass more times than he could count…as he’d saved theirs. They were his brothers, not by blood, but in every other way that mattered; all for one and one for all.
Frowning, Glenn’s eyes narrowed as he searched Dylon’s face, looking for telltale signs of what his end game was.Why the fuck is this snotnosed kid deliberately provoking me?Does the asshole really think he can make me attack him? And if so, why?He was missing something. Dylon wasn’t stupid nor careless. From everything Glenn knew about him, including his gifts from the gods, there was a reason behind each of Dylon’s actions—and a carefully thought out one.
Discarding his initial urge to attack, Glenn sifted through other possibilities, looking for an explanation, discarding each until he was finally left with the only one that ticked all the boxes. Now sure of Dylon’s motives, Glenn relaxed, his tiger no longer ready to spring. It was a long time since someone had the audacity to challenge him. Smirking, he said, “My ‘loyalty’ is to Sawyer and Alex, my Fated Mates, and that means I will do nothing that would cause them harm. And it would be a betrayal of every vow I made to them, which is unthinkable. And since their brothers are members, my loyalty to the Blackwood Pack is absolute; I’ll never do anything to betray it. You have my word.”
Snorting, Dylon expected that response from Glenn. “That’s good to hear, but what if your loyalty requires you to keep secrets from your friends?”
“You mean like the secrets you, Cody and Zane revealed in New York?” Glenn asked, leaning forward. “You made no effort to hide your power from me or Riley. And what about Cody? I watched him use his gift and also saw Zane walk through a door. It seems to me you have a double standard; one for you and another for me. How come?”
Shifting uncomfortably in his chair, Dylon realized Glenn had turned the tables on him. Deciding to ignore Glenn’s question, he said, “Can I take your reply to mean you’ve told your friends about the powers the Blackwood Pack has?”
Glenn chuckled. He’d nailed Dylon to the wall with his own bullshit. “You know, I don’t think Cody would like you acting toward his cousin Sawyer’s mate the way you do.”
“In what way is that?”
“Like a bitchy little queen.”
Jerking back as if he’d been slapped, Dylon growled. “You gotta lot of nerve, especially knowing I could squash you like a bug.”
“Sure you can…but you and I both know you’ll never do it. Now, why don’t you pull in your claws and respect my position as your cousin-in-law. To answer your question, my ‘friends’ know what I saw in New York. What they don’t know is the rest of the story about the Blackwood Pack…only that Alex is a dual shifter and the Fates gave Sawyer and me powerful gifts. Regardless of what you think of me, you should know this…Smokey, Ghost and Riley are mybrothers…not ‘friends’ as you call them. I trust them not only with my life but with the lives of my mates. It’s not something I give lightly.”
“Duly noted,” Dylon replied. “You certainly can understand why I want to know who else knows about the specialness of the pack.”
“I do.”
“Do you intend to tell them?”
“I haven’t decided…but if I do, it won’t happen until I get my mates’ approvals along with the Alpha’s. I’m sorry if that’s not what you were looking for but it’s the best I can do right now.”
“Will you at least let me know before you inform your…brothers?” asked Dylon.
The request pissed Glenn off. No matter how Dylon put it, it all came down to a lack of trust between them. And as much as he wanted to get up and walk out, he had mates and their safety to think about. Internally sighing in frustration, Glenn knew there was only one choice. “I will.”
“Thanks. Now about this bug…you say Riley can help us.”
“Yeah…he’s in LA but I’d rather he came here with the equipment.”
“I’d rather send it to him down there,” Dylon said.
“Not a good idea. Whoever planted the bug already knows it’s been discovered, so I’d bet there is someone outside this compound waiting for the chance to steal it back. However, that can’t happen if it never leaves here. Is it because you don’t want Riley here? If so, that’s a piss poor reason since you already know him.”
“I hardly think sharing one meal with him makes us bosom buddies,” Dylon snickered.
“Fine, since you don’t want him here, how do you suggest we get the bug to him without giving anyone the chance to steal it while it’s in transit?” asked Glenn.
“Easy, I have someone who’ll transport me there.” Dylon smirked.
“You mean Zane? So let me get this right…you don’t have a problem using the different gifts in front of other people…you just don’t want me to tell anyone about them.”
“Stop with the shit, asshole!” Dylon exploded. “I didn’t say Zane, did I? I plan to ask Mystia, who’s a witch, if she can take me.”
Glenn could feel the beginning of a headache forming behind his eyes caused by the constant friction between Dylon and himself. They couldn’t go more than a few sentences without poking at each other; he was at a loss to how they’d ever be able to work together without coming to blows. Rubbing his forehead, Glenn analyzed the situation, remembering his first priority was keeping his mates safe. All the other crap was only distracting him from that mission. Vowing to keep his temper under control, he exhaled before saying, “That’ll work. By the way, Smokey will be bringing the shifter’s parents here soon. I asked him to keep me informed about his movements and I’ll pass the information on to you as soon as I receive it.”
“I appreciate that. Can you tell me anything more as to why they need our protection?”
“Not until I speak to Smokey, since it’s his secret, but I’ll see what I can do,” Glenn said.
