Pulling out the last drawer, he nearly missed a folder that had slid to the very back. Taking that one along with the others, he piled them on the floor, then methodically began going through each one. Just as he got to the last one, he heard a door slam downstairs. Rising quietly, he crept out of his father’s study and down the hallway until he was at the top of the staircase.
Peeking around the bannister, Fionn caught a glimpse of a large man, wearing a long black coat, who was mumbling to himself while pulling out drawers from his mother’s desk. Unable to hear clearly what the man was saying, Fionn sat down on the top step, cupping his ear.
“Fucking brother! What a fucking mess. If he had only changed his will like he said he was going to do. Instead, I have to take charge of his wimpy son. Dammit! Where is the fucking key?”
He’s my uncle!Suddenly, Fionn’s dragon warned him to get out of there. Carefully and slowly, he quietly made his way back to his father’s study, slipping inside withouta sound. Quickly picking up the last folder he hadn’t looked at, he added it to the others and put them all on his father’s desk. Then, he turned off the lights, pushed the button in the desk drawer to shut the doors of the secret room and, after sliding the drawer closed,called for the portal. Grabbing the folders, Fionn stepped in and disappeared—just as his uncle turned the doorknob.
Stepping out, he collapsed onto the chair he’d made out of his gold bricks; his heart pounding at nearly being caught. Breathing deeply, he slowly exhaled, willing his heart to stop hammering in his chest. Finally, he grinned at his close escape from his uncle.The same one who never came to see me or even acknowledged my existence on my birthday. I wonder why he was there? And what key was he talking about?
After recovering from the illnesses that plagued him through childhood, Fionn had spent hours exploring, finding all the secrets the house held. His father was often gone, and his mother was so busy managing the household on the pittance doled out by her husband, that Fionn was left to his own devices. Bored and angry, it became his mission to discover his father’s secrets, among which were the file room and the safe combination.
Wondering how long he’d been gone, Fionn checked his phone and glanced at the time.Shit, it’s fucking late!Hoping he hadn’t been missed, he rose and placed the file folders on his golden chair for safe-keeping before calling for his portal, entering the location of the hotel, and stepping in.
~/~/~/~/~
Zane glanced over at his mate who’d curled up on their bed and fallen asleep. Turning his attention back to the screen, he poured through the information his dark web shifter friends had found about Michael and the High Priestess, aka, Brenda. So far none of it was good; his fear for his mate’s safety kept growing the more he read.
The fake High Priestess was immoral, greedy, and just downright evil. And it ran in the family. Her brother, Tyson, had a rap sheet a mile long, but he’d escaped serving any jail time.How did he do it?Zane’s gut told him Brenda was behind it but how she pulled it off was still a puzzle he had to solve.
Skipping over the information about Michael—since he was now out of the picture—Zane concentrated on the brother and sister team. Opening one of his programs, Zane imported all the charges filed against Tyson, the names of judges and prosecutors who handled each case and the final verdicts. Hitting start, he sat back, waiting for the results.
Closing his eyes, Zane reviewed everything he’d read so far, singling out certain pieces of information he needed to do more research on including who had purchased the old Italian fortress and converted it to a convent. After David had pointed out its location on a map, Zane found several old drawings that showed the configuration of the rooms. After his mate pointed out the one his mother was in, Zane circled it, scanned it and sent it to Jackson.
Whoever chose the location for the fortress, knew what he was doing. Built on a cliff that jutted out over the Mediterranean Sea, it was impossible to access except by a front entrance, reached by a heavily wooded path. Zane hoped Dylon could think of a way in, other than the frontdoor, or else they’d be sitting ducks for anyone who wanted to repel them.
Opening one eye, Zane quickly sat up when he saw the program had finished. Scrolling through the data, Zane grinned; his hunch was correct. All of Tyson’s cases were handled by the same judge, making it more than a coincidence. Someone had to be paid to assign his cases to that judge, insuring Tyson would get off with little more than a slap on the wrist. Printing out the results for Jackson, he added it to the growing pile.
Launching a different application, Zane entered Brenda’s phone number David had given him and, after choosing the information he wanted to retrieve, clicked ‘start’. Then, moving to Logan’s laptop, he entered data in another of his programs and watched as it began to search. Brenda’s bank account appeared along with copies of all her transactions which, he bet, would show payments to the judge in exchange for letting Tyson walk free. Thinking back, he remembered scenting the other wolf in the woods while hunting Michael. Shooting a quick text to Slate about the frequency used for the bio-trackers, he smirked when Dakota replied with the information instead, informing him Slate was otherwise occupied.
Downloading the tracker app, Zane entered in the numbers and watched as a red dot appeared in Tuscany, moving away from the convent. Then he switched the location to Scotland, not expecting to see any dots except David’s. Growling when he saw a cluster of red dots surrounding their hotel, he bolted out of the room to Logan’s bedroom, knocking frantically at the door. When no one responded, he flung it open.
Chapter 39
“Oh, fuck! Sorry, sorry!” Zane exclaimed, backing out of Logan’s room, quickly shutting the door. Back in his bedroom, Zane sat down, staring at his computer screen.Shit!Scrubbing his eyeballs with his hands, Zane knew it would be a long time before he’d forget—if ever—what his brother and Kieran were doing.Shit! Shit! Shit!Kicking himself for not waiting, all he could do now was to apologize for barging in.
Trying to ignore the picture that kept reappearing in his mind, Zane began assembling his report for Jackson. Smirking as he weeded through the information gathered from Brenda’s phone, he separated out the texts from Michael and Tyson along with her corresponding ones. Then he assembled them by date so it’d be easy for Jackson to follow the timeline.
Hearing a knock on his bedroom door, Zane rose, pocketing his phone, then, glancing at David, made sure he was still asleep. Scenting Logan outside, he quietly opened the door stepped out and closed it behind him. “Hey, look, I’m sorry about before…it’s just…I found out something…” Zane said, his voice trailing off, looking any place other than at his brother.
Logan snickered at his brother’s deep red face. “Yeah, let’s just forget it ever happened, okay?”
“Uhmm sure. No problem,” Zane mumbled, then handing his phone to Logan, continued, “While I was checking out something, I found this. We are surrounded by Michael’s men…well nothismen anymore. I think Brenda is controlling them. Her brother is on his way toScotland and will probably be leading them, since Michael is dead.”
Logan inhaled deeply, looking at the phone’s screen. “I take it Brenda is the name of the High Priestess?”
“Yeah, and she has a younger brother Tyson who she’s very protective of.”
Handing the phone back to his brother, Logan asked, “What time will Tyson get here?”
“Early morning. It appears these dudes aren’t doing anything other than watching the hotel but that may change once Tyson arrives.”
“Gotcha. I’ll handle it with Slate and Groose. You stay with David. And remember your gift. Use it if you need to.”
“Will do. David is sleeping and I have more to find out about Brenda.”
“Go! An enforcer will be guarding your room. If they get past Groose’s men, take David and pop into Maximus’ room. Do not leave your mate’s side no matter what.”
~/~/~/~/~
