Rafe cocked his head as he watched the Council rep with interest. It wasn’t like them to hold back or give second chances. Why was she hesitating?
“We’re doing exactly what Gray asked of us—hunting down the people responsible for the attacks in the city,” Marco said.
The Alpha positioned himself between Rafe and the threat from Kyan and the Council rep, the rest of the pack gathering close behind them. Fangs and eyes flashed in the darkness as everyone failed to hide their aggression.
Adri shifted back to his human form as the tension grew, leaning close to whisper in Rafe’s ear.
“She’s been fucking Vee in secret.”
His mate’s words were too quiet for anyone further than a foot away to hear, but Marco’s eyes flicked to Adri and away, his mouth twitching into a hint of a smirk. Rafe tugged Adri closer, nuzzling into his neck as his fangs ached to mark him up and reward him for the information he’d shared. Viviana would’ve told Marco herself if she thought the information was needed, but the fact Adri hadn’t even hesitated before prioritising helping the pack over his relationship with Viviana was telling.
“Rocco, can you keep my conversation with Leah private?” Marco asked, loud enough for everyone to hear.
Kyan’s glare in response was sharp and promised murder.
“Sure thing, Alpha,” Rocco murmured.
“No one needs to be having any private conversations,” Leah snapped.
“Are you sure about that?” Marco asked, raising an eyebrow.
Kyan moved closer in a blur of movement, sharp fangs shining in the night as he leaned in to speak to Marco.
“I don’t know what you’ve got on her, but if I’m kept from that conversation, there will be consequences.”
Rocco’s magic flowed around them, and Rafe tipped his nose up to the air, scenting the change. He could still hear his Alpha’s conversation just fine, but Leah’s face on the other side of the road had settled into a scowl.
Movement from the building nearby caught Rafe’s eye. His brow furrowed as he realised the people they’d come to investigate were taking advantage of the distraction to get out of there.
Leaning in close to Adri, Rafe whispered into his ear. “Can you go see what you can find before they destroy any evidence?”
Adri turned to him with a snarl. “I’m not leaving you here unprotected,” he hissed.
“I’ll watch your mate. No one will notice if you slink off. Any of the rest of us would draw attention,” Silas whispered. Marco’s second must have had the same thought as Rafe and moved closer.
“We don’t have time to argue, Adri. Please?” Rafe murmured.
“If you die while I’m in there, I’ll kill you,” Adri snapped, his form blurring as he shifted back to his jaguar form.
“Back at you, kitten,” Rafe whispered, his protective instincts warring inside him. He didn’t want to let his mate out of his sight, but he also didn’t want him to stay on the street where he would no doubt throw himself in front of the next vampire to try and attack Rafe.
Adri’s tail lashed in annoyance against his thigh as he slipped unnoticed between the pack members who’d gathered close and back toward the building they’d just left. His movements were hidden by a combination of his feline stealth and Rocco’s power.
A large hand blocked Rafe’s view as he strained to keep watching his mate, and he glared at Silas as he dragged on the sweats he’d brought for him.
“He’ll be fine. Better in there than here if we can’t get this under control,” Silas murmured, his eyes locked back on where Kyan was facing off against the Council rep.
“Enough with the privacy spells. Do I need to call in reinforcements?” Leah called, her growing frustration clear.
Marco waved a dismissive hand in her direction and didn’t take his eyes off Kyan, who’d stalked closer to the Alpha while they were distracted. Rafe and the rest of the pack kept watch over the rest of the vampires nearby as the two men spoke.
“You breached the founding agreement when you came here without my permission,” Kyan said, turning his back on the Council rep in dismissal as he faced down Marco, his words hidden from her listening ears by Rocco’s spell.
“You breached it first by letting terrorists operate out of your territory. If we don’t present a united front, this place will be swarming with Council operatives. Do you really think they won’t find something to link you to what’s happening?”
“I had no involvement in this. I don’t work withhumans,” Kyan sneered.
“You use whoever you can to get what you want, and right now, we both want the Council to get their noses out of our business. So pretend you’re using me to do it if it makes you feel better andget the fuck out of my way.”
