1
DOMINIC
The Ferrini family living room was packed with mated alphas and their omegas looking stupidly happy. I stood in the doorway and watched Jeremiah coo over his baby while Felik hovered behind him like a goddamn shadow. Knox had his omega perched on his lap at the poker table, whispering something that made the kid blush. Even Cord had Avery tucked against his side on the couch with their fingers laced together like they couldn't stand not to be touching.
I wanted to leave.
Needed to, actually.
The scent of happy omega pheromones was so thick in the air I could taste it, and it made my skin crawl. I didn’t resent anyone for finding their mates, but there was no denying that the happiness and love around me was just a bitter reminder of what I didn't have.
What I'd probably never have.
Andro looked up from his conversation with Cord and gestured for me to come over, so I pushed off the doorframe and crossed the room. Despite the chaos and my personal invitation to join them, every alpha in the room tracked my movement. Not because I was a threat, but it was instinctive for them to always be aware of unmated alphas when their families were present.
“Hey, man.” Andro stood up when I reached him and gripped my shoulder. "Got a job for you."
Finally. I straightened my back and nodded. "What do you need, boss?"
Cord kissed his mate on the temple and then got up and stood close to us. "There's a problem we need handled. Quietly."
I glanced between them with furrowed brows. “Okay.” They didn't usually tag-team me on assignments unless it was serious, so they had my curiosity piqued.
Andro jerked his head toward the hallway, so Cord and I followed him to his office. The door clicked shut behind us, and the noise from the living room faded to a dull murmur.
The head of the Ferrini family moved behind his desk and pulled out a folder. He flipped it open and turned it so I could see the photos inside. They were crime scene shots of bodies arranged in ways that made my stomach turn, and I'd seen a lot of shit in my line of work.
"Serial killer." Cord crossed his arms over his chest and leaned against the wall. "He's been working his way up the coast. Started in Florida, made his way through Georgia and South Carolina. Now he's here."
I picked up one of the victim photos and studied it. The young omega was in his early twenties with bruises circling his throat and rope marks on his wrists. It was the kind of thing that made bile rise in my throat. "How many?"
"Seven that we know of." Andro's jaw tightened, and he inhaled through his nose. "All omegas. All unmated. The last one was found three days ago in our territory."
That explained the urgency. When bodies started showing up in Ferrini territory, it brought heat. Cops, reporters, feds. The kind of attention that was bad for business. I put the photo down and met Andro's gaze. "You want me to find him?"
"We already found him." Cord pushed off the wall and tapped another photo in the folder. It was a different guy. He was in his forties with a receding hairline and glasses. He looked more like an accountant than a monster, but I’d learned a long time ago that looks could be deceiving. "Derek Webb. Currently working at a bank downtown and lives alone in an apartment on the east side."
I studied the photo and committed his face to memory. "When?"
"Tonight." Andro closed the folder and slid it across the desk to me. "He's got a routine. Leaves work at six, stops at the same bar for exactly two drinks, then heads home. Make it look like a robbery gone wrong. We need this done before the cops connect any more dots."
I nodded and tucked the folder under my arm. This was the kind of job I liked the most. Quick, clean, and no questions asked. The fact that I'd be taking out a piece of shit who preyed on omegas was icing on the cake. Really, I was doing the world a favor. I’d done the world a lot of favors. "Consider it done."
"Thanks, Dom. I know this isn't easy work." Cord clapped me on the shoulder as I turned to leave.
I scoffed and looked back at him. "It's easier than being in a room full of happy couples."
His expression softened, but I was out the door before he could say anything else. I didn't want his pity. What I wanted was to do my job and get the hell out of that house full of mated bliss.
I grabbed my coat from the rack by the front door and slipped out without saying goodbye to anyone. I had shit to do.
Derek Webb would be dead before midnight. And if nothing else, it was a distraction from thinking about how empty my apartment felt every time I went home alone.
But that was my job. My whole job was to make problems go away. I was a weapon that the most powerful crime families used when they needed some distance from the jobs they needed done. And I was okay with that. I'd made peace with my lot in life a long time ago. Loved it even.
What I hadn't made peace with was the loneliness that came with the job.
When I was younger, I spent most of my time with other alphas who were also single. We’d go out every night and find someone to go home with for fun. But as more and more of my friends found their mates, there were fewer people to party with. Which didn’t even matter because I wasn’t looking for someone to party with for a night.
