Liam entered his brother’s home and immediately headed for the living room. Connor sat on the longer couch and Ana was curled up in his lap. Despite the way his arm was casually wrapped around his mate’s waist, Liam could see the slight tension lines bracketing Connor’s mouth. He couldn’t scent anything, though. As Alpha, Connor was better than most at concealing his emotions. But as his brother, Liam knew him better than anyone. Well, almost anyone.
“Congrats, Liam.” Ana grinned at him as she jumped up to hug him.
He returned the tight hug, then embraced his brother, who also congratulated him. Even though he hadn’t been to the ranch in two days—he and December hadn’t left the bedroom since bonding—he’d let his brother know he’d officially taken her as his bondmate. Informing him had nothing to do with pack rules and everything to do with the fact that Connor was his older brother. He might be Liam’s Alpha, but he’d always be his family and he’d been the first person Liam had told.
“A little nauseous but good. We have a doctor’s appointment in a couple hours.” After he left here, he was picking her up from her bookstore for an early lunch, then heading to their appointment. Right now, pack business called. Not that he’d left her alone. Until things settled down, one of his pack members was always shadowing her if he couldn’t.
“I can’t wait to have another cub around the ranch.” Ana’s voice was excited as she and Connor sat back down.
“Where is everyone?” There were scents of Vivian and Noel in the house but not strong enough for them to be there. But he was referring to Noah and Aiden, since they’d been called to this informal meeting also.
“Should be here any minute,” Connor said.
As his brother spoke, Liam heard the front door opening behind him. Aiden and Noah walked in. Most of the males and Erin were out patrolling—or watching December—but later they’d be informed of what had been discussed.
After receiving congratulatory hugs from the two males, Liam went to lean against the mantel by the fireplace. Noah joined him on the other end, looking tense as hell, while Aiden sat on the love seat.
“Where are Brianna and Jayce?” Aiden asked.
Upon the request of her warrior brethren, the Fianna, she’d returned to Ireland a week after they’d found her passed out in that barn. Her people had been in contact with their Council and she was supposed to be back by today because they wanted her to attempt to infiltrate the APL again. Something Liam knew because of Connor. He also knew Connor wasn’t sold on the idea of Brianna trying to infiltrate them again. Liam wasn’t sure where Jayce was, though; he’d expected him days ago.
“Both were delayed, but they’ll be here in the next couple days.” Connor didn’t give any other details, something that didn’t surprise Liam. Why they weren’t there wasn’t important. “The Council and the Fianna both want Brianna to infiltrate the APL again, since she has a successful track record. Once she arrives in town, she’ll be living with us, but Liam’s found a cheap apartment for her as a cover on the chance anyone does a background check on her.”
“Which they will.” Liam had no doubt of that. He wasn’t sure what Brianna’s plan was other than to befriend local APL members, but if they started another cell here, someone would be checking up on her.
“How do we know she hasn’t been compromised?” Aiden asked.
“Everyone she worked with before is dead.” Connor’s voice was grim. “Right now everyone on the list we have is lying low, but after the recent news broadcasts, the Council is tense and so am I. Just because the APL isn’t doing anything at the moment doesn’t mean the threat is over.”
Aiden straightened on the couch, his body tense and primed for battle. “That reporter went on air and cleared up that those animal attacks were just two isolated incidents.”
A dog with rabies had attacked two humans, but the news had made it sound like shifters were behind the attacks and the sheriff’s department was covering it up. “It doesn’t matter,” Liam said. “Her report stated the tone for the feeling in town. Since we moved here, December said she’s noticed a distinctive change in the attitude toward shifters. Especially after Dr. Graham killed himself.” While Ana’s pack might have lived in Fontana the past thirty years, Liam and his brother’s pack had joined them only a few months ago. New shifter males living in any area were cause for concern by humans even if they weren’t a threat. And when a local, respected doctor—murdering son of a bitch that he was—committed suicide rather than go to jail for killing innocent shifters, including one of Ana’s sisters, some people in Fontana weren’t so convinced he’d been guilty. Liam was aware of all this only because of December and her brother. They had a better pulse on the town than any of them ever would.
Noah frowned and the tenseness in him seemed only to grow. “But December’s one of us now. Wouldn’t the humans be more willing to accept our presence?”
Liam’s heart twisted for the remembered pain he’d seen in December’s eyes a couple weeks ago. She’d come home from work and she hadn’t wanted to tell him, but he’d eventually gotten out of her that a woman she’d been friends with for almost a decade had come into her store to tell her what an abomination she was. Instead of telling them all that, he simply shook his head. “December’s lost some friends since she turned.”
There was a brief silence before Connor spoke. “Right now the APL in our region might be inactive, but they’re still here. And Adler had a boss. According to Brianna, he pulled all the strings during their operations here, but Adler kept his identity close to his chest. The boss had a son Adler killed, but she didn’t know his last name. Adler was careful about keeping that secret.” Whoever Adler’s boss was had ordered the attempted kidnappings of December and successful kidnapping of Kat.
That knowledge made Liam’s hands ball into tight fists. His skin pulled taut as his inner wolf instinctively primed for battle. The sharp scent of his own restrained rage was the only thing that allowed him to get his wolf under control. The time would come when that unknown bastard would feel his pack’s wrath.
Connor’s voice cut through his thoughts, completely silencing his beast. “For the time being we’re going to watch and listen for any threats. We’re going to keep our guard up and quietly ferret out as much information as we can. However, we won’t be blindly attacking APL members.” He glanced around the room.
Liam nodded even though his brother already knew he’d follow him into hell. If Connor didn’t want them taking any physical action against the APL, he’d abide by that. For now. Aiden and Noah also nodded.
As they did, Connor continued. “I just got off the phone with Jayce about an hour ago and he has new intel. There’s been a report of someone possibly dealing vamp blood to humans. The APL included.”
Liam straightened against the mantel. “Where?”
“Out of Winston-Salem.”
A little over two hours from where they lived. “How good is this intel?”
Connor shook his head, his expression grim and weighted down with all the responsibility of his pack. “Don’t know yet. Jayce said he wanted to follow up on a lead once he got here, but if APL members are taking the stuff, it changes the playing field.”
His brother didn’t say what they all already knew. Humans who ingested vampire blood gained superstrength. The effects didn’t last forever, but it gave them a shot of adrenaline and pleasure no manufactured drug ever could. It also dulled them to pain in a way that could become very dangerous. If APL members were taking the stuff, it put beta shifters—those weakest in the pack structure—at a much higher risk. It also put all shifters at a risk to underestimate their opponents. Liam had no doubt he could take on a handful of humans hopped up on vamp blood, but if there was a gang of them against one shifter, even a powerful one, the odds of survival slimmed. “Shit,” he muttered.
The others in the room silently nodded in agreement. If humans were taking vamp blood, Liam was damn sure vampires weren’t selling it to them. Which likely meant someone had captured a vampire and was siphoning the blood. Holding a vamp hostage was hard to do, but vampires weren’t pack oriented like shifters. If one had gone missing, it was possible no one even noticed.
And this only created a new set of problems for shifters and all paranormal beings everywhere. As silence descended on the room, something icy settled in his chest, spreading slowly to all his nerve endings. Being newly bonded with a baby on the way ratcheted up his protective nature in a way he’d never thought possible.
That need to protect would never go away. It was so deeply ingrained in him it was part of who he was. Despite the fact that there was now one person—and soon two—in the world he couldn’t live without, it was worth being tied to December in a way he’d never have with anyone else. Bonding with her made him feel intrinsically whole. He hadn’t even known something had been missing until she’d filled that gap inside him. Whatever the future held, as long as she was by his side and he got to wake up to her face every morning, he knew there wasn’t much they couldn’t handle.
Almost as if she’d sensed his mood, December’s soft voice cut through his thoughts using their bondmate link. I love you, Liam.
As his brother continued talking about their plans to follow and watch known APL members and keep an ear to the ground about vamp blood usage, Liam had to bite back a smile as he communicated with his mate. Right back at you, Red.