Soar

“You’ll check things out and report back to me?”

“Definitely. Do you still have that place on Central Park for me to stay in?”

He nodded and tossed the keys. “Yeah. I’m not getting rid of that apartment anytime soon.”

“Cool.” My trip was sounding better and better. Levi’s place on the Upper West Side was sweet.

“Don’t do anything stupid, Jared. Concentrate on the job.”

“Would I ever do something stupid?”

“Yes, when it involves a blonde who’s stacked.”

“I guess I’ll have to stay away from the blondes then. I’ll call you as soon as I have news.”

“Good. We need to crush these ass**les fast. They’re only doing this because they think I’m weak. Let’s show them how wrong they are.”

“Now that sounds like Levi.” Owen laughed.

“Owen, I need you to stay around. I’m sure these northern rebels aren’t working alone. We need to figure out how to stop it before it starts down here.”

“Have fun you two.” I strode out of Levi’s office feeling pretty darn good. It was time to show Levi he’d picked the right security chief.

Chapter Ten

Toby

My alarm went off at seven a.m. I groaned, thinking back on the days when the weekend meant sleeping in. Not anymore. I dragged myself out of bed and into the shower. By the time I got out, I’d already missed two calls from Tim. I had to get moving.

I paused outside the guestroom, feeling a bit like a creeper as I listened to her breathe. She was still sleeping. I walked into the kitchen, made a pot of coffee and left a quick note.

I’ll be back in a few hours. Feel free to make anything. I’ll walk you home.

-Toby

I didn’t bother to pour myself a cup. I was already running late. Besides, I was heading to a meeting at a coffee house. It wasn’t exactly neutral territory, but I’d learned that sometimes you have to go to your adversaries to get things done.

I pushed open the doors of Coffee Heaven without the usual anticipation. The only reason I went there was currently sleeping in my apartment. The thought made me wish she were in a different bed—the one I’d just left. But then again, would I have been able to make myself leave if that were the case? It had been months since I’d been with a girl, and I knew that Casey was the type you wanted just as much in the morning as you did at night.

“Toby. How nice of you to visit us this morning.” Marv, a hulking figure, turned to look at me. I’d come to view him as an ally since being brought into the fold by my grandfather, but now I had to doubt every interaction.

“Let’s get right to business.” I was in a hurry. I actually had a reason to get home. But I wasn’t leaving without answers.

“And what kind of business is that?” Marv shot me a cocky grin. “I haven’t had the pleasure of meeting with you lately.”

“Cut the crap. I know you’re behind the attacks.”

“Me?” He put a hand to his chest in mock innocence.

“Enough of the bull shit.” I strode toward him.

“Eric? Do you know what Toby is referring to?” He called to his nephew, the second reason I was anxious for the meeting.

“No. No, I don’t.”

I reached out and pulled Marv toward me by his collar and lifted him off the ground. My grandfather had taught me the art of intimidation. “Don’t f**k with me. What role do you have in this?”

“Let go of me.” He struggled, but I didn’t let him go. Six months before, I’d have been scared shitless at what I was doing. By that point, it was just part of a day’s work.

“Why the attacks?” I had to have answers.

“You’re vulnerable.”

“What did you just say?” I shook him a little harder. I wasn’t surprised that his nephew didn’t step in. Assaulting me would be a big mistake.

“The Pterons are weak. You can’t hold out on top forever.”

“So attacking humans is the solution?” I could feel my body trying to transform, anger was an easy trigger. If you didn’t fight it, it could happen in the worst situations. This wasn’t one of them—well, it would have been for Marv. I doubt he would have ever walked again.

“They’re getting attention…”

“They? Are you going to claim you’re not part of it?”

He attempted to shake his head despite his precarious situation. “I’m not. I’m just pretending. The others think I’m going along with it, but I’m not. We’re staying out of it.”

I let go and he fell back into his chair. “Pretending? You expect me to believe that?”

“Yes. And you can’t prove anything to the contrary.”

He had me there. My cousins hadn’t managed to get anything more than rumors. “If I find out you did…”

“I know.” He fixed his collar. “Don’t waste your breath.”

“You’re going to find out what’s going on.” I may have dropped him, but my gaze hadn’t left his face. Sometimes a look can be a hell of a lot more intimidating than touch.

“What?”

“If you’re pretending, this new assignment shouldn’t be hard. Get dirty and find out.”

“Is that an order?”

“Yes.”

He nodded, any hint of his earlier joking gone. “Is that all?”

“From you. Eric’s next.”

“He’s had nothing to do with this.” Marv quickly jumped to his defense. Did the ruthless man actually have a soft spot for his sister’s kid?

“It’s about a different matter.” I strode out the front door.

Eric followed me. “I don’t have anything new, except she didn’t come home last night.”

“And I’m sure you know where she slept instead.” Maybe I should have been trying to protect her reputation, but Eric needed to back off.

“Not Mr. Chivalrous anymore?”

“I am, but she’ll hopefully be staying over more often now.”

“I’m still posting a watch, and you need to be careful.”

“I will be.” Something was off. He didn’t seem nearly as jealous as he should have. Bears are prone to uncontrolled jealousy. “What aren’t you telling me?”

“Just take care of her. She’s important.”

“There’s more.”