Tatum! A Clown on minute and protector the next.
Nikki POV “Thank you all for being here. Today there was an unusual sighting while we were out as a group. I just want to be crystal clear that we are all on the same page when it comes to Nikki’s safety,” Frankie said to the room in general. “Why don’t you tell us what happened? It will be easier to defend against a known enemy,” Gideon responded. “We went out as a group for sightseeing. We went by the Institute’s Campus, to the open market in the square and stopped at Velloms. While we were in Velloms, I thought I recognized someone through the window. Marcus and I went to follow the person and were not able to track them down. Either I didn’t see who I thought I saw or they avoided being tracked,” Frankie stated. “Who are we looking for?” Ernesto questioned. “Do you have a photo?” AA asked. “I have contacted my father and he is working on getting us a recent photo. The man we are watching for is the son of a recent ally of the Cold Moon Pack. His name is Kendall. He’s kind of a di
Kendall POV Damn it! I can’t believe I was almost caught yesterday. I should have come straight home when I realized that Frankie and the tracker were there. I should have, but I wanted to see if the girl was the way to get to Frankie. I can see that he is in love with her and I can use that to get him to hear me out. If he hears me out and knows my fathers plans, he can protect the girl and ultimately help me to bring my father down. I have been taking advantage of the times that my father is gone to oversee shipments. I have found that he is not only helping the gun runners, drug lords, he occasionally dabbles in human trafficking. But that wasn’t the worst of what I found, I was able to dig deep enough into the files to find that my mother’s death was the result of a rogue attack that my father orchestrated. He had his own mate killed! My mother was a saint and for her death, my father will have to pay. Yes, I will avenge the death of Graciella Rosetta Martinez with the Goddess as
Nikki POV As we walked to the campus, I had a renewed sense of strength. I had a rough idea of what I wanted to do and I needed to discuss it with Maisey and Gideon. “Hey, thanks for coming along and hanging out with my friends from home and I all weekend,” I said to Maisey. “It was really fun getting to know everyone and seeing how you are around them, instead of just hearing stories about everyone,” she replied. “Listen, I know you’re technically not on Nikki duty after school today, but can you come by after dusk? I would like to talk to you and Gideon about something,” I asked as we stepped onto campus. “You say that like it is some sort of chore we do. Nikki we’re friends and I like hanging with you ‘Nikki Duty’ or not. So to answer your question, of course I will come over when Gideon gets there or would you like to cancel Ernesto for today and I can go to counseling with you?” she said as we walked into terminology class. “No afterwards is fine. That will give you time to work
Frankie POV Today I am going to see Simone and pass some information of my own. In the envelope is a note that says ‘I’m a gambling man. So instead of a coffee shop in Sparks you have 2 days to make your way to the Hargata in Atlantic City. Reservation will be under Martinez. Don’t make me come looking for you.’ If he doesn’t show, not only will I know he is guilty, but the alliance will be void, because I will personally end his life. You don’t threaten what is mine and live to tell about it. I pulled up in front of Simone’s shop and took a breath before I got out of the car. It may take a little persuasion to get Simone to agree to cooperate but if all else fails, Nikki’s birthday is coming up and the Blood Moon Ball right after, I can flex the black card in lieu of complicity. Simone glanced up as I walked into the shop and I could already tell the black card was going to get some exercise today. “Alpha Heir Frankie, How can I be of service to you today?” they said with dollar si
Kendall POV I received a message from Simone stating they needed to speak to me immediately. I am on my way to their store wondering what could be so urgent. In all the time I have associated with Simone they have never contacted me other than to say that the task I gave them was completed. Pulling up in front of the store front, I cut the engine and took a deep breath. Whatever this is I will handle it quickly, I have much bigger things to deal with. As I entered Simone glanced up from whatever they were doing on their phone. “Ah, Alpha Heir Kendall, glad you made it so quickly. What will your purchase be today?” they said, watching me expectantly. This was part of Simone’s game, payment for information whether given or received. “Simone let’s cut to the chase here, I have no need for your baubles and I have pressing matters that I need to be handling. I will give you $200 in cash for whatever this is,” I said, a bit annoyed. I retrieved my wallet from my suit coat and selected tw
Frankie POV We arrived late in Atlantic City and got checked-in and settled. We looked at the layout of the rooms to determine if anything needed to be moved around before the meeting for tomorrow. Being that the room I would be in was an executive suite, we did position the desk so that my back would be to the sliding door of the balcony and Kendall’s would be to the door of the suite itself. After that, we decided that we needed to get some sleep, so we were prepared for whatever the outcome of tomorrow would be. Then we were up early for breakfast and then to wait. At 1:30 p.m. the front desk called the room to let me know my guest had checked in. I looked at the men with me and said, “Show time.” Shortly after that, there was a knock on the door to my suite. I looked through the judas hole and it was Kendall as I suspected it would be. So I put an indifferent look on my face and opened the door. “I wasn’t sure you would actually show,” I said as I gestured him into the room.
Frankie POV As I head for my flight to see Nikki, I am still processing everything I learned tonight. Gamma Xavier says he will fill in Alpha Kieran while I am away. Despite everything I learned tonight, I am excited to be on my way to see Nikki. My wolf is prancing around in my head with excitement, me I’m just happy I get to love up on my Little Bee. The biggest question in my mind is, do I tell her everything? I mean I know honesty is the best policy, but this may send her into an emotional tailspin. But if I withhold information that could hurt us and I definitely don’t want that. I will figure it out. I think for now I will just shut it all down once I am on the plane and get some sleep. Nikki POV Gideon and I decided to take advantage of Frankie’s late arrival and go to Rusty’s again for some extra training. I can say that in this week, I have become a master of the speed bag and I am much better at reading the body language of my opponents. Giving me confidence that once I h
Nikki POV When I woke this morning, it was with Frankie’s arm wrapped tightly around me. Though my heart swelled in happiness secure in his arms, it wasn’t the only thing swollen. I needed out of his vise-like grip to make my way to the bathroom. I tried to move his arm but he only tightened his hold. I tried giving him a gentle kiss, nothing. I brushed a piece of my hair across his face, no go. I said his name softly and he nestled closer, this wasn’t good, I really had to go. “FRANKIE!” I screamed and the moment his arm moved slightly, I rolled and ran towards the bathroom door. After taking care of my needs and brushing my hair into a high ponytail, I washed my face and hands and walked back into the bedroom. Now if I had thought all this time that Frankie was handsome, pouting Frankie was HOT! The scowl on his face made my insides quiver and my core throb. “You could have just asked me to move my arm,” he said. His voice was low and still sleep muddled. My jaw dropped open, he di
Mia POV I am not one hundred percent sure what Kendall means by public awaits, but I know I wouldn’t be dressed like this for any small event. So I eagerly placed my hand in his and followed Kendall to the back of the packhouse. When we stepped out of the back door we weren’t outside though. There was a dome that had been erected and decorated like a grand ballroom. The linens were deep burgundy and the table decor was greenery heavily trimmed in gold. The scene was absolutely breathtaking and my heart was so full, my chest could have burst right open. This had been done for me? But why? When a familiar voice came over the P.A. system, my head whipped in the direction of a small stage. “So, when I used to tease my sister about sending her far away to some evil Alpha, I never really thought about the fact that she might actually end up on the other side of the country mated to an Alpha that absolutely adores her. Phoenix Storm, may I present to you the guest of honor Luna Mia Rose De
Mia POV As Gabby drove me home I thought about Nikki and Frankie’s romantic evening ahead. I won’t lie, I am just a little jealous. Frankie is still attentive to Nikki, and I wish I could say the same was true for Kendall and I. Maybe I should try getting all dressed up and taunt Kendall with naughty suggestions. But sex doesn’t really seem to be our problem though, he’s been a little cold and closed off, he even has the mind-link blocked most of the time. Maybe I should go home for a visit. It has been a few weeks since I have seen mommy and daddy and I really haven’t gotten to know Eli’s mate Cadence. They say distance makes the heart grow fonder, so maybe if we spent a little time apart things will get better. There has to be something wrong with our bond, every couple I know can barely stand to be apart from one another. I was so deep into my own thoughts that I hadn't realized the Hummer had stopped. I was going to ask why we had stopped outside of the gates when I noticed a ba
Kendall POV Do you have any idea how hard it has been keeping a secret from Mia? It means I have had to keep my block up on the mate bond and keep mind-links to a minimum so that she doesn’t find out what I have been planning. The whole no Luna ceremony thing has really bothered me and I asked her again to consider it after I picked up the ring that I commissioned Simone to make. No go, she doesn’t need a celebration to know that the pack loves and accepts her. The thing is that pack members have asked when we will be celebrating their luna. They are so excited to finally have one and they want to shower her with affection. So while it is really a little late to have a luna ceremony because she is really their luna in every way possible, it’s never too late to just celebrate her. So the pack has been secretly planning a celebration for her. When she comes back from Cold Moon this afternoon she will hopefully be surprised. Once she cleared the gates this morning we started putting
Mia POV Everyone around here has been acting a little weird lately. No one seems to have time to talk and they are always in a hurry. Even Kendall seems distracted at times, I know we have a lot going on, but he has been so attentive from day one that it has me worried. Could our bond be broken or maybe just not as strong as everyone else’s seems to be? I really just don’t understand. I have decided that I am going to meet with Nikki and the rest of the girls at K&T this morning. I am in serious need of some girl time and a decent macchiato. I went to knock on Kendall’s office door and let him know I will be leaving for the day. “Come in,” he called out when I knocked. Gordon and Bertie were in the office with Kendall and it looks as though they are going over some sort of paperwork. I walked over and gave Kendall a kiss and said, “I am heading over to Cold Moon to have macchiatos with the girls, I will be back this afternoon. Kendall reached into his pocket and pulled out his keys
Kendall POV Things went so well meeting with the elders today and I couldn’t be happier. I realize that a name change isn’t much in reality, but I feel like it is one more step away from my father and all of his misdeeds and something that will have a positive effect on pack morale. I am curious as to what Frankie wants to speak with me about, perhaps it is just the formality of signing the alliance that we verbally agreed to back in Atlantic City. Now that we have decided on the name change, we can move forward with the fealty ceremony and that should be another step in the right direction in the healing process of the pack. If it were a financially viable option, I would have this pack house demolished and build a new one to destroy more of the bad memories. I have a little more than two hours before Frankie should arrive and I asked Anita and Letty to keep Mia distracted while I pay Simone a visit. Hopefully they have interpreted what I had in my head into another of their stun
Mia POV I am so proud of the progress that Kendall has made at sifting through the mess left behind by Hollis and the rogues. I can’t even call that vile man Kendall’s father and would never call him an Alpha. He was a disgrace to that title and his picture is next to the definition of evil in the dictionary. I don’t understand how any person can do half of the things he has done and still sleep at night. We discovered that Hollis had a lab set up in one of the warehouses, where he was testing the effects of some of the weapons he had been trafficking on different pack members who had angered him. Dr.Lynn from Cold Moon Pack came with an experimental cure that actually worked wonders in helping those who had been experimented on. She tried to explain that she used vampire blood to make some sort of protein fusion with the endoplasmic reticulum… I am definitely not science minded and it was all gibberish to me. It worked and that’s all that really matters, right? Apparently Holli
Kendall POV I honestly didn’t know what I expected to find sifting through the mess left behind by the rogues and my father’s Beta and Gamma. But the level of depravity was astounding. They took everything they could from my people and when I say everything, I do mean everything. They collected what they called ‘taxes’ but in all reality was just their greed. The more a pack member had the more they took and worse was the treatment of unmated females no matter their status. They had the packhouse running as a brothel and if a female wouldn’t submit to their whims… I just can’t even talk about it. Poor Cookie won’t tell me what she has been through and I won’t force it, but I know it had to have been bad. I accidentally knocked the broom onto the floor when I entered the kitchen and she went into complete hysterics. I had to call Dr. Lynn who came from the Cold Moon Pack hospital to sedate her. I spoke to the human authorities this morning and found that they would not allow me to
Mia POV After the battle was over, our injured and dead were transported off of the field. Kendall, my dad and I made our way to the Rip Claw packhouse. Kendall asked one of the omegas to get some fresh clothing and show my dad to the guest suite so he can shower and change. We stopped by Keegan’s room to find something for me to change into, then we made our way to Kendall’s room to shower and change. I wasn’t completely thrilled with wearing his psycho, dead sister’s clothes, but now is not the time to be picky. “How do you feel, Alpha?” I asked as we undressed quickly to get into the shower. “Relieved it’s over, if I am totally honest,” he sighed. “We freed our people and that is the important part,” I replied. “You said our people,” Kendall grinned. I looked down not knowing if I had misspoken and said, “Well, I hope they are our people anyway. You haven’t changed your mind have you?” He used a finger to lift my chin and his eyes sparkled with excitement. “Yes Luna, they are our
Kendall POV We spent the day in training yesterday and I have to say watching Mia was truly fascinating. She is remarkable both in hand to hand and in wolf form. Her movements were fierce yet graceful; she was no delicate little flower. I have said it before and I will likely say it many times more; She is my treasure, my perfect blessing from Selene. Today is the day and I wish I could say that I am ready for it but the truth is I have slept for crap these last two nights. Don’t get me wrong there is no love lost over killing my father. Quite the opposite actually. It has been two nights of the same thing on loop in my dreams, my father telling me I am worthless, I can’t do this, and he will always win. Today is the day I prove him wrong though once and for all. He may be dead, but he is still in my head and the sooner we free Rip Claw from the rogues and begin rebuilding, the better. There is so much riding on this that if I let my father’s words sway me, I would fail. Failure is