1

Chapter 1

Kira

Rivulets of condensation trickled down the side of my glass as I glanced around. The restaurant wasn’t empty, but it wasn’t busy, either, which was perfect. I wasn’t surprised my target had chosen this location. It was upscale but not too expensive—the exact type of place I assumed he always took his victims. He was late, though, which didn’t fit his style.

“Kira?” the voice in my earpiece said. “Any sign?”

It was Douglas, one of the other Tranquility operatives assigned to this sting. We had a two-man team plus the bait. I was, of course, the bait. Douglas sat in an unmarked van three blocks away. The second member of the team, Carter, was hidden in the line of sight of the restaurant with a camera. I’d chosen a seat by the big bay window so the team would have a good vantage point.

The earpiece was small, virtually invisible unless you were incredibly observant, and more silent than regular tech allowed. The fae had created the magical device for the council. The spell ensured no one but the wearer could hear anything being broadcast through it. It was incredibly helpful when we went into ops with creatures like shifters, who had significantly enhanced hearing. As small and hidden as the earpiece was, I had my hair down, covering my ears just in case. Thankfully, my hair was long enough to hide my ears, coming to the tops of my shoulders. For some operations, I dyed it or wore wigs, but I’d gone with my natural blond today.

I lifted my drink to my lips to hide my mouth. “Nope. I’m not sure what’s taking so long,” I whispered.

Carter’s voice broke in. “I’ve scanned the surrounding parking lots and see nothing. I think this guy’s a no-show.”

We were here to take down a lion shifter by the name of Leon Marx, who targeted human women for sexual attacks. Three months ago, when reports came in of over a dozen women who’d been assaulted or stalked by the same guy, the Tranquility Council got involved. Interspecies mating wasn’t outlawed per se, but it was frowned upon, especially by more traditional creatures. Wolf shifters, like me, did frown upon it.

“I’m still confused,” Douglas said. “Why is the council so worried about this guy?”

“Because, dumbass, he’s sexually assaulting humans. What more do we need to know?” Carter retorted with a derisive laugh.

“Watch the language on the comms,” I muttered, letting my lips move as little as possible. I didn’t need people knowing I was talking to anyone when I was supposed to be alone.

“Sorry. Dumbass was a bit aggressive,” Carter said. “I meant to say moron.”

“I get that,” Douglas replied, ignoring Carter’s jibe. “But when we were briefed, they said it was a pretty cut-and-dry case. Like, can’t the human authorities take care of this? Seems overkill to bring in Tranquility operatives to take down a date-raping scuzzball.”

“It’s the old guard and all their backwards rules,” I said, resting my chin in my palm to cover my mouth with my fingers. “The alphas are up in arms because this lion shifter is stalking women of other species. Favors have been called in. That’s what’s going on. It’s old-school bullshit, but who cares? Like you said, he’s a shitheel who needs to be neutered. We’re here now, so we do the job. Got it?”

Unlike other wolf shifters, I’d never had a problem with interspecies relationships, but the old men who ran most of the packs were skittish about it. So much so that when something like this popped up, they called in favors to the council to have it dealt with.

“Right.” Douglas sighed. “I’m still saying this dude is a no-show. Maybe he sniffed us out. How good is a lion shifter’s sense of smell, anyway?”

“We wait,” I hissed through gritted teeth. “You guys know how things are right now. The fact that this guy is hunting victims in a wolf-shifter territory should be enough to get the point across. We wait. That’s final.”

My team had express orders to take this guy down and do it fast. There was currently some volatility within wolf-shifter society between those who wanted our species to remain insular and pure and those who were more liberal in their ideologies. I didn’t want to think about what would happen if this guy got away and began to prey on people of my own species. Something as simple as a rogue lion shifter could tip the scales toward the war that had been brewing for months now. Some packs just wanted a reason to fight.

“I still say I should have been the bait,” Carter said. “I look good in a cocktail dress. I mean, minus the bulge between my legs.”

I sighed in irritation. I’d volunteered to try smoking out the lion shifter. As one of the few operatives in the entire organization who could seamlessly pass for human, even among other paranormal creatures, jobs like these were right up my alley. I couldn’t even remember the last time I shifted into my wolf form. It had been years. That suppression made me almost indistinguishable from human women. Even my scent had changed after all these years. I was perfect for this.

My team had created a fake dating profile on the same app Marx used to find his last three victims. I’d tried not to roll my eyes as I took revealing, sexy selfies to entice him. I had to grind through dozens of unsolicited dick pics and equally creepy come-ons before Leon finally made contact and swallowed the bait. We’d scheduled to meet up at a restaurant in Cullman, a small town near the Eastern Wilds where the majority of the population was human. I was not about to give up so easily. By the goddess, I deserved this bust after seeing all those pictures of men’s genitalia. Catching this piece of shit would make it all worth it.